the bloody spots. “What happened here?”
“Look for yourself.” Ryan jerked his head toward the open door on his right. His tone held a warning.
At first the scene looked normal enough. Pastel walls, worn wooden floors, cheap garage sale furniture. Typical apartment fare. As soon as Ari stepped across the threshold, the metallic smell of blood hit her hard. A red haze clouded her vision, and she could almost taste the sickening sweetness on her tongue. Bent over, her hands on her knees, she swallowed twice and fought the urge to back away. After a moment, she straightened and rounded the corner toward the kitchen. Table, chairs, mirrors, pictures—all had been churned by a giant eggbeater. Wherever she looked, objects were smashed and splintered, including the victim. The body of a young, human female, maybe sixteen or seventeen years old, lay in a crumpled heap.
Ari blanched from this latest shock. Why the hell was a human child living in Olde Town? Surrounded by predators? A runaway maybe, doomed from the moment she put down her rent deposit. Ari shook her head to clear her mind and tamped down her witch senses.
A large jagged section of what had once been a Formica dining table hid much of the victim’s still form, and Ari stepped closer. The girl’s legs lay twisted awkwardly under her body, jeans and tube-top ripped by claws or teeth and stained with darkening blood. Red hair splayed around her face; her head flopped against her left shoulder. Something had twisted her neck with savage force and tossed her carelessly on the floor. She might have been a broken toy, a ragdoll no longer wanted. Except for the blood.
The reason for dispatch’s call was obvious. The scene shouted Otherworlder strength. Shape shifters, vampires, demons…the list of possibilities in the magic world was long.
“Neighbor heard a commotion and called it in.” Ryan had followed her into the room. “By the time the first officers arrived about 9:40, the apartment was empty. Except for the body. We’re canvassing the neighborhood, but so far no one’s admitted seeing anything. Big surprise, huh? Plenty heard it, but no one came out to see what was going on. Nobody wants to get involved.” Ryan grunted softly and glanced at his notebook. “Victim’s name is Angela Raymond. Lived here alone. The next door neighbor,” he jerked a thumb toward the apartment on the east, “says she has at least two boyfriends.”
“Do we know who they are?”
“Sort of.” He consulted his notes again. “Suspect one is a big, muscular vamp, name of Vince or Victor. Black hair, Caucasian. Looks to be in his thirties or forties. The other guy is human, also Caucasian, name unknown, age estimated at twenty, average build. Not much of a description on him. Maybe he’ll come forward on his own. Considering the condition of the room, I’m liking the vampire for this one.”
“Hmm.” Ari slipped on a pair of gloves and remained noncommittal. Ryan’s biases against certain magic races didn’t need encouragement. He was assigned to the Inter-Community Division (ICD) of the police department only because his brother was married to an elf. That didn’t mean Ryan liked vampires, demons, or werecreatures. Ari was thankful he tolerated witches.
They started working the scene. Although Ari tried to pick up any identifiable smells of Otherworld energy or the tingles associated with dark magic, her sensory system was overloaded by so much blood. As she helped Ryan sort through the mess, she spied a familiar pamphlet on the kitchen counter. Startled, she turned and peered at the girl, envisioning her in a blue Viva La Difference T-shirt.
“Ryan?”
The tone of Ari’s voice got his attention. He looked at her sharply.
“Can I see the victim’s face?”
“Sure. Photos already captured the scene.” He leaned down and pulled the hair away with a gloved hand. “Medical examiner’s been here. Thirty seconds and he was out the door.”
Ari studied the girl’s battered face and took a deep breath. Violent death was always hard to take, but she’d seen this victim alive. It made a difference.
“She was at my class Monday. And the human boyfriend too. At least the guy I saw fits the description.” Ari pointed to the counter. “That’s the flyer.”
“Are you sure it’s the same girl?” He walked toward her. “Any particular reason you remember them?”
“Oh, yeah. Boyfriend was a creep. Totally screwed up the group. It started out pretty normal. You know, I’ve told you about the classes. The guy wasn’t there at the beginning. This girl,”