Page 264 of Sigils & Spells

Dang it all, I thought my make-up and witch charm hid the bruises, but warlocks have sharp eyes that can see below all of that. It’s as if they smell wounds. “That’s not important right now.” I waved my hand in the air.

“Seattle, eh.” Gavin glanced my way. “Isn’t that where the Ass Hat lives?” Ass Hat was Gavin’s pet name for Dakota. One of the many reasons I loved the werewolf.

“Yeah.”

Donovan stiffened. “He hit you?”

“No. No. I got this from a hysterical woman in the joint. Can we get back to business?”

Gavin snickered. “The joint? Do you mean jail? You?”

Donovan leaned toward me and sniffed. “She tells the truth.”

Gavin pulled out his phone and started tapping.

I cleared my throat. “As I said, my trip is not important.”

Donovan tucked a lock of my hair behind my ear. “It’s a real shiner, honey.”

“Hah,” said Gavin. “Here’s the truth. Our dear little sister was arrested last night for mischief. Apparently, she was caught slitting tires in the parking lot of Murphy’s bar.”

Donovan chuckled. “My, my, Rebel, you’ve been naughty. Hanging around vampires is turning you … wicked.”

I closed my eyes. My cheeks burned. “Can we talk business?”

Gavin kept tapping on his phone. “Her charges are pending, but she was supposed to appear in a Seattle court this morning. What do you think, Donovan? Shall we report her?”

“An escapee? Oh, this is getting even better. Wait until I tell Merlina.”

“No!” I jumped up and planted my fists on my hips. “You need to listen to me. I need help.”

“You’re a mild-mannered witch running a school for gangsters who bite. Why would you need help?” said Donovan with a sly smile.

Then it happened. I couldn’t help myself. I’m not that powerful a sorceress, but when I get angry, really angry, energy flows out of my body and effects the electric grid. It’s just a thing that happens, and I can’t control it. The lights in my office flashed on and off.

Gavin laughed. “Yup, she’s in trouble.” He returned to my desk and folded his body into a guest chair to face me.

Donovan eased himself into the other chair. “Tell us,” he ordered in his authoritarian voice that had led supernatural armies in battle.

My stomach twisted. “One of my students was assaulted.”

“While you were in the clinker?” said Gavin.

“Where was Onyx?” asked Donovan.

I sighed. “Here’s the thing … Onyx is missing, and I need to fix a missing fang problem. I can’t talk to any of the vampires until dark. So maybe you guys can help me.”

“Hmm,” they grumbled in unison like a boy-band chorus. “You have a fang problem?”

“Yes. There’s a Fang Hunter in town. All the information I have is in this file,” I explained.

CHAPTER5

Before I could lookin the file, Norman, my norm janitor tapped on my open office door and entered with a tray of coffee. He was a middle-aged man with wispy salt and pepper hair and a paunch dressed in a blue flannel shirt and jeans. My brothers glared at him for the intrusion.

“Don’t bite me,” he said. That was his standard line. It usually worked well, but these guys were a hard audience.

They shook their heads in disbelief.

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