A Dash of Vampire (Cocktails in Hell Book 4), page 2
Lachlan shrugged. “Not the sweet one.”
“Keelie.”
“The one who looks dark. Everywhere.”
“Olive. She has a whole goth thing going.” The grumpy fairy never wore anything bright or colorful. Her entire wardrobe was a mix of black, grey, and navy. With dark hair and eyes to match, she’d fit right at home in the Addams’ Family. What wasn’t goth about her was Olive’s ability to light up the bar no matter what the festivities were, though recently she’d been falling down on the job.
Keelie was the opposite. She usually looked like she’d taken a running job into a pile of clean laundry and wore whatever she fell into. Her clothing was almost always bright and loud unless she was depressed. Then she strayed into Olive territory.
But Keelie, as awesome as she was, couldn’t match Olive in the lighting territory. I don’t think she understood our holidays and customs quite the same way Olive did, which was concerning for a number of reasons, considering the reason Olive was still here was because I’d caught her spying.
I’d worry about her later.
“She hates you very much,” Lachlan said. His fingers twitched, and I could tell he was itching to run his fingers through those scales.
“The feeling is mutual,” I grumbled.
“What did you do to her?”
“Nothing. It’s what I caught her doing.” With the straight edge of my blade, Chires this time, silent in the presence of the Unseelie, I scraped off a teeny bit of the scales and held them up to the light. They glittered with a strange iridescence.
Below me sat a cast iron cauldron, one I used only when I was involved in the most delicate of spells. Dragon scales were a new material to me, and I wasn’t sure how volatile they’d be in spell craft. I assumed since angel and demon skin and material held up well that dragon gatherings would be the same. However, they’d proven to be tricky, so I was using the utmost of caution.
I already had the base of the spell inside. Olive oil—mundane but effective in keeping things together. A touch of vengeance demon scales because Kendrick could go fuck himself, 0and a few other things I’d gathered and put together. This potion would be 100% experimental, but I had a knack for these things.
Lachlan’s face cleared. “Spying.” He nodded. “Makes sense. The small ones are effective for Ariel’s spy caste. Most people don’t notice them.” His gaze flicked to me. “It’s admirable you caught her.”
“I’m paranoid,” I said, carefully depositing the scales inside the cauldron. It glowed bright blue for a brief second. We both took a cautious step back, but when it didn’t explode, I peered into the bowl and saw a teeming mass of glowing liquid.
Cool.
Lachlan did the same, his brow furrowing. “There is no goal to this spell,” he mused.
My eyes snapped up. How could he know that?
He bared his teeth in a smile. “You forget how old I am, demon spawn.”
I stiffened. Technically, I wasn’t demon spawn, but his barbs hit a little closer to home than I felt comfortable with.
“Every spell needs a goal. Your magic swirls aimlessly in the pot. It needs something to cling to.” His eyes lifted to mine. “So tell me, what manner of Hell do you wish to rain down on this dragon who has wronged you?”
Murder. Mayhem. Total epic chaos. But he was right. I did have to pick something. My eyes narrowed. “If someone entered into a deal with you and violated the spirit of it in such a way as to cause you permanent harm, what would you do?”
His brows lifted at my question. “It is different for us. We live and die by our bargains.”
“So does Lucifer.”
Lachlan nodded, his face thoughtful. “You have to continue working with this individual?”
“Unfortunately,” I muttered.
He rubbed his jaw. “Then you must strike the perfect balance between letting them know how deadly you are while also letting them live.”
I pressed my lips together to keep from smiling. Liking Lachlan would complicate things. He was my prisoner, and eventually, I might have to make some hard decisions when it came to him. But I liked the way this dude thought.
“Maiming?” I questioned.
“Dragons regrow their parts,” he mused. “I think you can go further than that.”
This time I did laugh. “How do you feel about property damage?”
His eyes gleamed. “It’s one of my favorites.”
