Soul Sucker
Authors: Kate Pearce
Soul Sucker
By Kate Pearce
Supernatural Branch of Law Enforcement empath Ella Walsh sucks memories from people’s heads. The job fills her mind with others’ nightmares and leaves her with little time for love, but if she doesn’t pair off with a mate of the government’s choosing soon, the psychic blowback will destroy her powers and her sanity.
The last time shapeshifting SBLE superstar Vadim Morosov worked with an empath, he got her killed and himself assigned to a desk. He worries about taking on another partner, but helping Ella track down an empath killer might be his only chance to save his career.
Naturally, the government decides to throw them together.
They resist at first, but they can’t deny the simmering heat between them. As the killer’s strikes grow closer to home, their bond gets tighter. And when the murderer finally traps Ella, her developing link with Vadim might be the only thing that can save her.
86,000 words
Dear Reader,
April is when the romance conference season really starts to get busy for me. Every spring, I attend the
RT
Book
Reviews
convention, a gathering of about 500 authors, readers and publishing professionals who come together to celebrate their love of both romance and genre fiction. Each year, I come away from that conference, and the many others I attend that are focused on the love of books (like the Lori Foster Reader Get Together in Ohio), with a renewed enthusiasm for diving back into my to-be-read pile. As well as a long list of authors and books to add to that to-be-read pile! But because it’s a busy travel time of year for me, that also means more time on the plane and in airports for reading.
Maybe you’re like me—traveling to conferences and in need of some plane reading. Or maybe you just need one more book to add to your to-be-read pile. Possibly you’ve got a newborn baby who keeps you up at night and gets you up early in the morning, and you need something you can read on the ereader in one hand while the baby is in the other. Or perhaps you’re just in search of a good book. You’re in luck; our April books can fill all those needs!
The first book in our newest genre addition, New Adult, releases this month. If you love contemporary romance, sports romance, a (mostly) Jewish, spunky heroine and a hero who will make your heart melt, you’ll want to read
Rush
Me
by debut author Allison Parr.
This month, I’m pleased to introduce the first book in a six-book series written by four authors. Ginny Glass, Christina Thacher, Emily Cale and Maggie Wells kick off a series of contemporary romance short story collections with
Love
Letters
Volume
1
:
Obeying
Desire
. Each volume will center around a different seriously sexy theme. I’ll bet you can’t guess what the theme of the first volume is, with a title like
Obeying
Desire
! Look for the second volume,
Love
Letters
Volume
2
:
Duty
to
Please
, releasing in May 2013.
Fans of contemporary romance will enjoy
Saved
by
the
Bride
, the first book in a new trilogy by RITA® Award-winning author Fiona Lowe. Who knew that being a klutz and combining it with a distrust of wedding bouquets could lead to a black eye?
Joining Fiona and Allison in the contemporary romance category is Kate Davies, with
Cutest
Couple
, book two in Kate’s high-school reunion trilogy, Girls Most Likely to… Look for the conclusion of the trilogy,
Life
of
the
Party
, in May 2013.
Co-authors Anna Leigh Keaton and Madison Layle deliver another scorching Puma Nights story with
Falke’s
Renegade
, while Jodie Griffin joins them in heating up your ereader with her third erotic BDSM Bondage & Breakfast book,
Forbidden
Fires
.
On the paranormal and science fiction front, we have a number of titles for fans. Veteran author Kate Pearce begins a new series with
Soul
Sucker
, in which
Moonlighting
meets
The
X
-
Files
in San Francisco Bay and two worlds collide. Kat Cantrell, winner of Harlequin’s 2011 So You Think You Can Write contest, joins Carina Press with her first science fiction romance,
Mindlink
, while returning author Eleri Stone gives us another jaguar shifter in
Lost
City
Shifters
:
Rebellion
, book three in this compelling series.
Clockwork
Mafia
by Seleste deLaney brings us back to the Western steampunk world of
Badlands
. Inventor Henrietta Mason is retiring from airships and adventuring to return home to Philadelphia. Determined to erase all trails leading to her late father’s duplicity, she dismantles his lab and removes all records of the Badlands gold. And last but certainly not least in the paranormal category,
Night
of
the
Dark
Horse
by Janni Nell continues the adventures of Allegra Fairweather, paranormal investigator.
This month, Bronwyn Stuart follows up her fantastic debut historical romance,
Scandal’s
Mistress
, with her unique regency romance,
Behind
the
Courtesan
, featuring—you guessed it—a courtesan heroine.
