September Moon (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #8)(6)

A smear stained her lips. It was hard to tell if they’d been trying to turn her. If so, she might still rise. There was no specific time limit on that kind of thing. It could take hours or days. It was different for everyone.

The throat of the corpse was shredded; the clothing, torn from the struggle. Several puncture wounds marred her neck. It was a vampire kill all right. They’d made a real mess of it. Either a newbie or someone who just didn’t give a damn. It wasn’t unusual for a vampire to take joy in the kill. Getting carried away tended to happen. I knew. It had happened to me.

Every agent present watched me, waiting for my opinion. Closing my eyes, I tuned them all out and reached to feel the residual vampire energy humming around the body. Though I couldn’t identify who had been here, I could tell who hadn’t. I was relieved to find the scene absent of any trace of Kale.

“Yeah,” I said, opening my eyes and turning away from the dead woman’s stare. “It’s a vampire kill. It could have been random. This doesn’t happen often. Not like this.”

Juliet grew quiet and thoughtful. I could see her wondering if my vampires were responsible.

“Don’t ask me why they would pull a stunt like this,” I added with a shrug. “The vampires in this city know they’ll be hunted for public kills. It doesn’t make any sense.”

I began to get the sinking feeling that the FPA was pinning this on me, figuratively if not literally. Did my sister think I knew about this?

“Shit,” Juliet muttered. Hands on her hips, wearing a scowl, she reminded me so much of our mother. “Go figure, this has to happen when Briggs is out of town. Several of our people were called to Toronto, so we’re operating with fewer agents than usual.”

“When does he get back?” I didn’t want it to seem like I didn’t trust her to handle her shit until then, but Thomas Briggs was an experienced Fed. Juliet was twenty-three and totally out of her league being left in charge.

“I don’t know. Could be any day now, or it could be as long as a week or two. Business at the nation’s head office can be unpredictable.” She noticed for the first time that I was alone and raised a curious brow. “Where is your other half tonight?”

I considered withholding that information but decided it wasn’t all that risky. If she thought Arys could have done this then it would be best for me to set her straight. “Arys is in Las Vegas. Just a two-day trip. He should be home tomorrow.” Arys had been in constant touch with his Vegas family since we’d left Sin City. There would likely be many trips back there in the near future.

I would have gone with him if Shya hadn’t grounded me to my own city. The remembrance of the binding sparked my anger, and I swallowed it back down with great difficulty. I couldn’t leave town if I wanted to. Shya’s insistence on keeping me close spoke volumes as to how close or how desperate he was.

“I can’t determine if there was a specific reason they chose this woman, or if it was random.” Juliet glanced back at the body her fellow agents were now bagging up. “Should we be afraid for public safety?” She peered at me with dark brown eyes, much like my own. Suspicion flickered in their depths. Beneath that I saw the keen wariness of her wolf.

“What exactly does that mean?” I returned her wary gaze with one of my own. “Is there something you’re getting at, Juliet?”

Juliet bit her bottom lip and crossed her arms. She was trying to repress her emotions. It was an action she’d never grown out of. “I wish Thomas was here. He’s better at handling this crime scene stuff than I am.” She gave a self-deprecating laugh. “I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to it.”

“You and me both.” I watched the agents go about their business, going through the motions as if it was just another day for them. It was so robotic and emotionless. Again I questioned who the real monsters were. “So what’s up with you and Briggs anyway? When did you start sleeping with him?”

Her jaw dropped, and I grinned. “Alexa!” Her gaze darted fearfully to the nearby Feds. “Nobody knows about that. How did you know?”

“I picked up on it at the sports bar when we had that little meeting. So…is it serious?”

A part of me wanted her to say no. It was totally unfair, but I thought my baby sister could do better. Briggs seemed like a stand-up guy who believed he was doing the right thing. The problem was that he wasn’t.

Capturing my arm, Juliet dragged me away to a nearby picnic table. Perching on the edge, she smiled so wide I thought her head might split in half.

“I think so. I mean, I hope so. It’s still pretty new. We’re just seeing where it goes.”

Somehow I stifled a groan. “Are those his words or yours?” Her smile faltered, and I felt like a supreme *. Couldn’t I just keep my mouth shut and let her be happy?

“It’s mutual. Why? Do you think I’m making a mistake?”

My love life was so far from conventional that it put me in no position to give advice to anyone else. The wolf in me wanted one man while the vampire in me wanted another. And the fragile mortal heart in me wanted the one who knew my weakness because he’d lived it. I had no place to judge the choices of another, even Juliet.

“No, that’s not what I said. I just don’t want you to get hurt. You work together; he’s your boss. And what about the age difference?”