was the lure of secrets untold, of knowledge to discover.
Of danger.
Of a creature who would join her there in her visions.
It should scare her more than it did. As it was…she was intrigued. There was more to this mysterious creature than the death and the murder it seemed he spread around him like a plague.
It would mean her death, she knew. If she fled the city this very moment, she might escape with her life. He may not send his minions to follow her. She might live to see another day. But they were all assumptions based on nothing. In fact, all she knew of him—although it was very little—pointed to the opposite.
He had been able to reach through a thread of a connection so slight that it was imperceptible to all others and touch her mind. She could not imagine what he might think of such an imposition. Was it an insult? A curiosity? An annoyance, or uninteresting altogether? She could not say.
But in all her life, short as it might be in comparison to his, she had never experienced anything quite like it. It was terrifying…but she wanted to try again. She wanted to touch the flame. God help her, doom her to the pits, she was going to walk proudly to her own demise.
Shutting her eyes again, she let out a small breath. This was going to end very poorly. “Yes. I will help you. I will sniff him out, and I will learn all I can from him. Right until the moment I suspect he will rip my still-beating heart out of my chest.”
Alfonzo chuckled. “We’ll do everything we can to keep that from happening.”
“I appreciate that.” She looked back over at the older soldier and shared a smile with him. They were both aware the odds were good that none of them survived. “If I am to die, I suppose it is better that I go with meaning. We rarely get to pick how we exit this world. At least this will be interesting.”
“That is quite true.”
“Then I will begin. Return tomorrow morning, and I will tell you what I have found. Or you will find my corpse, one of the two.” She stood from beside the window and placed the brooch on her mantel. “I suspect he is not a creature who likes to be encroached upon.”
“No. I suspect he is not.” Alfonzo stood from his chair and motioned for the other two to do the same. “We have work to do as well, after the sun sets. We will be back tomorrow before noon.”
“Perfect.” She tried not to laugh as Eddie shoved the remainder of his sandwich in his mouth.
Alfonzo walked up to her and extended his hand. “It’s been a pleasure, Miss Parker. Thank you for agreeing to help us. I know the magnitude of what we ask.”
She ensured she was wearing her glove before placing her hand in his. Alfonzo did not hesitate when he shook her hand to say goodbye. Bella and Eddie could not say the same, as they both glanced down warily before touching her.
Maxine was accustomed to the sting of being a pariah because of her gift. But it never stopped it from hurting. It merely became easier to bear after all the years.
“Tomorrow, then.”
And, with that, she showed them out. Eddie mumbled a goodbye through his food and waved back at her as they left. What an adorable, silly young man. With a shake of her head, she shut the door behind them and threw the locks.
Vlad Tepes Dracula had surprised her once. He would not do so again. She would not bother trying to protect her home from him. What wards she might be able to place on her home would be useless in the end. One, Roma magic was unpredictable and stubborn, and two, she was terrible at it.
While she was a decent empath, she was an abhorrent excuse for a witch. The Roma sorceress she had traveled with had given up trying to teach her the traditions quickly. “Your gift is elsewhere. Now, get back to work.”
She chuckled at the memory of the old woman shooing her away to have her go pretend to be a psychic. It was amazing how much money she could make from those who believed she could see the future only because she could see the past and present. It had not been honest work. But it had meant shelter over her head and food in her stomach.