“Here’s the thing. I’ve been sent to ask you nicely to remove the hex from Heidi. So, I’m asking you nicely.”
Stacy lay still.
“I know you’re awake. I’ve fulfilled Heidi’s request to be nice. Everything else from here on in is my choice. How attached are you to your toes?”
The girl opened her eyes. Her hand darted out. “Agonia…” She was immediately outraged. “You bound my magic, you bitch.” She scrabbled at the ribbon and yanked her hand away with a scream. A searing burn had appeared on her fingers.
“Yeah, I wouldn’t do that if I were you. Let’s get back to Heidi. You need to remove the hex.”
“All this over that silly piece of trash?”
Lexi backhanded her across the mouth.
“Her hair will grow back.”
“Grow back? Do you honestly not know what you’ve done? I’d say she’s very close to death.”
“No, her hair was only supposed to fall out, that’s all.”
“She looks about a hundred years old.”
A giggle bubbled from Stacy’s throat, and Lexi’s expression settled into cold anger.
The girl seemed to sense another slap on its way and she held her arm up. “I didn’t mean that to happen. I don’t think I can remove it.”
She rested her hand on the handle of the katana. “You think you can’t or you know you can’t?”
Stacy stared at the katana. “I think… I-I don’t know.”
Lexi could see in her face that the girl thought she wouldn’t be able to undo the spell. She was fairly certain the witch had known exactly what she had done but she had promised Heidi she’d try to let her live. That might be a difficult promise to keep, though. Every moment she spent with her convinced her more that Stacy’s life should be ended then and there.
“I’ll tell you what. I’ll give you a few minutes to think about it. When I come back, I want you to have found a positive response. Perhaps your grandma could help.” She stood and walked to the edge of the factory building.
When she heard the girl shuffle, she sensed something was coming. Instinctively, she dived to the right when a sudden blur struck her and tried to pull her in the opposite direction. It swung her and put itself between her and the witch and only then did she realize it was a vampire. The hex pouch Stacy had thrown hit him and a cloud of…something spread over him.
He froze for a moment and she unsheathed her katana but paused as her brain caught up.
This idiot was trying to save me.
“What the fuck is on my jacket?” He spun wildly, trying to see his own back. She almost giggled. He looked like a dog chasing its tail.
Lexi looked at her katana and the strange oil on the blade. She decided the vamp could wait. After all, she had a job to do.
“Whatever it is was probably intended to kill me. Since you’re already dead, I’d say you’re lucky.”
Calmly, she walked to the witch.
“Wait, I think I can remove the hex—”
She swept the blade in a brutal arc and Stacy’s head sailed into the darkness.
“Is that mouse droppings? This is a three-thousand-dollar Gucci suit.” The vamp looked apoplectic with rage. “I’m going to—” He stormed to the witch but noticed belatedly that her head was elsewhere. “Oh. Well, good.”
Lexi looked at the body and tried to decide the best way to get it to the river.
“Allow me.” The vampire picked the corpse up easily by the waistband of the jeans and stepped through the hole in the fence. She heard a loud splash as he threw it into the river. The head was easily located and she held it by the hair, threw it from where she stood, and was rewarded by the sound of a smaller splash.
“She shoots, she scores.” The vampire stepped through the fence. He smiled and stuck his hand out as though they were meeting at a cocktail party. “William Levin. Dashing vampire, private investigation, and corpse removal. The first one’s free.”
She raised an eyebrow and shook his hand. “Lexi. Freelance exterminator, apparently.”
“Oh, goodness. I know who you are. I’ve been asked to find you.”
Lexi scowled.
“Let’s get a drink. A toast to my dearly departed jacket.” He held the garment at arms’ length.
“Can I get a raincheck? I’ve had kind of a busy night.”
His face became serious. “I think we need to talk.”
“Come on then, Dick,” she agreed with a sigh.
“That was uncalled for,” the vampire muttered.
They walked through the cemetery. Her car was blocked in by his and she stared at him.
“What? I didn’t know if you’d put up a fight.” He opened the trunk and threw the jacket into what looked like a body bag, then zipped it decisively. With another sigh, she climbed into the passenger seat.
The server placed their drinks on the table—coffee for Lexi and an obscenely large bourbon for the vamp, who she had decided to call Dick. The waitress was very pretty. She smiled at the vampire and batted her eyelashes but he didn’t notice.
“I’m sure you’ve guessed that I was hired by Kindred to find you. But I must admit, I’m terribly curious to know why you absconded. I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
Lexi poured sugar into her coffee and stirred, thinking as she did so. “I assume you’ve already contacted them.”
“No. Why would you think that? Like I said, I’m curious.”
She couldn’t work the guy out. “So, I could get up and leave right now.”
“You could. I was asked to find you and I did that. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve done my part.”
“If they get here and I’m gone, I can guarantee they won’t pay you.”
Dick pulled the white ribbon from his pocket. “Proof.”
“Actually, I kinda need that,” she said and rolled her eyes.
He wound it neatly around his fingers and placed it in
