Darker (3 page)

I studied the remains of my pack wolf. It was hard to look at but not quite as hard as it had been to see his head in that box. Zak’s body had been stripped naked. As Briggs had said, a large ritualistic looking symbol was etched into the flesh in the center of his chest. It was a triangle with what appeared to be an eye in the center, surrounded by an inverted five-pointed star.
Great
.

I closed my eyes, concentrating on the residual energy surrounding us. Zak’s body was tainted with a black, inky energy that reeked of demons. It was faint, telling me very little about what happened to him. He hadn’t been killed here.

“
Yeah,” I let out the breath I’d been holding. “I know him.”

Briggs turned his scrutiny on me. “How do you know him? Or, should I say, how well do you know him?”

“
He was one of mine, if that’s what you’re driving at. A member of my pack. A friend.” I met Briggs’s cold stare with one of my own.

“
Any idea why someone would do this to him?” Briggs raised a dark brow, daring me to deny it.

I glanced back at the cryptic symbol. “Looks like a demon ritual to me. Possibly to raise one. Maybe bind one.”
Or, break a binding on one,
I added silently.

“
Uh huh. But, why choose this werewolf specifically?” Briggs was like a dog with a bone.

I crossed my arms and tilted my head, studying him intently. “Is there something you’d like to say, Agent? Just spit it out.”

Juliet stiffened but said nothing. Her silence spoke volumes. She was uncomfortable but forced a relaxed front.

Briggs swung his gaze over Arys and then me. “I’d say it looks like someone’s trying to send you a message. Like you’ve pissed somebody off.”

“
Yeah? That’s what you think? Is that why you’re sniffing around here? Because you sure as hell don’t want to meet the demon responsible for this. If I were you, I’d wash my hands of the whole thing before you endanger your people.” I tried not to look at Juliet but was unsuccessful. The further she stayed from this situation the better.

“
We’ve dealt with demons before. Don’t patronize me, Ms. O’Brien. I can assure you, I’ve been doing this since you were in diapers.”

If that was true, Briggs looked pretty good for his age. I wondered what he was up to that gave him access to the fountain of youth. With a shake of my head, I dismissed his comment as ignorance.

“
I don’t give a rat’s ass what kind of demon you think you’ve dealt with, none of them even compare to this one. Do yourself a favor. Get acquainted with their hierarchy and stay the hell away from the ones at the top. Now, are you going to release my wolf to me, or do you have other, more unsavory plans for him?”

The agent and I glared daggers at one another. Briggs was used to calling the shots. Well, so was I. At least I was when Arys was willing to let me.

“
I’m not authorized to give it to you. It’s evidence of some obviously serious activity going on in the city. We’ll be keeping it.” Briggs was unapologetic. “We haven’t found the head yet. Hopefully we will before a civilian does.”

Without asking for permission, I whipped out my phone and snapped a photo of the body before Briggs could tell me not to. I wanted some kind of evidence of that symbol. I had the sinking feeling I’d need to see Shya about this. I’d been avoiding the demon for weeks despite his insistent demands that I speak with him.

Juliet cleared her throat, drawing every eye. “Alexa, is there anything you can tell us about the demon that did this? Maybe we can help you if you’re in some kind of trouble.”

A chuckle spilled forth, earning me a dirty look from Briggs. An offer of help from the FPA was beyond ridiculous. They’d tortured someone dear to me, and now, he was missing. Without a doubt, they would have done the same to me if Kale hadn’t taken the fall. I would never trust the FPA. If that meant never trusting my sister again, so be it.

“
I’m always in trouble, Juliet. All I can tell you is to stay away from this. Messing with this demon would be suicide.” I turned my gaze on Briggs who regarded me like a bug he wanted to squish. “If you value the lives of your people, you’ll stick to entrapping and torturing vampires. You all seem so good at it.”

I turned to leave; I couldn’t do anything more here. What had happened to Zak sparked a fire in my core. It would burn until I sent Lilah back to where she belonged, to the cage the angels made for her.

“
I’m sorry for what happened with Kale Sinclair.” Briggs’s forced apology stopped me in my tracks. I faced him with a new rage burning within.

