The Darkest Kiss (Riley Jenson Guardian 6)

So I told her about Ben and the case we were involved in, and we filled the next hour chatting away like old friends rather than new - something I'd once thought would never happen.

Of course, as much as I would have liked to stay there all day, I couldn't - Jack would have a pink fit - so I eventually headed back to the Directorate.

Jack wasn't in the day-shift office when I arrived, but Kade was sitting at his desk. I tossed my bag on my desk, then walked over to the coffee machine. We finally had mugs rather than those horrible plastic cups, but it didn't make the coffee taste any better. Jack had promised a machine upgrade, but after months of hearing a similar promise when it came to our office area, I had no expectations of it actually happening any time soon.

I slopped some milk into both cups, pressed the coffee button, and shoved the first cup underneath, then glanced over at Kade. "So who was murdered this time?"

He grimaced and leaned back in his chair. "One Cherry Barnes. Thirty-four-year-old divorcee who's been dead for three weeks."

Well, so much for my thoughts about Cherry having all the right motives for murder. "And no one noticed the smell?"

"Apparently not. No one reported her missing, either. Her mom and sister thought she was off on a cruise with some man."

"So who found her?"

"Pest control. They'd been called in because of a sudden influx of rats in the other apartments."

I screwed up my nose and switched mugs. "Don't tell me - "

"Yep, they've been chowing on the body. I don't think the pest controller will be eating for the next week."

"I'm glad I wasn't the one called in." I plonked my butt on the edge of his desk and handed him a mug. "I guess the body was too badly decomposed to tell whether she'd been mutilated or not?"

"She was, but according to Cole, it wasn't our cat. The slashes to her back and stomach are different."

I raised my eyebrows. "Different how?"

Kade shrugged. "He wouldn't be pinned down. I guess we have to wait for the report."

"What about Alana Burns?"

"She'd been slashed on the neck, and there was bruising. She wasn't as cut up or eaten as our second female victim, but both did happen."

"So the violence is definitely escalating." I paused and drank some coffee. It was bitterer than usual, but maybe that was a direct result of drinking the silky smooth stuff at the cafe. "So if Cherry died three weeks ago, we might have another male body out there waiting to be discovered."

"Could be. I'm currently going through the cops' unsolved murder files, just to see if I can find anything." He reached forward, grabbed a folder, and handed it to me. "Forensic reports for Gerard James and the shoe seller. The DNA found at both scenes matches."

"What about Alana Burns? Any DNA found on her?"

"No. But Cole suspects they'll find plenty on the body of the second woman. She was bitten a lot."

I opened the folder and skipped the photos, going directly to the reports. At first glance, there didn't seem to be anything I hadn't already guessed. "So has Cole got any idea of what we might be dealing with?"

"He thinks it could be a bakeneko."

"A what?"

Kade grinned. "My reaction, too."

"So what is it?"

"Apparently, it's a cat with supernatural abilities."

"A cat? So we're not dealing with a human shifter, but an actual cat who can take human shape?"

Which certainly went a long way to explain the arrogance the woman had shown by waving to the witness. Cats had a huge sense of their own superiority.

"Makes trying to catch this bitch a whole lot harder, doesn't it? I mean, she really isn't going to be thinking like a regular person." He shook his head, then took a sip of his coffee. His expression crinkled up in much the same manner as mine had. "God, that's awful."