Perfect Pet

Ch. 23: Found

Malik's P.O.V

It took a few days but finally, Nadia got a hold of us again like promised. I hadn't been sure how she would do it without exposing herself since we had never agreed on a meeting spot and she'd never asked for where we were staying but she proved to be more clever than she let on.

Now that we knew where the coven was, Madam Moreau felt safe enough to rent a hotel room nearby. The place was typical of a highway stopping point: shabby and outdated and only used by scum trying to stay off the radar. The kid at the front desk hadn't even blinked when the headmistress asked to pay cash and pulled out a wad big enough to cover a month. It reeked of mold and dust among other things and thinking about what had been on and what was still on the bed made my skin crawl. The headmistress only wrinkled her nose in disgust once before shrugging it off, saying something about having space to stretch was better than being in a cramped car. I wasn't sure I could agree with that entirely but kept my mouth shut since it was her call to make.

It was several nights after getting the room and I was debating whether or not to brave the bathroom long enough for a shower when a bright spark from the corner of my eye caught my attention. There weren't any lights on since it was after midnight and we didn't need them anyway, making the flash all the more noticeable. Instincts taking over at the assumed threat, I swirled with fangs bared, crouching low to the floor, only to see a bright ball of bluish-purple light floating above my bed. It didn't seem dangerous, serenely bobbing up and down in the air, but appearances could be deceiving.

I did allow myself to relax though, confident enough that nothing could hide in a ball hardly bigger than my fist, and got up to get a closer look. I knew better than to go poking at it but it was an unusual sight and I couldn't think of what could produce it off the top of my head. Madam Moreau might have known but she was out by the car talking to someone on the phone and I didn't want to bother her. Throughout the trip, she'd been careful to keep our people on the other side updated in case things took a turn for the worst or we needed to start from scratch and move on to plan B.

Madam Moreau was too proud to ever admit she was in over her head. She was used to being in control, being a powerful being that demanded respect. Now she had to work to earn the trust and cooperation of people that we had ignored for who knows how long. People that hated our guts and would happily watch us burn if they could. It had to be a heavy burden to carry and as much as I wished she would be open with me, I understood why she'd rather hide it. She was my superior, older and stronger, and she didn't want to risk ruining her reputation.

I already highly respected her after seeing how much she put into her job as headmistress. Those cracks through the hard exterior she showed the outside world showed me a woman that cared but was wary of being eaten alive by the savagery our people were capable of but preferred to pretend didn't exist.

Something tickled along my senses the closer I got and I frowned at the strange feeling. It sorta reminded me of when we were near the witches, the way their magic had pressed against my skin, only much weaker. A sudden thought struck me.

Could it be?

As if answering my silent question, the ball imploded into dozens of dazzling sparks and through all the chaos, a piece of paper slowly drifted to the floor. Raising an eyebrow at the display, I reached down to pick it up, certain of its origins now, and smirked when I read the message written in a familiar script.

Everything is ready. See you tomorrow night.
-Nadia

It couldn't have been easy for the little witch to attempt such magic as to send her note directly to us and I applauded her gumption. She'd never said it but I got the strong impression that she was one of the weakest links in her coven and I could only imagine that didn't make for an easy time when witches were so focused on keeping what was left of their bloodlines pure and strong. She must have been exhausted attempting an already hard spell all on her own.