Lilith, page 6
“Do you know where he is?” Dee asked.
“He said he was going to Costa Rica. We didn’t have time to discuss exactly what they were looking for. He could be anywhere in the country.”
Eve grinned slyly. “You know Aphrodite can find anyone when soulmates are involved.”
Her sluggish pulse kicked into as close to a sprint as was vampirically possible. “You’re right. She can.”
“And you’ve got an all-access pass to come and go from Purgatory to anywhere in the world.”
Lilith smiled so big, her cheeks ached, and she shot to her feet. “If you’ll excuse me, ladies, I need to pay the Goddess of Love a visit. I’m going to get my man.”
CHAPTER 6
The long dirt road seemed to stretch on forever beneath the moonlight. Thick forest grew on either side of the path, encroaching, almost suffocating, and brimming with wildlife of the deadliest variety. Venomous spiders, poison dart frogs, and bullet ants with a sting that felt like a flaming railroad spike being pounded into your body were only a few. Then there were the snakes… The Costa Rican coral snake, the eyelash viper. Spencer shuddered. Sweet Satan, how he hated snakes.
He and The Hunt for Cryptids crew had no intention of venturing into the woods on this expedition, and the snakes and insects preferred the cover of trees to the open road where they set up. Half a mile from the nearest town, there was only one predator they were concerned about tonight.
“This looks like as good a spot as any.” Alan pulled a mirror from his pocket and checked his hair. “Ready to roll?”
“I’m going to fly over the area first, make sure no jaguars are waiting to make us a meal.” Spencer set his camera down before turning in a circle to check for humans. This far out, this late at night, they had plenty of privacy. But he never took chances when it came to exposing himself as a shifter.
“Pfft.” Alan waved a hand. “I can take a jaguar any day.”
“Well, I can’t,” Rebecca said. “Thanks for looking out for us, Spence.”
“My pleasure.” He called on his owl, and magic buzzed across his skin before filling his core and morphing his body.
Taking to the sky, he soared over both sides of the forest, circling the area and using his enhanced vision to scan the trees and forest floor. A jaguar’s coloring helped to camouflage it, but the eyes always glinted in the moonlight.
He spotted plenty of prey, and his owl begged to hunt. But he’d have time for that after the filming. A crow cawed from a nearby tree, and Spencer flew toward it, perching on a branch above it. He tilted his head, eyeing the animal. Strange. Crows weren’t native to this area.
“Hey, Spencer,” Alan called, an odd lilt in his voice. “You’ve got company.”
The crow squawked and shot into the night, and Spencer returned to his friends. Holy hell. He landed on the side of the road, and Lilith squatted beside him, her smile brightening her entire face. The same electrical sensation he’d felt in his soul the first time he met her buzzed in his core, and though he tried to stop it, the hoot reverberating in his throat sounded way too much like the word mine in his head.
“Your owl is beautiful.” The sound of her voice made his stomach flutter as if he’d sprouted a second pair of wings, only they were inside his body.
Oh, no. This was not happening. What in hell’s name was she doing here? And why was his body…his owl…reacting this way yet again? She was a fucking vampire, for Dracula’s sake. He shifted to human form and smoothed his t-shirt down his chest, determined to squelch the unwanted emotions awakening within.
“Lilith,” he said curtly.
She flinched as she rose, her smile wavering for a split second before she straightened. “Spencer. I got your message.”
Alan cleared his throat, flashing a what the fuck is going on look.
Spencer turned his palms upward before focusing on Lilith. “What are you doing here? How did you get here?”
“Your message said you wanted to apologize. I tried the number you left, but it went straight to voicemail. I didn’t know how else to reach you, so I came to find you. As for how I got here…magic, of course. There’s more than one way in and out of Purgatory.”
“You live in Purgatory?” Rebecca gaped.
“I do.”
“Sweet! I’m Rebecca.” She shoved her hand toward Lilith, who accepted the shake.
