The leather pants were torn, and she was pretty sure from the fire racing up her back that the material was shredded there too. A groan came from her mouth as throbbing pulsed in her head.
What the hell had happened last night? Melody forced herself to stand and noticed that nothing was broken. Thank god for that. Pieces of her bike were scattered throughout the brush, and she saw her Ducati on its side against a mesquite tree.
She undid the strap under her chin and pulled the helmet off. The lightness of her head felt ten million times better. She breathed in deeply. The air was stifling in the midday sun, but nowhere near as suffocating as wearing the helmet. From the position of the sun, she had to have been out here for a while.
The back road was completely deserted as she scanned the area. It wasn’t surprising no one had found her. There was only one house down this road. Hers. And it wasn’t like she ever had a lot of company.
“Fuck.” Dirt flew up as she kicked the loose sand. Her bike was ruined. What was she going to do now? Melody froze as she tried to recall the previous night. Work. Visions of the hospital projected in her mind. She could remember finishing out her shift at seven. As she’d gone to leave, Melody could remember Olive calling out to her from her room. The girl was a few months over the age of ten. When she’d been admitted to the children’s hospital, the leukemia had already taken its toll. Olive’s body rejected all treatment they tried, and Melody knew the sweet, little girl didn’t have much time left. Not just because she was a nurse, but the gift she’d grown up with told her the ugly truth.
Hey sweetie, you doing okay? Melody had walked in and sat on the edge of the bed. Big brown eyes looked up at her. The sadness that emanated from them broke her heart.
You’re leaving, already?
She had grinned at the girl, nodding. Yeah, my shift is over. I should be back next Thursday, though.
Oh. Olive had looked down at her hands. Life was so unfair. This little girl was so full of good, and yet she was being taken without her life really starting. Melody kissed her head, bald from the chemo treatments, and picked up a book from the side table.
Would you like me to read you a story before I leave?
The little girl shook her head. Not tonight. My mommy already did.
But you’re still awake. Usually after your story, you’re fast asleep.
Something had flashed behind Olive’s eyes as she stared up at Melody. “Do you think there are really angels in heaven?”
The question was so unexpected that it had taken Melody aback. I know for a fact there are. She had returned the girl’s smile. The conversation wasn’t one she had felt was appropriate for her to be having with such a young girl. Melody had shifted under Olive’s innocent gaze. Now you try not to think about that, and get some sleep. The angel’s will come for all of us one day, but not any time soon. She put the book down. I’ll see you next Thursday, Olive. It had been a lie. She knew the little girl wasn’t going to be there, and the thought was downright sickening. It brought tears to Melody’s eyes as she rode the elevator down to the ground floor of the hospital.
Changing in the restroom had been simple enough since she brought her backpack everywhere, but it came even easier knowing that while good got taken away every day, evil was thriving under everyone’s nose. Images of the club burst into her head and she sucked in air. Melody’s eyes lowered. The gun still rested in her knee-high boot. She could feel the pressure against her calf. “It worked.” A laugh came from her mouth and she started clapping. “I can’t believe it.”
The house wasn’t but a hundred yards from where she had wrecked. Melody began to jog in the boots, swearing as the heels stuck in loose spots of the caliche road. Sweat was covering the inside of her outfit and the cut she had down her leg was on fire by the time she opened her front door.
“Leon!” She placed the gun on the coffee table and unzipped the outfit and boots, peeling them off. The damn things were stuck to her skin. She winced at the pain, but disregarded it while she scanned the small living room and adjoining kitchen. Cereal was left out of the table and Lucky Charms were scattered across the dark wooden surface like a toddler had been set loose. “Leon! Where are you?”
Music was blasting from the back bedroom. Melody walked over and pushed the door open. Dark hair was flying out around her friend’s face as he shook his head back and forth with his eyes closed. His hands where making drumming motions, while he sang the lyrics to the song at the top of his lungs. Melody picked up his shoe that was by the door and tossed it to him. It hit one of his hands, and his eyes flew open.
