by Aileen Erin
“Of course. We’ll be right here,” Mr. Dawson said. He seemed so much calmer than I was, but it had to be a show. I mean, what were we going to do? Cops plus dead bodies equaled arrests. Didn’t it?
A trickle of sweat ran between my shoulder blades.
She strode past us with her four other colleagues and started going from house to house. They talked among themselves as they went. Giving theories. Debating what was going on.
Were hearing came in handy.
Some of the houses had more evidence of magic users—herbs and spell books—so they kept throwing the word “cult” around.
I should’ve been happy they thought it was a cult. That meant that they probably wouldn’t arrest us. But as they deemed the artifacts evil and the coven Satanists—it bothered me. It wasn’t true. At least for the majority of the coven. Luciana was her own special case.
When I heard something break in my cousins’ house, I ground my teeth. Only Dastien’s firm grip on my arm kept me from going in.
“They’re just doing their job,” Dastien said.
“I know.” I stared at my cousins’ house, waiting for the cops to come out. Too bad I was one of the most impatient people I knew.
I sat back down on the dirt road. Dastien stood behind me, and I leaned against his legs, reaching around to hold one of his ankles. He grounded me as I relaxed.
Eventually my eyes grew heavy, and he sat down behind me and pulled me into his lap. He slid off my messenger bag and set it beside him. “Sleep, cherie.” He whispered as he pressed a kiss to my forehead.
The command in his words rolled through me. Fighting it was an option, but I didn’t really want to. It was already past two in the morning, and I was exhausted. I let my eyes drift closed as a deep and easy sleep took hold of me.
I didn’t wake until Dastien’s voice rumbled against me. “You don’t want to go into that house.”
“You don’t want to be telling me how to do my job,” Officer Marlene’s tone was snippy. “I’ve worked in this town long enough to not be afraid of you and your kind. At least not while that one is around.”
I opened my eyes and it took me a second to really comprehend what was about to happen. They were at Luciana’s door. They didn’t know her house from any other. They didn’t know what they were about to walk into.
I jumped up. “No! Don’t go in there.”
The newbie cop—Johnson—pushed me as I started toward them. “You want to stay where you are.”
“Get your hands off my mate.” The words were more growl than anything, and the threat behind them was enough to set even me on edge.
But Johnson was a moron. He didn’t see the fury bubbling under the surface. And he certainly didn’t know Dastien could turn into a wolf in a split second and rip out his throat.
Instead of calming the situation down, Officer Johnson did the worst thing possible and reached for his gun. “You need to sit your ass down while I deal with her.”
Oh no he didn’t.
Cold fury ran through our bond, and I knew Dastien was about to lose his shit.
Marlene stopped on the porch. For a second, I thought she was going to listen to me. “Johnson. You do your job. Keep them under control while I go in.”
Terror gripped me, and suddenly I didn’t care so much about being thrown into the back of a cop car. “You don’t understand.” Officer Johnson grabbed my arm as I tried to move toward the house, but I ignored him. She couldn’t go in there. “The owner of that house was the leader of these people. It could be booby trapped. There could be dangerous things in there. Things you don’t have the capacity to deal with.”
“Young lady, you’ll want to watch how you talk to me.” She pointed her finger at me. “You sit your ass down. Understand that I’m an officer of the law, and if there is something dangerous in there, then I am the one who should deal with it.”
Another growl added to Dastien’s.
This was going south. Fast.
“They have nothing to hide and no part in this,” Dad said as he moved to stand between the growling alphas and the cops. He turned to the one who was still grabbing me. The cop’s fingers dug into my skin. If I were still human, I’d have bruises, but I wasn’t that fragile anymore. “Let the girl go. She’s going to cooperate fully.”
The young cop listened to Dad, finally letting go. I caught Dastien right as he was about to reach for the guy’s throat, and pushed him toward Dad. I kept his gaze as I lowered my voice, talking fast. “They can’t go in there. It’s too dangerous.”
