A Case of Magic: An Urban Fantasy Novel (The Wildes Chronicles Book 1) Read online

  A Case of Magic

  A Wildes Chronicles Book 1

  Dominika Waclawiak

  Contents

  About A Case of Magic

  Borrowed Magic

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Letter from Dominika

  Dedication

  About A Case of Magic

  Ex-Cop turned PI Mabry Wildes is no stranger to rough waters, but this time she might be in over her head.

  A water Fae shunned by the witches and sneered at by the Fae; her professional reputation shredded by the head of the LAPD, Mabry uses her powers to champion for those hardest hit by the Unveiling: the humans.

  The human ghettos are emptying and no one knows why. Worse, no one in power seems to care. On the run after accidentally killing two vampire cops who tried to bring her in on seriously murky ground, Mabry thinks things can’t get worse. Then her former LAPD colleague turns up dead and Mabry is plunged into the center of a case that threatens to kill everyone she holds dear.

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  Borrowed Magic

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  And find out what really happened between Regina and Damian!

  1

  I shoved myself through the rusted fence and groaned. Suicide Alley only had one entrance and I'd just come through it. The vampires had cornered me. I was losing my touch, I thought, as I recoiled from the stench of garbage assaulting my nostrils. The only way out was up.

  I'd tracked my deadbeat client to the Pritzker Hotel and picked up the vampires as I turned onto Main Street. I couldn't tell if they were cops or just waiting for an easy victim but both options would cause me too much trouble. If I didn't need the money as badly as I did, I would have turned around and tried another day. And honestly, when would I get another opportunity as perfect as this?

  My client's appetite ran towards humans which was a big no-no these days. Acts that were once commonplace, like sex with a human for example, were now against the law. And tonight was his rendezvous with a human girl. He was one of those clients that a private investigator dreaded to catch but times were tough these days and a girl had to eat. I would have preferred to just let the debt go unpaid since he was such an unsavory character but several others had disappeared on me as well and his was now the biggest chunk that was outstanding.

  I took a deep breath of wet, fresh air before I stepped further into the alleyway, glass crunching beneath my boots, as rats skittered across my path. The rats would survive this apocalypse, I thought. They survived everything. Many people were squeamish about rats but to me, they were miraculous creatures. They would survive us all. Just like the cockroaches. And in this place, in this time, it was all about survival. Which is why I needed to get that money from that asshole. The vampires hadn't seen me duck into the alley or they would have been on me by now. I let out a breath that I hadn't known I was holding and looked up. The fire escape beckoned me.

  Water dripped onto the top of my head as I got closer to the rusty, old fire escape. The glass glimmered at my feet like a thousand stars suspended in the black depths of the dirty water puddles. I didn't know where the light was coming from but it was a beautiful sight in this darkened, nasty place. The scratching behind me became more pronounced as the rat got stuck in one of the metal trashcan canisters. Poor guy, I thought. I almost wanted to stay and see if he would manage to climb out of there, maybe even help him on his way, then I noticed the ominous light flashing onto the back wall of the hotel. Blue and red. Blue and red. The vampires must have been the LAPD goon squad then, staking out the Pritzker or making their nightly rounds. I needed to get my butt up to the floor, I thought.

  I focused my energy into my feet and stretched out my arms high above my head. A crackle sounded as the magic flowed to the bottom of my soles and I popped up 10 feet, grabbing hold of the bottom rung of the fire escape ladder. The weight of my body released its latch. It shuddered once and unfurled to the floor.

  The color of light was becoming more intense. Maybe they'd called for backup?

  My hands shook as the rusted iron bore into my palms as I scrambled my way up the ancient ladder. Because I was half witch, I wasn't affected by iron as the rest of my kinfolk. Most Fae were burned by iron and could be easily destroyed by it. Not me though. It was one of the many ways I was an outsider in the magical community. And, I was also a former LAPD detective which had to mean I was connected to the new administration.

  I climbed the rickety staircase two rungs at a time and never dared to look down. It wasn't that I was afraid of heights as much as I dreaded to see the goon squad coming for me. I'd used up my nine lives already with them. Just last week Detective Caruso had hauled me back into the station on some trumped up charge of not having the sense of staying out of their ongoing investigation that I had no idea they were undertaking. Does that sound confusing, because it confused the hell out of me, as well.

  The alleyway stayed strangely silent. But then I was, at that point, at least 30 feet off the ground heading towards the fifth floor and the sounds could have been drowned out by the rain that had started harder all around me as I hunted down my client.

  It didn't rain that much in Los Angeles but when it did, it caused the city to shut down. The Los Angeles River flooded when there was even 6 inches of rain over a small period of time and the city had been built with no proper drainage lines. Most people stayed home back before President Dixon's reign and now only the Fae that enjoyed the wet weather and the dark came out on nights like this. And whatever magical creature you were, you did not want to cross paths with those things. Even though I was an outsider to most Fae, I knew enough to stay away from the water Fae.

