A Demon in Dallas (7 page)

Some five hours later, we arrived in Dallas. We’d stopped for gas on the way and hit the city centre at nearly two a.m. We were both exhausted, but sleep was a long way off. There was too much to do and the clock was ticking. I could have done with a gallon of coffee in my system, but we didn’t have the time to stop again, so, to keep me awake, I fiddled with the stereo system, flipping through radio channels and cranking up the volume every time a station played a song I liked.

It had been years since I’d last visited the city, but it had hardly changed at all. My memory served me well as I wound my way through the familiar streets, which were heavy with traffic despite the late hour…or early hour, depending on how you viewed it. In the passenger seat beside me, Connor was as twitchy as a junkie needing his next fix. The moon was still out, still high in the sky, and it was calling him out to play. The fact that he’d already shifted under its iridescent glow meant that he was able to stay in human form, but it wasn’t easy for him to resist the pull. Were-shifters liked to hunt during the full moon. It was as instinctual to them as breathing.

Connor had driven for the first hour, but after a near miss with the back of an eighteen wheeler when he’d been watching the sky instead of the road ahead, I’d made him pull over and we’d switched places.

“How are you holding up?” I asked after watching him wring out his hands for the umpteenth time.

When he looked across at me, I saw that his eyes had shifted to their wolf form and there were deep frown lines on his brow. I suppose that had been a stupid question, but he smiled reassuringly, the tips of his incisors just visible between his lips.

“Never better.” Connor had never been the type of man that would admit to a weakness of any kind.

I sighed heavily and turned my attention back to the road. “We’ll be there soon.”

Before we’d left Austin, Connor had called ahead and left a message for the local pack alpha. That had been essential. It was dangerous for any wolf to enter a different city without prior consent from the head of the pack. It was even more so for another alpha, as their very presence could be seen as a challenge for leadership. An hour later, Alpha Moore had called us back. He’d been distracted at first and had tried to give us the brush off, but as soon as Connor had mentioned Barbatos and the book, Charles had agreed to meet us at the apartment he kept in the city.

Charles Moore was a good man and an even better alpha—as different from Darius as night from day. He was firm, but kind and well respected by the wolves in his pack. I’d met him several times over the years—usually because I’d had to take out one of his pack members—but he’d been gracious about it. Unlike Darius, Charles understood that I was only doing my job. I liked him and, if I’d read the vibes correctly, he liked me too.

As we headed for Charles’ apartment, Connor was quiet, although he was constantly wiping his hands on his jeans, his body stiff with tension. We’d spoken little on the drive to Dallas. Small talk mainly, both of us avoiding the big fat elephant in the room—our relationship, both past and present. There were things I wanted to say to him, things that I needed to say, but I couldn’t find the right words. I wanted to apologise for hurting him. I wanted to explain why I’d walked away two years ago, and why I’d lied and told him I didn’t love him anymore. I felt like he deserved to know the truth at the very least, but the words wouldn’t come.

Selfishly, I wanted to ask him to give our relationship another go. My mind replayed the kiss we’d shared in the tunnel. At the time I’d thought it meant more than it had, that maybe Connor still had feelings for me, but I hadn’t realised it was full moon then. Connor’s wolf being so close to the surface would have affected his mood and behaviour, especially his libido. Wolves were sexual creatures at the best of times, but they were even more so under the glow of the full moon. It was unlikely he still had feelings for me, however much I might have wished otherwise. We’d been alone in my motel room, sitting on the same damn bed, and he hadn’t made any advances or given me the slightest indication that he still wanted me—that he still loved me. Even if he did care for me still, how he could trust me again after what I’d done? The picture of us that he still had on display in his house sprang to mind, but I dismissed it. I couldn’t let myself hope, only to have it crushed.

I glanced over at Connor, at his strong jaw, his full lips. He was so damn handsome it made my heart ache. Turning back to the road, I gripped the steering wheel tighter. Being with him again, but not
being
with him, was torture. Mentally I cursed myself for my selfish thoughts. I should have been thinking about Matt, about how we were going to save him, not about serving my own interests.

