Hot Demon in the City (Latter Day Demons Book 1)

by Suttle, Connie

  "Farin, you need to warn your brother—and Mike if you can. I know this is turning into a testosterone war, but there are bigger things out there that may not like the attention."

  "I don't know what you're talking about," she muttered, struggling not to cry.

  "Hey," I pulled her into a hug. "It's not worth your tears. Mike should be the one needing tissues. If Anita and I hadn't pulled his ass out of that bar—Rick's too—they could be toast right now instead of fighting with Vann from another news station."

  "But people deserve the truth," she leaned away from me.

  "Trust me on this one," I begged. "Somebody doesn't want this truth told, and they'll do whatever it takes to make sure of it."

  How could I tell her that Mike and Rick could end up dead or under compulsion? Vann, too, for that matter. They'd investigated a simple bar fight and taken it much too far. Vamps and werewolves were still hidden and didn't take kindly to threats of exposure.

  I wasn't even including the others that belonged to Anita's race, or what they were capable of doing. The dead seals in the bay could attest to their playful fetishes.

  An intern found me after Farin and I left the restroom. I had a message from Gerta Britt. She wanted to know what, if anything, we were doing with the information she'd given. She was also asking why Mike now worked for News Eighty-Two.

  I wanted to curse—I held it back.

  "Tell her I'll call back when I have more information," I said. "I have to ask Vann if he's planning a follow-up on that story."

  "I will." He grinned and loped toward the intern's shared cubicle.

  "Farin?" I turned back to her.

  "What?"

  "Where's the nearest sporting goods store?"

  * * *

  I ended up buying three hunting knives; I couldn't decide which might be best to defend my life if it became necessary. A gym might be the next item on my list—I really hadn't exercised since my arrival, so that needed to be rectified. Sure—sleeping later in the morning was a gift—and one I'd have to give up, it appeared.

  Uncle Sal would be disappointed in me for letting things go for so long. The threat against Mike's life in a supe bar, as Anita called it, brought that home in a hurry. Those vamps had seen Mike and Rick, I knew that much. Vamps also had long memories. They'd know who I was if they ever saw—or scented—me again.

  Yes, I could fight off three human men. Six vamps? Likely another story. For a moment, I wished for my mother's talent, before squashing that thought. It had never manifested in me—or any of my sisters.

  That's why I had to rely on my lifelong training with Dad, Uncle Sal and a few others; they'd taught me how to protect myself from mundane attacks. It made me wish I'd brought my swords with me; I knew how to fight with twin blades. Swords were considered archaic weapons on Earth, so I hadn't brought them.

  I wanted to kick myself, now, for leaving them behind.

  Anita called just before I walked through the back door, after parking the TinyCar in Aunt Bree's overly large garage.

  "Hey," I said.

  "Problem," she replied.

  "What's that?"

  "Mike's missing. Never made it to his friend's house after he got off work."

  Another line on my cell phone buzzed while Anita's words ran through my mind. "Wait," I said, "I have another call."

  "Hello?" I said after switching to the other line.

  "Rick's about to go crazy," Farin wept. "We can't find Mike anywhere."

  "Where are you?" I asked.

  "At Rick's." She rattled off the downtown address.

  "I'll be there in a few," I said, before going back to Anita. "That was Farin," I said. "She and her brother are about to have a meltdown because they can't find Mike. I told Farin I'd be at her brother's house in a little while. Want to come?"

  "Sure, although I believe you're aware that either the wolves or the vamps probably have him by now—it's dark outside."

  "Yeah. That has crossed my mind," I agreed. "Want to come here, first?"

  "Nah. Give me the address. I don't like getting my car out unless I have to."

  "Agreed. I'll meet you at Rick's place," I said and ended the call. If Farin hadn't asked, I'd probably leave Mike to his fate.

  Or not.

  Stuffing one of my new knives into a boot after I changed clothes, I skipped to Rick's downtown loft. Anita was in the hall outside his door, waiting for me when I arrived.

  "Want dinner after?" I asked her.

