A Hint of Cayenne (The Trouble With Elves Book 4) Read online

  She licked her lips. “No more betrayals.” She couldn’t handle much more. Lily would be gone, set off on her own journey, and Cayenne wanted Hawthorn to be her excursion.

  “I promise.”

  A smile played on her lips. “Well, we still have more than a half a jar of honey to get through; do you intend to let it go to waste, elf?”

  Hawthorn laughed and blinked them both back to the tree house.

  A Whisper of Rue

  Decadent Kane

  Available now on Amazon

  When a package magically shows up in Rue’s home, she’ll have two choices. Either do as Gage demands, or standby as an elf is tortured.

  Continue on to read a preview of A Whisper of Rue...

  Chapter One

  The folded letter resting on the wood floor told Rue two things: first, someone had been in her tree house; second, it was only the beginning. Rue looked around her home to check if anything had come up missing. Upon first glance, everything seemed, as it should be. The bedroom door was still shut, as she’d left it earlier. The kitchen still gleamed, with a single daisy sitting in a vase on the island counter. Even the den looked untouched. Her files were stacked neatly on the corner of her work desk and the hutch that held her mother’s trinkets remained locked and lit up, as always. Rue walked across the room to check the trinkets anyway. There were four total. A cat with emerald green eyes and a white body curled up in a ball and a black dragon spreading its wings sat on the first shelf. A black and silver masquerade mask rested on the middle shelf. The lowest shelf held a small flat-bottomed glass ball filled with petrified fairy dust. Which looked like a rock with crystals infused in it, only it randomly changed colors. None of it was valuable to anyone but Rue, and inside her heart pounded with relief. They were all she had left of her mother and she’d never known her father.

  Rue ran her slender fingers through her short white hair. As a lone elfess living in this particular olive tree, clear out in the middle of Daisy Meadow, she assumed whatever was in that note held significant importance to find its way out here, practically the middle of elfing nowhere. She lived out of town for a reason, being the only female private investigator in the area didn’t make her many friends. Most thought she inappropriately worked a male’s job. Females often found Rue “lacking.” She bent down to pick up the letter and took the seat at her desk. Lacking had never been a word she applied to herself and she took great satisfaction in not being a prissy elfess waiting around for a mate to come along. She didn’t need nor want a mate, she could take care of herself just fine, and she wasn’t afraid of a little self-pleasure.

  When she unfolded the paper, an earpiece fell out along with hand written instructions. Rue did not recognize the writing:

  Rue Devore,

  Put on the earpiece. No matter what happens, don’t take it off. Don’t fail to use it as a life hangs in the balance. Once the person dies, you’re next.

  No signature or name ended the letter. Rue rolled the earpiece around in her hand. Could it be a trick? Who would play a game like this with her? With her curiosity running rampant, she raised a brow at the small black object.

  She’d have to use the damn thing, even if there wasn’t a life on the line. She had to know where it led and why. Who would have left it? How did they get it in her home? Where was the person? One of the things that made her a good P.I. was her intense curiosity. Once a challenge had been given, and the mystery had been set before her, there would be no turning back. She had to know. It was like a curse needing to seek out the answer, to complete whatever test or difficulty lay before her. Perhaps it had been inherited by some long past ancestor, Rue didn’t know, and no matter how this overwhelming curious nature came to be within her, she had to sate it. Every elfing time.

  It appeared to be a standard earpiece. Well, other than a strange voice on the opposite end. While these types of technical objects were mostly found in the human realm several devices found their way to the elven realm out of curiosities by elves , and magic was a great use for many things including electronic. Once the thing was in place, she’d have a mighty hard time getting it out because of the tiny size. It would fall right into her ear and stay there. The letter said death would come if it wasn’t used. Who would want to kill her? Despite being a general outcast, she didn’t have “enemies”. Sure, she’d pissed an elf off a time or two over an affair or some lost valuable, but none had ever wanted to physically harm her. She was just doing her job, the job they’d hired her to do.

  This case wouldn’t be like her work and the payment didn’t result in money, the payment would be living...

  With that final thought mulling around in her head, Rue dropped the piece down in her left ear. She held her breath and waited for some odd voice to come across, but nothing happened. She exhaled with the silence. Perhaps it had all been some elaborate joke.

  “I knew you’d see reason,” a steady voice said. It was masculine and low. Not quite a whisper.

  Rue jumped at the sound. “Who is this?” Rue sat back in her chair. Could she even be heard on the other end?

  “The name’s Gage, Gage Evans. You don’t know me, but I know you.” His voice held a glimmer of amusement.

  Rue crossed her arms. “You left the note. How’d you get in here, and what do you want?” She wished she had someone to stare down instead of talking to air.

  “I didn’t come into your home and if you listen to everything I say, and do as you’re told, then no harm will come to anyone.” Gage’s voice didn’t falter, hitch, or change pitch. It stayed rock steady as if he were talking to a friend.

  “Do as I’m told?” Rue huffed. Her anger flared up. “Who do you think you are?” No one ever told her what to do, not since she was a wee elfling, and her mother had been the last to have that ability.

  He sighed in her ear. “Rue, there are things you don’t yet comprehend. I told you who I am and if you don’t do as you’re told, I can’t save you.”

