Fox in the Quarter (2 page)

“
W
ow
.” I dropped against the couch back, stunned. Find a missing human? Well, it wasn’t unheard of. The fox was correct. I did work as a tracker, and from the fact that Kitsune had heard of my services I was making a reputation for myself. Not that a lot of what I had accomplished hadn’t come by help from friends and lots of luck—contrary to what Nathan believed on the latter.

“To be asked for assistance from a fox, um, spirit…?” I ventured.

Kitsune acknowledged my attempt at understanding what he was. “Yes, I’m a spirit. Some call me a de---”

I squeezed his muzzle closed. He appeared insulted. Better to be offended than to have Nathan picking his teeth with Kitsune’s leg bone. “Fox spirit is enough of an explanation for me, but I’m guessing you’re not from around here.”

“No, we live in Hokkaido, a prefecture of Japan. I have been a companion to Yukiko all her life. Before her, I walked with her mother, and before her, Yukiko’s grandmother. Three weeks ago, Yukiko decided she wanted to visit America for the first time, and she booked travel.”

“So apparently you didn’t go with her,” Nathan said. “Some companion.”

Kitsune scowled at him. “I am tied to the land where Yukiko’s family hails. It’s where I draw my power, and I can’t just wander the earth without consequences.”

“You poor thing. Sounds so limiting.” I couldn’t help stroking his soft head. He huffily allowed it.

“Up until now I’ve never cared about leaving my home. What is there to see in the world? The creatures that inhabit it aren’t all friendly or worth my notice.” Here he glanced at Nathan, and it looked like the feeling was mutual. “Rue Darrow, I need your help to find Yukiko. Tell me your fee, and I will make sure you are rewarded.”

“Meaning he doesn’t have any money.” Nathan waved a hand. “Go back to Japan, fox.”

“Nathan! I never thought you would look down on others who aren’t like you or me. He’s obviously worried about the girl, and why wouldn’t he be? They’ve been together all this time.”

“He’s being a pansy,” Nathan quipped. “She went on vacation. Give the girl time to enjoy herself. I for one know there’s plenty to enjoy and see in America. Besides, you’re in New Orleans. You realize there’s a whole country out there. Rue doesn’t cover the entire thing.”

I placed my hands on my hips, narrowing my eyes at him. The attitude stunk, and I didn’t understand it when Nathan was usually a kind man, willing to help at the drop of a hat. “I’m wondering when you decided how I conduct my business.”

Nathan turned his head away and tapped his foot as he stared out the window. I shook my head and faced the fox. “It is possible Yukiko decided to lengthen her trip, right? How long was she supposed to stay?”

“Two weeks,” Kitsune said. “You’re right. She could have extended her trip, but when she didn’t return, I…”

“You what?”

“I used my magic to see her.”

“You spied on her,” Nathan accused him.

“I
looked
for her,” he emphasized. “But there are channels for gathering information in that way from your country to mine and vice versa.”

“Channels.” This was news to me.

“Suffice it to say I couldn’t ‘look’ into your country using my magic without permission, but I didn’t want to go through proper channels and draw attention to Yukiko. So I came here in search of her.”

“Okay, that makes sense. I think. I’m assuming Yukiko left an itinerary of where she would visit?”

“Yes, she was headed to New Orleans.”

I tapped a finger against my lips. “And you know which hotel she was staying in? It seems logical to start there.”

The fox nodded and gave me a stiff bow, almost as if he were a human man.
“Dōmo arigatōgozaimashita.”

“Bless you,” Nathan quipped, and I frowned at him.

“Kitsune, will you excuse us for a minute?” I wanted to grab my friend by the ear like the child he was behaving as, but he was too tall for that, and I was diminutive. I settled for giving him a sharp pinch on the arm and jabbing a finger in the direction of the hall.

Nathan muttered, rubbing his arm as he followed me out. “You don’t know your own strength, Rue. Vampires are pretty powerful.”

