Free Magicstorm (Heart of a Vampire, Book 4) by Amber Kallyn Page B

his hands flat on the table. His left pinky twitched.
    Tension grew.
    Celeste caught his gaze and bit her lip at
the blazing anger in his eyes, the tightness of his jaw.
    From out of nowhere, the bouncer crowded the
back of Andre’s chair.
    “We will discuss this later,” Sebastian said
quietly.
    The bouncer picked up Andre, chair and all,
and before the man could protest, disappeared once more into the
shadows.
    “Well.” Sebastian stared at his hands on the
table. “It seems there are things I must attend to. However, for
you, I can tell you that this sorcerer was escorted from my club a
few days ago, with the warning never to return. Last night, he was
booted once more, but it seems this time, my warning was not
given.”
    “What do you know about him?” she asked.
    “Powerful. But dark. Not someone I wish to be
using my club as his personal feeding grounds.” Sebastian smiled,
letting his fangs peek out. In his eyes was not a warning, but
rather a promise of mayhem.
    In that instant, Celeste was glad she wasn’t
on his bad side.
    “Andre was meant to follow the sorcerer. Once
I question him, I will let you know if he has any information of
use.”
    Celeste slipped out a card, wrote her cell
phone number on the back, and pushed it towards the vampire. “I’d
appreciate it.”
    As she stood, Sebastian glanced at Brandon.
“This sorcerer was powerful. Perhaps more so than you have already
guessed. Beware of being caught by surprise.”
    Brandon nodded, then settled his hand on
Celeste’s lower back as they left the club.
    “What’s going to happen to Andre?” she
asked.
     
***
     
    Brandon could imagine countless tortures, but
he merely replied, “Nothing pleasant.”
    She pulled out of the parking lot, tapping
her fingers on the steering wheel. “That was a bust.”
    “Not necessarily.”
    “How do you figure?”
    “We know at least one place the sorcerer
goes. We will find others. And if I read Sebastian correctly, he’ll
get something out of Andre.”
    Celeste’s cell rang and she grabbed it,
answering with a sharp, “Wilder here.”
    He listened in to the call.
    “CeeCee?” a woman’s voice asked.
    “CeeCee?” he repeated.
    She sent him an aggravated look. “Yes?”
    “It’s Jolene.”
    Celeste slowed the car, pulling over into the
first parking lot they came to. “How are things?” True warmth
filled her voice.
    “Fine. Got myself clean for a couple weeks
now.”
    “That’s really good, Jolene. How can I
help?”
    The line was quiet for a long moment. Celeste
waited.
    “It’s... well... I heard you’re the one in
charge of these murders?”
    “I am.”
    “I think I saw something last night. I don’t
know though.”
    “That’s all right. Tell me what you saw.”
    “It was...” The woman went quiet for another
long moment, then took a deep breath. “You know the abandoned
BioCentre warehouses?”
    “I do.” Celeste’s hand tightened, and her
eyes flashed with interest.
    “I think I saw a girl going in there last
night. Thing is, this morning, her face is on the news as another
victim.”
    Celeste’s knuckles whitened. “Do you know her
name?”
    “No.”
    “Okay. I’ll check it out. You know there’s a
reward?”
    “I don’t want any reward. These girls deserve
better.”
    “They do.”
    “You’ll take care of them. I know it.”
    “Thanks for calling, Jolene.”
    The phone clicked, and Celeste lowered her
hand to her lap, nibbling her bottom lip.
    “So what are these BioCentre warehouses?”
Brandon asked.
    She flicked her fingers at him as she put the
car back into drive. “Can’t anyone have a private conversation
around you?”
    “No.”
    Rolling her eyes, she answered, “It was a big
pharmaceutical company. They built this huge complex, then lost
their funding or whatever, and never did anything else. The
warehouses have been sitting vacant for nearly ten years now.”
     
    As she pulled back onto the street, she said,
“There’s something