Lunar Eclipse

35 - Playing with Fire

I stare at the young boy shooting spaceships on a screen with a laser gun. This can't be him. My focus returns to Cassum. "How old did you say is Andrenior again?"

"A hundred and seven."

"He looks like a child."

"Yeah, I suppose warlocks age well."

Total understatement. "And you met him in a bar?"

"It was a bar in a restaurant and he ordered a Mango smoothie."

Then he did get lucky my sister was around to pick up the scent of the antifreeze. Its natural sweetness would've perfectly blended in with the sugary juice.

Cassum points to a small booth by a window. "Let's take this one. I'll get us coffee."

"Okay." I steer toward the table and sit down. My gaze travels across the video arcade in downtown Vancouver. It's packed with families and groups of teenagers. A large window across from me offers a view of a rollerblading track. A bunch of girls with helmets and protective gear knock each other around. Weird sport.

Cassum balances a tray with two coffees and a coke as she maneuvers through the crowd. Andrenior is on her heels. When they arrive at the table, she sets the drinks down. He glares at me with his arms folded.

I stretch out my hand and smile. "Hey, I'm Kendrick Raynes."

He ignores the gesture. "You didn't tell me you were bringing the Alpha."

Cassum scowls. "Who else would I bring?"

"Dunno. When you said brother, I assumed it was a younger one. Last time I checked, you and the Alpha weren't exactly on speaking terms."

She laughs. "Don't be such a pussy. Kendrick doesn't bite."

Cassum nudges his arm; it prompts him to slide into the seat across from me. She squeezes in beside me. As soon as Andrenoir takes his glass off the tray, the hostile glare is back.

"What do you want?"

"We need your help with a female. She was injured, and we want you to heal her."

Sipping from the coke, he stares at the women skating behind the glass. This chat is going nowhere. Nothing about this kid is friendly. It was a mistake to consider him as an option.

He finally tears his gaze off the window. "What's wrong with her?"

"Her old pack tore out her tongue."

He arches s brow. "Is the wound healed?"

"Yep. It happened a few weeks ago."

"Then I can't help you."

He's about to get up, but Cassum moves her leg across the seat to block the exit. "Not so fast. I saved your life, remember? You owe me."

Andrenior shakes his head. "I repaid my debt and you released me from your bondage. That's how it works."

"Then consider this a personal favor."

"I don't do favors." He attempts to get up again, but this time, Cassum's low growl keeps him bolted in place.

"Don't make this difficult, Andrenior. It would mean a lot to me if you'd just cooperated. The female in question is Raelyn. You healed her before."

"She isn't your blood relative. Why is this so important to you?"

"Because I feel guilty. I should've protected her, but out of convenience, I turned a blind eye when she needed me the most." With a sigh, Cassum leans back in her seat and takes her leg off the bench. "But if you're set on leaving, go. Of course I can't promise I'll continue to keep your secret from Marush."

Andrenior laughs. "You don't even know how to contact Marush."

"Not as of now." Cassum grins. "But you know me. I'm not one to give up. With the right amount of digging, I'm sure I can get his phone number. And even if not, are you positive that he and I won't cross path one day?"

I have to hand it to my sister. She knows how to make a non-subtle threat that avoids wasting time. Of course knowing what they are talking about would be helpful to assess if Cassum is bluffing. As it stands, I never even heard of this Marush character.

A family with twins move into the booth behind him and Andrenior leans closer. "Here's the thing. Even if I wanted to help you, I can't regrow body parts. I'm a moon warlock. We are gatekeepers to the afterlife, meaning we can keep souls on this side of the realm. I can heal broken flesh and mend bones. Tissue regeneration and growth is a skill of those blessed with creating life. That's sun warlock terrain."

That's news to me. From the old campfire stories that were passed down through generations, none ever spoke of differences among warlocks. Granted, werewolves and warlocks have generally stayed away from each other for centuries and those teachings might be a bunch of made-up crap. "So you guys don't have the same magic?"

He rolls his eyes. "Obviously not."

If there were less humans around, I would thump him for showing me this type of disrespect. It's my turn to rumble in warning, but the little punk is back to ignoring me. He sips from his coke as if he has no worry in the world. Only Cassum's hand on my forearm keeps me in my seat.

"Do you know a sun warlock who could help us out?" she asks.

"As a matter of fact, I do, but Rikka alone won't be enough. To grow back a tongue will require some very powerful magic of both darkness and light. But we might be able to do it together. . ."

Sounds simple if we convince this Rikka warlock to cooperate. Of course, it will cost us a favor in return. "How can we get in touch with her?"

A slow smile unfurls from the corners of Andrenior's mouth. Somehow, I can't shake the feeling that he got us exactly where he wants.

"Unfortunately, she's presently in a little bind. The humans got her locked up in one of their prisons in Texas."

Fuck. "How much time is she looking at?"

"Too long if you want to help your friend. Tissue can only be regrown for two moon cycles after the injury."

That gives us less than a month.

Andrenior grins—he has definitely gained the upper hand. "It's not as bad as you think. Rikka doesn't look that much older than me and they got her in one of their juvenile detention centers. I don't think it would be too hard to break her out."

Texas. We will not only have to commingle with humans but also invade another pack's territory. It could be viewed as an act of war. "A prison break is not that simple."

"But the only way if you want to give Raelyn back her tongue."

~~~~

© Sally Mason 2018

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