Circle of Desire (15 page)

And it was getting hotter with every passing second.

Goose bumps raced across her skin. Only the two of them were in the house. Nearly everyone else was in the barn or searching the grounds. What better time for evil to kill a pest?

“Sheriff, I think we should leave.”

He gave her the sort of look she’d seen half her life. The look that queried sanity. “Why?”

The sense of wrongness grew, until it felt like her skin crawled with it. She grabbed his arm and pushed him toward the back door. “Because I have a very
bad feeling about this heat, and my bad feelings have a habit of coming true.”

“I think—”

She never did get to know what he thought, because at that moment the house blew apart, and a fist of air lifted them off their feet and out the windows.

E
THAN CAUGHT A FAMILIAR SCENT AS HE WAS SNIFFING
through the rotting pile of old straw dumped on the far side of the barn. Baby powder. He nosed around a bit more and found a footprint. A child-sized footprint. Hope surged, and he felt like howling in joy. She’d stood here, and not all that long ago.

The baby-fresh smell led away from the barn, toward the dark trees ringing the farm’s boundary. But there were other prints here—a man’s prints, if the shoe size was anything to go by. They’d led Janie away from both the barn and the house, to God knows where. But why make her walk? Why not carry her?

He followed the prints for several yards, then hesitated, glancing over his shoulder. Something felt wrong. He couldn’t pinpoint what it was—just a feeling in the air, a vibration of power that somehow tasted foul.

And whatever it was, it was headed for the house. Kat was inside. He had to warn her.

He took a step, but in that moment, the house literally blew apart. It wasn’t an explosion—there was no heat, no noise. One minute the house was there, the next it was in a million deadly splinters.

Ethan froze, and for one horrible moment it felt as if something had grabbed his gut and his throat and his heart and twisted hard.

Then he ran, past the scrambling deputies, out into a yard suddenly filled with smoke and dust and deadly wooden missiles. He sniffed the air, caught Kat’s scent, and ran as quickly as four legs could carry him to what was left of the rear of the house.

And saw her. Bloodied, and not moving, but definitely breathing. A weight lifted off his chest, and suddenly
he
could breathe again.

She lay on the ground in a ball. Her arms were scratched, her skirt rucked up and torn, her calf cut and bleeding. But she was alive, she was relatively unhurt, and that was surely a miracle.

He pulled down her skirt with his teeth, protecting her modesty even though he wasn’t really sure if she’d care, then nudged her with his nose several times. When that got little response, he licked the side of her face, his tongue rasping against the sooty silk of her skin. She finally stirred, muttering a curse under her breath before she pushed him away.

“Yuck, Ethan.” Though her voice was a little husky, it was strong. She uncurled, wincing a little as she stretched out her cut leg. “Now I smell like dog breath.”

He couldn’t reply, as much as he wanted to. Couldn’t ask if she was okay. So he licked her again, this time across her lips.

She spluttered and finally opened her eyes. “I’m okay. Will you quit it?”

He sat back on his haunches and eyed the overeager deputy who came rushing over.

“You okay, Miss?”

The jerk knelt beside her, all but pawing her in his eagerness to help her into a sitting position. A growl rumbled up Ethan’s throat, and the deputy jumped back.

“Bad dog,” she said, green eyes twinkling as she looked at him. “He’s only trying to help.”

Yeah, and his hands just
happened
to brush her breasts in the process. He continued to glare at the offending deputy, and the kid swallowed. Hard.

“Emergency services have been called. They won’t be long, Miss.”

The deputy half rose, but she put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him. “How’s the sheriff?”

“He’s conscious, like yourself, Miss.” The deputy gave Ethan another look, then pulled away from Kat’s hand and stood. “But I’ll just go double-check.”

“That was uncalled for,” she said softly, glancing at Ethan as the deputy walked away. “Especially since you’re the one who said there’s nothing between us but sex.”

There
was
nothing between them but sex. But while he was with her, he was going to make damn sure no one else was. The thought stopped him. That sounded territorial. Perhaps wolf instincts were stronger in this form. He couldn’t honestly say, because he hadn’t willingly worn this form for close to fourteen years.

But by the same token, he
didn’t
want to share her. Not with anyone. Not even the slightest caress. But he couldn’t tell her that. Couldn’t tell her anything in this guise. And he couldn’t risk shifting shape just yet. Benton had apparently asked the sheriff if he could send a team down to see if there were any similarities
to their kidnapping case. They were due any minute, and he just couldn’t afford to be seen.

Kat rose stiffly, dusted off her hands, then limped over to the sheriff. Ethan followed close on her heels, and the men hovering near the sheriff seemed to sidle away, giving them space. The sheriff was up on his feet, and other than a bloody cut on his cheek and a ripped shirt, he looked none the worse for his ordeal.

“You okay?” His voice, like Kat’s, was still a little croaky.

She nodded. “I’m going to head back to the cabins and clean up, if you don’t mind.”

“You don’t want those cuts checked first?”

She waved a hand. “They’re only minor. You know where I’m staying if you want to talk to me.”

The sheriff nodded, and she walked away. The car was parked halfway down the long driveway. Ethan shifted shape as they neared it, flowing from wolf to human form in several smooth steps that belied his lack of practice. He touched her arm and stopped her.

“What the hell are you doing?” Her gaze went past him, studying the farm behind them.

“There’s no one near to see us. Are you okay?”

“I told you that already.” Irritation touched her voice. “And how do you know they can’t see you? You got eyes in the back of your head now?”

“I can smell them.” As he could smell her. Taste her. On his skin. In his mouth. His gaze dropped to her lips. “Can you drive?”

“I’ve only cut my leg. Shift shape before someone sees you. If you want to talk, wait till we get back to the cabins.”

