Cyra ran her fingers over each one, her hand lingering over a silver one with black lettering. “I like this one, but it doesn’t feel like it belongs to me. For me, I’d pick the purple one.”
The man smiled. “The purple is to celebrate a hand fasting, and is a perfect choice. It suits you.”
Cyra had no clue what that was, but the color was deep and gorgeous. For some reason, she was compelled to buy it.
“I would save this silver one for a female obstacle who stands in your way. You’ll know her when you see her.”
She looked at him and stared. “I don’t understand.”
“You love him already, no?”
Cyra didn't know what to say, but she knew immediately who he was referencing.
“He talks to the dead and finds their killers, and you have already handed him your heart. Now, you patiently wait to see if he will return the action.”
“Yes.”
“Be patient and he will, but know that you have but one obstacle yet to overcome.”
He took both scarves and carried them away. “I will wrap them separate. You’ll need one as a gift, and soon. Take it with you when you travel, and you will know when it’s needed.”
She stared after him, wondering what the hell just went on around her. How did he know about her personal life?
“I’m so confused.”
The couple helped the last customer and wandered to the door firmly holding hands. She locked it and closed them all in as he flipped the sign.
“Now you can question us and ask what you will,” the redhead stated, moving to the back of the building. “Come, we will have tea and get comfortable.”
They all followed, because they were freaked out, worried and curious all at the same time. Each was off balance, and that wasn’t the norm.
“Please sit,” he said, pointing to the wicker furniture. “Welcome to our shop. I am Ares and this is Artemis.”
Elizabeth sat beside Ethan, his arm draped protectively around her shoulders.
The woman made tea and poured it into delicate cups. “You can ask your questions now, since we all know you weren’t here to shop.”
Elizabeth spoke first, “We have two dead women, one that we believe worked here, and the other we’re not sure of yet. Can you please look at their pictures and let me know if you knew them?”
Ares took a cup from his wife. “I will gladly help if you say they were people we may have known.”
Elizabeth pulled out the pictures and handed them to him. She gave him the scary, ugly ones, because she needed to make an impact. When he stared down at them, his hand shook and the tea cup rattled slightly.
“Oh dear, yes we knew them.”
Artemis finished handing out the tea, and then took her seat beside her husband. She too looked at the photos and was filled with emotion. “That is Scarlet Red and this is Dyana Carlos. They were our friends. When did this happen?”
“Sunday night and sometime last night,” stated Callen, giving them a little more information. He sipped his tea, and it reminded him of his grandfather. “When was the last time you saw them?”
“We saw Scarlet that evening and as for Dyana, she had come into the shop earlier that day. Come to think of it, I don’t believe she attended the circle,” he answered and then glanced over at his wife. “Was she in attendance?”
Artemis tried to recall. “I don’t know, Ares. It was dark and we had a big turn out.”
He looked back at the investigators. “It would have been sometime during the day or those nights. We had met for our circle. Sunday was to celebrate the full moon and the upcoming Samhain holiday. Last night was a circle to initiate a new couple into the coven.”
“Did they work here?” Ethan asked.
Artemis spoke first, “We used their services when it is busy. Believe it or not, right before Halloween we slow down. By now, all the believers in Wicca have their items for the holiday and don’t shop. When we have our big sales, we have the women come in to help. Scarlet did our books for us. I’m horrible with numbers.”
“As am I,” admitted Ares sadly. “The circle won’t be the same without them.”
“We need to know who belongs to your coven,” Elizabeth added. “If two members were taken, then that means more may follow.”
Artemis looked up at Ares before speaking, as if she were silently confirming what she was about to relay. “We cannot. I’m sorry, but we meet in secret for a reason. When people think of witches, they believe we’re devil worshippers, which is so far from the truth. We have day jobs and lives outside our beliefs. Our coven is full of normal people off the street, who have been led to the Goddess. We can’t just tell you their names and betray a confidence.”
Yeah, that was a dead end much like the Church of Satan.
“Please. If you had circles on the nights that these women lost their lives, we need to know if they were there.” Ethan was adamant; he needed the names so they could close this and run. He was all off kilter and edgy.
“We can ask if they mind, but we won’t just assume. Tonight, we will call a circle to mourn our sisters and discuss Samhain.”
Cyra had to ask. “What is Samhain?”
They spoke in unison, as if it were something they normally did. “Halloween.”
Artemis leaned back. “It is our new year, and we will be having a circle that night too,” Artemis paused. “Can you tell us how they died?”
Elizabeth wasn’t willing to give them too much information. “What do you think of Satan worshipping?”
She looked disgusted. “As I’ve already told you, we do not believe in the devil. Those who do worship him make us look bad. Christians created that nonsense, and now we have the blame.”
Ares touched her arm in reassurance. “My love, I believe she was hinting at how they perished,” he stated. Glancing back over at Elizabeth, he waited for confirmation. “Am I correct to assume that they were killed by someone who was worshiping the devil?”