Together, we bent over the cauldron and plotted.
chapter two
Spelling didn’t always take it out of me, but Lachlan and I were in the back most of the day chatting about how to take Kendrick down a few pegs. Exhaustion beat through my bones, but a deep sense of satisfaction rested there as well.
The fae followed me out from the back. Lucifer lounged at the bar watching the door, his brows lifting a hair when he saw who was behind me.
Considering Lachlan had spent most of his time trussed up like a hog, Lucifer was right to be surprised.
“Would you like a drink?” I asked Lachlan.
His eyes widened in surprise. “I—ah. Yes. I would. Very much.” He cleared his throat and pointed to an empty table. “May I?”
I nodded. “No funny business.”
He held his hands up in surrender. “I know when I’m bested.”
I highly doubted that but let him wander over to the table and settle in, his expression one of slight bewilderment. Good. I liked my opponents kept off guard.
Lucifer rose, his form like liquid, and followed me behind the bar. “I hope you know what you’re doing,” he murmured by my ear.
“Never,” I said lightly.
His chuckle sounded deep and low. “Mind getting me a whiskey?”
“Hungry?” I asked.
“Always,” Lucifer responded. His gaze rested on the fae. “Your screw up could benefit us in many ways.”
“I try.”
He snorted and reached for the glass I offered.
“Lachlan was quite helpful today.”
Lucifer nodded and sipped his drink. “I can smell powerful magic back there. What are you working on?”
He rarely asked, but this one I volunteered readily. “Something to kick Kendrick’s ass.”
Lucifer’s eyes lit with amusement, but his tone was one of tempered caution. “You must take care not to offend him.” He paused. “Too much.”
I reached into the fridge and handed him a small board full of his favorite finger foods.
“You must answer strength with greater strength,” he added, smiling as he beheld what was on the board. “The dragons won’t respect less. But you must take care not to permanently harm anyone.”
“What about mentally?” I said as I perused my selections wondering what Lachlan might want. The fae sweet tooth was notorious, so I reached for a bottle of spiced mead and poured a little into a crystal glass.
Lucifer’s eyebrows rose. “You like him.” It wasn’t a question.
I smiled. “No. I do, however, like his devious mind. He has great ideas for Kendrick, some of which I incorporated. He’s surprisingly handy with spells.”
Lucifer grunted, his eyes resting on my face. “Take care, Violet. Lachlan is infamous in his lands for a reason.”
My head tilted. “Care to elaborate?”
“It’s not my story to tell.”
I rolled my eyes. “We’re all a little infamous around here, aren’t we?”
Lucifer’s made a thoughtful noise. “I find it curious how you manage to collect dangerous things. This is a concerning hobby.”
“Lachlan was an accident,” I said for the hundredth time.
He shrugged and set the board down before going around to the customer side of the bar. “Maybe. Maybe not.”
“I’m thinking about entering into a bargain.”
Lucifer’s features sharpened. “Violet.”
“He could come in handy with Michael.”
His eyes glittered, but both of us knew I wasn’t wrong. “I think you should check with your mother,” he murmured finally.
“Lilith?”
Lucifer snorted. “Yes, but asking Ellie isn’t a bad idea, either. I am not as well versed in the fae as other creatures. Perhaps they know more.” With graceful fingers, he unwrapped the charcuteries, his eyes lighting with delight.
I hid my smile. Who knew how much the Devil would like prosciutto?
“I’ll ask,” I said, reaching into the fridge again and pulling out another small board mixed with sweet and savory.
“When do you plan on making Kendrick wish he’d never been born?”
I laughed. “I still have a couple more things to work on. Maybe next week?”
He nodded. “Be careful.”
“Aww. Where’s the fun in that?”
Lachlan stared at the charcuterie board like it might bite him. “What is this?”
“It’s called charcuterie,” I said as I unwrapped it. “No idea what it means, but it’s basically an assortment of finger foods. Usually meat, cheeses, and nuts, but you can put whatever you want on it.”