  "Sure. Weather apparently pays good," she jerked her head at Rick's door. It was an upscale condo building, with plenty of space, which was unusual for the area. Houses and buildings tended to be narrow and tall.

  "Yeah." I pressed the doorbell. Farin answered the door and hugged me immediately.

  "I'm really sorry to bother you like this," her brother, Rick, stood behind Farin. "It's just—you got us away from that bar last night, and I still don't understand how that happened. We need to find Mike," he added, sounding a bit lost.

  "Did he say he was going to make any stops on the way home?" Anita walked past us and set her purse on the glass coffee table next to a stylish, chocolate-brown sofa.

  "He said he was going to pick up pizza, after getting a rental car since his was destroyed," Rick said, motioning me farther into his apartment. "Pizza from Cecille's, our favorite place. I called—they know us there. They said he never came in."

  "What about the parking lot?" I asked. "Is that a good place for somebody to grab him? Do you know what his rental looked like?"

  "That parking lot does get dark at night, especially if it's foggy," Rick conceded. "But this was still daytime and not much fog. He said the rental was a black Lexus."

  "Let's go take a look," Anita pulled her purse over a shoulder. "We can look for the car, at least."

  "I didn't think of that," Rick muttered before grabbing a jacket off a chair. "Farin, do you want to stay here, in case he comes back?"

  "I guess," she agreed. "Let me know if you find anything."

  "You know I will," he said. Anita and I exchanged glances as we followed Rick out of the apartment.

  It took half an hour to get to the restaurant, which had a small, partially lit parking lot. Parking spaces at the side were illuminated; spaces behind the building weren't, except for one weak bulb by the back door. A Dumpster close to the door could have hidden an attacker, if he intended to grab somebody.

  That's where we found Mike's Lexus—empty and locked. "We really ought to call the police," I turned to Rick. "This is their job, now. We shouldn't muck up the crime scene."

  "All right," he mumbled and hauled out his cell phone.

  It was while he was dialing 9-1-1 that the horrible feeling of panic hit me.

  Dad always said that his mother—my grandmother—had some sort of sixth sense when somebody was in trouble that she cared about.

  Farin was in trouble.

  No, don't ask me to explain it—I couldn't explain it to myself. "I have to help Farin," I shouted at Anita before skipping back to Rick's apartment.

  * * *

  Kordevik

  "I don't have good news," Watson said the minute he walked in the door. He hadn't left a note and I hadn't been able to reach him by phone, so I wasn't the happiest person to see him at the moment.

  "What?" I demanded. Mason, who'd somehow snagged more bagged blood, was drinking his dinner beside an open refrigerator door when Watson hesitated to answer.

  "You know Claudia wasn't happy with that news guy after he made his accusations on the noon broadcast," Watson began.

  "So?"

  "So, uh, she made a deal with Granger."

  "What the bloody hell are you talking about?" I hissed.

  "Two of her wolves picked up the news guy at a pizza place. Kept him locked up until Granger's vamps could collect him after nightfall."

  "What are they going to do with him?" My temper was on edge, suddenly.

  "Probably just lay compulsion," Wa
tson shrugged.

  "And if they don't? He'll be shredded and the pieces buried where nobody will find them," I snapped. "This guy is a public figure. Somebody will go looking for him if he isn't found, and that will raise even more suspicions."

  "Look, I tried to tell Claudia that, but that jerk going on about the explosion being suspicious and possibly involving the owner? Claudia doesn't take that very well."

  "What, she can't handle the truth?" I raked fingers through my hair in frustration. "You said yourself she planned this."

  "Just to get everybody off her tail," Watson hung his head. "She's done it before—just not for a while."

  "Well, I'll bet things weren't as high tech when she did it before," I said. "People could be paid off, too. Nowadays, it's harder to do that."

  "Yeah."

  "Somebody breaking the law?" Mason asked after draining his bag of blood. "Sorry," he shrugged. "Habit," he explained. Watson and I watched as he rinsed the bag in the sink, then shredded it and tossed the remains in the recycle bin.

  "I have a plan," Mason went on.

  "No," I snapped.

