Page 9 of Bitten By Desire

“You won’t remember us being here. You will allow us to continue our own investigation.” I glanced at Julian, who was busy trying to keep the fairy from doing more harm while not allowing the dragon to kill him. “Who is Gerard Montague?”

“Board member,” Tittwell said.

“What’s happening?” Lorraine demanded, pulling on my arm.

I ignored her as my heart beat faster. “Who killed my mother?”

“Tittwell doesn’t know.”

Damn it. “What other information do you have?”

“Tittwell only knows that someone got to Mr. Montague without triggering unbreakable wards and every protection known to SHADE.”

I let him go and turned to Lorraine, who backed away from me with fear in her eyes.

“I’m a good guy,” I said, trying to regain control of the situation.

“You’re a psychic,” she whisper-shouted like it was a big secret still.

“I want to help you find your husband’s killer,” I said. I didn’t add that it was because they may be able to tell me how to find the rest of the board and hopefully who killed Mama.

Lorraine bit her bottom lip as she glanced between me and Julian who had knocked out both fairies and the dragon shifter and was carrying the former toward us.

“He’s a vampire, but he will not hurt you,” I said in explanation. “I will be honest with you if you will be honest and work with us.”

“I…I don’t…I’m so confused.”

Julian set the fairy down on the ground and staggered. I put his arm over my shoulder as I inspected the huge gashes in his suit and the one that had gone deep enough for his rib bone to be visible. Dark magic swirled inside of it. His other shoulder was completely bare and torn up by what I assumed had been a dragon claw.

“The one on your side is poisoned,” I reported.

“It will heal,” he promised then glared at Tittwell who stood still, waiting.

“I used mind-bending.”

He nodded then tugged what was left of his suit jacket down with his free hand. “They wanted to kill you, Mrs. Montague. Do you know why?”

Lorraine shook her head as she worried at the material of her dress. “I have no idea why any of this is happening.”

“May we come over and discuss it?” Julian asked, as polite as ever. “We’d like to offer our help and protection.”

She gaped for a moment, taking in the scene around her as sirens wailed in the distance. Then she nodded. “I’ll have the limo brought around.”

Chapter 4

The Butler Did It?

For a mansion of its size, the Montague estate had very few servants, at least visible ones. Julian, Lorraine, and I sat in a circle of pristine white chairs with the unconscious fairy on the floor between us, a piece of iron I’d had in my belt set on his chest.

One elderly man, Lorraine referred to as Tyler, in a tuxedo, had welcomed us inside without raising an eyebrow and offered tea, coffee, or a nightcap. She’d dismissed him, and our footsteps had echoed through the gargantuan hallway, past a grand spiral staircase and into a sitting room with vaulted ceilings and an enormous window displaying a view of the manicured grounds.

The house smelled of lavender, and I wondered if she’d used it to try and relax.

“Who are you really?” Lorraine asked, fists clenched together and knuckles turning white.

I handed Julian a “jig’s up charm” as Zoe had called them, and together, we invoked them. Our bodies returned to their normal states before he spoke.

“I am Julian Carver, and this is Dr. Charlotte Devaux. We were formerly with SHADE but have recently had some…differences of opinion.”