Catch Me (The Demon Underground Series)
Page 1
Table of Contents
Praise for the Demon Underground Series
Catch Me
Copyright
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Please visit these websites for more information about Parker Blue
Dear Reader
About the Author
Praise for the
Demon Underground Series
“Wow, I didn’t sleep at all last night. I stayed up reading Fang Me.”
—Archimedes, SuccuWiki, Five Stars
“This series gets a BIG 5 Paws from me.”
—Happy Tails and Tales Blog
“I recommend this series to anyone and everyone!”
—Books, Books, and More Books, Five Skulls
Catch Me
Demon Underground Series, Book Six
by
Parker Blue
Bell Bridge Books
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons (living or dead), events or locations is entirely coincidental.
Bell Bridge Books
PO BOX 300921
Memphis, TN 38130
Ebook ISBN: 978-1-61194-642-0
Print ISBN: 978-1-61194-623-9
Bell Bridge Books is an Imprint of BelleBooks, Inc.
Copyright © 2015 by Pam McCutcheon writing as Parker Blue
Published in the United States of America.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review.
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Cover design: Debra Dixon
Interior design: Hank Smith
Photo/Art credits:
Girl (manipulated) © Ys1982 | Dreamstime.com
Portal (manipulated) © Agsandrew | Dreamstime.com
Background (manipulated) © Realrocking | Dreamstime.com
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Dedication
For my wonderful fans. You guys rock!
Chapter One
Val
THOUGH THE MOONLESS night was already black as ink, I retreated farther into the deep shadows of a live oak outside my townhouse. My mouth went dry, my heart pounded, and my stomach churned as if a dozen vampires were cavorting about inside me. Yes, it was my most frightening outing yet—a date with Austin.
Beside me, Fang, my trusty hellhound, snorted. YOU’VE TAKEN ON DOZENS OF VAMPIRES, MAGE DEMONS, AND BLOOD DEMONS . . . AND YOU’RE AFRAID OF A DATE WITH THE GUY WHO WANTS TO BE YOUR BOYFRIEND?
I’m not afraid of him, I sent Fang telepathically.
THEN WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF?
Oh, maybe looking like a child to the vampire who was way over a hundred years old and sexy as hell. What did he see in me, an average-looking eighteen-year-old with virtually no experience in this kind of thing? I’d never really “dated” before, though I had two short-lived relationships—one with Dan Sullivan, a full human, and the other with Shade, the broody shadow demon. Neither had prepared me for a date with a sexy vamp.
After the fabulous Valentine’s Day flash mob he’d arranged for me with “zombies” dancing to Michael Jackson’s Thriller a couple of weeks ago, I’d promised to go out on a real date with him, and this was the first time we’d both been able to arrange it.
Unfortunately, Fang could read all my doubts and insecurities and would call me on every single one of them. I cringed, waiting for it.
YOU’RE NOT HALF BAD-LOOKING, Fang said.
Gee, thanks.
DON’T BE AN IDIOT. WHAT COULD HE POSSIBLY SEE IN YOU? WELL, MAYBE IT’S THE FACT THAT YOU’RE AN AWESOME SLAYER, OR MAYBE BECAUSE YOU’VE SAVED HIS BUTT AND COUNTLESS OTHER VAMP AND DEMON BUTTS IN SAN ANTONIO MANY TIMES IN THE PAST FEW MONTHS—NOT TO MENTION THAT OF UNSUSPECTING HUMANS. OR MAYBE, JUST MAYBE, HE’S HOT FOR YOUR INNER SUCCUBUS WHO MAKES HIS BUTT FEEL SO GOOOOOOD.
“That’s a lot of butts,” I murmured. But I had to admit my inner succubus—I called her Lola—liked Austin, too. A lot.
YOU DO GET THAT LOLA ISN’T A SEPARATE ENTITY? YOU ARE THE SUCCUBUS—THAT ONE-EIGHTH DEMON PART OF YOU ISN’T SOMETHING OR SOMEONE YOU CAN SEPARATE FROM YOUR HUMAN SELF, NO MATTER HOW MUCH YOU MIGHT WANT TO.
“How can I forget when you keep reminding me?” I muttered. Besides, I’d only wanted to get rid of Lola before I’d been kicked out of my home. Everyone else in my family—my mom, stepfather, and half-sister—was fully human, so I’d felt like a freak. But now that I’d discovered the Demon Underground, I didn’t feel so much freakish as I did . . . inexperienced.
WELL, Fang drawled. THERE’S ONE WAY TO GET THAT EXPERIENCE, YOU KNOW.
Yeah, I know. I’m doing it, aren’t I?
IF YOU STOP HIDING—FROM YOURSELF AND HIM.
Austin drove up then, in one of the black luxury cars the San Antonio vein of vampires kept in their motor pool. He stepped out of the car, wearing jeans that snugged in all the right places, a black leather jacket, snakeskin boots, and his ever-present cowboy hat. My heart beat faster. What a hottie—and so out of my league it was ridiculous.