“Mel! Hey, where have you been?” He got up and turned off the music. “Holy…did you crash your bike again? That’s a nasty cut you have going on there.”
Instinctively, her eyes lowered to the dry blood, and the gash on her leg. “Yeah. Would have been nice if you would have looked for me. I’ve been baking just down the road for hours, unconscious.” She waved her hand through the air. “Anyway, who cares … that’s not why I wanted to talk to you.” A smile came to her face. “I did it. I figured out the way to send them back. At least temporarily.”
The big brown eyes of her friend grew at her words. “You're joking.”
“No.” Melody was sure her heart was going to explode. “I did it, Leon. The holy water capped in the bullets worked.” She started dancing around. Her dark hair bounced over her bra-covered chest as she jumped up and down, waving her hands in the air.
Leon’s six-foot frame collapsed to edge of the bed. “I can’t believe it,” he whispered. The long hair shadowed his face as he looked down. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m happy, but Mel…” His eyes searched her face and she became still at his seriousness. “Did anyone see you? Aren’t you scared? There’s so many of them. And then, there’s you.”
Melody felt her lips part. She wanted to argue. To tell him to just be happy for her, but she couldn’t. He was right. There wasn’t another demon hunter for hundreds of miles. No one even knew the evil beings existed, except immortals, and angels, and she wasn’t either one of those. She wasn’t even completely human. Only half.
“I had my helmet on. No one saw my face.”
“Wait.” Leon stood, and cocked his head to the side. “But other demons saw you? They saw your bike?”
A frustrated sigh escaped her mouth. “Well, yeah. When I was leaving the club a man walked out.” A shiver shook her body, and it wasn’t a bad one. She had to admit. The first time her eyes locked on the gorgeous man, the pull was like gravity. “I think he was the master. His power was overwhelming.”
“You did it at Club Street!” Leon walked to the closet, throwing open the door. “Get some damn clothes on. We gotta get out of here. Cameras, Mel!” He jerked a shirt off the hanger, forcefully. His abs flexed as he pulled it over his head. “I swear, sometimes you don’t use your damn head at all. I’m surprised the house isn’t already crawling with demons.”
She rolled her eyes. “Leon. Calm. I had fake tags on my bike. They won’t be able to track me down. And even if the cameras did pick up my face, what are they going to do, put up wanted posters? Come on.” She raised an eyebrow at him. “Thanks for getting dressed, though. I need you to help me get my bike in the back of your truck. I’ll try to fix it myself.”
Waves pushed against Melody’s skin. It always happened when his temper spiked. “I don’t think you understand,” Leon growled. “Demons are extremely clever. And the master, of all people.” He narrowed his eyes. “I’m an immortal, Mel. I’ve been in this world a hell of a long time. I know the way they work. Tell me this. How many people around here drive a black Ducati?”
For the first time fear hit Melody. “Not many.”
“No,” he said, low. “We live in a small town, twenty miles from the city…a small city, at that. There’s maybe a handful in a fifty-mile radius.” He slid on his shoes. “They will find you if you stay. Forget the bike. We have to get the hell out of dodge, now.”
“I can’t leave, Leon. Where would we go?”
Clothes hit the bed as he starting tossing them from the closet. “We’ll stay with Harvey for a while. He’ll take us in.”
Melody’s hand came to her hip. “I don’t think so. You go. I’m staying.” She turned around and headed for her room. There was so much she still needed to do. First thing. Shower. Banging coming from Leon’s room had her shaking her head as she grabbed some clothes.
The moment she had met the immortal, she knew there was something different about him. He was the first of his kind she’d ever met. The smell of his skin triggered a longing deep down in the pit of her stomach. At first she thought maybe it was one of those weird cases of love at first sight, and what she was experiencing was butterflies. He was, after all, beautiful. He looked every bit like an angel. But after a few days, he’d told her he was an immortal. The emotion she suddenly realized wasn’t love. It was just the good in him that she’d picked up on. He was nothing more than a brother to her. From that moment on they’d been inseparable.