On the non-romance side, Jean Harrington brings us the third Murders by Design cozy mystery installment,
Killer
Kitchens
.
And joining Carina Press with an epic fantasy trilogy, Angela Highland tells the story of a half-elven healer with no control over her magic. Faanshi has always been a pawn of the powerful, but after healing two mysterious and very different men, she faces a choice that may decide the fate of a whole kingdom. If you love fantasy, pick up
Valor
of
the
Healer
, book one in the Rebels of Adalonia trilogy.
As you can see, April is full of books to distract you wherever you are, whatever you’re supposed to be doing, and even if you have a baby in your arms. I hope you enjoy these titles as much as we’ve enjoyed working on them.
We love to hear from readers, and you can email us your thoughts, comments and questions to
[email protected]
. You can also interact with Carina Press staff and authors on our blog, Twitter stream and Facebook fan page.
Happy reading!
~Angela James
Executive Editor, Carina Press
www.carinapress.com
www.twitter.com/carinapress
www.facebook.com/carinapress
Dedication
This book is dedicated to Dianna and Ned for letting Ella lease their basement in Tiburon, and for years of love and friendship. Thank you guys!
Chapter One
Ella Walsh cast one last look at the naked man sleeping in her bed, then frowned down at the note she was trying to write him. What the hell was the guy’s name? She’d hooked up with him in one of the tourist traps down by the beach last night and brought him back to her apartment for some hot and dirty sex. The sex had been mediocre, and his name still escaped her.
She settled for writing
Hey
,
what’s
up
?—the universal Californian dude greeting—and went on to tell him that breakfast was in the refrigerator, coffee already brewed and to lock up when he left. He’d do what she told him. She’d already implanted the instructions in his mind and he wouldn’t be able to deviate from them. During sex, she avoided using her empath abilities to access her hook ups’ minds, but making sure they left and forgot what she looked like was essential.
She checked for her weapons and keys and headed for the door. While she fumbled in her pocket for her sunglasses, she screwed up her eyes against the blinding sunlight, barely glancing at her million-dollar view of the Golden Gate Bridge and the city of San Francisco looming in the mist across the bay.
As she headed down the driveway from her basement apartment a screen door rattled above her head and she immediately went for her weapon. She spun around to see her neighbor’s eight-year-old grandson waving at her from the balcony of his house. She waved back and he beckoned her urgently. After another quick look around, she turned back.
“What’s up, Tom?”
He didn’t smile. “That thing? It came back last night.”
“The thing under your bed?”
“Yeah. I saw more of it this time. You know in those alien movies when those creatures with the long bony fingers hug your face? It looked like that except more like long fingernails than claws.”
“Your gran lets you watch those movies?”
He shrugged off the question. “What should I do?”
“Don’t go under the bed.”
“Ella, that’s stupid. I—”
She put a finger to her lips as his voice rose. “I’m serious. The first night I get a chance, I’ll come over and check it out with you.”
Tom studied her for a long moment. “You really believe me, don’t you?” His face reddened. “No one else does. They all think I’m a wuss.”
“I believe you.” She hesitated for a second. “Just keep it to yourself from now on, and we’ll deal with it together.”
“Okay.” He took a deep breath. “As long as you let me help you catch it.”
She nodded. “I’ll definitely need your help. Work permitting, I’ll try and come over tonight.”
“Thanks, Ella.”
She smiled, and then started to walk down the hill toward the oceanfront path that would take her to the Tiburon Ferry terminal. It was only a twenty-five-minute ride into San Francisco. It also gave her the necessary separation between her job and the rest of her life. Not that she had much of a life, but the older she got, the more she needed to distance herself from the craziness of dealing with Otherworld.
The thing under Tom’s bed didn’t worry her too much. It was unlikely to harm him, but it still needed investigating. If it was bold enough to allow itself to be seen, it might be stupid enough to try and take a bite out of the kid. And, whatever the species, bites were never good. Tom’s ability to see the creature so clearly was more disturbing. He obviously had some emerging psychic talent and, as a registered empath, she was required to report in with both governments if she saw the gift in anyone else. Like she’d ever do that.
Some
gift
.
She inhaled the salty tang of the water and checked ahead to see that the Blue and Gold Line ferry was moored at the end of the dock. The usual line of passengers was already straggling up the gangplank, coffee, laptops and mp3 players in hand. She always preferred to stare out at the water and watch the fog crawl in under the Golden Gate Bridge.
