Heart of a Hunter (3 page)

Cascadia shook her head. “No reason at all.” Her voice was flat with barely concealed annoyance. “I have become so much a part of your young demon hunter’s life that there’s no way anything happens that I don’t know about. No information about her snakes past me. I have the perfect guise as the transient best friend with a dead family and no ties. She expects me to come and go as I choose, and that means no questions from her and the rest of them.” Her tone relayed her utter disgust. “Why would any female, human or demon, want to make something as revolting as children? Whining, puking, demanding, worthless bags of flesh.”

“Then, we should both be glad motherhood was never an option for you, my dear.” Pyro’s voice was mock soothing, and he watched in amusement as her eyes flashed angrily. “Her meetings with the bastard angel, Tagas, are still frequent, so I can only assume that he is training her. He has the whole warehouse fortified with his power, and I can only get so close. I imagine that she’s about five times stronger now and just as deadly to almost any demon.”

Cascadia cocked her eyebrow. “All the more satisfying a kill when I take her down. Tagas is untouchable, but his protégée is human and, therefore, not immortal.”

“You already have a plan for her eventual death in place?”

Cascadia’s smile was nothing pretty, full of dark twisted promises of excruciating pain for those who stood in her way. As much as Pyro wanted to ascend in Hell’s evil hierarchy, she wanted it twice as much.
My ambitious hell-bitch.
To her he said smoothly, “Do not fail me in this matter. Remember, my failure is your failure with severe consequences.”

The flame-haired demon nodded, turning to leave the alley. Pyro’s hand snaked out, catching her waist and drawing her into him. His body was burning with sexual need, and he placed her hand on his crotch with a smirk. “I require servicing before you go about your busy day.” He knew that, most of the time, she hated him and his sexual demands thoroughly but didn’t dare tell him no.

Cascadia leaned into his body with a venomous glare. Her fingers closed around his erection, kneading and stroking him through his black pants. In the next moment, she slid his zipper down.

****

Elle finished lacing the second black boot on her foot and stood in front of the small shoe mirror. She smiled in satisfaction.
Perfect fit, perfect look.
The knee high black boots were crafted in supple leather, with a four-inch stiletto heel. When she first laid eyes on them in the window of the mall shoe store, she knew they had to be hers.

Tagas had earlier handed her a small wad of hundred dollar bills, with instructions to purchase a large set of durable hunting clothes. Smiling at her wide surprised eyes, he peeled off another two bills and handed them to her. “The extra is for your upcoming eighteenth birthday tomorrow. Happy birthday, young Elle. Enjoy yourself,” he had told her.

She unlaced the boots, slipping them off and placing them back into the box. She headed to the sales counter with it under her arm.
And this is how to hunt demons in style…

****

“Brandon, can I please take this scarf off my face? I can’t see anything.”

Elle let Brandon lead her with a gentle guiding hand on her back. She couldn’t see more than a few feet ahead of her from beneath the blindfold. This was the night of her birthday, and he had planned a secret celebration for them. She already felt more special on this birthday than she had since she was a little girl, before her family life had soured. Now, all she got from her parents was a brief acknowledgement with an obligatory gift and hurried embrace. She and Brandon had been steadily and exclusively dating since their wonderful second date, which ended with the passionate kiss she had been aching for. She supposed that she could now consider him her boyfriend. Her first real boyfriend.

She had bought a little black dress and matching heels, leaving her hair in a riot of rich brown curls after she dressed and painstakingly applied makeup. She knew she looked good and she felt pretty, confident because Brandon had given her a long admiring glance up and down for a moment, kissing her before helping her into the passenger side of his black Charger.

She felt his lips brush across her cheek now as he removed the blindfold. She blinked a few times and looked around. They were in an upscale hotel room with cream carpet, lit with a few thick candles that gave off a heavenly scent. The dark wood décor screamed expensive, and her eyes moved to the big table beyond the large bed. She smiled that he had thought of everything, noting the small pink cake box, bowl of strawberries and cream, and the bottle of champagne chilling in a silver bucket. She turned to see him smiling back at her.

