by Cynthia Eden
Time for Sadie Townsend to die.
***
He wouldn’t lose her.
Sully held Sadie close. His arm was curled tightly around her shoulders as they hurried up the steps to her house.
The desolation on Kyle’s face when he’d asked about his Su—
No, that wasn’t the end Sully would have with Sadie. He wasn’t giving her up. Wasn’t going to live his life—such as it was—without her.
The instant the door shut behind them, his mouth was on hers. The need and the consuming lust had his body shaking. His cock was rock hard, fully erect, and ready to thrust into her tight sex.
Her lips and tongue met his with the same feverish intensity. He could taste the hunger in her kiss. They both felt the same frantic fever of desire.
Fuck, yes.
She clawed at his shirt and shredded the material so that her hands could get to his skin. Her fingers curled over his muscles, and her hot hands that sent sparks dancing over his body.
A purr rumbled in her throat, and his cock jerked in hungry anticipation.
Her fingers darted down to the buckle of his belt.
Sully ripped his mouth from hers. “No!”
Her eyes widened. So gold. And her lips were so red and wet and—
He picked her up, took five steps into the dining room, and spread her out on the table. Fucking beautiful. He’d wanted to make a meal of her all night.
Her lips curved in a slow smile as she kicked off her shoes.
I’d die for her. The realization hit him as he watched her gorgeous smile. Lie. Kill. Die. Anything she wanted. He was lost. And so desperate for her. He’d always be desperate.
He caught the waist of her pants. Jerked the soft cotton down, and, at the same time, he snagged the scrap of lace that shielded her sex.
Sadie tossed her shirt away and unhooked her bra, revealing those perfect lick-me breasts.
He caught her nipple with his mouth. Sucked and licked and tasted the sweetness that was his Sadie. The scent of her arousal filled the air around him. Rich. Tempting.
Her hands were on his back. Stroking and pulling him closer.
Sully freed her breast, only to immediately turn his attention to the other pink nipple. She tasted so good.
And he was going to taste more. So much more.
He licked his lips when he rose. “Spread your legs.”
The table was a dark cherry beneath her, making her skin seem to shine in stark contrast.
Her legs parted, revealing the plump, pink folds of her aroused flesh. Pink and wet and perfect.
Sully’s mouth captured her. Pressed tight to that sweet center and took. His tongue and lips teased her. Pushed against the button of her desire. Tasted the silky heaven open to him.
Sully took from her like a man starving because he was. The more he tasted, the more he hungered. His tongue drove into her body. The need for her essence burned to his very soul.
He heard her shout of release. Felt the ripples of her climax.
Still he took. His Sadie. His. Forever.
“Sully!” Sadie called out his name even as she tugged at his hair. “Th-this time…you…inside.”
His cock was about to explode so that sounded like a damn brilliant idea to him. One final swipe of his tongue, then—
He shoved his jeans down. Caught his cock in one hand and pushed the broad head between her thighs.
Sully sank into her. Their eyes met. He withdrew. Thrust deep.
Her breath choked out. He could see the edge of her teeth.
Her muscles clamped around him.
So. Damn. Tight.
They climaxed together. The release slammed through them. Sully held her tight, drinking the cries from her lips and knowing that he’d found—
Everything.
All he’d ever wanted—all he could ever want—he’d found it all with his Sadie. He held her tight. Cradled her. Treasured her. And wondered…
Dammit…why, why couldn’t a monster have a chance at love?
***
Someone was pounding at the door. Sadie blinked awake. She forced the sleep from her eyes so that she could glare at the bedside clock. Ten fifteen.
Not exactly the crack of dawn, but then, she hadn’t gotten to sleep until after six that morning.
An arm rested over her stomach. A strong thigh caged her legs.