I faced him once we were alone standing outside his apartment as we had been earlier. “Oh, don’t be a baby, Nathan. What is wrong with you anyway? You’re being very rude to my client, and I believe you ran your last client off when he tried to cheat you on your agreed upon payment. I also believe the threat was that you would
eat
him?”

Nathan kept scanning our surroundings, making me think he wasn’t listening at all.

“Nathan!”

Irritation-filled eyes met mine. “How do you know he’s not out here listening to our conversation?”

“Because I don’t see him,” I emphasized, leaving out the fact that Kitsune had hidden himself from me when he first arrived. Then one had to consider that he was a fox. He might have great hearing just like most other nonhumans. I neglected to point these things out to Nathan. “Why are you so grumpy?”

“Because I don’t trust foxes.”

I rolled my eyes. “He’s a spirit, Nathan, and I’m sure the old saying about foxes being sly is just that—an old wives’ tale.”

Nathan sniffed. “So you believe whatever he says?”

“I have no reason not to. I’m not as suspicious a person as you are. How about you tag along during this investigation?” I winked at him. “You can be my muscle and protect little old me from the big bad fox.”

He didn’t appreciate my jest, but I smirked and patted his arm.

“Are you going to pay me?”

I started past him to return to the apartment. “You pointed out yourself this is kind of pro bono.”

He hooked my arm to stop me from moving away, and we stood side by side, Nathan angling his head toward me. For some reason, I started thinking he would need to bend very far if he wanted to kiss me. Then I dismissed the ridiculous thought.

“Rue, I’m serious. Foxes are sneaky, and they’re liars.”

I wrinkled my brow. “Do you know some fox shifters?”

He didn’t answer.

“Fine, Nathan. I promise I will be careful, but I am taking this case. My charge is to look out for humans, and Yukiko might be in trouble. I have to try to find her.”

We returned to the apartment to find Kitsune sitting calmly on the coffee table. Nathan ordered him off, but the white fox ignored the mean beast. This led to a back and forth interchange, which only served to rile Nathan further. When I thought he would pop a blood vessel, I put a stop to it.

“Okay, if you’ll lead the way, Kitsune, we’ll get going,” I said.

The little white fox stood. “I can’t hold a physical form for long, and it’s best if I don’t manifest too much while we’re out. Do you mind if I ride on your shoulders? I apologize for my rudeness.”

I shrugged. “Not at all. Jump up.”

“Rue,” Nathan protested.

Kitsune didn’t actually jump but rather turned almost vaporish and floated up to my shoulders. I had the sensation of featherlight paws touching down on my left shoulder, but nothing more than that. When I turned my head, I made him out fine, but by his agitation, I knew Nathan couldn’t.

Seeing the fluffy fur up close, I couldn’t help myself but to stroke him again. My hand might have been able to pass through, but I held tight control of myself enough to just impact with his energy and more or less remember the softness. I began to think it might be nice to have an animal companion like this. Too bad Kitsune was taken. Then I looked at the scowling werewolf. Oh yeah, I had an animal companion already.

“Stop staring at us like that, Nathan.
You
can’t get onto my shoulders.”

He stomped out the door. I do believe the man was jealous. Shaking my head, I followed after him, and we set off for our next destination.

T
he hotel
where Yukiko was registered was a nice one, easily three hundred dollars a night, and Nathan, Kitsune, and I passed the doorman who greeted us with a nod and a smile while craning past my shoulder as if he searched for my luggage. I was sorry to disappoint him. Not really.

“Fancy place,” Nathan said. “The woman must have money.”

Poor Nathan was financially-challenged because few nonhumans wanted to hire a werewolf for fear of their temper, and humans, well, they could set him off even faster.

“Yukiko has a trust fund left to her by her parents when they ascended to the next life,” Kitsune said.

I waited for Nathan to respond, but when he didn’t, I realized he couldn’t hear Kitsune, so I relayed the message. Nathan harrumphed something about if she was so set that she didn’t need to work, why was this case pro bono.

