Chapter One
Fangs flashed where her cheek had been an instant before. Ari whirled, crouching to meet the vampire’s return charge, and her fingers sparked, witch blood clamoring for action. Refusing its urgent call, she threw the magic powder as he wheeled and sped toward her in a blur.
Green particles sparkled. A loud thump. The vampire recoiled from the invisible barrier and took two staggering steps. A direct hit. Before a smile more than touched her lips, the dark figure recovered and leaped. Ari backpedaled, but his weight drove her to the hard ground.
He grinned down at her, a lock of dark hair falling across his forehead. Trapping her arms above her head, he leaned close, his dark eyes glittering. He brushed her lips with his and whispered, “Better—but not yet good enough.” Andreas shifted his six-foot, muscled body, sprang up, and offered her a hand.
Ignoring the courtesy, Ari scrambled to her feet. Getting pinned by your boyfriend wasn’t always a good thing. “Back off, bloodsucker,” she grumbled. She shook out the fallen leaves and pine needles that clung to her long, honey-colored hair.
Andreas chuckled. A rich, warm sound. “Touchy tonight. Did I put your nose out of joint, little witch? And here I was, trying to help with your training.” Andreas glided across the forest clearing with the smooth grace of a natural predator. He collected their cell phones from under a park bench where they’d stashed them earlier in the evening and handed her one.
“Thanks.” Ari avoided his eyes. Damn right she was annoyed. She was competitive, and second place wasn’t good enough—even against a master level vampire. Especially one who wasn’t really trying to kill her.
Andreas studied her face, his voice pragmatic. “I am glad you are taking this seriously. Other combatants will be less charitable than I, less mindful of breaking your pretty neck. I can almost guarantee Sebastian will continue his fight with Prince Daron, and next time he may lead the attack. You might have to face him again.”
“Oh, come on. You can’t really believe he’d come to Riverdale. He’s too comfortable lording it over everyone in Toronto.”
Andreas shrugged. “It is unlikely, but a sobering thought. With Sebastian, anything is possible.” He frowned, obviously thinking about the brutal vampire leader. “He has grown more aggressive, erratic, perhaps less sane, as sometimes happens with the elder ones. Our defeat of his minions will only fuel his rage and make him more determined.”
“Minions? What kind of word is that?” Ari demanded. “You really should update your vocabulary. Being born in seventeen hundred and something is no excuse for using words no one understands.”
She was just being bitchy. In truth, she wouldn’t change a thing about Andreas’s speech or sexy voice. The archaic words, the faint accent of Italian aristocracy, and the shivers of sensation it produced were all part of him. She never got used to the seductive effect…even when she wanted to be annoyed.
“As for Prince Sebastian,” she said, allowing her sarcasm free reign before turning toward the path that led home, “if he attacks me, there won’t be any rules against using my witch fire. Or calling upon the fire spirits to destroy him.” She flicked a glance at Andreas. “I’ve been practicing for better control of all the magics, but the fire would be enough. Even princes aren’t immune to flames.” She couldn’t resist adding, “Maybe you shouldn’t be so cocky. Pissing off a witch might be sufficient grounds for breaking my witches’ oath.”
When this only elicited an amused quirk of his lips, Ari sighed. It was an empty threat, and not even much of a sarcastic joke. She would never use her witch fire on anyone except for defense, and certainly not on Andreas. Twitching her shoulders to relieve the tension, she made an attempt to recover her sense of humor by producing a half grin. “Watch out for the barrier dust next time. Tonight was only a test dosage. I didn’t want to risk hurting my sexy boyfriend.”
“Ah, you are too kind.” A small laugh escaped his lips. “I will take heed and be more wary in the future.”
Yeah, right. Both of them knew it would take something far more powerful than magic dust, her latest witchcraft concoction, to stop Andreas De Luca. Besides his two hundred years of experience, he was second-in-command to the local vampire prince and had all the power to prove it. Not to mention abilities mostly unexplained: being up and about before the sun went down and his resistance to her bracelet of protective charms—including the silver cross and a miniature vial of holy water.
“You worry too much about me,” she said, following up on his earlier comments. “Whatever Sebastian plans next, I’ll be ready. I’m not exactly helpless.” She rolled her eyes, thinking about the years of martial arts and weaponry training. Sheesh, what did he want? “Besides, now I have the Book of Shadows to help with the magic.” A small glimmer of satisfaction touched her lips.
