Carnal

by Stone, Piper

  The scent had ended, as if there’d never been a wolf crossing through the forest. I inched closer, gathering several whiffs of the closest homes on the outlying perimeter. There was no indication of any of the Nightwalkers having turned, shifting in order to hunt or kill. We were facing yet another dead end. I could read the rage surfacing in my companion as he advanced, communicating words that had no need of being spoken, our connection that strong.

  “What the hell is going on?” Gregor asked in silence, a snarl curling his lip.

  “I have no fucking idea.”

  He inched several feet ahead of me, sniffing the ground. “The fucker responsible couldn’t have disappeared.”

  “He’s playing a vicious game,” I hissed.

  “Then we will find him and when we do...”

  I swung my head in his direction, nodding in affirmation, remembering my father’s words. It was our requirement to handle the situation the Wolfen way.

  And a part of me couldn’t wait to tear him limb from limb.

  “We have to be careful,” I added, turning purposely away from the Nightwalkers’ village. The last thing we needed was one of their sentries finding us close to their people. The tenuous hold we had on perceived peace could be crumbled with the slightest infraction.

  “For once, I do agree with you. What now?”

  “We do things my way.” I inhaled once again and another scent filtered into my nose, one that was more horrifying than anything from before.

  Kathleen.

  The bastard knew we’d hunt and was well aware of how the pack would react first.

  She was the rogue wolf’s prize and the fucker was using her to get to me.

  My mate.

  My woman.

  For the ultimate control.

  And she could lose her life in the process.

  I would tear the city apart in order to protect her.

  Chapter Nine

  Kathleen

  “Do you know what I hunger for?” he asked, the ruggedness of his voice skipping along my skin, goosebumps following in its wake.

  “Tell me,” I whispered as he fisted my hair, dragging my lips to within centimeters of his.

  “Every inch of you.” Growling, he continued to hover over me as I pressed my hands against his chest, marveling in the electricity soaring through every cell and muscle. I was breathless, my heart racing and all I could think about was his cock filling me.

  He rubbed the flat of his hand down my back, cupping and kneading my tender bottom, the earlier spanking leaving me sore and spent. The rush of adrenaline was powerful, the feel of his heated skin unlike anything I’d ever experienced, leaving me burning with extreme desire.

  “Then take me.” I barely managed issuing the words and as I stared into his eyes, I could see nothing but blackness, danger. The scent of him filled my nostrils; a muskiness of the forest, the dampness of fresh mud, and the bitter copper of stale blood. When he curled his lip, sharp canines protruded from his reddened gums.

  But I wasn’t afraid.

  “Forever.” As he crushed his mouth over mine, he lifted me off my feet, thrusting his cock all the way inside. The kiss was savage, brutal in every manner, his tongue dominating mine.

  I was captured by a predator, a dangerous and primal man.

  He issued several growls as I moaned, undulating against him and the harder he plunged his shaft inside, the more lightheaded I became. I belonged to him. I was his woman.

  Required to surrender.

  Required to... mate.

  He threw his head back and roared, the sound wild and reeking of testosterone, and his cock began to swell.

  Bang!

  “What the fuck?” I hissed, yanked out of the fantasy.

  The hard clunk forced me to jump, my nerves completely on edge. I’d remained agitated the entire evening, no amount of wine capable of calming my anger or my angst. I jerked up from the chair, nearly knocking over the third glass of merlot. I snapped my hand around the dense crystal a mere second before it flooded the various files I’d grabbed from the office. I’d wanted time alone to work on the case, free from prying eyes, questions, and...

  Max.

  A man of danger.

  A man who would take me again and again.

  “Damn it.” I half laughed, pressing my fingers across my mouth. I could swear my lips were swollen from the last heated kiss, only that was impossible. I’d allowed the man to get under my skin. I was just as pathetic as Amber accused me of being. I shook my head, staring at my laptop, hissing given the lack of evidence I’d found. Freaking nothing I’d found was helpful.