“How old is she?” I wondered, thinking around my age of twenty-eight.

“Eighteen.”

“That’s only a few years older than my son! To come all this way alone, maybe she should have hired a human companion just for the trip.”

Kitsune moved from the left shoulder to the right. I had the impression I insulted him, but I let the matter lie. When we entered the hotel, I paused to take in the surroundings and to deliberately breathe in so I could absorb the various scents. Whenever I could, I liked to practice separating and identifying them in hopes of improving my skills. Of course, here at the hotel too many people came and went, and I had nothing to go on to pick out Yukiko’s.

Nathan started forward, and I grabbed him. “Wait.”

“But we can question the person at the desk and—”

“Wait,”
I insisted.

A man appeared in front of us. For a moment, one might think he materialized from thin air or that he had been moving at such top speed, we didn’t see him coming. That wasn’t the case, especially since he would risk exposing our existence to regular humans. No, this man had been there all along. I sensed him just a few seconds before he stood in front of me. The effect of his ability was unsettling to say the least.

“Rue Darrow,” he said. “I wasn’t told you were coming.”

I met his gaze briefly, and then continued to look around. I had encountered one vampire before, and I must say I felt somewhat intimidated. “Is this your uh—domain?” I had no idea of the correct terminology still being new to Nola’s underworld.

“Not mine exactly,” he said. The vampire eyed Nathan. Dislike radiated from both sides, but to my relief neither seemed moved to have a contest of testosterone.

I nodded at the vampire’s words and wondered briefly who would have told him we were coming either way. “I’m on a case right now. Do I need to go through some kind of channels to question the employees?”

“Do whatever you want.” He sounded bored and cold as ice, but he focused on my right shoulder. I realized he saw Kitsune with surprise. Not that I thought I was the only special one in the group, darn it all. The vampire looked into my eyes. Unlike the gentlemanly vampire I had met previously, this one took advantage of me being weaker than him. Without a by your leave, he was inside my head.
“What is that?”

The vampire had caught on in an instant that Nathan couldn’t see Kitsune, and he apparently saw no reason to reveal him to Nathan.

“He’s my temporary companion.” I spoke aloud for Nathan’s benefit and to press that I did not appreciate the invasion. The vampire, whose name I hadn’t caught and he seemed in no hurry to offer it, shrugged. Seconds later, we were alone again. “Well!”

“Disgusting vampires,” Nathan muttered.

“Hey!”

“You excluded,” he assured me, and this time when he walked toward the front desk, I didn’t stop him.

At the front desk, a young man stood staring into a computer screen and typing at a speed I could only dream of achieving before I turned. I had the sharp longing to test it out now, but tried to focus on the task at hand.

I leaned on the counter and flashed a bright smile. “Hello, I’m Rue, and I was wondering—”

“M-ma’am, do you have a complaint? I can call a manager.” The young man trembled. I affected a cough and lost the smile then reached across to run fingers over his jacket lapel.

“Oh no, I’m here to see you,” I said with emphasis on the last word. In an instant, the young man’s demeanor changed, and I sensed his interest.

A low growl started to my left, and I kicked the werewolf.

“I’m looking for something, and I believe you’re just the man to help me out.”

“Anything!”

He was almost drooling at that point. A vampire did not need to use glamour to get her way, I was learning. Of course the intensity could be a tad strong if one wasn’t careful, which was why the man had at first been afraid—when I smiled.

“Yukiko…”

“Mori,” Kitsune supplied.

“…Mori. I understand she’s a guest here. Can you tell me which room she’s in?”

“I’m sorry, ma’am, but I can’t share that information. I could get into a lot of trouble. We value our customers’ privacy.”

I reached for his hand and circled a small area with the tip of my finger. “For me? I promise I won’t tell anyone you told me.”

He looked miserable. “I can’t.”

