Ties That Bind: The Bellum Sisters 3 (paranormal erotic romance) (41 page)

He had a hard look in his eyes; the kind he used when surveying a crime scene. “You okay?” His eyes traced her quickly from head to toe ensuring all parts were accounted for.

She nodded, then before she knew it he wrapped her in his arms. It was beyond unprofessional but she hugged him back. After the insanity she just went through, the least she deserved was a hug, right?

She pulled back first and gave him a tight-lipped smile.

“Now tell me why your doors are busted in and what the hell happened.”

Abby shrugged then told him. His frown got deeper and deeper as it went on. No matter how hard she tried to describe how terrifying it all was, she couldn’t. No words could describe that.

“Stay in a hotel tonight. Use cash.”

It was Abby’s turn to frown. “What? No, why?”

He lifted a dark blonde eyebrow at her. “Because you don’t have a front door.”

Her face flushed and she nodded. “Right.”

She packed a bag, being sure to put her gun in there, then left with the detective unit making a crime scene out of her home.

Mike watched her walk to her car from the front door. She didn’t like his scrutiny, didn’t like that she’d needed help like this. These were good cops and had much better cases to be working on then spending time in her house. But Mike insisted.

This whole thing was all so bizarre. Too many questions rang in her head: who was at her door and why did he want her?

She opened her car door and tossed her hastily-stuffed duffel bag into the passenger seat. Strange, she didn’t feel tired now. She felt like she could  run a mile at a full on sprint and not even be out of breath.

“Damn, hey Abby.” Mike took a step towards her then stopped.

Abbigail blinked. What the.... he didn’t stop, he froze. No, not just him, everything froze. The air that had been stirring the hair around her face stopped, dropping the strands flat against her. The trees swaying from the breeze stopped, freezing the trees up and down the street leaning in mid-sway as if reaching for something. The voices in the house ceased. All went quiet, dark.

She felt him before she saw him. A roar filled her ears. She turned around, leaning back against the car for support. Time seemed to slow or maybe it was just her adrenaline pumping and making it seem like time was slowed. What was that sound, the roar? Shoot, it was her heart racing.

“Mike!” Her one last chance for help, she called out. She darted a glance at Mike and saw him still frozen, one foot forward, his body in mid-step, eyes locked on her, unblinking.

It dawned on her then...magic. The man coming for her was using magic. She should have realized it sooner but she was so out of touch with it...

She felt him coming.

Spinning around, she stared at her neighbor’s dark house. Her neighbors were older and paranoid; they always kept their outdoor lights on and several inside the house. Now the house sat completely dark, empty looking. Somewhere in the back of her mind she realized the streetlights were off too leaving everything dark with only the moon light to guide her eyes.

The man appeared before her very eyes. A cloaking spell to disguise his presence? That took strong magic. He didn’t move towards her, just faced her.

Her breath caught, heart stuttered. The first thing she noticed were his eyes. The darkest eyes she’d ever seen. Too dark to be human. Pitch black. Her eyes moved away from his face, curiosity digging at her to learn more about him. Just who was this and what did he want with
her
?

“Abbigail Krenshaw.” Her stomach trembled at his voice. Deep, almost sexy, more bordering on terrifying. The way he said her name was unusual too,
Abb-ee-gyle Kreenshaw
.

She sensed the question in his voice though she hadn’t heard the upward inflection normally there in a question. Maybe it was fear, the strangeness of everything, but she answered. “Yes.”

He started towards her. Coming closer, out of the shadows, she could see him more clearly. Long dark hair, shaggy, dirty and black as the empty pit of his eyes. His hair came down to his shoulders but was cut unevenly at the ends, not straight. Dark ebony skin, dark  to the point of being black and not brown. He wore a strange looking shirt that reminded her of a tunic. Black and knitted, long-sleeved but with an open color and black pants, tall black boots. That didn’t keep her attention, because as he came closer she saw the glint of metal on his back. Two weapons, swords strapped in an X pattern across his pattern.

“What are you?” she whispered. He was handsome, tall, and looked strong enough to pick her up and snap her in two. He also didn’t look entirely human.

He stopped so close she could feel the heat from his body. For some reason, she found she wasn’t scared. Maybe it was finally seeing her pursuer but she didn’t get the vibe this man would slit her throat and leave her for dead. It was dangerous, but she was trusting her instincts to be right on this.  She looked up, craning her head to see his face. No, he wasn’t handsome. He was stunning.

His hair formed from a peak  at his broad forehead. His nose was long, straight, masculine; cheek bones high and giving definition to his concave cheeks. Dark stubble covered his jaw line and chin, but underneath that she could see was straight and hard. His lips were  shaped almost too perfectly, the top just thinner than the bottom. All of his features, on closer inspection, were too perfect, shouldn’t have formed a good-looking face, but somehow it came together in a way that drew attention.

“Demon.”

His voice drew her out of her inspection. She’d forgotten she’d asked him a question. He’s a demon? She knew about them. Most humans just pretended they didn’t exist or only did in a religious, mythical way, but she knew the supernatural lore. Her mother had spoon fed her the lore of great wars long ago fought and of different species and beginnings of creatures not too different from humans. She knew they were real.

Weapons manufacturer and wealthy tycoon, Telal Demuzi had come out publicly when the heat got on him about his strange appearance years ago. He’d admitted to being a demon, embraced it. Said he was over a thousand years old. It’d shocked many, and many more had called him a liar and still believed he used makeup and hair dye to achieve his unique look. They said it was a marketing gimmick.

But Abbigail knew better; her best friend, Jenna, was a shapeshifter, something else many humans pretended didn’t exist. She’d seen her shift--it was one of the most frightening and beautiful things she’d ever seen in her life.

“What do you want?”

His answer came fast. “You.”

Her stomach clenched then fell right out of her. A flutter moved inside her. Pleasure.
Oh, don’t be silly, Abby. He’s probably going to kill you.

Before she could say anything, he wrapped a strong, muscled arm around her shoulders, pulling her close and then she felt the earth sway at her feet. Darkness enveloped her eyes. She went blind. Then she felt nothing under her feet. She was falling in space, seeing nothing but empty blackness, hearing nothing but her own fast breaths and the thumping of her heart.

Learn more about Alrik’s story at my website.

www.tagrey.com
.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

I love to write the kind of stories that will keep you up late at night and make your heart pound. It’s my goal in writing to make each new book better, more exciting, more action-packed, not only to test myself as a writer but to keep thrilling you. I’m always trying to push the boundaries with my imagination, and yours, to create something new and different.

If you’re a fan of paranormal romance novels then you’ll love my Bellum Sisters Trilogy. This isn’t your typical romance story, so be prepared for a kick of heat and tons of action. The Bellum Sisters Trilogy has received excellent reviews from paranormal bloggers and two of the three books are Top Picks from Night Owl Reviews.

Now, if you like shorter books with quite a bit of heat, humor, and action then I’d recommend the Kategan Alphas series. This erotic series features the sexy Kategan family and all the lucky men and women who get to meet them and complete their lives.

Visit my website to learn more about me and my books at
www.tagrey.com
.