Page 13 of The Vampire's Mercy

I fished in my pockets for my key, coming up empty. With a mighty sigh, I knocked on the heavy wooden door.

Fuck today.

“Who is it?” Hal’s voice drifted from behind the door.

What a sweet sound for my pointy ears. “It’s me.”

The door opened, Hal’s warm golden face poking out. “Paris? When did you go out? And what happened to your neck?” He stepped outside, reaching for me.

I let his hands find my shoulders. “I didn’t.”

“What?”

I stepped back, moving around him. “I’ll explain once I get out of these clothes.”

I really did pong.

After Hal gaveme a tincture to work in tandem with the wolf healing, I finally took my bath.

The vase of peace lilies on the windowsill stirred happily in my presence, the white petals glowing, every inch of them becoming more lustrous. Flora did that around elves, receiving a boost as much as giving one.

I blew them a kiss. “So good to see you, sweeties.”

I soaked in the soothing heat for forty minutes, putting my thinking on pause. But I skirted the edges of becoming a prune, so I climbed out, wrapping myself in my favorite blue dressing gown.

Man, I felt so much better, so I headed to the living room, passing plants and flowers, greeting them all with kisses and waves as they sent energy to me.

Oliver, my precious pink orchid, stood proudly in a vase on the mantelpiece above the inactive fireplace. His hues brightened, his stem growing slightly.

“Hello, sweetness.”

I parked my backside on the overstuffed green sofa, nodding at Hal as he entered the room. He handed me a plate of caramel shortbread—the greatest food invention ever.

“Thanks,” I said, salivating.

“All good?” he asked.

I mumbled a yes with my mouth full, enjoying the wonder of the first bite. Caramel, chocolate, biscuits—the three components for major tastebud pleasure. And my buddy tapped the steaming mug of coffee, which only made things ten times better.

This certainly made up for the previous bullshit.

Our flat inside the temple, directly above the worship area, was a mishmash of colors and styles. Furniture and appliances gathered from thrift stores, all coming together to make a quirky rainbow. I loved the rejection of uniformity, and the coziness of it.

Hal kicked back in the orange leather armchair, resting his feet on the pink footstool. “Tell me what happened.”

I explained the details to my human mage fuck buddy, leaving him just as confused as me.

“No ideas, huh?” I asked, getting a hit of his metallic, human scent.

“A crystal dagger, the river, you passing out from weird visions,” Hal mulled. “Aidan only knows, my friend.”

“I wish he’d hand me a clue,” I said.

Was I asking too much from Him?

“Let’s pray,” Hal suggested.

We did, silently. Once we were done, he gave me one of his big, joyful smiles.