Zane’s eyes cut to Jude. ”Watch it.” His voice was lethal and the power within him built, shoving against the bonds of his control.
Jude’s gaze darted to him. “What? A friend can’t tell you that you’re fucking up? With her, you’re crossing the line.”
He knew that, but walking away hadn’t been an option. Taking her had been the only choice.
Then she’d walked away. But he’d get her back.
“You know, she could be working with them.” Jude’s voice was softer now. The truck shot past the pine trees, blurring their limbs. “Not once have they tried to actually hurt her. Even the cop tried to shoot you, not her.”
So Jude had already talked to Tony and gotten all those details, too. Figured. “She’s scared of them.” He’d seen the fear in her eyes.
“That woman? She’s scared of something? You sure about that? She didn’t seem like the fearful type to me.”
Zane realized he could still smell her. Her scent was all over his skin. Hell, no wonder Jude realized they’d slept together. No way a shifter nose could miss the scent of sex. “She’s afraid of someone.” Not something.
Afraid and angry.
“There’s a chance she could just turn tail and slip out of the city.” Jude’s fingers were tight around the wheel. “Pak said if she does, we stop her and bring her back.”
“She won’t leave Baton Rouge, and she’s not just going to sit there and wait for them to come after her.” Zane was certain of that. “She’ll fight.” I can still hear their screams.
They hit the highway. Jude glanced down at the GPS and turned right. “Yeah, that’s what I figured.” He paused. “But whoever we’re up against, these bastards were strong enough to level Night Watch, even with the protections we had on the place.”
It wasn’t like this was the first time Night Watch had come under attack. But it was the first time anyone had made it past the high-tech security and the paranormal charms that protected the place.
He licked his lips —tasted her. Damn her. She shouldn’t have left. She’d tried to distract him with sex. Yeah, that had worked. Then the moment she’d thought he was weak, she’d left him.
“She could be walking right into hell,” Zane said. Going in alone. “She said they had her before, but that she managed to get away….”
“Well, Pak couldn’t find any intel on Project Perseus. So either its cover is too good or—”
Or Jana was bullshitting him.
One way to find out. “Hurry the hell up, Jude. We don’t want to give our Ignitor too much of a head start.” I’m coming, baby. Are you ready?
When Jana got back to Baton Rouge, she didn’t stick to the shadows. She drove the motorcycle right down the main roads, revved her engine as loud as she could, and hoped the bastards would find her.
She was in the mood for some heat.
It was after midnight, but the city wasn’t sleeping. Far from it. Jana knew just where to go in order to find the trouble she sought.
Four turns later, a fast blast into the darker side of town, and she braked in front of Dusk. Demon Central. One thing about demons … the lower-level demons were such sellouts. Always willing to turn on a friend or, hell, anyone. It hadn’t just been coincidence that the big rig had hit them after they left Dusk.
Someone had made a phone call. Someone had fed the bastards her location, even given a description of the car she and Zane had been using.
That someone was about to feel her fire.
She jumped off the motorcycle. Once she’d gotten back to the city, she’d taken twenty minutes to run by her place and change clothes. No one had jumped out to confront her. Pity. She’d been ready for them.
Now she wore black. Tight shirt. Long jeans. And boots made for kicking ass.
She strolled up to the bouncer. He glanced her way, a quick gauge to see if she was using glamour. When he realized she wasn’t, he hesitated until she shoved a fifty into his hand.
Then he let her into the demons’ den.
“Damn.” Zane reached for door handle. Jude grabbed his arm. “Easy, man. Easy. She just walked inside. No way has she made contact with anyone yet.” “This is the place where those demons jumped me!” “Demons are always jumping you.”
Zane didn’t take his gaze off the door. “This was different. It was a trap. They’d been waiting for me. If I’d gone into that place …”
How many would have come at him?
“You would have ass-kicked your way out?” Jude asked dryly.
His lips thinned. “Yeah.” He would have. “So why didn’t you go in?”
“She stopped me.” You shouldn’t go in there. Yet she’d just strolled in, rolling those sexy hips. “She said that there was a hit on me, that the vamps and demons had been wanting her to take me out.” Only she hadn’t taken the hit on him. She’d never come at him with fire in her eyes. Not once. Not even when he’d cuffed her.
For a supposedly cold-blooded killer, that didn’t make a lick of sense.
“So there was a hit, she didn’t take it, and the woman tried to protect you?” Jude’s fingers drummed on the wheel. “Interesting.”
Zane rolled his shoulders.
“So in return for her bit of community service, what did you do?” Jude asked. “I cuffed her.”
The bark of laughter came fast and hard from the shifter. Zane didn’t glance his way. His eyes were on the club. “She shouldn’t be in there alone.” “Relax. Nothing’s happened yet.”
His back teeth clenched. “How the hell do you know that from out here?”
“Because I don’t smell any smoke. Your lady hasn’t started having her fun.”
Jana stood in the middle of the den, her gaze darting to the dark corners and closed doors. The demons were so strung out here. Her nose ached from all the bitter scents. Demons and drugs … sometimes, there wasn’t any other way for them to shut out the darkness.
She knew a lot about darkness.
There wasn’t a bar in the place. No band, either. Why pretend? The people there wanted only one thing.
Pleasure. The sweet release the drugs would give them.
Her gaze tracked to the right. She needed to find a familiar face … ah.
Demon number one on her list. The demon with the scar sliding down his right cheek, one of the demons who’d come charging at her and Zane. Also one of the demons who’d been so quick to flee when he realized Zane wasn’t going down.
She stalked toward him. The guy blinked at her, and narrowed his eyes. “I … I know you.”
Jana took a breath and let the fire heat her blood. She knew her eyes would redden. “Yes, you do.”
His jaw dropped, and he tried to scramble back. A low-level demon, he wouldn’t be any match for her flames. Her power would easily subdue his.
“Not so fast.” She gave him a slow smile. “I just want to talk.” She reached for him, and he swore at the heat in her touch.
“I-I didn’t… I didn’t know they were tryin’ to kill you!” The words burst from him and spittle flew from his mouth. “I heard-heard there was money if an Ig-Ignitor was spotted…. Just wa-wanted some cash!”
Now, really, that had been sickeningly easy. “What’s your name?”
He shook his head.
“Asshole, what’s your name?” She knew he’d see the flames in her eyes.
“M-Morns …”
“Who’d you call, Morris?”
He stared up at her, his black eyes bulging. “They’ll … kill me.” Whispered.
She laughed. “And what? You think I won’t?” She leaned in close. His back was slammed against the wall. No place for him to go. “I can burn this whole place down before you can blink.”
Morris started to shake. “H-had a cell number …”
“What is it?”
Another owlish stare.
She sighed. Great. “Do you still have your cell phone?” A few jerky nods.