Page 43 of Malice

“Hey, you’re okay,” I tell her as she sits up, clawing at me like a scared cat trying to climb up a tree to escape the dog it’s being chased by. Lights spark above us, and I look up, seeing a bunch of busted spot lights. Ah, that’s what spooked everyone, and rightly so. I scramble up, running behind one of the curtains. I stop, take in a breath, and then peak outside. There’s enough chaos and confusion going on to sneak out of here unnoticed and go back to the bar, order another drink, and stay there until the coast is clear. Maybe, just maybe, there’s a chance I can even get back to the boring VC meeting before Xavier notices something went wrong—again.

I let out a breath and slink along the curtain, thinking that if I can get out the front door, I can disappear into the crowd. Which is exactly what I do. I make it down the street and come to a stop, looking at City Hall all lit up, looking impressive. I could go back and sit like a good little wife, appearing corporate and obliging.

But that’s just not me.

The demon sent a minion here and it’s looking for something. Demons don’t jump bodies like that for no reason. Creating chaos is fun for demons, but this was too fast and the wake of destruction was accidental, not intentional. There is something in Tent City the demon wants and I need to find it first.

I pull my phone from my bra. It slipped all the way down between my breasts, and would have fallen out if it wasn’t for the built-in elastic this dress has. I’ve always had an athletic build and having small boobs have benefited me, I suppose, when it comes to running and working out, but in this instance, it would be nice to have enough in my bra cups to keep my freaking phone in place.

Opening Google Maps, I put in a generic address, taking me to the area known as Tent City. It’s a bit of a walk from here, and I’m in heels. It would be faster to get an Uber and be dropped off. Slowing, I bit my lip and think. I’m not dressed for demon hunting or walking around in an area filled where a decent majority of the residents are on drugs and not in their right state of mind.

But I can’t let the demon get away. It’s so close—literally. I can’t be rash, though, and I need to think like a hunter, but the elite hunter I am…one who uses magic just like my family. Heart in my throat, I pull open my phone and go to my contacts and tap on a name. The phone rings one. Twice. Three times. Then he answers.

“Wren? Is everything okay?”

“It will be. I think I got a lead on the sigil. Want to help me hunt a demon?”

“Right now?”

“Yeah, no time like the present.”

“Just tell me what to do,” Devon replies.

My lips curve into a smile. “Meet me at Tent City as soon as you can.”

Chapter

Seventeen

“I’ll be fine,” I tell Xavier before he has a chance to argue otherwise. I just got back to City Hall after running through an alley to avoid the police. There are twice as many cop cars in town now, and I knew I had to hurry back before someone noticed I was gone. I’ve already drawn enough attention to myself. “You can stay here and finish the meeting because it’ll probably look bad if you leave.”

“I think it’ll look worse if my wife wanders into a dangerous area of town on her own,” he counters. I make a face, crossing my arms, well aware I’m on the verge of pouting but the sense of desperation is getting the better of me and every second that ticks by makes it feel like the demon is slipping farther and farther away.

“I’ll be fine,” I repeat and Xavier just stares at me incredulously, blue eyes wide. A moment passes before he speaks, and in that moment, so much is said. Everything I feel for him could easily consume me. Emotion fills my chest, pressing against my ribs like it’s trying to break free and take over. The scary part is how much I want to let it go. Xavier is dangerous, not just because he’s a vampire with more than ten times the speed and strength of a human man, but because when I’m with him, I want to be consumed. Totally and completely until there is nothing left.

And that’s the problem because right now, I don’t have the luxury of being consumed by anything except the ticking clock in my head.

“Wren,” he says, and hearing his deep voice say my name will always do something to me. He steps in, towering over me. “If the demon has sent one of its legions to the area, I am coming with you. Fuck the VC and fuck the meeting. You are more important to me.”

My heart swells in my chest but Theo’s words echo in the back of my mind. Should I argue with him? Insist he stay? Selfishly, I want him to come with me. He’s stronger and faster and can protect me.

“I know,” I reply softly. “I don’t want to go without you.”

“You won’t.” He kisses the top of my head and goes back into the meeting room, leaving me in the hall for only a few seconds before coming back out. We go downstairs hand in hand and get into the G-Wagon. I text Devon, reminding him again to bring me socks as well as shoes I can run in. The plan is for him and my brothers to meet us in Tent City where I’ll try to do the locator spell. I’ve tracked demons before, using the negative energy in the area as an anchor on the map. Now that I have a more precise locator spell down pat, I’m positive it’ll work.

“Just so you know,” I start, buckling my seatbelt into place. “There might be some, uh, body cam footage of me using magic.”

Xavier looks away from the road for a moment, but instead of looking pissed, he grins and puts his hand on my thigh, fingers going under the hem of my dress. “When human kids hear an ice cream truck, they run to the road to get ice cream. I’m starting to realize police sirens are your ice cream truck.”

“I don’t know what that says about me,” I say, smiling back at him. “But you are right. Maybe one day I’ll actually get ice cream instead of stopping a cop from shooting himself in the head.”

Xavier raises an eyebrow. “I’ll have a conversation with the police chief tomorrow.”

“They knew who I was,” I go on. “They called me Xavier Malus’s wife.”

“You are,” he says and his fingers press a little harder into the flesh on my thigh. I swear, only this man could turn me on as we’re driving into an area filled with homeless people to find a demon who’s boss holds my soul in his grasp.

We stop in an empty parking lot a few blocks out of Tent City. The plan is for Devon and my brothers to meet us here with supplies to do a locator spell that’ll narrow down where we need to be looking. Xavier and I get out of the G-Wagon and go to a picnic table that’s pushed up against the back of a store. A little clay pot full of cigarette butts is in the center of the table and ants are busy at work, dissembling someone’s leftover sandwich that was discarded out here after a lunch break.