She smiled when she caught sight of Sully’s tousled hair. He liked to hold her when he slept. She rather enjoyed that. Made her feel…wanted. Ah, that was—
“Agent Townsend! Dammit, Sadie, I know you hear me! Freaking cat ears—you probably heard me drive up!” The pounding of a fist rattled her door, then Owen shouted, “Get your clothes on and open this door! We’ve got a situation—”
“That man needs an ass kicking,” she muttered.
“Yeah, he does,” Sully growled.
Sadie smiled and kissed his bare shoulder before she managed to slide free of his grasp. She grabbed her robe and belted it quickly. “Remind me to give him one.”
Sully didn’t get out of the bed. Not that she blamed him. Daylight and vampires really didn’t mix well. His kind were weaker when the sun rose, often suffering headaches and nausea—no wonder they preferred the nightlife.
She hurried across the room and took the stairs three at a time. Adrenaline already kicked through her blood. When Sadie jerked open her front door, Owen was still shouting.
His eyes widened when he saw her. His stare swept from her hair—and, oh, yeah, she knew it had to look wild, courtesy of Sully’s fingers—to her bare thighs. Her silky black robe was short because she hated having her legs trapped by too much fabric. Leopards sometimes had confinement issues.
But she didn’t mind it when Sully held her tight in bed. No, she didn’t mind that confinement at all.
Owen drew in a hard breath. “What? Do you spend all your free time screwing vampires?”
Ass kicking. Her hands dropped to her sides. One more minute, and she’d let her claws out. She hadn’t gotten enough sleep for this crap. “Do you spend all your time being a prick?”
Owen blinked. Then scraped a hand over his face. “Yeah, unfortunately, I pretty much do.”
What?
His gaze drifted over her shoulder as he frowned. “Tell Sleeping Beauty to wake his butt up, I need him.”
“Daytime’s not exactly his peak performance time.” A fact Owen knew.
“I don’t need his strength.” Owen looked back at her. “I need his contacts.”
Her brow furrowed. Behind her, she heard the creak of the stairs. Sounded like Sully was coming to join their little party. “What’s happening?” Sadie asked. She stepped back because she knew she had to let Owen inside.
The door closed behind him with a soft click. “Su Kent’s awake and, unfortunately, her memory of the attack is crystal clear.”
Sadie winced. Uh-oh. “Has she…started telling the hospital staff about what happened?” If she had, Su would either be headlining the news soon or she’d find herself shipped off to the psych ward for the foreseeable future.
“She told Dr. Micco. He was in the room when she opened her eyes and started screaming about men with claws and fangs.”
A soft footfall whispered behind her. A moment later, Sully’s hand pressed against her back. “What do you want me to do? I can’t make her forget. You know I can’t work Thrall yet.”
Thrall. The old vamp term for the ability to control a victim’s mind. To get the unwilling to surrender, to bare a throat and beg to be Taken.
Born Masters had the ability with their first kill. For others, age brought the power, and, in terms of a vamp’s age, Sully was still a newborn.
Though not quite as defenseless.
“We need help from a demon. Moody has some contacts, but they aren’t exactly being helpful.”
Yes, well, Sadie knew Moody wasn’t overly popular among his kind. Demons didn’t tend to think too highly of anybody who looked or acted l
ike a cop. And Moody had been a cop for ten years before joining the Bureau.
“Do you know any demons who owe you a favor?” Owen pushed.
Sadie glanced back at Sully. Dealing in favors—the way of the human world and the Other.
Sully nodded. “A few.”
“Good, because you’re gonna have to call in those debts today.”
Sully lifted his hand and pressed his fingers against his forehead. “What do you need?” What, not who. He knew the game.
Owen flashed his shark’s smile. “A level-eight or nine demon. The stronger, the better.”
Level-eight or nine. Sadie exhaled slowly. Demon power was on a scale from one to ten. The low-level demons—the ones to threes—were barely any threat to the human population. It was the high-level demons that everyone feared. Those above a level seven distinction, or L7, were trouble.
Powerful. Deadly.