So much for not using glamour. Nathan leaned forward, reaching for the clerk’s shirtfront. “Look, pal—”

I belayed Nathan’s attack by grasping his wrist and felt like I had just tried to stop a Mac truck with one hand. Thank goodness he gave into me and backed down.

“Zap him and get it over with, Rue,” Nathan grumped.

Easier said than done. The only time my glamouring worked reliably was when I was erasing someone’s memories after I had fed on them. Other times it was hit or miss, mostly because I was scared to cause damage to fragile minds. Opening my senses told me the vampire from earlier was nowhere in the area, or had hidden himself from my notice. I doubted he would have helped either way.

Then I thought of an idea from my past of when I used to gather information having left my body and being in ghost form. Kitsune was a spirit. Why not use my companion? “Thanks anyway,” I said to the clerk and moved away from the desk. As I walked, I spoke to Kitsune. “Do you have enough energy to get behind the desk and search the computer?”

“I’m not sure I know how to operate such equipment.”

Nathan frowned. “What’s he saying?”

I told him.

“What, do you live in the dark ages back home?” Nathan snapped. “The guest register is probably up on the screen, and there should be a search bar. Just type in her name, and it will pop right up.”

Kitsune didn’t like getting advice from Nathan, but he accepted it in the present circumstances. He was our best bet for not drawing attention to ourselves.

In a few minutes, we had Yukiko’s room number and headed up. At the room, Kitsune was again useful by fazing through the door and unlocking it so Nathan or I wouldn’t damage the lock by simply breaking it. Afterward, the little fox’s weight was nothing more than a whisper on my shoulders, and I knew he had spent himself for the time being.

I pushed the door open only to be assaulted by the scent of a man who had been sweating too much and bathed too little. He dove over a piece of furniture headed for the window.

The thing about New Orleans was that one of its appeals was the beautiful wrought iron balconies decorated with the potted ferns. In many other cities, most likely the hotel windows would not open wide enough for a man to climb out to make his escape.

Nathan exploded in movement to give chase, but I was faster. Unfortunately, we were both slowed down by the stench. I reached the balcony and looked in shock as the man rose toward the roof as if he could fly.

“What in the world? He’s human, right?”

I started to leap after I shook off my shock, but Nathan’s heavy hand landed on my shoulder. “Stay here. I’ll get him.”

“Nathan,” I shouted as he began to climb. “Don’t kill him.”

Nathan had to have places where his fingers could grasp on in order to climb. He found it in the building’s architecture, but the flying man was pretty fast. I sniffed the air and cringed in disgust. At least Nathan wouldn’t have trouble following.

When I headed back into the room, I discovered it in shambles. Yukiko’s clothes were thrown about everywhere as if someone searched her things. The little fox floated down from my shoulder and trekked over the unmade bed, bristling with anger.

“Any idea what they were looking for, Kitsune?”

He didn’t answer, and I reached over to wave my hand before his face. Blue eyes focused on me. “I might have an idea.”

“Are you going to tell me?”

He hesitated. “They’re looking for me.”

I blinked in surprise. “Why are they looking for you? Does whoever took her know of your existence? I’m starting to think this isn’t Yuki’s first visit.”

The tiny nose twitched at the nickname. Sue me. I felt it rolled better from my tongue.

“She hasn’t been here before. I didn’t lie to you.”

Nathan’s warnings started coming through loud and clear. I folded my arms over my chest and eyed him. “But you haven’t told me everything, have you? How am I supposed to help if you don’t level with me?”

“You’ve already begun to help. Now you will know her scent and the one of that person.”

“I don’t want to know the scent of that person. What the heck kind of being was he?” I wondered, not really expecting him to bring me clarity. “He flew! But as stinky as he smelled, he was human.”

Kitsune nosed a dress toward me. I didn’t bother picking it up. I already had Yuki’s scent. When I didn’t move, he burrowed beneath another pile of items and came up with a book. This I did reach for, but who knew what it said. The writing was in Japanese.

“Is this significant?” I asked.