“
Too little too late, Agent.”

“
We have a proposition for you. If you would hear me out.”

Arys’s wicked laughter sent a lovely tingle down my spine. It didn’t have quite the same effect on Juliet or Briggs, who both stared at him suspiciously.

“
I don’t think so,” he said. “What you did to Sinclair, you would have done to Alexa. You’d be wise to stay away from her.” Arys’s mood changed, going from grim amusement to deadly calm. “I’m not asking.”

“
No,” Juliet replied vehemently. “She’s my sister, dammit. I’d never let that happen to her.”

Arys moved fast, a blur of motion. He was dangerously close to Juliet, scowling down into her face. “You led the fucking team that came to get her.”

Briggs pulled his gun and trained it on Arys. That might work on some vampires but not on my vampire. Arys never took his eyes off Juliet. He merely snapped his fingers, and Briggs’s gun flew from his hand and skidded across the pavement.

I laid a hand on his arm. “Arys, please.”

I didn’t have to say anything else. Reluctantly, he backed off. Juliet’s eyes were wide, and the scent of fear rolled off her. She wasn’t foolish enough to try pulling a weapon.

Agent Briggs was fuming. He was also looking at Arys with a new sense of intrigue. Showing even a small display of power in front of the FPA was a bad idea.

“
Would it be too much to expect you people to sit down and have a civilized discussion?” Briggs stooped to retrieve his gun. He stuffed it back in the holster but rested a hand atop it.

“
You people?” I rounded on him with a snarl. The urge to bare my four vicious fangs at him was strong, but I held the wolf back. “We’re just monsters to you, aren’t we? You don’t see us as human in any way. We were once, you know. Human. Like you.”

Briggs looked down his nose at me, haughty and self-assured. “You are a monster, Ms. O’Brien. That’s just a cold, hard fact. But, I don’t believe that makes you void of any humanity whatsoever. I meant no offense.”

“
I think we’re done here. I have nothing further to say to you.”

I didn’t want to give Briggs a chance to coerce me into staying; I couldn’t count on Arys to behave himself. He was eyeing up Briggs with a devilish glint in his eyes.

“
We need your help, Ms. O’Brien. You want to talk about dangerous demons? Let’s talk about Shya.” The agent’s face softened. “That’s not even his real name. Demons don’t give their real names if they can help it. He’s up to something, and we need to stop him. You’re the closest one to him that can help us.”

Arys’s energy was hot and scattered. His growing frustration was palpable, teasing my senses. I wanted to get him out of there before he did something I’d regret, but I was curious as to how much the FPA knew about Shya that perhaps I didn’t.

“
Clearly you’re misinformed about my relationship with Shya.” I kept my voice low so it wouldn’t carry outside the four of us. “I don’t have one. I never did. He never interacted with me personally until recently. He sure as hell hasn’t shared any of his big bad plans.”

“
Yet he trusted you to help him bind a demon goddess that he is supposed to bow down to. Sounds personal enough.” Briggs smiled slightly, as if sure he had me there.

“
Shya and I both had our reasons for that. They were entirely selfish. We weren’t doing each other any favors.” I wasn’t happy to hear that they knew about that. “I want to make it very clear to you that I have no alliance with that demon. Whatever he’s up to, I don’t know about it, and I sure as hell have no part in it.”

Briggs didn’t believe me. Skepticism colored the grimace he wore. “Would you be willing to help us gather more information?”

I wanted to tell Briggs to sit on it and rotate. The words were on the tip of my tongue, but I saw a chance to learn more about the FPA and what they were up to, so I reconsidered. Could I make this work to my advantage?

I exchanged a glance with Arys, sharing so much with just a look. Tilting my head, I gave Briggs my best smile and purred, “What’s in it for me?”

He couldn’t hide the relief that swept over his hard features. Relief quickly gave way to a cryptic grin that didn’t sit well with me. My stomach flipped a few times. Briggs’s grin grew until it was downright unnerving.

“
I’ll tell you what really happened to Kale Sinclair.”

