Okay, I tuned out for a while during that part. But at least the cheese was good.
At around twenty to eight, Casimir deftly turned the conversation to ways of protecting Sinclair from his sister’s threat.
“Obviously, we should start with a ritual cleansing,” Kim McKinney said. “I’d be happy to oversee it.”
I’d just bet she would. I suppressed an irrational surge of jealousy.
“Have you done any work with crystals and visualization?” Sandra Sweddon asked Sinclair. “White light? Chakras?” He shook his head. “That’s okay, honey. We’ll work on it.”
“How do you feel about ink?” Mark Reston stretched out his arms to reveal a pair of large and intricate seals tattooed on his muscular forearms. “Sheila and I have a portfolio of sigils we designed ourselves. Some of them are for protection. You’re welcome to stop by the shop and see if any of them speak to you.”
“I’ll knit you a prayer shawl, dear,” Mrs. Meyers said in her kind voice. “There’s a blessing in every stitch.” She caught sight of Sinclair’s expression and chuckled. “Don’t worry, it’s more of a scarf than an actual shawl.”
Warren Rogers scratched his chin. “Sounds like you’ve got a bit of herb lore, then. You any good with plants?”
“Not bad,” Sinclair said. I wondered if that had anything to do with the elemental nature fairies’ fondness for him.
The landscaper gave him a shrewd look. “I could use a new assistant. Lost a couple of college kids to the fall semester, and I hear your tour’s only running on the weekends during the off season. You interested?”
“Point of clarification.” Casimir raised one finger before Sinclair could answer. “Are you talking about a job or an apprenticeship, Warren?”
He shrugged. “Depends on Mr. Palmer here. I could use a good worker either way. Don’t know that I’ve got a handle on this obeah business, but his studies sound close enough to my journey on the right-hand path. If he’s willing to dedicate himself to
Casimir turned to Sinclair. “Well? Are you?”
Sinclair frowned in thought. “What happens if I say no?”
“If you’re asking if we’ll withhold our assistance in the matter at hand, the answer’s no.” The Fabulous Casimir steepled his fingers. “We’ll do everything in our power to protect you. But to be perfectly honest, it will be more effective if you’re on your way to becoming an initiate. And if you’re asking if we’d like to have you, the answer is yes.”
Glancing around the room, Sinclair studied the members of the coven one by one—reading their auras, I assumed.
After a moment he nodded. “I’m in.”
Twenty-five
For another half hour, the coven discussed the specifics of implementing their various plans of occult protection. I listened and made mental notes on the individual members and their different areas of expertise, figuring it was all good input for my thus-far-hypothetical database.
Hey, I’d promised to keep confidentiality, but I hadn’t promised not to make a record of what I learned. It might be useful someday.
At quarter after eight, I excused myself. “Cas, I’ve got to leave. Sorry, but duty calls. You said someone could give Sinclair a ride home?”
“I’ll do it,” Kim McKinney volunteered, smiling sidelong at Sinclair. “No problem.”
He smiled back at her. “Thanks, sistah.”
The Fabulous Casimir spread his fingers. “Et voila.”
It’s not like I had any right to complain. I was the one who’d broken up with Sinclair, and I was the one to arrange this meeting. Now that he was back on the market, I couldn’t blame Kim for flirting with him.
Still, it gave me an inward pang.
Of course, that was offset by the fact that I was meeting with my childhood crush and sometime partner in police business, Officer Down-low himself. Too bad we were headed out to Twilight Manor to locate a missing kid. Not exactly a fun date.
I called Cody from Casimir’s driveway. He picked up on the first ring. “Hey, Pixy Stix. Ready?”
“Yep.”
Unless I imagined it, there was a faint sigh of relief on Cody’s end. No matter what he’d said, no one in their right mind wanted to enter the House of Shadows without backup. I know, I’d done it. “Meet me at the gas station on the corner of Sixty-fourth Street,” he said. “I’ll pick you up. If you’re coming as Hel’s liaison, I think it’s best if we present a united front.”
“See you in five,” I said, and ended the call.
One thing about living in a small town: It’s easy to estimate travel time. Five minutes later, I pulled alongside the squad car in the parking lot of Pineview Gas & Convenience.
Leaning over, Cody opened the passenger-side door for me. “So what was this important appointment you couldn’t reschedule?”
I slid into the seat. “None of your business.”
“I heard you broke up with the fake Jamaican,” he said. “I heard he’s not so fake, and his baggage is a problem.”
I gave Cody a sharp look. “Did the chief talk to you?”
“He worries.” Cody gave me a scowl in return. “I just wish the timing was better, Daise. Whatever’s going down with this sister of Sinclair’s, I wish it wasn’t happening around the full moon.”
“Yeah?” I buckled my seat belt. “Me, too. But right now, we’ve got a missing kid to worry about, right?”
“Right.”
The House of Shadows was located on a huge piece of property out in the countryside, not far from the lakeshore. Depending on how far the actual boundaries of Little Niflheim extend, it might be situated atop the underworld itself. It was purchased in the 1940s by the mistress of the manor, the beautiful, wealthy, and undead Lady Eris, who promptly moved her brood of a dozen or so vampires into the place. I’m not sure what their number is today, although it hasn’t grown as much as one might think. Vampires form blood-bonds with their chosen mortals, but they’re very picky about who they actually turn. Bethany Cassopolis’s undead paramour had been stringing her along for eight years.
For the record, I’d done some research into breaking the blood-bond. So far, the only method I’d found other than killing the vampire in question was a massive blood transfusion, which wasn’t exactly a procedure that could be done on an unwilling subject.
Anyway, the House of Shadows was awake for the night, blackout curtains drawn, lights ablaze. I checked the zipper on the collar of my motorcycle jacket as Cody pounded the door-knocker.
“Yes?” The blond vampire who opened the door a crack sounded annoyed. Maybe it was because he’d been stuck on reception duty for years.
“Pemkowet PD.” Cody held up his badge. “We’re looking for a sixteen-year-old girl who’s gone missing. I have reason to believe she may be on the premises.”
Over Cody’s shoulder, I saw the vampire’s eyes narrow. Without thinking, I kindled the merest spark of a shield, holding it in my thoughts. “I assure you, Officer, there are no minors here.”
“I’d like to have a look.” Cody’s voice sounded casual, but there was tension in the line of his back.
“Do you have a warrant?” the vampire inquired, curling his lip to reveal the tips of his fangs.
“Even better.” I stepped out from behind Cody so the doorkeeper could see me, raising my left hand to display Hel’s rune. “He’s got me.”
Maybe it was because I was bolder with Cody at my side and a psychic shield at the ready, or maybe it was because the word was out that I’d used
