Thrown to the Wolves: Hedgewood Sisters Paranormal Mysteries

Chapter One

Twyla heard Napoleon coming up the stairs before she saw him. His lilting fae voice was more serious and subdued than usual, but he still managed to give off the impression that life was a party thrown just for him.

I told you, I will do my best, he called out over his shoulder.

Sissy followed behind him, a look of consternation on her face. I mean it. You can’t take any unnecessary risks. I can’t track you from over here. Once you’re in the fae realm, you’re on your own.

He rolled his bright green eyes. I will be a good boy. I will get in, deliver my messages, get any awaiting messages, and get out, Napoleon quipped. I won’t make trouble or go looking for any mischief.

Sissy glared at the tall, handsome faery. His glamour made him appear human enough, but both Twyla and Sissy could see the telltale signs of fae on him. The twinkle in his eye, the ever-so-slightly pointed ears. Of course, that was because the sisters were half fae themselves. Regular old humans would just see a dark-haired guy in his late thirties to mid-forties with a dimpled chin and green eyes to die for.

Napoleon pushed his ample lips into a pout. I know you’re going to miss me, but you have plenty to keep you busy here. Besides, this is my job. It’s my duty. He pulled his hand to his heart in a half-salute.

Oh, my god, you are such a drama queen. Sissy smoothed her white-blonde hair back from her face, pulling it into a messy ponytail on top of her head. Be careful. It’s not going to be as easy as you make it sound. You know the Winter King will be watching anyone who crosses over. If you get caught, he’ll lock you up. Or worse.

Napoleon grinned. You do love me. But you don’t have to worry. I am literally running across to the Other Side, dropping the package, and running back here. I’m way too pretty to go to the Winter King’s dungeon. I can’t be someone’s dungeon wife.

The package in question was really little more than a handful of letters from frightened fae living in this realm. Since the Unseelie Winter King had tightened the borders between the realms, many of the supernatural creatures had gone weeks or even months without word from their loved ones living in the fae realm.

Sometime in the past few months, Napoleon had decided that he needed to do more to free his people from the Winter King’s tyranny. The Unseelie King had tried to force the fae to stop fraternizing with regular humans, except for stealing infants which would be raised as halflings. Twyla thought this was noble of Napoleon, but foolish, too, since the Winter King had specifically tried to have him hunted down and killed. There was no love lost between the two fae, and Napoleon wasn’t exactly what Twyla would consider spy material, but she couldn’t help but respect his decision.

She knew what it was like to feel powerless. Despite being a witch, she’d been helpless to stop her father from disappearing out of her life once again. Since he left, she had managed to work on growing and gaining control over her magical abilities, which were a lot stronger than she’d ever imagined they could be.

For Twyla, magic hadn’t even seemed important until she’d hit her twenties. Her mother and grandmother could work magic, but they didn’t often use it. Spells were for special occasions and emergencies, at least while Twyla was growing up. She supposed it was an unspoken rule that magic was not something to be flaunted. Not everyone in Frog Hollow had the ability to do magic. Most of the town’s residents were plain old humans like Jenny Dupree, who lived next door, had been up until she got turned into a vampire by her boyfriend.

Most humans didn’t have a problem with the magical creatures who shared their town, at least not as long as the fae and shifters and other assorted beings kept to themselves. But lately, things had started to get tense in the little Mississippi town. Several fae murders had caused the supernatural community to become wary of not only outsiders, but they had also started to pull away from their human neighbors.

Twyla and her sisters knew the truth. Sheriff Talbot had been behind the murders. Twyla wasn’t sure what was worse, the fact that the psychotic cop had been working with the town’s most eligible demon, who, coincidentally happened to be the right-hand man of the Winter King, at least in Frog Hollow. Or, the fact that Talbot took such obvious glee in killing innocent supernaturals.

Napoleon, here. Loretta Hedgewood breezed into the living room and stood beside her daughters. She placed an envelope in Napoleon’s hand. For Joe.

Napoleon nodded. I’ll guard it with my life.

