The stranger still wore that brazen smile. “I have something that might change your mind. Here.” He reached inside his jacket and tossed me an envelope.
I caught it easily and looked inside at the thick stash of twenty-dollar bills. My heart raced. I’d never seen so much cash before. There must have been at least four thousand dollars in there.
“Five thousand dollars,” said the stranger, reading my thoughts. “And there’s five more after you finish the job. That’s ten thousand big ones, darling.”
“Call me darling one more time… and I’ll cut off your manhood and feed it to a hellhound. Got it?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
I didn’t have to look at him to know that he was smiling. He was an ass. Pretty, but still an ass.
Damn. I needed that money. I was broke. Dirt poor. My last meal had been a bowl of Lucky Charms, and there was nothing magically delicious about them apart from the sugar rush. I was losing too much weight, too quickly.
I had sworn I’d never return. Not after how they had treated me. Because I was different…
But as I stood there, with the weight of the envelope in my hand, emotions were an expense I couldn’t afford. I could pay my rent and get some new clothes. Damn it. My underwire was poking my rib cage again. I needed a new bra!
I looked up. The stranger was eyeing my ripped jacket sleeve. “It broke your skin,” he said, slightly impressed. “But you don’t seem affected by the demon’s poison.” When I didn’t answer, he continued. “You move fast… for a woman.” I knew he added the last part just to irritate me further. “I heard you were good, but I didn’t know you were that good. I felt like I was looking at a younger version of Wonder Woman without the sexy outfit.”
I glared at him. “Don’t patronize me, pal—”
“Jax.”
“I don’t know who you think you are—
“I’m Jax. I’m a Scorpio. I enjoy long walks on beaches, beer, women, and killing demons.”
“But after what the Council did to me… after what happened to my parents…” I said.
He looked at me, seemingly sympathetic. It made him look appealing and attractive, and I forced the thought from my head. “If I wanted someone pulling on my leash, I would have stayed. As I remember, the Council wasn’t too keen on me in the first place, and I believe they were very happy to see me go. I don’t remember anyone trying to stop an eighteen-year-old from leaving.”
Jax’s smile faltered. “I’m sorry about what happened to your parents. It was a terrible accident.”
“It was no accident,” I hissed. My face went cold and then hot. “Two highly trained angel-born just don’t die from a fire in their own home. I don’t care what the Council says. It was murder.”
My parents had died under suspicious circumstances. At least they were suspicious to me. And that was the reason I distrusted the Council.
And one day I’ll get to the bottom of this.
Ire flashed in Jax’s eyes, and I could see that they were green. Whatever was going on in his head had nothing to do with me.
My temper burned. “It makes me sick that the Council thinks they can buy me off.” But it made me sicker that I was tempted by the amount of money in my hand.
“It’s not a payout,” said Jax persuasively as he tucked his hands in his pockets in a causal gesture. “They’re not asking you to come back. It’s a job. You don’t have to deal with the Council if you don’t want to. You can deal with me. And after the job is done, you can go back to whatever it was you were doing.” A wry smile wafted over him. “But I can see you’re hanging on pretty tightly to that envelope.”
I glowered at him. “Oh, shut up.” Damn. Damn. Damn. “What’s the mark?”
Jax smiled, raked a hand over his hair, and sighed. “A Greater demon maybe? We’re not sure. But it’s something clever and strong enough to kill highly trained Sensitives.”
I started. “A demon’s killing angel-born?”
“Murdered. A body was discovered in New York City three weeks ago, and then another one two days ago in Westchester County. We found the body in the woods just outside her home in Thornville.”
My pulse quickened. Thornville was my hometown.
“All angel-born,” said Jax. “Something’s targeting us. And nobody knows why.”
Fear gripped me. I’d never heard of a Greater demon targeting angel-born. It was so much easier just to kill regular humans to get at their souls, their life forces. Why would a demon go through the trouble of tracking and killing a handful of angel-born, who could easily fight back and possibly kill it, when it had an unlimited supply of easy human kills? It didn’t make sense.
