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There was something in her cool tone that had me frowning. “You don’t believe that?”
The smile that once again touched her pale lips held nothing in the way of humor, and sent a chill running down my spine. “I’ve encountered these spirits before, and their existence and rampages have never been due to chance or foolishness.”
“When you say you’ve encountered them, do you actually mean they’ve been sent against you?”
“Oh yes, and more than once. After all, what better way is there to get rid of one demon than to set another against it?” Ice touched her eyes, and the chill running down my spine got stronger. “Unfortunately for them, I had access to sources capable of greater magic. And I did so enjoy my revenge.”
I batted away the bloody images that rose to mind. “Vampires aren’t demons—”
“No, but we were considered so in the past. Even in today’s enlightened age, there are many who still place us on the same level as those dark entities.” She studied me for a second. “I find it highly unlikel
y that a consumer of souls would answer the call of six drunken fools dabbling with an Ouija board. If the board is the reason for its presence here, then it’s likely that one of those who remain alive is responsible. Whether by chance or design is another matter entirely.”
“One of them—Lance—is a werewolf.”
“Which does not preclude the possibility of his guilt, although I grant that it is unlikely. But that only leaves you with one unknown—and the possibility that she is a witch.”
“No witch in existence would ever use a Ouija board without some form of protection.”
“That may be true, but the possibility that she’s either a witch or has unregistered powers remains. Your High Council might demand all half-breeds be registered, but we both know that doesn’t always happen.”
No, it didn’t, and untrained or undiscovered talents could be extremely dangerous, especially if they only manifested with darker emotions. Like hate. Or anger.
Larissa might have been drunk and angry, but I really did believe she wouldn’t have sent the soul eater after any of her friends.
So was unknown Janice behind this mess? Or was there another reason for the soul eater’s presence here? Had we—had I—been misreading this whole situation from the beginning?
Given how little I knew about dark spirits—and soul eaters in particular—that was totally possible.
“What you need to get is a description of the woman,” Maelle said. “Several of Marlinda’s friends were frequent guests here, so it’s totally possible that this Janice was one of them. If that is the case, then we would have caught her on the security cams.”
“When was the last time she had friends here? Before or after her disappearance?”
“Before. There were five of them all told, and they drank up a storm.” A furrow of displeasure appeared between her brows. “I am somewhat forgiving of bad behavior from my feeders, but my patience is not endless.”
“Feeders? Plural?”
She nodded. “Marlinda is—was—friends with several of my other attendants. Aled and Molly were with her that night, along with two others I did not know.”
“What sort of problems did they cause?”
She waved a hand, the movement sparse but elegant. “They were very loud, and annoying my other guests. As I said, I can tolerate some bad behavior, but this is my business and I will not allow anyone to damage its reputation. And they were warned of that previously.”
“So this isn't the first time they’ve done this?”
“The second. There will not be a third one for them, let me assure you.”
If they’d had any sense, there wouldn’t even have been a second time.
Of course, if they’d had any sense, they wouldn’t have become a vampire’s food source in the first place.
“If I can get a description of this Janice, would someone be able to check the security cams, on the off chance she met Marlinda that night?”
“I don’t know how it would help, but I’ll ensure it is done. At the very least, we’ll be able to see the two women interact, and that, in turn, might tell us if any animosity had developed between them.”
Even if there was, it still didn’t explain why Frankie and the unknown man were the first to die.
Her cool smile appeared, though once again it failed to touch her eyes. “You should also be aware that if this Janice is behind Marlinda’s death, I will be tempted to take matters into my own hands.”
