Page 9 of Cursed
“His long-time boyfriend, Tony Spencer, is a musician, and he often plays near where the food truck is parked,” Seth continued.
“Pax’s father disappeared twelve years ago,” Evan put in. “Which matches with the disciples’ sacrifice schedule.”
“Pax still supports his mother and a younger sister,” Seth went on. “Tony left a bad family scene and started busking and playing in small clubs. Now, he’s a local club regular. He and Pax have been together for a couple of years. I wouldn’t be surprised if they opened a restaurant with live music down the line.”
“We think Vernon has already connected at some level with Pax through the restaurant community,” Evan said. “If you didn’t know what Vernon really was, it would look like a goodthing for an established restaurateur to mentor an up-and-coming young talent.”
“Except he’s grooming Pax to be dinner for the next cycle,” Seth said in a sour tone. “And Vernon has to have heard about the other disciples that we’ve killed. He might move the sacrifice forward to boost his power if he thinks we’re coming for him.”
“That’s a legitimate concern,” Rowan agreed. “Then again, Vernon has a pretty big ego. We already knew that since Gremory died, his disciples don’t really get along. Just because some of them were worried, Vernon may feel strong and superior and figure he doesn’t need to be concerned or change his schedule.”
“I’m looking forward to proving him wrong,” Seth said with a wolfish glint in his eyes that worried Evan.
How do you balance a quest for justice with any sort of sanity? This is like that show with the two guys who drove around in the big car fighting demons. Makes for great TV but sucks as a job description.
Crazy as their life was, Evan had no intention of leaving Seth, despite the danger.How many times do you get a chance to do something that really matters? We’ll change the future for twelve families and all their descendants—including ours. That’s worth the danger.
“I’ll see if I can dig up anything else,” Teag offered. “If I don’t have something by the time you leave Charleston, I’ll VPN it to you.” Ensorcelled encryption worked wonders to protect sensitive files about paranormal subjects.
“Thanks,” Seth said. “There’s never too much information, and you never know when it’s a little thing that will make all the difference.”
“I’ve been working on witch connections for you in Savannah,” Rowan said. “I’ve got a contact for you—Kinsley Martell. She’s well-regarded in the supernatural communitythere and has been a practicing witch long enough to be proficient. Most importantly, she draws on elemental magic, which is earth, air, fire, and water, which makes her more versatile if your witch-disciple is a general weather witch. And she has a necromancer friend that Donnelly vouches for.”
“Sounds good,” Evan said. “If Vernon’s been in Savannah under one name or another, how do we know he doesn’t have influence over the covens?”
Rowan frowned. “I realize that most of your experience has been with a twisted group of men who chose to follow a dangerous cult leader. But most witches are very independent. We pride ourselves on not taking orders well. And while we respect talent and experience, covens are usually pretty egalitarian.”
“I didn’t mean any offense—” Evan hurried to add.
“None taken,” Rowan replied. “I doubt Vernon has invested much energy embedding himself in the local magic scene—sounds like he’d think he was too good for common witches. It would also be hard for him to hide his immortality. But I’ll use my sources to verify. I don’t want to guess wrong and find out that he’s got lackeys or fans eager to curry favor.”
“How do we get in touch with Kinsley?” Seth asked.
“I’ve already given her your number.” Rowan picked up her phone and texted Seth. Kinsley’s contact information popped up on his phone. “There. You’re connected. Let her know when you get to Savannah, and then you can figure out what to do from there.”
“Thank you so much. We’re glad for any help,” Evan assured her.
“Which brings me to Nash and Caden.” Cassidy finished her coffee and set the cup aside.
“Nash Arden runs a pub and B&B. He knows about the supernatural, and he’s a medium, which is why he didn’t go intothe family business of being a funeral director,” Cassidy added with a raised eyebrow.
“Yeah, that would be awkward.” Evan shuddered.
“Caden Brady is a police detective, which can come in handy,” Cassidy told them. “He’s also psychometric, so he can sense the history and magic of objects by touching them, also helpful.”
Evan appreciated the idea of psychometry and knew it was Cassidy’s gift, but he was glad not to have the ability himself. The idea of reading so much information from casually touching an object gave him shivers and made him think of movie characters who always wore gloves.
“He and Caden have been a couple in real life for ten years now, working together to stop supernatural threats,” Cassidy continued. “They usually stick to run-of-the-mill haunts and minor paranormal creatures, not big guns like Vernon. But they’re good backup, and while they know the area and players, you’ll still be taking the lead.”
“I don’t want to get anyone killed,” Seth said. “Maybe we should leave them out of this.”
Cassidy shook her head. “I’ve already spoken to them, and they’re all in. Actually, they’re pissed that Vernon has been killing people in their backyard, so to speak. As for the risk…it goes with the job. There’s no such thing as a simple haunting or exorcism.”
Evan knew that from experience. Creatures could turn out to be more powerful than expected, or a shift in the location or circumstances might change the balance. He and Seth had narrowly escaped several situations that went wrong at the last minute.
“We’ve had small abilities turn out to be the game-changer,” Evan reminded Seth. “We can usually use all the help we can get.”
“I’ll keep looking for contacts and information and feed you what I find,” Cassidy assured them. “And in a pinch, it’s about two hours for us to get to Savannah, so don’t be shy about yelling for help if you need it.”