“I’m not going back just yet.”

And neither was she—not until he’d tasted her more fully. His lips claimed hers, his kiss hard, demanding. Though she made a small sound of protest at the back of her throat, her lips yielded to his. His tongue savored the sweetness of her mouth as he pressed her back against the car. Her body trembled against him, her nipples hard against his chest. He slid his hand under her soft sweater, caressing their peaks as he pressed his groin against her. Wanting, needing, to get inside.

She felt so good, so right, that he wanted to keep on tasting and touching her forever. But now was not the time, because there were scents that would not wait. He pulled back. Her breathing was as harsh as his, her pupils wide and dilated. He touched her cheek, thumbing the thin trickle of blood away.

“Sorry.”

She took a shuddering breath. “You should be. It’s not like you can finish anything right now.”

“No.” But he certainly wanted to, and that in itself was somewhat surprising, given the number of condoms he’d thrown out this morning. The fever should have been well sated until this evening. “Perhaps tonight.”

“Perhaps.” Her tone suggested he shouldn’t count on it.

Though he certainly did. He took off the ridiculous pink scarf she’d forced him to wear and handed it to her. “I have to go. I found a spoor I have to follow.” He shifted shape before she could argue and leaped away.

* * *

F
OR TWO SECONDS
, K
AT THOUGHT ABOUT FOLLOWING
him. But if she didn’t drive the car away, the deputies would wonder why it was still there and perhaps begin a search. They couldn’t afford that, not right now, and not when the zombies and God knows what else might still be in the area.

She took a deep breath that did little to ease the ache of desire as she climbed into the car and headed for the cabins.

Her grandmother was asleep when she arrived. Kat headed into the bathroom and cleaned up the cuts on her face and leg, then made two cups of coffee and carried them into the bedroom. Gwen stirred as she sat down on the edge of the bed.

“You’re back,” she said, yawning as she sat up. “Did you find anything?”

“A necklace belonging to Janie, and another soul-sucker victim.” She handed her grandmother the coffee, then leaned against the wall. “This one was an old man, though.”

Gwen frowned. “New or old death?”

“Newish. He’s been dead for about a week.”

“So the mara is still taking its victims in a traditional manner. Wonder what it needs the kids for, then?”

Kat rubbed her arms. “I have a bad feeling that we don’t want to know the answer to that.”

“Me, too.” Gwen’s frown deepened. “I’ll have to call Seline and see if she’s discovered anything on rituals that need specific emotions for completion. Where’s that wolf of yours?”

“He ran off to follow a scent.” And she hoped he was careful. Those zombies were still out there, as
was the soul-sucker. And he didn’t stand a chance against them—not when he didn’t believe he had to kill rather than arrest.

“Damn fool. Hope he has more sense than to charge in if he finds anything.”

“He’s a cop. He knows better than that.”

Gwen snorted. “He’s also a werewolf in the midst of moon heat, so sense is not playing a major role in his thought processes at the moment.”

“You want me to go look for him?”

Gwen hesitated. “No. You need to head over to this restaurant.” She grabbed a slip of paper from the dressing table and handed it to Kat. “With the moon high, that other werewolf is going to be trolling for victims tonight. You’ve got to stop him.”

“So this time he’s not hunting children for the mara?”

“No.” Gwen frowned. “I’d love to know what he’s getting out of the relationship with her, though.”

“Maybe we need to ask him when we stop him.” She glanced at the address, noting that the restaurant was the one Ethan and she had stopped at yesterday. “We don’t have any silver bullets.”

“The silver daggers will work just as well.” Gwen hesitated. “But be careful. This wolf is one of the bitten, and they’re usually mean. By all means try to question him about his role in all this is, but make it fast, or you could be in trouble.”

Kat nodded and tried to ignore the fear of what might happen. Finishing her coffee, she rose. “I’ll mix up some truth herbs and see if I can slip them into his drink.”

Gwen nodded. “Just don’t push too hard, even if
you do get them into him. If you make him suspicious, you’ll be in danger.”

She’d be in danger anyway, and they both knew it. “What about Ethan?”

“The moon fever has him feeling a might territorial, and that could prove disastrous in this situation.”

Because he’d attack rather than question. And as much as this werewolf deserved to die, they needed the answers he might provide. “So what are you going to tell him when he gets back?”

“That what you do on your own free time is none of his damn business.”

She gave her grandmother a long look. “What possible good is telling him that going to do?”

“Nothing at all. I just want to see his reaction.”

“You’re a bad woman, you know that?”

“And enjoying every moment of it.” Gwen grinned, but there was a seriousness in her green eyes as she said, “He needs to be shaken, Kat. Or this could end very badly.”

“This case, or him and me?”

“Both.”

She had a feeling it would end badly between Ethan and her no matter how much stirring her grandmother did. His actions made it all too clear that he really only wanted sex from her. Which was a damn shame, because there were definitely signs that there could be a whole lot more.

She glanced at her watch. It wouldn’t take long to fly down to the restaurant, but even so, she had to get moving. It was past four, and dusk was closing in fast. “I’ll change and get going.”

“Just be careful. And don’t let the aura of the wolf overwhelm you.”

“I won’t.” She knew her voice sounded as uncertain as she felt.

E
THAN SAT ON HIS HAUNCHES AND STUDIED THE SMALL
cabin in the clearing below. The baby-fresh scent had faded a good ten minutes back, but he’d continued to hunt around, desperate to find it again.

The only thing he
had
found was this cabin. It looked like nothing out of the ordinary. Just a rundown old shack that appeared to have been abandoned for years.

Yet the smell of death hung so heavily in the air it almost choked him.

He sniffed the breeze, trying to discern if there were any other scents layering the air. Nothing beyond decay and the faint tang of balsam.