Phoenix Under Fire: A Zodiac Shifters Paranormal Romance: Aries Read online

“Most of us are born with our magic and we rely on it like an eye or an arm. To find it suddenly gone will be damaging. Some never get over the loss. It is a fitting punishment. I would say it’s worse than death.”

  “You’ll let me know what’s decided,” Teri asked.

  “I will. Hopefully something will be decided in the next two days,” Annie assured.

  Once she said her goodbyes, she left quickly. She had a hot potato she wanted to dump in someone else’s pocket. Annie headed home with haste. Her father worked out of his home office most of the time. If luck was with her, he would be there now.

  Speeding, she made it home in record time. Her father’s car was there so things looked good. She made it in the house and saw her mom in the kitchen cooking. She raised a brow. “Cook’s off today and her assistant is sick. I can cook, you know?” Maybelle said.

  “Is Dad in his office?”

  “Yes, trouble with a client?”

  “You could say that,” She admitted as she hurried by.

  Once she reached his office, she knocked on the closed door. “Come in,” He directed.

  “There’s a serious issue,” She informed then she filled him in.

  “You should have immediately denied the client.”

  “I believe this man is doing such things routinely. Would you rather find out when he does something that captures the attention of the world?”

  “Point taken. I will inform the council and he will be apprehended. Anything else?”

  “Since you ask, she wants to watch the trial.”

  “You know we don’t do that.”

  “How about just the sentencing and punishment stage?”

  “Why?” Royal asked.

  “The woman was brutalized. Seeing him punished will help her heal.”

  “Alright.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes, I’m feeling generous since you netted such a good mate.”

  “You’ve been investigating him?”

  “Of course, I want to be sure my daughter is safe and well cared for.”

  “And that the alliance is worthwhile?” Annie asked.

  “Our people must come first. You know that.”

  “So you always say. What are your plans now? Will you take a break from your efforts to create alliances?”

  “A leader gets no breaks. Is that all, Annie?”

  “Yes, Father.”

  “How is your schedule for today?”

  “I have three clients spread out in the city.”

  “How many are left?”

  “None.”

  “Very good. Take a client from tomorrow and start early.”

  “Yes, Father.”

  Annie left unhappy with having to start on tomorrow. When she checked the schedule, she saw why he’d recommended it. She had six clients for tomorrow. Spells seemed to have become popular overnight. That was more clients than usual, maybe more than ever before. Half of them were new clients. Picking one of the new ones that was near where Ram was staying, she headed there.

  She looked at the entrance as she pulled into a gate with a guard. “May I see your ID, ma’am?” The guard asked.

  “Yes,” Annie said as she pulled out her wallet and slid the ID out to hand to him.

  “Who are you here to see?”

  “Mr. Smythe.”

  “The director?”

  “That’s the one,” She answered with a smile.

  He waved her through after giving her specific directions. Annie was amazed at the size of this place. It was an aeronautics factory and she couldn’t imagine what they wanted her here for or how they had heard of her company. She found herself in front of the secretary’s desk.

  “Hello. I’m here to see Mr. Smythe.”

  “Miss Worthington?”

  “Yes.”

  “Go right in. He’s waiting for you.”

  The man stood up and came around his desk. “Miss Worthington. Thank you for coming so quickly. I’m Randy Smythe.”

  “Lovely to meet you, Mr. Smythe. Everyone calls me Annie. How did you hear about us?”

  “Mr. Caroll is my cousin,” he admitted.

  This man was so much warmer and more likable that it was hard to believe they came from the same family. “I take after my mother’s side and we’re cousins through our fathers.”

  “I see. What is it I can help you with?”

  “We have a serious problem here. Someone is causing accidents and if we don’t find out who, someone may get seriously hurt or killed.”

  “Do you have a list of potential suspects?”