“How are they killed?” I questioned, trying to keep my voice from showing too much emotion.
“Throats ripped out, skin left in ribbons, hearts gone, souls gone,” said Jax. “All evidence points to a demon attack. It’s the same MO for all of them. A demon mess. I can’t wait to get my hands on the SOB.”
“What does the Legion say?” I had to ask. The Legion of Angels was the Council’s boss, so to speak, or at least that’s what it was supposed to be. The archangels had given the Deus Septem to the Council. It consisted of a series of seven books with rules to help guide them in their roles as appointed warriors on Earth, to watch over humans from whatever evil slipped from the Netherworld. But angels rarely came to visit us mere mortals, so the Council was pretty much left to its own devices and set of rules.
Jax’s face flushed, and tension rippled over his shoulders. “What they always say. They have no idea, and it’s better we figure it out on our own.”
He was even handsome when he was mad. God help me. I glanced over his shoulder through the open door to the gleaming black Audi A5 parked in front of the motel that hadn’t been there when I’d followed the incubus.
“How did you find me?” I asked, a little annoyed. I always thought I was pretty good at covering my tracks. But this guy had found me three days after I’d arrived back in New York. I was either losing my touch, or he was really good at tracking people.
Jax’s sly smile had retuned. “I’m a friend of Father Thomas. The man’s got a mean Star Trek collection. He’s got this action figure of Khan that can—right, anyway,” he added quickly as he saw my frown. “He told me he’d hired you to kill the incubus and that I’d find you here.”
I raised a brow. “Really? In this motel? I think I’ll have a chat with the priest.”
“No, not here, here.” Jax shook his head; his face flushed. It was a very nice face. “At the Black Pony Irish Pub. I followed you.”
“So, you’re a stalker. How nice.”
Jax laughed. “Don’t you first need to be a stalker to become a good Hunter?” He looked at the broken bed. “I have other skills too.”
Heat rushed to my face, and I put my hand on my hip in my attempt to crush it. But I also wanted to punch that pretty smile off his face.
“Why did they send you?” I eyed the stranger called Jax. He was very cute, no, not cute, but strikingly handsome. I knew then they’d sent a pretty face to tempt me. I doubt I would have stayed to listen to more than five seconds if they’d sent an average-looking man. I was a sucker for the pretty boys. “Did they think I’d go weak in the knees because of a pretty face?”
Jax beamed. “You think I’m pretty?”
Good lord. I rolled my eyes. “Shut up.”
“You do. It’s written all over your face. You think I’m hot. Don’t you? You think I’m sexy.”
What had I done? “Can you shut up a minute? Can you do that? I can’t hear myself think. I need to think.” Please go away so I can think.
Jax moved from the door and came toward me. “What do you say—” he extended his hand, “—partners?”
I looked at his extended hand but didn’t take it. “I work alone.”
“Not this time, you don’t,” said Jax, lowering his hand, seemingly prepared for me to say that. “Listen, the job comes with a p
artner—me—and it’s not negotiable. It’s a take it or leave it kind of thing. You decide. But I come with a pretty price tag of ten thousand dollars.”
“If I catch and kill the demon responsible.”
“If you catch and kill the demon responsible,” repeated Jax.
I swallowed, wondering what the hell I was going to do. I’ve never had a partner before. I’d always worked alone, and that’s how I liked it. My own choices. My own decisions. Never had to wait or compromise for the likes of anyone. That was what a Hunter was, a loner. It was the perfect job for me. I was born to be a Hunter.
But I was broke. Worse than broke, and I was nearly starving—not on purpose—I liked to eat—a lot. Hell, I needed the money, and if some Greater demon was out there killing us, I would gladly send it back to the Netherworld for a hefty paycheck.
And just maybe… this was my chance at sneaking back into Hallow Hall to search the records pertaining to my parents’ deaths…
“You can start with buying a new wardrobe with that money.” Jax’s eyes rolled over the tears in my jeans, my leather jacket, and gray T-shirt that had once been black.