  He really thought I was going to call him, checking in like some wayward high-school girl. To hell with that. I was perfectly safe as long as I had a gun by my side. I took a sip of my wine, thankful to be home. I’d changed into jeans and a flimsy little shirt, finally comfortable. I could do anything I wanted without anyone telling me what to do.

  Take that, you incredibly sexy, dominating man.

  I groaned before rolling my eyes.

  Whoosh! Bang!

  “Shit!” I jerked around, scanning the entire room. Given there was almost no wind outside, I wasn’t hearing a twig smacking against the gutter. Get a grip.

  I shuddered as another rattling sound occurred, taking cautious steps toward the window. I realized my hand was automatically reaching for my gun, even though I’d left it in my bedroom when I’d changed clothes. Christ, I was terrified of being alone in my own damn house. The recent events, including continuing to believe I’d had an earlier intruder, were weighing heavily on me.

  Plus, there was the fact that Max was hiding something significant from me regarding his involvement with the case. I rubbed my mouth before reaching for the blind and peering out. Everything was pitch black, the ugly fog keeping the entire city enshrouded in a blanket of doom.

  I bit back a laugh at the ridiculous thought. I was a cop, for God’s sake, capable of protecting myself, which I’d done on more than one occasion. Why the hell was I spooked tonight?

  Because you know someone else is going to be murdered.

  Slaughtered.

  I closed my eyes, gritting my teeth. I’d felt the stabbing notion in my mind for hours. I still had been unable to make any direct connections between the three victims. Nothing. They’d simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time.

  Or so the killer wanted us to believe.

  Us.

  There was no ‘us’ in this case, no matter what my captain had ordered. I couldn’t trust Max in any way. Here I was, frightened to be alone. I took quick steps into my bedroom, grabbing my Beretta. As I walked out, I checked the ammo, sliding the gun into the back of my jeans. I was ready in case some asshole decided to make me his next meal.

  I swallowed hard and headed back to my desk, nearly jumping out of my skin the moment I heard the sharp ring of my cell phone.

  “God!” I barked out the word as I took long strides toward the dining room table, almost pitching the phone across the room in my effort to glare at the screen. While the number wasn’t one I recognized, at least the listing didn’t state ‘unknown.’ “Detective Kelly.”

  Whoever was on the other end of the line said nothing, but there was a hell of a lot of heavy breathing.

  “Okay, jerkoff. I’ve had just about enough of the bullshit games. I’m hanging up now!” I snapped, still holding the phone against my ear.

  “Wait! Kathleen?”

  I recognized the voice but from where? “Yes?”

  “I’m sorry,” the male said, laughing. “I was thrown by you being all business. It’s Tyler. Tyler Ridgefield.”

  I glanced at the time, another pang of anger slicing through me. “Look, Tyler, you seem like a nice guy and all but my advice to you is to stop being my father’s lackey. That’s not going to get you anywhere. I already told him I wouldn’t accept his generous offer and if you find it necessary, you can relay that to him again.”

  Th
ere was ten seconds of dead silence.

  “Um... I honestly have no idea what you’re talking about. Your father has no idea I’m calling, and I assure you, it has nothing to do with making you an offer, at least not in a professional manner.”

  I slapped my hand against my forehead, biting back laughter. “Then what else is there?”

  “I wanted to see if you’d consider grabbing a cup of coffee or a drink with me. Nothing nefarious, I assure you.”

  I was so taken aback, I had no idea what to say. “That’s very... sweet of you, but I’m not certain it’s a good idea.”

  “I promise you, we won’t discuss business,” Tyler insisted.

  For some crazy reason, my thoughts drifted to Max. I wasn’t in a relationship with the special agent by any means, yet I felt guilty for even remotely considering accepting. Even my throat tightened up. “I’ll be honest with you—”

  “You’re seeing someone. Of course you are. I’m so sorry,” he interrupted.

