Hunted

Chapter 11- Panic

I slid into a chair beside Elena and started to help myself. Reece and Nick both headed for the seat beside me, the Australian faster, pushing a plate in my direction before Nick could grab it.

"Told you I'd save you some vegemite. Here. You can have all these." Reece grinned and gestured over the plate as if he was displaying some kind of precious necklace.

Pancakes, some covered with vegemite, were curled up. Steam was still rising from them. I inhaled the smell, sighing with satisfaction, and took a bite of one. Crepes with vegemite and grated cheese. Reece really did know how an Aussie liked it.

Nick yanked it up and sniffed the pancakes. As soon as he went to take a bite of one he recoiled at the smell and held it up out of my reach. "Poison! Feeding her poison again, Reece?"

"Nick!” Jeremy called, as Nick danced backwards, holding my plate high above his head, Jeremy's head shaking. He was relaxed, leaning against Jamie, looking happier than he had for a few days. Jamie was gorgeous, maybe in her forties, and she looked equally relaxed. She leaned forward to shake my hand as Nick tried to get my attention by waving my plate around.

"Hey hun. I'm Jamie Vegas. Sorry for not greeting you last night but-" She waved her hand, shrugging. "-spending a day and a night in an airport signing autographes and pretending to contact the dead didn't leave me in the most social place. Just wanted to crawl into bed and sleep."

"Nice to meet you." I wasn't sure if I'd seen her before or not. I suspected I had but I couldn't figure it out. She smiled and leaned back, as if she'd been waiting for me to ask something, relaxing.

"Jamie is a necromancer." Jeremy's arm had snuck around Jamie, gaze turning to her with obvious affection. “Nick, she has to eat something.”

"A necromancer?" I blinked and stared back at her. "What, like the raising the dead, going into death's gates kind? I didn't know there were others besides werewolves?"

"Yes, like that. Not as easy as the books make it out though." Jamie waved her hand again. "There's a lot of others besides werewolves. Vampires, witches, sorcerers, shamans, half-demons-"

"Half demons? Seriously?" I blinked and she laughed again.

"There's a whole lot out there. You're not alone as far as supernatural women go, even if you're one of the few females in the werewolf world. Haven't you met anyone else yet?"

"She'll meet Paige on Christmas. She's a witch. She'll gladly talk to you about it all." Elena added from where she sat, trying to eat while watching the twins, a juggling act that wasn't easy from the looks of things. "Logan, wash that plate if you're done."

"I'm not finished. I want more."

"Just a few more pancakes then."

"Nick, plate back to Anne and sit." Jeremy spoke up, interrupting us, eyes back on the place behind me.

I blinked and looked backwards. Nick was still standing there behind me. He had been eating, taking the pancakes that weren't covered in vegemite, but he grinned. Tugged at Reece's chair, yanking him sideways chair and all, and before Reece could protest he'd slid a chair between us and sat down. Kept eating from my plate but he slid a plate towards me, and while Nick ate with one hand, started to pile things from the table on the other.

Not quite what Jeremy meant, I thought, but I was hungry and didn't care. When I went to grab the vegemite pancakes off the plate Nick was guarding, he let me, just raising an eyebrow.

"Where's Antonio?" Nick asked between bites, glancing around. "And Clayton?"

Jeremy's face suddenly became guarded. "Town."