The officer tapped her chin three times with her first two fingers-an Apollite holy gesture. "Gods grant him peace. He must have been preying on evil souls."
"What do you mean?" Wulf asked.
"He's one of the Daimons who refuse to kill innocent humans," Cassandra explained, "And who prey on criminals instead. After all, criminal souls are full of power fueled by anger and hatred. The only problem is their souls are corrupted, and if the Daimon isn't strong enough, their venom can overtake them and make the Daimon every bit as evil as they were."
The officer nodded. "It sounds like Jason fell victim to that. By the time you killed him, he was probably wanting to die. It's sheer torture when the souls begin to possess and control you. Or at least that's what I've been told." She sighed. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'd like to spend as much time as possible with my family."
Cassandra wished her well.
With a nod, the officer left them and headed off after her son.
Wulf watched the woman leave, his eyes dark and sad. "So you weren't kidding me about the Daimons."
"Of course not."
Wulf thought about that. There was so much about them that the Dark-Hunters didn't know. It actually amazed him.
She'd been right. Since Dark-Hunters spent so much time annihilating the Daimons, they should have a better understanding of them.
Then again, maybe not. It was much easier to kill someone you didn't feel sorry for. Easier to think of things in terms of black and white.
Good and evil.
"Let's go see Phoebe," Cassandra said, taking his hand and leading him toward another corridor. "She told me I could drop in on her any time."
It didn't take long to reach her sister's apartment. Phoebe's side of the city was a lot busier than theirs.
Wulf stood to the side, watching the Apollites walk hurriedly past them while Cassandra keyed in the code for Phoebe's lock.
Cassandra was doing her best to not think about the future. Or to think about the officer who was spending her last night with her family. Just as she would do one day all too soon with Wulf.
How she needed to push him away. To keep him at bay so that her death wouldn't hurt him too much.
She focused instead on the fact that she still had one of her sisters with her.
The door slid open.
Cassandra started into the room, then froze. Phoebe was on her couch on top of Urian. Their bare skin was set off to perfection by the dull light of candles that had been set around the room.
Cassandra gasped to find them in flagrante delicto.
Phoebe jerked up, her mouth coated in blood.
Mortified, Cassandra stepped back and closed the door. "Oh, that was really bad timing."
"What?" Wulf asked as he turned toward her.
Grateful he hadn't seen them and gone berserk over the way most Apollites fed, Cassandra grabbed his hand. "I think I'll talk to her later."
Wulf didn't budge easily. "What happened?"
Cassandra didn't want to share her experience with a Dark-Hunter who would judge her sister harshly for feeding.
The apartment door opened.
"Cassie?" Phoebe was now wearing a thick blue bathrobe. Her face and mouth were clean, but her hair was completely disheveled. "Is something wrong?"
"Nothing that can't wait," Cassandra hastened to assure her. "You go finish and I'll talk to you later."