Hotter After Midnight (Midnight 1)

“Then I’ll look forward to your visit. But until then, get out of my bar, Detective Brooks.”

“Gladly.”

Definitely a mistake bringing Brooks. He would never be able to handle a war with Niol. He didn’t know who he was messing with.

Colin followed Brooks to the exit, trying to keep his body between Niol and his partner, just in case Niol was in the mood for any more of his little magical routines.

“Gyth…”

Niol’s call stopped him just feet from the door. Colin glanced back.

“A word if you will.” A pause. “Alone.”

“Oh, hell, no, that’s not gonna—”

“It’s all right, Brooks. You can wait outside. We’ve got some… Other business to discuss.” That would be the only reason Niol would ask him to stay.

“Fine.” Brooks looked seriously pissed. “But if you need me, all you have to do is call out, and I’ll be at your side.”

He didn’t doubt it for a minute. “Thanks, man.” He waited until Brooks pushed open the door and stepped out into the light.

Then he crossed the room in two seconds. “What didn’t you tell me, Niol?”

“You know the boys were demons.”

No news there.

“When you and the doctor were attacked, I felt the stir of power in the air.”

So he’d known about the attack. Renewed suspicion filled him.

“It wasn’t me. You have my word on that.”

But how much was the word of a demon worth? “You felt the attack, but you didn’t try to stop it? I thought you said you wouldn’t hurt Emily.”

Niol stroked the top of his glass. Looked vaguely amused. “Who do you think called the cops? I mean, your brothers in blue have to be good for something, right?”

Colin wasn’t amused. “If it wasn’t you, then who the f**k was it?”

“Another level ten.” He took a long swallow of the blood red drink. “And believe me, Gyth, we’re pretty damn rare.” He sat the glass down with a soft thud. “Just ask the pretty little monster doctor about that.”

Another level ten. Shit. The day had not been good for him. And it had started so well, with Emily naked in bed with him.

“What do you know about hybrids?”

What? He’d heard the term hybrid before, but usually it’d been when he was watching TV and he’d flipped past the Discovery Channel. Hybrids were blends, mixes, like a flower produced from combining two different—

“Hmmm. Guess Emily didn’t mention hybrids to you.” Niol’s lips curved. “Now I wonder why she wouldn’t tell you about them.”

Colin had the feeling he was missing a significant point in the conversation, and he didn’t like that feeling. Not one damn bit.

He was around the table in a flash. He jerked the demon to his feet. “I’m not one of the humans you can screw around with.” And he let the beast show in his eyes. His nails lengthened, his teeth sharpened.

“Shifter.” Niol smiled. “Figured that’s what you were.”

“Tell me about the hybrids.” Before he gave into the urges of the beast and threw the bastard across the room. It’s what the demon had done to Brooks. It was what he deserved.

“Some Other don’t mate with their own kind.” He laughed, a grating, harsh sound. “But you’ve already figured that out, haven’t you?”

His claws dug into Niol’s shoulders. Not enough to tear, not yet. “Spit it out, demon.”

“Rarely, very, very rarely, a child is born from those matings. A special child.”

Colin lifted his claws. “And?”

“And he’s a hybrid. A being of two magical lines, with the powers of both.”

Why the hell were they even having this conversation? “I should care about these f**king hybrids, why?”

Niol laughed again. A long, dry laugh. “Oh, you should definitely care, shifter. You and Emily should care.”

Ten more seconds. If the demon taunted him just a little longer, Niol would be flying across the room.

It’d be payback for his little trick on Brooks, and it’d make Colin feel damn good.

“My patience is running thin.” His claws dug deeper. Niol flinched and finally stopped laughing.

“I’ve heard rumors…”

Now they were getting somewhere. Colin eased his grip. “What kind of rumors?”

“There’s talk of a hybrid demon in town. A strong demon, a nine or ten.”

Strong enough to cause the surge of power Emily had felt in the alley. “Half demon, huh? What else is the bastard?”

Niol pursed his lips. Glanced down at Colin’s claws. “Shifter.”

Oh, f**k.

“You gonna tell me what was going on back there?” Brooks demanded as they marched back to Colin’s Jeep.

“We were interrogating a suspect.” Colin glanced up at the sky. The sun was setting, throwing blood red streaks across the sky.

He needed to find Emily. Needed to ask her about hybrids. Damn. Could the guy they were looking for be some uber-combination of demon and shifter? If so, then the case had just taken a very dangerous turn.

Fighting and tracking another shifter was hard enough. But with a demon’s magical powers…

The city could be screwed.

“Dammit, Colin! You know what I’m talking about!” Brooks grabbed him, shoved him against the back of the Jeep.

The beast howled, but Colin hung on to his control.

“You’re holding out on me.” Brooks glared at him. “You know more about the case than you’ve said.”

Yeah, he did. And he’d have to keep holding out on his partner. Because Brooks wasn’t ready for the truth.

“You didn’t even have my back in there when that bastard threw me across the room!”

“He didn’t throw you.” Colin pushed away from the Jeep, crossed his arms over his chest, and met Brooks’s angry stare.

“The hell he didn’t, I—”

“I watched his hands. He never touched you.” True. The demon had used his powers to push Brooks. But how did he explain that?

“I should have arrested him.” Brooks rolled his left shoulder. “A night in the pen would have made him talk.”

Doubtful. A night in the pen more likely would have resulted in Niol driving the guards insane. Literally.

“And what the hell was up with his eyes?” He shuddered. “Who’d want to wear contacts like that? Everything was pitch black.”