Watch of the Wicked (Devil's Witch Book 3)

Salt water splashes against my ankles as I listen to Peyton talk about her store front on the harbor.

It wasn’t much of a suprise to me I found out Nick used to work for the council of supernatural affairs. What surprised me, and concerns me more, is Nick’s new benefactor in the afterlife.

“Well, it was so nice to meet you,” I say before we step off together.

Peyton slaps Joel’s back. “Of course!” she laughs. She flicks the paper Nick handed her. “We’ll find these troublemakers in no time.”

“Thanks for your help,” I tell her while helping the kids off the boat.

Joel, her business partner, mutters something to Nick while pulling in the motorboat they took us for a ride on.

Peyton’s already walking up the dock. We follow the string lights attached to the little yacht club building meeting her at the top. Jax and Willow hold onto my hands as we walk over the bridge and look down into the harbour.

Once we make it to the parking up top, Peyton says goodnight and we wait for Nick up by the car.

I tell the kids to get inside the sedan seeing Nick and a familiar face walk up to us.

It’s strange. The two of them. I’m not sure where Joel went, but Viktor and him may as well be brothers. The two of them look similiar, Joel could pass as the older brother.

Nick comes to my side. “Everything is done.”

Viktor plucks the collar of his black polo shirt. He looks skyward, then checks his watch as if having somewhere else to be.

There’s a tacky pattern design on his socks. They’re exposed by his flood pants; pumpkins and skeletons, fitting for the mayor of Hegley Hallow I think.

He digs for something in his pocket. Nick clicks his tongue when he watches the faery hand me a small pouch.

I open it a little, finding a pile of candy corn tucked inside.

“Candy?” Nick says dryly.

“For your troubles. My kids make them in the other realm,” I squeeze Nick’s arm tighter when the strange man’s piercing orange eyes land on me. “Elaine needs a good friend. I’m sure you two will get along just fine,” he says slowly.

My smile turns stiff. “I’m sure we will.”

Suddenly, smoldering fire burns with life beneath his feet. A moment later, he disappears along with his wolf-like grin.

“Annoying, isn’t he?” Nick remarks.

“Yes, but I’m starting to see why you two have become such friends.”

“Why?” Nick asks while getting in the car.

“You both are creepy,” I joke, but is it really a joke?

“I think you are too sometimes.”

“Really?” I giggle.

The only reason I don’t find Nick so strange and scary...okay nevermind. I still think he is those things, but I guess I’m more used to him now.

“Well, not really...” Nick begins while I buckle up. He turns on the headlights and we start out onto the road. “Did you get a read on their auras?”

“Yes, Peyton’s defenitly human. I’m not sure about Joel though. I mean, it was yellow, but there was some green too.”

“Green? What’s that mean?”

“Nothing, I’m only kidding.”

***

After our trip out to the dock with Nick’s new “business partners”, we made it back to the hotel.

No one got to swim at all on our boat trip. Peyton told us there were gators in the area, but she still made Joel wade in the water to fetch the oyster nets.

I shut my phone off to save some battery. Stella swims over to the hotel pool’s ledge. “Why aren’t you coming in?”

“My hair’s kind of ruined from the boat ride. I rather sit this one out. Can you believe how humid it is here?”

“Yeah, outside,” she laughs while splashing me on purpose.

I scoot up on my lounge chair, feeling the chlorine hit my skin. “Stella!”

The smell of it is too overpowering in here. Funny how kids don’t really notice stuff like that. I don’t think they notice either that Heinrich is not a lifeguard by any means.

I’m kind of glad he’s taking up the task of teaching them to swim. Less for me to take on, but it is a little nerve racking watching some of his methods.

Nick had a call tonight with the governor. So he didn’t come with us to the pool.

I huff, frantically drying myself again when Colin dives in the water right in front of my chair.

“Put that phone down and come in here!” he yells at me.

He playfully wrestles a group of kids in the water. Stella gets pushed out to the edge and literary jumps out of the water when Heinrich hops in.

“I’m happy here!” I holler back.

Stella wrings out her hair, stomping over to her lounge chair beside mine. She yanks on her cover-up, an open light cotton cloak of hers. It must be new too, the tag’s still on it.

“Mommy, when are you coming in?” Willow asks while hopping onto my lap soaking wet.

“Eh! Um, maybe tomorrow. I’m just a little tired from swimming.”

And a little soaking wet now too...and cold. She squirms against me until she finds a comfy position sprawled over my lap.

