Eternal Flame (Night Watch #3)(4)
Author: Cynthia Eden

Jana stepped out of the shadows. “I-I … is someone there?” She let her voice tremble. Playing weak came so naturally to her. She looked weak. Small. Fragile. All the better to lie.

No one answered her. Her eyes narrowed. Time to hit the main street and get off this quiet lane. She could hail a cab and be back at her place in half an hour.

The wind blew against her face, a cold, icy wind, and for an instant, she caught the smell of … ash.

Her body stiffened. Oh, hell, no. That job was finished. She inched back, her gaze darting around the area. She couldn’t risk being taken down.

Jana started heading for the main street. A cab would come along, it had to. And if it didn’t …

A hand snaked out and grabbed her wrist. She screamed because that was what she should do.

“Relax, baby. It’s just me.” Zane gave her a shark’s smile, one with lots of sharp, white teeth. “Your knight in shining armor.”

Only he didn’t look particularly knightlike then. The guy was a big, strong menace in the darkness. She knew just how dangerous he was.

“Were you following me?” she whispered and stepped closer to him. Damn, but the guy had some broad shoulders. And a wide, muscled chest.

He was handsome, in a rough, wild kind of way. Dark hair and brows, long, slightly twisted nose, lips a little thin, jaw perfectly square and strong. His eyes were dark shadows now, but she knew his piercing gaze was green. She’d seen his picture long before she met him at the fire. She always studied pictures of her targets. After all, a woman had to make sure she was going after the right mark.

“Following you?” His voice was deep, rumbling, and a shiver worked over her body. From the cold because she didn’t do so well with the cold, and not because she found that rumble sexy.

She glanced back over her shoulder. “I thought I heard …” Jana shook her head and forced her own smile as she looked back at him. “Nothing.”

But she knew he was watching her. Weighing her. Trying to see past her skin.

“Let me take you home,” he said.

If you want to show me how much you appreciate my help just stick around a while.

Her chin rose. Was sex on the demon’s mind? Or was it something more?

“What’s your name?” he asked.

“Jana.” The name was safe enough. “Jana Carter.” She paused and shivered again. Damn. “I’m Zane Wynter.”

Right. Zane Wynter, super hunter. Demon badass. Check. “You did follow me, didn’t you?”

“No, baby, I just got here. I saw you walking….” He shrugged. “I was checking up on you. I wanted to see if you were okay.”

Oh. Sweet. Also … lie.

She put her hands on his chest. “I’m okay.” Good thing she knew how to play the game. “ No, bitch, you’re not.”

Hell, she knew that voice. Jana’s head whipped around, and she locked eyes on Henry Jacobson. Crap-the jerk had made it out of the fire.

Well, mostly, anyway. He stepped under a flickering streetlight, and she saw that deep, red blisters covered the right half of his face. Blisters that stretched and twisted down his neck. His shirt had melted, merging with the skin on his chest and the stench of burned flesh filled her nose.

Knew I smelled ash.

She gasped dramatically and shoved her body against Zane’s. The big hero would save her, right?

“Jacobson.” Fury vibrated in Zane’s voice.

Jacobson, no, Henry-’cause, yeah, he’d asked her to call him by his first name when he’d picked her up at that low-class bar-snarled. His eyes were pitch black, the perfect black of a demon’s true gaze. Most demons used the magic of glamour to hide their real eye color so the humans wouldn’t run screaming all the time. Henry wasn’t trying to pretend right then, not trying to lull her like he’d done before.

The man wanted blood-hers. Too bad for him … she was rather fond of living.

“Give me the bitch,” Henry growled. “And just walk the f**k away.”

Oh, um, no, that wouldn’t work so much as a plan.

Zane grabbed her hands, held tight, then shoved her at Jacobson. She staggered to a quick halt a few feet in front of Zane.

What the hell? Zane was supposed to be the damn good guy.

She blinked and shook her head. Not part of the plan.

“You want her?” Zane drawled. “Then come and get her.”

What? Asshole. Was he using her as some kind of freaking bait? She was not good bait.

Jacobson launched right at her, running hard and fast with his hands out, with death in his eyes, and she knew if he touched her, he’d rip her apart.

Dammit. She didn’t plan on dying. Not then, and certainly not by some low-budget demon jerk’s hand.

Jana yanked out the scalpel she’d stolen from the hospital and screamed as Jacobson’s foul stench choked her.

Not. Dying. Tonight.

Chapter 2

The woman-Jana-sliced Jacobson right across his injured arm. A hard, deep slice that had the demon howling … and Zane swearing.

Not an Ignitor. Pak was wrong-this woman couldn’t stir fire. Shit, if she could, she’d be burning Jacobson to ash, not screaming and stabbing with-what was that?-a scalpel. Innocent.

And he had one rule. Just one. On his watch, no innocent woman would ever be hurt while he was there.

So when Jacobson knocked the scalpel out of her hands, and Jana stumbled back, Zane lunged forward and did what he’d been dying to do all night.

He got ready to kick some demon ass.

Zane caught Jacobson’s hand, squeezed hard and heard the demon’s breath whoosh out when the bones crunched. “Get behind me,” Zane ordered, and Jana rushed, nearly tripping as she hurried to obey.

A human. Small and defenseless. And Jacobson had been ready to kill her.

“Not your fight,” Jacobson gritted out.

“Asshole, I’ve been looking for this fight for days.” He grinned. “And if you hadn’t been hiding like the coward you are, I would’ve already kicked the shit out of you.”

Fear widened Jacobson’s black eyes as he struggled to break free of Zane’s hold. “I just want her.”

“You’re not getting her.” Playtime was over. He’d run his test on Jana. Seen what he needed to see. Not my target. Time to end the game.

Then the prick head-butted him. Well, tried to. Zane jerked back, punching out hard at the same time, and Jacobson fell to the ground.

Footsteps thudded behind him. Jana … running away. “Wait!” His head swung toward her.