He blinked down at it. “Is everything safe?”
I stared at him. “If I wanted you dead, I wouldn’t resort to tying you up and binding your magic.”
Keelie floated over just then, the closest she’d come to Lachlan since he arrived. She hovered over my shoulder. “Everything here is safe for all paranorms, us included.”
“Hey,” I said softly.
“Hey.” Today she wore pink and white striped tights with a purple tulle skirt and a tight white tank bodysuit. Her hair was braided and wrapped in two buns, and her dust was a happier color than it had been the last few times I’d seen her.
Lachlan poked a finger at the cheese. Sighing, Keelie buzzed down and snagged a piece of cheese and an almond, taking a bite of each. “See? Totally safe. Violet isn’t like that,” she grumped.
Warmth bloomed in my chest.
“The least you can do,” she continued, “is thank her for not having you tied up anymore.”
Lachlan grunted. “You are a bold little fae, aren’t you?”
Keelie glared at him. “I know who you are, Unseelie. I am safe here.”
“No one said you weren’t,” he said lightly. Lachlan picked up a piece of cheese and nibbled at it. Surprise lit his face, and he popped the entire piece in his mouth. When he didn’t turn into a toad, he dug into it with relish. “Thank you,” he said after a moment.
“You’re welcome. The mead is an old recipe I obtained from a friend.”
Keelie stared at me. “You’ve been hiding that the entire time?”
“I have a bunch of mead in the basement. You’re welcome to look around and see what else you might want.”
Keelie didn’t wait for me to change my mind. She buzzed away in a flurry of colorful dust.
“She is an ally,” Lachlan said, his gaze following her until she disappeared.
“A friend,” I corrected.
His eyes snapped back to me. “You count a fae as a friend?” He sounded incredulous.
“I count many as friends. It doesn’t matter how they identify,” I added. “Except for the dragons. Those guys are dicks.” Minus Landry, though he didn’t claim the other ones too much, so I’d forgive him the circumstances of his birth.
Lachlan chuckled. “Fae do not keep friends outside of their realm,” he mused.
“Except for Keelie.”
“Hmm. Perhaps Keelie is an exception. Olive behaves more like us.”
I couldn’t help the grimace on my face. “I’ll leave you to it. The bar officially opens in half an hour. Take care not to offend the demons. They won’t take kindly to it.”
“Noted.” He looked down at the board before his gaze found mine again. “I had…fun today. It has been many years since I could talk magic with a gifted practitioner.”
I blinked, surprised at his words. How long was this guy trapped in that forest? If he was trapped at all. “Me too,” I said before heading back to the bar.
Tonight would be busy. Friday nights could be overwhelming at any bar in our area, but the demons got particularly restless right before the weekend. Lachlan might prove an unwelcome distraction. Demons got a little weird around the fae, but they’d finally settled down around Keelie. We’d kept Lachlan away for a while now, but he’d helped out so much today I thought I should loosen his reigns. His magic stayed bound, but he could move freely. If a demon attacked him, he could at least defend himself physically. Not that they would. We took such infractions seriously, and I’d booted out a few demons who pushed those boundaries.
With Lachlan munching happily and Keelie raiding the mead supply, I finished up prepping for the evening. The portal rumbled right at opening time, spitting out a bunch of high-level demons. I’d seen them before and dismissed them right away. They never partook of the potions, but they were calm and hung out without issue. I waved at them and motioned to Landry coming out from the back.
He nodded and headed over, tying an apron over his clothing as he went. His footsteps hitched as he saw Lachlan sitting unrestrained, but when he looked back over his shoulder and saw me smile, he shrugged and headed to the demon table. One of the reasons I adored Landry was his willingness to take everything in stride. He rarely flipped out, and he trusted my judgment even when he didn’t always agree with it.
