Loe raamatut: «The Witch's Seduction»

Chapter One

“Look! There she is!”

Deme Chattox smiled as she stepped off the escalator into the baggage claim area of Chicago O’Hare Airport. All four of her siblings stood in a group. Each one of the Chattox sisters were so different in looks and personality, no one would guess they were related.

But Deme knew. Even when they weren’t nearby, she felt their presence, sensed when one of them was in trouble and shared their emotions from happiness to sorrow, more intensely than normal humans.

Truth was, the Chattox sisters and all the sisters on the Chattox side before them weren’t normal. They were witches. Once Deme had railed against the differences. Now she embraced their uniqueness. Not everyone was as in tune to the world around them, nor could others wield magic like herself and her siblings.

“We missed you so much.” Aurai, the youngest, engulfed her in a bear hug so tight Deme could barely breathe. A wisp of wind swirled around her, a sure sign of Aurai’s emotions. The young woman had so much power at her fingertips, sometimes it scared Deme.

“Hey, loosen up a bit. I was only gone a month.” Deme laughed and hugged her little sister, smoothing her hand over her long, silky hair. “I missed you too. How’s college?”

Aurai laughed. “Much better without a monster in the cellar.”

Deme frowned. “Any other weirdness going on at Colyer-Fenton?”

Aurai shook her white-blond head. “Not since the initiation. I’ve kept busy studying and flirting with the hot guys.”

Deme sighed. “As it should be for any college student.”

“Hi, Deme.” Selene shook back her thick, chocolate brown hair. She wore one of her signature flowing broomstick skirts and peasant-style blouses, all soft and feminine compared to Deme. Selene wrapped her arms around Aurai and Deme, smiling softly. “I’m so glad you’re moving back to Chicago. We’re not the same when you’re gone.”

“Let me have some of that love.” Gina grinned, her sea-green eyes sparkling as she slid into the group hug.

“Hey, Sis. About time you came home.” Brigid crossed her arms over her chest, her black leather jacket swooshing softly. She looked like a badass biker chick, but Deme knew it was a front to protect her big heart from being broken.

Deme held out a hand. “Get over here.”

Brigid’s cheeks reddened, but she complied, completing the clutch of woman, all hugging.

Deep inside, Deme could feel the rightness of having all of them together. They were meant to be close, to live in the same city and be a part of each other’s lives. Her time in St. Croix had only added to that conviction. With so many miles between them she’d been a shell of herself, running a business she had no passion for.

“Okay, okay, let her have some air.” Brigid was the first to back away.

Deme caught her hand and Aurai’s. The women formed a circle of joined hands. Then whispering quietly so that others wouldn’t hear, Deme lead a prayer to the goddess.

“With the strength of the earth

With the rising of the wind

With the calm of the water

With the intensity of fire

With the freedom of spirit

The goddess is within us

She is power

We are her

We are one

Blessed Be.”

Her sisters repeated, “Blessed Be.”

Aurai let go first, heading toward the luggage carousel. “Let’s collect your bags and get you home.”

Deme followed more slowly, walking in step with Brigid. “How’s everything been in Chicago? Anything I should know about?”

Brigid worked in a motorcycle shop in the heart of the city and moonlighted for the Chicago Police Department. If something was happening, she’d know. “Guess you heard they captured Vladimir Romanov?”

Deme nodded. Cal had filled her in during their last telephone conversation, several days ago. “Cal said it took some doing. Did they get enough evidence for the Tribunal to put him away?”

Her sister nodded. “The knife he used to kill Franco Ledet and an eyewitness to the murder.”

“It’s hard to believe anyone would come forward and testify against Vladimir. He’s about the worst of the worst paranorm mafia there is.”

“Lucky us to have him in Chicago.” Brigid shrugged. “If it had been me, I’d have dusted him on sight. This waiting for the Tribunal to punish him leaves too much time for him to plot his escape.”

Deme shot a sideways glance at her sister. “Think he’ll get out of the paranormal holding cell?”

“There’ve been rumors.” Probably from Brigid’s sources at the bike shop. “Most say he won’t make it to the Tribunal. He’ll either get out, or all the evidence will disappear. Or both.”

“Can’t let that happen.” Deme stared across the baggage claim area, noting the people gathered close to watch for their bags. Old, young, mothers, fathers, grandparents and children. Having a badass demon thug like Vladimir off the streets would be a blessing. “I’ll check with the chief when I get to the station.”

“Huh?” Deme’s youngest sister spun, nearly tripping over her own feet. “You’re going by your apartment first, aren’t you?”

Deme smiled at the expectant look Aurai gave her. “Sorry, sweetie, I need to check in with my new boss first. I was supposed to be on the job two weeks ago.”

“Then it can wait another twenty-four hours.” Gina hooked Deme’s arm. “We just got you back. And we’re not letting you go, yet.”