“No, but it is her favorite.”

“You’re worried about her.” He went solid enough for me to hold in my arms, and while I couldn’t offer him warmth, I tried to convey sympathy in my touch. His fur fluffed, giving me a sense of peace. “Good spirit.”

He climbed out of my arms. “The man was using magic to levitate.”

“Magic, are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“Just great. The times I’ve come across magic since I’ve been in this city haven’t been positive. It makes things a little more complicated.”

“But you’re immune.”

“Not immune, resistant. There’s a difference.” I moved closer to him. “Come on. Nathan will hunt that man to the ends of the earth. He won’t come back here, and I have to catch up before he does something silly. Like shift.”

“Your friend is unreliable.”

“You don’t know anything about Nathan.”

His small eyes winked in curiosity at me, and then he floated to my shoulder. “You care about him.”

“He’s become my best friend.”

I started for the door.

“Rue Darrow,
please.
Take the book. I can’t carry anything physical.”

I turned back and picked up the book I had tossed aside. Once again, I studied it, but other than the cover showing a woman at what looked like a bathhouse, there were no other pictures. Nothing about the book seemed pertinent. Maybe Yuki loved to read, and if she had a challenge with our language, she wanted to entertain her mind while she was here. I carried the book along and left the hotel.

Once we were on the street, I paused. “Kit, can you hang onto me while I catch the wind?”

“Catch the wind?”

“I’m going to be moving fast. I don’t want to lose you. Can you hold on?”

“I will stay with you.”

“Good.” I pointed down the road. “Nathan and the man’s scents go that way. I’m picking up a hint of Yuki’s from the opposite direction.”

“I don’t care about your friend or that human. Follow Yukiko.”

I rolled my eyes but still hesitated.

“Rue.”

The voice was familiar. I turned to find Silvano, the first vampire I had met, who tried to convince me to join his coven, and who gave off such an attractive lure, I wondered if he had glamoured me the last time. Probably not, but I kind of wanted to blame him anyway.

Silvano strode up to me and glared at Kit. To my surprise, Kit evaporated. His slight weight disappeared from my shoulder. I spun left and right trying to see him, but there was no sign. I faced Silvano. “What did you do to him?”

“I assure you, I did nothing. However, he knew I didn’t prefer him in my presence.”

There was no lack of superiority complexes tonight. “What are you doing here, Silvano? Did that other vampire tell you I was in the area?”

He didn’t pretend not to know whom I meant. “I was informed, of course. What happens in New Orleans among vampires is always of interest. As for the job you’ve taken on, I’d prefer it if you walk away.”

I forced a smile. “Well, it’s a good thing you don’t tell me what to do, huh?”

“Rue, you don’t understand what you’re dealing with.”

“What am I dealing with?” I tilted my head, waiting for him to explain. He was as tight-lipped as Kit. “Nothing? Well you can’t expect me to run away with my tail between my legs on a warning like that.”

He frowned. “I don’t like that analogy.”

I snorted.

“There’re many forces at work in this city.”

“Sounds intriguing.”

“For the safety of everyone, it’s better that you don’t get involved.”

I shrugged.

He strode ahead of me and then turned to block my path. “Your precious humans could be harmed, Rue. I know you don’t want that.”

“My precious humans? They’re important to you, too. If something is going on that can hurt them, it will affect you and your people as well. They would all be better off if I help clear up the matter.”

“You are a stubborn woman.”

I waved a hand. “Came with the turning, a weird side effect.”

Of course, I was lying. All my life I had been stubborn—nosy, willful, and a slew of other adjectives. If Silvano chose to try to stop me, I would be in big trouble. Even a newborn vampire like me could feel the greater power rolling off Silvano.

The man worked his jaw a few times, eyes snapping in annoyance. I had the sense he was used to the people around him jumping to his orders without question. “We do not involve ourselves with other beings’ problems, Rue. It makes for a simpler life and keeps us clear of them meddling in our affairs.”