Eternal Hunter nw-1

by Синтия Иден

  “I hate to break this to you, Ms. Jerome—”

  “Erin,” she choked out because the captain drawled her surname out in a way that was like nails grating on her nerves.

  “But the world you live in, well, only half of what you see is real.” Antonio paced the small confines of his office, looking very much like a caged cat.

  He wasn’t. The guy didn’t so much as give off one whiff of shifter scent.

  But then, her smell was pretty damn hard to detect, too.

  “Really?” She kept her voice mild with an effort. After the captain’s big revelation, he’d herded her and Jude into his office. She was playing the innocent human, for now. And for as long as necessary.

  “Two years ago, I was out in the swamps. A vampire tried to drain me and leave my body for gator bait.”

  Nice visual. “A vampire?” Erin shook her head. “Sorry, captain, but vampires aren’t real.” Yeah, right. Those bastards were as real as she was.

  Jude rolled his shoulders beside her. He’d been doing that every few moments. What was up with that?

  “They’re real.” Antonio stopped his pacing. “Get used to the idea.”

  She had, about twenty-five years ago, when she’d watched her mother go claw to teeth with a vamp. “Um…tell me, captain, have you been in for an evaluation recently? Perhaps a trip to the police shrink is in order.” Erin braced her hands on the armrests of her chair and pushed to her feet. “Now, unless you want to tell me a few fairy tales about some trolls running loose in the city, I’ve got a murder to solve. I don’t have time for this crap.” A good exit line. She headed for the door, chin up, shoulders back.

  And heard clapping behind her. Glancing over her shoulder, Erin saw Jude smiling at her.

  “Nice.” He pointed one long finger at her. “But why don’t you cut the crap, ADA? We both know you understand all about the monsters in the dark, and playing the innocent isn’t gonna work with me.”

  We both know you understand all about the monsters in the dark. Her lips parted.

  He rose slowly and stalked toward her. Yeah, stalked, his movements slow and steady, strangely graceful, his eyes predatory. His bright gaze dropped to her mouth. Seemed to heat.

  Trouble. Oh, but the man was going to be dangerous to her. She’d known it from that first glance. Erin licked her lips. “I, uh…” No, that wouldn’t work at all. She cleared her throat. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Donovan.” One fast glance toward Antonio. “I’m not going to jump on this insanity parade—”

  “Gloves are off, lady. You know what I am.”

  Shifter.

  He leaned in close and she watched the flare of his nostrils. “And I know what you’re not.”

  Human.

  Asshole.

  “So let’s cut to the chase, here, okay? No pretending’s necessary when the door’s closed.” And the door was closed. Closed and locked. She’d heard the soft snick after Antonio shut the door. “You saw the body. You said yourself — those were claw marks, right?”

  Her gaze darted once more to the left. Antonio stared at her with his wide eyes. Denial was still an option. She didn’t have to blow her cover, the cover she’d worked so hard to get. Four months. It had taken her four months to find this job and to escape from her past.

  A past that had come calling today — memories stirred up by the cloying scent of blood and death.

  Running from monsters was hard work, because they were everywhere.

  Silence hung in the room, too thick.

  Jude swore. “Fine. I’ll take a look at the body and see what I—”

  Erin grabbed his hand when he tried to push past her, and she kissed her new life good-bye. “It was a shifter.”

  Antonio exhaled. “Damn woman.”

  Jude’s skin felt warm beneath her fingertips. His eyes bored into hers, and she watched his pupils flare.

  Dangerous.

  She pulled her hand back and smoothed her fingers over the soft cotton of her pants. “It was a shifter, and, how convenient—there’s a shifter standing right in front of me.” Towering over her. Surrounding her with his heat and scent.

  “I didn’t kill him—”

  “Jude wouldn’t—”

  Their words twisted and blurred in her mind. She waited for the denials to finish, then raised a brow. “You said you could prove your innocence.”

