Love and Demons (5 page)

His only hope was to find
a way to allow her to accept his massive size more easily. Reaching around, he
found the tight knot of Kat's swollen clit and massaged it in a slow circular
pattern, stopping every few moments to roll it gently between his thumb and
forefinger. Soon her body relaxed against him, hot sticky moisture covering the
fingers that stroked her.

She shuddered again and
moved to meet his forceful thrusts, his own release building; still he fingered
her clit, pleased when she screamed his name. Pulling her still convulsing body
tight to his, he bit down into the soft flesh of her shoulder. His cock
exploded inside her, marking his woman so none could ever doubt his claim on
her.

"You are my Zi mate,
the other half to my soul, and mother of my hopes," Barak breathed against
her wounded flesh, a smile pasted on his blood-painted lips.

Kat awoke spooned tight
against Barak, a thin sheet covering their nude bodies. After several slow
tactical moves, she was finally able to free herself from the tangle of limbs
without awaking him. Grimacing with each move of her shoulder, Kat made her way
to the bathroom. She felt as if her neck and upper arm were on fire, and she
was in desperate need of a shower. Her body was wrapped in the smells of
cigarette smoke from the bar, sweat, and some truly mind-blowing sex.

She walked straight to
the shower, stopping only long enough to turn on the faucet, and climbed
beneath the pounding water. Allowing it to wash across her face, Kat permitted
the full force of the events from the previous night to sink in.

She could mark Drake off
her to-kill list. One down, three to go. Only thing to do next was determine
where to find Tie, Jones, and Randolph, and how to draw them out so she could
put them in the ground. Then there was the man — or Zironet, though she was still
not certain exactly what that was — who thought she was his destined mate. Not
that she would mind spending her nights wrapped in his arms, having the most
perfect sex imaginable. However, until she cleaned up some loose ends and
cleared her name, she did not have time for any romantic delusions. Of course,
there was also the fact he had horns.

"Kat, are you well?"
Barak asked from nearby.

"Fine, just
finishing up," she called back, rinsing the remains of the shampoo from
her hair.

"I feared you were
angry with your marks." His voice was closer now, just outside the curtain.

"Marks?
What are you talking about?" she
asked, confused by his comment. Stepping out of the shower, she reached for the
towel she had placed on the rack nearby, only to discover it gone. Turning
toward Barak, she found him holding her thick cotton
towel,
his eyes glued to her upper body — more precisely, her shoulder. Looking down
and taking in the dark swirling marks covering her from shoulder to elbow, her
mouth dropped open. "Whoa, where did that come from, and how did it get
there?"

"It is symbolic of
our union, declaring us a mated pair," he told her, moving forward to dry
her off.

"You did not say
anything about this," she accused, jerking the towel from his hands and
hastily began to rub the moisture from her skin. "You know the department
has strict rules about tattoos being visible when we're in uniform. What am I
suppose to do, dress in long sleeves all year long?"

"In my world it is a
badge of honor that represents our clan and signifies our union." He
sounded a bit annoyed with the fact she was thinking of how to cover the twist
of symbols that matched his own.

"Well, when we're in
your world, I'll show it off to everyone we meet. However, as long as we're
here in the real world, I cannot go around with your neon sign that reads 'mine'."
Kat was not certain what she had said in her haste to dry off and get dressed,
but by the large grin that now covered his face, it had been something he
liked.

Slipping her white tank
top over her head, she turned to face the mirror and take in her appearance.
Well, she had to admit, with a little hair dye and her new marking, she could
be on top of her enemy with his throat cut before he knew what hit him. "Can
you send someone down to the drug store? In addition to some hair dye, I need a
clean phone. I'm certain they have my line tagged by now."

Barak looked confused
again, but he nodded and yelled for Adrik. At least he had not argued the
point; maybe there was hope for him yet.

"Can you ride? A
motorcycle, I mean," she asked while she began searching through the end
table for a pen to make a list of everything she needed picked up.

"The loud two-wheeled
devices?" he asked. His choice in description made her chuckle; it really
took the macho out of the image.

"Yes, that would be
them," she said, making a quick list on a scrap of paper she'd found.

"Then, yes, I can
ride them," Barak said, handing her list to his companion.

"Good," she
said, resting her hand along the side of his jaw. "I think I know where to
find both Tie and Randolph. Jones will be a bit more difficult."

****

Barak knew that any
attempt to take her from the outerplane before she accomplished her revenge
would be unsuccessful. Kat needed to breach the division between the two worlds
willingly, and though she appeared to be accepting of him being something other
than human, he had yet to bring up the topic of her returning to his plane. Therefore,
it was in the best interest of all that he and his clan assist her in disposing
of these last individuals.

After sending Adrik to
retrieve the items she requested, he joined Kat in the sitting room, watching
her look through the thick book of names and numbers. "This book will tell
you how to find them?" Barak questioned while she continued her search
through the pages. He liked the way she worried her lower lip with her teeth
when she concentrated. Barak could not wait to spend eternity discovering all
her little habits and vices.

"Not exactly, but it
will let me get in contact with someone who might," she said, circling one
of the entries.

"When you have
eliminated these traitors, we must talk, my Zi mate. We have much that must be
discussed," Barak informed her. Looking up he nodded a greeting to a
returning Adrik. "I believe the things you required have arrived."