  She cocked her eyebrow. “Before this point, my life wasn’t in danger, and if you know anything about me then you know I’m capable of saving myself should the need arise. What are you going to do if I don’t do it?” Satisfied with herself, Rue walked into the kitchen. She pulled out her strawberries and kiwi and took a healthy bite of each one, savoring their sweet tangy taste. Fruit was a food she would die for.

  “I can’t tell you just yet. But I can make sure you know that if my instructions are not followed, the repercussions will be great.” His voice came out flat, cold.

  “Is that a threat mister?” Rue glared at her fruit, mainly because she had nothing else to glare at.

  He didn’t respond right away. Rue ate three more pieces before Gage finally spoke again.

  “Go to Whisper Waterfall and take the emerald eyed cat with you.”

  Rue stilled. “How did you get in here? Are you still here? Where are you?” She turned in a circle, double-checking the area. Very few people knew about the objects she kept from her mother. Her eyes landed on the closed bedroom door. She tip toed over to the room and carefully turned the knob, clenching her teeth in an attempt to calm her thundering heart. The door slowly drifted open. She ducked down and half crawled into her room. A little light came from the small window above her bed, it barely lit the room. She didn’t find anyone there and everything lay just as she’d left it.

  “I told you, I didn’t go into your house.” Rue could hear the amusement in his voice and it pissed her off. “You need to be at the waterfall by sundown.”

  “Again, why am I doing this? You have nothing over me.” Except the creepy way he knew about the personal items in her house, the letter, and the must obey attitude.

  “You’ll have to listen to something horrible happen,” his voice lowered and the amusement disappeared.

  A chill ran its icy finger down her spine, goosebumps chasing it. Rue shook it off and headed back to the kitchen. He was trying to get to her. “I’m so terrified that I have to lis
ten.” Sarcasm dripped from her words. What did he expect? The things he was saying didn’t really make her believe she was in danger let alone anyone else.

  “Don’t worry then, it will hurt me more than it hurts you, this time.”

  “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

  “Guess you’ll either find out or you won’t. I hope for your sake, you don’t find out.” He took a deep breath expelling it in her ear and Rue almost thought she could feel it. She shivered.

  “This doesn’t scare me.” She pulled her boots off and let them fall, one by one to the floor. She needed a shower. Then it occurred to her he would probably hear her shower. He would be able to hear her do everything and that stopped her. “Are you always going to be listening?”

  “I have the same ear piece in my ear, I hear what you hear, and you hear what I hear.”

  “You are one twisted guy.” Great, she had a creepy audience. Did this fall under stalking?

  “At least we’re even.”

  Until I find a way to get the stupid thing out of my ear. She wanted a good mystery as much as the next PI, but not at the invasion of her privacy.

  “You won’t get it out now,” Gage said as if he could read her thoughts.

  “There is no way, no matter whose life is on the line, I’m going to let you listen to me use the bathroom or anything else I don’t want you to hear. I will find a way to get the earpiece to come out.”

  “No it won’t. But you’re welcome to try.”

  Rue stomped over to the desk. There had to be something that could help her pull the earpiece out. Tweezers! She plucked the silver tool from the depths of a drawer and slowly slid them into her ear. She tipped her head to the side as flat as she could make it while standing and wiggled the tweezers, hoping it would just fall out if she moved it around. But nothing came. Instead, a horrible itch took over the inside of her ear. Rue pulled the tweezers out and began rubbing, trying to scratch the internal problem.

  “Did your ear start itching?”

  “How’d you know?” Could he read her thoughts?

  “Cause it happened to me. It’s attached to you now.”

  “What? How?”

  “My magic. I enchanted it so if you tried to take it out, it would attach itself to you. “

  Rue stopped rubbing her ear. Elftastic! The dirty snail. He used magic against her. Rue kicked her chair and it slid over to the other side of the room. “You let me do that on purpose. You coward. You pervert! You—”

  “Rue, you can call me every name in your pretty little head but it won’t change anything. Afraid you’re stuck with me, and your decisions will affect everything. But you’re stubborn and you won’t see things my way instantly. You’ll need proof. I understand. But don’t say I didn’t warn you,” he stated.

  Proof of what? He was playing games with her and she wasn’t in the elfing mood. He had no right to come in her home. No right to make demands on her. No right to invade every inch of her privacy. She wanted the earpiece out. Why’d she have to get all curious and put the stupid thing in to begin with? Her mother always said her curiosity would lead her to trouble one day and Rue had the dreadful sense that today was that day. “I don’t know why you chose me to do whatever it is you need. Probably something horrible. But quit fucking around and remove the spell.”

  “You want it removed?”

  “Yes.” She hissed the word. Her anger bubbled inside threatening to tear her apart, mainly because she couldn’t see the man attempting to control her.

  “Then come and find me.”

  Decadent Kane, author of the trouble with elves series, writes paranormal romance with heat. She lives in Wyoming with a full house: 3 dogs, 1 cat, 1 guinea pig, 1 rat, 2 kids, and 1 fiance.

  An elfess in human form, Decadent enjoys dipping her fingers into the human realm where she took pen to paper and began the tales of the trouble with elves. Her obsessions include reading, Dean Winchester, and honey.

  She will devour your soul with glimpses of the feral ridden drow elves, with their dark skin and soul consuming. She’ll sneak morsels of naughty thoughts to you via goblins, and seduce you into stepping inside the elven realm where females disappear when lust takes over among other elfish troubles.

  Beware the sprites.

  Follow the wisps.

  But never look a drow elf king in the eyes...

  amazon.com/author/decadentkane