  "What is it?" Watson asked at the same time.

  "I was going to offer myself in exchange for nosy news guy," Mason said. "If you two go along, maybe we can nab news guy and get the hell out of there."

  "Too dangerous," Watson shook his head. "You could be toast the second they show up, and news guy could still be just as dead. Also, stop using alliteration. It's annoying."

  "I didn't think a werewolf would even know what alliteration was," Mason grinned, showing a bit of fang.

  "I have a question," I turned to Watson. "Does Claudia or anybody else know that you're staying here, and that Mason is also here?"

  * * *

  Lexsi

  I almost couldn't believe my eyes after folding into Rick's apartment. A man was there, backed against Farin, who was, in turn, backed against the wall.

  He was protecting her from two vampires, who were ready to kill.

  Or rape first, then kill.

  "Tell us where your brother is," one attempted to lay compulsion.

  Even I could see he was too far away from Farin for the compulsion to work. I also saw that the vamp had scratches on his face.

  Well done, stranger guy, I thought as I turned back to Farin and the man protecting her.

  That's when the vamps noticed me and jumped; I must have moved or made a noise. They hadn't expected anyone to magically appear inside the apartment.

  "We're leaving," I said, pulling the brand-new knife from my boot and pointing it at them. When one of them snarled and came at me, I skipped to Farin's side, hauled her and the man into my arms and then skipped to my house before the vamps, in their attempt to grab all of us, hit the wall at Farin's back.

  * * *

  I have Farin and someone else at my house; we found vamps in Rick's condo, threatening Farin because they wanted to know where Rick was, I sent to Anita. Are the police there, yet?

  They're here, she confirmed. Rick is answering questions for them.

  I hope they haul Mike's rental in for testing, I said. You need to get Rick away the minute you can and bring him here. We'll decide where to take him afterward.

  Will do, she responded. This is becoming a mess, she added.

  I hear you.

  I turned back to Farin and the man I'd brought to the house; she was still in shock after the unusual method I'd employed to transport her across the bay. The man—I still didn't know who he was but he was muscled enough to be a prizefighter—attempted to console her.

  "Tiburon," he held out his hand. I shook with him. The word rolled easily off his tongue—Spanish was his native language.

  "Shark?" I asked.

  "My father," he shrugged and turned back to Farin.

  "How?" Farin croaked at me.

  "That's a story for later, okay? I had to get you away from those men."

  "Vampires," Tiburon muttered. I went still. He knew what they were.

  "Hmmph," he said. "If they come hunting you, you'd better know what they are."

  "Have I seen you before?" Farin blinked at Tiburon.

  "Middleweight boxer," he grinned. "Because I was born in Mexico, they almost didn't let me buy a condo in the building where your brother lives."

  "Snark Demonio," Farin breathed. "Rick said you were in the building."

  "Snark?" It was my turn to blink at him.

  "It was supposed to be Shark—the English word for my name. People started calling me Snark when I spoke my mind about opponents."

  "I loved it when you called Frankie the Flail, Frankie the Fail," a slow smile lifted the corners of Farin's mouth.

  "I'm surprised someone else didn't do it first," Tiburon shrugged. "I put him down in four."

  "Where's Rick?" Farin asked. "Is he safe?"

  "He and Anita are talking to the police," I said.

  "Do you think more of those—vampires—have Mike?" She shuddered as she said the word vampire.

  "It is possible, chica," Snark responded before I could. "Why else would they be looking for Rick, too? I believe this happened after Mike spoke so harshly about that bar."

  "What's so special about that bar?" Farin demanded. She slid off the barstool that Tiburon had placed her on and wrapped arms about herself.

  "Beautiful Farin, that bar is frequented by the supernatural community," Tiburon explained.

  No, I wouldn't have said a word about it, but Tiburon was right—if vampires are hunting you, it's best you know what they are—and that they exist.

  "Supernatural? Ghosts?" Farin didn't understand.

  "No, vampires. Werewolves. Shapeshifters and other things. They go to that bar, to be with others of their kind. Mike has poked his nose into an angry hornet's nest, and I worry that he may pay dearly for his persistence and curiosity."