“You really think Charles can help us find Barbatos?” I asked, trying to steer my thoughts back to the mission.

In my peripheral vision I could see Connor shrug. “There isn’t anyone better qualified to know what’s going on in the paranormal community here in the city.”

I thought about that for a minute. It was true. As pack alpha, Charles would have the scoop on everything that went on inside his territory. But something about the situation didn’t sit right with me.

“I thought were-shifters hated demons,” I mused.

“We do!” Connor replied hotly. “If a demon had had the nerve to step foot in Austin, Darius would have had him hunted down and slaughtered without hesitation. I’d do the same thing as alpha wolf.”

I took my eyes off the road for a second and met Connor’s gaze. “Precisely.”

He frowned. “I don’t follow.”

“Think about it. Demons like to mess with humans, right? It’s the reason they mostly stick to the cities that have little paranormal activity. They know to avoid the towns and cities that have packs as the alphas won’t tolerate them on their turf.” I paused to let Connor catch up with my train of thought. It didn’t take him very long to get up to speed.

“So why would Charles put up with it?” Connor pondered. “You think he has his own interest in the demon or this book that Malaki seems so interested in?”

I shrugged. “I’m not sure. From what I know about Charles, I can’t see it. He always struck me as a man with integrity, but if it served his interests or that of his pack, then who knows? Guess we’re about to find out. I wish I knew what was so important about this damn book.”

“I—” The sound of Connor’s cellphone ringing interrupted his reply. He stared at the number on the screen. “Well, what do you know?” he said before answering.

I concentrated on the road ahead as I listened to the one-sided exchange. Connor’s responses were clipped, his tone terse. As the conversation wore on, he fidgeted more in his seat, his body language a clear indicator that he did not like what he was hearing.

“Change of plan,” he said after he hung up. “Charles wants us to meet at his ranch.”

“Interesting. He say why?”

“Gave me some line about a problem in his pack, said he had to head back to the ranch himself to deal with it, but I’m not buying it.”

“You think it’s a trap?”

Connor nodded stiffly. “I’m sure of it.”

I took a right turn at the light and headed back out of the city. If Connor was correct, I was about to walk into my third damn trap of the night. And look what had happened the first and second times. I still felt guilty about Matt’s abduction. I shouldn’t have let him go back down those tunnels alone, but then I hadn’t even been able to prevent my own kidnapping—how could I have prevented Matt’s? Despite all that, here I was about to make the same mistake again. But it wasn’t like I had any choice, right? Everything I knew about Charles indicated he was a good alpha and an even better man. So I had to assume he wouldn’t willingly lead us into a trap. Charles had to either be in some kind of trouble or he was acting out of desperation.

He obviously knew something about Barbatos and the book and I had to find out what if I wanted to save Matt. Thirty minutes after the call, I pulled over on the side of the dirt road that led to Charles’ property, cut the engine and switched off the lights.

“How do you want to play this?” I asked Connor, scanning the area around us. The road was quiet and there were no outward signs of life in the surrounding woods, but I was sure that Charles already knew we’d arrived. A strong alpha rarely did anything without the support of their pack. I might not be able to see any wolves, but I could sense they were near. So could Connor. He’d become even more twitchy since I’d parked and a low growl rumbled in his throat as he searched the tree line up ahead.

“You see anything?”

“No, nothing yet,” he replied, his voice dangerously low. “But I think we’re being watched. I can feel their presence. They’re all around us.”

I nodded. “Are they all wolves? Any vamps here?”

“I can’t be sure.” Connor turned to me and frowned. His incisors had shrunk into his gums and his eyes had returned to their human form, indicating that he had some control of his wolf side again—at least temporarily. “We don’t have to do this, Raven. There’ll be other ways to find Matt.”

I shook my head. “We don’t have the time. This is our best chance to find the demon. We might not get an opportunity like this again.”

Connor stared at me for the longest time before his expression cleared. “Fine. I don’t have to tell you to be careful. I’ll watch your back as best I can, but you already know we’re going to be outnumbered, probably by ten to one.”

