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"Let's go," I said, taking Rosie by the hand and leading her inside. Kao followed behind us. The diner wasn't much. It was small with a bar in the center, and booths on either side. It wasn't that crowded either, which was good for us. Less people meant less chances of encountering eavesdroppers. Two tables were already pushed together to accommodate our large party, so we all huddled around and took our seats. Our waitress took our drink order, then left us alone.
"So, any idea when this Roxanne person is supposed to show up?" Rosieasked, her posture stiff beside me.
I couldn't blame her. Even I was nervous to meet the witch. Witches and shifters weren't exactly mortal enemies—not in the way vampires were to us—but our species still had a troubled history.
"She said she'd be here soon," Del answered, her eyes on her phone presumably texting Roxanne that we were here. I hope whatever hex the witch put on Del's phone when they spoke was still working.
"How will we know it's her when she arrives? We don't even know what she looks like," Kao pointed out.
Del waited until our waitress set down our drinks and informed her that we were waiting for someone else before she answered. "Trust me when I say this, you'll know it's her."
"How?" Javier asked.
Del sighed. "Keep your eyes open for an old Dodge Challenger. If you spot a purple one, that's her."
"At least she's got good taste in cars," Raph muttered before taking a sip of his coke.
Del snorted. "You haven't seen anything yet."
"How long have you known Roxanne?" Rosie asked.
Del took a moment to drink her sweet tea, then answered. "Three years. I wanted to find a better way to fight a wolf pack at once, so I thought purchasing enchanted weapons would be my best bet. Fighting a shifter one-on-one is easy, but when you're outnumbered, that's when you're fucked."
"That weapon you used against me, Artemis, was that your first enchanted weapon?" Kao asked.
Del shook her head. "No, I've had others before. Artemis was my most recent, and personal favorite, weapon."
"And you're definitely on the side of wolf shifters now, right?" Kao asked with wide eyes.
Del smirked at him. "Maybe? Why? Are you wanting to throw down again?"
"No, thank you!" Kao cried out, holding up both hands as if that would shield him if Del decided to throw a punch at him.
"At least the kid learned his lesson," Malcolm commented, and the whole table laughed.
Another minute went by before Javier straightened in his seat. He was seated facing the floor-to-ceiling windows, so he could easily see anybody coming and going.
"Is that her?" Javier asked, pointing outward. Kao, Rosie, and I looked behind us to see the car in question: a purple Dodge Challenger parking next to Del's motorcycle.
"That's her," I heard Del respond, but my eyes were glued to the vehicle. The driver side door opened, and the woman stepping out was not what I was expecting for a witch. Roxanne had a thick head of wavy violet hair with neon pink tips. She wore a sleeveless top with a leather vest over it, which exposed the many tattoos plastered on her skin like a mural.
Even from where I sat, I could feel the gooseflesh running up my body from the feel of magical energy coming from her direction. Whoever she was, she was powerful. She strode into the diner, finding our table and made her way over. Del stood up to greet her.
"Roxanne, thank you for coming." The two leaned closer to one another, blowing air kisses on each side.
"Well, when you said it was an emergency, I figured there was no time to waste," Roxanne said with a slight rasp to her voice. Her eyes raked over everyone at the table, not saying a word when she did so. When they landed on me, she held it longer than anyone else. I squirmed under the attention, feeling more exposed than I would've been naked. There was a flash of violet in her eyes that disappeared instantly. Her gaze narrowed slightly, and before it got to the point where I felt the need to run, she finally moved them off me and over to Rosie. She smiled then as she took her seat at the far end.
"And you must be the girl Del told me about. Rosie Mendoza, correct?" Roxanne asked.
Rosie straightened in her seat. "I am."
The girls shook hands as Roxanne said, "Roxanne Harker. A pleasure to meet someone of your... gifts. I believe it's something we have in common."
So, Del's reports were true; Roxanne was chosen by the Pink Moon.
Rosie cleared her throat. "So, it seems. Actually, that's what we wanted to talk to you about. You see, we—"
"Hold up, angel face." Roxanne raised up a hand to stop Rosie just as our waitress came back to take Roxanne's drink order.
