Circle of Desire (Damask Circle 3)

“Ethan,” he said automatically, then added, “That kid last night was torn apart. And the first kid was discovered drained of blood.”

Kat nodded. “Neither of which was the actual cause of death.”

“The coroner says otherwise.”

“The coroner can’t see the gaping hole this thing created when it ripped their souls from their bodies.”

“How can you even see something like that?”

She shrugged. “I told you before, I’m empathic. I see and feel emotions. A soul being torn free is a pretty emotional event, believe me.”

He stared at her for several minutes, then shook his head. “I can’t. Sorry.”

“Then believe this,” Gwen said. “That thing is not working alone. At the very least, it still has a werewolf working with it, and I suspect there are others. It saw Kat last night, and it now knows we’re on its trail. That puts us in great danger.”

He glanced at Kat. “You want me to arrange police protection?”

“No,” Gwen answered. “Their attempts to protect us would mean as little as their attempts to find this thing.”

He flexed his fingers, then picked up his coffee. He didn’t like being told his department was useless. “Then what do you want?” His voice held an edge of harshness.

“You want to find this killer fast, and you’re not particularly fussy about how you do it. We need additional protection. Two very compatible needs, I should think.”

His gaze flicked from Gwen to Kat, then back again, but in that brief moment Kat saw the surge of triumph. He’d had no intention of leaving anyway, she realized. He would have done all that he could—even using what was flaring between them—to keep close. It should have annoyed her, but it didn’t, simply because she understood his motives.

She just had to hope she was one of the more pleasurable stones in his path.

“If Benton sees me anywhere near the two of you, I’m history.”

“Then make sure you’re not seen.”

“Easier said than done. The captain’s got a nose for this sort of stuff.” He scratched his chin, the sound harsh in the silence. “If I step into this, I expect to be made a full partner. No secrets.”

“Don’t worry, Detective—you’re going to learn a whole lot more than you bargained for on this one.”

Gwen’s voice was dry, and Kat shot her a quick look. If her amused expression was anything to go by, she wasn’t talking about the case, but something else. Something more personal.

A thought she didn’t like one bit. When it came to matchmaking, her grandmother was almost as bad as Seline, the Circle’s head honcho. Both had been pushing Kat for years to find a man who could be a true partner—in work and out of it. Insinuating, in Kat’s opinion, that the men she’d been with over the years either weren’t manly enough or hadn’t a hope in hell of being able to work with her, let alone live with her. And if she was being honest, the latter was certainly a half-truth. She wasn’t the easiest person in the world to get along with. As Ethan would undoubtedly find out if she didn’t get her regular fix of chocolate soon.

He took another pastry, then stood. “I’ll go home and collect some clothes. I trust you ladies won’t run off while I’m gone?”

“We’ll be here,” Gwen said. “You can trust that, if nothing else.”

His gaze very much indicated he didn’t trust either of them. But he didn’t say anything, just headed out the door.

Kat looked at her grandmother. “Why?”

Gwen sighed. “I had a vision while you were gone. He’s in as much danger as we are.”

“Because he was part of the task force?”

“Because he was closer than he knew. Remember, he was at that warehouse before you or the soul-sucker or the vampire. I wouldn’t be surprised if he has latent precognition skills.”

“And the soul-sucker was heading after him because of that?”

“Yes.” Gwen rubbed her eyes. “It’s also after us, for much the same reason. We all stand a better chance if we stay together.”

“Did you see when they’ll attack?”