Witch's Net Read online

  “I lied.”

  Dread filled her stomach. “You lied about what really happened?”

  “I had to. If I'd told them the truth, I would have been put in an insane asylum, for sure.”

  “What happened? How'd that man wind up burned to death?”

  He looked at her, met her gaze with steel determination. “My brother and a small group of vampires saved me, a woman who was being drained of blood, and another vampire. One of those vampires, a vampire who runs his own church right here in Baltimore, said a prayer and that bastard went up in flames. You have to believe me, Malaika.”

  She shook her head from side to side. “That's too—”

  “Crazy? Insane? All the things you've undoubtedly been called?”

  “That's not fair.”

  “No, what's not fair is that I'm sitting here talking to a woman who sees murders before they happen and talks to dead people, but she doesn't believe me.”

  She looked down in shame. She knew what it felt like to see things no one else could, to know some little part of truth everyone else failed to believe. “I want to believe you, Jonah. I really do. But vampires? Demons?”

  “You've seen strange, unexplainable things, too.”

  She bit her lip. “I know, but being psychic is a mind thing. It has nothing to do with fangs and… the devil.”

  “What specifically did you see when you had the vision about my partner being attacked?”

  “I told you.”

  “Tell me again.” His tone broke no room for refusal. “Tell me exactly what you saw.”

  Malaika licked her lips, suddenly wary. “I saw her being attacked by beasts.”

  “What kind of beasts?”

  “Dogs,” she replied.

  “Dogs?”

  Letting out a sigh of frustration, she checked to make sure Deja was still on the swing she'd recently perched on, and conceded. “Not normal dogs, no. Some weird, huge… dog-like creatures with sharp teeth and glowing eyes.”

  “And that's normal?”

  “I told you I don't always see things exactly as they are. Visions are a weird science. They don't always make sense.”

  “What if I told you your vision was spot-on?”

  She blinked at him, confused. “You killed two cops in there. Two men attacked her. Not beasts.”

  He shook his head. “No. What attacked my partner were not men. They had sharp teeth and muzzles. A silver-coated bullet, which I fortunately had in my gun, is the only thing that stopped them. They changed back to look like humans after I killed them.”

  Now she knew he was crazy. “What are you saying?”

  “Simply put, I think I killed two werewolves yesterday.”

  She could feel her mouth drop open, but couldn't close it. She was numb, completely and utterly stupefied. The man she'd grown to trust, the man she'd envisioned being as intimate as one possibly could be with, was a stark-raving lunatic.

  “Well?” he prodded. “You saw it correctly. What do you say to that?”

  “You must have lost your damn mind!”

  FOUR

  Unbelievable. Un-friggin' believable. The psychic who spoke to the dead didn't believe him. Jonah fumed in silence as he navigated down the streets of Baltimore, passing the street that would take them to Malaika's neighborhood.

  “I live that way.”

  “I know, I've been there,” he replied curtly, steadily driving away from the area.

  “Where are you taking us?”

  He glanced toward Malaika to see her looking at him with wide eyes. They matched the hint of fear he'd picked up in her voice.

  “Relax. I'm not taking you to my evil lair.” He glanced in the rear-view mirror to check on Deja and saw the little girl had fallen asleep.

  “Jonah, I'd like to go home.”

  “Why? Scared of me now that you think I'm a psycho?” He didn't bother looking at her, not overly eager to see her looking at him as if he were Charles Manson and the freakish clown from Stephen King's It all rolled into one.

  “I don't think you're a psycho. I just think you're tired, confused.” Her voice softened. “You've been working hard and in your line of work, I can only imagine how high the level of stress—”

  “Just stop it.” He turned left, his hands gripped tight around the steering wheel. “I'm tired of people acting like I've lost my mind. I can expect it from most, but you? You of all people, I thought would understand.”

  He heard her sigh. It was a soft, sad little sound, but it did nothing to tamp down his anger. He'd trusted her enough to tell her about the worst thing that had ever happened to him, and she'd scoffed at him. Actually asked him if he'd lost his mind.

