Free A Mate Worse Than Death by J.L. Ray Page A

“Semantics. What did you experience, other than trouble standing?”
    She shook her head, “A profound sense of dread. I can’t--” her voice caught, “I can’t really give you much more than that.”
    “Well, a Sight would have been more useful--there would be more details.” He shrugged again. “I think we should wait until Calvin can fulfill his duty as your partner and go in your stead.”
    She narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously, “Murder trails go cold fast, and I have a vampire to find. Besides, the Geas won’t wait for Berthell to pop before it acts. And buddy, that’s your ass, right?”
    He winced and then nodded. “Azeem told me about the vampire. You do realize you won’t find those in the otherworlds? They are from this realm, not that. They do not travel through portals. Not historically.”
    She raised a brow, “I had Paranormal History courses in high school and in college, so yeah, I know vampires came from a magic native to this world that got twisted up by Catholicism in the early years of the Holy Roman Empire. That’s one of the reasons they’re so nasty--they’ve got no soul. Finding a vampire in one of the otherworlds, well, that isn’t even the point in going. The point in going is to find out who might be behind creating the vamp and directing its attack. They were supposed to have been wiped out in the early 20th century.”
    “You know, the Powers That Be must have missed a few and left us all none the wiser.”
    She gave him a look when he all but repeated both Cal’s and Dr. Caligari’s own statements. “Funny. I think I have heard that theory before. Let’s see if we can track down a lead to the actual source rather than assume because, y’know, assuming makes an ass out of u and me.”
    He rolled his eyes and added in a tone guaranteed to piss her off, “You’re in charge detective. Completely and totally in charge. I do hope you brought some handcuffs.”
    “Don’t make me headbutt you again,” and at his wince, she nodded and once again reached for the portal door.

CHAPTER NINE
     
    Darkness--thick, visceral darkness pressed in on her. She felt Mephistopheles’ hand in hers, but as tightly as they held hands, she didn’t register a full sensation, as if she had slept on that hand and then tried to use it. The sensory deprivation lasted forever, or thirty seconds, depending on which of the two was asked. When it ended, Tony was crouched on the floor of what looked to be a storeroom, with Phil next to her, dragging in a breath.
    Tony looked up at Phil, “I knew this was meant to be” she stopped to drag in a breath also, “a little painful, but that wasn’t really just a little.”
    He nodded. “It never gets easier.”
    She grinned, “You should know, old man.” And with that, she let go of his hand and started trying to get up despite the impediment of the hair shirt. While she dragged her knees off the long part she had landed on and then nearly face-planted, she missed Phil’s frowning reaction to her comment. She did hear him muttering.
    “What?” she asked, turning around as she finally got herself up on her feet and not on the hem of the unfortunately necessary article of magic. “Did you say something?”
    He glowered and then shook his head. “Let’s get going. As you said, murder trails go cold quickly.”
    A loud, happy voice chimed in, “He said he is not that old, but actually, he is.”
    Tony and Phil both turned from the corner of the storeroom where they had arrived after coming through the portal and looked at the short woman standing between two sets of shelves filled with food. The woman’s position blocked the exit from the storeroom.
    “Well,” she added, a little less happy sounding, “Mephistopheles, if you are going to just drop into my house with no warning and accompanied by a human no less, it would be polite to at least say hello. I spent enough time on your bed to merit that!”
    By this time Tony had registered