Bewitched on Bourbon Street (12 page)

“I can’t say he was my favorite person, considering all that went down, but I assume he’s had some major adjusting to do,” I said.

She glanced up at me, hope filling her big blue eyes. Then she laughed. “You could say that. He’s working at a nonprofit shelter, where he has access to the most vulnerable souls around. He’s doing some good work. Really important work.” She lowered her lashes and in a soft voice said, “He’s changed, Jade. Become a person I can be proud to know.”

I reached across the table and squeezed her hand. “That’s good, Lailah. I’m really happy for you.”

“Thanks.” A genuine smile spread across her face and she glowed with joy, looking positively radiant.

“So, the ring? Do you have news?”

“Oh.” She laughed. “No. It was a Christmas present. Considering our history, we’re taking things slow.”

I stared at the gorgeous princess-cut sapphire and then added, “I can see that.”

She rolled her eyes and dug into her dinner.

We were almost done when my phone rang. I glanced at it, expecting to see a call from Kane, but the number was blocked. I frowned and picked it up. “Hello?”

“Ms. Calhoun?”

“Yes?”

“It’s Jasper. I’m outside the restaurant and ready to talk.”

Chapter 12

Kane

Bright florescent lights blinded me, and my eyes watered. I threw my hand over my face and groaned, doing my best to ignore the plethora of aches in my battered body. Jesus. My shoulders, left leg, and hip. But most of all, every time I took a shallow breath, pain shot through my gut. “What the hell?” I croaked out in a raspy voice, the stench of disinfectant stinging my nasal passages. “Someone turn the lights down.”

“Welcome back, Mr. Rouquette. You had quite the rough day.”

I moved my arm just enough to eye the tall, dark man scribbling in a chart. “Who are you?”

“Rhodes. I’m the healer.”

The healer wore a white lab coat over his black T-shirt and jeans. He was older, with gray hair, but fit, as if he’d spent his life a regular at the gym. Only I knew that wasn’t the case, because I felt a whisper of the Brotherhood connection. He was a demon hunter. Likely a retired one who now spent his days in the infirmary patching up fallen hunters like myself.

“How long—” I cleared my throat, trying to unclog my words.

“Here. Drink this.” Rhodes handed me a plastic cup with a straw.

I sucked down the water, reveling in the cool liquid on my tongue. When the straw made a gurgling sound, Rhodes took the cup and placed it on the side table.

“How long have I been here?” I tried again, glancing around at the sterile white room full of medical equipment.

“About fourteen hours. You were in pretty bad shape when you arrived.”

I grunted. Of course I was. I’d been gutted like a pig. “And now?”

“You’ll survive. But you’ll carry the scars with you for the rest of your life. Demon scars are permanent.”

I closed my eyes, not caring in the slightest. As long as I was with Jade again—My eyes popped open. “Is my wife here?”

Rhodes shook his head. “No. This facility is not open to visitors the likes of her.”

“Not open to witches, you mean,” I said, my tone full of irritation. A surge of disgust rippled through me, and if I hadn’t been beat to shit, I’d have stalked out right then.

“It’s not my policy.” Rhodes flipped his chart closed. “I’ll be back in an hour to check on your pain dosage.”

“Wait. Has my wife been notified I’m here?”

The healer paused at the door and shrugged. “I doubt it. The hunters who brought you in went right back out on another run.”

“I need a—”

The healer left before I could finish my sentence.

“Son of a bitch!” I had no idea where my clothes were, much less my phone.

“There’s a phone at the front desk,” a male voice said from the corner of the room.

I jerked, trying to sit up, but was thwarted by the stabbing pain in my gut. “Holy fuck.”

I heard the slow click of footsteps on the tiled floor a few moments before he came into view. It was the angel the demon had almost killed. “It’s you,” I said.

“It’s me.” He sat in the chair beside my hospital bed, his dark blond hair sticking up all over the place. There was a deep purple ring around his neck as well as three rows of fresh stitches.

I studied him. He was vaguely familiar, and I wondered where I knew him from. His clothes were dirty, but they were definitely designer quality. He was young, late teens or early twenties. Tall with an oversized frame that hadn’t yet filled out. And the way he sat, shoulders straight, one leg draped over one knee, his gaze never leaving mine, left me with the impression he’d been raised in a privileged environment. Confident and self-assured, even though he’d just had his ass whupped.

