Free Black Spark (Dark Magic Enforcer Book 1) by Al K. Line

Damn! "What did she do? Why was I sent after her?" My stomach knotted like I'd licked a goblin's toes.
    "Why do you think?"
    I watched, transfixed, as sugar dropped from Rikka's lips onto his chin.
    "She didn't, did she?"
    "She did." Rikka nodded.
    "What? The 'thing?' Really?"
    "Yup. And you were meant to deal with it. Guess she wasn't too happy about that."
    "That's out of our remit though, isn't it? She's, you know, the Armenian. It's their business to reign her in."
    "She's here, so we deal with her if she breaks the rules. And anyway, I got the go-ahead from the Armenian Dark Council, who were ordered by the Worldwide Council."
    "I bet they'll all be glad to see the back of her."
    "So would I. You blew it, Spark. Now you need to put this right."
    I sighed, tried not to show how little I was looking forward to this. "I will, you can count on me."
    Rikka leaned back, seemingly satisfied. Voice back to normal he said, "Until seven tomorrow, Spark, not a moment later. Or else."
    "No problem." It was the opposite. I was screwed.
    I turned; the room was silent. All eyes were on me as I walked across the endless floor of the gym. I was so dazed I didn't even drool over Plum. That's how much the words "the Armenian" had stressed me out.
    Ankine Luisi! Damn! I was screwed. Did I say that already?
    "Oh, Spark?" I turned back to face Rikka. What now?
    "I mean it. You know what will happen if you don't put this right? You're lucky I've given you this long. Anyone else and..." Rikka sliced a fat finger across the place his throat would be if he had a neck.
    "I know. Don't worry."
    "I'm not, but you should be."
    I was gonna die. Horribly.
    Just before the door closed, I popped my head back around. "Um, can I have a car, or a ride?"
    Rikka looked up from some papers. "You know where the keys are, now get out of my sight."
    This time I managed a quick wink at Plum. She ignored me. She was deep into new poundage territory.

 
     
     
    Time for a Ride
    Back at reception, I asked the new girl for a key and after a little to-and-fro, with a few winning smiles from yours truly that she almost seemed immune to, she gave me a set. I headed to the private parking area for Rikka's fleet of vehicles and pressed the unlock button on the fob then got in the Range Rover that flashed its welcome.
    Oliver was nowhere to be seen, so things were looking up already.
    The interior was nice. Quiet, with that new car smell that always makes you feel rich, even if it isn't your car.
    What a mess. I was in this deeper than I could have possibly imagined and it would only get worse now I'd found out exactly why I'd done what I'd done.
    Ankine Luisi. The Armenian. Your worst nightmare come true. And I'd been sent to deal with her. No wonder I couldn't remember what the hell had happened. She was one seriously scary lady, with some serious skills under the strangely plain exterior.
    In movies, the vampires and the female antagonists are always all hot and sparkle. They get up with full make-up on and are always beautiful and shiny, but life isn't like that. Most people from our world are just everyday looking folks, apart from the odd extremely handsome man, of course. Ahem.
    We look like you, like everyone else. Fat, thin, ugly, pretty, super hot, or super gross.
    Those that weren't human at some time, or still human, are a different matter. The only way they can get along in the human world is to have some kind of screen up. It comes with the territory; it's just how it works. That's magic for you. It wants to stay hidden. In fact, it doesn't want to be here at all. That's why it makes you so sick to use it.
    But for genuinely magical beings like trolls, goblins, dwarves, the proper, magical dwarves, and all the rest, then they have a natural filter that hides their true selves when in the company of Regulars. But they can't choose it. So, just like us, some look good, others are a mess, and there's nothing they can do about it.
    The Armenian is different. She