Wytchcraft: A Matilda Kavanagh Novel (12 page)

Fletcher leaned toward me and whispered, “Stop fidgeting.”

Clenching my hand in a fist, I squared my shoulders and kept my chin up as we continued through the lobby, heading toward the restaurant.

Fletcher walked right past the hostess with a small nod and led us around the bar in the back. I would have never noticed the door, it blended so perfectly with the wall it was practically seamless, but it opened at Fletcher’s touch. I wondered if any other creature besides a vamp could open it – just like the doors in the fairy mound. It closed behind us with a soft
snick
.

We were in a long, dimly lit hallway. The only light came from the sconces on the right hand wall, though they were spaced so far apart there were gaping pockets of dark that stole my breath.

“Remember to breathe,” Fletcher said in that same rough voice. “When your heart races, you draw too much attention to yourself. As my pet, you should be indifferent about being here.” I nodded, not trusting my voice just yet.

Eventually, I noticed we were walking downhill, and wondering why there weren’t stairs distracted me enough to slow the beat of my heart and bring my breathing back to normal.

“Now, when we go inside, try not to make eye contact with anyone,” Fletcher explained. “I don’t know what you’re planning to do down here, but just try not to draw any attention to yourself and don’t leave my side. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” I said, relieved that my voice sounded pretty close to normal even though my throat was tight enough to choke me.

“By the by,” he said, “I’m assuming you’re not human.”

“No,” I said, blowing out a breath, “I’m a witch.” With every word, I sounded more and more normal.

“Good, then if we get separated, at least you won’t be susceptible to mind games. But remember--” I cut him off, finishing his sentence.

“They’re all stronger than me. Yeah, I know.”

“And if you use your powers down here—” Again, I finished for him.

“They’ll kill me in a second.”

“As long as we’re on the same page.”

“Yeah, I got it.” Then, when we were deep enough that the temperature had dropped a good fifteen degrees, we were at the door. I gripped Fletcher’s sleeve tight enough to mottle my knuckles, I was sure my knees were threatening to give out on me. What the hell was I doing down here? I had my knockout powder in my bag, sure, and I was nervous enough to light my whole body up with electric bolts, but I had no idea how many vamps were in this nest. Surely more than I could handle.

And really, I had no idea how powerful Theo was. I only knew what she looked like from magazine articles that showed how ethereally beautiful she was.
They have Owen. She’ll care about that, if nothing else,
I reminded myself. I closed my eyes when Fletcher knocked on the door and took the chance to count to ten and calm down. Theo might not actually love Owen, but he was one of her possessions, and if another immortal took him, it would piss her off enough to do something about it. I just had to hope she wouldn’t kill the messenger.

A small peep-hole door at Fletcher’s eye level opened. It was too dark and high for me to see the face of the person on the other side, but they seemed to recognize Fletcher. In the next moment, they closed it and I heard the click of locks being undone before the door swung open. Fletcher ushered me through with a hand on the small of my back, forcing me to let go of his sleeve or else risk ripping the fabric. He was careful to never lose contact with me though, and I had my hand through his arm again almost immediately.

The troll who’d opened the door for us slammed it shut so quickly I was afraid he had clipped Fletcher, but he showed no signs of injury. The troll eyed me, his white tusks gleaming in the half-light, and his scraggly, dirty mane hung in front of his face. I could barely make out the white tattoos on his dusky skin. Fletcher pulled me along and I was more than a little grateful to break eye contact with the bridge dweller.

Fletcher guided me into a lounge area. It reminded me of the opium dens favored by psychics, who were always looking to dull their senses and check out of reality, if only for a little while. There were massive pillows strewn about the floor with bodies lounging over them in different stages of undress. Circular couches were tucked away in dark corners and I could just make out the undulating bodies occupying them. My fingers flexed around Fletcher’s arm, clutching at him. Where the hell did he bring me? A sex club? This is not what I was looking for.

“Everything all right, pet?” Fletcher whispered to me, his voice a fluttering breath along my skin that made me shiver. It felt as though he’d managed to unwind my scarf and my neck was exposed and bare. I touched the fabric with my free hand just to reassure myself that it was still there and my neck was whole.