Level tens—they were the hell-on-earth guys with their supernatural powers. But a level nine—well, he or she sure wouldn’t be someone to take lightly. Especially considering that a demon with that much power might be able to rip away the mind of a human.
“You sure about this?” she asked Owen.
“There’s no choice. We need help. Someone has to make Ms. Kent forget all about her trip to hell.”
A perfect job for a demon.
Chapter Fourteen
The woman on the bed was covered in stark white bandages. Her straight black hair fell around her face, and her dark eyes blazed with fear.
“I know you.” Her voice was a broken rasp.
Sully hesitated just inside the doorway. “Do you now?” Aye, that was part of the problem.
A tear leaked from her left eye and she began to shake, then to scream, with a voice long gone hoarse. Horrible, gasping gurgles sprang from her throat.
“The bastard tortured her for hours,” Owen revealed, shaking his head. He stood at the foot of Su Kent’s bed with his hands clenched behind his back. “Micco wants to send her to a psych ward—”
Where Sully knew she’d probably stay for a long, long time. Especially if she started talking about men who could become real monsters.
Su stopped screaming and fell back against the mattress. Sully noticed the straps that were tied to her wrists, anchoring her to the bed. He took a cautious step forward.
She flinched and turned her head away. “S-stop…M-make it all…st-stop…” Her pain and fear filled the room.
I’ll find the leopard. And I’ll stop him from hurting anyone else ever again.
“Su,” Sully said her name quietly.
Another man stepped into the room behind him and the door closed almost soundlessly.
The woman on the bed didn’t move.
“Su.” Sully walked around the bed. Stopped beside her and saw that her dark eyes were open, but staring at nothing. No, staring at a nightmare only she could see.
He reached for her hand. Damn. She was cold.
Her lips parted and Sully was afraid the woman was about to start screaming again.
“I never hurt you.” He spoke to her as another tear rolled down her cheek. She stared right through him. “I hurt him. I stopped him before he could do anything else to you.”
“Cl-claws…and t-teeth…” Dry heaves shook her chest.
Sully swallowed and wondered if she was talking about the shifter or him.
“I didn’t hurt you,” he repeated, trying to reach her. He wished that Sadie was there. She always had a much softer touch than he did. But Owen had sent her back out to that damn bloody building downtown. He’d wanted Sadie and her team to canvas the area to see if anyone knew anything about Corey Blaine—and to make certain the killer hadn’t left any telling tracks that would help them nail him.
Sadie was the best hunter they had. She hadn’t been with the unit that swept the building the night before, and Owen was worried as hell they’d missed something without her.
But I sure could have used her help here. With her soothing voice and understanding eyes, she would have been able to reach the shattered Su.
“Hurt…I-I hurt…s-so much. C-can’t forget…”
“Do you want to?” He knew Owen’s attention was locked on them. Her response was very, very important.
Her head moved in the briefest of nods.
Not good enough. Owen wanted him to help wipe out Su’s memories. Before he gave the demon standing so still next to the door the all clear, Sully wanted to make absolutely certain Su understood what was happening.
She’d have a choice in this, no matter what Owen wanted.
“Tell me, Su. Tell me what you want.”
“T-to for…get…” Her swollen lips trembled. “Go back…like before.”
It wouldn’t be exactly like before.
But it wouldn’t be like surviving hell, either.
“I can do that. I can take all the bad memories away.”
Her hand twisted and grabbed his with desperate strength. Her eyes finally locked on his. No, finally saw him. “Do it.” The clearest thing she’d said.
The choice was made.
The demon stepped forward.
***
The building reeked of the leopard. Sadie stood outside the old building on Burns and Montay, her nose wrinkling. That jerk had left his scent everywhere.
“Probably living here,” she said to the two men at her back. Humans, but men she trusted. Men she’d worked with before. “His stench is too strong.”
“Crime scene guys found traces of blood in two other rooms on the second floor.” This came from Derek Martin, the blond agent who liked to keep one hand close to his gun at all times. Smart fellow. “Matched it to Donna Summers and Theresa Kite.”