  "Farin," I sighed, "Anita and I got Mike and Rick out of that bar last night, right under the noses of six vamps. They're still pissed—that much is obvious. If Mike hadn't done his stint on the noon news, it may have blown over. It's a vendetta, now."

  "What about Vann, then? He's doing his exposé on the eleven o'clock news," Farin whispered.

  "You know, I'd like to say I don't care about Vann, but he may end up wherever Mike is."

  "Not good," Tiburon sighed. "Humans," he added.

  "What are you talking about?" Farin demanded. Tiburon took a step back, but was interrupted in whatever he was about to say by the doorbell ringing.

  "Maybe that's Anita and Rick," I said, trotting toward the front door.

  I was expecting Anita and Rick. Instead, I found Kory and two other men standing on my doorstep, gym bags in hand.

  "What?" I snapped.

  "We need a place to crash," Kory stated flatly. "Until we find something else that's more suitable," he added.

  "But," I attempted to argue.

  "Lexsi, please do this," Kory begged. "Let us in. These two," he jerked his head toward his companions, "they're in the same boat Mike is in, I think."

  "How do you know about Mike?" I asked.

  "Word gets around," he said. "Can we come in?"

  "Yeah, I guess," I stepped aside to let them walk through the door.

  Kory went still when he saw Farin and Tiburon in my kitchen. The two men with him almost ran into each other after his abrupt stop. He hadn't bothered to introduce either of them, although they were watching me closely.

  "I know you," Kory pointed at Tiburon. "Farin, why are you here?" he asked.

  "Because two vampires decided they wanted her to answer questions about Rick's whereabouts," Tiburon answered.

  One of Kory's companions went still.

  The doorbell rang a second time. I hoped it was Anita and not vampires.

  * * *

  Kordevik

  "Where the hell is Mike?" I hissed at Watson. I'd dragged him into an empty bedroom before I started asking questions. "They're looking for Farin's brother, now. We need to stop
this before it goes too far."

  Not least among my fears was that Lexsi would figure out who I was, and that could ruin everything.

  In other words, I'd have to lie to get her—and everybody else—off my back. Meanwhile, we needed to find Mike, if for no other reason than to let them know they couldn't just grab people on a whim.

  "You don't know where Granger's house is?" Watson muttered, backing away from me. Yes, I was breathing smoke by that time. After I'd almost strangled him at my place, he knew to get away from me when my breath turned cloudy.

  "No. Please tell me," I flung out a hand.

  "On Nob Hill," he said, dropping his eyes.

  "Well why didn't you say that to begin with?" I demanded.

  "It's a big house," he added.

  "Great. Where will they have Mike—if he's still alive?"

  "Probably in the basement." He rattled off an intersection in Nob Hill.

  "How big is this house?"

  "Five levels. Nearly nineteen thousand square feet. Good luck getting past all the vamps to find one human."

  "Really? I'll burn the fucking building down if I have to," I snapped. "Vampires don't do well against fire, you know that?" I added and skipped to Nob Hill.

  It wasn't difficult to locate Granger's house; it was the one with all the windows blacked out to prevent the intrusion of sunlight during the day. As Watson said, it was huge.

  I was about to go through Granger's front door. If anybody stood in my way, they'd get their fingers burned at the very least. Turning to my smaller Thifilathi, I took off at a run.

  Chapter 5

  Lexsi

  "The police are checking the area for evidence," Rick accepted the cup of decaf I handed him. "I don't think they'll find anything in Mike's rental, but they're hauling it in, too."

  "You?" I lifted a cup at Kory's friend—the one who wasn't locked up in one of my bedrooms with Kory.

  "Black," he shrugged. I think that's when I understood he was vampire. I resolved to sort that out later.

  He's a vamp, Anita's mindspeech echoed in my head.

  I get that, I agreed. Automatically I shoved a coffee pod in the brewer before pulling a box of tea from a cabinet to make a cup of chamomile for Anita and me.

  "Have anything to eat?" Kory's friend from the bedroom now walked into the kitchen.