Hex and the Single Witch (Vehicle City Vampires) (16 page)

“I have plenty
of time, mate.” Malone growled through gritted teeth.

“Come now old
chap, you know the vampire always gets the girl in these situations.” Galen
laughed wickedly.

“Maybe in over
rated teen novels, but this is real life, the real world and here a real man
actually has the chance to get the girl.” Malone’s response was harsh.

Galen’s
murderous look disappeared. He didn’t say another word just turned and stormed
away.

Malone looked at
me with an expression I couldn’t read and snarled, “Nothing going on with the
vampire, huh? I knew you were fucking lying.”

He strode back
to the bedroom, finished getting dressed, and left without another word, just a
vicious slam of my front door.

Chapter 21

Malone pretty
much ignored me for the next couple days, unless absolutely necessary he speak
to me regarding work. Galen chose the opposite approach and worked on wooing me
with vampire seduction at its finest.

He sent me
flowers and chocolates at work, and to my home he sent sexy shoes, lingerie and
notes telling me exactly how he would like to see me in the lingerie and what
he planned to do to me while I wore it.

Wonderful, but
talk was cheap. His fancy gifts were nice, but where was the physicality? After
everything I’d been through, and still I had not actually had sex. I know this
all sounds very shallow and pathetic but my hormones were sprinting into
overdrive.

So close to two
drop dead gorgeous men and managed not to have sex with either one. How
pathetic was I? Seriously pathetic. I should have been worried about so much
more than getting laid, but the whole situation drove me nuts.

Being near Galen
always set me on fire even though he did his best to keep the fire barely
burning, nothing but smoldering embers with no flames glowing.

But Malone, he
could take me from comfortable to blazing in two seconds flat.

Too bad Malone
was completely giving me the cold shoulder and Galen just talked about what he
was going to do to me. I wished Malone would get the stick out of his ass and
try for me again or Galen would grow a set and actually do all the deliciously
naughty things he hinted at.

Catty much? Oh
yeah. Witch on a rampage. Lascivious witch on a rampage and really needed to
get her some.

A flash of power
entered the area and I turned to find Mel sauntering through the department.
Every man and most of the women turned her way to blatantly stare.

How could you
not? She was 110 pounds of curves, sex appeal and power. Her cappuccino skin
looked creamy and soft even under the fluorescent lighting, and her jet black
hair hung in long, flowing waves. The epitome of the exotic woman, very Salma
Hayek just without the accent, Mel used her appearance and power to her
advantage so very well.

Her caramel eyes
twinkled as she walked up to me. “Been busy huh, girlfriend?” And then she
laughed a deep throaty laugh leaving a few men looking interested while others
appeared uncomfortable as they adjusted themselves. She had an effect on men,
undeniably. Men couldn’t seem to help themselves around her. I wondered
sometimes if there wasn’t more in her bloodline than just high powered witch.
Maybe a little succubus blood? Hmmm, I had asked her once and she didn’t
answer, but she didn’t deny it either.

“So you gonna
dish or what?” she asked with a naughty twinkle in her eye.

 “What, you
didn’t see it all in your premonition?” I teased.

“I have seen a
lot I’m sure hasn’t happened yet, but I want to hear about what did happen, the
juicy parts I didn’t see, like Malone and Galen getting into it,” she whispered
to me.

My eyes widened
with shock. “How the hell did you know? Don’t tell me Malone’s been talking.
That just doesn’t seem like his style,” I spoke almost too loudly but
immediately toned it down. Last thing I needed was the whole station gossiping
about me and Malone.

She laughed
again. “Come on let’s get a cappuccino and have a little girl time.” She
glanced around at all the cops. “Let’s go somewhere private, like the coffee
shop down the street.”

She had
something to tell me, more than I had to tell her it seemed.

“Okay,” I said
and followed her sashaying hips out the door. Wouldn’t you know, I had to walk
right by Malone. He didn’t look very thrilled to see me, but at least he didn’t
stare at Mel like all the other men did.

Once we finally
settled into a quiet corner at the Beans and Leaves Café, I pressed Mel to
spill.

I leaned over
the tiny table. “What have you heard?”

Mel sat back and
snorted, then said, “Gurllll, what the hell happened? How could you end up in
bed with Malone and let Galen show up acting like he owns you? You are lucky
Galen didn’t rip his head off, you are beyond lucky Malone is human and a cop
and…”

“Look Mel, I’m
not sure what happened. Galen was at the house and I wanted more from him than
movies and kisses but he’s being so…so…chaste, and I’m hotter than a boiling
witch’s cauldron. So needing to get me some, ya know? Anyway, Galen made it
clear he wasn’t ready for so much intimacy. So he left. Then Malone shows up
and he’s all sweet and sexy and so normal and human sitting on my sofa with me.
We were so comfortable together, we just fit and then we were about to really
fit together… but we didn’t.”

“Huh? So you
still haven’t gotten you some? Damn, girl you really need to get laid or you
are going to explode. But all those visions…I know you’re going to be getting
some real soon. I’m just not sure from whom. You got it good right now though.”

“Mel, things are
so screwed up. How the hell do I have it good?” I sighed with exasperation.

“Wyn, you got
two hot guys wantin’ you big time, not one, but two sexier than Gods men who
want you…and they know about each other.” Her look was ecstatic. She seemed
more thrilled about the situation than I was.

“Uh, huh and
that’s a good thing how?” I really wasn’t following her.

“Two guys, they
know about each other, and they can’t really do a damn thing about it except
work their tails off to please you, if they really want you. You got it good.
You can play them off each other, use one to get to the other and in the meantime
get you some. Maybe more than some, possibly a lot.” She laughed a sizzling,
sexy laugh. A man in the corner spilled coffee in his lap as he stared at her.
He didn’t even seem to notice.