"I'll tell you what,
Barak." She stood and took the bags from his clansman, and shot him a grin
that stole his breath. "You help me take these assholes out, and we will
do a whole lot more than talk."

The vibration of the
engine, and her thighs tight against Barak's as he pulled the Hog up to the
front of the building, had Kat more than a bit aroused. Her nipples pressed so
tight against the material of her top, they ached. She moaned, somewhat
disappointed when he turned into a parking space just beneath the three neon X's,
and turned off the motor. If they had the time, she would have convinced him to
relieve the desire that was leaving her hot and wet.

"I can sense your
arousal, my precious Zi. Do you have need of me?" he
asked,
standing, and taking her into his arms. She allowed him to pull her body tight
to him.

"I do need you,
love, but now is not the time," Kat said, standing on her tiptoes to brush
her lips across his. "Right now, we need to go inside and take a look
around."

"When this is done,
I will see to all your needs then, my sweet little Kat." He breathed the
promise against her lips before releasing her and heading for the door.

Once inside the seedy
strip joint, Kat and Barak made their way to a corner table and sat down. They were
certain to position themselves so they could easily watch who came and left the
place and still be able to observe the other patrons. Being the middle of the
week, the place was empty, so they shouldn't have much trouble searching for
their quarry.

"Why do these woman
dance about for these men who are not their mate?" Barak asked low after a
scarcely clad server set down their drinks and moved on to the next occupied
table.

"Money," Kat
said, taking a sip of the obviously watered down drink while keeping her eyes trained
on the door.

"And they do not see
this as degrading and fear not obtaining a mate?" he questioned while he
watched the dancer on the stage perform.

"Don't be
judgmental," she bit out at him, the edge in her tone showing her obvious
offence at his suggestion. "They do what they need to survive. Some of
these girls have kids to feed, so if some idiot is willing to fork out his
paycheck to see her shake her ass, then so be it. What makes you think a woman
needs a man in her life? I might like rolling in the sack with you, and maybe
even just sitting around talking, but I don't need a man to define me."

"Forgive me, I did
not mean to offend you." He sounded hurt, and she felt like an ass for
getting so mad at him for something he obviously did not understand. However,
it was better that he understood now before they took their relationship any
further.

"It's all right,"
she said, spying both Tie and Randolph entering the building. "It looks
like the party is about to begin."

"Are you certain
they will not know you?" Barak asked.

"Oh, honey, they'll
never see me coming," Kat said with a smile. She flipped her new black bob-cut
hair, and adjusted her vinyl halter. Kat had every intention of displaying an
eyeful of cleavage.

Sauntering across the
room, Kat
paused
three tables down from where the two men
sat. She was counting on the assistance of the two women — a tall, thin blonde,
and a midsized brunette, who were currently attempting to get the table's
occupants to purchase lap dances. Of course, Ben Franklin was a sure persuader.
"I have a proposition that will net you each an easy hundred and take only
a few minutes. Are you interested?" Kat had barely finished when both women
eagerly nodded and stuck out their hands.

****

Barak and Kat sat in the
silence of the dark storage closet, waiting for the arrival of their guest in
the small private room that sat across the hall. Kat had been certain to
instruct the woman on which room to draw them to, and then on what excuse
to use
so they could escape safely before anything happened.
She did not want to be responsible for an innocent being injured in the
crossfire.

The sounds of giggles and
heavy footsteps signaled the arrival of their guest. Barak had held her 9mm
until they had taken refuge here, and now, fingering the cool metal, her finger
twitched in anticipation. She needed retribution, not only for herself, but
also for her ruthlessly killed colleagues. These men had defiled the oath that
bound them as a trusted team, and it was time for payback.

Once they heard the door
close, then the two quick raps that signaled the girl's departure, Kat and
Barak moved across the hall and took up positions on each side of the door. One
strong kick from Barak sent the door crashing open, and allowed her to move
into the room and fire off two shots before either man even made it out of their
chairs. The first shot caught Tie in the throat, and he stared at her wide-eyed
with blood pouring around the hands that griped his throat, the last glimmers
of life filtering through his eyes. The second shot was a clean kill, striking
Randolph in the center of the forehead, and Kat could not help but feel a bit
disappointed that he had died so quickly.

"Time to go, your
police friends will be on their way," Barak told her, placing his hand on
the small of her back and giving her a gentle nudge toward the door and their
escape.

"And then there was
one," Katrina said with a slow smile while climbing on the bike behind
Barak. They tore out of the parking lot and into the night.

When they arrived back at
the suite, Kat wasted little time rinsing the temporary color from her hair. She
was glad to see the swirls of blackened water carry her devious persona into the
drain. One of her former team remained to bring to justice, and she planned to
call in a favor from an old friend to track him down. Sara Childers had been
her best friend all through high school, and probably the closest she came to
having one in her adult life. However, both of their careers kept them busy,
but they managed to slip away for dinner and a girls' night out at least once a
month. If Kat could trust anyone in the city, it would be Sara. Of course, that
would wait until she took care of some more personal needs.

Wrapping the towel around
her hair, she then made her way out of the bathroom and into the sitting room
where Barak and his companions sat. The conversation instantly went silent,
letting Kat know it had been about her. "Am I interrupting?" she
asked, laying her hand against Barak's shoulder and watching as every male in
the room looked in any direction but directly at her.