“Nice to meet you.” Lilith turned to Alan. “And you must be Bigfoot, the star of the show. I’m Lilith.”
“You… Uh…” For the first time in Alan’s life, he was speechless.
Lilith cast her gorgeous grin toward Spencer, and his breath caught in his throat. “I’ll hear that apology now, so we can move forward with our relationship.”
“Relationsh—” His nostrils flared with his exhale. He could not have this conversation right now. “I’m working, Lilith. Text me your number, and we can talk about this when I get home.”
She flinched again, and she gazed upward, her brow pinching as her lips puckered. Why the hell did he find her expression so damn adorable? It was her magic. It had to be. Lilith was a seductress, and he wasn’t about to become her next victim.
That was what he told himself, but when her gaze met his again, something snapped inside him, and warmth bloomed in his belly before rising to his chest. She’d gone to a lot of trouble to find him. The least he could do was offer the apology she deserved.
“Give us a second, guys?”
Alan looked from Lilith to him. “Sure thing.” He nodded in the opposite direction, and Rebecca followed him down the road, leaving Spencer alone with Lilith.
She smiled tentatively before catching her bottom lip between her teeth. That little flash of fang sent blood pooling in his groin, which was so not the reaction he should have been having. Spencer did not date vampires. Hell, he’d be happy if he never dated anyone again.
“I’m sorry for leaving the way I did.” With his arms by his sides, he tapped his index fingers against his thumbs, hoping the single sentence would suffice and she’d be on her way.
She simply arched a delicate brow, and he drew in a breath, grasping for the right words that would convey his sincerity without giving her the idea he was interested. Because he wasn’t interested, and he would keep telling himself that until he believed it. Besides… While it was flattering that she tracked him down, the fact she was able to pull it off proved she had power and sway in the Underworld. No telling what kind of magic she used to locate him.
“I’m sorry for being rude, but I’m not interested in dating anyone. I told you that from the beginning.”
“Then why did you ask if I was free the next day?”
“I lost myself for a moment. When I found out who you are, it snapped me back into the present, and…even if I was interested in dating, I don’t go out with vampires. No offense.”
She crossed her arms, her expression turning from amused to curious to baffled. “Why not? It’s the blood drinking, isn’t it? Do you faint at the sight of blood?”
“No, it’s not that at all. Vampires are hunters; so are owl shifters. It’s…the whole bit about you being immortal and me having the lifespan of a human.” He shrugged. “I can’t get past it.”
“That’s a minor issue that’s easily remedied.”
“I don’t want to be a vampire.”
She rested a hand on her hip. “I see.”
“I’m sorry you came all this way for an apology, but that’s all I have to offer. I should have explained things, and I didn’t. Now, I’ve got to get back to work. I assume you can find your way back home?”
She straightened her spine, lifting her chin slightly. “That’s not all I came for.”
Why was she making this so hard? “You seem like an amazing woman, but—”
“No.” She held up a finger. “Let me finish.”
He looked down the road at his friends, silhouetted against the moonlight. Alan tipped back a beer, already preparing for the show.
“I have a problem, and I think you can help me.” The crow he’d seen earlier swooped down from the sky and landed on Lilith’s shoulder.
“Don’t tell me you have some kind of power over birds.” If that were the case, he needed to fly as far away from her as possible. She was already mesmerizing without using any magic at all.
“Of course not. This is Percival, my familiar.”
He nodded at the crow. “Nice to meet you.”
“My other familiar is at home, and she’s fallen ill because of me. I didn’t want to tell you this, but I, the Queen of the Night, have become a homebody. Esther is lethargic, and she has lost her color, and if I don’t add some excitement into my life…if I don’t find a purpose soon…she’ll die.”
Spencer looked at Percival, the crow’s onyx feathers glinting blue in the moonlight, and his stomach tightened. He knew a few witches with familiars, and the animals were more than pets. They were an extension of the person.
“I didn’t know vampires had familiars.” He stroked the back of his index finger down Percival’s chest. Lilith’s breath caught, and he jerked his hand away.
