Shadow Watcher (Darkness #6)(5)

“Try to kill her, human male. I will rock your world.” Charles’ tattoos lit up.

I blew out a breath. “Taking him into the Mansion is going to suck. With that challenging stare, he’s going to have the whole place fighting.”

“At least he won’t be worried about the orgies, though.” Charles smirked.

True.

I stared for a moment, then took a step back. “All right, well… I’m Sasha.”

I released the bands.

Nothing happened for a moment. Then the man rolled his shoulders. His arms drifted away from his sides. His gaze, full of wild, raw aggression, drifted to Charles. He flexed.

“I’m your huckleberry. I won’t even use magic.” Charles’ arms rippled with muscle as they lost their color.

The man smirked, then turned his gaze back to me. That fire still burned, but it was subdued now. Under control. “I’m Paulie.”

My eyebrows were probably in my hairline. Is that it? I expected him to lose his shit just then. Most of the guys in the Mansion would’ve.

I nodded with a turned down mouth, my version of asking what was next. “That’s Charles. Tomorrow we’ll meet the witches. They are human, too, and have access to their magic. Tonight, though, um…we’re just going to go back to the Mansion—to the place where guys like Charles live. I’m the Mage there. Do you want to come?”

Paulie started to laugh. He looked up at the sky and shifted so he could look behind him at the mouth of the alley. “I’m going to end up back in the psyche ward. Shadows, mages, witches…what the f*ck?”

He let another chuckle out, put his hands on his hips and leaned over. It almost looked like he’d run a mile and was catching his breath. “Screw it.” He straightened up. “Yeah, sure. I’ll go wit’ you and check out all this fairyland bullshit. Why not, right?”

“That’s the spirit,” I mumbled.

I just hoped he didn’t pick a fight with someone and get himself killed.

Chapter Two

Still feeling a little awkward, I stupidly motioned Paulie along and set off at a brisk pace back to my car. “Exciting things,” I said to myself as we walked. I was trying to convince myself more than actually believing it.

“What are?” Charles asked, walking beside me. Paulie was following along behind. Part of him wasn’t sure about going to the Mansion, I could tell. All of this was against everything that had been drilled into him at the mental institution. He’d been shut away from the world for believing this type of thing, after all. But curiosity was probably getting the better of him, like it had me. He wanted to know what really went bump in the night.

He was about to get the crash course.

“Humans with magic. I just love that we can match you f*ckers,” I said as I turned and kicked out. Charles jumped away before it could land.

“Really, Sasha? If you moved any slower you would’ve turned to stone.”

I threw a punch at Charles’ jugular, and another at his stomach. He slapped away the first lazily and let the other land. My fist bounced off a rock hard stomach. A knuckle popped.

“Ow,” I muttered, massaging my knuckle.

“When are you going to learn your lesson?” Charles asked with a smile. “You are a human, and therefore weaker—”

I zapped him with a pure shot of fire.

“Ow! Damn it, Sasha!” Charles grabbed his chest where the magic landed and danced away.

“You’re stronger physically, but weaker in magic, and a huge boob. Suck on that.” I sauntered ahead of him across the street and into another alleyway.

“I asked for a transfer, did I tell you that?” Charles asked, hanging back with Paulie.

“You tell me that every time I best you, idiot. And no you didn’t.”

“I could’ve.”

“You could’ve also grown a brain, but I see no evidence…”

“Paulie, bro, don’t get on her detail,” Charles muttered. “You get the offer and you walk the other way. It’s just not worth the aggravation. Plus, you’d have to deal with Jonas, and he is a prickly bastard. If he smiles at you, you just keep walking. Seriously, bro. That’s not a place you want to be.”

“How old are you?” I heard Paulie ask.

I couldn’t help but burst into laughter as I exited the other side of the alley and turned left. I fished in my pocket for keys as my gaze fell on a white BMW. My eyebrows rumpled as I glanced up the block, looking for my Firebird. I turned around and looked at the building, spotting the bright yellow “sweet thang” painted on the wall over other graffiti. I stared back down at the BMW.

“Where’s my car…” I glanced around again as Charles stepped up, the confusion I felt crossing his face. I was about to ask if I was losing my mind, and maybe we parked somewhere else, when my phone rang.

Taking it out of my back pocket, I saw “Cato” written across the top. I put it to my ear. “Hello?”

“Sasha?”

“Yes. Hi Cato.”

“Oh, Sasha, so lovely to hear your voice. How are you these days? Did you do anything interesting tonight?”

Cato always opened the conversation with pleasantries. He could be under attack and he’d still chat about the color of the flowers on his desk. Being hundreds of years old, time meant nothing to him.