Witches of Bourbon Street (7 page)

“I don’t know. Just talk to him.” I threw the metal milk pitchers into the stainless steel sink, satisfied when the noise drowned out Pyper’s response.

She stopped restocking the coffee cups and turned to me. “Are you okay?”

My shoulders slumped. “Sorry. No. Besides the weird thing with the portrait, something else happened last night that has me in a funk.”

She leaned against the counter. “Want to talk about it?”

I shook my head. “Not when customers can hear.” I gestured toward a couple stumbling in through the door of The Grind.

She pursed her lips and nodded before turning her customer-service smile on the pair holding each other up. The moment they dragged each other out with their blended, double-chocolate, mocha lattes, she flew to the door and flipped the closed sign.

I glanced at the clock and raised my eyebrows.

She shrugged. “It’s only fifteen minutes early. The tourists are too drunk to notice what time it is anyway.”

She had a point. The Saints had played and won that day. It had turned into a full-on street party on Bourbon Street. We hadn’t seen a sober person in hours.

Pyper pulled out a chair to one of the tables. “Sit.”

“Wait a minute. This requires reinforcement.” I grabbed a cup of ice, filled it part-way with chai concentrate and the rest of the way with soy. After a quick stir, I joined her at the table.

“You call that reinforcement? You’re pathetic.” She jumped up, making a lock of electric blue hair fall from her otherwise black ponytail. She leaned over the counter, searching for something under the register. She came up with a small, hotel liquor bottle.

“What’s that?”

“Chocolate liqueur.”

I rolled my eyes. “Yes, I can see that. But why do you have such a small bottle of it?” The club next door was full of regular-sized bottles. Usually she swiped whatever she wanted from the stock room. Kane never said a word about it. Not that it would stop her if he did. They were best friends, but they acted more like brother and sister.

“I got it a few days ago from a hotel on Royal when I was out with Ian.”

“You did?” Surprise rang in my voice. She’d told me the night he’d walked her home they’d only kissed good night. That had been less than a week ago.

She poured a generous amount of chocolate liqueur into my drink and nodded. When she looked up, she laughed. “Yes, but it’s not what you think.” Her lips curved into a sly smile. “At least, not yet.”

I took a sip of my drink and waited. I knew she was waiting for me to react. I just wasn’t in the mood.

After a few moments, she relented. “Oh, all right. I was on a ghost hunt. One of the hotels asked Ian to check out some paranormal activity and ward it off if he could. Seems someone was freaking out one too many guests in the middle of the night.”

A smile broke out on my face for the first time that day. “That’s wonderful. I know Ian’s been dying to check out some of the businesses around here. And he got paid for it too.”

Pyper nodded. “Not much, though. They paid a consultation fee, and if the haunting stops, they’ll pay him a bonus.”

My smile vanished. “Who decides if it was successful?”

“That’s the rub. No one really knows for sure, do they?” Pyper picked up the tiny liqueur bottle and poured some into her coffee. “The hotel is keeping a log of customer complaints. After three months, Ian can go take more readings, and if there aren’t any more incidents, he gets paid.”

“That doesn’t seem fair. Ian should get paid a flat fee for services.”

“I agree, but he said he was willing to compromise for the opportunity to gather data.”

“That sounds exactly like something he’d say.” I drained my spiked chai tea. “And what did you think of the hunt? Anything unusual happen?”

She laughed. “Not unless you count Ian not paying one speck of attention to me.”

“Was he supposed to?”

The expression on her face told me everything I needed to know.

Laughing, I raised both hands palms up. “Sorry, I forgot. All men, especially cute school-boy types, should be fawning over your every word.”

She snorted. “Maybe not every word, but they should acknowledge I’m there, even if they are caught up in their life’s work.” She leaned back and fixed me with a stare. “Now, what happened last night that’s got you in a funk? I know Kane spent the night. I saw him take off up the stairs to your place. Usually you’re disgustingly chipper after the two of you bump uglies all night.” A mock look of alarm transformed her face. “Don’t tell me he’s having equipment issues.”

