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Bile burned my throat. I put my hand over my mouth and swallowed heavily, then forced myself to remember the lives Maisie and her cohorts had destroyed.
Because while I might hate what I had done here today, while I would probably suffer nightmares about it for weeks or months to come, the truth was, if it saved just one life, then part of me could not regret it.
As for the part that did... well, at least that proved there was still hope left. Today might have proven that the killer Jack wanted me to be already resided within, but accepting that part of my soul - becoming comfortable with it - was still a ways off yet.
And I had to be thankful for that. Had to cling to it, as fiercely as I could. It was my only hope.
Jack pushed upright with a thick groan. His face was gaunt, cheekbones prominent. A man in serious need of a good feed.
And the dark hunger gleamed in his eyes.
"Control it, boss," I said softly. Warily.
"If I wasn't, you'd be lunch rather than sitting there making stupid statements."
I grinned. "Good to see your sense of humor doesn't leave when the bloodlust rises."
"It will if you keep blathering. Get your butt home, and get some rest, Riley. I'll finish off matters here."
My gaze slid to the body on the floor - to the dark pool of blood beginning to thicken near her body.
Knew it wouldn't go to waste.
I shuddered, and got the hell out of there.
Four hours sleep was never going to be enough, so when the alarm went off at six it was damn lucky it wasn't flung across the room. But the natural irritability that came with lack of sleep increased tenfold when I realized I wasn't alone in my bedroom.
And the warm sandalwood scent told me who it was.
I rolled onto my side. Quinn sat near the window, surrounded in halo of fading sunshine, a dark silhouette of male perfection. Mother nature at her perverse best - for while the bod may be beautiful, the nature of the man left a hell of a lot to be desired.
Though I guess he'd probably say the same about me. And would probably be right.
"What are you doing here?"
"I came to thank you," he said, voice soft and oh so sexy.
"For what?" I flung off the sheet and got out of bed. Quinn's gaze slid across my skin like liquid heat, and my hormones reacted accordingly.
"For doing what I could not. Capturing and containing Caelfind."
I picked up a T-shirt from the floor, gave it a sniff to check its freshness, then pulled it on. "We would have all saved time and effort if you'd been honest with us from the start."
"You don't understand - "
"No, I don't," I said, as I stomped out to get coffee. It wouldn't help put out the low-burning fire caused by both Quinn's presence and my own nature, but it sure couldn't hurt my grouchy mood. "There was nothing stopping you from telling me that night the priest made his appearance. Only your own ornery need to do everything your own way."
"There's the pot calling the kettle black," he muttered.
I shot him an annoyed look. Even though he was no longer surrounded by the blinding halo of sunlight, he still looked little more than a shadow because he was dressed from head to foot in black.
Even his dark eyes were shaded. Wary.
Some perverse part deep inside was mighty pleased about that. The other part, the part heated by the growing nearness of the full moon, just wanted to grab him and shag him senseless.
Because right now, the wolf within didn't really care about hurt or anger or anything else. Not when the moon fever was surging through my bloodstream. But once the full moon had come and gone, she would care. She would hurt, and she most certainly would regret having given in yet again.
I couldn't do it. I had to hold firm, no matter what.
