Keri Arthur - Circle of Desire

"The coroner can't psychically see the gaping hole this thing created when it ripped their souls from their bodies."

"How can you even see something like that?"

She shrugged. "I told you before. I'm empathic. I see and feel emotions. A soul being torn free and destroyed is a pretty emotional event, believe me."

He stared at her for several minutes, then shook his head.

"I can't. Sorry."

"Then believe this," Gwen said. "That thing is not working alone. At the very least, it still has a werewolf working with it, and I suspect there are others. It saw Kat last night, and it now knows we're on its trail. That puts us in great danger."

He glanced at Kat. "You want me to arrange police protection?"

"No," Gwen answered. "Their attempts to protect us would mean as little as their attempts to find this thing."

He flexed his fingers then picked up his coffee. He didn't like being told his department was useless. Refused to believe they couldn't handle the killer.

"Then what do you want?" His voice held an edge of harshness.

"You want to find this killer fast, and you're not particularly fussy on how you do it. We need additional protection. Two very compatible needs, I should think."

His gaze flicked from Gwen to Kat then back again, but in that brief moment Kat saw the surge of triumph. He'd had no intention of leaving anyway, she realized. He would have done all that he could — even using what was flaring between them — to keep close. It should have annoyed her, but it didn't, simply because she understood his motives.

She just had to hope she was one of the more pleasurable stones in his path.

"If Benton sees me anywhere near the two of you I'm history."

"Then make sure you're not seen."

"Easier said than done. The captain's got a nose for this sort of stuff." He scratched his chin, the sound harsh in the silence. "If I step into this, I expect to be made a full partner. No secrets."

"Don't worry Detective, you're going to learn a whole lot more than you bargained for on this one."

Gwen's voice was dry, and Kat shot her a quick look. If her amused expression was anything to go by, she wasn't talking about the case, but something else. Something more personal.

A thought she didn't like one bit. When it came to matchmaking, her grandmother was almost as bad as Seline, the Circle's head honcho. Both had been saying for years it would be so nice if Kat could find a man who could be a true partner — in work and out. Insinuating, in Kat's opinion, that the men she'd been with over the years either weren't manly enough, or hadn't a hope in hell of being able to work with her let alone live with her. And if she was being honest, the latter was certainly a half truth.

She wasn't the easiest person in the world to get along with. As Ethan would undoubtedly find out, if she didn't get her regular fix of chocolate soon.

He took another pastry then stood. "I'll go home and collect some clothes. I trust you ladies won't run off while I'm gone?"

"We'll be here," Gwen said. "You can trust that, if nothing else."

His gaze very much indicated he didn't trust either of them. But he didn't say anything, just headed out the door.

Kat looked at her grandmother. "Why?"

Gwen sighed. "I had a vision while you were gone. He's in as much danger as we are."

"Because he was part of the task force?"

"Because he was closer than he knew. Remember, he was at that warehouse before you or the soul sucker or the vampire. I wouldn't be surprised if he has latent precognition skills."

"And the soul sucker was heading after him because of that?"

"Yes." Gwen rubbed her eyes. "It's also after us, for much the same reason. We all stand a better chance if we stay together."

"Did you see when they'll attack?"

"You know my visions are never that specific."

Unfortunately, she did. But occasionally she hoped for a miracle. "Was that all?"

"I did see one other thing. And it's the reason I waited until Ethan left to tell you all this."

A lump settled in her stomach. There could be only one reason to wait until Ethan had left. She gulped down her coffee to ease the dryness in her throat but it didn't seem to help much. "What?"

"His niece is still alive."

Kat blinked. "What?"

"She's alive. She's not dead yet."

"Then why…?"

The question hung in the air, and Gwen sighed. "Can you imagine his reaction if I told him that? I don't know where she is, or what condition she's in. I just know that at this point in time, that little girl lives. It might be a different story in a few hours' time."

"And you got no image at all that could help us find her?"

Gwen shook her head. "It's not a warehouse, though. It's somewhere different."

"Why?" What sick game was this soul sucker playing now?

"I don't know. I could hazard a guess and suggest that maybe she's being kept as a hostage to draw Ethan into a trap. But now that they know we're involved, I very much doubt if they'll try that."

"Which means she definitely could be dead in a few hours."

"I don't know."

There was entirely too much on this case they just didn't know, and kids were dying because of it. She noted the slump in her grandmother's shoulders, and rose. "Why don't you go get some sleep?"

"I might just do that."

Kat offered a hand then carefully pulled her grandmother upright. Gwen cursed as bones cracked, and worry stirred through Kat. The arthritis was definitely getting worse, and despite what she'd said to Ethan earlier, Gran did have a choice. Seline had recently found a way to mute both the visions and her scrying ability, so walking away was, for the first time in fifty years, a true option for her grandmother.

They had a beautiful house in San Francisco with a garden far too neglected. Over the past few months she'd tried suggesting that maybe Gwen should stay home every other mission, but her grandmother wasn't having a bit of it. And the reason was her . They'd been together for close to thirty years — all her life, basically. Gwen wasn't only her grandmother, but mother, confidant and best friend.

They were so close it always felt wrong when they were apart for more than a few days.

But that wasn't the problem. The truth was, Kat didn't have anyone else to protect her, and Gwen had no other reason for life. It was an impasse they'd obviously have to solve soon, before the arthritis took over and totally destroyed Gwen's quality of life.

After helping her grandmother into her nightie and then into bed, she checked the windows and locked the shutters. By that time, Gwen was asleep. Kat quietly cleaned up the breakfast mess, munching on the last cinnamon roll as she did so.

A shower and change of clothes followed. But what she needed was sleep, and that wasn't an option until Ethan got back. She wasn't about to leave the door open, and she could hardly expect him to wait outside while Gran and she snoozed. She ignored the imp slyly suggesting that wasn't her only reason and grabbed a cushion off one of the sofas. The day outside was cool, but the sun caressed the porch with warmth. She sat on the cushion and leaned back against the wall. The view wasn't all that inspiring.

Beyond her old Mustang there was only a thin expanse of concrete then more connecting motel units, most of which were empty, which was strange, because it was awfully pretty here in winter. But maybe the news of the kidnappings was keeping the tourists away.

She closed her eyes.

She wasn't sure how long she'd slept, or how long he'd sat there, watching her. The awareness of him surfaced slowly — a tingle that rose from her toes and spread gently through every fibre, until her breath caught in her throat.