Fang nudged me with his nose. DON’T BE RIDICULOUS. YOU’RE VAL SHAPIRO, THE SLAYER, THE DEMON UNDERGROUND’S PALADIN ENFORCER. HE’S OUT OF YOUR LEAGUE.
Yeah, right. As if I could hide from Austin’s keen vampire vision anyway. His gaze found me in the depths of the shadows, and a slow, sexy smile widened his mouth. “Hello, darlin’.”
Would any girl not melt into a puddle right then and there? True to form, Lola surged front and center, her interest sharpening. As for me, I swallowed, trying to get some moisture in my mouth. “Hi,” I managed. Oh yeah, I am witty beyond belief.
He leaned against the car, waiting for me to come to him. “Shall we go?”
I took a deep breath and sauntered toward him, or tried to. Instead, I tripped over a root of the massive tree. Graceful, I was not.
I felt my face flame hot and wished I could rush back inside without looking like a fool.
TOO LATE, Fang jeered.
Sooooo helpful.
I put a fake smile on my face and managed to leave the darkness of the tree without st
umbling again. I headed toward the car under the streetlight, and Austin moved around to the other side to open the door for me.
I hesitated before getting in.
“What’s the matter?” he asked, his face hidden in his hat’s shadow.
I glanced up at him anyway. “Where are we going? Am I dressed okay?”
I really didn’t have much in the way of clothing to choose from. Jeans, a shirt, and one of my many vests was pretty much my go-to uniform, and tonight was no different. I needed the vest to cover the stakes in my back waistband. Not to use on Austin, of course—he was one of the good bloodsuckers in the New Blood Movement—but after being a slayer for several years, I kind of felt naked without them. The rest of my vampire-hunting kit was in the backpack I carried like most girls carried a purse.
“Perfect,” Austin said, opening the car door wider.
Good, because I didn’t have anything suitable to wear to someplace fancy and didn’t know if anything like that was open this late at night anyway.
I slipped inside to let the luxurious leather seat cradle my butt, but it seemed weird to see Fang sitting on the sidewalk instead of jumping in beside me. “Where are we going?” I asked again.
Austin leaned his forearms on the roof and door to dip his head where he could see me. He gave me a slow grin. “Well, darlin’, there are these rogue vampires attacking tourists in Brackenridge Park—”
“Near the zoo?” That didn’t bode well.
“Yeah, and I thought maybe we could have ourselves a little fun chasing them down.”
Relief coursed through me, and I relaxed. Grinning back at him, I said, “Sounds great.”
Austin glanced over at Fang, who looked as though he was an eager, tightly-coiled spring about to boing loose. “You wanna come?”
DAMN BETCHA, Fang said, though Austin couldn’t hear him. He leaped into the car, jumped over my lap, then bounded into the back seat. LET’S GO!
“That’s a yes,” I told Austin with a laugh.
As Austin went around to get into the driver’s side, Fang exclaimed, WOW. FIRST DATE, AND HE’S TAKING YOU OUT TO HUNT EVIL VAMPIRES WITH YOUR HELLHOUND. DOES HE GET YOU OR WHAT?
He gets me, I confirmed, smiling.
As Austin drove toward the park, I fumbled for something clever to say. “So, how was your day?”
THAT WASN’T IT, Fang said drily.
Yeah, I sounded too perky, even to my own ears.
Austin shrugged. “Same old, same old. Train new vamps how not to get killed, check on the blood banks, sleep like the dead. You?”
I tried to match his tone. “Oh, you know. Read spells in the Encyclopedia Magicka, play with the hellpuppies, babysit Shade.”
Fang snorted in the back seat. HELLPUPPIES? I LIKE THAT.
Austin cast me a sidelong glance. “Babysit Shade?”
His question didn’t sound like a jealousy-over-an-old-boyfriend thing, more like a what-the-hell-is-he-doing-now kind of thing.
“Yeah, ever since his sister was sucked into that other dimension, Shade has been trying to figure out how to get her body back, trying to convince other demons to help him.” Luckily, he’d stopped blaming me for her death, but he wasn’t talking to anyone much. “Either he’s holed up researching the encyclopedia or the Internet, or he’s hanging out at the blood mansion.”
“Blood mansion?” Austin repeated, sounding bemused.
“You know, the place where we lost his sister and took down the blood demon. I’m not sure what else to call it.” When he nodded in comprehension, I added, “Micah is afraid Shade’s going to do something stupid there.”
“Like what?”
I grimaced. “We don’t know for sure, but he wants me to make sure Shade doesn’t do it.” I cast Austin a glance. “I hear Alejandro bought the blood house?”
Austin nodded. “We trashed it when we took down the blood demon and his followers, so Alejandro feels responsible for cleaning it up. Besides, the Movement is growing. We could use another place.”
“Maybe your boss could warn Shade off, threaten to have him arrested for trespassing or something?”
“You really think that’d work?”
