Once Bitten, No Longer Shy by Julie Steimle (chrome ebook reader txt) 📕

the guy’s pockets, including the knife, a lock pick set, and Matthew’s Holy Seven key fob—which she had personally given to him and was unique for his use.

“It is,” Matthew said, as another knife and a few more dangerously sharp things fell off Connor as if he were a human Swiss army knife—hidden blades and all. Piranha collected them off the ground and out of the imps’ hands—all of it—coming up with a bag from he did not know where.

“Hey!” Connor yelped when the imps extracted Matthew’s gun and car keys.

Jessica caught them both as they flew into the air. She glared at Connor, almost as if she was annoyed he was a better pick-pocket than she was.

Another item also flicked out, and that was Connor’s key fob—the new version that had been made specifically for the biting victim’s group—only it had a gizmo attached to it, jury rigging it for some other purpose.

“What’s that?” Piranha snatched it up. She held it to the dimming light.

Tom took it from her hands and peered intently on it. He then handed it to Matthew. “It’s a signal scrambler.”

“For what?” Matthew asked, wincing, realizing he had also scraped up his leg when he had run from Connor.

“Probably for those who want to call the cops,” Tom said. “Was your phone working?”

Matthew shook his head. And that explained it.

“Alright,” Andrew said, hefting up the headless vampire corpse with effort. “Is someone going to help me carry this? It’s heavy.”

“I’ll carry the head,” Piranha offered, grabbing it off the ground by the hair. She swung the head like she would handbag while on a date. It sent different shudders through Matthew, as the jaw hung open, giving him the impression it could still bite.

Tom hopped over and lifted up the rest of the vampire, making it lighter.

“Thanks.” Andrew grinned at him.

As they carried the headless corpse to JJ’s police car trunk (where JJ swore he kept a body bag for ‘emergencies’) as if they were two gangsters intending to chuck it in the bay, Connor’s eyes flickered wildly to the area around them, clearly looking for escape though still in his ‘confused madman’ persona. Rick stayed close to Matthew and Piranha, snarling at Connor as Jessica and JJ cuffed him, then forced him to walk.

Jessica looked to Rick’s feet then his face. “Where’s your shoes?”

Rick gave her a dry look. “Wolves don’t wear shoes.”

“Where’s your clothes?” JJ asked, shoving Connor along. A cold gust swirled around them, especially swooping over Connor who was looking around with wide eyes still. The guy then shuddered as the cold increase, almost wrapping around his neck. They could see Connor’s breath though the air everywhere else was warm.

Matthew peeked to it, realizing it had to be Brandon’s ghost. So much relief swelled over him as he heard Rick reply, “At my car. I had to get here fast.”

“How did you know to come?” Matthew asked him, growing more relieved. They had saved his life.

“JJ called me,” Rick said. He gray eyes then rested on Connor. “No one is getting away with hurting Troy.”

Connor whipped his eyes in panic now, onto Rick.

Matthew chuckled, thinking about that. Yet he had to say, “Even though he resents you?”

Their captive looked to Rick who merely snorted with a mild ‘I don’t care’ look.

“He resents the money,” Rick said. “He resents the wolf. He doesn’t actually resent me.”

Which was true. Troy secretly crushed on Rick—even secret to himself. He would never openly admit it, but Matthew could tell it was happening. Since the day Troy met Rick Deacon, he had perpetually squashed down his attraction to the devil-may-care werewolf.

“Troy knows you are shapeshifter?” Connor said, gasping.

Matthew turned his head, pulling a foot away from the guy, grabbing Rick’s shoulder to do the same as this time Connor did not have a prepared script of thoughts to cover his real feelings.

“Werewolf,” Rick said, baring his elongating teeth. “And we went to school together.”

Jerking him further back, Matthew hissed into Rick’s ear. “The guy’s a killer. He’d eat your heart out for your secret. The monster wants to be immortal.”

But Rick merely made a face as he said loudly, “If a pack of man-eating wolves can’t kill me, do you actually think this wimp could?”

“It takes only one,” Tom said, having dropped his end of the vampire into the body bag. Still far ahead, he and Andrew were at the car which was parked illegally at the corner. JJ had double parked. Tom then pointed at Connor. “Try anything and I’ll break your neck.”

“I’m innocent!” Connor balked, straining against his cuffs. “I would never—”

“Troy loved that girl,” Rick snapped, baring his teeth again. “You destroyed what little happiness he had!”

A frightening flicker went through Connor’s eyes, widening with rapturous pleasure before whipping back to panicked, begging-innocence, saying with his eyes that he ‘didn’t do it’. Matthew saw it. He looked to Rick who shook his head.

“Your face belies you,” Rick growled, yet keeping his distance.

“Belies?” Connor flinched, his true emotions breaking out once more as if Rick just did that to him. “Who talks like that?”

Tom rubbed Rick on his head, a lot quicker there than expected. “Poor puppy. Moron does not understand your English.”