The first two victims. No, the two victims they knew about. Sadie was sure there’d been more. Corey Blaine hadn’t been a good little choirboy his whole life. There’d been other kills, those he’d kept secret, but in Miami, he’d stopped hiding the bodies.
Cocky asshole. Taunting the cops and scaring the humans.
“So this is where he brought his prey.” The sun was starting to set, and the red glow fell over the building like a shadow made of blood.
She’d already walked the streets for most of the day. Talked to every person she could find in the area, but no one remembered Corey Blaine. Odd. It wasn’t like the fellow was easy to forget.
“We’re going over this building,” she announced. “Every single room.” Every single inch. Six stories, twelve rooms per floor. Sure, the building had been searched three times already—
But not by her.
Her nostrils flared. That scent was driving her crazy. The leopard sure had marked his turf. “Let’s get this done.” Her stomach was in knots. “I want to find this perp.” She had to find him and stop him before he tortured and killed another woman.
***
The straps were gone from Su’s wrists. She lay against the mattress, seemingly calm. The tears on her cheeks were drying.
“That it?” Owen asked, frowning at the demon.
Charles Lamoyne gave a nod, then glanced at Sully. “You’re in my debt now, Sullivan.”
Fabulous. Just where he wanted to be, owing a demon. Sully inclined his head.
“I’ll collect payment one of these days.” A smile from Charles. Not the friendly kind. “Count on it.”
He would.
Charles turned away and headed for the door.
It had taken a big chunk of the day to find the demon. He wasn’t one to advertise his presence in the city. Most of the strongest Other liked to keep to the shadows. The better to watch the game mortals played.
Lamoyne hadn’t helped the human out of the goodness of his heart. As far as Sully knew, there wasn’t much goodness in there. But Sully had saved Lamoyne’s hide a year ago, when he’d stopped a human under Thrall from taking the demon’s head.
He’d hoped for an even debt exchange.
Sully should have known he’d have to pay
a bit more for the help. Most demons didn’t do favors for humans. Lamoyne had made a big exception by helping Su.
Sully glanced back at the woman. Her eyes were closing, and she looked almost…peaceful.
Maybe she’d stay that way.
Lamoyne’s psychic talent was shading memories and twisting truth. When Su woke up again, she’d have images from a car wreck in her mind. Perfect memories to match her injuries.
She’d remember the squeal of tires and the crunch of metal—
But not the claws of monsters.
Sully turned away from her. He was bone tired, but, luckily, the sun would be down soon.
Maybe the headache pounding at the front of his skull would end when the night came.
Hmmm…or maybe, while he was in the hospital, he should take a quick swing by the nearest blood bank for a little pick-me-up. He was sure there was a nice, refrigerated supply of his favorite liquid close by.
***
When Sadie stepped onto the second floor, every muscle in her body tightened.
Blood and death were in the air. So thick she nearly choked.
Sully had fought here. Women had died. And that sick freak had played.
His stench was so much stronger here. Her eyes narrowed. Stronger…and fresher.
Her claws burst from her fingertips.
***
Sully froze just outside of the elevator bank at Hudson Hospital.
For an instant, he could have sworn that he’d caught a whiff of Sadie’s scent.
But, no, that was crazy. She wasn’t even close by. She was on the other side of town, searching that old building.
A whisper of fear seemed to brush over his body. A spike of anger surged in his blood. And he knew—
Blood link.
Hell.
The fear and anger were Sadie’s.
Something is wrong. Sadie needs me!
***
He attacked her first. The fully shifted leopard sprang from the room on the left and swiped his claws across her stomach. Sadie fell onto the floor, hard, and heard gunshots blast around her as the two agents fired. Her skin burned, blood soaked her shirt, and she knew that she was in serious trouble.
Lying in wait.
Leopards were patient hunters. Corey Blaine had known she’d come to find him.