“Probably not.” I sighed. Shade was another guy I didn’t know how to deal with. Give me a rogue vamp to slay or an evil demon to fight, and I was good. Personal relationships . . . not so much.
“How’d you get out of babysitting duty tonight?”
“Tessa had the night off from Club Purgatory and volunteered to watch him so I could go out with you. He’s probably sleeping, anyway.” After all, it was long past the time when most law-abiding citizens were in bed.
Austin cast me a heated sidelong glance. “Remind me to thank Tessa later.”
That look made Lola reach greedy fingers toward him, but I reined her in. Now was not the time.
Maybe later.
Luckily, we’d arrived at the park, so I didn’t have to respond. Instead, I got out of the car and asked, “What’s the situation?”
“We’ve heard rumors of rogues hunting here, looking for clandestine lovers, oblivious teenagers, and the homeless to snack on.”
I nodded. “Let’s—”
I broke off as a patrol car pulled up, and an officer leaned out the window. “Hello, folks. What are you doing here at two o’clock in the morning? It’s not safe.”
“It’s okay,” I told him. “I’m Val Shapiro . . . used to work for the SCU?” If he was warning people away from the park, he probably knew what kind of “special” crimes the Special Crimes Unit handled and who I was. I leaned down so he could see my face. I vaguely remembered seeing him before.
He recoiled. Yep, he knew me all right. The scuzzies were okay fighting vamps and demons, but they didn’t really like having a demon in their midst, especially one who could whup their ass and make them enjoy it at the same time.
His gaze slanted toward Austin.
“My hunting partner tonight,” I added. “He can hold his own. Are we free to go, Officer?”
Apparently, he took my word for it, because he nodded. “Good hunting,” he said and drove away.
WELL, RESPECT IS BETTER THAN ACCEPTANCE ANY DAY, Fang said.
Yeah, I kept telling myself that.
I turned to Austin. “Any idea where to start looking?”
JUST FOLLOW MY NOSE, Fang said and put snout to ground.
“I take it Fang knows?” Austin said.
“Looks like it.”
I headed down a trail after Fang, and Austin held out his hand. “We should pretend we’re lovers taking a stroll,” Austin said. “Lure them out.”
“Oh, okay,” I said, ducking my head to hide the flush warming my cheeks. I didn’t know whether to feel elated that he’d found an excuse to hold my hand or deflated that he found it necessary to explain. Either way, I’d take his words at face value and act out his little play.
He caught my hand, linking his fingers with mine. Oh, my. It was as if someone had dumped a bucket of hormones inside me, and they all responded at once, surging through my chakras with gut-churning intensity.
Lola liked.
Fighting back the sensations, I tried to focus on why we were here. “Do you have the amulet with you?” I asked casually. For some reason, everyone seemed to think I was addicted to the thing since it constantly pulled at me, begging me to use it. I wasn’t, but the crystal was a handy tool now that I’d lost some of my slayer mojo. If it was nearby, I could use it for small things like seeing through a shadow demon’s swirliness, but for big things like controlling men, I had to touch it.
“Yes,” Austin said equally casual, “but you’re not going to get it unless we’re way outnumbered.”
The crystal called to me then, and I was able to pinpoint its locati
on—deep in Austin’s front pocket. Well, crap. I couldn’t go after it there without embarrassing the heck out of myself. He knew it, too. I shrugged, pretending it was no big deal.
He caught my glance at his front pocket and grinned.
My face flamed, and Fang chuckled.
Don’t even start with me. I’d embarrassed myself enough already.
We walked for about a quarter mile down the path when Fang said, UNDEAD BLOODSUCKERS AT THREE O’CLOCK.
I squeezed Austin’s hand in warning.
He leaned down to murmur in my ear, “Yes, I hear them.”
And that’s when three guys came strolling out from behind the trees, as if they were trying to look chill but not quite succeeding. College guys, probably, and they came in three sizes—small, medium, and large. But they didn’t seem like the typical schoolyard bullies—more like the ones who got picked on.
“Hey, girlie, wanna play?” the heavy one asked.
He’d have to catch me first, and that wasn’t going to happen. “Oh, great,” I said, rolling my eyes. “Geeks on parade.” I exchanged glances with Austin. “Are these the vicious predators you were worried about?”
“Naw, can’t be,” Austin drawled.
“You think you can take me, cowboy?” the medium-sized one asked belligerently.
Sheesh, was that a pocket protector I saw under his squeaky new leather jacket?
Austin nodded slowly. “I do.”
“All three of us?”
“Piece of cake.”
They rushed him, ignoring Fang and me. Big mistake.
Fang took on the wimpy little guy, jumping up to bite him in the butt, then catching him off balance so he fell down. Fang bared his teeth at the kid’s throat as I muttered the spell for super strength, then grabbed medium guy and slammed him down on the hard ground. Austin joined us, easily tripping up the heavy dude so they were all three lying on the ground, side by side, staring up at us.
“Too easy,” Austin said.
“Hey,” medium guy protested. “Do you know who we are?”