And would you tell Janene hi for me? How’s she doing? Janene’s mother had been one of Talbot’s victims just months before and the half-pixie post-mistress had taken the loss very badly. Napoleon worked with her at the post office since one of the other postal workers had been killed, another victim of Talbot’s spree.

She’s…okay, for a pixie. But I think it’s probably a good thing that she doesn’t know who killed her mother. Lately, she’s been muttering under her breath about revenge. I had to talk her out of forming a fae lynch mob. She wants justice for her mother. Can’t say I blame her. I want justice for myself, too.

You didn’t tell her that it was Leland Talbot who killed her mother, did you? Loretta’s eyes flashed with worry.

No, of course not. Besides, what good would it do? Everyone in Frog Hollow knows that he’s untouchable. Whatever deal he made with Lucien DelGado and the Winter King, it certainly seems to suit him. Napoleon spat out the last few words like a bad taste in his mouth.

He’ll get what’s coming to him. I have to believe that. But it won’t be at our hands. Loretta stared at her daughters. I know you girls want justice as much as the rest of us, but we are not vigilantes.

Sissy and Twyla mirrored each other, staring down at the floor. Twyla had struggled with the guilt of knowing that she and her sisters could stop Talbot for good, but they hadn’t. And they wouldn’t, not unless he tried to hurt them directly. They had scared him, flexed their collective magical muscles and watched the fear in his eyes when he realized that his terror would not go unchallenged. It felt good, almost too good, to know the power that they wielded.

I’m gonna go back down to basement for a bit before I head into the library. I just wanted to tell Napoleon bye and make sure—

That I don’t go rushing off into danger without a kiss from you? He winked and pushed his lips out as if he really expected a kiss. Sissy glared at him, daring him to try it. Sissy, you need to relax. Maybe you need a man? Iosea isn’t putting out for you yet? Napoleon winked and nudged Sissy with his hip. I could totally help you out, you know, if he’s not interested.

Sissy’s face turned several shades of red, ending in a purple color that matched Twyla’s eyes. I’m good. We’re good. Nobody’s putting anything out and I’ve got things to do in the basement. Don’t get caught by the King’s guards. And don’t get killed. Bye.

Sissy darted from the room without so much as a backward glance. Twyla gave Napoleon a look that told him he’d gone too far, and not for the first time.

You need to leave her alone. Sissy isn’t sex crazy like you. Heck, nobody’s sex crazy like you. But there’s a time and a place, Napoleon. And this isn’t it. Sissy’s genuinely worried about you. We all are.

I’m sorry. I guess Dr. Phil would say that I use my humor as a coping mechanism. I suppose I could start binge drinking again…

No! Twyla and her mother replied in unison.

Relax, just another example of my twisted humor-cum-coping mechanism. But seriously, I need to get going. Janene’s letting me off the hook for the local mail delivery but only because I’m going Over today. She’s been in a foul mood all week and I’m not sure that she won’t bite my head off if I’m late.

I thought pixies were all sweetness and light. I have a hard time imagining Janene being mean to anyone. Twyla put her hands on her hips and raised one eyebrow.

Oh, pixies are fine. But she’s half human and we all know how aggressive they can be. Napoleon leaned over and planted a kiss on Loretta’s cheek. I’ll be careful, he repeated, pre-empting her warning and worry. And tell Ree that I’ll look out for Eldon. Hopefully, he’ll have good news for us.

She won’t admit it, but I’m sure she’ll be grateful if you do find him. Twyla knew that Ree had grown fond of Eldon, a fae man who’d stayed with the Hedgewood family for a few weeks when Joe had come home. Eldon was innocent and completely unjaded, which made him seem like an odd pairing for her sister and her fiery temper.

The two women followed Napoleon to the front door. He embraced Twyla in an awkward hug before opening the door to leave. A familiar face surprised the trio as the door swung open.

You have a vampire on your front porch. Napoleon cast his eyes up and down the figure before him, who was dressed in a pair of glittery purple leggings and a metallic silver blouse. The ensemble would have earned its owner plenty of stares in a big city like New York or New Orleans, but Twyla imagined it would earn outright yells and catcalls in Frog Hollow, especially as it was being worn by a man.