“Mel! Let’s go.” He rushed into the kitchen and grabbed a trash bag. “Hurry. Get moving. You still have to pack.”
“I’m not going, Leon. This is my home. I’m not afraid of demons. I have plenty of bullets left, and I’ll be ready in case they show up.”
The bags fell to the floor as he rushed toward her. “Oh, you’re going.” Melody ran into the restroom and locked the door just before he got to her. Pounding erupted and she stepped back. She knew his strength.
“You open this door, right now. If you don’t, I’m going to break it down.”
She reached over and turned on the shower. “You don’t want to do that. I’m not dressed.”
A huff could be heard through the thin wooden barrier. “Five minutes. That’s all you get. If you’re not out, I’m coming in whether you’re wearing clothing or not. The joke will be on you showing up to Harvey’s, butt ass naked. Now, get going!”
Melody felt her jaw drop. She’d never heard him say a curse word in the three years she had known him. Leon was a saint. The reason why he’d fallen to begin with wasn’t clear. He’d never told her, and she was too respectful to ask. She had been hoping he’d tell her when he felt comfortable enough, but he never had.
Stinging raced down her leg while the water ran over the cut. Bruising surrounded the deep laceration. Damn, she’d wiped out pretty good. If only she could remember why … or how. Knowing her, she was probably going way too fast down her gravel road. It wouldn’t be the first time this sort of thing had happened. Still, she figured she would have learned by now.
“Three minutes!”
Melody lathered her hair with the soap and nearly screamed at the agony that raced down her back. How had she forgotten about that? At the banging on the door, she felt herself hurrying. She wasn’t sure if he would really come in or not, but just in case, she sure as hell didn’t want her hair to be full of shampoo.
“Two minutes.”
“Bull, that was more like thirty seconds!” She quickly washed her body and turned off the water. The moment the mirror was wiped off she took in her back. “Oh my…”
“Time’s up!”
Melody wrapped the towel around tightly just as the door swung open. Her eyes narrowed, angrily. “Dammit, Leon. Didn’t you hear the water turn off?” Brown eyes took her body in. She felt herself shift under his gaze. There’d never been sexual tension between them before, not like this. She couldn’t stop the uncomfortable feeling that washed through her.
The fallen angel stood before her, not moving. The amount of arousal pouring from his skin had her stepping back. Melody hardly ever picked up on the scent of people’s emotions, but just knowing she could sense his was a bit scary.
“Leon.” She said his name loudly, trying to break the fixation she had on her body.
His eyes lifted to her face. Slowly, his head shook back and forth. “I’m sorry.” He stepped back. “Get dressed and let’s go.”
“But—“
“You’re going.” The look he gave her said he was serious about dragging her out. Melody slammed the door and put on some jeans and a t-shirt. She would only stay there for a few days and let this blow over. There was no way any demons could track her down. Not even the master she’d seen standing outside. He entered back into her mind and she felt herself become wet at just the thought of him. It took everything she had not to moan out loud. Damn, he’d been sexy in that dark suit. Too sexy and powerful looking, if she wanted to admit. It was best if she pushed him as far from her mind as she could. What she needed to focus on was hunting demons.
The thought of staying at Harvey’s suddenly didn’t sound like a bad idea. He did live in the city. That would make things a lot easier for her to get in to take out more evil. It was what she was meant to do, by god, and she was damn good at it. Now that she had the secret weapon to actually take them out with a pull of her trigger, she wasn’t about to stop.
Excitement took over and she rushed from the bathroom, grabbed her gun, and started packing her clothes. As she stuffed them in the overnight bag, she made sure to hide the box of bullets and her savings in the middle. “Ready.” She met Leon in the hallway. “Since we’ll be in the city, I need you to take me by the dealership. I need a new bike.”
He took her bag and threw it over his shoulder. “Let’s just go. We’ll talk more about what we’ll do when we’re on our way.”
Melody noticed that Leon had three trash bags worth of clothing in the bed of the truck. “How long are you planning to stay?” The engine roared to life and dirt billowed out behind them as they sped down the road. The broken bike sitting on the side of the road was upsetting, but she put her attention back to the immortal. Leon glanced at her. He didn’t start talking until he got on the bypass, and headed toward the city.
