AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He shook his head. “Drink beer and Scotch occasional y, but never on duty. Drugs and Badger People aren’t a good mix. We have a temper, I am the first to admit it. I know my limits.”
“Okay, here’s the deal.” I motioned at the bar. “I need somebody and I need him now. So if you can start this week, preferably tonight, so much the better. Your shift wil be four P.M. until two A.M., but you may need to come in to help with inventory at times during the day. You’l need to be on cal —there are nights when I have to be gone, and I can’t always predict when that’s going to be. So far so good?”
He nodded. “I like to work. I don’t mind picking up extra shifts. I send what I don’t need home to help my mother raise my brothers and sisters.”
That made me feel even better about hiring him. “Good man. I can pay you fifteen dol ars an hour to start. If you’re as experienced as you seem to be, and you last ninety days, I’l raise that to seventeen. The main thing you need to remember: I’m the boss, you do what I say while you’re here, and you keep your nose clean. What do you think? Want the job or not?”
He raised his glass in salute. “Here’s looking at you, boss.”
At least one of my problems was solved. But it didn’t take long for another to rear its head. As I was showing Derrick around the bar, watching how he handled the bottles and—suitably impressed—how he handled customers, the door opened and Chase Johnson swaggered in.
My sister Delilah’s ex-lover, a cop who was as good as family by now, Chase dressed in Armani and smel ed like a perpetual taco stand. He was also one damned fine detective.
After al the arguments we’d been through, I had to give him props. He’d managed to keep it together in situations that would drive the average FBH wacko. Oh yeah. One other little tidbit: Chase also was as good as immortal, at least in human terms. He’d been given the Nectar of Life in order to save his life, and that put him a long leg up on the rest of FBHs.
He glanced at Derrick and nodded, giving me a quizzical look.
“This is Chase Johnson, detective and friend of the business. Close to being family. Treat him right.”
Derrick nodded. “Nice to meet you, Detective.”
“Chase, this is Derrick—my new bartender. Derrick, give us a few minutes alone. Chase has something to talk to me about. Don’t you?”
“Yeah, though I wish this were just a social cal .” He shook hands with Derrick, then fol owed me to a booth. “Werewolf?”
“Badger People. Werebadger.”
“Sheesh—is there a Were class for every animal on the planet?” Chase snorted and rubbed one perfectly groomed eyebrow.
“Just about. What is it, Johnson?”
“Trouble. You have the time to take a little ride with me to headquarters? Vampire business. I think.” He let out a long sigh.
Hel . Vampire business was so not what I wanted to hear because when Chase came cal ing about vampires, it usual y meant somebody was dead. Usual y murdered. There’d been an upswing in nocturnal activity lately, but since I was no longer privy to the scuttlebutt going around Vampires Anonymous—a support group for vamps new to the life, run by vampire and former friend Wade Stevens—it was harder for me to ferret out secrets. I had to rely on what Sassy Branson told me, but she was growing more erratic every day. I’d been seriously considering taking my “daughter” Erin out of the older vampire’s care.
“Let me tel Chrysandra.” I hustled over to my waitress and tapped her on the arm. “Keep an eye on Derrick. Help him learn the ropes. Chase needs me.”
“No problem, Menol y. But are you sure? It’s his first night.” She looked a little worried. Normal y I’d chalk it up to nerves, but tonight I stopped and looked into her eyes, trying to get a feel for where her jitters were coming from.
“You have a bad feeling about him?” I cocked my head, waiting.
She glanced over at him, then slowly shook her head. “Not at al . . . but . . . there’s something about him. I can’t put my finger on it. He’s more than he appears to be, but I don’t sense . . . he’s not hostile, but I think he walks with danger.”
“Most Supes do, nowadays.” I frowned. “Fetch Tavah from the basement. Tel Riki to take over for her down there. If anything goes wrong, Tavah should be able to take care of matters.”
Tavah, another vampire, spent her nights in the basement of the Wayfarer, guarding the portal to Otherworld and keeping track of the guests who came through. She kept the creeps out and let the paying visitors in.
“Okay. Wil do.” She ran down the steps as I hightailed it over to Derrick. “Listen, Derrick, I’ve got to go out. Chrysandra wil help you out, and while I’m gone she and Tavah are in charge. I’l be back as soon as I can. Okay?”
He nodded, eyes on the drink he was mixing. “Not a problem. Got it.”
And with that, as soon as I saw Tavah appear at the top of the stairs, I fol owed Chase into the icy night.
Winter in Seattle vacil ates between mild and nasty, but the past couple of years had been pretty rough. Instead of the incessant rain, we’d actual y seen snow—enough to stop the city in its tracks for a few days. Last year it had been the god-giant Loki, with his Fenris wolf, making a run on the city because of my now-dead sire. This year, I had the feeling more natural factors were at play. La Niña had come to town. We were in a colder, wetter spel .
And now, two and a half weeks before Yule, it was cold enough to snow and I’d already considered putting snow tires on my Jag.
The chil didn’t bother me, but Chase buttoned his trench as we headed out. He held the door open for me—he was, at heart, a gentleman—and we hustled to his car. I could tel he was cold; the breath puffed out of his mouth like clouds from a steam engine.
