Something Wicked

A Lesson in Tarot

Dwayne couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

Strange things were afoot.

If anyone asked him, Dwayne could not care less what sort of witchcraft October was getting up to so long as she continued to magic away any evidence of their presence in Santa Carla.

However, in a word, he would call October's behavior following the incident with Elizabeth Eastey erratic.

He hadn't been able to predict what would transpire from Max's plan for a big happy family when their original sire met Lucy Emerson. As David's second in command, he should have been prepared for anything. He should have been able to protect his tribe from anything.

And yet, he had failed them all the same.

October gave him a second chance, though. A second chance to get it right. To keep them all safe. He wasn't about to screw it all up again.

"Guys! Look at this dog I found!" Paul's excited exclamation filtered through Dwayne's brooding.

With October off doing her own thing that night, the boys had resorted to dumping their latest victims (a tourist couple walking their dog) in a dumpster located in shady part of town. He could sense how reluctant David was about sacrificing his lighter to set fire to the two corpses. Meanwhile, Paul and Marko were playing with the dead couples toy sized dog that was yipping and bringing far too much attention to all of them.

"David can we keep it? Make it a hellhound?" Marko queried. A seemingly innocent suggestion from an otherwise impish boy.

David flicked his lighter open and closed, open and closed, with a sardonic expression etched across his face.

"Do you promise to take care of it? Take it for walks and clean up after it?"

Marko beamed. "That's a yes!"

"Radical! I'm going to name him Paul Jr!" Paul declared happily.

The tiny dog was practically vibrating with nervous energy.

Dwayne inhaled deeply, searching for a trace of Octobers scent, trying to get an idea of the direction she had wandered off to.

They had left her at a bar a couple blocks away when she said she wanted to be alone so she could drink in peace without having to share. The excuse was just that. An excuse. She had been clammed up since they rode into town to feed. It was clear she was still processing their ghostly encounter.

His brothers thought it safe to leave well enough alone and gave her her space. Dwayne, on the other hand, decided to check on her after he got his fill. He was shocked to find that she was nowhere to be seen in the dingy dive bar.

"Something's wrong," he grunted. "October's gone."

Having finally surrendered his lighter to the dumpster, allowing a hungry fire to devour their leftovers, David stuffed his hands into his coat pockets. All business.

"Any clue where she went?"

Dwayne shook his head once.

"Okay. We've got a witch in the wind," his sire stated.

Paul and Marko looked up from the whining pomeranian.

"You all know what to do."

Spread out. Get a bird's eye view. Make sure she hasn't summoned any vengeful ghosts. The orders floated through their minds.

Dwayne ended up at the boardwalk, a sense of unease hitting him as soon as he set foot under the lights of the amusement rides. Glamour or no glamour, he felt like he was still running the risk that he would be recognized.