There he went pissing me off again. But he had a point. I looked like I lived on the streets.
My eyebrows rose. Jax blinked, seeing the inkling crossing me and not knowing what it was.
“You want this job or not?” he asked, seeming nervous for the first time.
“Fine,” I said. “I’m in.”
3
The sound of purring slipped into my awareness, jarring me awake. I opened my eyes in a moment of panic, not remembering where I was and still unaccustomed to the white walls and L-shape of my new apartment. I blinked into two large blue eyes staring at me—
I screamed like a banshee and fell out of bed with a heavy plop.
“Ouch,” I said to the floor. “Damn it, Tyrius! Why do you always have to do that? One day you’re going to give me a heart attack. Is that want you want? Eaten away by maggots by the time Father Thomas smells my rotten corpse?”
“Always so dramatic.” The cat leaped off the bed and landed expertly on the wooden floor next to my face. “I like watching you sleep. Something about the way your eyelids twitch.”
“That is so creepy on so many levels.” I rolled to a sitting position. “I think I cracked a rib.”
“Nonsense,” said Tyrius. “Maybe just bruised. You heal fast, anyway. Before you know it—you’ll be right as rain.”
I sighed and stared at the cat. “Why can’t you just pretend to be a real cat? Cleaning yourself nonstop, chasing birds, throwing up hairballs? You know… the usual cat stuff?”
“Because I’m not a real cat, dearest,” said Tyrius as he stretched to his full length. “I’m a baal demon. Hairballs are for amateurs. If you get your human to brush you regularly—no hairballs.”
I shook my head, feeling a smile creeping up to my mouth. I could never stay mad at the demon. He was just too damn cute. The sophisticated Siamese looked dressed for an elegant masquerade ball in pale evening wear with chic black accessories around his face and paws. His deep blue eyes could hypnotize any mouse or bird. I’d always suspected cats were just way too clever to be just regular animals. I knew there had to be a demon in there somewhere. Well, some of them.
I rubbed the crust from my eyes. “Wait a minute—where’s your collar?”
“Collar!” said Tyrius, and he shivered. “I’m not a pet. I choose human companionship. I’m not a slave. I get free food, lodging, massages, and all I have to do is purr and blink and humans practically fall all over me.”
I met the cat’s blue eyes. “I’m not human.”
“You are part human,” said the cat. “And I’m one hundred percent demon extraordinaire.”
A wave of irritation swept through me. “Grandma got you one, only to ward off the potential animal lovers, thinking that you were a stray. It’s for your own protection, Tyrius.”
“Me, a stray? Please, woman. Look at me. I’m fabulous. A seal point Siamese—it doesn’t get better than that. In the cat breed world… I’m royalty.”
I rolled my eyes. “Fine, Your Highness. But don’t blame me if you get snatched up by some crazy cat lady. I heard they only feed their cats canned food.”
Tyrius made a disappointing sound in his throat. “Speaking of your grandmother… why didn’t you come home sooner?”
I kept my face blank, but my shoulders tensed. “I was busy.”
“Four phone calls a month isn’t enough, Rowyn. Your grandma deserves better. And she’s not getting any younger either. She’s the only family you’ve got left.”
Ouch. That hurt. He was right. I was a complete ass, too proud to come back home with nothing to show for my five-year absence. There was no way I’d mooch off my grandmother. And that kind of thinking had kept me away.
The tiny cat shook his head. “You don’t write. You don’t call—”
“You don’t have a phone.”
“Right. The point is… your grandmother misses you.”
My chest tightened. “I know. I’ve been a complete ass.” I got to my feet, only slightly embarrassed that I was in my undies and T-shirt. It’s not like I had anything worth hiding.
“Rowyn.”
I turned and looked down at the worried tone in Tyrius’s voice. “What?”
“When’s the last time you had a real meal? You look positively famished.”
A sigh shifted my shoulders. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” Tyrius sat back on his haunches, his tail curled around his paws. “I’m serious. You look like you’ve lost about ten pounds since I saw you two months ago. What’s going on?”