  “No! Yes. Maybe. Hell, I’m not certain but it’s more about the time. I have to work on this case.” I heard the disappointment in his voice and he did what men usually resorted to when they were shut down. They formed an edge. “I really appreciate the offer.” In retrospect, I had the feeling he was information gathering more than anything.

  “Well, maybe we can do something at a later time. I’d really like to get to know you.”

  “That’s very sweet, but I have to go, Tyler. Thank you for calling.” I ended the call far too abruptly, but I simply wasn’t good with dating and I definitely wasn’t giving him any information.

  When the phone rang again, I bristled, ready to snap at the man. I breathed a sigh of relief seeing the number of the coroner’s office. “Detective Kelly.”

  “Kathleen, Lois Smyth. I’m glad I caught you although I know it’s late. I just wanted to touch base since I’m now going to be working with you.”

  If the chief medical examiner had been assigned to the case, then there was a hard push from the mayor and the police commissioner’s office to secure a suspect.

  “You know I work late, Lois. How is the third autopsy going?”

  Lois exhaled. “Against my better judgment, I went back and took a look at the autopsies for the first two victims as well as performing the work on the third.”

  “Cause of death the same as the others I assume.” The first two reports indicated the carotid arteries had severed, but not until after the victims had endured massive trauma.

  “Not what you might expect.”

  I grabbed a pen and a piece of paper, her words catching me off guard. “Meaning?”

  “It would appear your murderer thankfully has a conscience. The victims were suffocated prior to their throats being ripped out.”

  “What? Why didn’t the other coroner catch that?”

  “There was no reason to assume otherwise, Kathleen. The horrific trauma the victims received would indicate a brutal ending,” Lois said quietly.

  “This places the entire murders into another scenario altogether. Your findings eliminate an animal as the attacker,” I said through clenched teeth. The news wouldn’t be taken kindly by almost everyone else involved with the case.

  “You are correct.”

  “And you’re certain of this?”

  “Absolutely. There is bruising on the back of all three of the victims’ necks that would indicate they were attacked from behind and strangled with significant force.”

  I was almost giddy with excitement. “Any idea of the weapon used?”

  “That’s just it, it would appear the victims were lifted off the ground before being manually strangled and I don’t mind telling you, that would take a very strong individual.”

  Two of the three victims weighed in excess of two hundred and fifty pounds if not more. For the killer to be able to lift the victims off the ground was... phenomenal. “Wow.”

  “That’s exactly what I thought. I also took another look at the saliva I mentioned before. Unfortunately, I still haven’t been able to clearly identify the source, which likely means the samples are contaminated. What I did find is blood on victim number three that is inconsistent with the crime scene.”

  “Meaning possibly the killer’s blood.” A mistake. Halle-fucking-lujah. My entire body tingled. This was huge.

  “Maybe.”

  I heard the hesitation in her voice. “What’s wrong?”

  “The characteristics of the DNA are... unusual. I took the liberty of putting the file through the database and I’m afraid there were no matches. I’m going to send you the file so you can see what I’m talking about. I’m sending that over to you now.”

  “Can’t you be more specific?”

  Lois laughed for a few seconds. “Have you ever heard of a werewolf?”

  “I’m sorry. We must have a bad connection. I could have sworn you asked if I’d ever heard of a werewolf.” I was shocked to hear the word. Maybe someone had overheard my conversation with Max and was playing me for a fool. Why?

  “That’s exactly what I asked you, Detective. I know it sounds crazy, which is another reason I think the killer could be purposely tampering with the crime scenes.”

  “I’m confused.” I eased back onto the seat, staring at my email, extremely uncomfortable. It was unusual as hell to pull another coroner off a case. Something didn’t feel right.

  “There are various cults who believe in werewolves and vampires, even going as far as having a dentist implant canine teeth.”