Of course, I was the one lying in a hospital bed. Talk about an ass whupping. At least Malstord was magically bound to Hell for the rest of his days. It was something. “What’s your name?”

“Ezra.”

“I’m glad to meet you, Ezra. Mind telling me how you ended up in that warehouse with the demons?”

He averted his eyes. Maybe not as confident as I’d thought. He cleared his throat. “I was abducted and taken to Hell about nine months ago.”

Son of a… “Why?”

He turned his steely blue gaze on me. “I’m the high angel’s son.”

This time I gritted my teeth through the pain and really did sit up so I could get a good look at him. Damn. Chessandra had a son? “You can’t be serious.”

He leveled a flat stare, almost daring me to challenge him.

It was the same don’t-fuck-with-me look Chessandra sometimes had. Double damn. That’s why he looked familiar. Was he Drake’s? Was this kid Jade’s half brother?

Jade.

She must’ve been worried sick. I pulled the blanket off, realizing I was in a flimsy hospital gown. But I didn’t give a shit. I had to let her know where I was.

I glanced at the kid. “Help me up, would you? I’ve got to call my wife.”

He just sat there, keeping his gaze trained on my face.

“What?”

“You’re not fazed by my revelation? No one knows I exist. You know that, right?”

“No, I’m not fazed,” I lied. The implications of what this could mean were huge. “But I am surprised no one knows you exist. Why?”

“I was an inconvenience to my mother. She sent me away, and now that she’s made enemies, I’ve become the leverage for the other side. I want to do something about it.”

My feet hit the cold tiled floor. “And what’s that?”

“Take her down. And you’re going to help me.”

***

Jade

I left Lailah at the table and hurried outside onto the brick sidewalk, shivering from the chill in the night air. Jasper leaned against the wall under a flickering gaslight, an unlit cigarette hanging out of his mouth. He was dressed in dark jeans and a black henley, with a knit hat covering his unruly hair.

He spotted me and jerked his head, indicating he wanted to head toward Canal Street. Holding the cigarette with two fingers, he said, “Let’s go.”

I stood my ground. “Wait. I was having dinner.”

“It’s over. We need to talk, and not here.”

I bristled at his pushy demand. “I’m not leaving Lailah. You can either come inside and sit with us, or you can wait for us.”

His eyes narrowed, and I could swear I felt a hint of rage boiling beneath his I-don’t-give-a-shit demeanor. The feeling vanished as fast as it had appeared, and he leaned against the wall once more, stuffing the cigarette back into his mouth. “Hurry up. I don’t have much time.”

Pushy little bastard. I was starting to regret aligning myself with him. But he had information we needed. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

Irritated impatience swirled around him like storm clouds. I resisted flipping him off and mentally gave myself a medal. He was the one who’d interrupted my dinner without any warning. He could wait a few minutes for me to pay my bill. I hurried back into the restaurant, only to find Lailah had already taken care of the check and was on her way to catch up with me.

“Thanks,” I said. “How much do I owe you?”

“Don’t worry about it. You can get it next time.”

I smiled, enjoying our easy friendship. It wasn’t that long ago neither of us would’ve been caught dead having dinner together, much less paying for each other. I fell into step beside her. “He’s kind of being an ass. So fair warning.”

She glanced over at me. “I might be an ass if my fiancée was missing, too.”

“Maybe. But not like this. You’ll see.”

We reemerged on Decatur to an empty sidewalk. “Dammit.” I frowned. “Where is he?”

Lailah glanced up and down the street, then she grabbed my hand and pointed across the busy street.

Jasper was sitting on top of a cement barrier between the parking lot and the sidewalk, barely visible in the darkness. I shook my head and led the way down the street to the crosswalk. “What’s he up to?”

“Showing us who’s in charge, I imagine.” She seemed unconcerned with his antics. Or maybe she sympathized.

