Karma's Stake (Magical Midlife in Mystic Hollow Book 5) Read online

  KARMA’S STAKE

  MAGICAL MIDLIFE IN MYSTIC HOLLOW: BOOK 5

  LACEY CARTER

  HELEN SCOTT

  L.A. BORUFF

  CONTENTS

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Also By Helen Scott

  Also By Lacey Carter

  Also By L.A. Boruff

  About the Author

  About the Author

  About the Author

  Copyright 2022

  Published by Lacey Carter Andersen, L.A. Boruff, and Helen Scott

  This work of fiction is intended for mature audiences only. All characters are over the age of eighteen. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either a product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to any persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. This book is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or other unauthorized use of the material or artwork herein is prohibited without the express written permission of the author.

  To my coauthors, especially Lacey and Helen, for understanding and loving me anyway. I love you guys!

  —♡ L.A. Boruff

  PROLOGUE

  Just as Daniel’s hand slid under my shirt, heading upward toward my breasts, my doorbell rang. Henry was gone to Alice's house, so there wasn’t anyone else to answer the door.

  I moaned, and Daniel rolled away. “Seriously?” he gasped. “It’s eleven at night.”

  “Come on,” I grumbled. “Go with me. This late, it’s probably the police here to ask more questions about Joel.”

  He shuffled behind me out into the hallway and down the stairs. When I opened the door, I realized I couldn’t have been more wrong.

  A pale, tall man stood on my porch. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but he did look familiar. He had a bit of a paunch and his hair had seen thicker days, but he was handsome, with intense blue eyes rimmed by red. He also hummed with strength, which instantly had me on guard. Was he human?

  “Hello,” he said, seeming a little shy and uncertain. “I’m Bryan... and I need Karma’s help.”

  Daniel put his arm in front of me and sort of shoved me backward, putting himself in between me and Bryan. “I know who you are. What are you doing here?” There was anger in his voice.

  Anger? Why? Who was this guy? He looked so familiar.

  The man held up his hand. “I come in peace. I really do need her help.”

  “What’s going on?” I asked.

  “He’s a vampire,” Daniel snarled. “A blood-sucker.” He may as well have spit on the floor for the venom in his voice.

  “I’m also Carol’s ex-boyfriend,” Bryan said slowly as if he wasn’t sure whether his words would help or hurt him.

  Oh! I peered around Daniel again. I had just recently seen his picture in a yearbook. Time had definitely changed him, though not as much as I would have thought. I guess that was to be expected with a vampire though. He still had a little bit of softness to his face, like a young man, but a few wrinkles on his forehead and beside his eyes. His shoulders were strong, even though his overall frame was on the thinner side.

  I had a feeling if he was smiling, I would have instantly recognized him for who he was.

  “You’re the Bryan who left her without even a goodbye?” I asked, shocked. Though as soon as it passed my curiosity roared to life.

  He nodded and shrugged. “And now you know why.”

  Because he’d become a vampire? I bet there was a whole story there, and I hoped it could justify why he’d broken my friend’s heart. Otherwise, he might not find Karma so much of a help, as the boot that was going to kick his butt with justice.

  With a sigh, I tugged on Daniel’s arm. “Is the old vampire thing true?” I asked. “About inviting them in?”

  He shook his head. “No. He could force his way in if he wanted to.”

  Well, there was no point in him having to stand on the porch. “Come on in, Bryan. Tell me what’s going on. But start by telling me how you knew I was Karma.”

  He started talking before he even crossed the threshold. “Well, as for that, everyone in the supernatural world knows Karma handed down her mantle. We all knew who the old Karma was, too, but she made herself hard to find, unlike you. Don’t be surprised if you get a lot of attention if you don’t go into hiding. Everyone wants to get what they think they deserve.” The last bit sounded more like he was complaining about someone else.

  It was the first part that stuck in my mind. More attention was exactly what I didn’t need. It wasn't like the police thought I was a magnet for trouble already or anything...

  “As for what's going on?” He continued. “I've been going through my uncle's stuff and found out that there’s something really bad going on in Mystic Hollow.”

  "Your uncle?" I asked, unsure who he was related to. I swear my brain had a limited capacity for facts and just randomly deleted stuff, so instead of forgetting things like state capitals when I learned something new, I'd forget things like who Bryan's uncle was, even though I felt sure I knew at some point.

  "Cliff Miller. I came back for his funeral."

  "Oh, my god. I'm so sorry!"

  Cliff was the terrible lawyer who had been Beth’s ex’s business partner. What her ex had done to him, just to steal their business was cruel, but the monster he’d become couldn't just be ignored. As in I, or my karma powers, had turned Cliff into a rat. I guess him missing for so long had been enough for him to be officially declared dead, which had brought Bryan here.

