Through the room’s massive window, the golden sun disappears behind San Halos’s tallest towers, filling the room with dreary darkness. His face, now shaded and seemingly featureless, moves closer to me. Although I can barely see him now, I hear him smile—a wet clicking sound that has me picturing that striking face of his. “This is the last place I expected to find you, Alexis, but now that you’re here, let’s have some fun, shall we?”
Chapter 1
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For a moment, I wonder if maybe I’ve walked into the wrong apartment.
Rachel warned me there was a lot of damage after she accidentally summoned a griffin, but I didn’t expect this. Both Ace and Drax stand behind me with arms crossed over their chests and their lips as tight as fresh wounds bound together by a dozen stitches.
I mean, it shouldn’t bother me, right? It’s not like I own this place. Besides, it wasn’t eye candy to begin with. But as I trace the massive claw marks across my living room—three-inch grooves cutting straight through my parquet floor—I can’t help but feel a bit bummed.
My couch, old as hell itself, is split into two as if someone took a giant pair of scissors and snipped right down its middle. On the left piece is a pile of wiry white hair—Mr. Mushroom’s hair. Poor little guy. He’s going to be distraught when I tell him his favorite couch is done for.
Sighing, I walk over big chunks of drywall and debris, and make my way into my bedroom.
“Where’s she going?” Ace whispers behind me.
Drax says something about supplies, and he’s right.
I blast my closet door open and start throwing piles of clothes out until I see the latch—something even Drax doesn’t know about. Using my thumb claw, I break apart the lock and open my poorly designed secret compartment. It’s a hole I punched through the floor that I later covered with a few pieces of plywood and two sturdy latches.
It may not be perfect, but hey, it’s not like anyone would ever suspect anything unusual about a woman’s pile of laundry. I reach inside the hole, grimacing as spiderwebs tickle the back of my hand, and extract a sturdy plastic bin you’d use to store construction tools.
The closet’s dim overhead light reflects off my weapons as I place them next to my shoe collection.
“Everything okay in there?” Ace asks from a safe distance.
See? No one wants to go near a woman’s closet.
“All good.” As I stare at my two Glocks sitting atop a pile of daggers, grenades, tasers, and brass knuckles, I inhale a deep breath. After I lost Jamal—the young boy I saved and viewed as my own son—I swore I’d never use guns again. He told me many times how much he hated guns being that he came from a rundown neighborhood where gunshots went off almost every night. But I never listened to him. All I did was assure him that these were for our protection. It was only after he died that I honored his wish and stuck to bulletless weapons.
But now we’re at war.
I reach inside, pull out the guns, and wipe off a layer of dust coating the cool metal.
Man, I missed these things. While I may be good with a crossbow, or any other weapon for that matter, I’m one hell of a shot when it comes to guns.
Smirking, I push aside a handful of wooden stakes and pull out my weapons belt. “Haven’t seen you in a while, either,” I say. I stand up and clip the belt around my waist before loading it with my Glocks, some stakes, and a few other weapons I’ve collected throughout my lifetime.
The second I walk back out into the living room, Ace’s eyebrow pulls up and Drax’s jaw hangs slack. But before they can say anything, I stiffen my back, plant my hands over my belt, and say, “Why’re you guys just standing there? We don’t have all day. Let’s get this show on the road.”
Chapter 2
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“Why isn’t she back yet?” I say, pacing across the remains of our motel room.
Ace reaches inside the broken refrigerator and pulls out a water bottle. Calmly, he opens it, takes a sip, and wipes the water bubbles off the dark scruff on his face.
If I weren’t so worried about Rachel, I’d throw him through the wall again and have my way with him. He stands there, his round shoulders drawn back with such confidence you’d think he had it all figured out. When he catches me staring, he narrows his eyes on me—a seductive look that makes me wonder if he’s using his Incubus Lure on me.
But I’m sure he isn’t. We made a pact that neither of us would use our seduction abilities to manipulate the other, and after the stunt he pulled a few hours ago—allowing me to feed off his life force, which almost killed him—I know I can trust this man.
“We knew this was a risk,” Drax says, his eyes inspecting every inch of the motel room as if searching for sprinkles of weed.
Mr. Mushroom jumps up onto my lap and snuggles his face into my side.
I dig my nails into the loose skin of his back. “I’m glad you’re safe, buddy.” Loving every bit of it, he throws his head back and lets out a raspy howl.
Both Drax and Ace stare at me, likely waiting for me to blurt out some ingenious plan. There’s one problem though: I don’t have a plan. I banked on Rachel coming back with Zerachu and that together, we’d figure all of this out.
I’m willing to bet no one knows who’s behind all of this. Not even the Council of Elders. I think back to Clock Dragon’s reaction when I boldly asked him where Lucius was hiding the book. He thought I was messing with him.
Is that why whoever’s behind this decided to lock Zerachu up? What better way to cause chaos than to trap the Great Witch? If anyone would know what the hell is going on, it’s her. Either that, or she’d know how to fix this, which is a threat to the person orchestrating this mess.
“We should move forward,” Ace says, and I clench my teeth.
He must sense my hurt. The moment I make eye contact with him, he bows his head apologetically. “I’m sure Rachel is safe. She might be facing a few challenges, but that girl is a smart witch. She’ll make it back to us. Until then, though, we should use the Interruptus spell to our advantage.”
