Page 25 of April's Fool
I couldn’t help but compare the two demons. Gregoris dwarfed us all, even in this disguise. He must have been about six and a half feet, if not taller. I was bad with heights. All I knew was Parker was slightly shorter than Mori and claimed to be six feet tall and next to Gregoris, he looked small.
Within seconds I took in the witches in the room, just Oak and River who we had met before, then I cataloged all the exits and important furniture. I made sure to have Mori out of line of sight from the window but I had left us with a clear view of the door, our only exit. I noted all the problems, like the building next door that had a great line of sight for a sniper if someone was determined. The wind would make the shot tricky, though.
We went through the pleasantries, the introductions and offers of drinks, before we could get down to what we were really there for. All the while I was simmering, wanting to ask what the fuck was going on!
I declined a cup of tea with all the manners that I had despite the tense situation, but took the offered sealed bottle of water. Sue me, I was still a paranoid hitman who had a contract out on him.
Not only did I have to deal with this potential mate thing, I also needed to decide what I wanted to do about the hit taken out on Parker. There was no wayhe could go back to a hotel, not alone. He wouldn’t let me come with him, either. We really shouldn’t be in the same place together… unless he came with us to the demon realm.
With a glance at him, his hand still being held by the guard’s, I knew he was coming back to the demon realm with us. Something had altered him during that handshake. We were never that touchy-feely before this. They were still touching! Parker looked… happy, content about it, so I wasn’t going to say a word. I might not have been a fan of the guard, but I knew Mori loved him in his own way. That made him a decent person. Demon. Whatever.
Mori was super sweet, made friends with everyone and had already charmed the witches. He sat next to me cheerfully sipping on a piping hot cup of tea, a cookie in his free hand. He was sitting so close we were touching from knee to shoulder. His presence was reassuring and settled some of my nerves from being in this house. I was grateful to him almost as much as I wanted to test out our chemistry. It buzzed between us like it was a living thing.
I snapped myself out of daydreaming about what Mori would feel like under me to focus on what Oak was saying. The witch was answering some questions Mori had about Cody. Every aspect of Cody’s lifefascinated him. I couldn’t wait to tease Cody about his doting dad.
Focused once again in the room, I shivered. Magic flavored the air, leaving every breath bitter with the tang of it. I hated the feeling, irrationally so. This was all conditioning from my childhood, I knew that. I had no reason to fear or dislike the witches.
“Should we make a start?” I asked when the conversation settled.
“Sure,” Oak said affably, his tawny skin became rosy with a blush. He and his sister, Zinna, had similar features. The same deep gray eyes and straight dark hair that spoke of their Asian heritage. Oak wore his tied back in a low ponytail that really suited him. If I hadn’t met Mori first… no, he still wouldn’t have been my type. Oak gave soft dom top vibes. Plus, he was a witch and just… shudder. Nope.
“Well, we went through the usual spells trying to trace him. It was useful because his brother is here. Thyme—“
“Thyme? Seriously.”
Oak rolled his eyes. “Yes, Thyme.”
I couldn’t help the snicker that escaped me. “Basil, Thyme, and are there any other herb related names?”
Gregoris was glaring at my rudeness. Parker took his hand back to cover his mouth and hide his own giggles.
Oak scowled. “Thyme is a fine name. It’s from a naming tradition in his family—“
“Are you talking about me again?” a voice came from the doorway. A shorter, red-haired man with the bluest eyes I’d ever seen entered the room with a smile on his face. He was cute, with a soft-looking, heart-shaped face. Adorable if you were into twinks, which I wasn’t. I preferred someone of my build or more muscular. A challenge. Thyme’s hair fell in soft curls over his forehead, into his eyes. He pushed them aside and winked at me. “Damon, right? Are you here to help us find Basil? My brother is sneaky, so I hope you can help.” He let out a frustrated sigh. “I just want this over with.”
“Uh, sure. Sorry about the name thing.” Honestly, now that he was in front of me, I thought the name suited him. It was almost fae-like, and he had the air of magic about him.
“No worries. Like Oak was saying,” he perched next to the other witch with an easy familiarity that Oak didn’t seem to mirror. He became stiff next to Thyme. “It’s a family name. I had it before my transition and kept it.” Thyme grinned cheekily. Him, I liked. “Besides, it always seemed like more of a boy’s name, anyway.”
“It was good of you to honor your great-uncle that way,” Oak said rather formally.
Thyme bestowed a stunning smile on Oak that did nothing to melt the chill between them, or rather, from Oak’s direction. Whatever was going on there was Oak’s issue, not Thyme’s. Could it be mistrust from who Thyme was to Basil?
“Okay, so you want Basil taken care of? Let’s have a look at where you’ve had traces of him.” I returned to the business at hand. I wanted to get me and Parker, plus our demon companions, back to Toth’s castle as soon as possible.
In the corner of my eye, I caught Thyme’s startle and Oak’s contemplative look. Were they worried that we would say something about Thyme being trans? Was his mention of it a way of feeling me out? Were they checking I was a decent person despite being a paid killer? Seemed like I passed the test if that’s what it was. Stupid really, since I likely wouldn’t have known, as most witches transitioned with magic and not hormones and surgery like humans did. Some humans could get a coven to help them with it at a massive cost. For an individual witch to do it was to give up some of their magic forever. Living their authentic selves came at a significant cost. I actually admired Thyme for being willing to do that. I’d only just met the witch, but I could guarantee that I respected him a hell of a lot more than the other witches in this coven.
Any coven, really. Northarbor’s witches, Basil aside, seemed decent, but at the end of the day, they were still witches.
We had been at this for hours. They had looked for the ex-High Witch in many places, as indicated by the little pins on the map in front of us. The trouble was that Basil was too powerful and knew how to hide himself with magic easily. He also had allies. Someone in the coven had to be helping him, which is why they were down to just three people looking for him. Even then, they often excluded Thyme from things because they were afraid he was leaking information to his brother.
While I didn’t know the situation, I knew people. Thyme was determined to find his brother and make him pay for his crimes. I knew this as a fact. It was something I was going to have to bring up with Oak, since he was wasting a valuable resource. Thyme had information about his brother that we could likely use.
The hours passed by with countless cups of tea, takeout, and snacks marking the passage of time with very little to show for our work.
Parker was working on a database of all known allies of Basil, any aliases he used, and the all important money trail. He would need supplies and cash to fund the things he had been up to.
All of this was taking too much of our time.
