Page 1 of Ashes and Lilies
1
“Doyou want to go to a murder scene with me?” Damen asked from across from the cozy breakfast nook.
I raised an eyebrow, considering his request. I shouldn’t have been surprised that he’d chosen such an unusual dessert conversation. It’d become apparent rather quickly that my new friend, Damen Abernathy, was somewhat strange.
He also lacked proper etiquette. He’d waited until I’d taken a bite of my chocolate cake before turning off his phone, leaning back in his seat, and making the query.
I should have declined, thrilling as the prospect was. And it truly was—the thought of leaving the inside of Damen’s cozy house to look at blood-splattered walls this late in the evening, especially when a ghost was trying to hurt me—was rather unappealing.
Tonight was supposed to be about relaxing. After yesterday’s events, when a very angry ghost had tried to kill me in Professor Hamway’s yard, it was emphasized that I wasn’t supposed to be doing much of anything.
“I could really use your help,” he added.
And suddenly, I was unable to turn him down. This was the man who’d very recently saved my life and brought me into his circle at a time when I’d been utterly alone.
I would do anything he wanted.
I would have to change out of my pajamas. My light pink gown wasn’t optimal attire for such things. I nodded and knew I’d made the right choice when his gray eyes lit with pleasure.
“Excellent,” he said, and my attention moved to his mouth. “We’ll leave shortly.”
Miles placed a plate of cookies between Damen and me, crossed his arms, and frowned. “You can’t take her. It’s already late, and she has class in the morning.”
“It’s only biology.” Damen shrugged. “Besides, it shouldn’t take that long.”
“But didn’t you say she had to get on Bryce’s good side?” Miles protested.
I glared at the witch. I doubted the fake professor cared that I might miss a class, so why was he intervening?
“Bryce Dubois”—Damen casually waved his hand in the air—“or a homicide? There’s a clear ranking of importance between those two things. Besides, with Gregory on leave tonight, I’d rather have Bianca as the first medium on scene before Bryce can be alerted. Don’t you agree?” he asked me.
I nodded again, trying to hide my excitement. The fact that I might best my archnemesis at something made this turn of events even sweeter. I had no idea he helped Dr. Stephens, so this was another area where I could prevail. I must cultivate my skills so that when the time came, I could easily knock Bryce down into his rightful place as my subordinate.
And to think, all it took was for someone to be killed. It wasgood to know where Damen’s priorities lay—on my side, where they belonged.
I spottedthe silver and blue lights an instant before Damen turned the corner. Vehicles were parked in a semi-circle in front of a white picket fence outside a white house with black shutters. Gray-uniformed officers mingled around the wrap-around patio and through the front door.
Damen pulled into an open space close to the yellow tape, and a gangly man in a navy suit stepped away from the others and moved toward us.
“Oh,” Damen remarked as he turned off his car. “Norman’s here already.”
“Norman?” My attention lingering on the redheaded man. His unfriendly scowl was evident even in the flashing lights. “Who is he?”
“My second-in-command,” Damen answered. I opened my mouth to ask, but Damen beat me. “Let’s not tell him anything about you yet.”
“Why?” I asked, turning to face Damen. Was there a reason that I was supposed to deny my birthright?
“Just a suspicion,” Damen said as he parked the car and unbuckled his seat belt. He exited the vehicle and walked around the front, opening my door.
“Nothing for you to worry about, though,” he continued, offering me his arm. “But until I’m certain, the less he knows about you, the better.”
That sounded exactly like something I should be worried about. “Then what do we say when—” I closed my mouth as Norman stepped in front of us.
“It’s about time you showed up; we’re already behind schedule.” Norman was typing into his phone so severely that his screen might break. His sharp, angular features radiated alertness as his keen gaze flew over me. But as quickly as he sized me up, he turned his nose up and his focus shifted away.
His easy dismissal was almost offensive, but I was also thankful he didn’t want to talk to me.
I was curious why, though. Was I not interesting? Or perhaps Damen always brought random girls with him to crime scenes.