Twenty-four hours.
Or at least, that’s what Ace thinks our timeframe will be, based on similar spells used in the past.
I turn to Riskus, who watches us silently with no hint of emotion on his face. I’m sure deep down, he’s freaking out as much as I am, if not more. Rachel’s his master, and if she were here to correct me, she’d say his friend.
“Can you hold down the fort again?” I ask him.
He nods like a trained soldier, and Mr. Mushroom’s ears fold flat on his head.
“Thanks, Riskus. We’ll be back as soon as we can. If Rachel comes back, please keep her here until we get back.” I jerk my chin out at him. “And please don’t forget to feed Mr. Mushroom.”
The little demon nods again.
I shift my focus onto Ace. “Can you take us to the Jamieson Hotel?”
He gives me a look that surely translates to Are you sure that’s where you want to go?
I’m more than sure. There’s one way out of this. We must collaborate with the vampires. Whoever stole the artifacts needs to be stopped before this war gets out of hand, if it isn’t already too late, and if there’s one place to gather information on the vampires, it’s Jamieson’s place.
Right when Drax is about to open what appears to be a stale bag of potato chips, I say, “Can you take us there, or not?”
I’m tempted to question Ace about my new demigod abilities and whether I’ll be able to harness enough power to teleport the way he does. I mean, if my father gave him that gift, wouldn’t it be coursing through my veins, too?
But now isn’t the time to fantasize about being able to appear anywhere I want.
“Of course,” Ace says, straightening his muscular back. He extends two open palms and waits for Drax and I to grab them. The moment the warmth of his hand touches mine, our eyes lock, and I find myself staring at his juicy lips, his
strong jawline, his round shoulders—
I’m about to lick my lips when everything disappears and we stumble into Jamieson’s office.
I stick a finger inside my ear and wiggle it to regain my balance. “I have to ask, Ace, how do you teleport to a place you’ve never seen before?”
For a second, my heart almost climbs up into my throat. What if he has seen this place before? What if he’s working with Jamieson? What if maybe, all along, I was wrong about Ace? I’m not typically wrong about anyone, but with him, I have my doubts.
Why? Because his sexiness clouds my mind.
I hate how we have such a strong bond. I met the guy a short time ago, yet it feels like I’ve known him my entire life. Well, I suppose maybe I have. All along, he’s been following me. Maybe it isn’t his intentions I don’t trust—maybe I’m too afraid of caring about him.
Fuck, I hate introspective shit.
He must sense my worry—he rests his large hand on my shoulder and says, “It’s an energy thing. It’s hard to explain, but I can feed off—”
Suddenly, another voice overtakes his, sending chills up my spine.
“Well, well, well.”
I spin around and my wrist blades come flying out of their hidden compartments. With fists clenched and posture hunched, I stand face-to-face with Jamieson.
What the fuck is he doing here? Feebles aren’t supposed to be on Earth—not after the Interruptus spell. He can’t possibly be fae, can he? We’ve had plenty of conversations about how much he hates demons and anything magical, and how if he had the choice, he’d burn them all alive.
It’s clear his anger comes from a place of hurt. Doesn’t take a psychologist to figure that out. But he’s never come out and explained to me why he hates them so much, and I haven’t questioned it, either. It was more important for me to keep my true identity hidden from him than to try to understand his.
“How—” I try, but nothing comes out.
“What’s the matter, Alexis? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
This doesn’t make any sense. If he were fae, I would have sensed it. What kind of bullshit is this? Is he a hologram? I mean, I wouldn’t put it past him. The guy has more money than every bank in San Halos. Then again, he also owns them all. If he wanted to create an illusion of himself, he’d have no trouble hiring the best of the best.
I flare my nostrils. “What are you doing here, Jamieson?”
He steps slowly toward me, his shiny leather shoes ticking against his spotless office tiles.
I bend my knees, prepared to lunge if I have to. One wrong move on his part and he can kiss his dick goodbye.
“You look confused, Alexis. Is there something you want to tell me?”
Forget his dick. Maybe I’ll slice those lips right off his arrogant face and feed it to his fish. Does he know I’m fae? Has he known all along? Has he been playing me this whole time despite his hatred of fae?
But what happens next is all too sudden for me to react. As if by magic, he draws a medieval-looking sword and presses its cold, sharp tip into the base of my throat. What appeared to be amusement on his face transforms into a venomous scowl. “You have some nerve showing up here, Alexis.”
Footsteps run toward me, but the moment Jamieson’s hateful slits turn on Drax and Ace, my friends stop in their tracks.
He lowers his head and glares at Ace and Drax. “One more step and your little friend here loses her head.”
This can’t be happening.
It isn’t possible.
“What’s the matter, Alexis? Were you expecting someone else?”
“Yeah, actually—”
He pushes his sword forward again and I glower at him. In any other scenario, no way would I be so complacent with a man threatening my life, but right now, I’m too taken aback to think clearly.
As the sun sets, filling his office with a dim orange glow, he lowers his head until I’m barely able to make out his features. “This is the last place I expected to find you, Alexis, but now that you’re here, let’s have some fun, shall we?”
Fatal Blow
Coming March 31, 2021
Pre-order your copy now
Lethal Blow: (Succubus Hitwoman Book 2) Page 18