  “Are you doing okay?” I asked because I didn’t know what else to say. If he wanted Karma to handle who took out his uncle, he might be in for a surprise.

  "I’m okay. We weren’t actually that close," Bryan replied. "The important thing is that we're all in big trouble."

  Trouble. Darn it. Trouble was something I had some experience with.

  “Better tell us the whole story, and go slowly, we’ve had a few rough weeks…” I motioned for him to come in.

  He stepped onto the porch but then froze. “Wait.” Whirling around, Bryan tensed, crouching slightly as if he were about to take off running.

  “Someone else is out there,” Daniel said, a low growl erupting from his chest. “Another vampire.”

  “Gotta go!” Bryan yell-whispered, and then… he was gone. Disappeared.

  I blinked rapidly and tapped Daniel on the shoulder. “How’d he do that?”

  “He’s a vampire,” Daniel said, but he was slightly crouched as well. Was he about to take off? “They can run so fast it seems like they’re poofing in thin air.

  “Is the other vampire still out there?” I asked, getting a little nervous now.

  He shook his head and backed up, nudging me back into the house in the process. “Whoever it was, they followed Bryan. Let’s get inside.”

  After closing and locking the door, I peered out into th
e darkness and shivered. At least I had my powers to protect me.

  I hoped.

  ONE

  Emma

  Three Weeks Later

  * * *

  Beth was driving like a madwoman, the windows down to keep the stench from overwhelming us in her car. Her long blonde hair, usually curly and full of life, was sopping. Dripping down her back and shoulders, covered in mud, and who knows what else.

  "I don't think I've ever felt this gross in my life," I told her, as mud dripped into my eye. I wiped it out, then glanced at my arm and saw another leech I missed. With a terrible shriek, I yanked it off and chucked it out the window.

  Beside me, Beth laughed.

  "This is so not funny," I told her, but I was already grinning.

  She laughed harder. "Sorry, it's just nice to do these jobs with someone else. I mean, Carol and Deva helped whenever they could, but now you've become my ride-or-die partner."

  I snorted. "Ride or die, yes? Leeches and diving into disgusting lakes? Not so much."

  We pulled up to our new place of work. It was a little house with white siding, white shutters, and a bright purple door. Over the door was a sign in pink and purple letters that said, Private Psych. It was only down the street from her old building, still close enough to walk to Carol's fabric and yarn store, Yarns and Yards, but it suited our needs much better than the old place. We’d just finished moving everything yesterday.

  Beth killed the engine, and we climbed out, making the most disgusting slopping sounds as we did. Slamming the door, I shivered a little in the cold, wet air, then waddled... full-out waddled to the front door like I was wearing a diaper full of poop. Only, I was pretty sure my underwear was just full of leeches and mud.

  “Oh, ick.” I gently extracted another leech from my leg by breaking the seal between the disgusting little black slimy thing and my skin, then bumped the front door open with my butt and slung the leech out into the yard. “Gross, gross, gross.”

  Who knew what else might be hiding under my jeans? “I’ve got to go change,” I muttered.

  If we were at the old place, we'd be screwed right about now, trapped like this until we could get home. Thankfully, last month Beth’s lease had come up on the old Private Psych location, and she’d moved it. This new place had once been someone’s home. Now, this whole area was zoned commercial, and Beth had a whole house to conduct her business in. A small house, but still.

  There was a shower.

  And we’d learned to keep a couple of changes of clothes here. Being Karma, somehow, turned out to be a messy business.

  “Go ahead,” Beth said. “I’ll check my emails and go after you.”

  Before I could slip upstairs to the bedrooms, the front door burst open. Stefano Barton rushed in. He was a siren, one of the rare few who chose to live on land rather than with his kin in the water. “Did you do it?” he asked excitedly. “Did you take care of the water sprite?”

  “No,” I drawled, looking down at myself covered in muck and mud. “We decided to take a mud bath.”

  Maybe that was too snarky. I chuckled to soften the sarcasm.

  “Yes,” Beth said in a bright, professional voice. “We just got back. Your problem is all taken care of.”

  Taken care of, indeed. My Karmic powers had done us a major solid today. Every time the water nymph tried to hit us or lashed out with her sharp-edged tail, the blows rebounded on her instead. It was satisfying to get hit but feel no pain from it.

  Water nymphs were nothing like they’d been portrayed in pop culture. In movies and TV shows, they were all pretty, sometimes sexy even. Not in real life, oh no. They looked like fish with humanesque faces. Unlike sirens, nymphs were small, fast, and vicious. Sort of like a monkey compared with a human.

