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“Like what?” Gypsy asked.
“Like things people did not want to part with,” Lacey supplied and watched as her cousin’s jaw dropped.
Chapter 2
“He sent you to steal things?” Gypsy's voice rose in bewilderment. “I can’t believe Grandpa would encourage you to do something so dangerous.”
“How do you think he got into this business in the first place?” Lacey asked with a slight smile.
“I’ve only heard rumors,” Gypsy whispered more than a little amazed by the confession. Some of the highest ranking people at the underground auctions had been throwing her hints for the last couple years. She’d just nodded politely at them and smiled, then bleached the rumors from her mind not wanting to think too hard on them.
She sighed as she admitted, “I just shrugged it all off thinking they were picking on me because we often got a hold of things the others wanted very badly.”
“They had every right to be jealous. Grandpa was a notorious cat burglar in his prime and he was able to get his hands on a lot of valuable items during those years,” Lacey confirmed with pride in her voice.
“His specialty was supernatural items… old spell books, journals, paintings, and various magical items. Underground rumor mills say that he actually found the Holy Grail and hid it from the man that hired him to find it. I seriously doubt he did, but it only adds to the myth that surrounds Grandpa.”
Gypsy frowned, “How did he stay alive all these years going after such dangerous items?”
Lacey shrugged, “Who knows? Grandpa made a lot of enemies before he retired from his favorite pastime. No one could prove it was him because he had mastered the art of thievery. One of the first things he’d stolen was a cloaking device that rendered him completely undetectable. His shield against most of those enemies who did suspect him was the fact that a lot of the things they thought he might have stolen were powerful enough to be used against them if they retaliated.”
“A cloaking device,” Gypsy repeated with wide eyes. “Like Harry Potter’s invisibility cloak?”
“I don’t know… I never got to see it since it disappeared before either of us was born,” Lacey answered. “I guess someone else was an even better thief than Grandpa.”
“No wonder what’s left of our family moved out of the city and warned us about hanging out with Grandpa. I thought it was just because they assumed that he was a nut for believing in the supernatural and running a store like this.” Gypsy shook her head remembering all of the times she’d stood up for him. She still didn’t regret it though. She had loved him and that was all that mattered to her.
“Oh no,” Lacey contradicted her. “The family has no idea. He wanted it that way. He would always act strange around them on purpose… so that they would label him as a weird outcast and stay far away. He didn’t want to put any of them in danger if someone did come after him.”
Lacey's lips hinted at a sad frown as she thought back to when she’d first moved in with Grandpa… right here in this store. When she’d been nine years old, her parents had been killed in a freak accident and her grandfather had showed up to claim her within hours. He had no way of knowing if the accident was truly an accident or not and had confessed that secret worry to her after she’d learned the truth about him.
It was the theory that her parents might have been murdered over some paranormal trinket that had eventually made her want to seek revenge against anyone hording supernatural items in hopes that she’d run across the one that had killed them. Nothing had ever turned up though and she’d quickly become addicted to the thrill of the job. That… and the money wasn’t bad either.
“It was my idea to follow in his footsteps and he was against it from the start,” She reminisced. “But after a while, I wore him down by going out and thieving on my own. I made sure he caught me doing it so that he had no choice but to train me on how to get in and out without being detected. It wasn’t his idea but I left him no other choice. It was either let me do it on my own and get myself killed, or teach me all of his tricks and hope for the best.”
“I see,” Gypsy shook her head at her devious cousin and almost felt sorry for her grandfather. “Poor Grandpa didn’t have a chance.”
“Yeah well… I got in way over my head with this last job,” Lacey confessed. “It was my fault and Grandpa shouldn’t have blamed himself. He knew I was headstrong and he’d done the best he could.”
“Oh no,” Gypsy whispered making a face. “You were gone for more than a year. What exactly happened to you?” She reached out and touched Lacey's cheek with the pad of her thumb, wiping away a smudge of the dirt there. “Is that why you’re dressed like a dirty boy and sneaking around? Are you running from something… or someone?”