“Happy birthday, Elle. I’m happy you like this whole setup. I really wanted this to be special for you.”

“It’s freakin’ perfect.” She took his face in her hands and kissed him soundly. “Thank you so much. See? This is why I love you.”

After making themselves comfortable, they indulged in cake and strawberries while sipping the champagne. They shared plenty of laughs and hot kisses. As the night wore on, Elle’s heart tapped out a nervous rhythm in anticipation of what lay ahead in the big plush bed. She and Brandon had agreed earlier not to jump headlong into the whole sex part, just to take things slow and see where things led.
Well, I can’t stay a virgin forever
…This felt right to her, and she stood to pull him into her arms, embracing him with tiny kisses planted on his neck.

Brandon looked down at her. “You should know that if we do this, it will mean everything to me. This is not my first time, but it’s yours and I want you to feel good in every way. I love you, Elle. I should’ve told you before now, but I wanted to be sure before I said those words.” He kissed her deeply, his tongue stroking hers. His lips moved to her neck, and she let out a breathless sigh. “Are you sure you want to do this? I want more than just sex from you, so don’t even worry about that.”

She nodded, wearing a delighted smile as she looked down. “If I wasn’t sure I wanted this before, I am now. People talk all the time about screwing and make it sound…I don’t know…dirty. I’m not experienced, but I do believe it’s different when you make love with someone you care about. I want to make love, Brandon.” She raised her eyes to meet his warm brown gaze. “Can we do that?”

In answer, he swept her up into his strong arms, carrying her like a princess over to the bed. Laying her down gently, he kneeled and slipped each small black shoe from her feet, kissing her calves and the backs of her knees softly. His fingertips blazed a hot trail over the length of her sculpted legs, stopping at the edge of her black lace panties. He suddenly stood, stripping down to bare before undressing her in that same slow, precise way.

Elle was so much on fire from his caresses when he stretched out beside her on the bed and continued to stroke her from neck to navel, adding his tongue and soft lips as he executed a perfect gentle assault. She felt more than pretty. She arched her back when his mouth found the tip of her breast as his hand slipped beneath her panties, teasing her hot core. She felt like the hottest woman in the world.

Brandon broke her in gently when the time came, and after long sensuous moments of preparing her, he slid inside her slowly. She felt a hot flash of pain and clutched his broad shoulders, gritting her teeth as she adjusted to the fullness. After a bit, the pain began to subside. She nodded an okay and moved her hips to accommodate more of him, letting him know she was into it as much as he was. He began a slow, steady movement with his hips, and she gasped in unexpected pleasure.

He didn’t rush to the finish line, instead thrusting gently until she felt the same rush of passion that he did before increasing the pace ever so slightly. He grabbed her hips in his hands as he moved, showing her how to handle her first climax as she began to writhe in pleasure. He whispered love and encouraging words in her ear, letting her know that it was all right to let loose with what she felt. She flew over the edge first, crying out with her head spinning as blood rushed through her ears. He moved faster for a few long moments before he climaxed, his body shaking with the force of it. He kissed her softly before rolling off her, pulling her into an embrace as she rested on his chest.

“You just gave me the best gift, Elle. I’ll always be your first lover.” He took her delicate hand in his bigger one, clutching tightly. Her full lips curved in a smile as he held her.

****

Elle and K.D. sat across from each other at a small table in the Daily Grind, sipping iced coffees as the rain pelted the windows. The school day was done, and they had trekked to the bus stop across the street from the high school, boarding the bus just as the afternoon shower began.

“So, there’s a sure-to-be-raging Christmas party at this guy’s house in Pasadena tomorrow night. Plenty of hard liquor, hard guys, and no parents in town. He’s that rich senior from Pasadena High School who loves to say he has erectile dysfunction and needs your help to get him up. Remember I told you about him?”