The spot between Dad’s eyebrows wrinkled as he leaned toward me. “Why?” He whispered.
“It could have wards or…” I didn’t even know what to expect. It could be anything, but it wouldn’t be anything good. “Who knows what black magic she left for us to find?”
He pressed his lips in a firm line as he stared at the house in question. “We can’t stop them, kiddo. They’re going to do their investigation, and then they’re going to come question all of us. Then we go home. But right now, they’re in charge.”
“This is beyond stupid.” I needed my messenger bag. It was still on the ground where we’d been sitting. I reached into it, touching the vials inside and dreading whatever chaos was about to be unleashed. Luciana wouldn’t abandon her compound without leaving a nice surprise or two for us to find. “They’re a bunch of fucking idiots. They don’t know what they’re messing with.”
Dad smiled, and little wrinkles formed in the corners of his eyes. “I’m not going to argue that point. I raised a smart girl.” He wrapped an arm around my shoulders, and squeezed me into his side. “Even if she does curse like a sailor.”
I shook my head. The vials in my hands grew slick with sweat as I grasped them. There was a small tingle of magic as they went through the door, and it was growing. It danced across my skin, making all the little hairs on my arms stand on end.
Dastien came to stand next to me. “You okay?”
“Yeah.” I paused. “But I don’t know that they’re going to be okay. Magic is brewing in there and—”
The first scream turned my blood to ice. I thought about dashing into the house to help, but the gurgling noise told me I was already too late.
One cop was definitely dead.
For a second, everything went silent.
Then the smell of sulfur filled the air so strong I nearly choked. This was bad. This was so completely bad.
Four gunshots broke the night.
I stepped in front of Dad. “Get to the car. Now.”
“I’m not leaving you here. I’m the Dad.”
Another quick succession of gunshots rang out. I started dragging him away from the house. “And I can’t be killed by a stray bullet.” Unless it was a headshot, I was reasonably certain I could heal it. It’d hurt, but I’d live. “You can.” I shoved him toward the car. “Go. Now.”
He froze for a second before pointing to something behind me.
“Oh my God.” Officer Johnson’s voice spiked. “What is that?”
A creature slunk out of the house. Its skin was brown and wrinkly. Long nails hung from its claw-like hands, scraping wood as it stepped down from the porch.
And its beady red eyes bore into me like it was peering at my soul.
I recoiled from it, stumbling back a step before I could stop myself.
“That is a demon,” Cosette said, chill as a cucumber.
“What the hell is this place?” Officer Johnson sprinted to the closest cop car, and dove into the backseat. The locks clicked behind him.
He was smarter than I’d thought. Running was definitely the safest thing for him to do.
I pushed Dad. “Get to the car. Now!”
He started moving slowly backward. I trusted that he’d listen. Or—at the very least—stay out of the way.
Gunfire broke the night again. Officer Marlene stumbled out the front door, one arm hanging limp at her side. She fired at the thing, and it spun toward her with
a screech. Then it leaped and sank its teeth into her neck.
She tried to get her gun on it, but collapsed before she could fire another shot. Blood pooled on the ground as Officer Marlene bled out.
One second she was there, and the next she was dead.
The demon shook her like a dog with a toy. When it finally pulled away it grinned at us. Now its dripping red fangs matched its red eyes.
A shiver ripped down my spine. How could we fight this?
The Weres reacted faster than me. Already shifted, the Cazadores moved into a V-formation. Mr. Dawson, Chris, Dastien, Donovan, and Meredith all formed a half circle, ready to run the creature down no matter what direction it went.
I wasn’t good in wolf-form. But I had potions.
Since I hadn’t found mention of demons in my books, I’d modified the potions the brujos used against vampires, adding holy oil and pieces of a relic Tia Rosa had given me. Shaving the relic into bits was probably sacrilegious, but I’d been desperate.
I grabbed two vials from my bag. I had fifteen potions. My entire stash. Now I could only hope that they’d work.