  “I wrote down those I can think of, but to be honest, it could be anyone.” He handed her the paper and a plate. “I’m sorry I don’t have an ashtray. No one smokes in this facility. We’re very health minded.”

  “That’s alright. A plate will do perfectly.” Annie lit the paper and spoke the spell. Nothing formed from the ashes, but she had a name. “It was no one on your list. It isn’t anyone that directly works for you. Do you have a list of those that come here but aren’t employed by you?”

  “Can you give me an example?”

  “Certainly. Vendors like for the snack machine, outside services like cleaning or laundry, suppliers, maintenance, visitors not just limited to family. And possibly utility provider employees.”

  “Why didn’t I think of that?” He pushed a button and spoke to his secretary. “Helen will have the list in a moment. You’ve already been so helpful. It hurt thinking one of my own people would turn on me like that.”

  “I imagine it does and it happens. I’m glad it didn’t in your case.”

  “Me too. Here we go,” he said as Helen walked in and handed him a list. Helen left and closed the door.

  Annie took the list lying it on the plate and repeated her performance. It was important to keep up appearances so no one would know what a witch’s true powers were. The ashes left behind reformed into a name, Robert Daniels.

  “Oh, my goodness. I would have never thought of him, but now it all makes sense. I will have him monitored and catch him in the act. That man will pay. Thank you so much.”

  “You’re welcome. I wish you luck in dealing with him. Anyone who would do such a thing needs to be caught.” Annie stood and held out her hand and Randy shook it.

  As she left, she felt good, like she had accomplished something positive. Maybe she should handle one more client today especially since she had plenty of time and Ram wasn’t expecting her this early. She got in her car and pulled up her schedule. There was another client twenty minutes from here. Luellen Rothchild wanted a visit as soon as possible. That urgency hadn’t been marked on the schedule earlier. It said she would be home today and tomorrow.

  What choice did she have now? She wondered what kind of emergency Luellen was facing. She started her car and put it in gear circling the lot to head out the gate. The guard waved her through. Annie headed to her final location of the day. When she arrived at the Rothchild estate, she pressed the button to be let in the gate.

  “Name?” A voice asked.

  “Annie Worthington.”

  “The gate will open and you can pass. Once you reach the house, park in the space at the right.”

  Annie drove through the gate and followed the directions. Once parked, she got out and followed the walkway to the front door. A maid opened the door.

  “I’m Annie Worthington.”

  “Follow me, Miss. The Mistress is most distraught.”

  It made Annie wonder why. What emergency could this wealthy woman possibly need a witch for? They entered a sitting room and the maid left hurriedly. Luellen sat reclining on what looked like an antique fainting couch.

  “They took him, you know?” This sweet voice questioned.

  “I’m sorry. My name is Annie. I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”

  “Fluffy. My ex-husband had him abducted. The man is a complete cad.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that. What do you need from me?”<
br />
  “I need you to tell me where Fluffy is.”

  “Okay, I can do that. Do you have something that belongs to him that we can burn?”

  “Maria!” She screamed and the maid appeared instantly.

  “Yes, Mistress?”

  “Bring one of Fluffy’s small older toys,” Luellen demanded.

  The maid left then returned with a little bunny that had been torn to shreds. She put it on the table in front of Annie. Annie pulled her gloves out of her purse and put them on. There was a fireplace sitting unused in a corner of the room and after she picked up the toy, she walked to it. Placing the bunny in the fireplace she whispered an incantation and it burst into flames. She was aware of Luellen standing behind her when the address appeared.

  Luellen gasped. “That dirty asshole!” She exclaimed.

  Annie turned to look at her. Luellen picked up her cell phone and placed a call. “He’s got Fluffy at the ocean estate. You’ll have no problem since he doesn’t own it.” She looked at Annie. “Thank you. That’s all I need.”

  “I hope Fluffy comes home happy and healthy,” Annie responded as she left the room. She’d been dismissed and there was no reason to stay. There was little doubt Luellen would deal harshly with her ex and that didn’t bother Annie. Fluffy was a delicate poodle and high strung. He didn’t like the man who had taken him and was probably terrified.