The Calin Family Book of Shadows, filled with the history, spells, and potions of her witch clan, had recently returned to her care after being lost for eighteen years. She made a point of spending an hour or two every evening poring over its pages. Sometimes she even studied at Andreas’s supper club while he sang on stage or handled business matters.
“I do not discount any of your skills, but I know how devious and ruthless Sebastian is. He plays by nobody’s rules except his own, and he will not forget or forgive our interference. We must not become over-confident.” Andreas reached out his long fingers and plucked a leaf from her hair.
“Which means we should train longer and harder.” Ari sighed, knowing he was right. Her skills always had to be at their peak to fulfill her Guardian duties as the supernatural cop for Olde Town’s population of vampires and other magic users. But having an enemy like Sebastian, who was close to a thousand years old, made her fitness more urgent. She didn’t need to be reminded of his power. When she’d visited Canada on a prior case, she had barely escaped Sebastian’s attempt to control her mind. If not for her magical witch defenses…
Sebastian’s obsession with power and his fervor to continue his long-standing feud with Daron had led to two attacks within the last year. Ari and her friends had helped the local vampires win those rounds, but not without a cost. Ari still grieved for Yana, her former mentor, who’d been ambushed and killed by Sebastian’s werewolf assassins.
She sighed again. Under the circumstances, a little extra honing of her vampire fighting skills was probably a good thing. Not that she minded spending time with Andreas—not at all. It was the losing that wasn’t fun.
“It was a good hunt tonight,” Andreas said.
“I almost got away. If you hadn’t made that last leap from the tree…”
“Yes, your tracking and evading skills have improved, and the magic dust was an interesting touch.”
“Surprised you, didn’t I?” Ari couldn’t stop the hint of satisfaction that crept into her voice. It wasn’t often she caught him off guard. Her eyes lit remembering how he’d stumbled from the impact. “I found the recipe in the Book of Shadows. Recorded by a great-great aunt, who used it against werewolves. A couple of adjustments upped the wattage.”
His lips crooked into a grin. “It does have an initial punch. The barrier dissolved too quickly to stop an assailant for long, but it should throw any vampire off balance. A nice addition to your craft.”
Music to her ears. A few months ago Andreas had urged Ari to trust in her inner magic, instead of relying on her physical skills for everything. And she had done that, but it was sometimes trial and error. Today’s magic powder was a coup of sorts, much better than the cloaking potion she tried last month. The cloaking elixir had worked fine against her werewolf friends; she’d been invisible, but it hadn’t fooled the vampire for a second. That failure made today’s success even sweeter.
“Um, thanks. I’ll take that as a compliment. You don’t give many.” Ari was still pouting.
And he called her on it. “Need an ego boost, Arianna?” He hid a smile. “I am sure I can oblige. Let me see, what are your greatest accomplishments? How about excellent cooking?” He ignored the small punch on his arm and continued. “Perhaps not, considering the many meals you consume at Club Dintero and the take-out cartons in your trash. Although you do pour an acceptable glass of wine. Ah, I have it. Interior decorating. The bare walls of your apartment are done with such style.” He put a hand to his forehead as if deep in thought. “Hmm, what else? Stitchery? Of wounds, perhaps.”
“Stop it,” she said, finally laughing. “We both know I don’t do much domestic stuff. Except for brewing potions. But one of these nights, I’m gonna kick your butt.”
“Ah-ha. I thought I saw a lust for vengeance in those green eyes.” He easily sidestepped when she took a half-hearted swing at him.
In spite of failing to defeat Andreas or evade his pursuit during the training session, Ari knew she was making good progress. She was getting better at fighting vampires every night they trained. If Sebastian was planning another attack, she would be ready this time.
As they headed toward the west gate into Olde Town, both of them seemed content with the companionable silence. Their course wound along the tree-darkened paths toward the swan fountain on the edge of Goshen Park and in the general direction of their separate residences: Ari’s studio apartment, where her cat Bella would be waiting, and Andreas’s Victorian mansion, which he shared with a weretiger staff and six vampires of his lineage.
Despite the mild temperature earlier in the evening, a cool wind blew through the dense pine trees, chilling Ari’s back. The Midwestern fall season was quickly slipping away, and she zipped up her leather jacket. Her companion had no such problem. His immunity to temperature changes was one of the few vampire perks Ari envied.
“I’ve been learning my witch family history,” she finally said. “Read through The Book twice. It made me feel—” She halted suddenly. Her skin prickled with awareness of approaching Otherworld power. She scanned the forest, as Andreas’s body stilled beside her. Whatever inner radar warned him, their magics seemed to be on synchronized alert systems.