Elizabeth shrugged noncommittally. She couldn’t tell them too much, but she also didn't want to sit by and watch them being slaughtered like ignorant lambs. It was risky, but she had to chance it.
Artemis was appalled. “We will be blamed for this too, Ares. Wait and see!” The entire thing made her sick to her stomach.
“Why would someone worship the devil?” Ethan asked, needing some insight for his profile.
“There are really only two reasons. They generally lean towards the black magic when they want power or sex,” stated Ares. “That’s really all there could be involved. They use the guise of Satan’s strength to have sex with countless women.”
Yeah, didn't Ethan know that’s what Arlen James was all about? It was obvious that he was in it for the women.
“Have any of your coven moved to the Church of Satan?” Callen inquired.
They shook their heads. “Not to our knowledge, but why would they tell us if they did? If they were dabbling in the dark, we would be the last two people they’d want to be aware of it.”
Elizabeth continued. “Do you know Arlen James?”
The both looked nauseated by the mere mention of his name. “Unfortunately, we do know him,” stated Ares. “When he moved here, he had become our friend with the hope of practicing witchcraft. What we didn't know was that he was this poser that found out about sex magick and thought it would be fun.”
Artemis continued. “We only use that as a couple for spells where we need more energy. Not as a public orgy like he wanted. Shortly after, we told him to never contact us again and removed him from our circle.”
“He put his hands on my wife,” Ares stated. “I wanted to slit his throat ear to ear, but Artemis wouldn’t let me.
The four Feds pondered that little admission. The crime scene photos didn't show how the women had died, but here he had just admitted that he wanted to kill someone the exact same way.
One might call that curious.
Or damn suspicious.
/> “I don’t blame you,” Ethan added, trying to sympathize with the suspect. Because of Ares comment, he was now heading up the suspect list. “He wants our wife in the worst way.”
Ares shook his head in disgust. “He’s depraved. Sex shouldn’t be a spectator sport, but between people in love. Arlen does it all for the orgasm.”
Yet ironically, their killer wasn’t touching the women sexually. Again, it wasn’t looking so good for Ares.
“We thank you for your time, assistance, and tea,” Elizabeth said, placing her cup down on the table. “If we have more questions, may we return?”
They stood to escort them out. “Certainly, you may always come here, even if it is to just find peace and solace.”
Walking their visitors out, they left the door unlocked for any more customers to come in and shop.
“I need to clean up the back, Ares. I have a reading in twenty minutes,” Artemis said, heading back there to clear their tea cups.
He relit some candles that had gone out. “Certainly, my love. If you need my help, just yell.”
Once back at the table, she picked up all the cups, one by one and stared into the bottom to read the leaves. When she found the right one, she sighed.
Death was coming, and soon one in the room would be walking with the spirits.
“It’s a shame. They were meant to be together.”
* * *
He wouldn’t call them mistakes, after all, he was still learning. Were they done wrong? Yes, but already he could see how he could improve on them and fine tune his skills.
The first and second killings were his practice run and the next woman would be perfection.
In fact, she was dying tonight.
The ones who came first had not let him down. When he first saw them, he knew that they would be ideal, and they were. Now, he was almost to the halfway point. Soon, he’d have the third in his star.
To say he was excited would be an understatement. He was beyond thrilled.
Now it came time to watch and wait.
Sitting out in the fall air, he sipped his coffee and simply observed his prey. All he needed to do was look for the big black Fed vehicle in the normally calm town.
Once he did, it was a matter of blending.
He watched them as they sat down to eat in the little café. Through the window, he could see them laughing and the affection between them. It sickened him how both men lovingly touched the prize that was meant to be his and his alone.
Soon, that would end.
The battle was coming, and eventually this would all come down to the final day, the last victim, and the ultimate victory.
He heard the reassuring voice and grinned from behind the coffee cup.
“Yes, my Lord.”
* * *
Wednesday Night
It had been a very long day of chasing interviews and paperwork. When they headed to the Church of Satan, no one was there at the time. Ultimately, it was out of their hands, and they would have to hunt the lead nutbag down tomorrow. If he was dodging them, they’d pull his home address and show up there with guns and Kevlar.
It was up to him.
Now that they were back at the hotel, it meant that they could relax as they finished up the irritating part of their job. No one liked endless paperwork or having to flip through page after page of tech filled reports, but this was the element of the beast. Most of the work, on an assignment, came down to the monotonous stuff.
“I’m hungry,” Elizabeth said, out of the blue. “I really need to eat something, because this pen is looking tasty.”
“Takeout?” suggested Callen as he slid off the bed. “I’ll go get you anything you want, angel.”
She grinned up at him. “There’s my hero,” she stated, as he leaned down to kiss her. “Mmmmmm. Yeah, you certainly are,” she whispered.
Callen laughed at her lecherous wink. “Are you in the mood for Chinese?”
Elizabeth glanced over at Ethan. “Cowboy? Are you hungry?”
He didn't reply.
“Hey, are you okay, handsome?” She tapped his arm and finally drew his attention to her.
“I’m sorry, what?”
