~

 

“Get over yourself,” Morgana bit out.

She folded her arms and offered him something of a sneer. She wasn’t falling for that one again…

“Luckily, I have a female in my bed that can take care of this for me…” he leaned in closer and she pulled her head back on her neck a little. “Unless you would like the pleasure…”

“I will hurt you this time,” she hissed the warning like a snake about to strike.

Nathaniel snapped his body straight once more. He knew just how far he could push Morgana’s buttons, he’d been doing it for a while, and it felt as if he was getting to the edge of the abyss.

“Second thing is … the tethered’s…”

“Don’t call them that.”

“What would you like me to call them? Boring, sub-species, mundane, fodder, food…?”

“Humans.” She offered him a blank expression of her own. She wasn’t playing his game, and she wouldn’t satisfy him with getting a rise from her that time.

“Fine. Humans have been disappearing, males, and the last was a female. I know; because I was following her when it happened.”

Nathaniel offered her that snip of information and watched as the wheels turned inside of her mind. He could practically taste her appetite to get involved right then and there.

If Morgana was anything; she was protective of humans – especially females.

“Why were you following her?”

Nathaniel hated it when she asked the questions that he didn’t want her to ask, but she always seemed to manage it anyway…

“Ahh…” he considered lying. “Personal tastes…”

“As in?”

“She looked tasty…” he offered back and watched her eyes roll back into her head once more… “But, someone got there before me…”

“Sorry I asked,” she grumbled.

“Yes, well. I was sorry that I ended up in a cold, dark, drab, bloodless cellar shortly after that.” He grumbled back and watched her eyebrows try to meet over her nose.

She likes that idea about as much as I enjoyed it. At least she has some sympathy for my plight.

A good sign, I think.

“Who was she?”

“No idea. I spotted her in a bar and…”

“Followed her like a stalky, bloodsucking, vampire leech?” Morgana offered up to him with a look of smug glee within her eyes.

So, not entirely sympathetic to me then…

“Point remains…” he offered, holding up that one index finger again. “She was taken.”

“Fine. I’ll go see Maxi for the innocent, not for you…” she offered with a little acidic tone to her voice.

“A little for me,” he pouted and she sighed.

“We’re done here.” She turned away from him and started for the door.

“Just a tiny bit for me?” He called after, a smirk on his lips.

“I’ll call you,” she shot back over her shoulder.

“I might be in the middle of a sinfully debauched session of…”

“Bye, Nathaniel.” She shot back, cutting him off in mid flow and slamming the front door behind her as she made a quick exit.

“What was I…?” He looked down at his hard length and grinned. “I’ll take care of this first…”

 

~

~

~

 

Morgana stepped into the parlour. It was a cliché in every respect of the word.

The scent of vanilla and sage hung in the air – furniture polish and a cleansing ritual in one heady mix that tickled her nose. She rolled her eyes at the décor.

A round wooden table sat in the middle of the room with three chairs, one on the far side, and two on the paying customer’s side. A large crystal ball sat in the middle on a black cloth with which to catch and keep the excess energy and essence of any aura that might be summoned.

The mood lighting and candles were a nice touch, and the crystals that hung from the ceiling and caught the light of the dancing flames, even more so. It was everything that someone outside of the craft expected when they visited a psychic for a reading, or more, and one thing about Maxi was that she always gave them more.

The difference between Maxi and most psychics was that Maxi truly had the gift. The rest was just dressing…

“I could say I was expecting you …” Maxi offered as she came through the hidden gap between the draped curtains at the back of the room and eyed Morgana with a quick appraisal of her aura. “But that would be a lie and we’d both know it.”

Maxi motioned for Morgana to take a seat, and the witch knew that there was little point in refusing the woman. The conversation that she needed to have with her would be quickly over if she did.

Morgana sat in the offered chair and Maxi settled herself on the opposite side of the table. It was weird how just being in the seer’s presence always made the hairs on Morgana’s body stand to attention.

It was as if her own magic was reacting to that of the seer’s.

“I see by your aura that you are still connected to the vampire.” Maxi let loose the first shot between them.

Morgana knew that there was no point in denying it. She tipped her head and acknowledged the seer’s words.

“The darkness that stains your aura, and the red that surrounds it is very telling.”

Maxi’s eyes locked on Morgana’s and the witch knew that she was supposed to blink first. That was how things worked.

“I still owe him a debt,” Morgana conceded with a small nod of her head.

“One that he’ll never let you repay,” Maxi warned.

“One that was worth it.”

“So, you’re here for the vampire?” Maxi reached out her hand and flicked the lid on the lodestone box, reaching inside to take out her Tarot deck, and Morgana stiffened just a little…

“Yes, and I don’t need a reading…”

Morgana didn’t want to know what the future held for her. She’d rather not see trouble coming if it was something that she couldn’t walk away from. That was the only nod that she gave to the human side of herself – she didn’t want to know her future or variations of it.

“What kind of witch would I be if I wasn’t curious?” Maxi’s steel blue eyes locked with Morgana’s and held in place.

“The kind that respects that I don’t want to know.” Morgana offered back.

“You want to pretend you’re a mundane?”

Maxi kept her voice level, but there was an accusing look in her eyes that matched the amusement on her lips. Just like the vampire; Maxi was playing with her.

Morgana drew in a long, calming breath to even her temper, not that it worked – the vampire was right, she’d got out of bed on the wrong side that morning.

“We both know that humans only want to hear the good things. I don’t want to hear either way.”

Maxi turned over the first card and Morgana averted her eyes from the deck. It was one thing for the reader to interpret the reading – another entirely for the one being read to try and do it.

There was the sound of another card, then another, one more before Maxi snatched them back up and placed them back into the box. Morgana knew that wasn’t a good sign.

“You know the vampire clouds your magic with darkness?” Maxi offered, and Morgana felt the itch to know what she’d seen within the cards clawing inside of her, like it was tapping on her soul.

“I know I try to keep an even keel.”

“He’ll ask you to do something you’re not comfortable with. He’ll take from you…” Maxi warned.

“No more, Maxi,” Morgana shook her head.

She didn’t want to hear it; not when she could do little about the outcome. She owed the man, and she paid her debts.

“He’ll be your downfall, Morgana…” Maxi warned as she reached out and locked her fingers around Morgana’s hand.

Her first instinct was to pull away, and she would have if the woman didn’t have some kind of a damn death grip on her. She felt the rush of heat flood her body as a fight or flight instinct took a hold of her.

The thing was; she could do neither.

Maxi’s eyes locked on hers and pierced into her very soul. Right then and there, and without Morgana being able to do a damn thing about it; the seer stole what she needed…