Read Online Demons of Bourbon Street by Deanna Chase - Free Book Online

trained on the one closest to me. The energy, so intimately familiar and yet foreign, held me captive. I couldn’t place the signature, but something inside me recognized it all the same.
A blanket of electric blue magic flashed over the circle and then vanished. The candles winked out, leaving us standing in the dark, transfixed on the two glowing figures.
The one nearest me met my gaze.
His stocky build and pale emerald eyes were exactly as they’d been in Lailah’s memory. I’d been prepared for that. But I had no way of knowing his emotional signature would touch the part of my heart I’d locked away a long time ago. So familiar to the Dan I’d known and loved for all those years. Pure. Welcoming. Good.
I swallowed the sob forming in my throat and took a deep, ragged breath. He wasn’t my Dan. Not that Dan was mine anymore or even that I wanted him. But this man—Philip, Dan’s biological father—had all the emotional goodness I’d loved so much in the teenaged boy I’d grown up with. He brought back all the hopes, dreams, and fears of the young, scared girl I’d been.
With one incantation, I’d been transformed into someone I’d hoped to never be again.
“ Philip,” Lailah said from right behind me.
Standing next to the candle indicating the city of New Orleans, Philip inclined his head. “Lailah.”
She broke my grasp on Rosalee’s hand and pushed through our arms into the circle. “It’s protocol to announce your presence to the resident angel when you come to town. You know that.”
“ My apologies. You are, of course, correct.”
“ Had you not invaded my space and taken my memories, I’d be inclined to let you off with a warning. Instead, I think I’ll command your cooperation and bind you to me until a formal inquiry can be conducted.”
Philip took a moment to study her, amusement coming off him in streams. “You think you possess such power?”
“ Yes. And I’ll prove it as soon as I find your sorry ass.” She sounded more exasperated than angry. How well did they know each other?
He chuckled. “I look forward to the challenge.”
Lailah stepped back, annoyance clouding her emotions. She turned her attention to the other angel and groaned. “Jade, we have the information we need. You can let the spell go.”
I followed her gaze to the second angel. He was turned away from me, hovering over the candle representing Baton Rouge.
Great.
While the capital city wasn’t too far away, it was the second largest city in southeast Louisiana. It could take days to find him.
Sighing, I let the magic drop and waited for the angels to disappear. Instead, they floated to the ground and their images shifted from translucent to solid flesh.
“ Umm…” I stared at the second angel’s profile. He rubbed his temples in confusion. “Looks like the spell didn’t go quite as planned. Instead of illusions, we summoned them body and spirit.”
The coven erupted with questions and gasps of surprise.
Lailah took a second to assess the situation and then advanced on Philip. She snapped her fingers and said, “By the bond you created, you’re now bound to me until your secrets are revealed.”
A silver band appeared from thin air and wound its way around his wrist. He frowned and plucked at the cuff. “That wasn’t necessary.”
He moved forward, reaching for her, but she jumped from his grasp and took up position beside me. “Don’t mess with me, Philip. I’m in no mood.” She glared at him. “Did you notice what this witch did? She transported you here. Do you have any idea what that means?”
He relaxed his stance and smiled. One of those cocky, shit-eating ones. “Yes. Do you?”
She ignored his question and yelled in my mind, Jesus, Jade! You could’ve killed someone with that stunt. People die during magical transportations.
I flinched, more from the fear and worry behind her reprimand than the actual words. What had I done?
The other angel finally spotted me and found his voice. “You!