My responding smile was brittle. Desperate times call for desperate measures.

His eyes narrowed. “Fine. I’ll do it now. But have a seat and wait till you’re called.” He hoisted his pants up and sauntered to the corner door.

I gave his back the middle finger before making my way to the waiting area where the two other supernaturals sat.

From their curious glances, I could only imagine what they thought of me and my sister. I was certain they’d overheard everything.

My phone buzzed when I sat down. A text from my best friend, Prisha, flashed on the screen.

Hey lady, what are you up to? There’s live music at The Misty Lounge tonight. Want to go after you close up?

I typed in a reply. Can’t. I’m at the SF.

Shit. What’d she do this time?

I cringed. Everyone who knew Tess always thought the worst of her. While almost everyone in the Chicago area knew of Tessa’s brilliant magic and otherworldly spells, most hadn’t heard of her impulsive actions. Only myself, Prisha, Practically Perfect’s employees, and of course the Supernatural Forces, knew that my sister disappeared somewhat regularly without a care to the consequences or how it made the rest of us feel.

Not surprisingly, our employees attributed my sister’s flighty behavior to her brilliant magic. That whole genius savant thing that explained away all crazy and erratic behavior.

My fingers flew across the screen when I replied.

It’s serious this time, Prish. Please just believe me. I need somebody on my side.

Her reply came back readily.

Who do I need to kill to find her?

Despite the gravity of the situation, a laugh escaped me. My response got another curious stare from the couple a few chairs over. I clamped my lips together as flashes of Star Tattoo Guy’s big hands filled my mind. Those hands could crush my sister.

Again, I tuned into the connection Tess and I shared, the bond that we’d had since birth. I could still feel it—a low flicker where it usually burned so bright. She was still alive, but I had no idea where she was.

Another text from Prisha appeared.

Seriously, babe. What can I do? Do you need company?

I was about to reply to Prisha when a coolly authoritative voice said, “Tala Davenport?”

Commander Klebus stood near the front counter, arms crossed, with an irritated expression on her golden-hued face.

I quickly typed in a reply to my best friend telling her I had to go before putting my phone away.

“Here goes nothing,” I muttered as I stood to meet with the vampire commander.

OceanofPDF.com

Chapter 3

To her credit, Commander Klebus listened without interrupting as I hurriedly replayed what had happened to Tessa. Her piercing blue eyes followed my every movement, and when she leaned back in her chair, her black hair that was dark as onyx brushed her shoulders.

It was only when I finished that she cocked her head. The overhead lights hit her face, highlighting her once brown skin that now appeared like molten gold due to her vampire transformation. “This sounds like a simple missing person case, which typically resolves itself in a few days when the missing person shows up.”

So that’s how this is going to play out . . .

I made myself reply in an even tone, “Did you not hear the part about my psychic friend feeling the bad energy? About seeing that someone had taken Tessa?”

Commander Klebus quirked an eyebrow. “Would your friend like to come in and make an official statement? She would also need to have her psychic abilities tested to verify their validity. Until I have sufficient proof that your sister was actually abducted, versus dropping her shoe after willingly leaving your shop on her own, I’m not going to classify this as an abduction. I’m sure you can understand given your sister’s history.”

My stomach dropped. “You’re not serious.”

“I am, but again, if your friend would like to come in, we can test her and perhaps change our viewpoint.”

Get tested? The stone in my stomach sank even more, the feeling pulling me down, down, down. If I came clean and told her that I was the one who’d used psychic abilities to determine Tessa’s abduction, then I would have to be tested. And not only would my psychic magic be revealed but other things would be too.

My mother’s warning, the warning she’d told me when she was still alive, came back to me like a whisper on a breeze. Never, never tell anyone. You must keep it a secret, Tala, no matter the cost. Revealing it could summon the Bone Eaters, so you must never tell anyone.

So I hadn’t. For twenty-five years, I’d kept my forbidden power and immense magic a secret. Even though I had no idea who the Bone Eaters were, or if they even existed, my mother’s terror at summoning them had been real, as vivid and horrifying as a Bosch painting. And despite countless searches to determine who this elusive entity was, I’d never found answers, yet I still clung to that promise, the last promise I’d ever made to her. “I won’t tell, Mama. I won’t ever tell anyone.”

I cleared my throat, forcing myself to remain calm. “If my friend can’t come in, isn’t there an SF psychic who can come to our shop and assess the area? Then you’ll know that Tessa’s actually been taken.”

The vampire commander gave a reluctant nod. “I have one psychic on staff, but she’s currently on assignment.”

“When will she be free?”

“Depends. It could be within the hour or not until tomorrow. I’ll know more when she contacts headquarters.”

An hour or tomorrow. Those were my options. It was a gamble, unless I came clean and got tested right now.

I breathed out a terrified yet frustrated sigh as the faint memory of my mother came back to me again. Never, never tell anyone. I still heard her hushed words as clear as day, tasted her fear like a bitter aftertaste on my tongue.

I opened my eyes and hoped I wasn’t making the biggest mistake of my life. “Will you keep me posted about when your psychic seer can come to the shop?”

The commander nodded. “I can do that.”

“And in the meantime, no matter what, the SF won’t look for Tessa until a psychic seer can corroborate her abduction?”

“Unless forty-eight hours passes. If that much time passes and she’s still missing, I will follow SF procedure and classify her as a missing person.”

“But not before then without your psychic agreeing?” I knew my tone had turned pleading, but it felt as though my throat were closing in.

The commander leaned forward and placed her forearms on her desk, her black SF suit gleaming like an obsidian skin. “Tala, I’m going to be frank with you. Do you mind?” Before I could reply, she said, “Do you know what I see every time your sister goes missing?”

I quirked an eyebrow and replied dryly, “No, but I have a feeling you’re going to tell me.”

She continued as if I hadn’t said anything. “I see two girls who grew up without parents while they were shuffled between distant relatives’ homes and were forced to learn how to cope with life on their own. Only thing is that one of those sisters has learned to cope better than the other, and it’s made that sister feel the need to care for the other. And while I think the sisters genuinely love one another, I also think one of the sisters is near to sucking the life from the stronger one.”

I gave her an incredulous look. “What is this? SF therapy 101? While my sister’s missing?”

The commander gave an exasperated sigh. “I’m not saying this to make you angry. I’m saying it to help you see the reality of what’s going on. How many times have we met in this office?” She waved around at the undecorated walls and SF technology. Holographs of Chicago’s downtown streets danced on the other side of the room in a 3D rendition. “How many times have you sat before me looking anxious and worried while your sister was gallivanting somewhere else in the world?”