My neck grew warm and I spread my palms on the table, trying to relax. Pyper used to manage Wicked. Talking about sex never embarrassed her. Unlike me, who up until three months ago only ever had one friend to talk to about such things. I took a deep breath and prayed my face wasn’t turning the color of a tomato. “No. Actually, I passed out in a red wine haze before he got there.”

“Hangover?” Before I could respond, she shook her head. “No, you would’ve just said so. The customers around here are intimately familiar with that particular issue.”

“Well, I did wake up with a craptastic headache, but one of Bea’s herbal packs took care of it.” That morning, with my pounding head and queasy stomach, I’d broken down and taken a smidge of one of her all-purpose healers. The instant relief told me they were, in fact, enchanted. At once I’d felt both comforted and heartsick. I’d grown up with all sorts of similar herbal cures, but after Mom had disappeared, I’d sworn off all magic, including enhanced herbs. Funny how fast the righteous fall when suffering from too much wine.

“Jade?” Pyper asked.

“Hmm?” My glazed eyes focused on her concerned face.

“Where did you go?”

“Just thinking—crap. Kane’s coming and he’s not happy.”

“So?” Pyper leaned back and stretched out her legs as if she didn’t have a care in the world.

Kane’s irritation intensified the closer he got. I straightened, planted my feet, and crossed my arms over my chest. My eyes stayed transfixed in a glare on the back door I knew he’d be stalking through any moment. Whatever he was upset about, it would have to wait.

For normal people, dreaming of another woman could be forgiven. But Kane was a dreamwalker. He controlled what went on in his dreams. I didn’t know if he brought Lailah into our dream or if he’d only taken her out, but to continue to dream of her—or possibly with her—afterwards…well, he had some explaining to do.

“Pyper,” Kane yelled as he plowed through the swinging door from her office. “What the hell do you think you’re doing now?”

She took a swig from the hotel liquor bottle and placed it carefully back on the table before glancing at him.

He’d come to a full stop, looming over her. Electric shots of fury crackled around him, making me flinch. He wasn’t just annoyed, he was ready to explode.

Pyper’s lips turned up in a pitying smile. “Discussing your impotence issues. Maybe you need a little blue pill.”

A surprised bubble of laughter escaped before I clamped a hand over my mouth and avoided Kane’s sideways glare. Pyper never put up with Kane’s moods and today was no exception, but he wasn’t in his usual annoyed state. Whatever was going on with him was different. I’d never seen him this angry.

To his credit, he completely ignored her jab. “Why the hell couldn’t you leave it alone like I asked?”

Her eyes got wide. “Why, Kane, I haven’t come anywhere near your failing male parts.” She turned her innocent expression on me. “Jade, trust me when I say I don’t have any interest in your boyfriend’s wanker.”

“Pyper,” I warned and got up to move beside Kane. I touched his arm, almost flinching at the current of unease running through him. “What’s going on?”

“You mean she hasn’t dragged you into this yet?” His tone had softened slightly as he spoke to me.

“Into what?”

Now Pyper was on her feet, indignation taking over her playful mood. “Stop accusing me of shit I didn’t do. And if you’re talking about yesterday, I already told you I’m sorry for what happened with Lailah.”

The mention of Kane’s ex had me scowling and backing away. He sent me a questioning glance, but I lowered my gaze and retreated behind the counter. I leaned against the wall and waited.

“You haven’t been to the club today?” he asked Pyper. “At all?” The shocks of fury he’d been throwing off vanished, replaced by a swirling cloud of wariness.

“No. I’ve been here all morning, with Jade. If you don’t believe me, ask her. I’m sure—”

Kane held up his hand, stopping whatever else she was going to say. “I believe you. But you’d both better come over to the club. There’s something you need to see.”