  “I'm sorry if I offended you, Jonah.”

  “I'm sorry, too, sorry I actually thought I could confide in you without being laughed at.”

  “I did not laugh at you.” Anger laced her tone.

  “It was close enough, but it doesn't matter. You're going to believe me soon enough.”

  He pulled his car into the small parking lot of the Blood Of Life Non-Denominational Church and cut the engine. “Come on.”

  He'd already exited the car and picked up a still-sleeping Deja from the backseat before Malaika got out, her eyes full of wary hesitance.

  “Why did you bring us here?”

  “To make you believe. My gut never steers me wrong and right now, my gut is telling me you need to believe there are things in this world that aren't quite human.”

  She gulped heavily, but followed him to the church.

  “You mentioned a vampire who ran a church. This church?”

  “Yes,” he answered as he opened the wooden door.

  “Well, at least it's still daylight.” She entered the building, walking slowly and doing her best to look in all directions at once. Jonah couldn't help but chuckle.

  “Why, Malaika, one would think you actually believe in vampires.” He closed the door and turned toward the interior of the church. He'd barely made it three steps before his breath caught in his throat.

  A long aisle with rows of pews on either side stretched before them, leading to the pulpit. And in front of the pulpit stood a pregnant woman, the vampire who'd destroyed Carter Dunn, and Jake Porter.

  Before Jonah could open his mouth to ask what his brother was doing there and why he hadn't returned any of his calls, Jake pulled a gun from the back of his waistband and aimed.

  “Get the hell away from my brother!”

  Jonah jerked his head toward Malaika, his brother's target, and saw her freeze in wide-eyed fear.

  “What the hell are you doing, Jake?” Jonah stepped in front of Malaika as his brother slowly advanced toward them, and looked at Christian for help. The vampire stepped before the pregnant woman to shield her from possible danger, and watched Jake advance.

  “Move away from her, bro, unless you want that kid shot.”

  Jonah glanced down at the small girl whose sleeping head rested on his shoulder and shook his head. “No way, Jake. Put that damn gun away. What the hell are you even doing here?”

  Jake had stopped advancing, but still held his finger on the trigger, ready to shoot. The expression on his face was deadly, and even Jonah trembled a little despite knowing his brother would never put a bullet in him.

  “Better question. What the hell are you doing with that?”

  Jonah blinked, confused. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “She's a witch. Get away from her.”

  Alarm slammed into Jonah's chest and he quickly stepped away from Malaika, holding onto Deja more securely. “What?”

  Malaika looked between him and his brother, and swallowed hard. “Both of you are crazy!” Her voice was panicked, her body frozen still. Jonah felt the urge to hug her to his chest, but Jake knew his stuff. “First, vampires, now witches? You're out of your damn minds!”

  “Oh really?” Jake chuckled, the sound bordering on menacing. “What if I dipped you into the lake?”


  Malaika inhaled a sharp gasp of air and tightened her fists.

  “How about I put chains around your ankles and throw you into the ocean? Watch while the water sucks you under so it can fill your lungs?”

  Malaika shook her head from side to side as tears streamed down her face. “How do you know about my phobia?”

  Jake's brow furrowed for a moment, but he pressed on. “I know what you are. What I don't know is why you're hanging around my brother.”

  “I'm not a witch, you crazy freak!” Malaika started shaking, and her mouth set in a firm line. “I'm warning you to back down.”

  Something was happening. Her voice was determined, not scared, and the air around her seemed to spark with static.

  “She's about to blow, stand back!”

  Jonah started to step back, but faltered when Deja's sleeping body flew out of his arms and into Malaika's. With one arm, she gripped her child tight to her body, and with the other she raised her hand palm-out toward Jake. Jonah's jaw dropped in shock as he watched a ball of green fire form in her hand.

  “Get your brother away from me, Jonah. I don't want to hurt anyone.” A tear trickled down her face, but she didn't stand down.