“Lucifer created them to be my companions in the early years of my curse. I was the only vampire in the world for quite a while.” Her gaze grew distant as if the memory were painful. “Please, Spencer, I don’t know what else to do.”
“How can I help?”
“Let me stay. Let me watch you film your show. I’m sure being near you—” She pressed her lips together. “Being near the excitement will help. It has to.”
He drew a breath, taking in Lilith’s attire. She wore solid black, her long-sleeved shirt and pants form-fitting, accentuating every curve. Her black ankle boots had a rugged sole and low heel, and though it was ninety degrees and more humid than Hades’ asshole, her brow hadn’t even begun to glisten with sweat. Must be nice.
“I’m dressed for adventure.” She flashed her thousand-watt smile, and his heart felt like it stuttered. It didn’t, of course. The muscle responsible for pumping blood through his body wouldn’t malfunction due to a beautiful woman, but the sensation was a warning sign…one he was about to choose to ignore.
He returned the smile. “You’re dressed to rob a bank.”
“Maybe we can do that tomorrow?”
He laughed. “All right, you can stay.” How could he turn her away when an animal’s life was on the line?
“Thank you, Spencer. You have no idea how much this means.”
“Stay out of the frame. Just stand behind me and keep quiet.”
“You won’t even know I’m here.”
Oh, he would know. Simply being in the vicinity of Lilith made his blood hum and his owl flutter beneath the surface. The woman was magnetic…and dangerous.
CHAPTER 7
Percival took to the sky in search of a snack, and Lilith stood behind Spencer like he asked. The scent of his coppery blood pulsing through his veins made her mouth water. She stepped closer, taking in the bouquet of his skin—warm and woodsy—and his pheromones flared with his desire. Delicious.
He felt their bond. Of that, she was certain, but Spencer was fighting it. Her friends had assured her this was normal, especially for a topside dweller, and while Lilith would have preferred to declare them soulmates the moment his eyes met hers so they could cut through all the crap, Eve had insisted Lilith let him come to the realization on his own.
She moved closer as Spencer hoisted his camera onto his shoulder, and his pulse quickened, his blood flowing more rapidly through his arteries. She should have fed before she came. The last thing she needed was to chomp on him or one of his friends. He already had a mild disdain for her kind, which drove a stake into her plans for the elusive happily ever after. This would be harder than she thought.
She stepped back and cleared her throat. “What are we hunting?”
“Alan’s about to explain.” He turned on his camera’s light and pointed it at the host.
“El Cadejos…” Alan said. “A ghostly canine who’s said to have long, black fur, red eyes, and the teeth of a jaguar. According to legend, if you’re out late at night…especially if you’re drinking…” He held up his beer bottle. “You’ll hear the sounds of chains dragging the ground and the clip-clop of El Cadejos’ goat hooves as he approaches you from behind.”
Lilith held in a laugh. It was no wonder they never found any evidence on this show. They were hunting fables. El Cadejos was made up by a creative alcoholic who needed an excuse for why he stumbled home at three in the morning, missing his pants and a shoe.
“If El Cadejos shows himself to you, it’s a sign you need to change your life.” Alan downed the contents of his bottle. “Tonight, I’m taking on the role of a drunk to see if we can catch the beastly spirit on camera for the first time.”
Oh, dear. Lilith bit her lip. The most they were likely to find out here was light reflecting off the eyes of a jaguar stalking them from the trees.
“And, cut.” Alan waved a hand, and Spencer and Rebecca lowered their cameras. “Rebecca, you’ll focus on me as I wander down the road. Spencer, you keep your lens trained on the trees. We’re looking for anything that moves.”
“What will you do if you actually get El Cadejos on film?” Lilith asked. “You said you would never expose a cryptid.”
“Ghosts don’t count,” Spencer said.
“They exist on a different plane, so we wouldn’t be exposing their home to anyone,” Rebecca added.