Deme’s heart swelled with the amount of love she had for her sisters. “I promise I’ll spend time with you soon. But I really need to get to the station.”

“Well, phooey.” Gina’s lips twisted. “I’d hoped you would come out with us for dinner. We were going to have Chinese.”

Her mouth watering, Deme’s stomach rumbled. It had been more than a month since Deme had indulged in her favorite. St. Croix was small and quaint and didn’t have even a tenth the choices afforded in a city the size of Chicago. Given she’d had only the cold sandwich on the plane, along with several tiny bags of peanuts, Deme was hungry and Chinese sounded really good.

Her willpower wavered, but an image of Calais Black, the hot Chicago police officer and her partner on the force, floated across her mind. Her insides ignited with a white-hot flame. A month without Cal in her bed had felt like an eternity. “Sorry, I need to go to the station first.”

“Leave her alone.” Selene lifted a hand to Deme’s face and smiled. “She wants to see Cal.” Trust the sister of spirit to read Deme’s thoughts. In this case she was glad for it. Selene took the edge off the others’ disappointment.

Deme waved at her suitcase as it passed by on the carousel. “That’s mine.”

“Got it.” Aurai dove for the black bag with the bright green ribbon tied to the handle.

Gina grinned. “None of us told Cal you were on your way back.”

Selene led the way out of the airport terminal to the parking garage. “He’ll be so happy to see you. We took him out to dinner one night a couple weeks back, but he’s been tied up with work since.”

Deme shivered as the cool Chicago air hit her. She wished she’d had the foresight to wear a jacket. For a moment she missed the warmth of St. Croix in the sunshine. Still, Chicago was home, and she was glad to be back. Especially to see her sisters and her lover.

She wrapped her arms around her middle, anxious to be on her way. Eager to see if things were still the same between her and Cal. Deme adored that he was her flame. He was strong, handsome and made her feel so good when he lay naked beside her.

He’d pushed past her defenses, claiming her, as he’d put it. He’d even spoken the “M” word, but Deme had put the kibosh on that. If she married anyone, it would be Cal, but she wasn’t certain she could trust anyone, even Cal, enough to commit to him. Not yet, anyway. Because of her and her sisters’ unusual talents, she’d grown up suspicious and wary.

Cal had called Deme every other night since she’d been gone, except for the past week. He’d checked in only once. Deme had counted it off as him being too focused on the job. Her attention retured to her sisters. “He said it’s been crazy. The special task force has been burning up the overtime with one fire after another to put out.”

“I heard that a stranger nabbed Vladimir, drugged him, tied him up and delivered him to the station. No one saw who. Even Vladimir was clueless and madder than a stirred-up hornet when he came out of his drug-induced stupor.” Brigid laughed. “Must have been one of his own, to run off without claiming the credit.”

“Either that or he didn’t want the retribution.” Deme shuddered. “I’ll bet everyone is on alert at the station and the holding cell.”

Brigid stopped in front of Gina’s SUV. “You don’t know the half of it. Everyone’s punchy, waiting for Vladimir to make his move.”

Deme sank into the leather bucket seat and buckled her belt.

“You could ask Cal to come out to dinner with us, you know.” Aurai wasn’t giving up on the idea of having dinner with Deme.

Gina climbed into the driver’s seat. “She wants to get naked with Cal, not eat Chinese with all of us. We’ll have plenty of time to go to dinner.”

Deme’s face burned, but she grinned. “Right on all counts.”

“Especially the getting naked part.” Selene squeezed her shoulder over the top of the seat. “Right?”

The teasing continued all the way to the police station where her sisters dropped her off at the door, promising to deliver her suitcase to her apartment for her.

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t,” Gina called out.

“That leaves the options wide open, doesn’t it?” Deme stepped out on the sidewalk. “I’ll see you all tomorrow. Dinner?”

“No excuses. We want time with you too.” Aurai jumped out, hugged Deme and slid into the front seat with Gina. “Kiss Cal for me. He’s so yummy. If you decide to dump him, I call dibs.”

“You sure you don’t need a ride to your apartment?” Gina asked.

“No.” Deme glanced at headquarters, anxious to get inside and hoping Cal wasn’t on a call. “I’ll get Cal to take me home.”

The SUV slid away from the curb and disappeared around the corner.

Deme squared her shoulders, ran her hands through her long red hair, cursing the fiery color. Why couldn’t she have been blond like Aurai, and where had all the tangles come from? Then she strode toward the entrance, her heart fluttering and her belly tightening with each passing step. She couldn’t wait to have Cal’s strong arms around her.

Much as she promised herself she wouldn’t get involved to the point of obsession with any man, she couldn’t resist Cal.

Inside the station she checked in at the desk, asking for her boss. No use looking too eager to see her lover. Based on the reports of rising incidents involving the paranorms of Chicago, lead investigator Chief Martin Warner would be glad to see her back and ready to go to work.