K.D. looked at Elle expectantly and she nodded, feeling slightly guilty that her thoughts were somewhere else. Brandon hadn’t done what she had feared—leaving her alone and pregnant after getting what all guys wanted. He told her that he would be a permanent fixture in her life and, so far, was better than his word. He was affectionate, honest with her, and loyal. She wanted so badly to let him in on her secret life as a demon hunter in training, but Tagas made it clear, under no circumstance, was she ever to reveal her calling. She understood the danger to herself and those in her life but, at times, was so tempted to unburden herself. At the start, killing demons in human guise and sending them back to Hell had sounded like a really fun time, but she had grown to understand the weight placed on her shoulders.

K.D. adjusted the crocheted beanie to cover her short blonde wisps escaping and nudged her. Elle fixed her face to look deeply involved in the conversation. “I’ll go if I can convince Brandon to go with us. You know he’s really not into liquor ragers anymore. I would feel weird with him not there. I can’t promise you I’ll go.”

K.D.’s smile was wicked and knowing. “That’s what happens when you give your virginity to a romantic guy. In my experience, they get all possessive and shit.” She shrugged. “If you don’t go, you’ll be missing out. Trust me—it will be an experience you will nev-a forget, chick.” She winked.

****

“I don’t want you to leave.” Elle’s eyes teared up as she hugged Brandon to her fiercely.

They sat in the front seats of his black Charger at the park in his expensive part of the city. Christmas lights were blinking with shades of white, red, and green on almost every house that lined the block. She leaned back to look at his face and could barely read his pained expression in the almost darkness.

He stroked her cheek with his fingers. “Then come back east with me. You have a good GPA and could probably get into a less expensive but still good university. We’ll get our own place together—take classes during the day and work at night. We’ll have a good life, Elle.”

She shook her head sadly, brushing away tears. It was hard to tell him no, but her life as a demon hunter prevented her from leaving Tagas and her training. She knew that when that was done, she would leave her parents behind—leave everyone behind—and hit the open road to fulfill the purpose she had been called for. “Just don’t forget me when you get there.” Her voice was a hushed whisper in the dark.

Brandon ran his fingers through his dark hair and sighed. “How could I forget you when we’ll be seeing each other on holidays and school vacations? You thought this was over between us? No, I’m not giving up on us. What we share is too special, and I honestly don’t want anyone else but you.”

She sniffled, trying to swallow the lump in her throat. She nodded. “I feel the same way, so…um, vacations and holidays it is, then.” Her heart knew it for the lie it was. What kind of future could she realistically offer him when she finally recognized how bleak her future would be for a long time? Tagas had warned her that her time for close ties was coming to an end, but all she had seen was kisses in the rain and pretty rainbows.
Should’ve thought about that before you fell in love
…

****

Elle took her position at the twenty-yard mark on the floor of the warehouse, deftly taking aim with her crossbow. She had to have done this well over a hundred times in all the months since Tagas had begun her training, but she still felt her heart flutter with apprehension.
I can’t afford not to be good enough. My life depends on it.
She let the arrow fly, hitting the board dead center. The arrows kept flying rapidly, all hitting the intended target.

Tagas applauded, his face creased in a pleased smile. “Well done. You have come a long way in such a short time. You and I have molded your raw strength into skilled, deadly accuracy with both weapons and hand to hand combat.” She nodded, thanking him quietly as she dropped the crossbow. His smile slipped. “Has it all sunk in? Are you finally now feeling the weight of the world on your back?”

She remained silent, letting the small stream of tears run down her cheeks tell the whole story. Tagas slid his arm around her shoulders, and for a moment, she felt comfortable with her weakness. He understood her—had always understood her and her situation to come, but she hadn’t realized it until recently. There were so many things she hadn’t realized before.

“Your parents fully expect you to leave their hell hole as soon as you graduate. Your leaving won’t surprise them. And the boy, Brandon—you two are moving in different directions. Apparently, God has other plans for his life that, sadly, don’t include you. Don’t let the bitterness of your circumstances burden you, young Elle. Channel it into an unstoppable force.” He kissed her forehead gently. “I assure you, you will have your happy ending eventually.”