Origin of Magic (Dragon's Gift: The Protector #3)(2)

“Careful,” I muttered.

The man turned, his brows raised. He was handsome, in a sleek way. Tall, with blond hair and glittering blue eyes. Rich playboy. Wall Street, if Magic’s Bend had a Wall Street, with a cunning light in his eyes that made me shiver.

And fangs.

A vampire.

“Excuse me.” His gaze traveled up and down my body, then drifted to Del. Appreciation lit his eyes. “Ladies. Don’t you both look lovely tonight?”

I glanced down at my T-shirt. A wiener dog wearing a hotdog bun popped up above the box. I loved a bad pun, but most people didn’t find that particularly charming. Annoying, was more like it. I looked up at the vampire. “Really?”

“I like different.” His gaze traveled between us.

I looked at Del. “I guess that’s us.”

“Yep.”

He grinned, charming in a scary way. “Indeed it is.”

“Well, we’re not here for that.” I already had one hot vampire to deal with—Ares, one of the three members of the Vampire Court. He put this guy to shame. “But you have a good evening.”

He grinned, his fangs flashing in the light, and inclined his head. “Enjoy your night. But if you change your mind…”

“We’re good.”

He smiled and nodded goodbye. At least he was gracious.

We hurried off through the crowd, dodging fae wings and shifter tails. Apparently some people were having such a good time they let their inner animal out a bit.

Near the back of the long living room, a crowd of people faced the wall. Between the figures, I caught a glimpse of a tall black bouffant, then a flash of red lipstick. Mordaca. We slipped through the crowd, finding our two friends holding court in large wingback chairs.

Mordaca, with her massive midnight bouffant and scarlet lipstick, looked like the cousin of Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. She wore so much black eye makeup that it looked like a mask, and her glittering red dress plunged low between her breasts. I’d never seen her out of her trademark black, but this definitely worked on her. Claw-like nails were painted a gleaming black that shined in the light as she held out a hand to be kissed.

At her side sat Aerdeca, wearing a striking silver gown that flowed like water over her slender form. The cloth appeared to be made of pure metal. Liquid silver. Though she looked like Mordaca’s good sister, with her blond hair and lightly made-up face, she was just as deadly and twice as dark.

Appearances could be deceiving.

Except for this situation, where it appeared that people were coming to pay their respects to royalty.

“These chicks are weird,” Del muttered.

“But they’ve always had our back.”

“Ain’t that the truth?” Del grinned. “Gotta love ‘em.”

I wiggled my way between a couple of shifters—foxes, from the look of their golden eyes—and ignored their growls of displeasure.

Aerdeca glanced up, her blue gaze meeting mine. Surprise flashed in her eyes and her golden brows rose. “Nix. Del.”

“Hey, Aerdeca, you got a second?” I said.

She glanced at Mordaca, who pulled her hand away from a slavering fae and grinned at us, her red lips glinting in the light.

“We do.” Aerdeca waved her hand at the people standing around me, the dismissal clear.

They scattered.

“Handy trick,” I said.

“Isn’t it though?” Mordaca’s voice was raspy and deep, a direct contrast to Aerdeca’s lilting tones.

“I guess our invitation got lost in the mail.” It actually kinda stung—I really had thought we were friends.

“We sent one. By strippergram.” Aerdeca grinned. “No one was home.”

“Strippergram?”

Aerdeca made a little hand motion, a twirl of her finger. “You know, dancing policeman, takes his trousers off and the invitation is tied to—”

Del laughed and I thrust out my hand, palm forward. “We get it. We get it.”

“Not a problem, though,” Mordaca said. “I think that was when you were busy being accused of murder. We understand why you couldn’t get back to us.”

I grimaced. “Thoughtful.”

“Always.” Aerdeca smiled.

“How’d you know about the accusation, though?” Del asked.

“We know a lot of people. They know a lot of things.” Aerdeca gestured to the crowd that now lingered in circles, sipping cocktails and chatting. Despite the formality of the hand-kissing that the sisters seemed to insist upon, everyone looked like they were having a good time.

“I didn’t know you were getting into the information business.” As far as I knew, they’d primarily stuck to selling blood spells and potions from their shop. Now they were establishing themselves in a serious position of power.

“It was time to expand the empire,” Mordaca said.

Well, if anyone could do it, it was them. Though what their empire would do, exactly…

Probably better if I didn’t stick my nose in it. Darklane business was not my business, especially if I liked my head right where it was. On my shoulders.

“What do you need?” Aerdeca nodded at the box in my hands. “I assume it has to do with that box?”

“Yeah.” I clutched it closer to my chest. “We were hoping you could take a look at it.”