[M__M 03] Misery Loves Company Read Online Free Page B

girlfriend. If that were true, then she was one of the last people I wanted to talk to. Explaining this was going to suck. It sounded like she hadn’t even known he was an addict.
    Unfortunately, Steph jumped in before I could respond. “Yes, Jess is a Gryphon.”
    “Well, not exact—”
    “Oh, God.” The woman collapsed on the chair next to mine. “It’s true then? Gryphons can identify addicts, can’t they? I’m sorry. I should have introduced myself. I’m Marissa Walker. I’m Mr. Marshall’s assistant.”
    “Oh.” I pulled myself together. Assistant wasn’t good, but it also wasn’t as bad as I’d feared. The smorgasbord of stressful emotions around me was hard enough to deal with. A weepy or angry significant other would have been too much of a head rush. “I, uh, consult for the Gryphons. Sometimes.”
    “So Eric was an addict?” Steph’s voice was as strained as her face. She was sickened and in total disbelief.
    Slowly, I nodded.
    Before I could say anything else, I was saved by the EMTs. As they burst into the bookstore, I scurried out of their way, leaving the awkwardness of that conversation behind.
    It’s no good, I wanted to tell them, but they’d figure that out themselves soon enough. Eric’s assistant ran over to meet them, as did the store clerks. I debated joining them and explaining, but Steph maintained her grip on my arm.
    “I thought…” She made a queasy face. “I don’t know much about addicts or ghouls, but doesn’t it take a long time to become a ghoul?”
    Over Steph’s shoulders, I could see the EMTs checking Eric’s vitals and discovering they were fine. I dragged my attention from them.
    I rubbed my eyes, no longer with tiredness but with frustration. “Yes. Ghouls are what happens to addicts whose pred masters suck them dry. If a soul is a person’s life energy, then it means the pred has taken away all the good parts of it. And yes, it takes a long time in many ways. First, it takes years of being fed on. Second, it happens slowly, over a long period. People don’t become ghouls in a matter of seconds. Eric…” Shit. There was no easy way to point it out. “Eric likely sold his soul in order to gain his success. He could well have been an addict for years. But even if that’s true, he shouldn’t have become a ghoul this way.”
    Steph groaned and closed her eyes. “What the hell was he thinking?”
    I forced a humorless smile. “Probably what everyone thinks—something else is more important than their own suffering.”
    “But you’re saying this isn’t normal?”
    “Definitely not normal.” I shrugged. “At least I’ve never heard of such a thing before.”
    “Great. You’re supposed to be my encyclopedia of magical knowledge.”
    I couldn’t stop myself from snorting. “Sorry. I’m nothing of the sort.”
    Across the room, someone said “Gryphon,” and both Steph’s head and mine snapped that way. Marissa was gesturing to me. Peachy. I might not be an encyclopedia of knowledge, but Steph wasn’t the only one assuming I was.
    Repressing a curse, I headed over, Steph on my heels.
    “Jess?”
    I paused, turning at the sound of a familiar voice. The real Gryphons had arrived, and my friend Bridget was in the lead. A wave of black-and-gold uniforms parted the shop’s remaining gawkers.
    “Hi.” Checking out the new faces, I let out the tiniest of sighs of relief.
    My former partner, Andre, wasn’t one of the four Gryphons who’d shown up. Until this moment, I hadn’t thought to worry about running into him again. Our last—and only—case together had ended in some serious, naked awkwardness thanks to Lucrezia and her powerful magical drugs. Oh, and I’d hit him with a chair.
    It was too bad because I liked Andre, but the last time we’d talked it had seemed like he wanted it to be the last time we talked. It was hard to blame him.
    Two of the Gryphons kept right on walking to where the paramedics were tending Eric, but Bridget