“You did a good job,” Amaliya said to them.

The one nearest her was the older black gentleman she had summoned in the cemetery earlier in the night. As her power renewed the corpses, she saw most of them were also black, dressed in the tattered remains of their Sunday best. Touching the cheek of the old man, she said, “Rest now.”

Instantly, the corpses sank into the street, vanishing.

The road seemed strangely empty with the zombies gone.

She almost missed them.

Cian tossed the corpse of the witch into the back of the ruined SUV. He shoved the other vampire in after her, then pulled the SUV with one hand down the road. Amaliya ran after him.

“Cian, what are we doing?”

“Hiding this until we can deal with it properly.” Cian shoved the vehicle into an alley. The metal groaned as he rammed it into a dark patch away from the street lights.

“And how do we do that?” Amaliya asked.

“We call Jeff.” Cian flashed a quick smile at her before striding back into the street to retrieve the car. He was flushed with the blood of the witch and was completely revitalized. Amaliya was relieved to see him looking normal, but slightly disconcerted.

“You drank the witch’s blood. What will it do to you?” Amaliya retrieved her purse from the car before Cian began scooting it up the road. She rifled through it, making sure she had all her things. Her cellphone was broken, the face shattered. “Crap.”

“Well, a few things.” Cian easily pushed the car around into the alley. It was like he was handling a grocery cart. Amaliya rarely saw him use all his power. It was rather intimidating, but exciting.

“Like?” She frowned, looking at him worriedly.

“A black witch’s blood can make a vampire a bit more powerful for a short period of time.”

“If it was death magic, can’t it hurt you?”

“Darling,” Cian said, flashing a grin. “You forget. I’m already dead.” He set the car on its side and pushed it up against the SUV.

Rolling her eyes, Amaliya shook her head. “Lame.”

“There is one other effect it has,” Cian said, drawing close to her, the lines in his face becoming somber.

“What?” She hated the way her voice cracked, but she couldn’t help but worry.

“It makes a vampire incredibly horny.”

Snatching her up around the waist, he shoved her up against the back of a building and kissed her deeply. It was the sort of kiss that rendered her helpless in his arms and lasted so long she was glad she didn’t need to breathe.

When they parted, he grinned at her. “Now, lower the spell so we can go home. I need to make some calls, then ravish you.”

Flushed with desire, Amaliya nodded. She drew in her power, feeling it coil inside of her, cold, dark, and glittering. It felt stronger than before, more feral. It made her shudder.

The spell came with it, a new sensation as it faded away into her flesh.

The world was suddenly full of sound again.

Amaliya peeked out into the road to see that cars had been turning along side streets to avoid the intersection. A few more turned before the spell completely collapsed, and then the through traffic began again.

“They didn’t understand why they had a sudden aversion to taking this road,” Cian explained in her ear.

“Because of the spell?”

“Yes.”

“Why don’t we have a witch?” Amaliya frowned at him.

“They’re rare and hard to find,” Cian answered. “Come along. Time to go home.” He tugged on her hand, walked into the shadows, and Amaliya felt herself dissolve into nothing.

Chapter 4

Etzli watched Gregorio, one of Santo’s many human minions slip out of her brother’s home office. It had been several hours since Manny and his ill-fated crew had left for Austin. Only Gregorio had returned. Standing in the shadows of the hallway, she beckoned to him as the door to the study shut. The man’s dark eyes brightened at the sight of her.

With a flirtatious tilt of her head, she strolled along the hallway confident that he would follow. She did not stop until she reached her spacious room tucked on the far side of the mansion. Slipping inside, she waited for Gregorio to enter, then shut the door. Unlike the rest of the mansion that was full of Mexican antiques, Etzli’s rooms were very modern. There was no dash of bright color anywhere in the tranquil whiteness of the furniture. She stood out starkly against the backdrop of her room, vibrant and beautiful with her dark skin, eyes, and tresses.

“What did you see?” she asked, her fingers lightly playing with the tips of her hair curling over the swell of her breasts.

