Forget About Midnight (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #9)

There were hybrids of various kinds scattered throughout the city’s underworld. Jez herself was one of them. None were like me though. I was the one and only vampire and werewolf hybrid in the world, as far as I knew.

Shifters could be turned vampire, but they lost their animal component upon their death. Thanks to an amazing friend, I had kept my wolf. I had to trust that she’d known what she was doing in creating the amulet that saved my beast.

I got out of the car and walked the rest of the way. The hospital was just around the corner, and even though I expected to see it, the sight of it still stopped me. A sense of urgency gripped me. Maybe I couldn’t do this after all.

The massive structure was dark, as it always appeared to be. Several stories high, it loomed, an eerie quality to its sinister silence.

There was nobody outside. There rarely was. The spirits within were enough to keep most people away. Anyone who made it inside faced both vengeful ghosts and armed agents. So I wasn’t going inside. The evil in the basement would make me its bitch if I tried.

I followed the sidewalk down the street and around to the back of the building, where the parking lot sat. It was early still. Agents would be arriving for the night shift.

Moving among the shadows between the streetlights was easy. With the keen instincts of the wolf and the sly stealth of the vampire, I moved with a predatory grace that felt amazing.

Becoming a wolf had been like getting superpowers. It had taken years to adjust to, and it never stopped being a surprise. Now, a vampire, it was like nothing words could describe. I felt like a force of nature, fucking unstoppable.

I reached a gap in the fence. The Feds didn’t bother to maintain it since the real dangers couldn’t be kept out by any fence. I hesitated. Stepping onto the property would take me back to that night. I was afraid.

Being afraid pissed me off. What was done was done. But it haunted me, and because of that, I wasn’t able to move on. I had to start somewhere though.

It was all very uneventful. I stepped onto FPA land and expected to have a moment of emotional torment. Nothing. My purpose here was not to relive the night my lover killed me. No, I had something much more fun in mind.

One thing that did strike me right away was the heavy sense of the many entities inside the building. They were watching me, hoping I would dare to come inside. I could feel their anticipation.

The malevolence in the basement called to me, but its influence was weak out here. It needed me to enter the building to make me its slave. I reached out mentally, searching for any sensation of Lilah’s demonic power. There was a door to her evil empire here, locked up tight. I had only ever felt it when I held the key inside me. I did not feel it now.

I had just started to cross the parking lot toward the back entrance the agents used when a vehicle turned in. Nice. I didn’t even have to wait.

A man got out of the grey sedan. His black suit confirmed that he was an agent. He headed for the door, but thanks to the speed of two monsters, I was already there.

With wide eyes he reached for his gun. I caught his arm and shoved him up against the building. I removed the weapon and flung it aside. The additional strength I had was delightful. I held him with one hand. With the other I reached to caress his face, drawing his gaze to mine.

“What the fuck?” He gasped as he fell under my spell. Confusion passed over his sharp features, becoming understanding and then full surrender.

“I need your help with something,” I said, low and seductive. Breathing in his yummy human scent almost ruined my whole plan. Sinking my fangs into his throat was all I could think about. My reason for being there was greater than my hunger. Somehow I managed to hold off.

Wrapping him in my manipulative thrall, I pressed close, playing the part of the temptress. He stared at me with heavy-lidded desire before trying to pull me in for a kiss. I laughed, enjoying how damn easy this was. Pushing him back against the wall, I shook my head and wagged a finger in his face.

“Slow down there, fella. One thing at a time. I need to know, is Sylvia working tonight?”

“Sylvia,” he repeated the name, his brow furrowed. “I think so.”

“I need you to get her out here. I don’t care how. But leave me out of it.” Excitement created a roar of white noise in my ears. I couldn’t believe I was doing this.

He reached to touch me with a groping hand, and I shoved it down by his side. Shaking my head, I turned up the power level until he groaned. “Sylvia,” I repeated. “Get her now.”

Though he barely blinked as he stared at me in a hypnotized state, he took his phone from his back pocket and made a call. He spoke with calm authority, as if everything were fine.