“If we can catch El Cadejos,” Alan said, “even if the footage is low light, we’ll have something to show the network. They want evidence, and spirits are something we can actually show them.”
Except, the spirit they were chasing didn’t exist. Lilith drummed her fingers against her thigh as a plan hatched in her mind. “I think I can help. If you want the spirit on film, I can make that happen.”
“Can you summon it?” Alan asked, his brow creeping toward his hairline.
Excitement bubbled in Lilith’s belly. This would be so much fun. “Something like that. Start recording. I’ll be back.”
“Where are you going?” Spencer asked.
“You’ll see.” Lilith spun toward the trees and took off at vampire speed. Even with her new friends’ enhanced senses, she doubted they saw much more than a blur as she entered the woods and hid behind a massive trunk.
Her sluggish pulse tried to sprint again, and her smile made her cheeks ache. She couldn’t wait to see the look on Spencer’s face. No way would the network cancel their show after this.
Picturing what she assumed El Cadejos would look like in her mind, she activated her glamour. Magic shimmered around her, transforming her image into a black sheepdog with hooves for feet and fiery red eyes. She didn’t shapeshift per se. Her body didn’t transform, but anyone looking at her would see the spirit dog, thanks to the magic surrounding her.
She started toward the road but paused. Her guise was too good. Shows like this never found exactly what they were looking for; they only found evidence of it. If she appeared looking precisely like El Cadejos, it wouldn’t be believable. She called on her magic again, blurring the illusion she’d created and making the sheepdog look more like a black misty blob with eyes. Flash this image on screen a few times, and viewers would fall off their comfy couch seats.
With her new guise in check, she prowled through the forest toward the team. Rebecca filmed Alan while he spun the tale of a local who claimed to have seen the ghostly beast. Spencer panned his camera left and right, scanning the woods for signs of spirit life.
Lilith stepped out from behind a tree, and Spencer froze. She ducked her head, shifting the image to look as if the dog blob were preparing to pounce, and he mouthed the words holy shit before shouting, “Alan!”
The host spun toward Spencer and then followed his gaze to the forest. “No fucking way.”
Lilith held in a giggle as she imagined the bleep that would replace Alan’s curse. She slipped back into the trees and reappeared closer to him.
“Are you getting this?” He looked at the beer bottle in his hand and dropped it on the ground.
“Yeah,” both Spencer and Rebecca replied, excitement in their voices.
Lilith let out a howl before darting back into the woods and dropping her glamour. That was enough “evidence” for one show. She returned to the road and found Spencer reviewing the footage on his camera while Alan beamed into Rebecca’s lens, rambling on about how exciting it was to see El Cadejos and how it must be time for him to change his life.
Spencer smiled as she approached, and she rested a hand on his shoulder and peered at the tiny screen attached to his camera. “How did I do?”
He laughed, unbelieving. “I had no idea you could summon ghosts. That was amazing.”
When his eyes met hers, a thousand butterflies came to life inside her stomach. If not for her phone buzzing in her pocket, the magnetism between them would have pulled her in, and her lips would’ve been planted on his without a second thought. Instead, she said, “I can’t,” and pulled out her phone.
She swiped open the messaging app and found a text from Deirdre: Esther ate her dinner! Whatever you’re doing, keep it up!
Lilith smiled. She couldn’t remember the last time she felt so alive, and the man standing next to her was the reason why. Soulmate or not, she couldn’t deny her attraction to him.
“What do you mean you can’t?” Spencer’s honey-smooth voice pulled her from her thoughts. “How else did you get the spirit to show itself?”
“The only beings I can summon are my familiars.” She held up a hand, and Percival swooped down to perch on her fingers. “I used my glamour to appear in the form of the dog.”
The awe that had occupied Spencer’s eyes vanished as his expression fell. “You faked it.”
Lilith’s smile faltered. “I had to. El Cadejos is a myth. You wouldn’t have found any evidence at all.”
He slammed the camera screen shut and squared his shoulders at her, his right eye twitching as he ground his teeth. “We never do.”