If she reported Tom to the authorities, his life would never be the same again. He’d be taken away to a special school for the “gifted,” registered as an empath, and then sent to Otherworld Academy to gain his degree. Having been taken from her parents at the age of five she knew how that went, and she’d hated every minute of it.
She wrapped her long woolen scarf more securely around her neck. It also meant that both governments knew all about you and she hated that even more.
She nodded to a couple of regulars on the boat and took up her usual spot on the top deck. Despite it being July, it was still freezing and the wind buffeted her face.
Maybe Tom’s family knew he was different and they were just trying to ignore it. Not many families wanted to acknowledge that one of their own could see monsters. She remembered trying to explain to her mother about the creature that lived in her closet and being laughed at. It wasn’t until she’d drawn the thing at school that the authorities had gotten involved and her childhood had ended. She didn’t want to do that to Tom. At some point he’d be picked up, that much was certain, but she didn’t want it on her conscience.
Decision made, she took a deep breath and slowly let it out. Eventually the restored Clock Tower and the piers like splayed fingers coming off the waterfront of the old San Francisco docks came into view. It was a pleasant way to commute to the city. Traffic now was mainly commuters and tourists as the main working docks were across the bay in the Port of Oakland.
She joined the line disembarking from the ferry at Pier 41, and walked out onto the Embarcadero, along to the main ferry building and then up Market. The offices of the Supernatural Branch of Law Enforcement, the SBLE for short, were housed in an innocuous beige and glass office block that fronted onto Market. Ella slid her passkey through the double entrance door and went into the white marble lobby. The receptionist smiled and she smiled back.
“Good morning, Peach.”
“Morning, Ella. Mr. Feehan was looking for you.”
“Already? I’m sure he’ll find me soon enough.” She bypassed the bank of elevators and descended to the lower levels regular office workers were unaware existed. As she stepped out the familiar smell of burned coffee and old carpet hit her and she drew it deep into her lungs. The main office was crowded with cubicles, and had a central area for copying stuff and an alcove where the vending machines pumped out their unpalatable, highly caloric and sometimes unrecognizable wares.
Ella threaded her way through the cubicles to the back of the building where her tiny corner office lay. The door was already open and she could see the unmistakable shape of her new boss sitting at her desk. Mr. Kenneth Feehan was about twenty years her senior but acted more like her grandfather.
“Mr. Feehan.” She came through the door and stared pointedly at her chair, which her boss hurriedly vacated. “What’s up?”
“I’ve got an emergency for you. A man was freaked out by something he saw in Golden Gate Park this morning.”
“And you’re sure he wasn’t just smoking weed?”
He didn’t crack a smile. “Absolutely sure. He says that one of the giant sunflowers started talking to him and then tried to wrap him up in his leaves and drag him underground.”
“Definitely Otherworld then. Where is the guy?”
“He’s at San Francisco General in a private room.”
“I suppose you want me to go see him?”
“That would be helpful.” His gaze swept over her faded jeans, flip flops, purple T-shirt and orange-and-black baseball jacket. “You do realize the department has a dress policy, don’t you?”
“I’m supposed to wear a
dress
?” She widened her eyes at him. “I’ll be happy to wear what the hell you like if you’re willing to pay for my clothing. Have you any idea how much stuff I ruin chasing Otherworld species?”
“The department can’t afford to subsidize clothing.” He averted his gaze and studied the fraying beige carpet instead. That was typical of him. Too unsure of himself yet to really piss her off, but compelled to point out every perceived deviation from government code. But he wasn’t her problem. He’d work out that this particular branch of the SBLE was different and settle in, or he’d apply for a transfer. It happened all the time.
“If you want me to go home and change, it’ll be another couple of hours before I get to the guy in the hospital.”
Feehan sighed. “Just do your job.”
She met his gaze. “Sure, boss.”
* * *
The hospital was huge and always crowded, but Ella had learned to negotiate the hallways and banks of elevators to avoid as much notice as possible. She was well known by the staff because she was usually the first member of the SBLE team called to deal with emergencies like this before they brought in the psychiatrists. The medical profession was one of the few to acknowledge that weird shit did happen and willing to let the SBLE help out as long as they didn’t have to know all the details.
She nodded at the charge nurse and slipped into the white coat she kept on the back of the door in the staff locker room. For some reason it seemed to convince people she had authority.
“Hey, Jose. Where’s Mr. Knight?”
