You’re at chapter two of our progressive blog hop. You should have just come from Alanna Coca’s blog to read chapter one. If you haven’t been there yet, go back so that you know where we are in our tale.
Enjoy!
Chapter Two
“My friend tripped, literally tripped on the body. I mean, one minute we were walking along minding our own business, and the next, Casey’s ass over elbows, and splayed out only inches from this…this person!” Her voice rose in pitch as she spoke, panic and shock causing her voice to waver.
He smelled the sweet hint of coagulating blood long before they reached their destination. It overrode the clawing odor of decay and death lingering in the air. “How did you manage to be down here again, Ms…?”
“Singer. Jessica Singer,” she supplied after taking a deep breath. Big brown eyes turned to him before leaving just as quickly. “My friend and I are looking for limestone. She’s down there.”
That story was all well and good, but they walked well away from the highway. The fading twilight wasn’t sufficient enough lighting for her kind. Officer Anthony Sixkiller waited for her to continue the explanation while taking in the dense shrubbery and trees surrounding them. He gripped her by the arm, pulling her close to him when she almost stepped into a circle of flowers.
“What the—”
“Fairy ring. Bad luck to cross.” Magic crackled in the air, but Jessica’s nearness teased that observation right out of his mind. Yeah, he should be focused on a dead body, or perhaps the thick perfume of energy hovering like a mist, but instead he found himself trying to ease closer to her.
She snorted. “A little late for worrying about bad luck. Besides, I wouldn’t figure you the type to believe in that sort of stuff.”
“What sort of stuff?” His grin widened, knowing damned good and well at her height she had a perfect view of teeth that weren’t quite human.
She marched forward, not noticing. “You know, fairies. That kind of thing.”
“And you don’t?”
“If I admit to believing in fairies, I’d have to admit in believing in all sorts of otherworldly creatures.”
He discerned the pacing figure of a slender woman further down the incline. Something about her set his teeth on edge, but he tucked the sensation away for scrutiny at another time. The scent of rotting meat took center stage, and commanded his immediate attention instead. “Would that be so bad?”
Jessica slowed and turned. “You’re doing a good job of distracting me, you know.”
“Feeling better, then?”
“Yeah. A little.”
Not by a long shot, but he let her little lie go. He felt her fear, tasted it on his tongue and despite every instinct within him demanding he take her away from here, or at the very least pull her into his arms where he would protect her against the horrors of a cruel world, he withdrew a mini Maglite from his belt. “I’m surprised you didn’t kill yourselves getting down here. Take this.”
“Don’t you need it to search for clues or something?”
“No. Take it.” He’d already been scanning the area, the way clear as if the sun shone overhead. Heightened hearing picked up no unusual sounds, and so far, he couldn’t see anything out of place. Except, he kept getting a whiff of something he couldn’t quite put his finger on. A distinct odor he should be able to place, but kept eluding him.
Jessica tilted the light to her friend, still pacing a good fifty feet away from the body. “Casey, I brought help. Officer…”
“Sixkiller.”
“Sixkiller,” she repeated slowly. Anthony loved the way she said it. Testing the syllables. Seductive.
Shit this was going to be hard if he kept letting her distract him from the job he’d sworn to do. But those lush curves, her hypnotic eyes…
“Case?” Jessica swung the light into his eyes, and he winced against the glare. But then she swung it back around, landing with uncanny accuracy on her friend’s face.
His nerves went on screaming alert. Every hair on the back of his neck stood straight on end. Some instinct made his top lip curl, baring teeth against an age old enemy. One whose scent he should have known from the very minute he stepped out of his car.
The friend. Casey. The woman pacing with a feral grace, whirled and faced him, her back arching. A low rumble climbed through her belly and clawed its way into the air, morphing into a very pissed off sounding hiss.
Anthony Sixkiller stood his ground, unwilling and unable to stop the growl spilling from his own lips.
God damned cats. They were everywhere.
* * *
Now head to Juniper Bell’s blog to read what happens in chapter three! Juniper Bell doesn’t really exist … she’s the dark, oversexed underbelly of a completely normal person who shall remain nameless. She writes erotica and, if she’s in a good mood, erotic romance.
If you need to start over (really? it’s still early!), or get lost, here’s some help.
Table of Contents. It is sort of like the Holy Grail.
Chapter 1: Alanna Coca
Chapter 2: Dee Carney
Chapter 3: Juniper Bell
Chapter 4: Ann Marie Gamble
Chapter 5: Barbara Sheridan
Chapter 6: Christopher Daley
Chapter 7: Ray Garton
Chapter 8: Heather Wildman
Chapter 9: Saranna De Wylde