  I took one more step up and my hands landed on something that did hurt me. A slash of silver was embedded into the iron rung before the fourth floor landing of the fire escape. Silver molded and sharp with Fae magic. It was one of their favorite metals to work with and this one had a spell that ran up my arm and pitched me off the staircase.

  Damn, I thought. Someone had gotten to my client before me. The thought flashed by as I flew through the air across the alleyway. I had to get it together before I ended up splattered on the watery, rat infested concrete below. I grunted and blue-green fire came out of my hands and, like Spider-Man's web, grabbed the end of the railing. I swung back onto the staircase, my body hitting the railing with a thud. Ouch, that hurt.

  Clutching my ribs and trying to catch my breath, I scampered up the last two staircases and hoped that my source at the hotel was correct in the number. I got to the fifth floor landing and looked down to see the two vampires from earlier enter the alley below. As most of the vampires on the police squad could fly, they'd be on me in seconds. My plan for incriminating photos was shot. Plan B it was, I thought.

  I yanked on the old wooden window sash and scampered into the hallway before they spotted me. Vampires had a very strong sense of smell, too, but I had been smart enough to put a cloaking spell on myself to hide whatever scen
t I naturally emanated. It was one of the tricks my mother had taught me before she passed. I didn't think my camera would be as useful anymore, but I needed to find a way to collect proof of this illicit tryst. I came on room 526 relatively quickly and when the vampires didn't shatter the glass coming after me I thought I had evaded them. I took a deep breath wondering what hellish sights I would see behind that door, and used the little strength I had left to break it down. The door was thin as shit, and I had a small reserve of energy left. It shattered beneath my boot with a satisfying crunch. I pulled the camera up into my face and started to take the incriminating snaps.

  The hotel room was dark, dingy, with water stains creating intricate patterns on the old floral wallpaper. But that was the least of it. My client, a man in his late 50s, was doing the nasty with a young, human girl looking no older than seventeen. Even though I found what I was about to do utterly distasteful, I was going to do it anyway.

  I pulled the camera away from my eye and surveyed the scene. The girl did not look happy. My source had told me that she was a regular at the hotel bar and I wasn't about to shame her for doing what she needed to do to survive. In fact, prostitution was one of the oldest jobs in the world. No, that's not what I was here for. The mage of Los Angeles had put a ban on procreating between the magical folk and humans. That's what I was getting the pictures for. If he wouldn't pay me because he was a decent man, he would pay me to keep his secret quiet. I took several more snaps and smiled. I had gotten him right where I wanted him.

  "You really want to do this?" He sneered at me without even bothering to pull up his boxer shorts. "You were an LAPD cop for chrissakes and now you're going to blackmail me?" I took a threatening step inside the saddest hotel room I'd ever seen.

  He had me there. I had fallen as low as I thought I could go. But this was who I was now. I deserved all of this and more. It was my penance.

  "Nice to see you too, Mr. Joe Jackson," I said with a smile. "Where is my money?"

  "This is how you're expecting to get it?" Joe Jackson answered.

  "You didn't leave me with many other options," I said and nodded at the girl. She threw on a sultry looking red dress, pushed past me and ran down the hall. I didn't go after her. I hoped that the vampires didn't decide to go inside because they'd catch her up in a sweep and then she'd be gone just like the others.

  "You're a real bitch, you know that, Mabry?"

  "Give me my money and we're square. That's all I want from you. You got your divorce. And if I don't get my money in the next 24 hours then these pictures will be going to your friendly vampire goon squad at the LAPD. You know, I still have contacts over there from my days back on the force. I'm sure some of the boys would do me a favor and bring you in as you are breaking one of the newest rules that the mage has put down," I said. I had him.

  "I'll get you your money." He didn't deign to look at me.

  "That's wonderful news. Exactly what I wanted to hear. However, if I don't see you in 24 hours you know where I'll be going," I said and before he could say another word, I turned around and stomped out the door. Jackass. As if he had any right to be calling me names.

  I hoped that poor human girl was OK. I took the elevator down like a civilized person but saw no sign of her. She was a professional and would know how to get out of here without being detected.

  The number of humans had been dwindling quickly as the orders from President Dixon were carried out. I had thought that it would take a good three years for the administration to get rid of all those pesky humans but their timetable was on track and mine was solely wrong. It had been two years since the president ordered all the humans into the designated ghettos and his minions had done a very good job of carrying it out. Very efficient. I sighed and put the dark thoughts away. This is what happened when I grew ravenous. My mind ran away from me and dwelled in the dark places.

  I peered out onto Main Street in search of the vampires that had been stalking me. When I saw no sign of them, I stepped onto Main Street and tilted my head up to the sky, feeling the small droplets of water settle on my skin, making it come alive. Water did strange things to my skin, showing the Fae scales underneath, and the gentle caress of it rivaled any lovers. I moved towards my car, scanning around me in case of an ambush. The rain dulled my hearing and sense of smell and I couldn't detect them anywhere. It didn't mean they weren't lurking in the shadows, waiting to make their move. I opened the car door unmolested. My hands shook hard enough that getting the key into the ignition caused all sorts of issues. I had to get out of here.

