Avenging Angel (The Fallen #4)(17)

The voice was quiet tonight. The drugs were still in her system. The drugs muted all the voices that wanted to whisper to her about the wicked things in the world.

I’m wicked.

She’d gotten the drugs from the alley. Seen the death that waited for those two panther shifters.

I saw what you did. She’d never be able to forget that night.

Now it was time to collect and get out of there. The shifter and his angel should have made it around to the back of Hell by now. She could slip out, make her deal, and get away.

Cadence dropped the bottle. It spilled on the floor, a long, wet stain, and the rat scurried toward it. Cadence grabbed her bag. There’d be no missing this shithole for her.

She yanked open the back door. Slipped out into the night. The air was hot. Always was, down in this freaking pit. Maybe she’d go someplace up north. Someplace where it actually snowed. She’d never seen real snow. Wouldn’t that be a kick?

Careful . . .

That whisper came from her own mind. The voice was waking up. Dammit. No. Not now.

Cadence shoved her hand into her bag. She had a few more white pills left. They’d shut up the voice. Buy her more time.

Blood. That horrible whisper again.

She couldn’t find the damn pills.

Blood on the dirty bricks. Blood on the ground. Can’t scream. Can’t—

Her fingers closed around one small pill. She shoved it in her mouth and swallowed. Her hands were shaking, but that wasn’t new. When the voice screamed so loud in her mind—or even when it whispered—her hands trembled.

But the pill was in her body now. Her heart rate began to slow. The drug always worked fast. After a moment, the voice fell silent.

It was just her now. Alone in the night.

Cadence sucked in a few quick breaths. Where was the shifter? He’d better show up and get ready to hand over some serious cash. ’Cause if he wanted to hear all the juicy bits that she had to share, he’d need to—

“Hello, Cadence.”

She stiffened. Impossible. That voice—it belonged to a dead man. She knew. She’d put Bill in the ground herself. Dug the grave and dumped his sorry ass inside and left him in the middle of the woods.

“Why don’t you come here . . . ” Bill’s voice said from the darkness, “and give me a kiss, baby girl?”

Her blood iced. That was Bill’s voice. When she turned, she saw him walking from the shadows. Bill. With his balding head, his tattoos, and the slightly crooked smile that had disarmed her from the first moment she met him.

I didn’t see the monster. That smile had blinded her.

Bill had been human. She’d thought that meant he was safe. Too late, she’d learned how vicious humans could be.

Bill stalked toward her. Cadence didn’t move. She couldn’t move. “B-Bill?” What the hell? Had he turned vamp on her? That was the only thing that made sense. He must’ve been a vamp before she buried him. Tricky *. And here she’d been feeling all guilty for murdering the guy.

His arms grabbed her and pulled her tight against him. “I’ve missed you,” he said. His hands hurt. That was nothing new. His hammy hands always liked to hurt her.

She hadn’t missed him.

Then she realized that he didn’t smell the same. Not like stale cigarettes and old beer. Not even that musky scent human males always seemed to carry.

She pushed away and stared up at him as terror clawed its way through her.

Run.

The voice in her head was back. Too late.

She didn’t see the knife, not at first. But Cadence felt the blade as it sliced through her skin. Sliced so deep that it stole her breath as it cut open her throat.

Blood flew around her, splattering onto the old bricks. Onto the dirt. She tried to scream, but couldn’t.

Her voice was gone.

Cadence’s body fell to the ground. She was on her stomach, trying to crawl with her last bit of strength.

“Fucking bitch. You aren’t telling anybody about me.”

Then the knife plunged into her back.

Can’t scream.

There’d be no time to make amends. Cadence felt death coming for her.

No time—





CHAPTER FOUR

The scent of fresh blood hit him like a punch to the gut when Tanner shoved open the back door of Hell. The beast inside growled in pleasure.

The panther he carried always liked the blood too much.

“Tanner? What’s wrong?”

He’d shoved up his arm and blocked Marna’s path. He just hadn’t wanted her racing into a bloodbath. But she seemed oblivious. How could she miss that scent?

“Stay inside,” he told her, pushing her back. He wanted to make sure she was safe while he faced whatever nightmare might be waiting out there.

But she shook her head. “Stay in there with the vamps? I don’t think so.”

She didn’t realize that those bastards could be the least of her troubles. It was just—shit, there wasn’t any safe place for her.

“Death angel, remember?” she whispered to him.

How could he forget? Marna just looked so fragile, he kept wanting to protect her. When she was probably strong enough to be protecting him.

He let his claws break from his fingertips. Tanner knew that he should always go into a battle with the best possible weapon—and his claws had never let him down before.