Hotter After Midnight (Midnight 1)

The men in white shifted and glanced at the doctor. The nurse didn’t bother looking his way. “She’s delusional. The mother says she’s been seeing things for a while now, but it’s getting worse.”

The drug was kicking in and her body was starting to feel heavy.

“Hmmm.” The doctor was staring at her, his eyes once again a bright blue. “And what does she see?”

“Monsters.” The nurse brushed a strand of hair back from Emily’s face. “The poor child always sees monsters.”

And she saw one then. Staring down at her from behind the doctor’s concerned face.

“Really…and she’s been seeing them for years?”

The nurse nodded.

Her eyelids wanted to close, but she didn’t want to sleep. Not with the monster so close.

The doctor motioned the others away. Leaned close to her. “What do you see, child, when you look at me?”

Her tongue was thick. Her mouth too dry. Emily wet her lips, swallowed. “M-monster. Y-your eyes…” Her voice was a weak whisper.

He leaned even closer. So close she could feel his breath on her cheek. “What about them?”

“L-lying, t-trick. A-all black…”

“Hmmm…” His lying eyes narrowed. “You see that, do you?”

“F-feel y-you. In the a-air.” Like a hard wind pressing on her. He was all around. Why didn’t the others feel it too?

Her fingers uncurled, fell back against the hard surface of the bed. Her eyelids dropped, even though she tried to force them open.

Her breathing slowed and her mind began to drift.

“It’s all right, child.” The doctor’s voice sounded so far away. He gripped her fingers, but the touch seemed feather light.

“I’ll take care of you from now on.”

And he had, Emily realized, her thoughts sliding back to the present. Dr. Marcus Catcherly, “Catch,” had taken care of her. He’d helped her to understand what she was seeing. Taught her everything she knew about the Other.

And he’d taught her how to lie. How to pretend to be normal. To fit in at school, with her friends, and even with her family.

He’d been her mentor, closer to her than anyone else in her life.

After three months, Catch had convinced her mother that Emily was well enough to return home. He’d visited her every week, doing what he called follow-up care. She’d talked to him about the different creatures she’d seen and he’d taught her about them all.

And she’d never mentioned a word about monsters to her mother again.

The fire had been his idea. He’d arranged for the patients to go on a “therapy trip” that day. He’d helped her to time the blaze, helped her to make certain every piece of evidence about her stay was destroyed.

She’d been eleven years old when she entered Serenity Woods. At sixteen, she’d torched the place.

Catch had taken her secret to his grave. But one other person knew all of the details of her stay at the psychiatric hospital.

Emily opened her car door, stood, and felt the cool breeze of fall blow against her body.

The house was waiting for her.

Emily straightened her shoulders, walked slowly up the stone sidewalk. A cheerful welcome mat greeted her at the entranceway.

The house was so normal.

“Never trust anything normal. Cuz it’s the normal stuff you’ve got to fear. Monsters, demons, witches…we’re all more afraid of that normal world than you can ever imagine.” Catch’s words rang in her ears. He’d always thought humans were dangerous. Too unpredictable. “They’re more bloodthirsty than we are, remember that.”

Her hand curled into a fist. She rapped against the wooden door. Once, twice.

“Coming!” Muffled, feminine. Shuffling footsteps followed the call. The door opened with a faint squeak.

A small, dark-haired woman in her early fifties blinked. “Emily?”

“Hi, Mom.” Deliberately, she kept her voice light, her body relaxed. “Mind if I come in?”

Her mother’s knuckles whitened around the door frame, but after a moment, she stepped back, and Emily walked slowly into the home she hadn’t seen in years.

“So, the doctor’s your girlfriend now, huh?” Brooks asked as they approached Paradise Found. Two hulking guys were leaning against the outside of the building, their eyes scanning the streets.

“I’m not talking about her, Brooks.” His partner was like a dog with a bone. A damn annoying dog.

“Well, it looked like she was your girlfriend. I mean, I hope you don’t get that friendly in the Crypt with just every woman you meet.”

The two men finally caught sight of them. They stiffened. One pulled out a radio and spoke quickly.

Good. Let the bastard know we’re here.

“Damn. I think our boys are carrying.” Finally, the guy was talking about something other than Emily. Brooks reached for his weapon. “You didn’t tell me this Niol guy had muscle.”

“Yeah, he’s got muscle.” Money. Muscle. And a serious attitude problem. Not the ideal candidate for an impromptu interrogation.

Colin flashed his badge to the guys at the door. Wondered if they were human or demon. For a moment, he wished he’d brought the doc with him. But he hadn’t been able to find her at the precinct.

The woman had run from him. Not a good sign.

But he’d track her. Apologize for jumping on her like a starving ass**le. He’d just been desperate for a taste of her, and he’d given in to the driving hunger.

A woman like her, a classy lady used to fancy restaurants and shows, she wouldn’t like being pushed up against a dirty wall and stripped. Oh no, she wouldn’t like that a damn bit.

He was prepared to apologize. And he was also prepared to get her naked beneath him. At the earliest opportunity.

The men grunted as they looked at his ID. “Whaddya want?” The bigger guy asked the question. The fellow had to be six foot seven, maybe eight, and his body was covered with brightly colored tattoos.

“We want to see Niol.”

“Do you now?” The other guy stepped forward, the radio gripped in his hands. “You got a warrant?”

Ah, definitely not new to the game. Colin glanced toward Brooks, saw from his partner’s lifted brow that he was thinking the same thing.

“We’re not here to search the bar,” Brooks told him, flashing his I’m-harmless-and-want-to-be-your-friend smile. “We just need to ask your boss a few questions.”