Mr. Aveline's murder was a tragedy.  But it was also damned inconvenient to<a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2F736x%2F44%2F73%2F99%2F447399941e9c08a8eb5ef89c9f0dee8f.jpg&amp;hash=52aaef243d9471fa037d1d6ec5460dc9" href="https://i.pinimg.com/736x/44/73/99/447399941e9c08a8eb5ef89c9f0dee8f.jpg" rel="nofollow ugc noopener" target="_blank">Erica Orsini</a>.  As the head librarian at the city library, she was in the midst of coordinating another fund drive for the library.  And she'd always been able to charm a substantial contribution from Aveline.  In fact, he was the library's biggest contributor.  Who would she now have to flirt with or blackmail to compensate for his loss?<br/><br/>Erica Orsini was no angel.  She would do whatever it took to get what she wanted.  A little magic never hurt.  Nor did charm, which she had plenty of.  And occasionally a little domination and kink, followed by blackmail shortly thereafter.  But she drew lines beyond which even she wouldn't cross.  Murder was one of those lines.<br/><br/>Aveline's murder signaled a change in the always tense relationship between werewolves and witches.  Perhaps it was time to talk to<a class="link link--external" data-proxy-href="/proxy.php?link=https%3A%2F%2Fdata.whicdn.com%2Fimages%2F269289919%2Foriginal.jpg&amp;hash=3117bce73a7c7eae9738ccf49eafac14" href="https://data.whicdn.com/images/269289919/original.jpg" rel="nofollow ugc noopener" target="_blank">Lt. Jake Murphy</a>.  Erica was somewhat of a contradiction.  She could be flamboyant and outspoken when it came to her job as head librarian.  Not exactly what you would expect from that profession.  Yet she always kept a low profile in her other profession of witch.<br/><br/>But with magic that gave her insights the police lacked, she often fed the homicide detective information about what was going on in the city.  She was always vague about how she knew what she knew.  And she never admitted to being a witch or having magical powers.  When he asked for her sources, she would simply say "I hear things".  An unsatisfactory answer to a cop, but her warnings always came true.  He was now a superstar on the police force for solving crimes no one else could.  And all she demanded of him was that he take all the credit and never mention her role in his success.  Though she preferred women, she wasn't above flirting with him either, given that he was better looking than most cops.<br/><br/>In this instance though, it was not so much about solving a crime, but preventing further crimes.  Erica wanted to believe Aveline's murder was a random act.  But she feared it might be the opening shot in a renewed war between the witches and werewolves.  Yet if she could help find Aveline's murderer, perhaps further bloodshed could be prevented.<br/><br/>The Hallowed Society probably wouldn't approve of her connection to the police.  They preferred to work behind the scenes rather than directly with the authorities.  But Erica could care less what they wanted.  Which was why she wasn't a member.<br/><br/>Sitting in her office the morning after Aveline's murder, she dialed Lt. Murphy's number.<br/><br/>"Hello Murphy.  I think we need to meet.  The Crescent?  That will be fine.  Let's make it a lunch and meet at noon."