Bitter Black Kiss Read online

  She pushed herself out of the chair.

  “Sit down,” Sean’s demand forced her to grip the back of the chair.

  Disgust gleamed in Tony’s eyes.

  Sean said, “We were going to discuss the dancer?”

  “Right, Amy Dahl. She dances at The Wolf’s Den.” She was met with a blank stare. “Her stage name is Baby Dahl? We talked about making her a hostess in one of the VIP lounges?”

  Tony grinned and leaned closer to his boss. In a stage whisper, he said, “The black gal with the beautiful ass—gave a great blowjob.”

  Sean rubbed his temples in a circular motion and sighed. “Tony, go downstairs and make sure Ramon doesn’t need help keeping peace on the floor. Also, make sure tomorrow’s shipments are being delivered as scheduled.”

  The door closed behind Tony with a dull thump. Picture frames shimmied on the shelf. One of a younger Sean with a balding senator toppled over.

  "You were saying?" Sean smoothed a hand across his hair. “Oh yes, the dancer. Are you sure she had the correct time for the meeting? It would be a shame if she missed out due to a mix up in schedules."

  Nicole eased back into the chair. The truth was, she'd been unable to reach Amy earlier. The dancer seemed to have a good head on her shoulders, but acted a bit strange the last time she saw her. "This was a huge step for her. She knew how important it was, and I don't think she'd miss it on purpose."

  Sean loosened his tie and tossed it onto the desk. “She probably received a better offer somewhere else. These dancers are a fickle bunch, Nicole. I wouldn't worry about it. Just find someone else."

  "She just turned twenty. I kind of feel responsible for her, you know? She’s just a kid."

  An odd look darkened his chiseled face. "She's just a dancer."

  “I'd like to check in with her. Depending on the circumstances, I'd be willing to give her another chance."

  “I trust your judgment.”

  Nicole’s cell played its stupid tune again. She dug through her purse and silenced the phone before dropping it back inside. She wished Aaron would quit his mind games.

  Sean’s smile relaxed. “Who was that and why do they have you upset?”

  “No one important.” She ran trembling fingers through her hair then forced a guarded smile. “I used to manage his band.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “He isn’t trying to steal you away, is he?”

  Nicole forced a laugh. “Not a chance."

  Sean stood and came to the end of the desk. He indicated that she should walk with him.

  She fell into step beside him. Tony’s caustic laughter drowned out the baseball game playing on the lounge television.

  “Oh, and Nicole? I’ll see you on Sunday.”

  All signs of humor had left him.

  Chapter Two

  As Nicole eased her Mazda into the narrow slot, her headlights lit the face of the run down, three-story apartment. Cracked and peeling paint emphasized the decay of the crumbling bricks. The rusted metal stairs that led to the top floors were lopsided.

  “I’ll be right back,” she said.

  “It’s two in the morning, Nicky.” Molly’s face scrunched. “I don’t like the looks of this place. Can’t we just go home?”

  “It’ll just take a minute. I promise.”

  Molly’s face darkened with disapproval. “Are you out of your pills?”

  “That’s not why I’m here. One of the dancers didn’t show up tonight.”

  “So what? We aren’t on the best side of town, you know.”

  "She blew off her chance to move into a hostess position tonight. Something has to be wrong. She wanted the job too bad. She wouldn’t just skip out on me."

  Molly glanced up at the dark stairwell. The security lamp on the side of the building was burned out. “You want me to go up with you?”

  “No, I’m just going to make sure she’s okay.” Nicole swung her legs out of the car. "Be back in a sec."

  The door to Amy Dahl’s apartment stood ajar. Nicole paused on the third floor landing. Someone was sobbing inside.

  “Hello?” She tapped the door and swallowed a lump of nervous energy. “Amy?” The musty scent of dirty, damp dog assaulted her senses. She inched forward and extended her hand in search of a light switch. A dull yellow glow bathed the room, and an eerie silence replaced the crying.

  The couch was tipped onto its side. The mutilated cushions bled foam and springs. Cheap end tables lay broken and scattered with their useless legs skewed skyward. Pieces of a shattered lamp lay on the threadbare carpet, and another had lost its shade.