I had no such compunction. If Kane was missing, I’d go after him with both barrels raised. No games necessary. But then, I was a white witch and leader of the New Orleans coven. I had a lot more resources than this kid did. My irritation with him all but vanished. How long had Avery been missing? Three, four months? However long it was, it was entirely too long. I had to give the kid a break.

We crossed the street, the wind off the Mississippi River whipping my long hair across my face. I pulled it up into a haphazard bun and crossed my arms against my chest, trying to stave off the cold. When we were about ten feet from Jasper, he hopped off the cement wall and walked toward Canal, not acknowledging us.

“He’s making sure he can claim plausible deniability. If anyone spots him and this gets back to Chessandra, he’ll want to make sure he’s not seen walking or talking with us so he can claim coincidence,” Lailah explained.

“But we talked outside the restaurant.”

She lifted one shoulder. “I’m sure he has his reasons.”

I cast her a side-eye glance. “You’re being very diplomatic.”

She laughed. “Yeah, probably. I’m trying to reserve judgment until I’ve spoken to him. Chessandra is a total bitch to work for. He probably trusts no one. I guess I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.”

Shame wound its way through me. She was right. The kid had lost someone important to him, and he had to work for the woman who was responsible for her disappearance. It was enough to break anyone.

We followed Jasper down North Peters and up Bienville, weaving between the tourists, until he abruptly ducked into an old brick warehouse that had been recently turned into luxury condos. Lailah and I strolled into the building’s lobby, chatting away as if we were oblivious to the world around us. But in reality, we were both on high alert.

Lailah glanced quickly at the ornate door off to the right and then back at me.

I’d heard it click closed only a second ago. If we went through it, I had no doubt we’d find Jasper waiting for us.

Lailah continued to chat about a purse she’d seen at the Coach Factory that she’d talked herself out of buying. By the way she was going on and on, you’d think she’d formed an unnatural attachment. Considering I’d never once seen her carry a designer purse, I had to deduce she was making it all up off the top of her head.

It was impressive.

Finally she paused for a breath, and I said, “Let’s go up. I’ll show you my collection.”

She nodded, and I rolled my shoulders, expelling some of my tension. This undercover stuff was for the birds. I was more of a take-a-stand-and-deal-with-the-repercussions-later type of girl. Probably not always the best course of action, but so far it had worked for me.

The moment we stepped into the stairwell, Jasper snapped, “This way.” He ran up the steep wooden stairs, taking them two at a time.

“Let’s do this,” I said to Lailah.

Jasper didn’t slow down once on the four-flight climb, and by the time I stepped into the condo, I was sucking wind like a pack-a-day smoker.

Lailah had barely broken a sweat, and Jasper was standing near a full-length window, that cigarette back between his lips.

“Do you ever smoke those, or is it just an oral thing?” If he really was a smoker, I was going to feel even worse about myself, because, really?

He ignored my question and flipped a switch.

I froze, my heart pounding as I stared at the sight in front of me.

“Whoa,” Lailah said softly.

One full wall was full of photos, graphs, notes, and diagrams. In the middle there was a picture of Chessandra. Tacked to the wall around her photo was her sister, Mati, and the date they’d tried to close the demon portal, the date Avery had gone missing, a couple memos, a picture of a demon, and a young boy with a shock of blond hair.

I turned back to Jasper. “How long have you been researching this?”

“Since about a week after Avery went missing.”

Lailah turned and made eye contact with him. “Does anyone else know you’re doing this?”

He shook his head.

“Why?”

I highly doubted Lailah didn’t know the answer to her question. It was likely she just wanted to hear him say what she was thinking.

He let out a humorless chuckle. “Because no one wants to believe the high angel is corrupt. Or that she’s the real reason Avery’s gone.”

Lailah and I shared a glance. He was right. No one wanted to hear their leader was as shady as a New Orleans politician.

We both turned and studied the wall once again.

Lailah reached out, pressing her palm to the photo of Avery. Then she turned to Jasper. “I believe you.”

Chapter 13

Kane

The walk down the dimly lit hall took every last bit of strength out of me. I’d put Ezra’s revelation aside for the moment in order to focus on the phone call I had to make. If I went missing, who knew what Jade would do to find me? By the time we got to the deserted desk, I was clutching Ezra’s arm so tight, I was surprised I hadn’t fractured it.