  Jonah couldn't say anything. He'd trusted her, felt sorry for her. Hell, he'd wanted her. She was a witch, not even human! The conniving little… witch.

  Jake reached inside his jacket with his free hand, and the green fireball flew directly at him. He jerked out of the way as Jonah watched in stunned horror. The fireball flew toward the pulpit, and Christian quickly spun out of the way, the pregnant woman in his arms. The ball hit the podium Christian stood before while delivering his sermons, and left a burning hole.

  Another ball of green fire started to form in Malaika's hand, but Jake pulled his hand out of his jacket and flung something at her. Jonah watched as silver dust flew around her and she froze. The fireball fizzled out.

  “Get the girl,” Jake ordered as he advanced on Malaika.

  Jonah grabbed Deja out of Malaika's frozen hands and watched as the dust formed a web-like material. Jake tied it tight around Malaika, binding her arms to the sides of her body. All the while, she stared at Jonah in horror. “I'm not a witch. I'm not!” She choked on a sob. “I didn't want to hurt anyone.”

  “Save it, sweetheart,” Jake growled through clenched teeth. “Nyla, baby, you alright?”

  Nyla? Jonah wrestled his gaze away from Malaika, determined not to fall for her act. She'd just thrown a frigging fireball at his brother. So what if she looked traumatized? She'd pulled the wool over his eyes once and he wasn't going to allow her a second time to perform the same trick.

  His gaze landed on the pregnant woman, a beautiful violet-eyed vision in black, with long, black hair to match.

  “I'm fine,” she answered, running a hand over her round belly.

  Jonah's gaze lowered to follow the movement. Jake hadn't answered his calls for nine months. Nine months since he'd told him about a female hunter named Nyla joining up with him on the Dunn case. Nine months since he'd undoubtedly impregnated her. “Jake?”

  “Yeah, we need to talk,” Jake responded as he pushed a crying Malaika toward the back of the church. “I'll tell you all about my honeymoon in a little bit, but witch's net only lasts so long.”

  Jonah blinked back his shock as Jake passed him by. His womanizing brother who hadn't bothered calling him in nine months was married with a child on the way, the woman he'd started falling for was a witch who could make green fire in her hands, and he'd killed two werewolves. The week couldn't get any crazier.

  “Care to explain?”

  “I could ask you the same question, Family Guy.”

  They'd convened in a small room in the back of the church and all sat around a table while Deja slept on a cot in the corner. Malaika was at the foot of the table, Christian at the head, and Jonah sat across from his brother and the sister-in-law he'd not been aware of having for nearly a year.

  Jake dealt him a hard look before squeezing his wife's hand and resting his elbows on the table to lean forward. “I've been busy for the past nine months.”

  “I can see that. I find it hard to believe you couldn't find one spare minute to answer at least one of the dozens of voice mails I left for you.”

  Jake squirmed in his seat, a move so slight Jonah barely caught it, and exchanged a look with his wife. A look that said they weren't telling him something.

  “What is it? What happened in Hicksville?”

  Nyla looked down into her lap, and Jake closed his eyes. “Let's deal with the life and death stuff first, shall we?” The look he gave when he reopened his eyes suggested it didn't matter if Jonah agreed or not. He wasn't going to discuss Hicksville yet. “Where'd you pick up the witch?”

  “I'm not a damn hooker one picks up,” Malaika interrupted. “Don't speak of me as if I am.”

  “No, you're worse,” Jake responded with a sneer. “Most hookers can't fry people.”

  “I didn't mean to do that.” Remorse flashed through her eyes before she lowered her gaze to the table. “When I'm threatened, things happen. It doesn't make me a witch. There's no such thing.”

  Jake frowned and exchanged an odd look with Christian. “Where'd you meet her, Joe?”

  Jonah took a deep breath and willed himself not to cuss out his brother. “If you'd bothered to check the messages I left you, you'd already know. I was working a case and Ronnie and I noticed she'd been standing outside a few of the crime scenes.”

  “Well, that bodes well.”