  His eyes narrowed, but Jude nodded. “Good,” she muttered. “’Cause you’ll have to do that.” And she believed he could. After that whole alibi business was taken care of, it would be time to get down to business.

  “Call Night Watch,” Jude said. “You can verify my whereabouts in less than two minutes.”

  She’d do that, but first…“Are you up for another case, hunter?” She knew just how hard it was to catch a shifter, especially one who hungered for the sweet thrill of human prey.

  “You trying to hire me?”

  Yeah, she was. She knew that Jude Donovan would be her best bet for catching this killer. The cops wouldn’t be able to track a shifter.

  It takes a beast to catch a beast.

  Oh, the games the Other played.

  “The DA gonna be up for this?” Antonio asked, inching closer.

  Erin didn’t glance his way. “He’ll go for it.” She’d make absolutely certain he did. “But will you?” she asked Jude.

  His hard face was unreadable. Jeez but the man was big. She topped out at just under six feet, but he towered over her by several inches.

  Just what kind of beast did Jude carry? Shifters — the beings that most said carried two souls.

  The soul of a man.

  The soul of an animal.

  Most shifters were pretty harmless. They could transform into foxes, birds, or snakes.

  Others were more dangerous. Bears, panthers, wolves.

  Wolves. Some believed — with good reason — that those were the most dangerous of the shifters. Fierce, bloodthirsty, and, just for fun, every now and then…psychotic.

  “I’ll hunt for you.” His gaze never left her face. “For a price.”

  “The city will pay you.” She’d talk to the mayor and the DA. She wasn’t planning a big reveal about the Other world with them; at least, not unless she wasn’t given a choice. But Gus and Clark were smart guys. They’d wise up real fast to the benefits of having this case handled as quietly and quickly as possible.

  If Jude could contain the guy, they’d be more than willing to pay his price. A price she expected to be very high.

  Jude shook his head. “Not talking about the city.”

  Antonio stopped his inching closer routine.

  Her heart slammed into her ribs but she kept her voice quiet and silky when she asked, “Then just who are you talking about?”

  A slow smile. One that whispered across his face, lifted his upper lip and had her thighs clenching.

  “You, sweetheart. You.”

  Erin gulped. Dammit — that scar on his top lip—sexy. She could see the hunger in his eyes. The man’s hunger and the beast’s.

  And she felt the hot rise of her own need.

  Not going to happen. She took a moment to let her heart rate ease back to normal. This wasn’t the first time she’d had a strong physical reaction to a shifter.

  Okay, a really sexy shifter.

  And it wouldn’t be her last. She couldn’t stop the rush of sensual awareness, but Erin controlled the wild instincts inside. She always had. “The city will pay you,” she said again and let the ice chill her words. “And pay you well.” Because hunting a killer like the one who’d slaughtered Bobby wouldn’t be easy.

  He snorted. “They’d better.” Jude didn’t look away from her. “But, sweetheart, you’ll pay, too.”

  The words were a definite threat.

  Shifters always thought they were the baddest assholes on earth.

  Because some of them were.

  The local news carried the Burrows story that night at ten. A bright, perky bl
onde appeared at the top of the hour announcing, “Bobby Burrows, the suspect in the so-called Slasher Crimes, was found dead in his holding cell today. Police aren’t releasing any information on this case yet, although sources say foul play is suspected…”

  What?

  He stared at the screen and felt the rage boil in his blood.

  Foul play was suspected? Fuck, yes, he’d carved up that bastard.

  And he’d done it for her.

  The image on the screen flickered and a close-up shot of the mayor and the DA appeared. The DA was running his fat mouth about the security at the station.

  Blah. Blah. Blah

  The camera angle altered, just a bit, and his prey appeared.

  So perfect.

  Erin stood a bit behind the mayor. Looking all calm and lovely in her button-down shirt and pants. Controlled and elegant.

  Such a beautiful lie.

  He knew who she was, what she was, down deep, past the skin.

  She was just like him. She liked the blood, the screams, the pleas for mercy.

  He knew all about the real Erin. Flawed, broken, and wild for death.