  The engine turned over and I inched out of the spot. Within moments, a pair of headlights turned on right behind me. The Vampire Goon Squad. They had decided to wait for me after all. Damn.

  I looked back at the cop car, the red and blue lights flashing ominously behind me. Should I hit the gas and try to run away from them? That didn't make sense because vampires could fly and would attack me for sure. All they'd have to do is jump on my dash and cause a crash, solving their problem with me for good. The dread swallowed me. The shadows along Main Street lengthened and the blue and red light reflecting off all the wet buildings and puddles seemed to give into the shadow. I didn't know what was happening to my pupils but everything turned black-and-white. How was I going to get out of this? Running didn't sound so bad at the moment.

  I checked my gas and studied the street ahead of me. There weren't that many cars around and there was a chance to lose them. But if I didn't escape, they'd finally have something to book me on. And Detective Caruso could override any allies that I still had at the LAPD and make me disappear. Fear clenched my stomach and I stiffened.

  There was the other option. It was the nuclear option but I'd use it if I had to. I didn't have any Fae mentors to help me with that side of my magic but I noticed that when I was threatened on previous occasions the magic would come to my defense, unbidden. I couldn't control it and I destroyed creatures in my path in the past. I didn't necessarily want to do that to two LAPD officers. Even if they were the vampire goon squad now. See what they want first, I thought. The decision could easily be made for me.

  I watched them get out of the car behind me and take their sweet, damn time getting to my window. Their technique was causing my heart to palpitate. I was never good at patience. What could they have on me? I punched the button for the window and it rolled down. Their two blank, pale faces stared back at me. I didn't recognize either of them. One of the badges said Roscoe and the other one Richards. Such normal names for such hideous creatures.

  "Are you Mabry Wildes?" The one named Roscoe demanded.

  These were not the vampires that seduced women by their looks. These vampires had almost blue- white skin with red tinged eyes and fangs that poked out through their dead, thin blue lips. It was more like looking at the walking dead, zombielike, then some lothario of past Hollywood movies. The vampire goon squad had rules that vampires no younger than 200 years were allowed to serve. The older the vampire, the stronger its power. And that's what President Dixon wanted. These guys looked like they fit the bill and I smelled the grave, the rotten meat and earth emanating out of both of them.

  "Are you going to answer us?" Roscoe wasn't letting up. The rain started to come down harder and the pitter patter of it on my hood sounded like small little explosions going off. If I closed my eyes I could imagine bullets pinging off metal. It was a fitting image.

  "I'm Mabry Wildes. Who wants to know? I've already discussed all I needed to discuss with Detective Caruso," I said tersely.

  "There she is," the one named Richards said with a smile. The raindrops were affecting him in a different way. The moment the rain touched his skin, the droplet evaporated in a small poof. I'd only heard that vampires ran cold but this one had to be some other creature as well.

  "I'm not sure what I did wrong to deserve this visit," I said in a small voice. I decided to switch tactics and play young, coy, unsure private investigator in hopes they hadn't read my full dos
sier.

  I was not going to be lucky. Roscoe looked at his partner and shook his head. "You're going to have to come with us," he said. My heart dropped somewhere down to hell.

  "What do you mean I have to come with you?" I asked.

  "Please step out of the car ma'am," he said. I had to do something. I couldn't go with them. I called up whatever witch magic I could feel, but nothing came. I was too depleted from scaling that damn hotel. It would take me another hour or so to have my full capabilities back again. I reached over to grab my small backpack.

  "You don't need that," vampire goon Richards snapped.

  "I don't think you have a right to tell me what I can and cannot take to the station," I snapped back. Something within me finally rumbled. It was about damn time, I thought.

  "Am I under arrest?" I asked.

  "You want to be?" Roscoe sneered.

  "What is this about? I didn't do anything wrong. I hadn't even started the car. Have you been following me?" I demanded.

  "That's none of your concern. You scaled the wall of that hotel. That's trespassing," Richard explained. So they'd been watching me the entire time.

  "I had a meeting with a client there. He wanted to be discrete and I obliged by taking the back way up," I lied.

  "If it was so discreet, then why did you come out the front way?" Richard asked. Damn.

  I tried to buy myself some time by digging around in my backpack. The rain had let up slightly and the liquid, just like Richard's skin, was vaporizing on contact with the street. The temperature had grown exponentially in the last 10 minutes and the air felt like a sauna. The cold rain mixed with the hot air created a dense fog. I contemplated shoving myself out of the passenger side door and making a run for it. Sounds and smells were confused in the thick fog and I could use that as a defense against the vampire's superior senses.