She just hoped he’d give her a night to unwind from her trip. Not that she’d relax that night. Deme had other plans for her evening. They included one tall dark and ruggedly handsome police officer, a bed and the can of whipped cream she planned to purchase on her way to Cal’s apartment.

A smile spread across her face as she stepped off the elevator into the Chicago Police Special Investigations Division.

Detectives and other members of the Paranorm Task Force hurried around desks, some escorting detainees, others leaning into telephones, intent on information gathering or ordering a pizza delivery because most were too busy to take time out to get a meal.

“Deme Chattox.” A booming voice made her jump. Chief Warner swooped out of his office, a grin on his face. “I’d almost given up on you. Thought you’d changed your mind about coming to work on the force, what with the weather in St. Croix being so much nicer than winters here.” He clapped a hand on her back, sending her stumbling forward.

Deme’s lips twisted in a wry grin. “Going back to St. Croix had me wondering if I’d lost a marble or two.”

“Not too late to change your mind.” Warner tipped his head, his brows rising. “We haven’t officially put you on the payroll, yet.”

“Thanks for the out, but I don’t need it. I’m back in Chicago to stay and could use a paying job.”

The chief stuck out a hand and shook Deme’s, squeezing so tightly she could swear her bones crunched. “When do you want me to start?”

“Yesterday,” he replied without hesitation. “No, really. But I’m sure you have a lot to do to get settled in. Tomorrow would be soon enough. Have you touched base with Black, yet?”

Her pulse leaped. “No, sir.” Foolishly she’d been counting the days, hours and minutes until she could touch bases and a lot more with the man. Now she was only seconds away from him, if he was on duty.

The chief craned his neck. “He’s around here somewhere. I saw him five minutes ago. Check in the conference room. I think he’s in there.”

“Sir.” A plainclothes officer stood beside his desk, waving the chief over, a phone pressed to one ear. “We got a call from the Third District. Got a situation going down.”

“Excuse me.” Chief Warner ducked around Deme. “Look in the conference room,” he repeated over his shoulder.

Adrenaline hopping, Deme stood in the middle of the room, wondering which way the conference room was.

“It’s in the far corner.” A man with shaggy sandy-blond hair pushed past her, carrying a jumble of wires and USB cables. He tipped his head to the rear of the room.

“Thanks.” Deme turned in that direction and wove her way through a maze of desks and people.

New to the department, she held her head high and pretended she belonged, although that was as far from what she felt as it could be. Starting over was hard. Running her own private investigations business in St. Croix had proven easy. Rich businessmen and desperate wives came to her. Deme had mastered the art of being low profile. To be a good investigator, you had to blend in. She’d done that well, pretending to be a tourist or local depending on the need.

Now, with nothing assigned, she stood out as the only person in the room without a pressing task. That would come soon enough. First she wanted to see Cal.

The conference room door stood open only enough for her to poke her head around.

A man and a woman stood in front of a large white board with pictures stuck to the surface with magnets and markings linking some of them to dates.

The man had longish dark hair and his back was to Deme. The woman’s arms laced around his neck, pressing his head down toward hers. From their stance Deme could only conclude that they were engaged in a lip-lock.

Deme ducked back out, heat rushing into her cheeks. Oops. Someone had taken an opportunity to sneak a little nookie on the job. She’d witnessed enough clandestine assignations during her stint as a private investigator. The amount of lying and cheating had hardened her to the idea of opening her heart to a man. Until Cal had come back into her life.

She moved on, hoping to find another conference room with Cal in it. There were other rooms, but they were smaller and empty. As she turned back to the large conference room where the couple was making out, a niggle of doubt pushed into her mind.

A beautiful raven-haired woman with ice-blue eyes emerged from the room.

Wow. She was gorgeous. She was almost too pretty, with her porcelain skin, deep red lips and a mass of long loose curls framing her face. Her gaze scanned the room, lighting briefly on Deme. With a dismissive rise of her brows she turned and headed for the elevator, moving like sex in motion.

Every male and some female gazes followed the woman until she disappeared around a corner.

Deme frowned. “Good grief.” She retraced her steps to the conference room, intent on asking the man the dark-haired woman had been kissing if he knew where Cal Black could be found.

When she stepped into the room, her heart skidded to a halt, her blood freezing in her veins. The man who’d been standing with his back to her the last time she’d entered the room turned to face her, his eyes glazed, a slight frown marring his handsome brow.

Calais Black. Her partner and her lover. Make that former lover.

“Deme?” He blinked and blinked again. A smile spread across his face and his feet ate the distance between them. “When did you get in? Why didn’t you tell me you were flying in today?”

“I wanted it to be a surprise.” She forced the words out around constricted vocal cords.

Hell, the surprise had been on her.