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It’s our little secret. The smile on Blaise’s face calmed me at the same time as it sparked fire in my veins. The demon had enough sex appeal to charm a virgin out of her panties, and he cared enough about the people of NYC, both human and paranorm, to want to make a difference. Which made him even more deliciously attractive.
I squirmed in the hard plastic seat in the briefing room, my core warmed by his mere presence. Even in a full room of fellow police officers, I couldn’t deny the rising lust, the raw desire spiking inside when he quirked his lips and winked at me. Surely I had more control. Hell, we had sex just about every moment we were alone—I should have been getting tired of it. Shouldn’t I?
Hell, no. And I haven’t tired of you, either. Want to go for round three after the meeting?
My pussy tensed, my body sizzling. I sat on my hands to keep from clapping them over my mouth and glared daggers at the mind-stealing demon. Get out of my head!
I’m only there because you let me.
For a moment, I closed my eyes and thought of a six-inch steel vault. I pushed my thoughts into the vault and slammed the door shut.
Blaise’s lips tilted. That’s better. You give too much of yourself away. But you’re learning.
Patronizing prig.
You have sexy legs and your eyes flash when you’re mad or when you’re in the deep throes of passion.
Again an image of a naked Michaels lying against my sheets sent shivers across my skin and made my panties damp. Damned demon.
“Danske, you and Michaels get out in the area of the attacks and ask the street people if they saw anything near the alley where they found the first demon.”
Rudy snorted behind me. “Like I said, joined at the dick.”
I slammed my hand on the tabletop. “Lieutenant, since Cardelli’s partner is out sick, I’d like to be assigned as his partner today.” I turned to face the man who’d been harassing me from the get-go, raising my brows in defiance.
Rudy’s eyes narrowed. “Wouldn’t want to break up a love match between Agent Danske and her own personal demon.”
My fist itched with the urge to slam into Rudy’s face. I calmed myself with the thought that I’d get my chance later, if Thomas gave me the go-ahead.
“We need Michaels out there. These are his people being targeted. He’ll know better what questions to ask.”
“I’m sure Michaels has better things to do than to play cop with the precinct.” I threw my challenge at Blaise. He wasn’t on the payroll, preferring instead to call himself a consultant to the force. Still, Thomas counted him as my partner. I wondered if Blaise had put that thought in the lieutenant’s head or if he’d come up with it on his own.
Blaise smiled. “I wouldn’t dream of going off on my own when the city and my fellow demons need me. However, Cardelli is more than welcome to join our party. We could cover more territory.”
“Good.” Thomas assigned other teams to visit the residences of the dead demons and to talk to neighbors. “It’s nearing sunset. Get out there before it gets too late to knock on doors. And be careful.” His gaze rested on Blaise. “Can’t afford to lose any agents, on the payroll or off it. We’re short-staffed as it is.”
As I stood, Thomas raised his hand. “One more thing. The weatherman’s calling for a helluva storm in the next forty-eight hours. They’re predicting heavy rain and flooding. If it gets bad, the mayor might button down Manhattan. You know, the usual subway shutdown threat and mass exodus of the hordes.”
A collective groan rose from the gathering.
“Thought that might brighten your day.” Thomas’s mouth twisted. “Gonna get messy out there, so be prepared.”
I slung my leather jacket over my shoulder, automatically checked that my weapon was on safe, and then headed out the door. “Meet me at the motor pool, Cardelli,” I called over my shoulder. If I couldn’t get Cardelli to quit being a pig while working with me, I’d put the hurt on him, like I’d done to the street cop who’d dared touch my ass. A face-plant on the concrete had done the trick that time.
“Testy today?” Blaise fell in step beside me.
“Not in the mood.” Stay back.
“You were in the mood, what? Twice this morning?”
“Exactly. I have barely enough energy to do my job, let alone enough to be civil.”
“Gotcha.” He held the door for me, knowing that also pissed me off.
Damned demon.
He chuckled. That’s not what you were saying earlier.
Images of our naked bodies sliding together flashed in my head. I’d said, Faster, harder, deeper. “Out!” I pointed at the open door, the double meaning not lost on him.
Blaise shrugged and exited the precinct first into the motor pool.