“A little bit of both I’m afraid. I shouldn’t even be here right now and the less you know about what’s been going on the better.” She glanced toward the door knowing she should follow her grandpa’s lead and protect the family by keeping her distance. “I was supposed to be in and out of here without anyone noticing, but your guard dog had to go and ruin everything.”
Gypsy noticed Lacey starting to fidget and the way she was now looking longingly toward the door like she wanted to leave. Not wanting her to go, Gypsy quickly blurted, “There is a clause in grandpa’s will about you… he never gave up on you coming home.”
Lacey smiled fondly, “He always did look after us.”
Gypsy nodded earnestly, “Yes he did and that’s why he left half ownership of the shop to you in his will. The Witch’s Brew is half yours and half mine. Even though you weren’t around, I still had them fix the deed exactly like Grandpa wanted it. We’re business partners now, and we can run this place together if you’ll just stay.”
“I don’t know,” Lacey whispered. Her days were numbered. Even if she had gotten the spell book and damaged the demon mark… they would still eventually catch up to her and that would be the end. She started to pull her hand away from Gypsy's but her cousin kept a firm hold. “You don’t know what you’re asking. If I stay… it could be dangerous for the both of us… not just me.”
“I have very powerful friends now and they can help you… keep you safe from whomever or whatever it is you’re so scared of,” Gypsy said raising her chin. “After what’s been going on around here… I’m a little tougher than you remember and can handle it.”
Lacey closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The store she’d always loved was half hers… bless Grandpa’s soul. He’d always said that she reminded him of himself when he was younger and had eventually took pride in that instead of thinking it was a bad thing. Of course, she could also remember his long lectures about getting herself killed. Yep… if he could see her now, the first words out of his mouth would be I told you so.
Gypsy could tell she was winning and added, “You can even tell me what you wanted out of the safe, and I’ll ask Ren to return it for you if it’ll help you feel safer.” She’d been so lonely since Lacey had disappeared and Grandpa had passed away. She’d been convinced Lacey was dead and had even mourned her. Seeing her here now… the last thing she wanted was to lose her all over again.
Lacey's mind was going a mile a minute. She wanted to stay so badly, but did she dare underestimate the demons chasing her by letting her guard down? On top of everything else, one of Gypsy’s friends was a demon… or a superhuman, or something and it made her a bit jittery. That was when something Gypsy had said made her think and a devious smile spread across her lips.
“Gypsy,” she began thoughtfully, “you said the spell you have on the shop… that only the owner can invite people in… right? I’m half owner of the shop, so if I tell someone to leave… they have to leave?”
“That’s right, you get to say who can come in and who can’t if they are not one hundred percent human,” Gypsy confirmed with a quick nod then gasped when Lacey suddenly leaned forward and gave her a tight hug.
“That means I can tell anyone that bothers me to leave including your overbearing bodyguard,” Lacey said with a giggle, feeling nervous now that she’d convinced herself that the smartest move she could make was to stay right here where she had a demon shield around her. Maybe she would just become a recluse, or at least have a heads up on when it was time to face her demons.
“Oh please don’t evict the boys,” Gypsy said and pulled back almost laughing at the disappointed pout on Lacey's face. “If it wasn’t for Ren and Nick, I would either be dead or the slave of a demon and you wouldn’t have had a shop to come back to. I owe both of them my life. And as far as Ren goes, you can’t use the spell he helped put on this place against him.” She hid a guilty smile knowing she’d already done that once in the name of testing the spell.
Lacey nearly rolled her eyes but nodded to let her cousin know she would behave… as best she could anyway. “Can you at least keep my secret? The less people that know about what I have been doing the better. To be honest, I shouldn’t have even told you. Besides, I’d rather get along with your harem instead of fighting with them.”
Gypsy was about to answer when they heard the large wheel on the door turn, making both girls jump in surprise. She sighed heavily knowing that the boys had either decided that they’d waited long enough, or they had heard everything… she’d rather it be the former.