  A few steps to the left brought her into the kitchenette. Every cabinet door hung open. The contents dumped on the floor and the counters. Though the refrigerator’s contents were gutted, it hadn’t started to give off a rancid odor. She touched the smashed tub of margarine. It was still cool to the touch.

  Common sense demanded she leave, but she didn’t listen. Caution guided her down the dark hallway.

  “Amy? It’s Nicole Riley.” She snapped on the bedroom light. This room was in the same state as the others. The dresser and nightstands were destroyed. The stained mattress littered with its contents. A spider web crack split the center of the mirror. Dirty clothes, stuffed animals, and a pink vibrator cluttered the floor.

  She dug through her purse and focused on breathing. Once she found the cell phone, she dialed Amy’s number yet again. Somewhere in all the disorder a happy tune played. “Shit.”

  A wooden jewelry box lay smashed in the bathroom doorway. Cheap trinkets lay crushed into the matted carpet. A shower curtain with a pink flamingo pattern was crumpled on the floor. Toiletries lay broken on top of it. A dark smear of blackish blood ran up the side of the tub. Bits of hair and something that resembled chicken fat lay in a bloody puddle.

  “God no.” Nicole’s hands shook, and she broke into a cold sweat. She gripped both sides of the sink and fought a wave of nausea.

  She could only speculate on what had happened here, and none of it was pleasant. Movement in the mirror’s reflection forced her head up. There was someone crouched between the toilet and linen rack. She turned to face the woman in the corner.

  Plastic crunched beneath her shoe. She spotted the crushed syringe, and her lip pulled up in disgust. She kicked it away. “What the hell did you take, Amy?”

  Dried tears crusted Amy Dahl’s dark eyes. Her brown hands picked at the tattered skin of her left knee.

  “I’m calling an ambulance.”

  Amy’s head whipped up. She struggled to crawl out of the nook she’d crammed herself in. She used the back of a grimy hand to wipe her nose. Blackened blood stained the jagged, fake nails affixed to the tips of her fingers. “I still smell him all over me.”

  Nicole tilted her head toward the tub and the chunk of flesh. “Is that what I think it is? God, Amy did you have a miscarriage?”

  “No.” Amy made a bitter sound somewhere between a laugh and a moan. She pressed a slender hand to her temple and her fingers plucked out thick strands of hair. Some were bloody, with scalp attached.

  Her arms and chest were smeared scarlet. Scratches ran the length of her ribcage, and an angry bruise darkened her left cheekbone.

  Another wad of hair fell next to the toe of Nicole’s black suede pump.

  “Okay, you’ve got to stop that.” She scanned the room for anything to throw over Amy. Finding nothing appropriate, she reached for the towel rack instead.

  Amy’s eyes widened, and she batted Nicole’s hand away. “Don’t touch me!”

  A growl rattled up Amy’s throat. It wasn’t the type of noise a human could make. Nicole took a step backward, eager to put some distance between them.

  Her throat burned with emotion. Whatever trouble Amy found must have been more than the girl could handle on her own. What’s more, she’d had no idea that the dancer was an addict. She must be on one hell of a bad trip.

  Amy’s wide eyes searched the hallway beyond the cramped room. Her
pupils dilated, and her nostrils flared. The skin around her eyes and nose slithered with a life of its own.

  Nicole moved a slow hand toward her purse. “I’m going to call for help then we can get you cleaned up.”

  “Help?” She reached out and stopped Nicole’s hand. “You can’t help me. No one can."

  Amy’s awareness drifted toward the front of the apartment. “Help yourself and get out while you can. He’s still here. I can smell him.”

  “There’s no one else here, Amy.” The hair atop Nicole’s head danced with apprehension. She lifted her chin and sniffed. All she could smell was Amy’s blood.

  Amy cocked her head at a severe angle, a weird grimace on her face. “You ever been screwed by one of them?” She motioned toward the area between her legs. “A human body can’t accommodate.”

  Nicole’s mouth fell open in revulsion. “Why are you telling me this?”

  “Tears you apart,” Amy muttered more to herself than to Nicole.