Callen noticed his brother was quiet most of the afternoon. He was going to give Elizabeth some time to work it out and get to the bottom of the situation. “I’ll get the normal while you two have a discussion.”
Elizabeth was focused on her husband. When Callen left, she picked up all the papers, files, and tablet to place them on the table. Crossing back to his side, she sat beside him.
“Want to talk about it?”
Ethan Blackhawk was truly a man of few words. When it came down to being troubled, his instinct was to keep it all in and say nothing.
Now, he had a choice. Lean on the woman who owned his heart, or hold it in until he figured it out on his own.
“I love you,” she whispered, taking a different route. Leaning into him, Elizabeth gently took his lips with hers and began to kiss him into submission. There were ways to make her big strong man let go, and this was it.
Ethan took his wife in his arms and held her protectively against his chest. All the love he was feeling spread from his body to hers, stealing away some of the fear with it. What scared him most was losing her, and then trying to survive the aftermath. Everything Ares said in the shop had rattled him.
Without her in his life, he would be nothing.
The day he found her in Salem, life began and now it was at risk.
As she ran her hands through his hair, he began to feel more alive and far less cold. Here she was, forcing life back into him with breath and touch. This was the woman who guarded his heart and would for all his dying days.
Elizabeth allowed her body to go lax, giving him the opportunity to lead. She’d willingly follow where ever he needed to go to find peace. Her heart ached as she was forced to watch him suffer in silence. “Make love to me, Ethan,” Elizabeth pleaded as she wanted him to find solace in her body.
She didn't need to ask him twice.
Releasing her, they both stood. Slowly, he began removing her clothing. First, he unsnapped the belt buckle, and then he pushed her jeans down as his lips continued to explore her throat and neck. The delicate perfume she wore filled his senses and made him want more and more of the woman in his arms. “Lyzee,” he whispered into her ear. “Without you, I’m nothing.”
Her fingers found the buttons of his dress shirt, and readily got to work. When it was open, she slipped it from his shoulders and began to leave kisses over the raven inked there. The tattoo meant everything to them as a couple. Where at one time it had brought him shame, it now depicted an amazing love story.
It was their tale.
“Ethan, the need for you never stops,” she replied, meaning every word of it. She was a very lucky woman in life and love, there was no doubt.
Ethan pulled the shirt from her body and ran his hands over the swell of breasts held in the lacy pink bra. His heart pounded, reminding him that she was all he would ever need to survive. This woman undid him.
Following his fingers, his lips left their own trail across the swell of her chest. “I love the feel of your body,” he murmured, as his wife dropped his dress pants and boxers. Lifting her in his arms, he crawled across their king size bed to place her in the center.
“I want to taste you, feel you, and make love to you,” he said, staring down into her eyes.
“Yes, Ethan. You know it will always be yes.”
He lowered himself until his body was pressed along the length of hers. Tan skin met the pale creamy white, and it made his mouth water. The contrast to him was always so erotic and maddening. Here lay his porcelain goddess, and he was consumed with the need to worship her.
As he pulled her bra lower, to free her breasts, her hands found the silky strands of his hair. It always enthralled her how perfect it was. Where hers was black, his was deeper, darker and far richer in color.
When he took her
nipple into his mouth, she moaned in pure delight. “God, Ethan,” she mumbled, as all the heat pooled low in her body at his touch. It had been like this since the first time they’d made love.
Switching to the other one, he teased and played with it until he was making himself crazy. Staring up into her face, his eyes were dark with lust and need. Touching her was like heaven and he never wanted to stop.
Lower he travelled, leaving kisses across her navel, in hopes that one day another of his children would live and grow there. In his heart, he wanted it more than anything. He wanted the woman he loved to be full and ripe with another Blackhawk child.
Ethan coveted that more than anything in the entire world.
Further he slid, until he found his most treasured prize. The taste of his woman on his tongue called to him, as he teased and tormented her to the pinnacle of pleasure. What he wanted was her name cascading from her lips. For now, she was safe and in his arms and that was all that mattered.
“Ethan,” she writhed as he knew exactly the way to get to her. The man had incredible oral skills and was the epitome of pleasure. He brought her to orgasm easily, shoving her headlong into the abyss.
In her mind, he was some dark fallen angel, cast aside because of his wicked ways. Ethan Blackhawk was sin in a man’s body, and she knew it. From the second that she had seen him, he owned her, and it was her pleasure to repeatedly give him what he wanted.
“More,” he stated, staring up her body as her body was bowed and hands clenched the sheets to anchor her pleasure rocked body.
“Fill me, Ethan,” she begged, praying he’d give her what she needed.
Moving back up her frame, he granted her wish. Sliding into her, he began moving until he found the perfect rhythm. When he could feel the bite of her nails into his shoulders, he knew that he was doing everything right. “Fall for me again,” he ordered, switching the angle and hitting just the right spot.
Her breath was ripped away, as he barely gave her time to refocus before once more she was tumbling. “Ethan,” she called, wishing that he would join her.
Devil Hath Come (an FBI/Romance Thriller ~book 7) Page 24