Eternal Flame (23 page)

“This crime …” Even the locations were identical. The freak in New Orleans had always picked alleys just behind the vics’ dorms or apartments. “The kill—” No defensive wounds. No sign of a struggle. “-and the victim type are all the same. It fits the serial’s M.O.” What was up with the timing of this kill? So close to Marcus’s arrival in town. Too close. “Someone knows about what happened with the serial killer in New Orleans. About Marcus. And I think that person’s trying to set him up.”

“Why?” came from Jude.

“Because he was the only actual named suspect in New Orleans. He made the papers. Someone wants the spotlight on him again. Someone wants the cops after him.”
Hunted
. “Someone is turning him into prey again.”
The supernaturals who cross the line have to be eliminated
. The old spiel from Perseus.

Perseus. Her breath heaved out. “They know.” “Uh, who knows?” Erin asked.

“Project Perseus. They knew all about Marcus. They could be—”

But Zane caught her hand. “Perseus is dead, Jana. The organization is finished. The guards who survived were rounded up. Beth was the leader of that group … the guards confirmed it. She’d started Perseus after a vamp killed her father.”

She knew about the vampire.
I found my father on the ground. The bastard had torn his throat open
. Beth’s shaking voice whispered through her mind. Because at the beginning, when she’d first approached Jana, they’d talked. Almost been … friends.

No, no, they’d never been friends. Beth’s psychic talent had just made her real good at reading people. And she’d known how to get to Jana.

She offered me a family. A place to fit in
. Things had been fine until Jana turned away from the system. Then the claws had come out.

“Beth wanted vengeance,” Jana spoke slowly. “And I gave it to her.” The first vamp she’d killed for Perseus had been the one who’d drained Beth’s father.

Thank you
. The only words Beth had spoken after that fire. But Beth’s eyes had been blazing.

That death hadn’t been enough for Beth. Nothing had ever been enough.

So
she’d
been the one to start Perseus? Jana had always thought Beth took orders from someone else.

“She’s dead,” Zane said. “The Perseus group is finished.” “Nothing ever dies easily in this world,” Jana whispered. The instinct to survive was too strong.

Marcus Malone knew when he was being hunted. He’d spent too much time being prey not to know that feeling.

He glanced back over his shoulder, his nostrils flaring. He didn’t see anyone, didn’t smell anyone, but he
knew
some bastard was out there. Hunting.

I need to get out of this city
.

Perseus had burned. Those flames had lit the night, and he’d escaped that hellhole, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that someone-something-had risen from the flames.

Coming after me
.

There was only one person in this town he trusted. One woman who’d been through the fire.

Maybe he should have been afraid of her. After all, Jana had been the one to hunt him before. She’d also been the one to hold back the fire because she’d realized he wasn’t the sadistic killer Perseus had made him out to be.

And she’d come back for me
. He’d caught her scent over the fire and looked up … and Jana had been there. She’d pulled him from those flames in the swamp. Saved his ass.

So he’d returned the favor. He’d gotten her away from the cops. Gotten them both to safety.

But this town wasn’t safe. He swiped a hand over his brow. Not nearly fucking safe enough. Jana thought her demon could protect her.

Her eyes had been so dark. “If you need me, I’ll be with Zane.”

“You really think you can trust him?” A faint smile had lifted her lips. “He’s one of the good guys.”

Marcus didn’t have a lot of experience with good guys. He didn’t trust the demon, but he did trust Jana. She’d studied him, looked beneath the surface. His hands were stained with blood, but that kill-he’d just been avenging his Rita.

Rita
.

A blinding pain shot through his head. Those fucking headaches. Every time he thought of Rita, his head seemed to rip open.

He pushed through the bushes and stumbled toward the house on Louis Avenue. Jana would help him. He’d tell her about the eyes on him … because those eyes could be turning to her. He and Jana were linked. Whoever was after him, well, the asshole could come after her, too.

Together, they’d be stronger. Those bastards at Perseus had made him so weak. That bitch had come and touched him, while Beth had stood back and laughed. She’d touched him then—

Weak
.

He was still weak. Too weak. Almost like a human. And the headaches …
Sonofabitch
.