I stood for a long moment, letting the door close between us. We had to talk. I couldn’t function coherently on two hours of sleep each night, and the ribbing from team members wasn’t good. I wanted to be known for my work as a cop, not for my sleeping arrangements with a team member. With my decision firmly in mind, I pushed through the door.
Blaise held up his hands. “Now, don’t do something we’ll both regret.”
I strode to one of the nondescript four-door sedans the department allotted the PIT and hit the unlock button on the key fob. “Stop reading my mind.”
“I know you’ve worked too long to establish yourself as a hard-ass,” Blaise continued. “I understand your need to keep the fear of Danske in the thoughts of every male on the force, but you don’t have to with me. I know who you are, here.” He touched my chest. “You can be yourself with me.”
I wanted to believe him, but old habits die hard. I couldn’t let anyone but me run my life. With my hand on the door handle, I drew in a deep breath and faced Blaise. “You’re crowding me. I need space.”
Instead of backing away, Blaise stepped closer and ran a finger along my cheek, down my neck to the V in the plain white blouse I wore beneath my black leather jacket. Everywhere he touched me, my skin burned. “Are you sure about that?”
My core heated like the fires of hell, my pussy ached, and I swallowed a moan. I wanted him more than ever, but he was undermining my ability to do my job and to command the respect of the other men on the team. I grabbed his hand and held it away, ignoring the sizzling jolts of electricity singing through my veins at so simple a connection. “I need you to back off.”
His lips tilted downward. “Meaning?”
“We’re partners on the job. Let’s leave it on the job. Only.”
Just as Blaise opened his mouth to argue the point, Rudy blew through the door. “Oh, good. I thought you’d leave without me.”
“I would have, had you been a minute later.” I jerked my head toward the front seat. “Get in. And if you say one word about my driving, I’ll shoot you.”
Rudy laughed, although he looked to Blaise questioningly, as if he wasn’t sure if I was joking or not. “I got no problem with female drivers.” He started to climb into the backseat.
“No,” I said. “In the front.”
Rudy stared from me to Blaise. “I don’t mind sitting in back.”
“Get the fuck in.” I slid behind the steering wheel and started the engine.
Blaise and Rudy hadn’t even closed their doors before I backed out of the parking space. I made the tires squeal as I pulled out of the garage.
Fifteen minutes and two near-death collisions later, we arrived at the address where they’d found the first dead demon. I pulled into the alley, parked the car and got out. Darkness settled in around the buildings. A block away, music blared from a hoity-toity nightclub, and scantily clad socialites drifted in and out, climbing into limousines that whisked them away.
I couldn’t imagine what would drive a woman to wear so little clothing, and such high heels, on purpose. As if they were whores displaying their wares, for sale to the highest bidder. Marry wealthy was written all over them. What happened to being proud of your own ability to land a job and support yourself?
I’d always known I would be a cop. Even when I’d worked summers and nights in high school, bagging groceries in the ghetto suburbs of Chicago, sucking up to tired mothers who were dragging screaming children through the store. I knew then I wasn’t going to do that all my life.
The streetlights and neon signs gave a false sense of security. As soon as I stepped into the alley the shadows thickened, almost as if they’d come alive and wanted to lure me into them. I sniffed—one of my demon talents. Some demons had the ability to throw fire, but all I could do was smell stuff, like dead people, werewolves and zombies. Big whoop. Unfortunately tonight I smelled decomposing trash, smoke from a cigarette butt tossed recently. And death.
No matter how often death hit my nostrils, it didn’t get any easier to handle. I stiffened. “The demon died three days ago?”
“According to Thomas,” Blaise responded.
To my right, something moved in the dark.
My heart leaped and my hand went to the gun in the holster beneath my jacket. My senses identified the creature at the same time as a scrawny black cat eased out from behind a giant trash container, headed straight for me. I hate cats. And of course, for some bizarre reason, they love me.
All slinky, independent and mysterious, they give me the creeps. Long ago I’d decided not to make war with them. If they truly had nine lives, that gave them nine chances to get back at me. I wasn’t risking it. As the feline weaved its body around my legs, I braced myself and pretended it didn’t matter.
Blaise bent and scratched the creature beneath its chin, his body warm next to mine. “Hey, kitty, I bet you have stories to tell, huh, fella?”
Rudy strode past us into the alley. “So this is where they found the stiff?”