It was difficult for the craggy-faced older man to tear his eyes from her fingers and cleavage. “I saw the girl bring the dead up out of the street. They were not near any cemetery.”

“Ah,” Etzli said thoughtfully. “So she can wield her power like The Summoner did. What else?”

“They killed Manny, Art, and Irma.” Gregorio dared to take a step toward her. He was hungry for her touch. Her bite was an addiction and she used it to her benefit.

She lightly rebuffed him, enjoying his desperate need. Slowly, she pivoted on her heel and walked to the divan set before the high windows that let in the bright moonlight. Perching herself on the end, she motioned to Gregorio. He instantly followed, fell to his knees, and bowed his head.

“What else did you see?” she asked, her voice a soft purr.

“She took Irma’s power from her. I saw it happen. It came to her and wrapped around her,” Gregorio whispered.

“Did you tell Santos?”

Gregorio shook his head. “No, I only told him the basics as you instructed.”

Her long nails combed through his slick black hair that was laced with gray. “You please me.”

“I only wish to serve you.”

Extracting her cellphone from her cleavage, Etzli continued to stroke the man’s hair. He melted into her touch, his mind drifting in her power. She punched in the numbers manually, remembering them by heart. It was only a matter of seconds before Rachon answered.

“Cian will be calling you,” Etzli said, not bothering with the niceties of conversation.

“And Santos?”

“He’s afraid. She can raise the dead away from the graveyards.” Etzli couldn’t help but smile. “She’s everything we feared. She even stole away the black witch’s death magic so Cian could drain her. Santos didn’t like that, but it will teach him to be more careful with his assets.”

“Excellent,” Rachon answered and hung up.

Etzli tightened her grip on Gregorio and yanked him up to her waiting mouth. Biting deeply, she drank in celebration.

* * *

Cian listened to the mortal’s voice in his ear, rubbing his chin as he watched Amaliya stalking around the loft apartment. She was agitated and it showed. She was energized with the death magic she had absorbed and he could feel it cackling around her as she moved. At the same time, she was terribly afraid. Sweeping her dark hair back from her face with shaking hands, she gave him a wary look.

He shrugged and gave her a slight smile.

“I had the bodies removed. The vampire will burn in the sun, so he’s not a problem. But the witch is,” Jeff, the local vampire hunter, was saying.

“I didn’t leave marks on her,” Cian assured him.

“I noticed. But what do you want me to do with it? I handle vamps, not witches. That was our agreement.” Jeff was aggravated. His tone was clipped and slightly confrontational. He had been surly when Cian had woken him up and told him about the attack; now he was worse.

Resting his feet up on the edge of his desk, Cian leaned back in his chair. “Can Eduardo move the SUV to the outskirts of San Antonio? We can leave her on a remote road and tell Santos where to find her.”

Sighing wearily, Jeff answered, “Yeah. He can do that. But he’ll want payment.”

“I’ll pay whatever he wants.”

“Your car is toast, you know. Gone.”

“I’ll report it as stolen. They’ll think vandals got to it.”

There was a long pause. “Cian, I’m not your henchman.”

The vampire had been waiting for that comment throughout the conversation. He was ready for it and said in a very firm, but gentle tone, “You agreed to help me keep the city in order just like your father did.”

Another long pause lingered on the other end of the phone.

Cian expected that, too. Other than The Summoner, Jeff had truly never dealt with the dangerous aspects of the supernatural. He was well-read on the subject, but most of his dealings with otherworldly creatures had to do with incorporeal creatures, like ghosts and demons. Cian liked Jeff, but he wasn’t about to let the so-called vampire hunter off the hook. If Jeff wanted to live in Cian’s city, he would have to face the truth. The supernatural realm was dangerous and deadly, and Jeff was already tied to it.

As if Jeff was reading his mind, the mortal said, “Things are getting more dangerous now, aren’t they?”

“Yes,” Cian answered simply.