He stumbled and nearly fell onto the porch. The house was dark, but it was late. The demon had to be there, with Jana. They had to—

“Wondered how long it would take for you to crawl out of those shadows.” The voice whispered from the darkness.

It was a voice Marcus knew. He froze. No,
no
. But he turned his head and fucking sure enough, the asshole was there. Smiling at him.

“Did you really think going to the fire whore would save you?” The insidious whisper slipped right under his skin. Marcus kept his eyes on his stalker, aware of the sweat that had burst from his skin, even on the chilly night.

“Jana’s been here, hasn’t she?” the bastard asked.

But she wasn’t there now. Marcus heard nothing from the house.
Jana
. He needed her, but she was gone. Hell.

The asshole looked up at the house. “Been in bed with her demon?” Laughter. “Who would have thought… he was supposed to
kill
her, not screw her.”

Marcus’s claws should have been out. They should have been out and his teeth should be razor sharp. But he wasn’t changing. Because that little bitch had touched him.

You’ll be normal, Marcus. Isn’t that what you want? To be normal? To have a life? No more pain, no more monster. Just a man
.

She’d let the girl touch him…. Then …

More laughter and the stalker’s hand lifted. Claws had burst from the jerk’s fingertips.
My claws
.

They’d taken too much from him in that prison. Not his life, but his beast.

A shifter who couldn’t shift. How was he supposed to survive?

“I thought about letting you live.” The wooden porch creaked. Nowhere to run, not with that devil in front of him. “I thought about it. …”

Those claws were up and so close.

A snarl lifted Marcus’s lips. “I never thought about letting
you
live.” No, he’d planned to go after this guy, as soon as his strength was back. He’d
felt
the beast trying to return. The transfer wasn’t permanent, he was sure of it. Once the wolf had been strong again, he’d planned to hunt.

But he’d already been prey.

A ghost of a smile appeared on his stalker’s lips. “Guess one of us is dying tonight.”

Marcus’s head pounded. His heart raced. He lunged forward with his fist raised. The beast inside was screaming, but trapped, trapped—

Claws slashed across Marcus’s throat. The pain was hell-fire hot, and the blood splashed down his shirt as he tried to breathe, tried to gasp, tried to say …
Rita
.

He fell to his knees.

“Two down …” The whisper filled his ears. The last fucking words he heard were … “Three to go.”
Rita
. He could see her now, could see—

The shifter and the ADA searched the scene. Their eyes- and their noses-probably didn’t miss a thing. But, well, there wasn’t anything to miss.

“You found dog hairs on the body?” Jana asked. “Just the body, nowhere else?” Odd. Those wolves sure were hairy beasts.

But if they weren’t dealing with a wolf … “Just the body,” Tony agreed.

Setup
. Didn’t the guy see it? Marcus wasn’t the one they wanted for this. No way would a wolf’s fur—
so
not dog hair-have been left in one spot.

“There’s nothing here. Take me to the body,” Erin said flatly.

Tony nodded. “Let’s go. You and Jude can follow me in.” But Erin hesitated beside Jana. “You don’t really look like a killer.”

Jana smiled at her. “I know. That’s why I was so good at my job.”
Was,
shit. She needed to be more careful.

Erin’s gaze dropped to her throat. “What got ahold of you?”

Oh, yeah, that. “A vamp.”

“Did you burn him? I mean, that’s what you do.” “I didn’t burn him.”

The lady waited. Her dark hair blended with the night.

“She shot him,” Zane said.

“And
you
didn’t rip him apart?” Erin shook her head. “Zane, I’m surprised at your restraint.”

Tony hurried to his car. “Come on, we need to get to the station. If this killer’s hunting, we don’t have time to waste.”

Erin inclined her head. “You’re right, you know,” she told

Jana.

About what?

“Not all wolves are psychotic.” Her teeth flashed in a white grin. Hmmm … those teeth looked a little
too
sharp. “And surviving hell is easy for us.”

Then she was gone. The ADA disappeared into the night with Jude and Tony.

“Come on,” Zane said. “We need to go to the station and—”

Okay. A woman had to draw the line somewhere. “I’m not going to the cop house.” Willingly step into the PD? Hell, no. She sucked in a deep gulp of night air. “She was a wolf?
A wolf?
Jeez, thanks for the head’s up.”

