Sam Harlan (Book 3): Damned Cold by Kevin Lee Swaim

… a bad seed.”
    “Come on. He’s mentally handicapped,” I said. “He’s just a child trapped in a man’s body.”
    Jodie squinted at me. “Carlton spun a yarn and you bought it.”
    “He didn’t seem—”
    “Like the Devil?” Jodie said. “Did he tell you about his talent?”
    “He said it was charms … that he could barely influence someone—”
    “He told you his talent was charming people while he was charming you.” Her voice was full of disgust.
    I gave Callie a sidelong glance. She was frowning and I could tell she was as disturbed by the conversation as I was.
    Meriwether had sounded so reasonable. Had he charmed us?
    “There must be something you can do to help find Dorothy,” Gene said. “I’m sure you can help.” He glanced down at the table as if he was too embarrassed to speak.
    “What?” I asked.
    Jodie rolled her eyes. “Tell him.”
    Gene coughed uncomfortably into his hand. “What do you know of the Tarot?”
    “The cards?” I asked, trying not to laugh. “That doesn’t work, does it?”
    “Sam,” Callie said. “The Tarot isn’t—”
    “It’s real ,” Jodie said, nodding at her husband. “Gene’s readings have been all over the place lately, but one card keeps coming up. Death.”
    “That sounds … ominous,” I said.
    Gene shook his head. “Death represents change, and my readings have continually shown that card in play. There have been a few other cards, including the reversed Magician.”
    It was like he was speaking in another language. “The what?”
    “You are the reversed Magician. I believe you are a manipulator.”
    I felt my anger rising. “I’m not some … some manipulator—”
    “It’s not what you think,” Gene said hastily. “It means that you are the main driver behind our fates.”
    “Whose fates?” I asked, trying to contain my disbelief.
    “Ours,” Jodie said. “And Dorothy’s.”
    Gene said, “There’s also the Hermit—”
    Jodie raised her hand and shushed him. “The important thing is that you are vital to finding my sister.”
    * * *
    “What are you going to do next?” Mosley asked.
    We were sitting in Mosley’s office as I recounted how I’d met with Meriwether and given Jodie my findings. Jameson was sitting on the couch, and I’d taken Mosley’s seat at his desk. Callie and Mosley sat across from me, waiting for me to answer. I sighed. “What else can I do? I told you, I don’t do missing women.”
    Mosley started to protest. “But—”
    “I only talked to Meriwether because I thought he might have sent the golem to kill us,” I said.
    Jameson raised his hand. “We understand,” he said, even though it looked like Mosley didn’t understand at all. “But you can’t just abandon Dorothy.”
    “Abandon her?” I asked. “I’m here for a vampire, remember?”
    “You also want to find out who attacked us,” Callie pointed out.
    “Yeah, well, for all I know it was the Rexfords.”
    Callie frowned. “Why attack us?”
    “Maybe they’re protecting the vampire,” I said. “Or working for it. Or maybe it has nothing to do with a vampire. Maybe it’s because we started poking around in their business. Maybe they don’t really want us looking into Dorothy’s disappearance.”
    “That … doesn’t seem likely,” Jameson said. He stood and paced the room. “I suspect they truly want Dorothy back.”
    I watched as the older priest paced back and forth. “You seem awfully upset.”
    Jameson turned to me and opened his mouth, paused for a moment, then finally said, “We should all be upset. A woman is missing. Ethan has sensed a vampire’s presence. Witches are active in this community. None of this bodes well.”
    “Sounds like another day at the office,” I murmured.
    “Sam,” Callie began.
    “Don’t Sam me,” I said. “Bad stuff happens everywhere, every day, and there’s nothing I can do about that. I can do something about vampires.”
    Jameson shook his head. “Magic is dangerous,