No. No. No. She pushed herself to her feet and ran to where she’d last seen him. Nothing. She fired up her gift without thinking. Pain like an ice pick to the brain doubled her over. Liquid warmth flowed from her nose and she tasted the coppery tang of her blood. Through narrowed eyes she scanned the dark, but he was gone. She’d had her chance and she’d lost it.
She locked her gift down but the pain receded only enough to allow her to function. She swiped a hand across her face to get rid of the blood and turned on Thomas. “Why did you shoot him?”
Thomas eyed the blood smeared across her porcelain skin and trickling from her nose. “You can’t be serious. And why are you bleeding?”
She brushed aside his concern with a wave of her hand. “That’s not important. Why did you shoot him?”
His bride was an intelligent woman. She should already know the answer to that question. “He was eating someone.”
“It’s not like the guy was still alive. And now Nathaniel got away.”
She dug her phone out of her pocket.
His eyes narrowed and his teeth clenched. “He threatened you.”
“He was at least ten feet away.”
“And you really think it would be that difficult for any werewolf, let alone one hosting a demon to leap that distance before you could think of reacting?” She opened her mouth to protest and he shook his head. “Don’t. Just don’t. I will not justify my actions to anyone. Especially when it comes to your protection.”
“Jeremiah, it’s me. Any sign?” She paused for the answer. “Let me know.” She put the phone away and walked past him and back down the fire escape. He watched until she disappeared below the edge of the building. Damnable woman. He hurried after her. “And what was that on the roof? You nearly get your head shot off and you thrust it back into the line of fire. For what?”
“I thought I recognized the shooter,” she said as she hopped off at the bottom. She didn’t stop until she got back to the victim. He followed along behind her at a slower pace, mulling over her words, trying to remember if he’d gotten a glimpse of the person trying to kill them.
“And did you?” he asked when he reached her.
She glanced up but said nothing. It was answer enough. She did and she wasn’t going to share with him who it might be. “Talk to me, Juliana. What is going on? And why are you bleeding?”
A hand shot up to her nose and she seemed surprised to find the blood still trickling. He stepped closer to her and used the edge of his shirt to wipe the blood away. She looked at him a minute and then dropped her head, breaking the connection. “I’ve used my gift too much.”
He’d all but forgotten about that gift of hers. And he was an idiot for doing so. No wonder she was a full-blown Walker, risking her life in the field every day. They would never waste a talent like hers behind a desk.
Thomas shifted his attention to the body at their feet. It was a male. His throat gaped open in what was probably the killing blow and most of the stomach was gone. They always started with the stomach.
Juliana pulled out her phone which had no doubt vibrated to alert her to a call. “We’ll be right there,” she said after she listened a moment. “They found both demons. We’ve got to go.”
He put a hand on her arm to stop her. “There are two?”
“Yes. Didn’t I tell you that?”
“No.” His lips were a tight line. “You’ve been rather single minded about your wolf.”
“The other one’s smart and communicative. At least fifth level.”
“And they are connected how?”
“They’re working together. It’s how Nathaniel got the jump on me.”
His eyes locked on her new scars. “So you were not injured because you were reluctant to hurt him?”
“I’m not an idiot.” Thomas refrained from commenting. His bride was a very intelligent woman, but her actions far from reflected it sometimes. “Was that the shooter?”
She shook her head and looked at him a long moment before answering. “It was Raoul.”
His blood chilled. “Why is Raoul trying to kill you?”
“Actually I have no idea. Usually it’s the other way around.”
This was the heart of her secret. But he didn’t have time to get into it now. The demons weren’t going to wait for them forever. “We should go.”
Chapter Twelve
Cold night air enveloped Juliana as she walked through the streets of downtown New Hope searching for their quarry. Her glasses hid the glow of her eyes as she used her gift. Demons weren’t the only things hiding in the night. She’d snagged a stack of gauze from a medic and kept it pressed under her nose. She was going to have to shut down soon or she’d fry something. Thomas searched the rooftops above her head. She left him to it. She had enough to worry about without double-checking his work.
As she scanned signatures, she looked for one in particular. If Raoul was smart he left town the moment he realized she’d seen him. Unfortunately, intelligence had never been one of his strengths. She still couldn’t figure out why he was here, what he wanted from her.
Their prey had been followed to this area but they’d been searching for half an hour with no luck. She’d just made up her mind to call Thomas to join her when a plaintive howl cut through the night. Her breath caught. Nathaniel. It had to be. She needed it to be.
She tried to pinpoint the sound, but the echo from the buildings made it impossible. Thomas joined her and gestured to the northwest. On the roof he hadn’t had the same problem with the echo so it was easier for him to target the source. They took off at a run.
Thomas looked surprised as she kept pace with him. She couldn’t maintain the speed for as long as he could, but for a while she could match him step for step. She grabbed his arm to pull him to a stop a few blocks later.
She sniffed the air. As Thomas watched her, his fangs slid out and his eyes darkened in anticipation of the fight. They crept forward, keeping to the shadows of buildings. They used her nose to track the demons, leaving her feeling a little like a bloodhound. A giggle floated from the upper reaches of a building across the street. Her gaze shot up to find two dark forms devoid of signatures crouching next to each other on the roof. She shut her gift down and wiped the blood away from under her nose again.
She pressed on her earpiece and conveyed their location.
“How should we go up?” Thomas asked, pitching his voice low.
She kept her eyes locked on the demons and shook her head. “We’re not going up. They’re coming down.”
The demons would know they were there without her announcing it, but she stepped into light anyway. She slid the sword from the sheath on her back.
For a moment, all was still and then they came. The small fae flew to land lightly on the ground while Nathaniel leaped from landing to landing on the fire escape. They stood twenty feet away, staring them down. Thomas stood motionless beside her and she forced herself to be patient. To wait for them to come. Her pulse raced and her breathing quickened in anticipation. This was the part of the job she lived for. The part she was good at.
“Hello again, Juliana Norris. I see you still live. How...fortunate. Your blood smells delicious,” the fae said.
Somehow she didn’t think “thank you” would be an appropriate response, so she said nothing.
“If you think I’m going to let you have her, you’re mistaken,” Thomas said.
“Very well, Thomas Kendrick. You will both die eventually anyway.” The fae smiled revealing rows of pointy teeth. Thomas ran forward to meet it as it charged. Nathaniel stood entranced by their battle. She took the opportunity to slip her sword back in its sheath so she wouldn’t be tempted to use it. She wanted to kill the demon, but she needed to keep her friend alive. What she needed to do now was get Nathaniel’s demon away from its more powerful counterpart. She took a deep breath and whistled to get the demon’s attention.