  I sucked in my breath, convinced the conversation had been overheard. “There are weirdos everywhere.”

  “Some of these cults are fairly active and dangerous. I’m no expert, but I think that’s what you might have with this case,” Lois said, huffing afterwards. “I worked on another case where the victim had their throat ripped out by a vampire. Damn kid was hyped up on drugs and had no idea that he’d killed the poor girl. Anyway, I hit send so you should have the file shortly. I’ll finish up the autopsies tomorrow and try and get you a full report by day’s end. If there are no other high-profile cases tonight.”

  “I appreciate you putting a rush on them.” As the email came in, I realized my hand was shaking. I could swear she was trying to convince me of her idea.

  “The mayor was very convincing. Just so you know, I had some damn reporter snooping around when I came in.”

  “At the morgue?” Great. Now the press had found out about the case.

  “You can find some of your best information amongst dead people,” Lois chuckled. “I’ll give you a call. Oh, have you heard of Roselake just outside of Denver?”

  “A little village that’s supposedly Cherokee. Right?”

  “Well, yes and no.”

  I was no mood for guessing games, my patience wearing thin. “What should I know?”

  “The Cherokee do own a significant portion of the land in and around the mountains, several thousand acres to be exact. They run a city with their own government system, shops, bars. Truly quite a beautiful and flourishing little town.”

  “But...”

  Lois hesitated. “But there have been rumors for years of reported wolf sightings near and around the area.”

  “That’s not unusual.”

  “I’m talking about very unusual creatures, the depictions the stuff of legends. Beasts with super human strength, keen eyesight and hearing.”

  I’d never known Lois to fall trap to any kind of legend, but I was forced to admit that I didn’t know her that well. “Interesting but you can’t honestly tell me you’re buying into the stuff of legends.”

  “No, but a clever killer might be using the information as a method of creating terror in the community. There are locals who refuse to set foot in Roselake City limits because they believe the land is holy.”

  “You mean haunted.”

  Lois laughed for a third time. “I’m not even entirely certain why I told you that, except one of the victims had recently paid a vis
it there.”

  “How would you know that?” Every scrap of information had been collected. I’d seen to that myself.

  “You’ll never believe this but there was a receipt rolled into a ball in the victim’s mouth.”

  “You are kidding me.”

  “I only wish I were. Take a look. I heard you had a new partner.”

  “Yeah, some asshole from ATF,” I managed without sounding too bitter. I was determined to follow my hunches. She didn’t need to have any idea that Max and I were working together other than by force. Everything felt very... orchestrated. “I can’t stand the jerk.”

  “Maximillian Cordero. He’s a good man, one hell of a special agent. You’re in good hands working with him. Look, I gotta run. I’ll call you if I find anything else that’s unusual.”

  “Thanks, Lois. I appreciate it. Oh, Lois, what happened to Randy? He was doing a damn good job on the autopsies.”

  “Oh, I should have told you,” she said without hesitation. “He had a family emergency.”

  “I’m so sorry. Give him my best.”

  “Absolutely. Good luck with your investigation,” Lois said brightly.

  Although I hadn’t been a good judge of characters as of late, my stomach continued to churn. While I also wasn’t one to believe in conspiracy theories, it certainly seemed as if Lois was pointing fingers at the people living in Roselake for the murders.

  Exhaling, I opened the attached file, praying I was wrong. What I did know is that Lois was very detailed and thorough, traits I appreciated in working with her. A cult. What I knew about cults was that they followed the orders of their leader no matter what was asked.

  Or commanded.

  Possibly including murder.

  What I would do was look at this logically and find out exactly what Max might or might not know.

  The pictures she’d taken during her examination were almost as graphic as the original crime scene, although the detail was much clearer. I leaned closer to the computer screen, unable to take my eyes off the ragged tears in the victim’s neck. As my hand fluttered to my throat, the pulse thumping against my fingers was powerful.