Read Online Be My Banshee (Purple Door Detective Agency Book 1) by Joyce Lavene, Jim Lavene - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Joyce Lavene, Jim Lavene
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John.”
Caeford’s large, tough face frowned. “You mean the werewolf. That’s unfortunate.”
“And the scent on the crime scene was the same,” she continued.
“You’re not seriously here to accuse me of killing them. Not here in my den, of all places. No one would be that stupid.”
Sunshine faced him without any sign of fear. “That’s exactly why we’re here. I knew you were sending us to clean up your mess but not to clean up a dead body for you.”
He growled deep in the back of his throat and a single plume of smoke came from one nostril. “It has been more than a century since I partook of human flesh.”
“Is that a threat?” Sunshine demanded.
“No. A fact. Why kill one if you aren’t going to eat it?” His large yellow teeth were exposed to the dim light.
“That is no excuse,” Aine told him. “I hunted a few of your ancestors who killed for sport.”
He roared his anger, the sound bouncing back off the concrete walls making the noise ear splitting. “You dare tell me you hunted my kind?”
“Yes.” She smiled. “And they were tasty too.”
Sunshine put her hand on Aine’s shoulder. “We’re not here to get into a war about who hunted whose ancestors, Caeford. We want the truth about what happened to these men.”
He backed down from his aggressive stance with Aine. “I did not kill the werewolf or the man on the roof. I knew you would handle the potential problem for me, Miss Merryweather. There was no reason to exert myself. This has been the basis of our relationship.”
“Good. You won’t mind if my beane sidhe gives you a sniff then?”
His yellow eyes widened in fury. “I see. Of course. Her people were very great hunters in the past—feared and tenacious. They made the werewolf look incompetent.” He lowered his head to their level. “Please. Give me a good sniff, beane sidhe .”
Sunshine hoped that he didn’t take Aine’s head off as he moved closer to her. She wasn’t sure she would have been willing to take on the task, but Aine didn’t seem to mind. She moved in close to Caeford, never losing eye contact with him. Their bodies were nearly touching.
Aine took a deep whiff of the dragon man. His scent was mixed with chemicals and herbs that she didn’t recognize. But underlying it all was the deep, wild smell of dragon. It was completely different from the smell at the crime scenes.
“It’s not him,” she announced without as much as a tremor in her tone. She didn’t move away from him, instead staring into his terrifying eyes. “Someone else is responsible for the deaths.”
Caeford didn’t move either. “I could snap you in half.”
She smiled at him, nothing left of the middle-aged woman in the black cape. The crone with little flesh on her face and body, skeletal hands at her side, stood tall. “You’d find me a tough bit of bone to chew, dragon man.”
He growled but took a step away from her. Sunshine hadn’t realized until that moment that she was holding her breath, while her hands and thoughts were prepared for a spell to protect Aine if necessary.
Aine took a step back too, resuming her mostly human form in the black hood.
“We’re leaving now.” Sunshine tried not to sound as relieved as she felt. “As soon as I have more information, I’ll let you know.”
“Let me know if you need assistance in your quest as well,” Caeford offered. “I don’t want my name and reputation sullied over this mix up.”
“As if anyone without magic would believe a dragon had killed these men,” Sunshine said. “Do you have any idea what might have happened to them?”
“I do not,” he said. “It seems to me that the first murder may have been deliberate and the second only used to throw off the scent of the trail. I’m sure the killer never dreamed of facing a beane sidhe . I have never been particularly interested in a human death. They are all the same to me. Learn what someone gained by killing John Lancaster, the first
Caeford’s large, tough face frowned. “You mean the werewolf. That’s unfortunate.”
“And the scent on the crime scene was the same,” she continued.
“You’re not seriously here to accuse me of killing them. Not here in my den, of all places. No one would be that stupid.”
Sunshine faced him without any sign of fear. “That’s exactly why we’re here. I knew you were sending us to clean up your mess but not to clean up a dead body for you.”
He growled deep in the back of his throat and a single plume of smoke came from one nostril. “It has been more than a century since I partook of human flesh.”
“Is that a threat?” Sunshine demanded.
“No. A fact. Why kill one if you aren’t going to eat it?” His large yellow teeth were exposed to the dim light.
“That is no excuse,” Aine told him. “I hunted a few of your ancestors who killed for sport.”
He roared his anger, the sound bouncing back off the concrete walls making the noise ear splitting. “You dare tell me you hunted my kind?”
“Yes.” She smiled. “And they were tasty too.”
Sunshine put her hand on Aine’s shoulder. “We’re not here to get into a war about who hunted whose ancestors, Caeford. We want the truth about what happened to these men.”
He backed down from his aggressive stance with Aine. “I did not kill the werewolf or the man on the roof. I knew you would handle the potential problem for me, Miss Merryweather. There was no reason to exert myself. This has been the basis of our relationship.”
“Good. You won’t mind if my beane sidhe gives you a sniff then?”
His yellow eyes widened in fury. “I see. Of course. Her people were very great hunters in the past—feared and tenacious. They made the werewolf look incompetent.” He lowered his head to their level. “Please. Give me a good sniff, beane sidhe .”
Sunshine hoped that he didn’t take Aine’s head off as he moved closer to her. She wasn’t sure she would have been willing to take on the task, but Aine didn’t seem to mind. She moved in close to Caeford, never losing eye contact with him. Their bodies were nearly touching.
Aine took a deep whiff of the dragon man. His scent was mixed with chemicals and herbs that she didn’t recognize. But underlying it all was the deep, wild smell of dragon. It was completely different from the smell at the crime scenes.
“It’s not him,” she announced without as much as a tremor in her tone. She didn’t move away from him, instead staring into his terrifying eyes. “Someone else is responsible for the deaths.”
Caeford didn’t move either. “I could snap you in half.”
She smiled at him, nothing left of the middle-aged woman in the black cape. The crone with little flesh on her face and body, skeletal hands at her side, stood tall. “You’d find me a tough bit of bone to chew, dragon man.”
He growled but took a step away from her. Sunshine hadn’t realized until that moment that she was holding her breath, while her hands and thoughts were prepared for a spell to protect Aine if necessary.
Aine took a step back too, resuming her mostly human form in the black hood.
“We’re leaving now.” Sunshine tried not to sound as relieved as she felt. “As soon as I have more information, I’ll let you know.”
“Let me know if you need assistance in your quest as well,” Caeford offered. “I don’t want my name and reputation sullied over this mix up.”
“As if anyone without magic would believe a dragon had killed these men,” Sunshine said. “Do you have any idea what might have happened to them?”
“I do not,” he said. “It seems to me that the first murder may have been deliberate and the second only used to throw off the scent of the trail. I’m sure the killer never dreamed of facing a beane sidhe . I have never been particularly interested in a human death. They are all the same to me. Learn what someone gained by killing John Lancaster, the first
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