Touched by Fire (Demons of New Chicago #1) - Kel Carpenter Page 0,19

name for yourself.”

“That doesn’t answer the question.” I raised the gun once more, this time angling it at his shoulder.

“You have the highest kill count out of any of our hunters. The highest success rate of capture. The boss took notice. He got curious.”

“He decided I was dangerous enough that you wanted some reassurances if I ever left,” I surmised.

He gave me a tight nod. “I was sent to deliver a message.”

I lifted an eyebrow. “Do tell.”

Anders’ breath grew harder, more erratic. He wasn’t so used to the pain.

“Three days,” he said through gritted teeth.

“Three days?” I repeated softly.

“To clean up the mess you made.”

I stared at him unblinking. “The mess I made?”

“You didn’t come back. Rumors came to our door instead of you. The boss tracked down one of the coven members himself. They told him what happened, Pip. He knows that you chose to let it happen when you could have stopped it. He wants the coven dealt with, and the demon put down.”

“Demons aren’t easy to kill,” I replied, my voice terse.

His posture was stiff, more rigid than I’d ever seen it, and I wasn’t sure if that was because of the situation, or the bullet I’d just put through his foot. “You should have thought of that before you let them summon it.”

“What happens after three days?” My voice had dropped, the tone soft, but not kind.

“He puts a price on your head,” Anders replied. I didn’t let my face reveal the stuttering beat that ran through my chest.

“How much?”

His eyes narrowed. “You did not just ask me—”

“Do you really want to finish that sentence while you’re still bleeding out on my doorstep?” My eyes flicked down to the puddle of blood that had grown considerably in the time we were standing here. He had to be feeling lightheaded by now.

“One million,” he croaked. The pain was getting to him.

I let out a low whistle. “That’s twice as much as he offered for the coven.”

“You let them summon it. You know how he takes to betrayal.”

Betrayal. Like I owed him allegiance of any sort. My boss was a job, a complicated one, a demanding one, but a job, nonetheless. Any other person would have understood this wasn’t personal. It wasn’t about allegiance or loyalty or trust.

But it was my boss we were talking about. He was prickly by nature.

“Three days to deal with the coven and the demon. I still get paid at the end?”

A harsh laugh echoed through the stairwell. “Only you would ask about a paycheck after what you’ve done.” I lifted the gun once more, this time pressing it into his forehead, between the eyes. He sighed. “You’re a cold woman, you know that?”

“So you’ve told me,” I replied.

“I don’t know if he’ll pay you. I don’t know if he’ll just execute you on the spot. You really pissed him off with this one, Piper.”

Honesty it was, then. I appreciated it, even though I’d never tell him that.

I lowered the gun to my side, and he let out a breath.

“Three days?” I said, not looking at him.

“Three days,” he repeated with a nod. I stepped back and moved to close the door. “Be careful, Pip.”

I paused, one corner of my mouth twisting ruefully. “Shouldn’t I be saying that to you?”

“You did just shoot me,” he said, dragging his foot sideways as he tried to change his hold on the rail.

“And I will again if you don’t get out of here. I have three days before every bounty hunter in this city comes after me. See you soon, Anders.”

I closed the door before he had time to reply, and then leaned forward, putting my forehead against it. Fuck.

On one hand, I was lucky he didn’t just put out an immediate hit, but all that really meant is they didn’t have someone as equipped as I was to clean up this job. And unlike the hit on me, this isn’t something they’d want the public to know about. Demons coming to earth caused panic. Rightfully so.

The real reason my boss didn’t want a demon in New Chicago had less to do with the people, and more to do with his own addiction to power.

“Did you just shoot someone in the stairwell?” the witch asked. She must have taken the door closing as it was all safe to talk again.

“Yup.”

“But you didn’t kill them?” she squinted her eyes, trying to understand.

“How do you know that?”

“You closed the door. I can’t imagine you would have left a