  Just like him.

  He hoped that she’d liked her little present. Hoped she enjoyed all of the presents he would give to her. Soon.

  He rose and went to the TV. He touched the spot just over her image.

  Sweet, sweet Erin.

  “No more running, love, you’re mine.”

  She should have known escape wasn’t possible.

  She should have known.

  Chapter 3

  She went to him. When the press conference was over, when the freak-out in the mayor’s office had finally subsided, Erin went straight to Jude.

  She knew where he lived. She’d gotten that information from Night Watch when she called to verify his alibi.

  Jude’s lair was at the edge of the city, skirting the swamps. More of a cabin than a house, and one that didn’t look overly inviting.

  Raising her hand, Erin banged on the door. So, sure, it was close to midnight. And, okay, granted, the swamp looked dark and dangerous and the call of the crickets and who-the-hell knew what else had her ears ringing.

  The mayor had sent her to Jude. The DA had sent her.

  And she’d come because she needed to see him.

  The door opened with a creak. Jude stared down at her, stubble on his cheeks, his blond hair tousled and his eyes hooded.

  No shirt. His chest was bare and too close. The man had serious muscles. Damn. His jeans hung low on his body, wrapping around his hips and clinging to his strong, hard thighs.

  Hunter.

  “Took you long enough,” he said, voice so deep it was nearly a growl.

  Light surrounded him and spilled onto the porch. She shifted, her high heels scraping over the old wood. “Didn’t realize you were waiting for me.”

  Lie. She’d known that he wanted to talk to her, alone, just as she’d wanted to talk to him.

  Erin had to find out what he knew about her — and how he knew it. So I won’t slip up and make the same mistake with someone else next time. “Do I get to come inside or do I have to stay out here all night?”

  His mouth hitched into a half-smile. Erin inhaled.

  Then Jude stepped back, motioning for her to enter.

  The fingers of her right hand tightened around her purse strap and she walked forward, hesitating for only the briefest of seconds when she caught sight of the deep gouges along the doorframe.

  Claw marks.

  Some shifters sure did like to mark their territory. Her jaw tightened and she brushed past him, all too aware of the heat and strength of his body.

  The interior of his place was Spartan bare. A couch. A giant TV. A paperwork-covered desk shoved into the corner. A big, scarred wooden table, two chairs around it, a small lamp on its surface. Erin caught a glimpse of the kitchen — or was that a closet?

  “Not here much,” he said with a shrug, following her gaze. “Too busy—”

  “Hunting.” She knew exactly how he spent his days. In the hours since they’d parted, she’d done her homework.

  Jude Donovan. Age thirty-five. College graduate, with a degree in criminal justice. He’d been recruited to work for Night Watch when he’d barely been twenty-two. His reputation for hunting was vicious, and so were the criminals he captured. The vilest of criminals.

  Humans…and she’d be willing to bet Other, too.

  She reached into her bag and pulled out a check. Not the usual way things were handled in the DA’s office, but…“I’ve been authorized to acquire your services.” He didn’t glance at the check, just kept those blue eyes trained on hers. Her fingers were steady as she held the check in the air between them. “This check is for ten thousand dollars.”

  No change of expression. From the looks of his cabin, the guy shouldn’t have been hesitating to snatch up the money.

  “Give the check to Night Watch.”

  At that, her lips firmed. “I already gave them one.” A hefty one, at that. “This one’s for you. A bonus from the Mayor. He wants this guy caught, fast.” Before word about the true nature of the crime leaked too far.

  “So old Gus doesn’t think his cops can handle this guy?”

  Gus LaCroix. Hard-talking, ex-hard-drinking mayor. No nonsense, deceptively smart, and demanding. “He’s got the cops on this, but he said he knew you, and that you’d be the best one to handle this job.”

  Erin strongly suspected that Gus belonged in the Other world. She hadn’t caught any unusual scent drifting from him, but his agreement to bring in Night Watch and his almost desperate demands to the DA had sure indicated the guy knew more than he was letting on about the situation.