Rick rolled his eyes, shaking Tom off. But Tom had also drawn Rick away from Connor, which was what Matthew had wanted. Now that he finally heard Connor’s free thoughts—rattled by the existence of a werewolf—he knew this man had zero scruples. Connor thought that anything he did, if it pleased him, was good. Matthew drew Rick further away.

“Someone has to watch him,” Rick hissed to Matthew, knowing what they were doing. “He smells of predator.”

Nodding, Matthew wiped his cut once more. “I know… Not so much that I smell it, as all I smell is his alcohol breath—but he’s entirely off.”

“Then why did you follow him?” Rick asked, eying Connor who was fixing his attention on Jessica’s sword now—a foolish act if he knew it. The guy ogled her up also, clearly trying to get a read on her—which in itself would be a feat. Jessica was not a person who could be read by a glance. Her appearance (when she was not wearing armor and a sword) was ordinary—even for a cop.

“He seemed to be my only lead,” Matthew said, watching them carefully as they continued to drag their prisoner to the police car. “It all pointed back to Brandon’s connection with Nicole.”

Connor’s cuffed hands grabbed awkwardly for Jessica’s sword.

Immediately Jessica set one hand on his. Quicker, he jerked it away, screaming. The top of his hand was on fire for a flaming second.

The flames went out in a puff.

“What are you?” Connor gasped, trying desperately to jerk away from her. But JJ and Tom both seized him and dragged his unwilling body toward the car as Piranha nearly skipped, still swinging the vampire’s head by his hair.

Snorting, Jessica lifted one flaming hand for Connor to see. “Your worst nightmare.”

Eyes on the licking flames which had not effect on her skin—unlike what it had done to him, Connor made a face of pain. “But… what?”

She rolled her eyes, looking to Rick while thumbing over her shoulder at their captive. “Do you believe this guy?”

Shaking his head, Rick huffed. Then he looked to Connor who was staring like he had never been awake before. He said, “She’s a warrior for God.”

The man’s recoil from him and her was like he had just stepped into sewer water and it was soaking up his pants. He shivered once more as a cold ghostly presence seemed almost to wrap around him, desiring to strangle him with insubstantial hands. JJ opened the back door. Jessica helped shove Connor’s head in, making him enter. He had nothing on except his briefs. Tom had insisted the imps leave at least that much on the guy. But he was already sticking to the leather of the seats from sweat and goosebumps. Andrew slid into the front seat with JJ while Jessica went back to their car. Matthew asked for a ride to the garage with Jessica, and for his car keys back.

Past Sins

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter Twenty-Seven

 

 

When Jessica and Matthew got into the car, Tom and Piranha saluted them and headed back up top where they had left some kind of small vehicles or vehicle which Matthew was not familiar with but apparently allowed them to get there fast. Rick knocked on the glass to the driver’s side window as apparent his own car was a little further down the road.

Jessica rolled down the window.

“Who is watching your baby?” Rick asked.

With a laugh as if that was a silly question, Jessica said, “Silvia, of course. She and Randon are at the police station. They’ve been there all day since they called us.”

Matthew nodded from the passenger side seat, having gotten a similar call, and he had met with them briefly. Though Bobo had also put in a word, he had left immediately for work. 

Raising his eyebrows, Rick nodded as well, resigned to Silvia being part of his friends’ lives though it was obvious he wasn’t so keen on an ex-witch watching his best friend’s child. With one more look to them both, Rick fell back on all fours as a wolf and ran ahead to his car. It made Mathew laugh for some reason. Rick clearly felt it was better for a wolf in shorts to be running around a New York street than a half-naked multi-billionaire doing the same thing. And it probably was.

The ride to the station was, for Jessica and Matthew, uneventful. But for JJ and Andrew, they had to deal with Connor who finally realized that no one believed his act and he was going to jail for his crimes… if not worse. He tried to tear apart the plastic divide between them—oddly strengthened by something vampire as he actually broke it and was reaching to strangle JJ to crash the car. But Andrew put a stop to that, bringing out his red crystal and someway making a fire barrier inside the car between them. Connor was horrified and deeply singed when they reached the police station. He had soot on his face.

Connor fought his exit from the car. Tom and Piranha were there and so was Officer Johnson and the slew of others who worked on supernatural cases. Most who assisted in bringing Connor in were relieved they had finally caught the perpetrator. Only a few were dismayed that Troy was acquitted. 

As they dragged Connor to be photographed, the paranormal photographer insisted on taking a few photos as well—at JJ’s request. He explained to Matthew that Brandon’s ghost had now fixated on Connor. He was actually trying to strangle him, without success of course. JJ was glad to be free of the jerk, but that meant he had to get his haunting picture now before a reaper finally snagged Brandon. They tended to visit homicide cells for that very purpose.

“Did you find Nicole’s ghost?” Matthew asked.

JJ nodded. “Uh… yeah. She was in the morgue. Um, right now she is attached to Troy.” He held up a text from his cousin.

Matthew read it.

*We’ve got a problem. I got the pic for evidence, but the ghost girl won’t leave Troy. When she gets