Smashed (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #8.5)(4)

Without waiting around for him, I stalked out, knowing that I was on the edge of a killing spree. My hands clenched into fists, I somehow kept from ripping the head off the doorman who sneered at me as I passed.

“Where the hell are you going?” Jenner called as he chased me to the car.

I opened the door to the Firebird and leaned over to unlock the passenger door. I didn’t drive much if I could help it. Being a passenger was more my thing. At least according to Alexa it was. She didn’t trust my driving, though I couldn’t imagine why not. I was certainly no worse than the majority of humans that miraculously passed a driver’s exam.

“I’m going to the park Alexa is at,” I said, starting up the cranky old car.

“That’s a terrible idea.” Knowing better, Jenner didn’t offer an explanation. He didn’t have to. He knew me well enough to know it would have been wasted.

Killing Brandy had been a mistake. It had never truly been my intent. Remorse wasn’t my strong suit. It never had been. Public kills were very amateur. Alexa’s park bench-kill being a prime example of that. Why Sinclair would go along with such a thing was beyond me.

No, it wasn’t. I knew why. It was a thrill.

Alexa was long gone when we arrived. She’d known I would come, and she’d had no intention of being there when I showed up.

Her victims remained, however. It was easy enough to find them with the blood so heavy on the air. The atmosphere screamed with the residual energy of terror and death.

“Fuck.” Running a hand through my hair, I stared at the mess, unable to accept that she had done it.

Jenner surveyed the scene, nodding as he walked around the slaughter. “You two are so much alike. It’s scary. This looks just like something you’d do. Oh wait, you pretty much just did the same thing.”

In response to his sarcastic remark, I shot him a deathly glare. “That’s helpful, Jenner. Thanks.”

“If this is the two of you apart, I’d almost hate to see what you could do together.”

Though I didn’t say so, I agreed. Alexa and I brought out both the best and the worst in each other. Still, I continued to believe that I could help her through the challenging aspects of being a new vampire. If only she would trust me.

“We need to get rid of the bodies,” I said. “I don’t want to leave anything for the FPA to trace back to Alexa.”

As soon as the words left my lips, the darkness was lit up by flashing lights. Two black sedans pulled up on the grass beside us. Juliet O’Brien got out of the first car. In her hand was a crossbow pistol ready with a bolt in place. It wasn’t all that big, but it could be deadly. She held it easily with one hand, though being a werewolf made her stronger than the average human. Evidently the FPA had upgraded their weaponry since their last run in with Alexa.

Pointing the pistol at me, Juliet aimed for my heart and said, “You and I need to have a little talk.”

Chapter Two

I raised both hands in surrender, unable to stop the grin that spread across my face. “Settle down, little wolf. There’s no need to wave shit like that around. If you want to talk, I’ll listen.”

Juliet advanced on me, using the pistol to herd me away from the bodies. “Keep going,” she said with a nod. “Over there by that tree. Your friend stays put.”

She issued a command to her men to keep an eye on Jenner while ensuring no passersby happened to notice the murder victims. I walked backward, refusing to take my gaze off her. She was a feisty one. Unpredictable as well. Must be in the blood.

“We both know I could blow you all sky high,” I said, doing my best to appear bored with her tough federal agent act. “If you think I did this, then clearly you haven’t studied up on my MO.”

Her glare darkened until it was downright impressive. Only when we were out of human earshot did she speak.

“I know you didn’t do this. It was Alexa. That’s what I want to talk to you about.” Slowly she lowered the weapon. Her finger remained on the trigger though. Apparently the youngest O’Brien didn’t trust me.

“So talk,” I said when she fell silent.

Taking the opportunity to study her, I determined that Juliet was experiencing regret. It was evident in the way her shoulders hunched and the faint aroma of self-pity that tainted her aura. Alexa’s sister was one of my least favorite people. It wasn’t her fault. She didn’t seem to mean to cause Alexa so much distress. But she did. And I simply am not as forgiving as my better half.

“I’ve been watching Alexa, tracking her phone and finding her victims. This is the third confirmed since she…died.” Juliet blew a stray strand of curly brown hair out of her face. She glanced back at the waiting agents. “Nobody knows it’s her. I’ve reported it as a continuation of those vampire kills we started looking into a couple of weeks back.”

“Well, isn’t that gracious of you. That might actually mean something if your organization hadn’t just tried to kill her.” Crossing my arms, I fixed the young werewolf with a patronizing look.

The guilt disappeared from her face, replaced by a mask of fury. “Well, I guess you succeeded where we failed.”

I stared into Juliet’s dark-brown eyes. If she was hoping to elicit a reaction from me, she would be disappointed. Though my gaze was hard and cold, inside I was mourning. Alexa’s eyes were the same deep, amazing brown; at least, they were supposed to be.