  A floorboard creaked at the front of the house. Her first instinct was to get the hell out of there, but she didn’t want to leave Amy alone. She was torn between self-preservation and protection, even though Amy didn't want assistance. But Nicole needed to make a decision quick because the smell of Amy’s blood and the thing in the tub was freaking her out.

  “I’m not your problem.” Amy sucked in a shaky breath. Her eyes were wide and wild. “I don’t know if I can control it. I can feel it inside, and it wants out. It might feel better to let it out.”

  The edge of the sink bit into Nicole’s spine. “You’ve got to try and hold it back.”

  “He did this to me.” The girl’s laugh was shaky, and her eyes took on a manic glaze. A burst of energy thrust her forward, and she pinned Nicole between the sink and tub. Amy’s voice rose into a shrill scream. “You can’t steal from him. You’ll wish you were dead if you do.”

  “Who?”

  The dancer's movement mimicked Nicole’s. Lifting her hand, Amy fingered her collarbone instead. Her nails gouged ragged holes into the flesh. “He got me hooked and now I can’t quit. That’s why I did it. I wanted to make him pay.”

  “What did you do?” Nicole struggled to understand.

  Amy snapped her teeth together, and the sound echoed off the tiled walls. Her body shuddered, and her limbs jumped. “I can’t hold it back. I don’t want to hold it back.”

  Nicole wanted to run from the room, but two people in a cramped enclosure didn’t allow for much maneuverability.

  “I thought he cared about me, but he just used me up.” Amy tore more of her flesh away. “He screwed me then dumped me. I just took what he owes me.”

  The flash of bone beneath Amy’s working fingers stilled Nicole’s breath.

  Amy giggled, and it reminded her of a kid on a sugar high. “There’s fur inside. Want to see?”

  Nicole gripped her wrist. “You’re going to the hospital. Come with me.”

  Amy’s head whipped up, and her teeth latched onto Nicole’s forearm. She knocked her away. “I’m trying to help you!”

  “Get your hands off me!” Amy bared bloodied teeth.

  The floorboards creaked again. Someone moved down the hallway, toward the bedroom. Had Molly come to see what was taking so long?

  Amy’s eyes flashed with threat. Nostrils flared and growl boiled up from her throat. “Watch out!”

  An enormous silvery-white wolf’s head pushed into the cramped space. Nicole screamed. Never in a million years would she get used to the idea that sometimes these monstrosities didn't change into a full wolf. Instead, they teetered on the precipice between wolf and man.

  The creature's back hunched as it peered into the bathroom. Its ears were laid back, a snarl on its furred face. Frothy saliva dripped from its chin and curled tongue. It took a step forward.

  She and Amy were in trouble. Nicole steadied herself against the wall, and the cool steel of the towel bar cooled her palm. She closed her fist around the rod and jerked it from the wall.

  Amy dropped onto hands and knees. Coarse, dark hair sprouted from her bare shoulders. Her limbs cracked and popped while her fingers curled into claws. Nicole wished to be anywhere but in the middle of this dog fight. A sound that reminded her of meat being sucked off the bone filled the room.

  The white wolf lunged.

  “Leave us alone!” Nicole swung the bar, desperate to keep the monster out.

  It cracked against the creature’s forehead, but did little damage. Mostly, it just pissed him off.

  The Lycan’s broad shoulders splintered the doorframe. He swiped a paw the size of a catcher’s mitt at Nicole. She stumbled backward and fell into the tub.

  Nicole righted herself in time to see the Amy-wolf drag herself off the floor. She rushed past on wolfish legs. Amy snapped and lunged at the creature. She darted past and left Nicole alone in the bathroom. The white wolf glanced at her then whirled to chase after Amy.

  The room smelled of wet dog and a puddle of pinkish, viscous fluid spotted the floor near the toilet.

  Nicole sprinted in the same direction. Claws clicked on the metal stairs then ended abruptly. A car alarm went off somewhere on the lot.

  She thundered down the stairs and ran for the car. The shriek of metal quickened her step.

  Molly had just opened the door and started to get out.

  “Get in the car!”

  Molly’s eyes filled with confusion and fear, but she did as told.

