Black Wings, Gray Skies (Black Hat Bureau 4)

“Lavender is to boo hags what silver is to wargs?”

“Boo hags can be defeated by forcing them to count until the dawn takes them,” Asa explained. “Colby will be safe behind the ward rings. You’re the one in danger. Use the lavender. Whoever shows can’t count that many buds before you find something else to throw at them.”

Intent, imbuing an object with purpose, must be what forced a boo hag to stop and count specific items. A broom left outside to ward them off did exactly that. Marbles by the bed? A brush on the nightstand?

Normal people could use common items, no magic required, to defeat boo hags. Pretty large loophole, if your prey is plain vanilla human. Small wonder so few boo hags remained with such an easily exploitable weakness.

“Good to know.” He tossed the bag and caught it. “I’ll break out the spices if our boo hag’s a prodigy.”

The pantry was stocked with basic seasonings, minus the salt I had stolen. It was a solid backup plan.

“Looks like it’s just you and me.” I fisted Asa’s shirt and hauled him down for a kiss. “Let’s go.”

A growl pumped through his chest, and the glamour concealing his gleaming horns flickered for a beat.

With my kit depleted, and my link to Colby filament thin, I wasn’t the best choice for this.

But the joy of the hunt sang in me, echoed in Asa, and our hearts pounded as we left Clay and Colby behind.

Holed up in the elevator, its descent eternal, I sucked in a sharp breath when my back hit the wall.

Asa pinned me to the metal with his hips, speared one hand through my hair, and yanked my head back. His mouth closed over mine, bruising in its intensity, and our hearts synced. I slid my hands under his jacket, relishing the hard muscle flexing under my palms.

When that wasn’t enough, I traced the ridges of his abdomen with a clawed finger, careful not to shred his shirt. I stroked the metal buckle on his belt with my thumb, and his groan turned my knees to jelly. I was about to investigate the zipper on his pants when a lethargic ding interrupted us.

Lips slick and swollen, Asa cleared his throat and slid his arms out from under my shirt.

I didn’t remember that part.

Pity.

A scrap of serviceable cotton hung from his fingertips.

“That,” I said with utter confidence, “is my bra.”

Upon closer inspection, I saw he had sliced through the band with a frantic claw.

“I’ll buy you another one.” He folded it and put it in his pocket. “That one suffered from defective manufacturing.”

“Obviously.” I tried my best not to laugh. “They don’t make ’em like they used to, huh?”

In the polished metal walls, I studied his flushed cheeks in reflection, but he didn’t look sorry.

If anything, he looked determined, and he hadn’t taken his hand out of his pocket.

A pleasant heat unfurled through me, and the temptation to go for another elevator ride itched under my skin. But we had a job to do. And, in the small eternity required for the doors to open, I got myself under control.

The space before us loomed dark and dusty. The ghosts of grease and smoked meats haunted the place. The furniture had been removed, leaving a massive empty room with restrooms off to one side and a kitchen in the other direction. There must be a storage area, maybe a smokehouse too.

Drawing my wand, I prowled into the room and began clearing it with Asa a step behind me.

“Rue—”

Flames ignited as the daemon stole Asa’s skin again and emerged with a snarl.

“Rue follow.” He waved me on. “I show Rue.”

Through the kitchen, he marched, passing me a lock of hair over his shoulder in clear demand of pets.