“By the power of Christ, I banish you.” I threw the vial.
It hit the demon and exploded in a blast of smoke and white light. The demon’s high-pitched screamed burned my eardrums.
Then it leaped for me.
Dastien hit at it from the side as I dodged. His claws slashed it, sending a stream of black sludge to the ground. It splattered, fizzing like acid. Dastien yelped in pain, as some of it hit his back.
Shit. “Don’t let its blood get on you,” I yelled, adding a bit of a command to back up the warning.
The Weres circled the demon as it hissed. Scorches covered its skin where the potion vial had hit. That was something, but it wasn’t going to be enough.
One of the Cazadores lunged at the demon, but the creature dodged, swiping its claws across the wolf’s belly. Blood sprayed. The wolf crashed to the ground and convulsed for a few long seconds. Then the motion stopped.
Shock rooted me to the ground. Dead. In one hit.
What were we going to do? The wolves had no advantage against this kind of enemy and my potions were only pissing it off.
Instead of attacking, the wolves hung back, containing the demon in their circle, dodging and lunging to keep it corralled. But they couldn’t hold that for long.
Cosette slipped around the wolves to get to me. “How many vials can you throw at once?”
I reached into my messenger bag and grabbed as many as I could. “Six. What are you thinking?”
“Blast it with everything you’ve got. If that’s not enough, step aside and let it charge me.”
“What? Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
“Why? You think my life is in danger?” She asked like we were at a freaking tea party.
“Are you insane? If we don’t fight back we’re both dying here.”
“That’s what I thought.” Now she grinned and the expression had more than a little bloodlust. She might be having a moment, but I didn’t have time play games.
The Weres were circling. The demon hissed and tried to dart between them, but the wolves closed ranks, slashing at it.
“Will that work?”
“I’ve never fought a demon before, but I’m perfectly able to defend my life.” She shrugged. “Plus your potions might fry the thing. Either way, it’ll come after the magic.”
It was worth a try. Killing this bastard without getting blood on us was going to be hard. Especially for the wolves. They used their teeth and claws. Not exactly from-a-distance type weapons. Plus, I’d seen Cosette fight.
“On three,” she said. “One. Two. Three.”
I threw six vials, and invoked them. As they activated, the blast knocked me back. Heat licked along my skin, but the demon kept on screeching. When the smoke cleared it was lunging for us.
“Move!” Cosette ordered the wolves, and they parted.
There was a cracking noise like a falling snow globe and then Cosette was holding a sword that came from nowhere.
The demon thrashed around, moving too fast for her to strike. She kept pace, dodging and lunging, but the effects of the potions were wearing off. The liquid boiled off its skin in a cloud of steam. Cosette either had to kill the thing or get away before she got hit.
It moved too fast. If we could just slow it down—
I sucked in a breath. Maybe I could do better than slowing it down.
I could freeze it.
I focused on my magic. I’d learned that believing the spell would work was half the battle, so I put all my will and faith in to one word. “Stop!” The demon froze. Not for long, but a split second was all Cosette needed. She swung her sword in one smooth motion, and the demon’s head separated from its body.
It unfroze as the head fell. Its mouth opened, and let out an ear-burning cry. The thing was still yelling as a hole opened in the dirt. A ray of black and gold light exploded from the ground, wrapping the demon and sucking it down. Its scream didn’t end until the earth snapped closed again.
It was so quiet I could hear my heart pounding in my ears.
“Holy shit. What was that?” It had happened so fast, I almost thought I was dreaming.
“That was hell.” Cosette poked the scorched ground with her toe. “Somewhere I hope none of us visit.” Her sword was had disappeared, but a faint glow still lingered under her skin.
I staggered back from where the demon had fallen. Only the burned ground and persisting scent of sulfur said anything had happened.
A car honked, and we all jumped.
Fuck. Officer Johnson was still in the cop car. I could smell his panic and fear from here.
“What do we do now?” I said. “We’ve got a compound full of dead bodies, five of them cops.” I had zero clue how to handle this situation.
