And quite possibly even f**king die for.
After seeing the Monster Doctor, he'd thought of Holly. Of her life with him and without him.
Niol didn't doubt for even a moment that her life would be a whole lot easier without him.
But I can't stay away.
When he'd seen her car pull into his drive, his c**k had hardened instantly and his heart had raced. He hadn't been able to get to her fast enough. To see her. That slow smile that stretched across her face, the wink of that dimple.
Holly had been beautiful in the rain.
No, he hadn't been able to wait to see her-or to take her.
Yet she'd stopped him. Gone to her knees before him and parted those sweet lips.
She'd nearly driven him to his knees then.
Sexy, smart, and strong.
His addiction.
His fingers traced the curve of her cheek. One that I won't give up.
The conscience that had tried to raise its head was quiet now, hushed by his need and hunger.
He just needed her too f**king much to do the honorable shit and walk away.
Don't make me love you.
Maybe he should have given her the warning sooner.
Too late now, for both of them.
Fucking incompetence. The demon bitch was still alive and guarded by half the police force.
There would be no getting to her now. No slipping inside and finishing up the job, the job that should never have been screwed up in the beginning.
A spleen. Jesus Christ –that was useless. A heart would have been something. A brain, oh, yeah, a good, clean brain. The addict's brain hadn't been an option, too screwed up by the chemicals, but the girl– she would have worked.
Gloved fingers curved into fists. Not the way the deal should have gone down.
And now there were witnesses. At least that was the story on the news. Witnesses . Some nosy bastards who were working with the police on a sketch.
Dammit.
More problems.
If the girl lived, there was no telling what she'd remember. Demons had different responses to the drug she'd been given. Every single time, the response shifted.
No prediction there. Just fear.
Fear.
Fucking demons-they were ruining the world. They all needed to be killed. Sliced open and drained dry. Only then would the world be a safe place. Only then.
"Have to clean up the mess." Always. No one else could do it right.
The story on the news blared. The anchor cut to an earlier shoot and there was Holly. Going on and on about that freaking sketch.
Lying, evil Holly. Just as twisted as the others. She was another loose end. Too many of those were lying around. Time to cut them all and wipe away the blood.
Mac was sending her ass all over the city. Holly glanced down at her watch. Four fifty-eight p.m.
She'd been running with her cameraman since she'd arrived at the station a little after ten that morning.
She'd woken in Niol's arms. A pretty great place to be. But before she'd even had the chance to give him a good-morning kiss, her cell phone had started ringing.
Mac. Telling her to drag her butt into the station because they were short a reporter. Leo Dodge, the police beat reporter, had been involved in a car accident. The guy wasn't hurt too seriously, but he'd broken a leg and sprained his wrist-
And she was the cover for the day.
At first, Sue Patrick had said she'd cover. The blond special-interest reporter had been pushing for more hard-hitting stories. But then she'd backed out, claiming she'd come down with food poisoning.
Highly possible, considering the woman investigated restaurants with health violations every week.
Holly rolled her shoulders. She didn't want to be covering follow-ups on home break-ins and stolen cars. She wanted to be working the Hunter case. Wanted to be at the hospital, by Kim's side.
She might wake up today. Might. The doctors hadn't seemed too optimistic, but Niol had said that Kim would survive. He knew a lot more about the demon psyche and healing powers than those MDs.
Ben braked the news van in front of a small brick house. Boards covered the front windows.
Weeds hid the sidewalk. He pushed back his cap as he leaned forward to get a better view of the place.
Holly frowned. "Uh, we're supposed to be meeting someone here ?" Creep city. Great. The house looked abandoned. Sitting at the dead end of the small neighborhood, it was separated from the other houses, other inhabited houses, by an overgrown lot.
"Mac said we were."
Holly pulled out her notebook. "Vandals," she said. "Twenty-eight-oh-nine Nemoy Road." Mac had told her this house had been targeted three times in the last month by vandals. The place appeared scary as hell, so why vandals would want to break in and spray paint the walls-
"Guess the owner's gonna meet us here?" Ben asked, not looking too confident.
Holly's gaze tracked back to the house. She didn't see anyone. No cars were in the broken driveway. "We'll see." Her thumb jerked toward the sloping porch. "Let's just get some shots. I'll check my notes again and then be ready for a take." If the owner didn't show up, they'd still have material and they could finally wrap up this too-tiring day.
Ben's door squeaked when he shoved it open. He uncoiled his body and stretched. Holly exited on her side, aware of a tension between her shoulder blades. Odd that, when she-
"Shit, I swear I've seen that SUV before."
She rounded the hood and came to his side. His gaze was on the gray SUV near the neighborhood's entrance. Holly forced a smile. "You probably have. SUVs like that are everywhere these days."
He grunted, then shook his head as he opened the side door of the van and grabbed his camera.
"Guess you're right."
Her gaze darted back to the SUV. Her guards had been with them all day, and after seeing Kim's injuries, she was real glad of that fact.
While Ben set up, Holly reviewed her notes. Some teens had been arrested two weeks ago, charged with vandalism. Seemed like a pretty straightforward story.
" Help me…"
The hair on Holly's nape rose.
Her gaze lifted from the notes and zeroed in on the house. "Uh…Ben?"
Another grunt.
Then a curse as he banged his knee on the van.
"Did you hear that?" She asked quietly, turning to stare at him.
His brows bunched together. "Hear what?" His cap cast a shadow over his face.
Great. "Nothing."
But…
"Help."
Holly jumped. Okay, that was a woman's voice. Weak, but definitely a voice and it was coming from inside the house.
"What the f**k?" Ben shoved his camera back into the van and took off toward the house.
"Ben, wait!" She ran after him, managing to catch him near the steps and grab his arm.