Fletcher turned us and guided me into a dark and empty corner, spinning me around to press my back against the wall. He pressed his hands to either side of my head, leaning over me, the only light emanating from the glow of his eyes that had shifted from their warm brown to an eerie yellow. My throat went dry at the sudden closeness of our faces, and his scent of smoke and rain filled my senses, blocking out the smell of bodies and blood in the room.

“You have to calm down,” Fletcher said as he leaned closer to me, his cheek grazing mine as he dipped his head close to my neck. I could feel the flaps of his coat around my legs and I fought the urge to sink into the wall and crawl out of here. “Your heart is pounding louder than a drum. Do you want to blow your cover?”

“No,” I said after a couple of tries, but even then my voice came out rough and foreign. “I’m okay.” I closed my eyes and drew in a deep breath through my nose and held it until I got my heartbeat under control. Fletcher drew away from my neck and I blew out the breath through my mouth, tossing my bangs out of my eyes. Fletcher’s nostrils flared and the light in his eyes flickered like a candle flame. My stomach squirmed and my fingers clawed at the wall behind me. He needed to move away from me and he needed to do it quick. I pressed a hand to his chest and pushed. Luckily, he let me move him.

Fletcher stood up straight, lifting a hand to caress my cheek as he grinned down at me. All part of the show folks, no need to worry. I shook my head and tucked my hair behind my ears. When I was sure I was myself again, I looked him in the eye and nodded. Fletcher offered me his arm and led me around the room.

“Theo’s not out here,” I whispered to him when we were back in our corner.

“No, I didn’t really expect her to be.”

“They why bring me here?” I demanded, rounding on him.

“Shhh,” Fletcher said, pressing two fingers to my lips. “We had to check. Besides,” he paused and glanced around, “I figured this would prepare you before I took you further into the lair.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, afraid I already knew just what he meant.

“If you couldn’t handle seeing this, then you definitely can’t handle what the rest of this place has to offer.”

“Look, this isn’t what I’m here for, okay?” I said, putting my hands up in surrender. “I just want to talk to Theo; I don’t need to see all this… this… this!”

“You don’t just go see the Master, you know,” Fletcher said, and for the first time, I heard the temper rising in his voice. “You wanted to come in here uninvited; you think you can just walk up to her?”

“What good is this gonna do, huh?” I asked, gesturing at the den of iniquity around us.

“You’re blending in,” he said.

“So?”

“So, if everyone thinks you belong here, then we can move around freely and maybe you can find Theo.” Fletcher glared down at me, waiting for me to respond. I understood his reasoning, logically, but I couldn’t help how totally and completely creeped out I was. There was a girl, couldn’t be more than eighteen years old, draped over a low table, practically naked. There was a vamp at each of her wrists and ankles while another was nuzzled into her neck. They weren’t more than ten feet away from us. Her wide eyes fluttered and her tiny bow mouth opened with a moan as she squirmed on the table.

I pulled my gaze away from the sight, trying not to think about what would be left of that girl come morning. Fletcher was still watching me, one brow arched in challenge. With my jaw clenched, I gave him a curt nod. We turned and started for the door in the far wall.

“I have to ask you…” he whispered, lifting my hand to his mouth as we walked. I tried not to flinch when he pressed a kiss to the inside of my wrist as we passed two vampires lounging together who eyed us as we went.

“What?”

“Have you ever shared blood with a vampire before?” My stomach went cold at his question. There was only one reason why he was asking me that now.

“Yes,” I forced out, keeping my eyes straight ahead. Fletcher folded my hand back to his arm. My phone rang in my bag. The tinny noise stopped Fletcher just before he opened that dreaded door. I heard a few annoyed murmurs around us as I fumbled for the phone. I shot Fletcher a pained look.

“You have got to be kidding me,” I sighed, seeing Joey’s open face on the screen again. “Joey, this is a bad time,” I whispered into the phone.

“But, Mattie, I have to talk to you,” Joey pleaded.

“Joey, I just can’t talk right now. I’m sorry.” I started to pull the phone away from my ear.

“Mattie, it’s about the potion. I’m kinda freaking out right now,” Joey’s voice pulled me back to the phone.