  “I had nothing to do with the murders,” Malaika interjected.

  “She warned Ronnie not to go in the building where a body had been found. She said she'd had a vision of Ronnie being killed.”

  Jake flicked a curious look toward Malaika and leaned forward more. “What happened?”

  “Ronnie didn't believe her. She went in the building and was attacked by two… I think they were werewolves.”

  “Werewolves?”

  “Yeah, werewolves.”

  Jake sat back and scratched his chin. “Are you positive they were werewolves?”

  “They were half-human, half-beast, with sharp teeth and muzzles. A silver-coated bullet was the only thing that stopped them.”

  “Silver-coated bullet?”

  Jonah shrugged. “I got some after the Carter Dunn incident. Yesterday morning… I don't know, I just had the feeling I should load my gun with them.”

  Jake's brow furrowed. “You get these feelings often?”

  “I'm a cop. You tend to develop a good gut instinct after a few years.”

  “If you say so. So, what happened to Ronnie?”

  “She's in the hospital. She was jacked up pretty bad.”

  “Was she bitten?”

  “No.” Panic squeezed Jonah's chest. “She was just clawed. Why? You always said a bite from a shifter couldn't turn a person into one.”

  “I said a bite from a Were couldn't. A bite from a Lycanthrope can infect a human with the disease, and if you killed something that looked half-human, half-beast, it was a Lycanthrope. Weres can't partially shift.” He let out a crude curse and shifted his gaze back to Malaika, who was staring at him as if he'd been speaking in tongues. “So… you decided to bring the witch here because…?”

  Malaika rolled her eyes, but didn't say anything, apparently figuring it didn't matter if she did.

  “Because I may not have known she was a witch, but I did realize she was psychic. I figured she was the best lead I had for the case.”

  “And the case is this one you've left messages about? Wild dogs chewing on murder victims?”

  “The bites came from a human jaw.”

  “With canine teeth.”

  “Yup.”

  Jake grinned from ear to ear. “So did they take your badge for killing the cops?”

  “Yeah, they did.”

  “Dude, you have got to break out of the mold and go private eye.” Jake laughed, but only fo
r a moment before he looked toward Malaika and sobered. “So… how exactly is she helpful?”

  “I see the murders,” Malaika snapped. “I've been trying to help Jonah with this case. I haven't hurt anyone and—”

  “Yeah, because we ducked the powerballs.”

  “That wouldn't have happened if you hadn't threatened me and my child.”

  “The child you've put a spell on to sleep through all this?”

  Jonah jerked around in his seat to look at the child sleeping peacefully on the cot. Now that he thought about it, it was strange that she'd managed to sleep through all the excitement. “You put a spell on Deja?”

  “I didn't put a spell on my daughter,” Malaika protested. “I just… I made a mental suggestion that she sleep. I did it for her well-being!”

  Jonah's mouth dropped open as he looked at his brother to find him looking back at him with a “Man, you can sure pick them” smirk. He cringed inside, knowing he was going to be seriously ribbed for this one, but instead of starting in with the ribbing, Jake turned toward the vampire who'd been silently observing their conversation.

  “Christian, I need you to get Seta here. This woman's a witch, but honestly, I don't think she's aware of it.”

  “All of you are crazy,” Malaika scoffed. “A vampire who is awake in daylight. Werewolves killed by silver bullets. Me, a wit—”

  A dark-headed, petite Hispanic woman appeared at Christian's side as if conjured out of thin air. Jake and Jonah both reached a hand toward the Glocks in their waistbands as Malaika let out a frightened gasp, but the brothers paused as they recognized the beautiful, voluptuous woman.

  The vampiress-slash-witch glanced down at Jake and Nyla and sighed. “Jacob Porter, I see Nyla has not tired of you yet.”

  She leaned down to touch a hand to Nyla's extended belly. “They'll be coming along soon.”

  They'll? Twins? Jake was going to have two babies? Jonah bit back a chuckle, imagining how out of his element Jake was going to be with two tiny tots on his hands.