September Moon (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #8)

I stood up slowly, licking the tip of a bloody claw. The rush of what I’d just done had me walking on air. I swayed as I stepped away from Hunter’s corpse, but I was as steady as I’d ever been. Empowered by the circuit of power I shared with every vampire present, I glided over to where Arys had Briggs pinned on the ground. Juliet watched me with a hateful glare.

I gestured to the tense agents awaiting a decision. “Gather your dead. Leave your weapons. And get the hell off my property.” To my vampires I added, “Hold these two until everyone else is in the vans. No more death tonight. Get Briggs on his feet.”

Arys jerked Briggs up, forcing a pained sound from him. He held the agent’s arms behind his back in a grip that I knew had to hurt more than Briggs let on.

“Don’t think for a second that letting me live will keep you alive,” Briggs spat. Rage filled his brown eyes. It was nice to see a real emotion on the usually strong and calm Fed.

I stood close enough to Briggs to smell his cologne along with his deliciously human scent. “I know you think you’ve got everything figured out, but you don’t. I’m not just Shya’s sacrifice. I’m not only a werewolf with vampire power. I am a Hound of God. A wolf called to battle evil. Do your research. Learn your shit. And stay the hell out of my way. Your misguided efforts are interfering with a greater plan. The death of your people is on you. Come for me again, and I will kill you, but not nearly as fast as I killed Hunter.”

Fury poured from Briggs. It tickled my senses, taunting my bloodlust. I was starting to understand what Arys meant when he said my anger turned him on.

“Evil battling evil. I find that hard to believe,” Briggs seethed. “You are a killer, O’Brien. Plain and simple. Warring with Shya doesn’t change that.”

I reached out but didn’t quite touch him. Instead I touched his aura, running my fingers through it with intent. He responded as I’d hoped. A shudder racked him as he found pleasure in my metaphysical caress. It was just too easy.

“There isn’t a person present here who doesn’t have blood on their hands. Get off your high horse, Agent Briggs. You’re a dirty Fed with an immoral agenda. I wouldn’t doubt that your kill count is much higher than mine.” I pulled on his energy before pushing it back with a hint of my influence, just enough to coax a groan from him. “I’ve seen the FPA basement. There are human beings suffering down there.”

All at once I dropped the metaphysical contact and stepped back. My tone dripped venom when I said, “I never claimed to be perfect. You need to stop pretending you are. I’m not the enemy, and I will not be treated like one. The next time you get it into your head that I’m the problem, remember that I let you go. I won’t do it again.”

A low growl drew my attention to Juliet. She was all fangs and wolf eyes, snarling at me like a rabid beast. “You’re a monster,” she declared, like it was news.

“We’re all fucking monsters, Agent O’Brien.” I threw down the gauntlet with the use of her government title. There was nothing personal left between us. “Some of us have just accepted it. Unfortunately, those who deny their dark nature the most tend to be the worst offenders.”

Neither she nor Briggs uttered another word. We released them, and they promptly climbed into the waiting vans. As I watched them drive away, I couldn’t help but wonder when the FPA had become a bigger pain in the ass than Shya. This wasn’t over. I knew it undoubtedly.

“That went well,” I sighed.

“You know you’re going to have to kill him someday,” Arys said. “Briggs. He won’t ever let up on you.”

“Let’s not go there tonight. I don’t want to think about it.” I joined Jez in picking up the abandoned FPA weaponry. It had to be safely stored somewhere, maybe in the storage closet beside the men’s washroom.

A pounding bass beat preceded the slick black Dodge Challenger that pulled into the parking lot. It jerked to a stop beside me and a tall, burly werewolf stepped out. He was built like a rock. I wouldn’t doubt he could bench press me with one arm. A bandana was tied around his head of short, dark hair. His short-sleeved shirt showed off a variety of tattoos. It was the pack’s moon tattoo on his neck that told me all I needed to know.

His gaze took in each of my companions in turn before settling on me. Deep brown eyes took note of the blood on my hands and face. It got no reaction from him.

“You’re Alexa?” He asked, continuing without waiting for an answer. “I’m Owen, Dayne’s enforcer. He sent me to give you this.” He handed me a small, sealed envelope. Inside was a Doghead business card with an address scribbled on the back. “He didn’t want to send it via phone in case of FPA tracking.”

“Smart,” I remarked, making a mental note to pick up a burner phone or two. “They are very much on top of tech tracking. Is there a specific time he’d like this to happen?”

“The sooner the better. He wants me to shadow you. I’ll keep my distance. You won’t even see me.”