  And that nymph-monkey had been angry. She’d taken us for a wild ride all over the lake on Stefano’s property. We’d eaten cookies from Deva to help us hold our breath for extraordinary lengths of time, and Beth had found a spell to create bubbles of oxygen to breathe, which had sort of worked. We’d had to come up for air a couple of times. Beth was more of a psychological sort of witch. She got visions that usually helped us solve cases and could communicate with animals. It had helped us catch the nymph. We’d hoped she’d be able to consult directly with said nymph and make all this much easier, but if her powers worked on the creature, it was not in the mood to talk to us. At least the other fish had helped us corner her or let us know where to go.

  It’d taken most of the afternoon. Finally, though, we’d captured her. Beth held up the bucket we’d stashed her in. “You’ll want to change the water soon,” Beth said. “What are you going to do with her?”

  Stefano shuddered delicately. “Borrow a boat and take her out on the ocean.” He snarled his upper lip at the bucket when it shuddered and sounds of water splashing came from it. “Way out.”

  “I thought they were freshwater creatures?” I asked. Although I desperately wanted to make sure there weren’t any leeches in my butt crack, I couldn’t help but be curious about magical creatures. It was interesting. Maybe I would’ve known more if I’d grown up with all these powers as my friends had, but this was all still new to me.

  “Water nymphs can live in any water,” Stephano said. “Even polluted. They’re hardy creatures, but their appetites are ferocious. She’s already gone through most of the trout I stocked in that lake.” He sniffed delicately. “That trout was for me. Not this vicious little creature.”

  I held up one finger. “Sorry, but I can’t help but be curious. Surely you would’ve been faster at catching her, and certainly, it would’ve been a lot cheaper if you’d done it yourself. Not that I mind the job, of course.” I laughed uncertainly. The money was nice, but this was one job I could’ve done without. Beth was supposed to be running a detective agency, but somewhere along the line, I’d been drafted into doing magical cleanups of all sorts, including magical creatures.

  Stefano’s face contorted. “Money is no obstacle. Why would I go through all that when I can so conveniently pay you two?”

  Why indeed? I gave him a mock salute before heading upstairs. Time to clean out the hoo-ha and butt crack.

  Beth slipped into the bathroom as I came out, and by the time I had my hair tied back and my spare change of clothes on, she was coming out in her robe. “Bryan wasn’t kidding when he said trouble was brewing in Mystic Hollow,” I said as I slathered moisturizer on my face. “The last few months have been nuts.”

  She nodded and slipped behind the big screen we kept in the bedroom for a bit of privacy in moments like this. “True. We’ve had one crazy call after another.”

  “Has Carol heard from him since then?” I asked.

  She walked out from behind the privacy screen shaking her head and looking a little sad. “Nope. Not a word.”

  I couldn’t help but be disappointed myself. Carol and Bryan had been so good together. Most high school relationships everyone sort of knew would just end. And that wasn't a bad thing. Being that young, none of us knew who the heck we were yet, nor had we had any actual life experience. Everyone we dated seemed to just be someone fun to pass the time with until we went to college or got proper jobs.

  But not them. In high school, Carol and Bryan had just seemed to be one of those couples who were meant to be with each other. They just got each other. I can't remember how many times I found those two on the bleachers knitting together. Bryan didn't care if he looked uncool doing it. Every time she was around him, he glowed like it was the best day of his life. He played baseball, and Carol went to every game, even though she hated sports. He wore the sweaters she made for him for good luck, and she'd hold up signs and cheer him on.

  And then he'd disappeared, her heart was broken, and I never saw her take that kind of interest in a man again.

  “He seemed so worried when he came to my door a few weeks ago, and warned me of dire things coming,” I mused. “And then disappeared. Again. What gives?”

  Be
th bent over and ran some sort of cream through her curly blonde hair. “I’d sure like to know that myself.”

  Bryan had shown up out of the blue at my door a week ago, supposedly in town for his uncle’s funeral. He was the nephew of Cliff Miller, Beth's ex's business partner, who had been taken care of by my Karmic powers. And even though in high school Bryan had just been a shy guy, a shy human guy, who’d seemed to love Carol... well, before he’d disappeared. He was no longer that guy. Still shy and awkward, but not human.

  A vampire. It still seemed unreal. I was new to the supernatural world, but the vampires I’d met up to now, they’d been vampires for a really long time—not that I’d asked them their exact age—seemingly coming from a long line of vampires. I'd never met one that I'd once known as a human before being turned into a vampire.

  The ladies had explained it didn't often happen. And yet, I didn't care that much about the vampire thing. I mean, I was human once too. What I cared about was the fact that he'd laid out a warning, told me trouble was coming, then got spooked and left.

  I was starting to think that was the guy's MO. Mr. Unreliable. At least this time he managed to not break any of my friends' hearts before he left.

  "As long as he leaves Carol alone, I don't care," I told her.

  Beth gave me a look, those big blue eyes of her reading my soul in one glance. She knew I did care. That I'd been a little on edge since that day. "I'm sure we'll see him again. The world just sometimes takes us on weird paths."