Chapter 12
1395 Words
12
Stunned by the sudden kiss and dazed by the magic clouding her head, it took Sam a moment or two to process what just happened. She reached up to touch her lips, unsure how to feel about being kissed like that.
“W-Why did you do that for?” Sam stammered, the warmth and softness of Lilith’s lips already fading.
Lilith shrugged, not looking bothered in the slightest. “You were curious about our powers.”
“This is what you do?”
“Among other things.” She danced a little ball of light on the palm of her hand, which seemed to have a life of its own. With the snap of her fingers, it vanished and Lilith booped Sam on the nose. “You’re welcome.”
Annoyance grew in her stomach. She hadn’t been offended, but now she was. “I’m welcome? For what? For being tricked into a kiss?”
“For the best kiss you’ll ever have in your life,” Lilith bragged.
With a snort, Sam rolled her eyes. “You think that was the best kiss ever?”
“Yes. Can you tell me otherwise?”
Sam recalled the magic kiss, which in theory, had been a perfect kiss. Soft, hazy, and given by an alluring, enchanting woman. And yet… It was cold and detached. There were no feelings involved, no connection forged. It was a good kiss, a great one even, but by all measures, just a kiss.
Compared to the real thing… The caged anticipation, the release of months of waiting and wondering, the fears and worries that ebbed away as soon as lips met. There was no comparison.
“You know, it was a good kiss,” Sam admitted, earning a smug grin from the Nox woman. That quickly disappeared as she kept talking. “But it has nothing on a real kiss.”
“A real kiss?” Lilith echoed, her smile fallen from her lips.
“No trickery, no illusions. Two people connecting out of choice, out of free will, risking it all for a chance of love. Now that’s a kiss to remember.” Sam returned the earlier gesture and gave Lilith’s nose a little flick. “You’re welcome.”
From the look on Lilith’s face, that truth was clearly not well-received, but she was gracious and waved it away. “Whatever. Let’s just get back to the topic at hand, hmmm?”
Victory.
Sam shrugged, ignoring the triumph coiling in her stomach. “You started it, but sure.”
Pretending like the whole ordeal hadn’t happened, Lilith swung her long hair over her shoulder. “Let’s go back to the Shining Shack. Maybe we’ll find something that can tell us with which vampires Harry associated. Maybe another stakeout?”
“Do we have to?” Sam rubbed the small of her back, which was aching just from the thought of being back in the bush. “Why can’t you ask another Nocturnal from your clan to do that?”
“After we discovered one of our most loyal members is compromised?” Lilith responded. “I think not.”
“Most loyal? The cobbler?”
“He’s been part of the family for almost a hundred years.”
“A hundred? How long do you guys live?”
“Longer than you.” Lilith down the last of her wine and swung herself off the barstool. Her skirt tightened around her hips, but the slit on the side stayed perfectly put as her heels thudded onto the marble tiles. “Chop-chop. Let’s go.”
With a groan, Sam followed the woman, who didn’t even wait and check if she was following.
“Why do you always have to be so bossy?” she called after Lilith, earning a hair flick.
“Because I can.”
Before she could leave, she grabbed Lilith’s wrist. “Oh, by the way…”
“Yes?”
“Don’t ever kiss me without my permission again.”
Lilith blinked slowly, sounding a little confused. “So you really didn’t like it?”
“You shouldn’t go around kissing people against their will. That’s just not on.”
The young woman across her blushed. “Duly noted. It won’t happen again.”
“Good.”
“I guess that puts the ball in your court.” The confusion disappeared and she threw her hair over her shoulder, the confidence returning. “Next time you want a kiss, you’ll have to initiate then.”
“There won’t be a next time,” I pointed out.
“They always say that,” Lilith grinned. “But you’ll be back. Now, let’s go. Chop chop.”
With rolling eyes, Samantha just shook her head. Unbelievable. From years in the service, she learned there was no arguing with people like that. She had put up with people way worse than Lilith for years so what was a couple more days with this woman?
Soon, she’d be nothing but a memory.
She glanced at the other woman, still a little annoyed the Nox stole a kiss. They definitely wouldn’t be kissing again.
When Lilith and Sam arrived at Harry’s Shining Shack, something was off.
“Did you leave the lights on?” Lilith asked as they half-hid behind a parked van.
“No. I turned them off.”
“You sure?”
Sam sighed. “Yes, I’m sure. Look. I can see someone inside.”
Lilith followed her gaze and tensed. “So can I. From the posture, it doesn’t look like Harry.”
She was right. The cobbler was an old, rather fat man. The silhouette moving in the Shining Shack was slender, tall, moving with grace instead of waggling like a duck. Whoever it was, this was not Harry.
“What do we do now?” she asked, looking at Lilith. This was her case, her problem, she’d let her make the hard decisions.
The Nox woman straightened her back. “Well, we go and talk to them.”
“What if they’re dangerous?” Sam asked, earning a scoff.
“I’m dangerous,” Lilith replied haughtily, her tone suggesting she was deeply offended.
“Of course, powers and all that.”
The two crossed the street. One ready to tackle the mysterious person and interrogate them, the other wishing she was at home, drinking tea.
The broken glass from earlier clinked under their shoes and the sound alarmed the figure inside the shack. The silhouette prepared to run away, but he suddenly froze, caught in a trance. A ball of light danced in front of his face, the blue glow illuminating his features and highlighting his sharp nose and scruffy hair.
That had to be Lilith’s doing.
Sam turned towards her companion, mesmerised by the ball of light, her breath taken away. This was the same sensation as when they kissed, but much stronger, much more powerful. The glowing orb demanded attention, demanded to be looked at. It took Sam all the power in the world to avert her eyes and free herself from the trance, which she suspected was only possible because Lilith hadn’t aimed it at her.
A lump formed in Sam’s throat, which she swallowed away. Lilith had been right, she was dangerous.
With a strange smile on her face, the other woman circled the young man. “Who are you? What are you doing here?”
“My name is Karlos and I was sent here to destroy evidence,” he replied monotonously.
Sam shivered. He was completely under Lilith’s spell, entranced and reduced to a mere puppet with no will. It was frightening to watch and it only dawned on her now what kind of company she kept. These Nocturnals looked like humans, talked like them, walked like them, but they were nothing alike.
She took a step back, forcing distance between her and the Nox. She wanted nothing to do with them and she had half a mind to return the hellhound, just to break all ties. If only she could, but just thinking about the adorable puppy made her realise she had no choice. The dog needed a good home and she’d always been a sucker for animals.
“What evidence?” Lilith snapped her fingers and a new ball of light appeared in front of the young man. “Show us.”
“Here.” Karlos reached inside his jacket and presented her with a picture.
As soon as Lilith saw the picture, the ball of light started pulsating. “I should’ve known… Karlos with a C?”
The young man nodded. “Yes, Carlos.”
Sam stepped forward, glancing over Lilith’s shoulder at the picture of Harry and a young, gorgeous woman with mahogany skin. She pointed to the figures. “Know what? Why does it matter how his name is spelled?”
Lilith completely ignored Sam and instead, withdrew the ball of light. Immediately, Carlos fell out of his trance and he scampered away as fast as he could, leaving the two women standing in the ruined store.
“Hey!” Sam called, but her companion didn’t seem to care about his escape. She seemed fixated on the photo they retrieved, but Samantha didn’t know why. She tapped Lilith on the shoulder, annoyed by her dismissal. “Why did you let him go? We have more questions.”
“No, we don’t.” Her jaw clicked in anger as she held up the picture. “I know where they’re hiding.”
- Writer