“I think I’m just going to stay there. Things have been getting a little difficult between us lately, and I think maybe it’s best if I eliminate the problem now before it gets out of control.”
“Difficult?” Melody looked at him confused. “I don’t understand. I thought things were going great.”
“They are.”
Clarity dawned. The looks he’d given her lately went beyond friendly. They were nothing short of longing. Maybe she hadn’t wanted to see it that way. If they got involved, it would ruin everything he was working for. She couldn’t be responsible for that. Plus, she just couldn’t think of him that way. “You’re right. I think it’s probably for the best.”
Warmth embraced her hand and she squeezed Leon’s fingers. As silence settled throughout the truck, Melody stared off into the distance. Her life had suddenly taken some kind of twist. There had been a fork in her road, and the path she chose last night had altered things. She could feel it deep within her bones. Her father had been a demon. Melody had never known until her mother’s deathbed confession, when she told her about the man whose good looks had seduced her one stormy night.
She’d never seen him after, but had longed for him ever since. It was enough to spark a hate deep within Melody that was beyond repair. Her mother may have suffered, but so had she, not knowing who her father was. To make things worse, she resented what was she was. Hated that she was a part of a man who was nothing but evil. She vowed the moment of her mother’s passing that she would not be pulled to the dark side by what was in her blood. Instead, she would fight it with everything she had.
She was a demon hunter. Half good. Half evil. And her destiny had brought Melody to this moment for a reason. It was time to find out what fate had planned for her future.
Chapter Three
Dirt billowed around the Maserati as Vex pulled over to the side of the road and came to a stop. At the sight of the broken bike, he knew he had the right location. It had taken two days, but his sources pulled through and found out who the mystery woman was. Her name was Melody Ann Carpenter. She was twenty-nine years old, and worked full-time at a children’s hospital
in his city. At first glance, nothing about the woman seemed right at all. The one he’d spotted on the bike wasn’t human––at least, not all the way. He would have picked up on that. Instead, all he got from their brief encounter was a jumble of different sensations that he couldn’t explain.
He pulled out the paper with her picture on it again, and looked closely. The pull he felt was undeniable, and one that twisted his stomach with dread. The long, dark hair fell in waves over her shoulders. The smile was achingly beautiful. Although the information said she had blue-green eyes, he couldn’t tell from the quality. They looked light, but the detail wasn’t there.
The humidity was thick as he stepped into the loose sand, off onto the side of the road. Pieces of the bike were strewn around, and the black Ducati was resting against a tree. He shook his head and looked further down the road. Supposedly, her house wasn’t far off.
The car revved while he sped in the direction. As he came to park in front of a small white house, he took in the peaceful sight. Bushes went down the length of what looked like a front bedroom. There was a bird feeder hanging from a tree, and a plastic bird-bath resting under that. Vex wasn’t sure what he’d expected, but this wasn’t it. Cautiously, he got out and adjusted his suit. It was standard that all demon masters wore them to show their status. Right now, he could have gone for a pair of shorts. It was downright stifling.
Vex closed his eyes and let his senses become in tune with the surroundings. Small animals moved around in the brush in the distance, but he couldn’t pick up on anyone inside the house. He glanced around and headed for the door. The knob turned in his hand, and he hesitated. Who left their door unlocked? That didn’t sound right. Between the bike being wrecked and the unlocked house, Vex could feel himself becoming antsy. And he didn’t like it one bit.
The smell of vanilla was subtle as he walked into the small living room. It looked like anyone’s. There was a couch facing a TV that rested against the back wall. A coffee table sat a good foot from the sofa. It was the black material on the floor that drew in his attention the most. He walked over and picked up the leather suit. “Son of a bitch. It is hers.” His fingers pushed through the tears. Although he should have been happy he’d located her residence, all he could wonder was how badly she was hurt.
Their Dark Hunter (Masters of Darkness) Page 2