Page 2 of Deadly Deception
Aurelia’s head was completely bald and covered in tattoos. From what I understood, those tattoos covered the rest of her body and were placed there by her witch creator. They were Aurelia’s restrictions—rules governing her actions. More precisely, what actions could and couldn’t bewishedfor her to perform. I’d wager ninety-nine percent of Aurelia’s life as a djinn was not her own. Aurelia’s current master—a pixie named Peaches—gave her a very, very loose leash. Peaches’s bonded and beloved, the Southeastern vampire king Lucroy Moony, shared my concerns. Time would tell who was correct.
Metal hoops dangled from Aurelia’s overly large ears, their luster gleaming in the moonlight. Her plump lips were expressionless as she stared at the casket waiting to be placed in the ground. Arms crossed under her generous breasts, Aurelia was a beautiful creature. I could appreciate that beauty, even if it wasn’t my particular sexual preference.
I checked the time again. Brendon Devonshire was officially late to the party.
Growing bored, I tapped my fingers along the sides of Sandra’s gravestone. She’d passed in 2008, so her stone was still in good condition.
Silently standing beside me, Aurelia didn’t find it necessary to make small talk. Sometimes that was okay; sometimes the silence grated. Tonight felt like the latter, and I asked, “Are you planning on staying?” Aurelia was often there one moment and gone the next.
She shrugged. “I am uncertain. I will if it is interesting.”
I wasn’t certain what Aurelia foundinteresting. She often surprised me.
Settling back into the silence, soft laughter filtered through the crisp night air. The sound was too feminine to be my client, but the low, booming chuckle that followed was certainly him. I didn’t hold laughing in a cemetery against anyone, and pushed off Sandra’s gravestone so I could at least meet my client standing upright. My clothes might not scream professional, but I always tried to make up for my desire for physical comfort by being respectful.
Brendon Devonshire wound his way through grave markers on his way to me. Tucked under his arm was a petite young woman, her auburn hair pulled back into a long, thick ponytail.
“It’s cold, Brendon,” she complained. “I should have brought a heavier jacket.”
Or a jacket at all. While I wasn’t one to judge, the cooler weather didn’t support the barely-there tank top she wore. With her lily-white arms exposed, she leaned further into Brendon. He appeared to eat it up and said, “I’ll keep you warm. Besides, this won’t take long, and it will be totally worth it.”
I raised an eyebrow. Brendon had no idea how long this would take.
Shaking off my growing unease and irritation, I took a step forward and said “Mr. Devonshire, I assume.” I didn’t offer my hand. No species wanted to touch a necromancer. It was as if we carried a transmissible disease, and they were afraid my necromancer cooties might get passed along.
“That’s right,” Brendon said, head held high.
My gaze traveled to the young lady at his side. “And you would be?”
This close, I could see her wide brown eyes flick in Brendon’s direction. Instead of answering my question, she asked her boyfriend, “Is he really a necromancer?”
I stiffened. Aurelia’s whispered laughter sounded behind me. Neither human so much as glanced in her direction. Aurelia was keeping her presence hidden.
“Yeah,” Brendon answered. “Can you believe it?”
Considering I’d been born a necromancer, had been a necromancer all my life, and had been hired to bring back the soul of his deceased stepbrother… Yes, I could definitely believe I was a necromancer. Then again, he wasn’t really speaking tome, even though I was standing right there.
My smile was brittle. Yeah, these two didn’t fit with my typical October clientele. I had a feeling Brendon Devonshire was going to wind up in the annoying-as-shit client category.
“Are you ready to begin?” I asked, more than ready to get this job over with.
Brendon started to answer, but hislady friendsaid, “I thought Steve and Janelle were coming. And what about—”
“They chickened out, Stella,” Brendon said with disgust, and more than a hint of judgment. I had no doubt that Steve, Janelle, and whoever else Stella was inquiring about would hear about their cowardly ways for years to come.
I, for one, was happy to hear no otherguestsplanned on popping up. In fact, more individuals being present went against the contract I’d had Brendon sign. Somehow, I got the feeling that a legal agreement didn’t mean shit to Mr. Devonshire.
Rocking my head back and forth, my neck popped. I considered calling Brendon out on already breaking his end of the contract, but didn’t think it was worth it. The others weren’t present.
Stella, however, did not like this news and went a shade paler. “They’re not coming?” Her eyes darted around, settling everywhere but on me. “Maybe we shouldn’t do this. I mean, Cody’s gone and—”
“It’ll be fine,” Brendon reassured her. “Right, Emus?”
Aurelia chuckled and said “Oh, this is more entertaining than I anticipated.”
I was glad she was amused. “Erasmus,” I corrected. “Necromancer Erasmus Boone.” I thought about throwing Pops’s warlock credentials out there just to be a prick, but didn’t.
Brendon waved me off as if getting names correct wasn’t important. Maybe it simply wasn’t important if you were a necromancer.
