Page 39 of Villains Never Die

So I let him leave. He kissed me goodbye, and it didn’t feel final. It felt likesee you later, and it might have been the one thing I was powerless against.

Chapter Fifteen

j-aust13

Define “Death”

veilknight

Tall woman, black robes, escorts the dead to the other side. Have you met her?

That certainly matched the description of the woman who took my mother.

j-aust13

Perhaps. How can she be killed?

veilknight

Killing isn’t the difficult part. It’s getting her here…and the consequences that come after.

j-aust13

What consequences?

I logged off and dressed for my weekly night at Avalon. A new shipment of Moon Dust, a magic-laced drug the humans loved and had no idea was anything but the greatest vice they’d ever had, came in last night, and two of my men were distributing it tonight. That meant I could probably sit in the office monitoringcameras instead of listening to the noise on the dance floor. The club goers would be in euphoric trances most of the night.

My driver arrived at seven and took me downtown to Avalon, where I made a polite stop to say hello to the bartender; a new woman with her hair pulled tightly on top of her head and a poker face better than any of my other employees. Gray must have done well with this one. He knew I liked them stoic, efficient, and discreet. The kind of employees who would keep anything abnormal at the club quiet.

“I don’t believe we’ve met,” I said. “I’m Austin.”

“Yes,” she said while still mixing a drink for one of my customers. “Gray said you’d be by tonight. I’m Helen. It’s my first night.”

“You’re doing an excellent job.”

She looked up just long enough to give me a small, close-lipped smile, and then slid down the bar to deliver the cocktail.

A man settled on the barstool next to me, the sleeves of his suit jacket pushing back a little so that the brown skin of his hands and wrists caught the lights overhead.

“I’ve been looking for you,” he said. “I’m afraid I missed you at your gala.”

Emmett Graves.

“Representative Graves, how nice to meet you. I have to apologize for that. The galas are always such busy evenings for me.” The activities that kept me busy behind a locked door that night flashed through my mind, but I covered the discomfort it gave me with a charming smile. “Congratulations on your Council seat.”

“Not yet,” he said. “We’ll see how the election turns out. There is still time for someone to run against me, but I’m hoping to win the vote either way.”

I raised a lazy hand to get Helen’s attention. “Get him a drink.” Then to Emmett, “What do you drink?”

“I don’t drink,” he said, “but thank you for the offer. This is quite an establishment. Your guests seem to enjoy themselves.”

My eyes panned around the room, where I realized some of the human dancers were already under the influence of Moon Dust.

“We try to offer the best experience for our customers.”

“So nothing illegal, then?” He raised one eyebrow, and despite his studying gaze, there was still something soft and kind about his face. This was a man who charmed through empathy, not through deceit or oozing power to everyone he met. Good. That would make him a less threatening opponent, should it come to that.

“All of my business ventures are above board,” I said.