  Annie took a deep calming breath as soon as she left the house. Now the rest of the day was hers to do with as she would. Her job was a mixed bag of tricks. Sometimes it was satisfying, others aggravating. It did support a lavish lifestyle or in Annie’s case, a nice nest egg and a reasonable lifestyle.

  Once she and Ram mated, she wondered what her life would be like. She’d been almost afraid to bring up the subject. Her dad wouldn’t be pleased if Annie no longer worked for the business. Annie handled any difficult clients and had the largest load of any witches that worked in the field. No one else managed to handle Caroll and the witches that had been sent to deal with him often quit. It was because he was a bully.

  Even sweet Mrs. Delaney could be a problem. Jessie had been sent last time and she’d been stuck there all day not knowing how to get away without upsetting the dear old lady. The Teri Spencer job would have also been a problem for anyone else because all the field witches were terrified of her father. It wasn’t unheard of for one to quit just to avoid having to face him.

  With Ram so heavily involved in his family’s business, they would probably have to live where he called home. Annie wondered if that had occurred to her father. She wasn’t going to bring it up to him, that was for sure.

  Since Annie didn’t want her dad to know she was done for the day, she decided to go straight to see Ram. She missed him even though she barely knew him. Annie headed to the Phoenix headquarters. He’d still not told her what he was and she went through a list of possibilities in her head. It was odd that his people used the Phoenix name, but maybe it was because they were some kind of bird shifter.

  She knew a Phoenix was about as likely as the equally mythical unicorn. Sure, there were those who claimed both existed, but there was no proof at all. Her cousin Daphne was a unicorn chaser. She firmly believed not only that unicorns existed, but that her fated mate was one. That belief was hers because a gypsy fortune teller had told her so.

  Annie pulled into the parking lot and parked. It always struck her how little security the place had for a multimillion dollar international company. She went up to the employee entrance and went in. Sandy sat at her desk as usual and waved her on, but she wasn’t here to see Cam today. Going past the door to Cam’s, she headed to the stairs.

  Once she reached Ram’s room, she knocked lightly. Sounds of footsteps approached the door and Ram opened it. “You’re early,” he declared as he pulled her into his arms and kissed her enthusiastically.

  “I missed you,” she said shyly.

  “I missed you too. Would you like to go downstairs and hang out in the rec room?”

  “Sounds nice.”

  “I was hoping we could talk a bit.”

  “Alright,” she said, but it worried her.

  They made their way down to the rec room and it didn’t pass her notice that he carried a laptop with him. What was that for? Maybe a prenuptial agreement? Did he want to work out the details of their mating or was he uncertain about sealing the deal. Annie knew she was being insecure, but that’s how she felt.

  He gestured to the table and she took a seat. “Want something to drink?”

  “Anything with pineapple and coconut juice.”

  “I’ll be right back,” he said as he went behind a huge bar that covered the back wall.

  Annie watched him as he made them both a drink. He was dressed casually in jeans and a T-shirt. The jeans fit nicely and showcased his ass. Once the drinks were done, he brought them to the table. As soon as he set her drink down, she sipped on it.

  “This is good.”

  “I’m glad you like it. It’s just simple with equal parts of coconut and pineapple juice and rum.”

  “The KISS principle.”

  “Exactly, keep it simple sweetheart.”

  “So, what did you want to talk about?”

  “Evil, or the prophesied evil to be exact.”

  “You know something?” Annie queried.

  “No, but I want to. I’m not the type to sit back until evil or war is on my front porch.”

  “I’m not the waiting kind either, but we have few clues to follow.”

  “Few? Or no clues?” Ram asked.

  “Few. And those we have are vague.”

  “Isn’t that the case with prophesies? Matters of the future are seen through a haze.”