Trust Rudy to be crass. Blaise said, “That stiff might have been someone’s father, son or husband.”
The agent feigned shock. “You mean demons have parents and children? I thought they hatched, like lizards or snakes.”
“Can I hit him now?” I asked.
Blaise straightened. “Not worth the scraped knuckles. Besides, he’s goading us. Are you going to rise to his remarks?”
“That’s why I brought him along.”
“I can hear what you’re saying, you know,” Rudy said from halfway down the gloomy alley. “Nothing here, by the way.” He bent to lift a discarded cardboard box and peered beneath it.
“Three days and I can still smell death.” I tipped my chin up and inhaled. “But it’s not coming from this alley.” Like a beagle on the trail, I followed my nose past a closed appliance store, a liquor store with a neon Open sign flashing in the window, and a grocery whose doors had probably closed at sunset, the steel cage rolled down over the windows and locked securely. The scent grew stronger the closer I got to the next alley entrance.
Blaise and the cat kept pace.
As I turned into the next alley, someone groaned. No, it was more of a last breath being released. The acrid smell of death hit me hard and I staggered backward.
That’s when I saw it.
Like a wraith swathed in a long black cape, the figure rose from the ground and raced to the opposite end of the alley.
“Stop!” On instinct, I ripped my nine-millimeter Glock from my holster and aimed at the fleeing person. “Or I’ll shoot!”
The shadowy figure never slowed, dodging right around the far end of the building and disappearing from sight.
“Take the next block!” I shouted to Blaise as I ran after the figure.
I tripped over a big lump of rags stretched across the ground, mostly concealed in the gloom of the building, and landed hard on a pale blob. My hands pressed against the blob, realizing it was a body with arms and legs. Death wafted up and wrapped around me, its cloying scent gagging me as I struggled to get off of the body.
The whitewashed features, the blank stare and the horrific stench led me to the instant conclusion that he was dead, and nothing I could do would fix that. I pulled myself up and ran on, determined to stop the killer before he took another life, human or demon.
As I skidded around the corner at the end of the building, gun drawn, another figure came to a halt at the opposite corner. I aimed and would have pulled the trigger if he hadn’t spoken immediately.
“It got away,” Blaise called out.
“Damn.”
Blaise closed the distance between us and we walked back to the body.
“Is he human or demon?” I asked.
“You tell me.” Blaise waited.
I’d smelled dead human more times than I could count. This wasn’t the same. He had a grittier, more pungent scent. “Not human.”
With a nod, Blaise crouched down beside the dead demon. “This man looks like he’s been dead for while, but at the same time it appears to be a fresh kill.”
“Look at his face.” I knelt beside him, trying not to let the stench choke me. “He’s smiling.” His lips were turned up at the corners.
“And he’s still got a hard-on.” Blaise pointed to the man’s genitals, exposed to the night air.
“You think a hooker is offing these demons?”
A shot rang out, echoing off the brick walls.
I leaped to my feet. “Where’s Rudy?”
Chapter Two
Blaise and I ran toward the sound. Before we reached the unmarked sedan, I picked up the metallic scent of fresh blood.
Rudy lay crumpled against the side of a building. His weapon hung off the end of his finger, and his breathing was shallow, his face pale. “I thought you’d never get here.”
“What happened?”
“I don’t know.” He dragged in a deep breath as if every word was pure agony. “One minute I’m standing by the car, the next, I’m lying against a wall and I don’t know how I got here.”
“Did you see who hit you?” I asked.
He shook his head, his eyelids drooping. “Got a helluva headache though. And I’m as dizzy as a blonde.” He blinked up at me. “No offense, Blondie.”
I blew off his sexist remark and yanked the radio from my utility belt. “Got an officer down. Send an ambulance.”
While I gave the address, Blaise bent closer to Rudy. “You sure you didn’t see anything? Maybe a dark figure?”
“Nothing. Didn’t want to say anything in front of Danske....”
I could hear every word Rudy was saying, but I didn’t bother telling him that.
“But funny thing is, I got a boner that won’t quit.” Cardelli glanced at the ridge of his fly pressing upward, like a miniature tent. “You know how it is...a boner without an orgasm...” he groaned and plucked at his jeans. “Hurts like hell.”