“Girl, I told you it was risky,” I said, shaking my head. “You knew what you were getting into. Look, I have to go, I’m sorry. I’ll call you when I can.” I hung up the phone, cutting Joey and whatever she was about to say off. I turned my ringer off and made sure the vibrate option was off too. Shoving the phone back into my bag, I gave Fletcher an awkward smile, apologizing for the interruption.

Fletcher’s hand shot out and his fingers twined into my hair, fisting at the back of my head. He pulled, making my neck curve until I was looking at the ceiling. He leaned into my space, placing his face dangerously close to mine, and whispered, “See that it doesn’t happen again.” I swallowed, not daring to breathe, and managed the tiniest of nods. Fletcher stared down at me for another moment before he released his hold on me.

He pushed the door open and gestured for me to go in ahead of him. Holding the back of my head, I walked through the door, trying to keep my eyes on him. When I heard the door close behind us, I spun around, ready to scream at him, feeling the spark of power building in my hands, but his fingers were on my lips again and he was shushing me.

“Those two vamps were watching us,” he whispered. “Had to make it look real. I hope I didn’t hurt you.” My curses died on my tongue and I closed my mouth. Damn him.

“Let’s just go,” I said, turning to look down this new hallway. It was just as dimly lit with sconces burning on the walls, but between each set were empty doorways. As we walked down the hall, I saw that each doorway led to a different room set up to accommodate the different sexual appetites of their occupants. There were straps and spikes and whips and wheels and chairs and swings and anything else you could think of. I was suddenly very grateful for the dim light because I knew my face was cherry red now.

People, humans and vampires alike, were huddled at different doorways, watching the shows inside the rooms. I had to close my eyes at one point and just hold on to Fletcher to keep from falling. I wasn’t a prude, but I also wasn’t a voyeur and this was so not my cup of tea.

“You’re doing great,” Fletcher murmured to me, patting my hand. We turned a corner and I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw that the doorways down here actually had doors, closed doors. Walking was suddenly easier and I didn’t have to cling to Fletcher’s arm. After a few more turns and different hallways, he pulled a key ring out of his pocket and unlocked a door, ushering me through.

Inside was a typical bachelor’s apartment complete with a massive TV and sparse furnishing. Fletcher took off his coat and tossed the keys on a tabletop. The sudden change in décor, the muted sounds of flesh falling away, and the bright lighting made my head spin. I turned to look at Fletcher, questions ready to fly from me.

“Okay, we’re out of the club area,” he said. “Now you’re actually in the lair.”

“Oh,” I said, blinking at him, feeling my questions fall away. “So all that, out there…” I waved at the door and all that stuff beyond.

“That’s kind of a playground. And a major source of our income,” he added that last in a stage whisper. “Only made vampires and pets make it back here; this is where we really live.” Fletcher took a moment to take off some of the jewelry he was wearing: two or three necklaces and four rings. The jewelry clinked on the table top by the keys.

“So what now?” I asked.

“Now we can go look for Theo so you can try to talk to her.”

“Try, huh?”

“Yeah, I wouldn’t get my hopes up if I were you.”

“Is this as stupid as I think it is?”

“Might be.”

“Thanks.” I rubbed my temples, trying to figure out when my life took such a messed up turn. I hadn’t even been down here when I was with Owen, and now here I was, with a perfect stranger who was only helping out of some nostalgic sense of guilt over his dead sister. This was just wrong on so many levels. I could practically hear Ronnie screaming in my head about how stupid I was being right now.

“You ready?” Fletcher asked. He had crossed the room and was standing in a doorway that I thought led to his bedroom. I arched an eyebrow at him, making him laugh. “What, don’t trust me now?”

“Kinda late for second thoughts I guess.” I threw my hands up in the air and stormed across the room. I was right; his bedroom was on the other side of that door, but he didn’t stop there. I was relieved when he pulled a bookcase away from the wall that was set on hinges, revealing yet another hallway.

“What is with this place? It should be called a labyrinth, not a lair,” I said, ducking into the hallway. This one at least was well lit.

“Yeah, I know,” Fletcher said as he pulled the false door closed behind him. “My first six months here, I got lost at least once a week.”