Demon Night

semicircle at the top. His jaw was tight when he glanced at her. “I sure hate going in blind—”
    His eyes narrowed; he spun around and fell to one knee, aiming out into the yard. “Show yourself, demon.”
    Charlie turned, her hands resting on the holsters. A movement on the lower limbs of a tree caught her attention an instant before Sammael dropped to the lawn.
    Oh, this was bad. Very, very bad. Charlie darted a glance at Ethan. He wasn’t giving anything away, but he must be thinking that as soon as they got Jane, Sammael might try to kill him.
    Ethan would be blind coming out of the house, too—and he’d be watching his back, watching for Jake and Mark, and watching for the senator all at once.
    Slowly, Ethan got to his feet again. “I figured you might be around.”
    “But I did not think you would. At least, not until I told you of her location.” Sammael’s smile had a sharp edge of displeasure. He stepped in front of the tree trunk, and his shirt and pants changed from black to the color of the bark. “How is it that you discovered where she is?”
    “Charlie had dinner with young Brandt,” Ethan said, turning back to the front door.
    Sammael’s gaze lit on her. “Charlotte’s been a busy girl. I tried that, too, but he caught on to me when he touched my skin.”
    Luckily, Jake’s was the same temperature as a human’s. “How long have you known she was here?” Charlie asked.
    A yellow square of paper appeared in Sammael’s hand. Even from across the yard, Charlie could read Jane’s messy handwriting. Mark, 1:00.
    “She didn’t come back from lunch,” Sammael said. His gaze lifted to the third floor, and his expression softened. “I’ve been here almost every moment since then.”
    “Every moment, except those when you’re shooting Jane’s sister out of the sky.” Ethan held out his hand, pulled Charlie in front of him, and folded the sleeve of his jacket back over his wrist. “If the senator arrives before we return with Jane, it’d sure benefit us if you provide him with a distraction. Maybe go on up and give him a hug.”
    His Gift thrummed through her and she bit, sucked in his blood and the sound of the lock. Steady, strong, soft—absolutely lovely, if a bit frayed around the edges. She held on to it for a long moment before projecting it back to Ethan.
    He convulsed and pushed his way through; the door slammed open, the glass shattering.
    Ethan didn’t let them fall, but kicked the door shut behind him. His guns were out, and he made a quick sweep of the room before returning to her side, wiping the blood from his ears and nose.
    He met her eyes, his gaze clear and focused despite the bleeding around his irises, the blotches of crimson. “Let’s go find her, then, before Jake arrives and is an easy target for Sammael.”
    She nodded and followed him toward the stairs. He wasn’t moving as fast as he could—or even she could—and she felt his psychic touch probing the spaces around them.
    They passed a library, and Ethan quickly ducked in. He was out an instant later, shutting and locking the door behind him. A game room was on the other side of the hallway, and she caught a glimpse of an elk head before he closed that door, as well.
    “I knew it,” she said quietly. They’d reached the stairs, and Ethan was gazing upward.
    “What’s that?”
    “The hunting thing. Although I can’t really see Mark liking it—or even liking this house. It doesn’t seem to fit him at all.”
    “That it doesn’t,” Ethan agreed, and she copied his stance as he moved up the stairs, keeping her back against the wall and her guns drawn.
    “Did you feel what I sent you? That was him.” There had been strength, but no hardness. Nothing that would have made her think Mark could kill an animal—or kidnap a woman.
    “Yes. A good man.” Ethan darted a glance at her. “Making some real bad decisions.”
    “Those ragged portions?”
    “I reckon. He’s breaking up; it likely ain’t a stretch to say that learning about demons and vampires has caused a lot of it.”
    “And his dad. God knows what he’s been getting from that end.”
    Ethan nodded, then moved around the second-floor landing and started up the next flight. “It may be he’ll pull himself together—but there’s no telling which way he’ll go before he does.”
    Charlie sighed, and joined him at the top of the stairs. A window overlooked the front of the house. No headlights, and she could see the barest