Chapter 6

Kane led us out the back and down the hallway toward Wicked. I followed Pyper on the short walk, but as we got closer to the door, I fell behind. My chest started to constrict. A cold sweat broke out on my skin. I dug my fingernails into my palms, stopped, and pressed one shoulder into the wall.

“Jade?” Kane turned around suddenly. “What is it?”

I met his worried, dark eyes. “I don’t know.” Everything in me wanted to close the ten feet between us, wrap myself in his arms, and bury my head into his chest. But fear paralyzed me. I couldn’t move forward. I just stood there, sagging against the wall.

Pyper got to me first. Her small hands clutched my forearm. Worry rippled off her, rushing into my being at an alarming rate.

My stomach turned. “Let go,” I cried, yanking my arm from her grip. The relief wasn’t enough. My knees gave and I started to crumple.

Just before I slammed onto the tiled floor, Kane caught me. Instantly, the sickening foreign energy disappeared. It took a moment to feel normal again, if not a little weak. “Get me out of this hallway,” I said, my words muffled against his shoulder.

Despite my garbled speech, he picked me up and carried me the short distance to the club. Kane headed straight to a small sofa and sat, positioning me on his lap. I tried to shift to sit next to him, but he held me firm, his protective instinct unwilling to let me go.

“It’s okay,” I said. “I’m better now.”

Sometimes if I’m weak, a weird thing happens when Kane touches me. It’s almost like the energy meld I’d been working on with Bea, only not quite. I can take and send emotions to and from most people, but it takes conscious effort. With Kane, it just happens. His emotional energy seems to complement mine, making it easy for him to calm me.

He kissed my temple. “I’m glad to hear it, but I won’t be letting go just yet.”

My insides warmed as I relaxed against him.

“I hate to break up this Hallmark moment,” Pyper said lightly then sobered. “But maybe you can tell us what the hell just happened?”

Turning his head in her direction, Kane’s irritation returned in full force.

I tensed.

“Sorry.” He made a decent attempt to relax as he brushed a strand of hair back from my face. “What did happen out there?”

“I…” A terrifying realization came over me. I’d experienced those awful, sickening emotions on a hot July afternoon twelve years ago. I’d been trapped in a shabby, wood-sided house with my best friend Kat as we were forced to witness the beating of a boy intent on keeping us safe. Fear lodged in my throat. “Has Dan been here?” I finally choked out.

“That slimy ex of yours?” Pyper asked.

“Why?” Kane’s body stiffened.

His hand tightened on mine, and I stared down at it, not sure what to say. I’d only ever spoken of that day once before after we’d been rescued. Kane and Pyper had no idea what the three of us had endured.

“You felt an emotional imprint of him, didn’t you?” Kane accused. “He was here, wasn’t he?”

“Maybe. I don’t know.” The pair of them stared at me, waiting for answers. “I felt him, I guess. But not the Dan I know today. The one I knew as a teenager.”

“What does that mean?” Pyper stood with her hands on her hips. “And how does a teenage boy who was a friend of yours make you look like you’re going to throw up? You liked him then, didn’t you?”

I steeled myself and told them how Dan had protected me and Kat from a sexual predator when we were fifteen years old. “He risked his life for us, took a beating that put him in the hospital for weeks. He came very close to dying that day. If he hadn’t been so determined, I don’t know what would have happened to us.” A hollow emptiness filled my chest. I’d long ago stopped crying when I thought of that day. The only thing left was cold hatred for the man who’d called himself my foster father.

“You not only watched, but you experienced his terror along with him, didn’t you?” Kane said gently.

I gave him a short nod.

“And that’s what you felt out there?” Pyper’s horrified expression made me curl tighter against Kane.

He took in a short breath as he realized the truth of her words. “Jesus, Jade. No wonder your essence was torn from me.” He’d told me once he could feel my energy. He wasn’t an empath, but apparently his dreamwalking was enough of a supernatural ability that he could sense me when others couldn’t. He couldn’t feel anyone else, though. It was odd, but I’m used to odd, so I never spent time dwelling on it.