  Nicole engaged the Mazda’s locks. There was no sign of Amy or her visitor. Though the owner of the screaming car never came outside, the alarm was silenced.

  “What the hell just happened?” Molly asked from the passenger seat. “You look scared to death.”

  After two tries, Nicole inserted the key into the ignition. Molly stared open mouthed as Nicole described Amy.

  “Holy shit, she changed right in front of you?”

  Nicole twisted to face Molly. “Yeah, and she was bat-shit crazy. Did you see anyone go up the stairs?”

  Molly shrugged and pointed to the book on the dash. “What happened up there, Nicky?”

  She stared at the stairs. “Someone else was there…in wolf form.”

  Molly searched the darkness beyond the car. “Let’s just go, okay?”

  “What if that thing kills her? She’s my responsibility.”

  “Maybe at work, but her social life isn’t.”

  Nicole had already turned her attention to the lot. She scanned the shadows for any sign of Amy or the white wolf. “I don’t even know which way she went.”

  “Just call the police.” Molly’s cheeks flushed. “We aren’t prepared to deal with wolves Nicole. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

  “Okay.” Nicole started the car with an angry twist. A sideways glance proved Molly was still scowling. “I said okay!”

  “Look.” Molly pointed to the stairs. Someone in a beat-up brown leather jacket climbed them two at a time. Judging by the width of the shoulders and height, it was a man. He kept himself to the shadows to avoid being seen. “Does she have a roommate or boyfriend?”

  If it was the boyfriend, Nicole didn’t want to stick around. Not after what Amy said he’d done. “That can’t be the same guy as the wolf, right?”

  Molly scowled at her. “Let’s go!”

  She put the car into reverse and pulled out of the lot. There was a grocery store down the street with an island of payphones out front. She would call the police, but she had to do it anonymously. She couldn’t afford to have her name associated with the Lycan virus or werewolves.

  Not again.

  Chapter Three

  Brody swung his legs up and rested his sneakers on the steel table. “What's this about, Vasquez? You know I didn’t do anything.”

  The detective peered at him over the top of a dog-eared folder. She tapped her bottom lip with the tip of a pen. “I don’t know that for sure. You got popped for breaking and entering a few months back, didn’t you?"

 
"That was a mistake. Come on, Vasquez. Can’t you give your former partner the benefit of the doubt?"

  A twinkle lit her brown eyes. “The key word there is former. You got fired, remember?”

  “Yeah, because some asshole screwed me over and framed my ass.” He brushed the hair out of his eyes.

  “They just didn’t know what to think of your methods. Plus your almost obsessive pursuit of the city’s most influential man didn’t help.”

  “I would’ve had proof if they’d just given me more time. I—”

  Vasquez held up a hand. “He’s squeaky clean. End of discussion.”

  “What about the drop off location I gave you? There was supposed to be a shipment last night.”

  She regarded him for a moment, her expression somewhere between pity and annoyance. “It was clean. You’d better play it low key for a while, Brody. The Chief isn’t going to be so forgiving next time you find yourself in a tight spot.”

  She had to be wrong. The shipment had arrived right on time. He was there, observing from the shadows. Only, the bust hadn’t gone down as he’d imagined. In fact, it hadn't gone down at all.

  “It was imported booze.” Vasquez’s dark eyes shifted toward him. Her expression was unreadable.

  “You checked every box?”

  She watched him for a reaction. “I’ve got to tell you, Brody, the department is getting tired of these wild theories. Chief wasn’t happy about sending extra men out to the pier in the first place. Then when nothing illegal turned up, he was pissed. The department’s tired of looking like a bunch of dumbasses.”

  He motioned for the folder. “Let me see what you guys have.”

  “You know I can’t do that.” Vasquez’s laugh grated his nerves. “Besides, this isn’t about him.”

  Brody cut his gaze around to her. “Then it’s about me.”

  “Maybe. Got a guilty conscience?”

  He glanced at the clock on the wall and grimaced. “Can we wrap this up? I have to be somewhere in thirty.”

  “Always want to get right to the point, don’t you? You knew Hank Alvarez, didn’t you?”