The Wicked Kiss (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #2)(34)

“Maybe.” I might as well ask. “How are you feeling? About the whole thing with Kylarai, I mean. I wished I’d known, the other night, but she didn’t tell me.”

“Ah,” he nodded his dark head in understanding. “How long have you been waiting to ask that? I’ll manage, if that’s what you mean. I adore her, Alexa, but we’re not meant to be. I knew that. Wishful thinking, I suppose.”

He sounded too casual. I didn’t want to push it, but I was curious.

“So you’re really all good? I was worried about you.”

The admittance felt strange in lieu of the last time Kale and I had been together, but we were friends, and I truly cared for him.

“Not nearly as worried as I am about you.” He smiled tightly, and I had a feeling there was something he wasn’t saying.

Well, I sure as heck wasn’t going to ask. Flashing back to the night at The Wicked Kiss was enough to get my power humming and reaching out to him. Focusing on taking deep, calming breaths was harder than it should have been.

We parked on a side street, just off the main downtown strip. The negative energy that filled the neighborhood stung despite the fact that I was shielding hard. It was strong here. Murder, addiction and despair, all powerful in their evil.

This wasn’t looking too good so far. Judging from the fact that we were in a rundown area, away from the business district, with little to no streetlights, houses or people, I was pretty sure this was going to be a gong show. Either that or so easy, it wouldn’t even be fun.

“Are you ready?” Kale raised a dark eyebrow in question as I double-checked the small dagger I had secured to my left wrist.

“You know it. Don’t get me killed, or I will haunt the shit out of you. And, my boyfriends will beat you up.” I stuck my tongue out at the absurdity of my statement.

He gave my hair a ruffle and then shoved my head playfully before climbing out of the car. I frowned and smoothed the mess back into place. Of all the irritating things…grrr.

“Do we have a plan of any kind, or are we just running blind like usual?” I asked, shivering slightly in the chilly night air. The cold didn’t usually bother me, which meant the temperature was really dropping.

“Not a clue,” he replied as his large strides forced me to double time my steps. “All I know is that we’re looking for a werewolf, gender unspecified, that has been snacking on some of the downtown street folk. If they’d used a little more discretion, it may have gone unnoticed, but the slaughter fest has been drawing public attention.”

He stopped suddenly and dug around in the pocket of his duster. “Here. I want you to take the spare key to my car. Just in case.”

I gaped at him with wide eyes. “In case of what?”

“After that incident in the hotel with the demon, I don’t want you left without a way to take off if it comes to that.”

“Are you planning to leave me, Kale? That’s not what I signed up for.” I accepted the key and tugged on the sleeve of his jacket, encouraging him to keep walking.

“Of course not. I’m sure we can handle a Were. It’s merely precaution.”

A few months ago, the two of us had unexpectedly encountered a demon during a routine vampire kill. Kale had urged me to run, to leave him behind. I’d refused. And then, it had been too late. We’d made it out, but it was still nice to know if something came up, I wouldn’t be stranded in the ghetto without a ride.

As we made our way to the main strip, my heart began to race. I was eager to catch scent of this shifter. Any werewolf lurking around out here couldn’t possibly be up to any good.

The neighborhood was filthy. The street was littered with everything from cigarette butts to used hypodermic needles. I wore a disgusted grimace as we passed a series of abandoned shops, each with the windows smashed out. It got slightly better as we progressed to the next block.

Sirens wailed in the distance. A scantily clad woman leaned against a light post, watching us as we approached. Did she have a clue how close to death she was? Of course she did. She thrived on it. Any human that could walk these streets night after night was looking for something, and it wasn’t good. Staring death in the face on a nightly basis was as close to feeling alive as some of these people got. It broke my heart.

I was prepared for her glare when we passed, though it was unlikely she could have mistaken me for a working girl. With my jeans and hoodie, I did not look anything like someone out to turn tricks. Hopefully, we would find this rogue wolf before it found her.

The traffic picked up slightly as we went from block to block. I raised my face to the wind, scenting the air for anything animal. A bevy of smells hit me, automotive fumes being the strongest. Mingled along with oil and car exhaust was an assortment of greasy food, garbage and something unidentifiable. I didn’t like it though. There was a stench on the air, as if the lack of hope and dreams had grown stale and rotten over time.

For more than an hour, we followed both physical and psychic senses, finding nothing but dead ends. We’d covered a lot of ground, miles since we’d left the car. I was beginning to get frustrated. I didn’t expect it to be easy, but my eager anticipation was fading.

When we passed by the entrance to another side street, my senses went on full alert.

Everything in me commanded that I follow my instinct. I would find our werewolf.