Jorge, hey. What’s up?

Jorge ignored Napoleon and answered Twyla’s question instead. Twyla, Loretta, he began, nodding towards each woman in turn. Napoleon, he added. I need to talk to you about something. I think it might be important.

Jorge’s pale face was full of concern. Twyla wasn’t used to seeing him in the daytime, let alone on her front porch. Come on in.

Napoleon slipped past the vampire as he entered the house. I’ll be back in a few days, he called out as he skipped down the stairs leading off the porch. Twyla watched him for a minute. Hope and worry swirled in her stomach. He picked up his pace and broke into a sprint, disappearing down the driveway much faster than any human could have. Fae didn’t particularly like to ride in cars, but ever since Sheriff Talbot had bashed Napoleon over the head and stuffed him into the trunk of an abandoned car, the fae especially didn’t like traveling by automobile.

Twyla turned and closed the door, putting her fae friend out of her mind, at least for the moment. Jorge stood in the middle of the entryway, unsure of where to go.

Why don’t you two go sit in the living room. I’ve got a mess in the kitchen to sort out. Let me know if you need anything to drink. I’m sorry I don’t have any blood, Jorge. If I’d have known you were coming over, I would have visited the butcher. Loretta smiled warmly at the young man before her. If she thought his choice of clothing was odd, she didn’t show it.

Thank you, Miss Loretta. I appreciate your kindness, but I am fine.

Loretta drifted down the hallway towards the kitchen. Twyla and Jorge made their way to the living room and settled on the couch.

Have you spoken with Hank lately? Has he told you of anything unusual in the supernatural community? Jorge seemed tense as he spoke.

No. I mean, yes, I’ve spoken to him recently, last night, in fact. But he hasn’t told me anything I don’t already know about the supes. It’s a trying time for our town, I’m afraid. I know all the fae murders made things really awful around here.

Jorge shook his head. No, not the murders. The disappearances. People are disappearing, Twyla. Not fae, but others.

What do you mean others? Like who?

Vampires. Shifters. Humans. His words sent a chill down Twyla’s spine. Something bad is happening in Frog Hollow, Twyla. And I’m scared that it’s going to happen to someone I know very soon.

Chapter Two

Jorge perched himself on the edge of Loretta’s easy chair. Twyla started to offer him a drink out of habit, but she remembered that the vampire didn’t drink regular drinks, like soda or tea. She wondered if he ever ate food. Could vampires still eat, or was blood their only sustenance? She wanted to ask him, but decided that she’d better hear him out before changing the subject.

Why do you think something bad is going to happen to some of the people in town?

Jorge pushed his long, black hair behind his ears. He reminded Twyla of a young Antonio Banderas, only slightly more feminine. Jorge looked barely out of his teens, though Twyla suspected he was actually much older.

Lucien asked me to look into some unusual disappearances a few weeks ago. Now, I know what you’re thinking—people come and go in Frog Hollow all the time, especially supes. But I don’t think they’re all going over to the Other Place, not while the faery wars are raging so close to the border.

Twyla nodded once. People did come and go quite often in the small town, but many more stayed put these days. The world wasn’t a safe place for supernatural creatures and only a handful of towns across the country, maybe even across the world, offered some sort of uneasy sanctuary for them. She wasn’t sure how many other entrances to the Other Place—the fae realm—there were, but she imagined that most supes weren’t willing to risk going there, at least not while the Winter King sat on the throne.

Maybe they’re going to other towns. Napoleon says that there’s a place just outside of New Orleans where supes are welcome. Do you think maybe they’re just relocating?

Jorge frowned. Maybe. But I think maybe it’s something else. Some of the supes that are missing have family here. They have jobs and lives. You don’t just walk away from that sort of thing, do you?

Why does Lucien care? He’s been perfectly willing to round up fae and send them to the Winter King to be tortured or worse. Why does he suddenly care about the rest of the supernaturals in this town?

"Lucien DelGado fancies himself as some sort of god among these people, but the truth is, he got lucky. If he hadn’t been able to work his little milagros, no one would follow him. I wouldn’t be indebted to him, either. Jorge swore under his breath in Spanish. I don’t like the man, but I think he’s right. Something is wrong here."

