Vega by Lisa Marie Darby (top 100 novels of all time TXT) 📕

I placed my hand on the window and watched as my breath fog up the glass, the rain was hammering down hard outside, I could barely see through all the raindrops that splattered against the window like bullets, but my eyes were focused on the one spot outside and I saw movement, the headlights of a familiar car pulled up into the spot I was watching. I looked at my watch and raised my eyebrow slightly, damn him, he was on time like literally by the minute he said he would be here. Just once, I wish he could be late or is that impossible for him to do? Would it break his perfect attendance streak and make him lose a gold star?
But then again he has always been Vann’s favourite, even though Vann denies that he has favourites, I think he just doesn’t want there to be an argument, well that’s Vann for you, always the peacemaker. It wouldn’t really matter, I would hate to be the favourite, its why I go all out of there just to get the job done my own way, because it gives Vann something to bitch about for a while, man does he hate it when things don’t go to plan, but he can’t be that mad cause I get it done, just not the way he intended it to play out.
A smile danced on my lips as I thought about the first thing Vann said to me ‘I can tell right now that you are going to be trouble’ and so far his prediction has come true, but Vann, was like a father to me, despite that small detail that I have never met Vann before. The only contact we have is phone calls; he monitors us then calls us and gives us the next assignment.
And about an hour ago I got a call, I was sound asleep, but apparently the lie in I really wanted and needed is not available. It was 5 am in the morning, Vann had assured me that this was top priority and couldn’t be put off until a decent hour, trust me, I asked, or moaned as Vann cared to put it.
I moved back from the window, my apartment was quiet, the lights turned off. Only the small lamp at the side of the room supplied a slight glow that I used to see my jacket that was slung on the sofa. I swung it on and walked hastily out of the room. Only pausing when I passed Cords room, I leant against it lightly I hadn’t noticed that I had held my breath until I released it when I heard the soft snoring noise that declared that Cord was asleep.
I went into my room and went straight to the loose floorboard that was under my bed, it was perfect for hiding stuff from Cord, I mean I love her and everything but I have my secrets because I love her, if she knew about what I do she would be in danger. Not all secrets are bad some are just there to protect us from certain things. I put my hand in and pulled out my gun. I got up strapped the holder on my shin and slid the gun in pulling my baggy pyjama bottoms over it and I instantly felt safer knowing that it was there, I took my gun with me whenever I was dealing with Shay business, even if it was just a day at the office you never know what could happen, that’s the fun bit, anything is possible, that’s why I love my job. I looked around checking that I didn’t need anything else from my room and made my way out.
I grabbed my keys out of the dish by the door and as quietly as I could manage. I walked hastily down the many steps after I cast a glance at the elevator, I hated the thing, I have had issues with confined spaces ever since I was a teenager, I don’t remember what brought on the fear but ever since I was 16 I couldn’t bare it, I would scream and kick and pass out. It’s my only fear.
I pulled my jacket over my head as I made my dash from the doors to the car that had settled under a street lamp. I threw open the door and slid in, I cast a glance at Ethan, he was staring straight ahead. Chocolate brown hair was combed perfectly, not a hair out of place, he had recently shaved, his clothes were fresh looking other than my smurf pyjama’s, I threw my wet jacket in the back of the car and heard a muffled swearword coming from Dixon who I only just noticed sitting in the back. He shot me a look.
“Watch it Vega” he grumbled throwing my jacket to the side and settled back into the corner of the car. Damn he looked yummy, he had a sun kissed tan and blond hair that was normally spiked at the ends but today it was soft and messy, he had the cheekbones of a god, and the bastard bloody knew it. He had a baggy jumper on over his very muscular body, such a shame, and baggy jeans with his favourite shoes.
“Dixon always a pleasure” I replied yawning for the hundredth time since I was woken up. I waved my hand and there was a coffee now occupying my hand, I smiled and sipped at the hot liquid, Ethan looked at me and I smiled brightly.