I heard someone shift behind me, and chose not to look back. Unless it was Dastien, I didn’t want to see any of that.
“I’m open to suggestions,” said Mr. Dawson.
Dad cleared his throat as he walked toward us, carrying a few gallons of gasoline. “I turned off the cams on the cop cars. It took some doing, but thankfully Officer Johnson was thoroughly distracted by the end of that fight.” He set the bright red canisters down, and brushed off his hands. “I think it’s time to cover our tracks.”
My jaw dropped open. “Dad! We can’t burn this place. All these houses… It’s wrong.”
He sighed. “This is wrong, kiddo, but there aren’t a lot of options. Not unless you want to come out to the humans about Weres, witches, demons, vampires, and whatever else is out there.”
Cosette met my gaze and subtly shook her head.
Yup, that’s as bad of an idea as it sounds. “But what do we do about the other covens? Won’t they blame us?”
“I’m on supernatural damage control.” Cosette rubbed her hands together and I heard a faint crackling noise at the edge of my hearing. I hoped she was still powered up because I had no idea how to fix this without her help. “I’ll contact my coven in Colorado and get them to spread the news of Luciana’s draining. Then I have to report to the mother ship.” She shuddered at the thought.
“What about Johnson over there?” I pointed to the cop car. “Do we get rid of him, too?” I said with a thick coating of sarcasm.
“I’ll make a deal with him,” Cosette said. “He won’t remember a thing.”
I knew she was fey, but I still had no idea what her powers were. After tonight, I realized how much she was hiding. There was more to Cosette than a flirty girl who liked her rag mags. “You can do that?”
She nodded, her blonde curls bouncing. How she appeared so sweet and innocent after decapitating a demon, I’d never know. “I can do a lot of things.”
“Good to know.” I had to wonder what else ‘a lot of things’ included, but I wasn’t going to ask as long as she was using her powers for us. “Fine.” Not that anyone really cared what I thought
. It seemed like everyone already knew what to do. Who was I to object?
“If you can handle Johnson, we’ll take care of the compound,” Mr. Dawson said. “I have my contacts at the coroner’s office make the four bodies in custody disappear.” Shit. I’d totally forgotten about the others. He sighed. “And Kelly. I’ll have to notify his family.”
I swallowed as I took in the lone wolf lying still, his fur matted with dark blood. We’d already lost one fighter, and that was just one minor demon.
I hadn’t even known the Were’s name.
“I’m sorry for your loss. You take care of yours, and I’ll get baby cop to take me to the station so I can tie up the rest of our loose ends.” Cosette sighed.
I winced at the sound. She was really putting herself on the line for us. “How much trouble are you in?”
“I’ll spin it somehow.” Then she smirked. “Why are werewolves so much trouble?”
I shrugged. “Don’t ask me. I’m still new here.”
She laughed. “For being so new to the supernatural world, you’re handling it well.”
That was high praise coming from her. “Th—” I caught myself before I thanked her. “I mean, that’s nice to hear?” My manners were too ingrained. It felt wrong not to say thanks when she was putting herself out there for us.
“See? You’re used to it already.”
A wolf head-butted my hand, and I glanced down at Dastien’s light gray coat. “Did you get any of its blood on you?” He gave a small whimper and licked my palm. I couldn’t sense much pain from him, but I could’ve sworn some of the blood got on his fur. “Gross.” I wiped my hand on my jeans, and squatted down, pressing my forehead to his. His love came pouring through the bond, and I reveled in it for a moment. He was here. Safe. We were both alive. I could breathe easier for a second, before the tension built right back up. I hadn’t thought a demon would be able to latch on just from a wound, but after what happened to Raphael…
“Let me see where the blood hit you. Was it your back?” I leaned over him and sniffed. The charred patch of fur smelled like sulfur. No way did I want him to end up like Raphael. I had to do something before any demonic energy took hold. I didn’t have any holy water. Nothing that could cleanse it. Except…
