Nadine got to the bar and even from the parking lot, she could hear the music. 'The Devil's den' was proclaimed in front of the building with neon lights.Nadine went in and the first sight that hit her was the women dancing provocatively on the tables, wearing only bikinis.Nadine ordered a coke and the barman gave it to her. She sat at the counter and sipped her lukewarm coke as she surveyed for anyone who exuded lycanthrope vibes.“Yo. Is Marlowe around here somewhere?” Nadine asked the barman casually.The barman shook his head and went back to mixing drinks.* * *Nick stepped into the bar and flexed his muscles in readiness. He was going to get this huntress and have a word with her. He pictured her as being big-boned. Obviously, only a large woman would be able to defeat a lycanthrope.At one table, Nick saw a huge woman sitting alone and texting on her phone.He sat down next to her, “Hey. Are you the huntress?” Nick asked with the tone he used when interrogating criminals.
For some reason, the next day after her confrontation with Nick, Nadine did not feel so gung-ho about hunting. In fact, Nadine didn't feel so gung-ho about anything. She looked at her apartment and cringed. Clothes and books were strewn about, take-out boxes littered everywhere and the place was so dusty.Nadine steeled herself and began to clean her apartment. While doing that, she was free to remember what had happened with Nick in that bar. Hell, her hand spotted a bruise which still hurt.Nadine couldn't believe that Nick had accused her of killing the three other lycanthropes. How could he?Nadine noticed with surprise the tears that rolled down her cheeks and she angrily dashed them away.Why did she even let Nick affect her that way? Why did she care what he thought of her? Why did she feel hurt after discovering his deceit and lies?Nadine took a deep breath and steeled her shoulders. She wouldn't take him up on his stupid offer. She
Nick didn't like looking a gift horse in the mouth, but he needed to know why Nadine had changed her mind. That day she'd called him, she had rudely stated that she was on board with his offer and had hung up on him.So here they were, at some drive through, pretending to watch a movie while they discussed their plans covertly.This was so nobody from the pack would see Nadine and Nick and suspect that she was the huntress. His pack might decide to get mob justice by lynching her, and that didn't bode well with Nick's plans. He needed her to help him, before—. Before what? He thought.Nick knew he couldn't arrest Nadine. He sighed and said to her, “Once we're through, you'll stop hunting lycanthropes and hand over your weapons to me.”Nadine couldn't believe her ears, “Ok. I'll stop hunting lycanthropes once I get Dave back. But you're deluded if you think that I will hand over my weapons to you. Those cost a bloody fortune!”
Nick was surprised that Nadine had invited him to her apartment. Sure, he had scratches and bites all over him that she wanted to dress, but he was still shocked. After all she had accused him of doing, Nick didn't believe that Nadine would still care enough to look at his wounds.He stood and waited for Nadine who went to change out of her armor.“Sit!” Nadine gave the curt order when she reappeared and Nick obeyed.Nadine entered her bathroom and came out with a tin first aid box.“You don't have to do this you know, my kind heal fast.” Nick assured Nadine.Nadine gave him a scowl that screamed 'Shut up!' and went to work, cleaning the nasty cuts.When she dabbed the antiseptic saturated cotton on one of the numerous bite marks on his neck, the pain caused Nick to inhale sharply and in doing so, he caught Nadine's scent.It was a floral scent, but she also smelled of battle.Uh-oh.Nick instantly hardened in his jeans and cursed inwardly. He had been forced to wear Marlowe's jeans af
Nadine sighed and twiddled her thumbs. Being locked in a car with Nick did nothing for her self-control. Every time she inhaled, Nick's sexy cologne filtered into her nostrils, and every time she looked at him, she remembered him doing wickedly delicious things to her.“You're nervous.” Nick noted.“I'm not nervous, I'm restless. We've been out here waiting instead of us barging into that building!” Nadine said. She and Nick had been parked outside some gambling parlor for hours, waiting for Syd, who they had been tailing for a day to come out.“You know we can't do that. We don't want to draw attention to ourselves.” Nick replied. “You're a hunter, you know that hunters can wait patiently for their prey.”“Fine. Fine.” Nadine replied, looking away. “Let's keep ourselves busy.”When she saw the suggestive glint in Nick's eyes, she groaned, “I didn't mean like that.”“What did you mean?” Nick asked, chuckling.“Uh, okay, tell me something about how lycanthropes operate.” Nadine said.“E
Nick and Nadine didn't speak to each other as they left. The level of devotion the woman had shown to Syd was unbelievable. Deep in thought, they went their separate ways; Nadine to her apartment to treat the gash on her forehead, and Nick to the woods, to leave Syd's body as a warning to the rival pack to stop hunting outside their territory.When Nadine got home, she took a shower and dressed her wounds, all the while wondering if she would want to die with Dave.The effects of the Dragon Rage fully wore off and Nadine felt like she had been run over by a truck. Not to mention that her head was pounding.She trudged to her medicine cabinet, brought out a card of Ibuprofen, popped a tablet and swallowed it with a cup of water.Nadine knew she was supposed to clean her armor, but she was too tired to do that. She left it on the floor in her sitting room and went to her bedroom to sleep.After a few minutes, she fell asleep and had a dream where Dave had
Nadine let herself into Madam Yvonne's place.“Ah. Nadine!” Madam Yvonne exclaimed, grinning brightly, “Long time, no see!”“Well, I've been busy.” Nadine replied.“The more important question is, have you been productive?” Madam Yvonne asked as she busied herself making tea.“Uh, yes. At least, I believe so. We got some info on some lycanthrope who has an obsession for human males. It should be her, right?” Nadine asked.“If you want me to use my powers to find out, I can't. I don't have anything of hers.” Madam Yvonne said as she poured the tea into a cup and took a sip, “So, who's 'we'?”“Huh?” Nadine asked, confused.“You said 'we have info'. Who's 'we'?” Madam Yvonne asked.Nadine groaned inwardly. How had she let that slip? She didn't want to lie to Madam Yvonne, so she told the truth, “I'm partnering with Nick Law.”“The detective lycanthrope?!” Madam Yvonne asked, almost choking on her tea.“Wait! You knew? Why didn
Three nights later, Nadine and Nick were at Nadine's apartment, restless and edgy due to the mission before them.Nick said, “Let's go over our plan one last time.” It had taken them two days to perfect every nuance of the plan and get the appropriate props needed for carrying it out.“First, we sneak up to the mansion. We'll use the woods that surround it. Then, we plant C4 devices at the front wall. When it blows up, hopefully everyone will be distracted by it, so they won't see us scaling the posterior wall.Which is seven feet high, give or take.” Nick said.Nadine continued, “Then when we get in, we split. You'll search the ground floor and I'll search the top floor for any sign of Dave. If any of us find him, we holler to the other, then we make our escape the way we came.”“There are a lot unknown variables in this plan. We don't even know how many guards she has or how many rooms are in the house.” Nadine wondered.“You know why it had to