“What? Do you want some?” I asked and waved my coffee in his face he shook his head. The typical Ethan, he never, and I repeat never accepts anything from me, only on birthdays and Christmas’s because its polite, but apart from that he hasn’t even accepted anything. He really gets on my nerves when he is too polite and nice, why can’t he be more like Dixon? The guy would bite your hand off if you offered him a doughnut.
“Max this is serious” he said to me I raised my eyebrow and gave him a motherly look
“I'm always serious, this is me you’re talking to” I lied ignoring the huff from the back seat. I turned around and stuck my tongue out at him totally proving his huff was correct in the fact that I always joke or make some inappropriate comment at the completely wrong time. He rolled his eyes and muttered something incoherent about women; he slouched back and rested his head on the window. I frowned, for the past few weeks Dixon was being I dunno weird for Dixon, by now he would have normally made a comment on my smurf pyjamas but nothing, we used to be really close, we all are, me Ethan and him, that’s what our team consist of. I believe that we succeed as well as we do because we would be willing to take the bullet for one another.
“Can someone explain to me what the urgency is now, I am really tired” I said yawning, I stretched like a cat Ethan let out a slight laugh as he started to drive. He handed me a folder and I eyed it suspiciously. I turned and put my coffee in Dixons face.
“Here hold this would you darling” I said to him sweetly. He took it without looking at me, I turned back to the front then turned back to Dixon who was still holding my coffee but it was nearing his lips.
“Don’t drink any, I don’t know where that mouth of yours has been with all bimbo’s you sleep with” I said half-jokingly but I was deadly serious that I didn’t want him drinking my coffee. I looked at the black folder, it was pretty thin, I weighed it in my hands, there wasn’t much in it, I opened up the folder and scanned through the pages cut out of newspapers and police reports, it was a load of writing that I wasn’t in the mood to read, I flipped through it and froze when I heard a sipping sound coming from the back. I gaped at him licking the sides of my coffee.
“Mmmmm I needed this coffee, hits the spot” he moaned in pleasure, he looked at me, his ice blue eyes burned into mine, I decided to ignore him, I could always conjure myself another one. I kept my face on the pictures in the file and gave Dixon the middle finger. He chuckled softly whilst continuing to slurp on my coffee to the point where it was making me want to slap him.
“Where are we heading Ethan?” I asked finally after there was no one supplying the information to why I was pulled from my comfy bed and lovely dream about some Spanish guy called Carlos. He ignored the question with a wave of his hand and looked at me and nodded to the folder in my hand as he spoke.
“There are 3 missing people in the last week alone” Ethan said, I looked down and nodded
“I heard. It’s all Cord talks about, it’s in the newspaper” I said thinking back to the many times Cord and Gordon have talked about it over our take-outs. I spat out my chow mein when they first said it and then mentioned the Shay. I got it all over Gordon's new top and everything, he was furious, and it’s not a good thing to anger a wolf, I had to click him a new shirt before he truly lost his marbles and went all doggie on my ass.
The Shay is what I'm part of, what Ethan and Dixon are also part of. There aren’t many of us out there, that’s because the book doesn’t choose many people, maybe because they wouldn’t be able to handle it. We pass off as Witches and Warlocks, we have the magic, but what many people don’t know is that we can bench things 10 times their weight. The magic we possess isn’t strong just a few nifty tricks really, we have to use incantations but with me all I have to do id imagine it and click my fingers. It’s quite a talent, no one else in the Shay has it which at first I thought was weird, but oh well. I tried to teach it to Dixon once when he asked but he couldn’t do it so I played it out, making him do all sorts like click his tongue or whistle to see if that would trigger it, but it just made him look like a retard everyone was staring at him in the coffee shop.
People in the supernatural world have heard of us, there are many rumours that we exist and many that we don’t. No one has ever confirmed of our existence, we all have cover lives; it’s hard to lie to the ones you love but its necessary, but we are like the wind we are all around but you don’t notice us, with all the stuff that the Shay deals with makes us a lot of enemies. We take care of everything in the supernatural world, for example if there is a shape shifter going round killing needlessly then that’s where we step in, death is us to them. Keeping the Shay a secret is a high priority, there are many times when I wanted to tell Cord what I really do every day and who I keep getting phone calls off,