The girls watched wearily as the thick steel door swung open and Ren stepped in, followed by Nick. Ren didn’t look happy at all, while Nick had an understanding expression on his calm face.
“I’m afraid it’s a little too late for secrets,” Ren stated in satisfaction. “We’ve already heard everything.”
Lacey just stared at him knowing they had only heard what she’d just told Gypsy and… that was just the tip of the iceberg. If they truly knew everything, they would have already tossed her out the door and locked it behind her.
Nick noticed the intense look Ren was giving Lacey and wondered if the idiot was actually going to lay into the girl for being the thief he’d originally accused her of being. In the deepest part of his mind, he hoped Ren did do something stupid so that the girls could put him out on his ass.
Deciding to wait and see what happened, Nick walked over to stand near the side of the sofa where Gypsy was and watch the show.
Knowing they were busted, Gypsy quickly pulled her hand away from the crystal and cringed when Ren stared down at it with an expression of disappointment. She didn’t understand why, but being caught by Ren made her feel like a child and she frowned, scooting across the cushion to get closer to Nick.
“Under ordinary circumstances, a privacy crystal might have worked with your grandpa and your other relatives… but I’m not human,” Ren informed them both but his words were meant for Lacey. “And after what I just heard, I think keeping secrets isn’t the best idea… in fact, it’s a very bad one and you,” he added pinning Lacey with a hard stare, “didn’t tell nearly half the story.”
Lacey pressed her lips together and gave him her most defiant glare, “No one asked you to eavesdrop you little sneak.”
Ren was suddenly towering over Lacey, staring down at her with his intense silver eyes and his sunglasses in his fisted hand. How dare she call him little, he was twice her size.
Gypsy jumped up and quickly moved to stand behind Nick when Ren slammed both of his palms against the back of the sofa, caging Lacey against the cushions.
“Start talking,” Ren ordered in a harsh voice hoping intimidation was the key to getting the details he wanted.
Now that Gypsy was behind him and couldn’t see his expression, Nick's lips spread into a wide grin. He took a step back, bringing his body that much closer to hers, silently letting her know that he would protect her from the big bad out of control Ren. It wasn’t his fault Ren was making him look like the good guy.
Lacey glared up at Ren with equal ferocity and slipped something out of her pocket, palming it without anyone noticing. Feeling the thin warm metal against her skin, she surprised everyone when she slammed her palm against Ren’s chest and easily shoved him away from her.
“Back off,” she insisted calmly.
Ren felt something stinging his skin through his shirt and did indeed take a reluctant step back. His lips thinned knowing she had some kind of enchanted medallion in her hand and with one quick motion he jerked it away from her. When it instantly burned his hand, he slung it across the room.
“Enough with the childish toys?” he growled, silently wishing his hand would stop stinging. Whatever that was… it hadn’t liked him very much and the feeling was mutual.
“I don’t have to tell you a damn thing,” Lacey said keeping her voice unhurried and even as she rose to her feet.
The fact that the medallion had worked so well on him let her know he was powerful. It only reacted to power and usually wouldn’t even work on low level demons because they didn’t have enough of it. Honestly, she hadn’t expected it to work on him… it was just the only thing she’d had within reaching distance.
“I may be only human but don’t make the mistake of underestimating me.” Lacey exhaled loudly when Ren took a threatening step toward her. “I don’t even know you,” she informed him with a raise of her eyebrow.
Ren ran a hand through his bangs in exasperation and silently counted to ten… not that it was helping.
Ignoring Ren, Lacey directed her gaze toward Gypsy. “I’m going to get out of these boy clothes and take a shower. Did Grandpa save any of the clothes I left here?”
Gypsy nodded deciding Lacey had more balls than she remembered, though her cousin had never really been a push over. “They are packed away in the trunk in the closet.”
Lacey smiled thankfully, “Good, I’ll see you in a few minutes. And you,” she continued, sending another glare at Ren and paying him back for the way he’d done her just a few minutes ago, “don’t you even think about peeking.”
“As if,” Ren said insultingly and crossed his arms over his chest as he gave her the once over, “you look like a dirty little street rat.”
