Touch of Evil - Cecy Robson Page 0,2

certain I pegged them correctly. The others who appear, though, don’t give me the time I need to distinguish them, and their collective power caution that now is not the time.

Weres ease out from their homes, joining those lingering along the stairwell. Some are male, most are female. They watch me closely, trying to pin what and who I am.

My sisters and I are different from any race of human or supernatural on earth. According to our wolves, we give off unique magical aromas that place humans and preternaturals on guard. While I understand, I don’t enjoy the attention.

I adjust my purse against my side and walk forward with my head high, feigning confidence I wish came naturally instead of merely skimming the surface of my ivory skin. The purse was a new purchase to go with my blouse and skirt, efforts to look nice for someone I believed was decent.

Ted fooled me. We had dinner just a few blocks away, our conversation was pleasant and polite. There was no flirting and absolutely no sparks. I was sure we’d call it an early night so, his suggestion caught me by surprise. “Will you join me for a drive along the lake, chérie?” he asked. “It’s the perfect night to take in the moon and sky.”

I agreed and didn’t give much thought when he told me we had to return to his apartment to fetch his keys.

There were no keys. No drive. No sky. Only nakedness and more sex organs than anyone should ever need.

“Hey, baby.” The cougar steps into my path, the silky way he moves mesmerizing. This isn’t someone who sleeps alone much. “Now that your done with that fool Ted, let a real man show you a good time.”

I start to tell him no, when the bear interrupts. He mashes out the cigarette on the sole of his ratty sneakers and pulls the cougar back by the arm. “Don’t go there,” he tells the cougar. “That there is Aric Connor’s fam.”

I don’t see well in the dark. Not like Celia and the wolves do. But I do notice the cougar blanche.

He edges away with his hands up. “Sorry, uh, ma’am, I mean, miss. I didn’t mean any disrespect.”

“It’s all right,” I say. My chin trails down as I walk past them, only to snap up when that dark presence returns.

The weres growl in that way they do before something meets a gruesome and vomit-inducing death. I can’t see their faces with their backs to me, but I recognize they’re seconds from charging. The muscles lining their broad shoulders clench and their knees bend. They’ll pounce and maul whatever is out here and anything that gets in their way.

A few feet down where the T.V. casts light against the window, another were throws open his door and steps out. I can’t tell what he is, not from this distance. He’s small, closer to my five-foot frame than the behemoths directly in front of me. A honey badger maybe?

“Did ya hear that?” he asks. His growl is lighter and more like a whine but just as fierce.

“Yeah, we did,” the bear replies. He takes a strong whiff. “Fuck if it don’t smell like shit.”

I didn’t hear what they did or catch the smell that alerted them. I adjust my hold on the purse straps and inch forward. The cougar’s arm shoots out, warning me to stay put. “Get going, little one, before you get hurt. We’ll handle this mess.”

“I-I can help,” I stammer. My voice reflects my raw mood. The experience with Ted eviscerated my heartstrings, and this thing, whatever it is, hasn’t helped me settle. So instead of adding backbone to my words, my shaky voice validates the cougar’s perceptions that I’m weak.

“Go, little one,” the bear insists. “We don’t want trouble from the alpha if you bleed.”

“I can heal myself,” I start to explain.

If they hear me, they don’t show it. As a pack, they move as one, picking up their pace when that presence takes off in a sprint. The weres who remain perk up, eager to back their brethren. Several swing down from the stairwell overhead and jet after the cougar and bear, while more above race forward, their swift and collective steps barely perceptible.

The weres are quick to join the hunt.

And so am I.

Chapter Two

Emme

My feet can’t move fast in the sparkly kitten-heels I’m wearing. I do my best and hurry in the opposite direction the weres vanished. Bad guys tend to double back to