LITMIR.BIZ

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it, and now they have to live with it.”

      “I’d appreciate it if you’d stop speaking about us as though we weren’t in the room,” Gilly said angrily.

      “Hello?” Gavril said. “Did any of you hear what I said earlier?”

      “Yes, of course,” Arabella said.

      “How can you say that when Viv’s gone?” Taka said to Arabella. “Mr. Bender said they’ve been trying to help. Surely you won’t attempt to stop them from doing that.”

      “Please call me Gavril,” Gavril said. And Taka gave him a shy smile. “And please give my words some consideration. None of what’s been happening was caused by the Triad. The blame goes to the Cartesians.”

      “Where was the last place you saw her?” Arabella asked Gilly, ignoring Gavril.

      “At home. Evee told me she was headed to the hotel to talk over something with Nikoli, her Bender. The problem was that she never showed up at the hotel.”

      “For the love of stupidity,” Vanessa said. “Ever since you three were little girls, your heads were harder than brick and mortar. Now that you’re thirty, that doesn’t seem to have changed one bit. Arabella told you to stay away from the Benders, and what do you do? Show up at their hotel.”

      “Talking to someone is no crime,” Gilly said. “Especially when we’re trying to find Viv. Going to somebody’s hotel room doesn’t mean sex is involved, Vanessa. People do meet up and talk in those rooms.”

      “I disagree,” Taka said with a smirk. “There are beds in hotel rooms, and where there are beds, there’s sex.”

      “Oh, get a grip,” Vanessa snapped at Taka.

      Arabella gave Gilly a slow nod. She eyed Gavril, and then looked back at Gilly. “You’re right. There’s no crime in talking, that’s for sure, but let me ask you something.” This time she looked Gavril right in the eye before asking Gilly. “Have the two of you been intimate? After I warned you to stay away, did you disobey? Have you been intimate with this man despite our warning?”

      “Nothing was her fault,” Gavril said. “When she heard about Viv—”

      “My question wasn’t directed at you, young man,” Arabella said. “It was meant for Gilly.”

      Taka huffed. “You did it, didn’t you, Gilly? Was it at the hotel?”

      Vanessa shook her head. “A Triad slut brigade, that’s what we have on our hands, sisters. They’re going to do what they want to regardless of our warnings. How does an Elder combat that? We try and we try to lead them down the straight and narrow, and look, they take the first fork in the road they come to.”

      “We’ll deal with it by allowing the Triad to handle the consequences of their actions,” Arabella said.

      “Wait a minute,” Gilly said angrily. “You’re speculating that I’ve been intimate with Gavril, and because of that, you won’t give me any help in finding Viv? What kind of Elders are you? Ever since the beginning, every Triad had Elders who helped them with problems.”

      “Not all of them,” Arabella said. “Or have you forgotten the first Triad? Their Elders didn’t change the monstrosities they’d created back to humans. Instead, they punished the Triad.”

      “So is this what this is?” Gilly asked. “Punishment? You won’t help us because of some warped assumption you’re making? It begs the same question—what kind of Elders are you?”

      “We have tried to help,” Arabella said. “Repeatedly. We’ve even contact the rest of our sisters and asked for help. Something or someone seems to be blocking all of our spells. My only assumption as to why that might be is, once again, your intimacy with the Benders. Part of the Triad curse in action.”

      “And we’re smart Elders,” Taka said. “I think.” They’d been sitting around the kitchen table, and Taka suddenly got to her feet, seemingly flustered. “Anybody want crumpets and tea?”

      “Sit down, Taka,” Vanessa said. “Now isn’t the time to extend hospitality. We’ve got to get to the bottom of this.”

      “But I’m hungry,” Taka whined.

      Arabella gave Taka a stern look, which sent her back into her seat with a pout. “It was just tea and crumpets.”

      “You claim your intimacy with your Bender is our speculation, an assumption,” Arabella said to Gilly. “Is it an assumption? Or did it happen?” She looked first at Gavril, and then she allowed her eyes to settle on Gilly. “I want the truth.”

      Gilly sighed heavily. “Yeah, we were intimate,” she finally said, and saw Gavril shift uncomfortably in his seat. She didn’t blame him. He was sitting at a table of witches, any of whom could have turned him into a frog or turtle with a kindergartner’s spell.

      “Mr. Bender,” Vanessa said, “as you can see, this conversation is getting quite personal. I think it best if you leave us to deal with Abigail, who obviously decided to not heed our advice.”

      “He doesn’t have to go,” Taka said.

      “It’s best he does,” Arabella said.

      “But he’s cute,” Taka said. “Easy on the eyes. And besides, we’re not going to be saying anything he hasn’t already heard or known about. If they were intimate, they were intimate. He already knows that. You think we’re revealing a secret?”

      “I’d prefer to stay if it’s all the same to you,” Gavril said. “Gilly is not alone in this. And if I may respectfully add, we came here of our own volition. Vivienne has gone missing, and we wanted to see if you’d seen her or possibly know where she might have gone.”

      “I haven’t seen her,” Taka said.

      “Me either,” Vanessa said.

      “Nor have I,” Arabella added. “Have you tried the compound where Viv kept her Loup-Garous?”

      “Yes,” Gilly said. “Her Bender is there looking for her now.”

      “You sent a human Bender into the compound?” Arabella said with shock. “Did you purposely want this man dead?”

      “He’ll be mauled like ground beef,” Taka said, her brows knitting together. “Surely he’s not alone there, right?”

      “Haven’t you heard?” Gilly said. “All of the Loup-Garous are missing.”

      “What?” Arabella, Vanessa and Taka said in unison.

      Gilly nodded. “They were there one morning, and by the afternoon, not one of them remained on the compound.”

      “Oh, Mother Earth and every worm beneath her,” Taka said. “Does that mean they’re all loose in the city?”

      “I have no idea,” Gilly said. “We’ve each been taking care of our own. I still have Chenilles in their safe zone, but have about fifteen missing. Evee lost all of her Nosferatu. Same thing with Viv’s. One minute they’re where they’re supposed to be, the next, they’ve vanished.”

      Arabella got up from the table and began to pace. “You know what this means, don’t you?”

      “That we’re in deep doodoo,” Taka said.

      “You’re not kidding,” Gilly said. “With them missing, it means more humans are in danger.”

      “If more humans start dying at the hands of the Originals, you know what that means, right?” Vanessa said.

      “Well, duh,” Taka said. “It means those humans will be dead.”

      “Stop being an idiot,” Vanessa told her. She looked over at Arabella. “It means more cops at our door.”

      “Why are police coming here?”

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