Lacey let a smirk appear on her face deciding that if she couldn’t beat him at the insult game then she would have fun with him, “You know you want to.”
“I think you have it backwards,” Ren glowered down at her. “You’re the one known to pick the lock and slip in where you are uninvited.”
Giving up, Lacey threw the silencing crystal still in her hand at him and took off for the shower, slamming the door behind her.
Ren smirked as he caught the crystal in midflight and skillfully pocketed the trinket… they wouldn’t be using that little bit of magic again.
“She forgot her clothes,” Nick remarked nodding toward the closet Gypsy had indicated.
Within seconds, the door flew open again and Lacey stormed out grumbling under her breath about needing a testosterone free zone. She went straight to the closet and dragged the trunk into view.
Gypsy lifted an eyebrow and fought the grin that tried to appear on her face when Lacey pulled the heavy trunk into the bathroom with her and slammed the door again, never once even looking their way.
The moment they all heard the shower turn on Gypsy let her light tinkling laughter fill the room. It was going to be so much fun having her cousin back. If nothing else… the girl was entertaining and had been her best friend as far back as she could remember.
“I fail to see why you’re so amused,” Ren grumbled and stormed out of the apartment, stomping his feet all the way up the stairs. He had no clue how the hell he could be this aggravated and turned on at the same time.
Nick snorted and looked over at Gypsy, “I do believe they were just flirting with each other.”
Gypsy nodded liking the idea. Maybe this would be another reason for Lacey to stay. “Well, if she is in trouble… and I suspect she is, who better to protect her than Ren?” she said with a smile.
Nick didn’t know whether to be jealous that she thought Ren was a better protector than he was, or to be happy that Gypsy seemed fine with Ren and Lacey's weird attraction to each other. He thought about it for a second then gave in… silently admitting Ren was bigger, stronger, and way more powerful. Too bad the big guy’s downfall was the fact he was lacking a few brain cells.
Ren had heard Nick's crack but ignored what he was insinuating. Flirting… there was no way in hell he would ever think about being attracted to that brat. She was sarcastic, devious, and a thief… all minuses in his book. He made it up the stairs and started pacing back and forth in the huge storage area.
“She actually ordered me… ME not to peek,” he ranted in a harsh whisper as he paced.
Chapter 3
Lacey sighed when the hot water sprayed over her body and relished the feeling of finally being completely free of the bindings that she’d had wrapped around her breasts to make herself look like a teenage boy. She had a good notion to burn the stolen clothes she’d been wearing.
She grabbed the scrubby from where it was hanging on the tub faucet and turned the heat up a little more. For her, relaxing was a luxury she’d been unable to partake of since running away from Vincent and the horde of demons that were after her.
Vincent… even the name called up feelings of guilt and she frowned sadly. She’d met him a couple days after she’d gotten a layout of the huge museum Grandpa had sent her to. It just so happened that they had both been sent by different people to steal the same artifact.
Her lips twitched at the funny memory… the look on Vincent’s handsome face when he’d caught her breaking into the same secret room he was there to break into. If they had tried to fight over which one of them had gotten there first and who deserved the spoils, they would have alerted the heavily armed guards that were just down the hall and been busted, or worse… shot.
Glaring at each other, it took them about thirty seconds to come to a mutual decision to work together in order to gain the piece. Though thinking back on it now, she realized that Vincent would have been fine either way… he had only agreed to the tag team because he’d wanted too.
Once they’d made it safely away from the museum, they had suddenly been surrounded by five black eyed shadow demons that had taken up host inside some of the local law enforcement by possessing them.
Standing there in the flashing lights of the cop cars with hands raised and five sets of guns pointed directly at them, she’d thought for sure that they weren’t going to make it out of there alive. That was until Vincent had handed one of them the stolen artifact and been handed a huge briefcase of money in return.
Afterward, Vincent had offered to split the money with her and asked her to go into business with him. Without thinking of the consequences, she’d agreed to the partnership deciding that she could get even more things for her grandfather by using Vincent’s ties to these new aggressive collectors.
