Page 15 of My Dark Obsession
The dark wooden bar and matching tables were aged with well use. The dripping wax of the candles had slid and settled within the grooves on the tables and each wall was lined with pictures of various animals and groups of people. Each one as different as the next. Notes of love and signatures were pinned beneath each one.
A memorial wall.
I trailed my hand down a picture of a man holding something bundled up in his arms, the ear poking through the blanket was a sign it was a puppy of some sort…or a shifter. The note read, ‘My darling link, forever tied together’.
There was so many of them, so many notes of love, some stained and smudged as if tears had dripped onto the drying ink.
“The fallen. From the war.” His deep timber sent shivers down my back; he stood so close behind me, I could feel the warmth seeping into my back. A tingle spread down my neck as he ran his nose along the length of it, inhaling before he shuddered, and his chest made an odd vibrating click.
Was he purring?
Did bearded dragons purr?
Was I fooling myself by assuming that was what he was?
Pulling away, I pretended it didn’t happen; the giant didn’t need to know how much he affected me.
Clearing his throat he shoved his hand in his pants pockets and pulled out a key. Unlocking the large, black, wooden doors, he pulled them open and let the humid air and grey light in from the street.
Five
‘Memories old and new-Memoriam Veteris Et Novi’
Amaya
The air was warm, and my hair stuck to my face instantly. I hated it. I always preferred the cold, a cool breeze against my skin and a dark sky to match my empty heart.
I was expecting the street to be full of animal shifters, flying creatures and people on brooms. Instead, I couldn’t see past the crowds of people in front of us, their backs to us as they watched and listened to the voice that boomed further on about the greatest deal of the week, fresh vamps blood straight from the source.
Yep, vamps blood. There were vampires here. Why would anyone want vampire blood? Was it magical? Did I want vampire blood? I kind of did. It would have been a pretty cool thing to own, wouldn’t it?
Rí guided me with his hand on my lower back through the crowd that parted the moment they saw the surlyscowl and red eyes. Nosy onlookers stared at me; I kept my eyes to the old stone path.
The second we eased out of the crowd I gasped; there it all was, the magic, the mystery, the surrealness. The supernatural. The same bear as last night strolled by with a sack hanging from his neck, a couple walked hand in hand, and both had long thick curling horns atop their heads. A set of wolf puppies ran between legs yipping in their excitement as a tired looking woman ran after them, a smile pulling at her lips. Stall after stall held trinkets and small glass jars of sparkling oddities that I simply needed.
This place was so incredible, I forgot about the humidity. I forgot about the cold churning in my stomach, and I simply gawked at everything. It was like a scene straight from a fantasy book.
“Come, we’re going to need coffee to deal with Cole.” Pushing gently on my back Rí guided me along the street.
So the person we were meeting was named Cole. That was the first bit of information Rí had given me about his person with ‘connections’. The itch on my lower back was soothed by his touch once more and I simply hated that. I hated that I need him to help me get back, so the fact that he soothed my discomfort almost angered me. I didn’t need anyone but my boys. I didn’t.
I pulled away from his hand and looked through each window we passed desperate for detail, hungry for more information. I wanted it all. Some shops and stalls were similar to my town, such as clothing stores full of fabrics and mannequins. Some stalls held steaming food that made my mouth water. But the rest held so much more, and my brain almost couldn’t cram it all in.
A piercing squeak had me covering my poor recently healed ears and wince. Some animal must have been hurt; it must have been dying and screeching its pain for all to hear.
“Dragon man! Who is this?! Oh. My. Fates. Above. You’re simply stunning. I love the look!” The rushed ramble took me off guard. A woman with a bright pink apron stood in front of a coffee shop. Her short curls bounced around her head as she jumped up and down in excitement. She clapped her hands and squealed again.
Oh, it was a person. Not an animal.
Rí’s sigh had my lips twitching. He really wasn’t much more of a people person than I was.
“Come on in. Come on. Hurry up! Tell me everything. Oh you must be special if you have the grumpy dragon looking so happy!” My brows raised as I looked up at Rí’s deep scowl and thinned lips. Happy?
Still, he followed her in, yet again placing his hand on the small of my back.
The shop smelled incredible, the roasted nutty coffee smell accentuating the sweet smell of baked cakes. Glass shelves full of iced buns and huge rounded muffins shone brightly under the floating ball of light. Yep, a floating ball of light lit up the baked goods.
My mouth watered yet again. The boys would love them. My shoulders slumped.