“Try being broke.” I moved over to the small night table and picked up my phone. No new messages. Being a Hunter wasn’t glamorous. It was hard work, and the pay sucked. I didn’t have a steady income. Hunting was more like freelance work, and the pay—when I got paid—was barely enough to get by. With my Facebook page, app, and website DarkHunterforhire.com, I’d get a few hunting jobs—once I’d figured out how to skim through the fake messages—but it wasn’t enough. Not nearly enough.
Times were tough, and it was one of the reasons why I came back. Father Thomas was a paying customer. The bonus was he offered me this loftlike apartment, the converted attic in his Victorian-style home, at a very reasonable price.
I knew by coming back to my hometown I’d risk seeing familiar faces. But I didn’t feel ready to deal with it. The pain was still fresh, even after five years.
I put my phone back down. “Things are looking up for me, though. I got a new mark.”
“Another incubus gift from Father Thomas?”
“No.” I moved my gaze over to the cat. “The Council.”
Tyrius wheezed like he had a hairball stuck in his throat. “The Council Council? The one you hate? The one you blame for your parents’ deaths? The one you ran away from and swore you’d never join again?”
“That’s the one.” I swallowed, feeling cold. “And I’m not joining them. I’m doing freelance work for them. It’s different.”
“If you say so.” Tyrius watched me. Blue eyes wide, he bobbed his head, not dropping his gaze for an instant. “What was it that convinced you? It must have been something significant—no—don’t tell me—they offered you a lot of money. Didn’t they? Yes, that’s it. Isn’t it? How much?”
Damn that cat was too perceptive. “Ten grand. Five now and another five when I finish the job.”
Tyrius swore. “Think of all the filet mignon you can eat with that kind of cash!”
I made a face. “I don’t eat flesh.”
The cat shook his head. “Maybe you should start.” Tyrius changed the subject at the frown on my face. “What’s the mark? Must be a considerably large demon for that amount of money.”
I quickly told Tyrius about my meeting with Jax and the Greater demon killings.
Tyrius was silent for a moment. “Why you?”
I bl
inked, taken aback. “What?”
The cat’s small features twisted in worry. “Why did they offer you this job? Why not just put more angel-born on the case? Why did the Council single you out for this mark? Something smells fishy, and it’s not the scallops I had this morning.”
A frown pinched my forehead as I looked at the baal demon. Tyrius had a point. I sourly wondered if the Council had an ulterior motive for getting me involved. Too late. I’d already accepted the money and planned on spending it.
I gave the cat a wary look. “I don’t know. Maybe because I’m a damn good Hunter? What does it matter anyway? The demon needs to be stopped before it kills again, and I want to help any way I can.”
“And what about this Jax character?” inquired Tyrius, his eyes narrowed. “You trust him?”
“Of course not. I don’t know him.” I don’t care how good-looking he is, I thought. He was still a stranger. I smiled at the overprotective cat, my only true friend. “Don’t worry. It’s fine. I’m supposed to meet him this afternoon at some healer’s clinic. I need to see the body before they cremate it, in case they missed something.” I looked down at myself, suddenly wary. “But I need to go buy some clothes first. I can’t keep going around town looking like a hobo. It’s not good for business.”
A hesitant look pinched Tyrius’s eyes. “Are you ready to work with another angel-born?” His faint tone of worry tightened my shoulders another notch.
“I am,” I lied. I wasn’t ready. The butterflies in my belly wanted out. After Jax had driven off in his shiny car, I’d gone home to take a shower to wash the demon ash from my hair and skin and to catch some much-needed sleep. I was still uncomfortable with the idea of having a partner, but each time I stared at that wad of cash, I had to keep telling myself it was just temporary.
What would happen if he found out my secret?
4
The fifteen-minute bus ride to Parks Hollow felt like seconds. I had left my apartment calm and collected, but every block deeper into town wound me tighter. I was so wrapped up in my own mind, going over what Jax had told me, that I almost missed my stop. Agitated, I pulled the request cord and got off at the next stop.
Dark Hunt Page 2