She had been excited about finally having a partner and she’d seen that he could be just as sneaky as she was. It also didn’t hurt that he was sexy as hell and had a British accent that made it sound like he was flirting with every sentence.
Lacey shook her head at her naïve thinking as she lathered her hair up with shampoo. She’d agreed to the arrangement out of greed and because he was damn sexy… her only two weaknesses.
After a night and most of the next day of hot as hell, no strings attached sex, Vincent had told her a little bit about the underground ring he belonged to. It hadn’t taken her long to figure out that being partners with him meant she was also partners with an entire network of powerful demons.
Thanks to grandpa, she hadn’t been completely clueless about demons but that didn’t mean she’d ever danced with one. Though the knowledge of what she was getting herself into had made her nervous, she’d ignored the sixth sense and had been looking forward to the thrill Vincent was offering her.
That evening, he’d taken her to meet the master demon of the underground ring… an old man that looked every bit a hundred and ten years old and went by the name of Masters, which she’d thought funny at the time.
When the old demon had coldly rejected her invite into the underground thievery ring and tried to kill her on the spot, she’d lost all sense of humor. If it hadn’t been for Vincent stepping in front of her and taking the bullet meant for her head, she’d be dead right now. She’d thought Vincent was dead when he’d jerked and groaned as the bullet entered him, sending a spray of blood across her face.
That was the first time she’d been clued in that Vincent couldn’t be killed… no matter what was done to him. He’d dug the bullet out of his shoulder as he’d argued with the black eyed demon on her behalf, saying he’d wanted a partner for years and he’d chosen her.
Seeing how Vincent was his favorite thief, Masters had reluctantly agreed, but only if he could brand her as one of his underlings, giving him rights to kill her if she ever got out of line or tried to leave the group.
Vincent had calmly looked over his bleeding shoulder at her and said, “It’s either that, or he will never let you leave this room alive. Do you agree to the deal?”
She had been taught by her grandfather not to ever make a deal with a demon but she wasn’t stupid enough to disagree with the one in front of her. As she’d looked into his cold black eyes she’d known he would indeed kill her and forget her with the same breath.
Once they’d left Masters’ huge estate, she’d turned on Vincent and glared, thinking that he was also a demon… or at least a half breed of some kind and hadn’t warned her. She quickly informed the good looking jerk that she was thankful that he’d saved her life in there, but she had a rule about not sleeping with demons.
Vincent had then calmly taken a hold of her shoulders and asked her to look closely at the blood staining his shirt… it was red. Had he been a demon it would have been black. Once she’d calmed down he’d went on to explain his… unusual circumstances. He’d informed her that he was completely human in every sense of the word but somewhere along the way he’d been cursed by the angels.
She wasn't sure what he’d meant by angels since he wouldn’t elaborate but the bottom line was Vincent just couldn’t die. Correction… he could die but never seemed to stay dead for very long. He’d even unbuttoned his shirt letting her see that the bullet wound had already stopped bleeding and was healing at a rapid pace.
Lacey empathized with his situation as she’d gotten to know him better, understanding that he’d lived for so long he was bored, fearless, lonely… and very angry that he was still alive while everyone he’d ever cared for was dead.
She and Vincent had made several agreements pertaining to their partnership and friendship. The first one was that she wouldn’t try to run away because although he couldn’t die, Vincent was pretty sure she could and would once Masters caught up with her. The other agreement was that they would continue their no strings attached relationship which she’d enjoyed immensely.
It wasn’t that she didn’t love him… she did. But it was more as a best friend, which was a good thing since he claimed to have lost the ability to give his heart away eons ago. For him, falling in love with someone would only lead to heartache as he watched them grow old and die… leaving him behind. She understood completely.
It was during her partnership with Vincent that she learned a couple truths about the greatest thief of their time… her grandfather. He’d gone by the name of Chameleon and never gave any other name. He’d also been so good at the art of deception that he had never failed a single job he’d been hired to do… and no doubt any he’d taken on in secret.
