Maudlin's Mayhem (Bewitching Bedlam #2)(7)

“How much of my background did Sandy tell you about?”

“Just that you’re the original Mad Maudlin and that you hunted vampires together with another friend.” Max frowned. “If I’ve overstepped, please—you don’t owe me any explanation. I wasn’t sure if the question was too personal.”

“It is…very personal, but I like you, and Sandy obviously likes you. So…” I handed them their wine and slid onto one of the counter bar stools, crossing my legs as I cupped the goblet in my hand, swirling the wine gently in the glass.

“I was once in love with a witch, a man named Tom. He was incredible, and oddly enough, he was a musician, too. Back in 1659, I met Fata Morgana. She’s actually the one who introduced me to Tom. He was a distant cousin of hers. We fell in love. The three of us traveled together all over what’s now the UK, and through Europe. We were chased by witch hunters a lot. We were good at what we did, and we developed a certain notoriety. On a trip to London in 1699, we met Sandy. We all hit it off really well, and she joined us on the road.”

“You met Fata on the shore, didn’t you?” Sandy carried the pizzas over to the table. Max followed her with plates and forks.

“That’s right. I was standing on the edge of the ocean, in the area now known as Seahouses. I was out on the sand, watching the waves, when I saw a big swell headed for shore. As it drew near, I realized that a woman was riding the wave in. She was actually emerging out of it, arms spread wide, head back, as she stood atop the crest of the highest wave. As the water crashed along the beach, she leaped off and ran over to me, laughing. Her hair was flame red, and she was wearing a long black dress that looked like it was made of seaweed at first. She danced around me, then took my hands and said, ‘Have you ever ridden the wild ocean?’ And that…was my first meeting with Fata Morgana.”

“When did you meet Bubba?” Max asked.

“Oh, in 1687, and he’s been with me ever since. I rescued him from a burning barn. I had stopped near a Faerie barrow to see one of the Aunties when I smelled smoke. A farmer’s barn was on fire—it had a thatched roof and you know how dangerous those are. One stray spark, it’s boom, crash, and you can kiss your livestock and livelihood good-bye.”

I whistled to Bubba, who was sitting by his food dish, watching us. “Isn’t that right? You were just a baby when I found you, weren’t you, Bub?” He padded over and leapt onto the stool next to me, letting out a loud purp. I ruffled his fur. “I have no idea what happened to his mother or the rest of the litter. Anyway, so Bubba and I have been together a long, long time.”

“When did you begin to hunt vampires?” Max looked intrigued.

“A while later. You see, a group of them caught Tom. He sacrificed his life to save mine. They turned him. I wanted revenge. With Sandy and Fata at my side, I became the scourge of the vampire nation until my fires burned brighter than those of the witch hunters. But fire can scorch the soul, so after a while, I retired. To answer your question, it’s been a process of adapting. Of accepting that not all vampires are evil—that like us, they have a choice.”

I carried my wine over to join them at the table, glancing at the clock again. “Aegis should be getting up—”

“Right about now.” Aegis popped his head around the kitchen door and joined us. “Sorry I’m late. I needed a shower.” He kissed me and waved at Sandy and Max. “Pizza?”

“Yes, love. Sit down and join us.” I patted the chair next to me. Aegis sat down, accepting the glass of wine I offered him. “I was just telling Max about how I met Sandy, Fata, and Bubba.”

Aegis nodded. “A lot of water under the bridge there.”

“You’re not kidding about that.” I paused as the doorbell rang.

“I’ll get it.” He excused himself and headed for the living room.

I glanced back at Max. “I lost Tom in 1720. We were out in the woods, working on a spell for a girl from some village. She had broken her leg in several places. Nobody asked us to help, but we knew that without our magic, the break wouldn’t heal right and she’d be lame. We didn’t realize that a group of vampires had followed us. They apparently had caught our scent—witches’ blood is an aphrodisiac for vamps.”

“I didn’t know that, either,” Max said. “I would think that witches don’t have a great love for vampires, then?”

“Mostly, no. Anyway, long story short, the vampires cornered us. Tom pushed me behind him and told me to run. I didn’t want to, but the next thing I knew, a unicorn appeared, with a Fae warrior riding his back. I snatched up Bubba, the warrior grabbed hold of me and pulled us onto the unicorn with her, and we raced away. We were so fast the vampires couldn’t even see us. We vanished into a swirl of mist and fog, and before I knew what had happened, Bubba and I were in a Barrow Mound.”

Aegis returned, carrying a package. He glanced at me, a questioning look on his face. “You’re telling Max about Tom?”

“He was curious how I went from vampire hunter to being a vampire’s mistress.” I smiled at him. “What’s that?”

“I don’t know. It’s addressed to you.” He handed me the box. “You order anything recently?”

“I’m the queen of online ordering.” I took the box. “Anyway, as I said, I ended up in a Barrow Mound. I was there for twenty years. When Bubba and I found our way out, Tom was long lost to the vampires. I reconnected with Sandy and Fata, and together we combed the country and part of the continent for those vamps. We killed…so many. There were weeks when all I could smell was the stench of blood. About ten years after that we took down an entire village of them and I lost my fire. Figuratively, not literally. I just couldn’t go on.”