They walked out of the alley. A few college kids were milling around. Two guys. One girl with long, braided hair.

“She’s wolf.” A small hesitation. “And she’s human. Erin’s a hybrid.”

Hybrid
. She turned toward him, stopping under a street light. At least this one wasn’t flickering. “A hybrid. Like you.” He nodded.

Jana licked her lips. “Back at Perseus, everything you told them … was it true?”

“Yes.” His eyes darkened.

The night air grew colder. Another girl came out of the dorm, her shoulders hunched, her hair down. She was moving fast, and her blond hair flew behind her. After what had happened there, Jana didn’t blame the girl. She’d be running fast, too.
Don’t want to be caught out alone
.

“My dad was a sick, sadistic bastard,” Zane said. “One who just happened to be a demon.”

Okay. Not exactly a sweet walk down memory lane. She inched closer to him and felt the warmth of his body seep into hers. “My stepfather was a perverted freak who got off on hurting people, and he happened to be human.” She forced a shrug. “Guess you just can’t ever tell about folks, hmmm?”

His gaze bored into hers. Black now, she could see that. “You don’t care that I’m a demon, do you?”

Um, no. Hadn’t she proven that by all the wild, hot sex she’d had with him?

“Have you ever been afraid of me?” he asked her.

Sometimes
. Because he made her feel too much. But she didn’t say that. Instead, she asked him, “You been afraid of me?”

She expected him to grin. Expected some smart-ass answer. His lips tightened. “Yes.”

So not the answer she’d wanted to hear.

His hold on her tightened. “You scare me … because you make me weak.”

“I don’t—”

“You push me to the edge. With you, I’m always afraid I’ll go over.”

“And if you do?” So what?

He shook his head. “Come on.” The others had already left. Gone to the PD.

He opened the passenger door for her. Jana climbed in. Her legs slid over the leather. Zane stared down at her, then leaned forward. “You trust me.” He seemed surprised.

But, hell, not as surprised as she was because, yeah, she did.

He shook his head. “You shouldn’t.” Zane started to pull away.

Jana grabbed his hand. “I think you’re the only one I
should
trust.” He’d never betrayed her. Hadn’t lied to her. Hadn’t—

“You don’t know what I can do.”

She had a pretty good idea. She’d been with him in the fire. His eyes were level with hers. “I killed him,” he said, whispering the words. “My own father, and I didn’t even hesitate.”

Her fingers squeezed his. “You didn’t—”

“I could still smell her blood on him. The bastard was high on his fucking drugs. Always the damn drugs. He killed her, gutted her, all because she tried to take away his drugs. She just wanted him to get clean.”

Jana swallowed. “Get in the car, Zane.” She didn’t like him being in the open. “Let’s go back home.” She wanted to be alone with him. To hold him. Weird. She’d never wanted to just hold a man before, but Zane wasn’t any man.

His jaw clenched. He pulled back, slammed her door, and hurried around to the driver’s side. When he jumped in, he revved the engine.

Jana touched the masculine fingers that gripped the wheel so tightly. “You did what you had to do.” She could understand that more than any other.

Slowly, his head turned to face her. His gaze was blacker than the night.

“I’ve got a lot of power inside me,” he told her, his voice quiet in the stillness of the car. “Maybe too much. I can do things …” He shook his head. “Killing him was easy for me.”

He’d never told her his demon power scale. She understood why. Most people feared the demons who tipped the scales. He didn’t want to be feared, just accepted. “You’ve got power, but you’ve got control of it.” The control was what mattered. Control separated the demons from the monsters.

“My control broke that night. I was just a kid.” His fingers whitened around the steering wheel. “But I killed him in an instant.” His lids lowered a bit. “What do you think would happen now if I lost my control?”

“I don’t think you would.” After everything they’d been through … no, the man had always been strong. Even when he faced death.

He laughed at that and shifted to reverse with a hard yank of his hand. “Baby, you don’t even know how close I’ve been.” The car slid back. He shifted again. “And you’d better hope you never see me that way. Because when my control shatters, hell comes calling.”

If he was as high on the scale as she believed, yeah, that could happen.