After a bit of talking with her about her triumph of swimming, Stella and Colin head out of the pool room.

“Jax! Don’t run, please.”

He ignores me and follows another child as he jumps in the pool. I grunt in pain when Willow sees his new playmate and uses her elbow against my bare stomach as leverage to leap off of my lap.

“Don’t, d-don’t run!” I shout after her.

She listens, for a moment. Then she’s off running around the pool again until she reaches her brother. I pluck my black bikini, watching the water stain on it expand.

“Wah!” Jax screams.

My nails dig into my fists as I jolt to a complete upright position. However, when I find him in the sea of swimmers, he’s just playing.

I feel like I can’t take my eyes off them for two seconds. I really can’t go in there. The moment I’d get distracted in the chaotic water, one of them would get hurt.

The light of day seems to disappear when someone leans over the back of my chair. Heat travels up my neck as I stare back into Heinrich’s puppy dog eyes.

Behind those eyes and his aloof light, soft voice there’s intelligent aggression. Maybe before I didn’t notice it as much because Nick is normally around when he is.

“Please don’t do that.”

He removes his finger from my bite mark. “Do what, goddess?”

Sneak up behind me and touch me like that, I want to fire back.

Why am I getting so angry though?

“Touch my neck.”

His intense stare flickers down to my chest and then back to my face. His words come out slow, “Oh, so sorry.” Then he sits down on the lounge chair next to me. “I’m hungry, can I have some?”

Jeez, why does he talk about it like it’s candy? I already feel drained from today, but no one even drank my blood.

When I remain quiet, he doesn’t press anymore. I rifle through my tote, trying to find one of the kids’ bottles. There should be cow blood in here somewhere...Jax never finishes all of his drink.

Finally, I pull out the blue plastic water bottle. Heinrich eagerly takes it.

“I don’t think it’s right anymore to share my blood with everyone,” I say quietly. “I never knew it triggered certain feelings in your kind.”

He taps my knee with a small, boyish grin. The tiny table between us rattles as he places the bottle on it.

The big vampire crosses his muscular arms, eyes narrowing into slits as he watches the swimmers ahead of us.

He places his sunglasses on, lowering his voice. “You not understand. You are made to be shared, goddess. Also, I need your blood. I’m hungry.”

Shared?

My magic feels like it’s going haywire. Nick isn’t even here. Could Heinrich be causing it to react or am I just getting flustered? And sort of freaked out too.

“You know, I’m not your goddess, Heinrich. If you’re so hungry, try asking Stella-”

My neck is hurting again. He’s making me nervous, but the kids are having so much fun here.

“Gah!” I gasp feeling his heavy weight plop half on my gut and half on my lap.

He is much heavier than Willow!

“What are you doing?” I ask frantically.

“Want make,” he starts to say. My blood goes cold hearing his accent drop completely. His voice turns husky, “A nest.”

“Um, no.”

I squirm against him feeling his breath tickle over the side of my neck as he makes the ridiculous remark.

My heart beats so rapidly I swear it’ll burst or get smashed just as easily if he presses himself any closer. I can barely breathe.

He pulls back a little, letting me have my own room back somewhat.

Like the flip of a switch, his german accent returns, “We can go now, children not need watched.”

“I hope you’re kidding,” I whisper. “I’m married.”

“Hmm, not matter to me.”

“And why would that be?” I ask quickly.

He chooses not to answer and simply gives me a wide grin as he crawls off me.

I get up, shrugging on my cover-up. Then I swing my tote over my shoulder, avoiding his unfaltering stare.

“Noctus and I share everything. He want to share you too,” he tells me with dancing eyes. “It is instinct, our instinct.”

“I don’t know what you mean. I’m sorry, but I don’t appreciate being sat on or being asked lewd things to fulfill some unspoken measure between you two.”

My voice may be steady, but I doubt he heard any of it. It came out in a whisper.

“Measure? He not tell you?”

A sick feeling forms in my stomach as his face turns mischievous. Before I can stop him, he does the unthinkable. He licks my healed over bite mark leaving me a shuddering mess as I backpedal away from him.

My flip flops squeak against the tiles as I force myself to keep walking.

“You need relax. Children make you worry, no?” he tells me with dancing eyes.

I hurry over to the ledge of the pool. “Jax, Willow! Come on, we’re going back to our room.”

I can hear his disappointment as he speaks to my back, “What wrong with sharing, goddess? I love you too...” he calls after me sounding genuinely upset as I shuffle the kids out of the pool room.