The bell dinged, keeping Saje from giving a further explanation. Lucas, one of their regulars, strolled in. With his long, shaggy blond hair and tattoos, he was the picture of the musician he aspired to be, rather than the Ace hardware employee he was.
“Hey, Lucas.” Gillian waved and moved to the other side of the counter. She approached him, grateful for the distraction. “Are you here for a spell?”
“Yeah, that’d be great. Thanks.” He gave her a lopsided grin. He came in all the time to buy carving candles for custom spells and incense before a show. “I thought you ladies might like to stop by Carpe Diem tonight. We’re doing a gig.” He handed her a flyer.
They’d been flirting for weeks now, but he’d never pulled the trigger and asked her out. Funny, a couple of days ago she would've jumped at the chance, but now she wasn’t so sure. While part of her wanted to believe she was being more cautious after what happened with Lawrence, deep down she knew it had more to do with Garrett.
“I’m sorry, I have plans.” Gillian snagged a white pillar candle off the shelf and then glanced up at Lucas with a smile. “Some other time.”
Disappointment flashed in his eyes. “Yeah, some other time.”
Gillian reached for a ritual knife off the counter and dug the tip into the candle. Once she carved a spell into the wax, she whispered an incantation, and then set the candle aside to let the magick take hold. She reached for her phone from the counter and once again frantically scrolled through her messages to see if there had been any word on Brooke. When she found nothing, her heart sank.
She tried to redirect the train of her thoughts and glanced over at Lucas, who browsed through the shelves. While he didn’t necessarily give off an emotionally unavailable warning sign, he did have a passive vibe. Those kinds of males typically disappointed her in the end, leaving her bereft and unsatisfied. Maybe all the years of her father insinuating she wasn’t good enough had taken their toll. She’d been plagued by insecurity ever since, too afraid to go after what she wanted, and settling for guys who weren’t good for her.
While Lucas’s demeanor was tentative and shy, Garrett was confident to the point of arrogance. He was pure alpha, the type to throw a woman over his shoulder and have his wicked way with her. The thought sent a ripple of awareness pulsing through her veins. Refocusing her attention, she placed the candle in a bag and rang Lucas up.
He walked back to the register and placed some cash on the counter. “It was good seeing you, Gillian.”
“You too. Good luck tonight.”
With a smile, he reached for the bag and walked out the door into the bright sunshine. Guilt slid in her belly. She hoped she hadn’t led him on. Gillian felt a set of eyeballs burning a hole in her back and spun around.
“When are you planning to break the news to the other girls about your fake relationship with Mulroney?” Saje asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Maybe I’ll just spring it on everyone at the engagement party, where we officially come out. In the meantime, I thought maybe you’d help me lay the groundwork.” Gillian’s eyes flicked to the door as it swung open. Every time a customer approached the counter, her pulse skyrocketed. Could Lawrence have sent one of them to kill her?
“Gillian? Hey, are you okay?” Saje whispered and walked over to where she stood. She gave her arm a reassuring squeeze.
“Yeah, my mind went someplace else.” Gillian forced a smile and tried to calm her racing heartbeat.
“I’m happy to help smooth the rough edges with the other girls when it comes to you and Mulroney, but I’m guessing hearing the news from me will go over like a carrot stick in a trick-or-treat bag.”
Chapter 14
Garrett stood outside Rowena Cherry’s apartment building, hoping she could shed some light on her involvement with the Brotherhood. Before he could put his finger on her buzzer, his phone rang. He muttered a curse and held it to his ear. “Mulroney here.”
“I’m glad I caught you,” Denopoulos said in a clipped tone, which immediately put Garrett on alert.
“Why? What’s up?”
“You need to get over to Elysian Park. I’m afraid there’s been another murder.”
The moment Garrett arrived at the crime scene, he instantly filled with rage. The body of a young female had been unceremoniously dumped in a bush, next to a kid’s ball field. He couldn’t get past the blatant display of evil and disregard for human life. Jesus, this case was turning into a ticking time bomb.
Garrett pulled out his badge and crossed through the yellow and purple crime scene tape while the blare of sirens rang in the distance. He kept his head down, trying to avoid the throng of reporters he recognized frommage.com.
Denopoulos and Teague were crouched next to the body, talking to a couple of uniformed officers.
“What do we have here?” Garrett asked, walking over to a box and pulling on latex gloves, paper booties, and a face mask from a cardboard kit markedBiohazard.
“We’re still waiting forthe coroner to make a positive ID,” Teague said, scratching his horns. “But I’ll give you my best guess: A female by the name of Kylie Macheo. She was reported missing by her roommate a couple of days ago and one of the women on the list from Rowena Cherry.”
“Sonfabitch,” Garrett muttered, shaking his head. “I just left the Cherry woman’s place. I was about to ask her some questions about her boss when I got the call.”He took out his phone and began snapping shots of the body. “Cause of death?”
Denopoulos shone a penlight and frowned. “Bite marks on her neck. Big surprise. From the width and placement, I’d say another vampire killing. From the rate of decomposition, it looks like she’s been dead for more than twenty-four hours.”
“Based on the position of the body and the dirt all over her clothing, I’d say she was killed somewhere else and dragged here. Any witnesses?” Garrett turned his head to glance at the people walking through the park going about their day, and his jaw clenched. This hit too close to home.