The night went by quickly. I poured more drinks and potions than I’d done in a while, grinning as Gary the Jukebox kept up with the festive air by spitting out random old and current hits. Lam came in an hour or so after opening but didn’t stop to chat. I liked the ancient demon, but I was also a little wary of her. She was an ally for sure, but she also scared the shit out of me. I counted her as a friend, but not one I’d get drunk with for fear I’d wind up impaled in a foreign world or wind up lost in space.
Mom came by later with her strange little companion, Storm. The guy looked to be 150 pounds soaking wet, but he had a dangerous air about him. His hair was a strange silvery color, bound with a strap of leather. Storm’s pale blue eyes swept the room, looking for any hint of danger. If you had no experience with people from our world, Storm might look like the guy you’d take out first.
Doing so would be a mistake. There was a reason Mom had kept him around so long. I didn’t ask about the nature of their relationship. She was entitled to her personal life, and I didn’t want any mental pictures I couldn’t scrub from my brain.
Lilith smiled at me and mimed drinking. She liked Cosmos, which made me laugh, so I mixed one up for her and a straight vodka with lime for Storm. Landry snagged them from me before I could make it out. I gave him a thankful smile and watched as he went over to my mom.
Lilith was stunning. Ebony hair and vivid green eyes, a slender but lean with muscle frame, and a shit ton of metric magic…Mom was a catch.
A catch no one could catch, I had to add. She and Lucifer had been a thing for a long time, but they were now allies and, not quite friends, but something close. Him protecting me had gone a long way to repair the relationship, I think. Her eyebrows rose when she caught a glance of Lachlan. She gave me an odd look but returned her attention to Landry. Storm sat ramrod straight, his sharp eyes missing nothing. Mom could relax without fear of danger without him around, and that eased something within me.
Storm might look like he walked out of an anime and have the attitude of an angry snake, but he cared for Mom, and that was enough for me.
Jude came downstairs, his gaze snagging on me for a brief moment before trailing around the bar. The denizens had finally gotten used to him, but Jude still seemed to walk on eggshells at the bar. I waved and gestured him over, but he held up a finger and beelined for Lucifer who’d moved to another table to participate in whatever weird card game the demons had come up with this week.
Weird. I watched as their heads bent together in heated discussion. Several more orders came through, so I tore my attention away and made those, making a note to ask about it later.
We still needed to get together and figure out our next step concerning Michael. All of us were torn in different directions these days, and it didn’t help I’d accidentally kidnapped the Unseelie king. For the first week, we hunkered down expecting an attack to come from Ariel’s court. When it didn’t come, we’d relaxed a little, but it bothered me. Was Lachlan so shunned Ariel wouldn’t swoop in to save one of her people?
Or was there something about Lachlan Ariel wanted gone?
The fae had far too many questions and not enough answers swirling around him. A bargain binding him to us couldn’t come soon enough. If he even agreed. If he wouldn’t…I let out a breath. I’d cross that path when I had to and not a moment before.
My hands worked as quickly as I could, loading Landry’s tray with drink after drink. The charcuterie boards sold out half an hour ago, far more popular than I expected them to be, so I’d have to make more tomorrow before I opened. Plus, I had a few new potions to put on the menu.
Half an hour before closing, the crowd was still large, and music still pumped from the jukebox. Jude came by to give me a halfhearted hello, but when I tried to engage him in conversation, he’d cut me off and claimed to be tired. I watched him head upstairs, wondering if I’d done something to offend him.
Immortals were confusing on the best of days. I’d be better off trying to capture the moon than figure it out.
A massive thump sounded against the human side of the door. All attention turned to it. Wiping my hands on a towel, I came around the bar.
Storm stood and stepped in front of me. “Don’t answer it.”
No humans could enter my bar unless they had a healthy dose of paranorm blood. The place remained hidden, unveiled to only those worthy. And it was never locked. There was no need. So the thump had me worried.
“Someone might be injured.” I pushed past Storm, who growled at me, and waited by the door.
Several people came up behind me, their heat pressing against me.
The thump sounded again, weaker this time.