Chapter Three

“
Are you fucking kidding me?” The words spilled out, driven by a crash of emotion. A growl rumbled in my throat, and I was all fangs and claws.

Briggs raised his weapon. Uncertainty replaced his smug smile. So much for negotiating with the FPA. Briggs had uttered the magic words that were stronger than my rein on sanity.

I timed my attack perfectly. Sudden and instinctive, I hit him dead center in the chest, grabbing his gun arm in a bone-shattering grip. An audible crack brought me a shred of satisfaction but not quite as much as his pained shout. He hit the ground hard with me atop him. Briggs grunted as I knocked the gun from his hand.

Wrapping a hand around his throat, I snarled down into his face. Commotion broke out as nearby agents rushed over with guns drawn. Juliet yelled for them to hold their fire. I looked up to find myself staring into the barrel of her gun.

“
Do you really have it in you to pull that trigger?” I snapped, refusing to loosen my hold on Briggs.

Juliet’s eyes were wild, all wolf. “How bad do you want to find out?”

Little sister had a backbone after all. A chuckle spilled between my lips. I was proud of her. She held the gun on me, but her wary gaze flicked to Arys. He watched me with a mischievous smile.

At a time when Shaz would have dragged me off Briggs, Arys merely watched with amusement. It was a sobering realization. I had to keep my rash actions in check. My white wolf wasn’t here to keep me from doing something I’d regret.

Ignoring Juliet, I leaned in close to Briggs. Sniffing deeply of his scent, I savored the delicious smell of fear. It was tantalizing, calling to my bloodlust the way the scent of fresh bread called to a starving man. I gazed at the man beneath me and saw only prey.

“
Tell me what you know about Kale Sinclair.” I focused on the clean after-shave scent of Briggs, trying to block out the enticing aroma of human and terror. I couldn’t lose control. Not here, not now.

“
Get the hell off me,” he grunted, struggling for breath.

“
Try again.” I tightened my hold on his throat, choking off his air supply completely.

A sudden surge of panic had Briggs flailing. As well muscled as he was, he still didn’t have it in him to fight a pissed off werewolf. He had no idea how lucky he was that I purposely held off using power on him. I wanted him to talk; I didn’t want his head to explode. At least, not just yet.

Briggs stared up at me with wide eyes. The fear in their brown depths faded, replaced by a growing fury. He shook his head as much as my grip would allow. Total refusal.

I smacked his head against the concrete hard enough to rattle his pearly white teeth. “Tell me, goddammit!”

“
Alexa, that’s enough.” Juliet stepped closer, her gun inches from my face. “Let him go.”

I didn’t look at her when I held up a hand and, with a push of power, threw her back. Before the remaining agents could rush me, Arys surrounded us with an energy circle. Briggs was trapped inside, entirely at our mercy.

“
Start talking before I decide you smell just a little too good,” I growled. I eased off just enough so he could speak. “Where is Kale?”

He gave a strangled cough. With a murderous light in his dark gaze, Briggs said, “He’s dead.”

“
Liar,” I shouted. The punch I threw was automatic. I wanted to make him hurt for that.

“
I gave the kill order,” Briggs roared back at me. His words cut deep because I smelled no lie on him.

“
What?” I whispered more to myself than to anyone else.

“
When I told you he escaped, it was a lie. We had him all along. Keeping him alive wasn’t a risk worth taking.” Briggs might have been in a bad position, but it didn’t diminish his arrogance. “Go ahead and kill me. The entire agency will be on your ass, and your demon problems will be a cake walk in comparison.”

I glanced around at the waiting agents, each of them with guns drawn. Juliet was back on her feet, watching me with a guarded expression. Killing Briggs was exactly what I craved. It was the least I could do after what the FPA had done to Kale.

Kale… how could I not know that he was dead? My instinct had told me he still lived, and yet Briggs’s words rang with truth. A scream built within me, threatening to burst forth.

My wolf stared out of my eyes, gazing down into Briggs with a fierce hunger that had nothing to do with appetite and everything to do with vengeance. He was right. The FPA already had me on a watch list. If I tore his throat out the way I wanted, I’d never be free of them.