Excerpt

The lettering on the glass said "DRC." Google had taken me to the FBI building just fine, but navigating to the office had been a room-to-room search. I opened the door with a slow, careful push and peered inside.

"You must be the fresh blood, Kristen Winters." His voice rich and crooning, the pale man had a handsome smile and wore a dark, expensive suit which molded impeccably to his thin but solid frame.

The office was deep; filing cabinets lined the left side, and along the right, a row of three desks spaced widely apart faced me. A familiar, faint, putrid odor wafted amid the electrical scent of computers and printers. In the back, a door stood between two tinted windows. The only other occupant, a man with a welcoming grin and black dreads to his shoulders, rose from the back desk.

I tensed and forced a smile despite the fresh blood comment, which I assumed hinted at my new or probationary status. "Yes, Kristen Winters. I'm supposed to report to the ASAC Marie Pyre." The door at the back had lettering too small to read and blinds pulled down. I'd expected a larger team.

The pale man stepped forward and offered his hand. Dark brown hair draped halfway down his back; he'd tied it at the nape of his neck. "Special Agent David McCree." As he waited for me to shake his hand, his eyes smiled, as if he were telling me a joke.

As I touched his cold flesh, the black realm of Tarus glimmered at his shoulders. He'd known I was a witch. David would realize that my witch sensitivities would see the Tarus realm on touch and thus expose him as a vampire. He had wanted me to react, and I probably had. My already rattled nerves spiked.

"Cold hands," I said, not pulling away. At least I could identify the smell now.

He beamed as though I'd passed some test of his. His "fresh blood" comment left me some idea of his sense of humor. "The oafish witch behind me is our beloved SSA, Finn," David said.

Happily, I released David's hand and focused on the other agent whose long strides ate up the distance between us. Where I'd wrongly assumed David to be in his late thirties — a vampire could be centuries old — Finn looked to be in his forties. He wore a simple black jacket and pants like myself, though he wore no tie, and his white shirt opened at the neck to accentuate his rich brown skin. He stood perhaps a half a foot taller than my curvy five-foot-five-inch figure, so I had to tilt my head to meet his eyes.

"Finn Billings. I'm the other witch on the team. It'll be good to have someone to talk with." His eyes flicked toward the vampire with more humor than malice. Finn wore a pleasant, spicy aftershave.

"Kristen." I flushed lightly. They obviously knew my name.

I glanced at the three desks. Finn had risen from the farthest one in the back with pens and papers neatly organized. A framed picture, office phone, keyboard, mouse, and monitor each had their proper place.

The middle desk had a make-up mirror next to the screen and miscellaneous clutter strewn from one end to the other. The closest to the front looked empty save for the computer equipment. "The last agent wasn't a witch?" I asked.

"Merfolk." David rattled strong-scented mints in a red and white tin. "Nearly as bad." He offered me one as he raised a single eyebrow.

I shook my head to David's offer and didn't ask what had happened to the previous agent. There were plenty of merfolk here on Earth from their watery realm, but I'd only met two that I knew of. "I should check in." Nudging my chin toward the back door, I took a deep breath. "Is she in?"

David plucked out a mint. "Knock first." Dark gums accented his sharp cuspids as he tossed the white candy into his mouth. He smiled, lips closed, and looked exotically handsome again.

I'd been assigned to an unusual team with a vampire and a witch. The entire morning had been spent going through non-disclosures and other paperwork, which made a lot more sense now that I'd met some of the team. I strode toward the rear of the office, patting at random black curls that frizzed toward my cheeks. A whiteboard with grisly pictures had been tucked partially behind the end cabinet. Banker's boxes rested on the gray tops, and a pile grew from the floor. My heart still beat fast since finding a vampire on my new team. Heading for the door to meet my new boss didn't slow my pulse. I hadn't been looking to join the FBI, but I would have been crazy to pass up an opportunity like this. Clutching my purse strap with my left hand, I absently twisted my hair during the last two steps.

I straightened my back and rapped two confident knocks with my knuckle.

"Don't knock, dammit. Just come in." The woman's voice, Marie's I assumed, sounded mildly annoyed.

Sinking slightly, I refused to look back at David. I'd have to watch out for his pranks. I'd been the new officer a couple times.