In an effort to hide my nerves, I made light of the situation. I plastered a fake smile on my face and quipped, “My kind of odds.”

Connor’s lips twitched before a crooked grin spread across his face. The smile made it all the way to his eyes and my breath caught at the sight of it. The expression reminded me of how he used to look at me before I had gone and spoilt everything. It was warm and easy, completely carefree. Time continued to amble on as we stared at one another. I had the sudden urge to lean across the seats and kiss Connor, to run my hands all over him—to feel his strong muscles contract under my fingertips.

When his chest rumbled and his eyes filled with heat, I cleared my throat and forced myself to face forward before I gave in to my desire.

“Let’s do this,” I managed to choke out.

I grabbed the door handle, but Connor moved quickly and before I could get it open, he’d tugged my hand away and held it in his.

“Look at me, Raven.”

I shook my head firmly. “Can’t.”

With a long, drawn out sigh, Connor put his hands on either side of my face and tilted my chin so that we were again face to face. I closed my eyes. Connor chuckled, a low gravelly sound that sent shivers through my entire being.

“Look at me, Raven,” he repeated.

I groaned and shook my head. Connor’s thumb ghosted over my bottom lip. He whispered, “Look at me.”

My eyes opened as if of their own accord and I gasped when I saw the intensity in Connor’s eyes shining back at me. He inched closer until his lips brushed against mine.

“I missed you,” he breathed.

Those three little words were what I’d wanted to hear most. When his tongue snaked out and followed the same path his thumb had taken, I lost my earlier restraint. I wanted this, I wanted Connor. So damn much. I placed my hands on his chest then slid them over his shoulders, pressing my mouth harder against his, the kiss becoming insistent, frenzied. Connor leaned into me and slipped his tongue into my mouth, swallowing down my moan. He deepened the kiss and I squirmed in my seat, wanting to get closer, needing more. Just as I fisted my fingers in his hair, an odd, whirring sound outside the car brought me crashing back to the present. Connor and I pulled apart and turned to look out of the front window just as a huge, undoubtedly heavy body came sailing through the air and landed on the hood of my car with a loud thud. I stared incredulously.

Alpha Charles Moore’s wide, lifeless eyes stared back at me.

Chapter Seven

Connor was out of the car before I’d had time to blink. “Stay here,” he instructed, leaning back inside to meet my gaze.

I glared at him. “The hell I will!”

Before he could argue, I’d turned and was rifling through my bag on the back seat. I pulled out one of my silver-tipped stakes and got out of the car. Connor was stood to the side, his head tipped back, scenting the air. I went to check on Charles, even though I knew he was already dead. Turning him until he was lying on his back, I scanned his body. There was a lot of blood on his chest and a large, gaping wound right over his heart.

“Looks like he was staked,” I said, shaking my head. “Who the hell did this?”

“I don’t know. There are dozens of wolves in the trees, all pack.”

“You think this was some sort of challenge for leadership?”

“No, can’t be. A challenge would take place in wolf form and any wolf would go for the throat. It’s the quickest and easiest kill.”

“Then what the h—” I snapped my mouth shut when a lone figure stepped out of the tree line about twenty feet in front of us. It was too dark for me to make out any of the stranger’s features.

Connor began to growl.

“Who is it?” I asked, squinting into the still dark night.

The volume of Connor’s growls increased as the figure began to walk in our direction. “Get in the car, Raven,” he instructed.

I crossed my arms over my chest and stood my ground. Connor might be worried about me, but he knew me well enough to know that I could take care of myself. He should also know I hated people telling me what to do. He sighed in resignation when I didn’t move. As the man neared, he held out his arms as though to show us he wasn’t carrying any weapons. The gesture was obviously supposed to reassure, but I’d learned a long time ago to never take anything at face value. I clutched my stake tighter in my hand.

The man stopped abruptly just five feet away from us. I didn’t recognise him and a quick glance at the expression on Connor’s face told me that he didn’t know who the man was either. The seconds ticked on as we stared at one another, each sizing up our opponent.