Most days, he believed it totally gone, yet the tiniest sliver stubbornly lingered. He was in no hurry to rid himself of what remained, fearing what he would become when that infinitesimal piece of light finally deserted him.
“I have a contract to take this man in. He’s dangerous.” She strode toward the demon, who was now groaning and struggling to sit up in spite of the blades sticking out of his heart. “Did you do that? Stupid question,” she muttered. “Of course, you did.”
“What’s your name?” If he had to leave her, he wanted a way to find her.
“What’s yours?” she shot back.
“I asked you first,” he pointed out, keeping his voice level. The corners of her lush mouth turned up in a slight smile, and his breath caught in his throat. Tasting those lips was quickly becoming a priority.
“So you did.” She slammed her booted foot into the demon’s chest, knocking him back to the ground. It was done casually and with little effort. Maccus’s cock stirred. This was a woman who could handle him in bed.
He hadn’t had sex in a very long time. Humans were too easy to break, and he tended to stay away from other paranormal creatures. He made them nervous. But as one of Hell’s bounty hunters, she was more than human, stronger and tougher. She was used to dealing with demons and might not shrink from the darkness in him.
“Morrigan Quill.”
His erection died, and his blood ran cold. He didn’t believe in coincidence. The very woman Gabriel wanted him to kill stood in front of him.
Was it possible she was working for him?
She took a step back and raised her sword, sensing the mounting tension. “What’s wrong?”
He needed to play this smart. Better to keep his enemy close. And if he took her to bed, that was a bonus. Wouldn’t be the first time he’d killed a lover who’d been sent to murder him.
He stepped into the light. She gasped and took another step back. “Maccus. My name is Maccus Fury.”
…
Shit! Shit! Shit! She was totally fucked. Maccus Fury. How the hell had that happened? Coincidence was pure bullshit, and she wasn’t buying it.
Lucifer had lied to her. No, that wasn’t quite true. He’d omitted some very pertinent facts. The man standing before her was the same one in the picture, but he was so much more. He’d taken down the demon on the ground without breaking a sweat. And this was the guy she was supposed to kill?
Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath. In days gone by, she might have said a prayer. She no longer believed in those.
Time to regroup before she did something terminally stupid. “Nice to meet you, Maccus.” She forced herself to look down at the demon, who was strangely quiet. “Time for you to go home.”
When she glanced up, Maccus was gone. Damn. She had no idea how she was going to find him again. When she looked back down at Clem, the daggers that had been protruding from his chest were missing. Who’d done that? It hadn’t been Clem, or he’d have stuck them in her, and rightfully so. She’d deserve it for letting herself get distracted.
Maccus was some kind of powerful paranormal creature.
She grabbed the titanium cuffs from her pocket and slapped them on her prisoner. They were thick and covered with arcane symbols that glowed red as soon as they touched the demon’s skin. A unique set came with every contract, each specifically designed to contain the power of whatever demon she’d been sent to capture.
But she had to get them there first. That was always the challenge.
She secreted her weapons, pulled out her phone, and dialed. How she got reception from Hell, she had no idea. It worked. That was all that mattered. “Emmett,” she said when he answered, “one demon ready to go.” He appeared by her side the next instant, and she tucked her phone away.
He glanced at Clem and back at her. “That was fast.”
“I got lucky.” Usually, she’d have had to search for days, even