“Room ten, Ella. He should be awake by now.”
“Cool. I’ll call if I need anyone.”
Jose grinned, displaying his dimples. “Knock yourself out. He’s babbling like a baby.”
She walked down the hall checking the numbers and knocked on the fifth door on the right. There was no answer, so she let herself in.
A man she guessed was in his mid-twenties lay in the bed, the covers pulled up to his chin, his fingers gripping them so tightly that his knuckles blended into the white sheets. He wore the look of complete terror she was accustomed to seeing after an encounter with an Otherworld species.
“Mr. Knight? I’m Ella Walsh from the SBLE. I understand you saw something unusual in Golden Gate Park today.”
“Unusual?” His voice rose on each syllable. “A fucking sunflower tried to fucking eat me!”
“So I heard.” She grabbed a stool and sat beside his bed, gently wrapping her fingers around his exposed wrist. She immediately both felt his raised pulse and the distinctive buzz of Otherworld energy. “That must have freaked you out.”
“Yeah, it did.” He focused his gaze on her. “Are you a shrink?”
“Nope.” She took a deep breath and concentrated on the stream of energy pulsing through poor Mr. Knight’s body. “Think of me as more of a natural healer.”
“So you’re not going to tell me I’m crazy?”
She looked him right in the eye. “You’re not crazy. What you saw was real. I’m going to make sure that the thing you saw is captured and sent back where it belongs.”
“You’re crazy too, then. Right?”
She smiled at him. “In this job, it sure helps.”
His pulse steadied and for the first time he stopped shaking. “I’m not sure if you telling me what I saw was real makes it better or worse. I’m going to be scared to pull up a fucking weed in my yard or buy my girlfriend a bunch of flowers now.”
She laughed and he reluctantly smiled back at her. Without fear consuming him he was quite an attractive guy. “Look, can you bear to go through what happened one more time for me?”
His faint color fled. “Do I have to?”
“It would help me pinpoint exactly where I have to go to find this...anomaly.”
“Sunflower, you mean.”
“Well, it uses the flower as camouflage. It’s skilled at hiding in anything.”
He held her gaze. “You’re serious, aren’t you?”
“I sure am. Now would you mind closing your eyes while you tell me what happened? It will help you visualize the scene.”
It would also help her identify exactly what had attacked him and then erase it from his memory. One of her class tutors had likened using empath power on the human mind to erasing a song from a cassette tape or an image from a VCR and, even though it was old-school, she kind of liked that idea. It was also why she always told the victim the truth about what they’d seen before she erased the memories. It seemed to help them recover more quickly without leaving a lingering suspicion that they were going nuts.
Mr. Knight sighed and closed his eyes. She closed hers too and concentrated on extracting the images from his head.
“Okay, I was taking a shortcut through the park near the Japanese Tea Gardens when I thought I heard someone call my name. I had my ear buds in, so I took them out and looked around.” He swallowed convulsively. “I walked toward one of the flowerbeds and something tapped me on the shoulder. I turned and there was this weird
face
staring out at me from the center of this huge fucking sunflower.”
“Did you try to run away?”
“No, I just stood there like an idiot staring at this thing and then it smiled and it had hundreds of tiny pointed teeth like a shark.”
She saw the image in his head and drew it into her mind. “Then what happened?”
“I tried to back off, but the thing wrapped its leaves around me and they were getting tighter and the more I struggled, the tighter they got. Then the ground started moving like there was going to be an earthquake and the soil boiled up like lava.” He struggled to breathe. “And I just knew that fucking thing was going to try and drag me down there and that if it did, I’d never come up again.”
“That’s possible.”
“So I started to struggle and bite at the leaves and the sunflower just...laughed and dropped me on the ground. It bent over me and hissed something in my face, and that’s all I remember.”
Ella extracted the last of the images from Mr. Knight’s head and stored them carefully in her own mind. She was pretty sure she knew what had happened, but she needed to go over the impressions and make certain that she was correct. She cleared her mind and concentrated on the blank spaces in Mr. Knight’s memory until he was relaxed and breathing nicely.
“Mr. Knight, when you wake up you won’t remember the sunflower. What you
will
remember is that you fell over a misplaced stone in Golden Gate Park, banged your head, and now you have a concussion.” She fed those images into his head like frames of film. “You’re still going to be pissed off, and you’ll gladly take the large sum of money the city is offering you as compensation for your injury before you sue their asses. Do you understand?”