to one of the cupboards and opened it, making a show of searching for something. “Now where did I leave that arsenic?”
“Arsenic?” Brian asked, a quiver in his voice.
Rita peeked her head around the door of the cupboard. “You didn’t think I was going to just let you walk out of here, did you?”
“But you said you’d let me go once you were done with me,” Brian argued, sweat pooling on his forehead.
“That was before you told me you were going to help kill my friend.”
“Rita,” I said, worried she might be serious. She shot me a silencing look and pulled a clear glass bottle containing a yellow substance from the cupboard.
“Eliza will come for you,” Brian threatened. “She’s very powerful. She’ll be angry if you kill me.”
“I’m not afraid of a vampire,” Rita snorted as she brought the bottle over and set it down on the table. I chewed my lip, anxiety roiling within me. I honestly couldn’t tell whether or not she was serious or just trying to terrify him. She stared Brian down while sliding the bottle back and forth over the table, reminding me of a cat toying with a mouse just for the fun of it.
“We should let him go,” I said. “He’s just an addict. It’s not his fault Eliza sent him.”
Rita didn’t acknowledge what I said. In fact, she didn’t seem to be even listening as she continued to stare Brian down. “Are you scared?” she asked. “Does it terrify you, the idea of being forced to drink this?”
“Yes,” he whispered, a tear rolling down his cheek.
“Good. Now you know how Tegan would have felt if you’d taken her to be killed by your bitch of a mistress.”
I let out a relieved sigh, thinking she was only trying to teach him a lesson. She wasn’t really going to make him drink it. But then, just as I started to relax, Rita shot up from her seat, rapidly uncorking the bottle. She grabbed Brian by the jaw, forced his lips open, and spilled the contents into his mouth.
Oh, my God.
“What the hell have you done?” I yelled at her.
She laughed and gestured to Brian, who sat placidly in his chair now, a vacant expression on his face.
“Why are you laughing? Have you gone mad? You’ve poisoned him!”
“It’s not poison,” Rita explained. “It’s a hypnotic. See,” she waved her fingers in his face, but he didn’t react.
“You frightened the life out of me.”
“Yeah. Sorry about that. I thought he deserved a bit of a scare, and there was no way for me to explain to you what I was doing without giving the game away,” she replied casually and my annoyance built.
She put both of her hands on each side of Brian’s head. His eyes followed her in an empty sort of way. “You won’t remember any of this,” she said to him, her voice a low monotone. “You will tell Eliza that Tegan is never left alone. Tell her that her witch friend keeps a constant watch over her and that she’s extremely powerful. You will say that even ten of her strongest vampires wouldn’t be able to get past me.”
She clicked her fingers in his face, and he blinked, waking up from whatever kind of trance he’d been in. “Now that’s you all done. Let’s hope you get that work promotion you were hoping for,” she said with a big smile.
Brian nodded, looking a little dazed. He shoved his hand in his pocket, pulled out a wad of cash, handed it to Rita, and left.
I shook my head at her. “I can’t believe you just did that.” I paused, looking out the window to make sure he was really gone. “I also can’t believe you let him pay for the privilege.”
“Hey, I’ve got bills to pay.”
“You didn’t need to torture him the way you did.”
“Are you forgetting what he said? The vampires basically plan on nailing you to a crucifix for their entertainment. I should be wondering why you aren’t angrier.”
“I am angry. I’m also scared, but taking it out on someone like Brian doesn’t achieve anything.”
“If you don’t like my tactics, fine, but you can at least thank me for saving you from being kidnapped.”
At this, I lost some of my steam. “You’re right. Thank you.”
Rita smiled as she put her money away in her purse. “You’re welcome.”
Something niggled at me. Something that said I should mention Rita’s odd behaviour to Noreen as soon as she, Gabriel, and Alvie returned from their