  “You sound like you’re familiar with seers.”

  “I’ve known one or two in my life. Look. Let me just lay some things out for you and then you can tell me what your thoughts are.” He pulled his chair next to hers and opened the laptop. “This is a graph that shows the year’s criminal activity. These are the violent crimes. See the steady rise all year long?”

  “I do. What does that mean?” Annie asked.

  “What do you think happens when war is brewing? Few things just come into existence. Something starts to build, especially in the regions where trouble originates. It grows, sometimes steadily and sometimes in leaps. That’s what the graphs show us, but it also tells us where are trouble makers are. You can see here. They are using the remoteness of the swamps for cover. Their group is growing and causing trouble. Some of these victims probably didn’t want to join them.”

  “I’ll admit it makes sense, but how can we find out for sure?”

  “Can’t you just cast a spell?”

  “If everything were that simple, witches would rule the world.”

  “I suppose you’re right,” Ram said with a chuckle. “Anything you can do?”

  “If you find out who is involved, I can track them with a spell if I get close to them.”

  “That would be useful.”

  “Yes, it can be,” Annie agreed.

  Ram leaned in and kissed her. He pulled back. “Have I told you lately how beautiful you are?”

  “No, it’s been a while. Are you going to feed me? I haven’t eaten in a while.”

  “What do you want?”

  “How about steak and shrimp?”

  “Okay. Salad or soup? What about a side?”

  “Salad with ranch dressing and a twice baked loaded potato.”

  “That sounds good. I think I’ll double it,” Ram said as he picked up a room phone and called in the order. Annie knew they had a restaurant on site but she’d never been to it.

  The food came thirty minutes later. It smelled wonderful and her tummy rumbled. The food was put on the table and Ram lifted the lids. The scent coming from the plate was wonderful. They ate in silence savoring their food. When they were finished, Ram put all the plates on the tray and lifted the lid on another plate. There were two pieces of cher
ry pie on it.

  “Can I interest you in dessert?” Ram asked as he put a bite on a fork and held it in front of her mouth.

  She opened up and he fed her the pie. Annie thought that was so damn sexy. She took the other fork and loaded a bite for him. “You are so hot,” She admitted.

  “Thank you, Sweetheart. I find you incredibly sexy too.”

  Chapter 5

  Evil Speaks

  Vincent Rulah was an average everyday werewolf. There was nothing special about him or at least there hadn’t been. Now, he was special because the mysterious leader that would someday rule the supernatural world had taken an interest in him. He was in Miami, a safe enough distance from Orlando where all the leaders gathered.

  It kept him and those he collected to do the work of the Hubolla. One day, Hubolla would lead them all, but right now they were working on Florida. Vin, as his friend called him, was working hard to do as he was told. He didn’t like killing, not really, but it was for the greater good. Those that refused to join them had to be dealt with.

  When he’d been approached originally, he’d not been sure himself. Now he knew that paranormals were better than humans and Hubolla was the best of all of them. He was like a father to all of them and he loved his children. It was true he was a strict father and expected his followers to do what they were told.

  The werewolf knew he was lucky getting in at the beginning of the movement. When all was said and done, Vin would be at the top of the organization. He would be Hubolla’s right-hand man. Hubolla had explained his name meant savior in a very old and forgotten supernatural language. It was something like angel speak.

  Supernaturals had turned from their original duties which was to rule and protect the poor weak humans. Deaths among paranormals in the Miami area had spiked to an all-time high, but no one had noticed. Recruitment had also spiked but Hubolla wasn’t happy. He demanded more soldiers for his army. Vin wanted to make his leader happy, so he tried. It was easy with the young hoodlums. All he had to do was get to them before they joined a gang.

  Humans were being recruited too, even though they were weak. It was a matter of quantity over quality. They had always outnumbered paranormals and probably always would. Hubolla was even considering breeding a bunch of half breeds. That was something normally frowned upon.