“We all are,” Tulip said. “Between the murderers and all the humans, how would you not be?”
“I agree. That’s why I thought it would be a good idea for us to have a misfits’ meeting. Not just because Mellgren is struggling, but because I think we probably all are.”
“We’ve all been busy, but that’s no excuse. We missed one meeting because of the festival committee, and I should’ve rescheduled that one. That’s on me,” Elwood said.
“Not just you, it’s on me, as well.” The Misfit Monsters’ Support Group had been Elwood’s idea, but that didn’t mean he was solely responsible. I might not have been their alpha, but I still felt a responsibility to the community, and I should have done better.
“Well, I suppose I should go and get the room all ready.” Elwood headed to the back room where we held our meetings, and Tulip and I followed. However, it didn’t look like there was anything for us to do. The murder board had been turned to face the wall, and the table had been cleared.
“Looks like Eugene beat me to it.”
Eugene shivered out what I assumed was a don’t worry about it before slipping beneath his fridge.
A few minutes later, members of the group began to arrive. I was actually surprised so many came on such short notice. By the time we were ready to start, Az, Sandy, and Hazel had joined us, but Mellgren still wasn’t there.
I was about to text him when a bat flew into the room, making me twice as glad I had scheduled a meeting. Mellgrenrarely went anywhere in his bat form, so if he was traveling with wings, he was really stressed. He shifted into his human form and took a seat.
We were about to begin when I heard the front door open and heavy footsteps trample across the floor toward the meeting room. We all turned to look as Perry walked in.
“Perry, good to see you.” I shifted my chair around to make room for the big guy.
“Well, you all kept telling me that I should come, and I figure after the last couple of days, it might not be a bad idea.”
“Well, we’re glad to have you.” Elwood stood at the end of the table. “Now let’s all take a moment to introduce ourselves.”
Az groaned, Sandy rolled his eyes, and Tulip started to speak, but Elwood lifted his hand. “I’m very well aware of the fact that we all know each other. I don’t need you to tell me that again. But there’s an order to things, and there’s a reason we do this. Gideon, why don’t you start?”
I nodded and said, “My name is Gideon. I’m a shifter, but I’m unable to shift.”
Az went next. “My name is Azar. I’m a demon, and I don’t think humans are worth the time it takes to curse them.”
“I would curse them if I could,” Tulip muttered under her breath, and Elwood shot her a look and then nodded at Sandy to go.
“My name is Lysander, but I prefer Sandy. I’m a sprite, but I don’t like to play pranks on people. I think it’s mean, and I prefer to be kind.”
We continued around the table. Hazel, with her refusal to kill her husband, Tulip not being able to find one, Mellgren being a vegan, Eugene, who refused to spy on people, and finally Perry not wanting to hide in the woods.
Elwood folded his hands on the table. “All right, introductions done. Let’s get to why we’re here. Mellgren, yousaid you were having a rough week, so why don’t you start us off?”
Mellgren sighed and adjusted his glasses like a weary professor instead of a centuries-old vampire. “I thought I was past being shaken by blood, but when Jim…” He trailed off for a second, clearing his throat. “Seeing it again, the way it was, unsettled me. Not because I was tempted—don’t mistake me for some fledgling—but because it reminded me of everything I’ve spent decades trying to leave behind. And on top of that, someone slipped garlic into my beet smoothie. Garlic! I had hives for hours. Between that, the tourists, and these new cars with their ridiculous backup cameras…”
“I love my backup camera,” Sandy said, obviously confused.
Mellgren scoffed and spread his hands. “I nearly got run over twice this week. Do you know what it feels like to be invisible on a camera? Infuriating.”
“Sorry, Mellgren. I didn’t think of that,” Sandy said.
“That sounds very stressful.” Hazel held up her current crochet project to demonstrate her weaving. “Would you like me to wrap you up in a nice soothing cocoon? I’m almost finished with this.”
Mellgren gave a sad little shrug. “No, but thank you, Hazel, that’s very nice of you to offer.”
Tulip snorted. “At least you didn’t have three kids chuck fast-food wrappers into your pond. I wanted to drag them to the bottom and hold them there until they apologized, but apparently”—she rolled her eyes—“that’s frowned upon.”
“Yes, it is,” Elwood pointed out.
Perry rumbled, his deep voice filling the room. “I get the urge, though. Tourists are the worst. They’re tromping off trail, tossing beer cans and chip bags, stressing out every deer in a five-mile radius. I had to chase two of them out with a very politegrowl. They screamed like I’d bitten off a limb.” He smirked. “Didn’t even touch them.”
Az leaned back in his chair. “Why are there so many humans at a magic festival, anyway? I wandered out to see what the fuss was about, and they were everywhere. One of them even dared me to eat a ghost pepper.” His lips curled in a smirk. “And I finally understood why they’re called that—because they weren’t even there. Just gone. Vanished. No spice at all.”