Lucien was a charming demon, for sure. Twyla didn’t know all the details, but she knew that Lucien had healed Jorge’s mother when she became very sick. In return, Jorge was forced to work off his debt to the demon. He wasn’t the only one.

Sheriff Leland Talbot had been dying of cancer. Sissy had read his mind and knew that he was very sick, then suddenly, he wasn’t. Twyla wasn’t sure how Talbot had known that Lucien could help him, and she had no idea why the evil Sheriff agreed to let him. It was well-known that Talbot hated all supernaturals and wanted them gone from Frog Hollow. Now that he was seemingly invincible, Twyla wondered if he wouldn’t just try to eliminate them all for good.

Do you think Sheriff Talbot is behind this?

If he is, he’s not working with DelGado. Lucien seems to be concerned about the disappearances, too. Not that he cares about the supes going missing, but I think he’s worried more about the balance of power, specifically his power.

Has he asked you to look into it?

Not yet. But he has asked me if I knew any of the missing. One was a vampire called James. There are not many vampires in Frog Hollow. Many don’t stay in any town because it’s easier to blend in if they keep moving. Not aging makes it difficult to stay in one place for too long, you see.

And you knew the missing vampire?

Knew of him. We didn’t exactly run in the same circles. Many of the supernaturals in town are wary of DelGado. He has a reputation, he added.

Hank definitely needs to know about this. I just don’t know how much he can do. Talbot’s got him doing desk duty mostly, filling up his days with mundane paperwork and stuff like that. But he’ll definitely want to know.

Jorge pursed his lips, pausing before he replied. Several of the missing supes are shifters. I think Hank needs to be extra careful. I don’t know why they’ve gone missing and I hope it’s for completely innocent reasons, but my gut is telling me that there’s something bad going on. I plan on keeping a very close eye on Jenny and Bradley for the immediate future.

If you need anything, let me or Mama know. Jenny and Bradley are like family to us. You, too, now, Twyla added. We’ll do whatever we can to help find the missing supes.

Who’s missing? Sissy appeared in the doorway wearing rubber medical gloves. Twyla and Jorge both stared at them nervously. Sorry, forgot to take these off. I was just running some tests on some samples in the basement.

Samples? Jorge raised one eyebrow. What kind of samples? Don’t tell me you’ve found the cure for some horrific disease. But, if anyone could, it would be you.

Sissy blushed at the compliment. Nothing quite as exciting as that. Well, maybe a little exciting. I’m looking at vampire blood, some of the stuff that Jenny gave me, to see if I can figure out what makes it so efficient at curing iron poisoning in the fae. See, I think it may be useful for other things, kind of like how human blood can be used for different things. I just need to figure out how each component of the blood particles work, she finished.

Impressive, Jorge replied.

Gross, Twyla muttered. The lavender-eyed witch couldn’t stand the sight of blood. Even the thought of it made her queasy, so she stayed out of the basement and as far away from Sissy’s experiments as possible.

Iosea gave me the idea, Sissy explained. He bought some pretty cool lab equipment and brought it over so we could study the blood and experiment with it a little.

So, the lawyer is also a scientist and the librarian is, too. Twyla, do you have a secret hobby? Jorge grinned, his fangs protruding slightly.

I can bake a mean apple pie, but that’s about it.

And I’m not a librarian, Sissy corrected him. I just work in a library, which reminds me, I’m going to be late if I don’t go and get ready for that.

Would you like some of my blood for your tests?

Jorge’s question surprised Sissy. Um, sure, yes…that would be great. I didn’t want to ask because, well, how do you ask someone for some of their blood without sounding totally creepy? Could you stop by one day this week and let me draw some? It’ll only take a few minutes. I’d do it today but… She trailed off and tapped her watch.

"No problem. I’ll give you a call and we’ll set up a time. In the meantime, I’d better get back to Jenny’s place. She has to work tonight and I want to accompany her there and back. I don’t think I’m being paranoid. You can never