Murder in Misery (Spook Squad) - By Ashley K. Broome Page 0,9

until you died. That’s only a little of what he can do.”

“What else do I need to know?” Matt asked.

“Gary is a dragon.” Keegan ignored the amused snort from Matt’s side of the car. She understood the reaction. Gary dressed in flannel and almost always tripping over his shoe laces wasn’t someone you’d believe to be something as powerful as a dragon. “I mean he can turn into a fire breathing, town burning dragon. He’s an old fashioned kind of guy. You mess up once with him, you’re on his shit list for a very long time.”

“Okay.”

“Melinda is a werewolf, which I’m sure you knew that with the way your guys howl at her every full moon.”

Matt ducked his head in shame. “Yeah I’ll talk to them about that.”

“That would be nice.” Keegan slowed the car and pulled into a tight spot between a truck and a convertible. She was thankful that they had arrived because she didn’t particularly like talking about herself to other people.

“Where are we?” Matt looked around. He blinked a few times trying to focus on the neon signs hanging from doorways of what appeared to be abandoned buildings.

“Welcome to one of the most popular haunts of the Supernatural District in Misery, Diyo’s.” Keegan tapped her fingers against the steering wheel. “There are some things you need to know before we get out of this car.”

“Okay, shoot.”

“Humans aren’t something that supernaturals see too often around here. Don’t look any of them in the eye. As a human, meeting their gaze is like you are challenging their position and until you know for sure what kind of supernatural they are it’s just better to avoid that can of worms at all costs. Don’t talk back to anyone. No matter how annoying they are. I can’t protect you in there and I won’t risk my life trying to protect yours. Do you understand that?”

“Should you even be going in there?” Matt reached across the console and grasped her wrist lightly a moment before he realized what he had done and he pulled back.

“It’s actually pretty damn simple.” Keegan shrugged. “You think normal people get the heebie jeebies from me? I’m off limits to the supernaturals that will be in there. Plus they don’t being around me for too long.”

“How is that even possible?” Matt reached for the door handle and waited for some kind of explanation.

“When you’re like me more people are more afraid of you than not.” Keegan stared out the windshield. “I just give out creepy vibes. Which is understandable if you really get down to the meat and potatoes of it.”

“What exactly are you Keegan?” Matt finally asked the question that so many people back at the precinct were probably dying to know the answer to. Keegan wasn’t like any other supernatural. Unlike Leeroy and Melinda, she physically appeared human. Her eyes weren’t an odd color that only werewolves had. She didn’t have a bluish tinge to her skin and black veins at her temples like Leeroy did. Out of the entire SIU, she and Gary were the most normal of them all and Gary was a dragon.

Matt looked up at the neon sign and frowned in confusion as he tried to figure out where exactly they were. “What is this place? How do you even say the name?”

Keegan rolled her eyes, “This is Diyo’s. You pronounce it die-oh.”

“Don’t think our earlier conversation is done with.” Matt pointed out as they headed towards the entry way.

“I’ll tell you after tonight if you still want to know.” Keegan grabbed the door handle and stepped from the relative warmth of her car and into the cold. She didn’t wait to see if Matt would follow her. Instead she made quick time of heading towards a door that was barely visible underneath neon lights. She was muttering something at the man standing just inside the doorway and they were both slipping through. Keegan watched out of the corner of her eye as Matt paused to take everything it.

It was almost as if he left a world of black and white and dove right into a world filled with color. She could see the way his pupils attempted to adjust under the rainbow bright glow of a black light. He edged closer to her, searching for some form of focus. The crow’s feet at his eyes became more pronounced as his eyes darting around the hallway. As Keegan tugged him further away from the entry way they brushed passed