I thought about
what Mel said. My libido liked the sound of getting a little some-some from two
men even though my head was shaking no. “Yeah, I don’t think it’s gonna work.
Malone is so pissed he won’t even look at me, and other than wicked sexy notes
and gifts I have not seen or actually talked to Galen.”

Mel’s eyes
became dark and serious. “Uh, yeah I need to talk to you about this Galen
issue.”

“Oh my Goddess,
nothing happened to Galen did it, he’s alright isn’t he?” Fear and panic clenched
at my heart.

“Calm down, he’s
fine. Just on lock down. Satinka Tala has him all locked up in his plush little
chamber again.”

I must have
looked confused.

“What, you don’t
know? After Satinka Tala took Galen in he needed some rehabilitation and she
had a plush but inescapable chamber made for him. He spent over twenty years in
there. Now, she sends him there whenever she’s worried about him. It’s all set
up with top notch security, both human and magickal, so nothing gets in…or out
without her knowing.”

“So this
exchange with Malone made her worried?”

“Well, yes and
one of his blood donors went missing.”

“His what did
what?” I must have looked more confused than ever.

“Has he not told
you anything?” She sighed. Mel was sighing  a lot around me lately.

“I know a little
about his past, his sire, but not much else. I’ve heard the term blood donor in
regards to some of the women killed, but I’m not exactly sure what it all
means. What happened?”

“Did you know
there was a time Galen was considered pretty much insane and they thought he
would have to be put down?”

“Uhm, no I
didn’t know.” I swallowed and realized I didn’t really know anything about him.
In fact, I got nothing from Galen, like a big wall had been put up and left
blank on purpose. “How do you know all this?” I asked suspiciously.

Mel looked at me
like I must be completely ignorant. “Wyn, have you lost all your powers and
your memory? Are you a pod person or something ‘cause honey you are startin’ to
scare me.”

I closed my eyes
and took a deep breath, she was right, usually I knew things, knew
everything…well a lot anyway. I wasn’t a person who had to ask questions. This
whole mess left me off my game.

I centered
myself and reached out to the universe, reached out to Mel and instantly got
images of her working with Satinka Tala and the Guardians. Mel was a
Guardian—that explained a lot, so she worked both teams just like I did only
she was in much deeper with the Others. She and Satinka were tight, and Mel
knew a lot more about Galen than I did.

Figures, Gram
had always kept me shielded as much as she could after my father was killed.
She hated I followed in his footsteps, but Mel, she had always been in while I
stood on the outside looking in on both the human world and the world of the
Others.

Mel reveled in
her power. Her mom wasn’t just a witch but a top level sorceress, and Mel was
well on her way to meeting and surpassing her mom’s power.

How could I have
forgotten so much? How could I not have seen the new developments? Just from
seeking out the things right in front of me, I learned so much, like Mel was
one of Satinka’s Guardian lieutenants. I hadn’t known. How could I not have
known?

I suddenly felt
lost. My best friend had this whole life I knew nothing about. She hadn’t told
me because she thought I could “see” it. Either I hadn’t bothered to look into
her lately, or I just hadn’t seen anything.

Something really
was off with me, big time. While I knew Mel was involved with a lot of
preternatural activity I hadn’t seen this.  It wasn’t bad, not what she was
doing, just weird I hadn’t seen it. Somehow I even forgot it was she who
introduced me to Galen. I had never even thought about the two of them being
close friends, I had assumed they were just acquaintances; a lot of Others came
to her parties.

“Wyn, what’s
wrong? You really didn’t see any of it before? How long Wyn, how long have you
not seen me?” She looked really worried.

“I don’t know,
Mel. Maybe I just learned how to shut it off so I didn’t intrude into your
mind, into your life.”

She looked even
more worried and totally not convinced.

“Mel, I need to
know about Galen, what’s the deal with the donor?”

“One of his
regular donors, uhm, you know, one of his intimate donors, has disappeared. So
Satinka put him back in his plush prison with just a computer to send you
flowers and gifts he orders for you online. She’s not even allowing him a phone
right now.”

“You’ve got to
be kidding me; she’s treating him like a child. A prisoner.”

“Yes, but it is
for his own good. She does not want another body showing up and being linked to
him.”

It suddenly hit
me what intimate donor meant. “Oh my Goddess, you mean this woman who
disappeared was one of his lovers!” My stomach twisted into jealous knots. No
wonder I couldn’t get to second base with Galen. He had no need for me when a
harem of donors stood ready and waiting to fulfill his every need.

“Wyn, for
vampires like Galen sex and blood go together like French fries and ketchup.
It’s not good to have one without the other. Now, I’ll give him credit for trying
so hard to separate the two since he met you. But it wasn’t until the two of
you really hooked up after the last murder… he stopped altogether. Drinking
blood that is. Oh, I’m sure he stopped having sex too.” She quickly added when
my eyebrows rose.

She continued, “Galen’s
been surviving off synthetic blood, which isn’t going to sustain him for long.
Honey, let me tell you he wants just you…and your blood, but he really needs to
feed for real, not just bottled crap. I think you need to see him at Satinka’s.”

“Will she even
let me in?” I wondered out loud.

“Satinka won’t
turn you away.” She sighed into her mochaccino. “But Anwyn, after we go see
Galen you need to come by my place, I need to do a scan on you. Something is
not right with your powers. I need to see why you’re blocked. I’m sensing your
blockage might be magickal.”

“Okay, sure
thing, Mel.”

Chapter 22

I was zoned,
thinking about Galen and everything, as Mel drove us to Satinka’s place. I
hadn’t even noticed what direction we headed leaving downtown. I vaguely
recalled seeing the Michigan School for the Deaf but when we turned off Miller
Road into Satinka’s neighborhood I was suddenly at full attention.