  Could be he was a demon. Low-level. Many politicians were.

  Jude took the check. Finally. She dropped her fingers, not wanting the flesh on flesh contact with him. Not then.

  He folded the check and tucked it into the back pocket of his jeans. “Guess you just got yourself a bounty hunter.”

  “And I guess you’ve got yourself one sick shifter to catch.”

  He closed the distance between them, moving fast and catching her arms in a strong grip.

  Aw, hell. It was just like before. The heat of his touch swept through her, waking hungers she’d deliberately denied for so long.

  Jude was sexual. From his knowing eyes, his curving, kiss-me lips, to the hard lines and muscles of his body.

  Deep inside, in the dark, secret places of her soul that she fought to keep hidden, there was a part of her just like that.

  Wild. Hot.

  Sexual.

  “Why are you afraid of me?”

  Not the question she’d expected, but one she could answer. “I know what you are. What sane woman wouldn’t be afraid of a man who becomes an animal?”

  “Some women like a little bit of the animal in their men.”

  “Not me.” Liar.

  His eyes said the same thing.

  “Do your job, Donovan. Catch the freak who cut up my prisoner—”

  “Like Bobby had been slashing his victims?”

  Hit. Yeah, there’d been no way to miss that significance.

  “When word gets out about what really happened, some folks will say Bobby deserved what he got.” His fingers pressed into her arms. Erin wore a light, silk shirt — and even that seemed too hot for the humid Louisiana spring night. His touch burned through the blouse and seemed to singe her flesh.

  “Some will say that,” she allowed. Okay, a hell of a lot would say that. “But his killer still has to be caught.” Stopped, because she had the feeling this could be just the beginning.

  Her feelings about death weren’t often wrong.

  She was a lot like her dad that way.

  And, unfortunately, like her mother, too.

  “What do you think? Did he deserve to be clawed to death?”

  An image of Bobby’s ex-wife, Pat, flashed before her eyes. The doctors had put over one h
undred and fifty stitches into her face. She’d been his most brutal attack.

  Erin swallowed. “His punishment was for the court to decide.” She stepped back, but he didn’t let her go. “Uh, do you mind?”

  “Yeah, I do.” His eyes glittered down at her. “If we’re gonna be working together, we need honesty between us.”

  “We need you to find the killer.”

  “Oh, I will. Don’t worry about that. I always catch my prey.”

  So the rumors claimed. The hunters from Night Watch were known throughout the U.S.

  “You’re shivering, Erin.”

  “No, no, I’m not.” She was.

  “I make you nervous. I scare you.” A pause. His gaze dropped to her lips, lingered, then slowly rose back to meet her stare. “Is it because I know what you are?”

  She wanted his mouth on hers. A foolish desire. Ridiculous. Not something the controlled woman wanted, but what the wild thing inside craved. “You don’t know anything about me.”

  “Don’t I?”

  Erin jerked free of his hold and glared at him. “Few things in this world scare me. You should know that.” There was one thing, one person, who terrified her but now wasn’t the time for that disclosure. No, she didn’t tell anyone about him.

  If she could just get around Jude and march out that door—

  “Maybe you’re not scared of me, then. Maybe you’re scared of yourself.”

  She froze.

  “Not human,” he murmured, shaking his head. “Not vamp.”

  Vamp? Thankfully, no.

  “Djinn? Nah, you don’t have that look.” His right hand lifted and he rubbed his chin. “Tell me your secrets, sweetheart, and I’ll tell you mine.”

  “Sorry, not the sharing type.” She’d wasted enough time here. Erin pushed past him, ignoring the press of his arm against her side. Her body ached and the whispers of hunger within her grew more demanding every moment she stayed with him.

  Weak.

  She hated her weakness.

  Just like her mother’s.

  “You’re a shifter.” His words stopped her near the door. She stared blankly at the faded wood. Heard the dull thud of her heart echoing in her ears.

  Then the soft squeak of the old floorboards as he closed the distance between them.