Zane stood firm for a moment and looked at Stella. The soft
yellow rays from the porch light cast her in an ethereal
glow. Stella Campbell sure was pretty with her wild dark
auburn locks and gorgeous green eyes. Still, the sorrow
that lurked in those jade orbs touched him. God, he hoped
he could help her.
Still, when their gazes met, there was no denying the pop
of electricity between them and despite the pleasant warmth
that spread across his body and reminded him he was a man,
he knew better than to make her more than just a client. He
reined in his physical reaction and took a step back, ready
to escape. "Seven a.m. too early?"
The question went unanswered at the sound of spinning
gravel and the beams from a set of headlights cut through
the canopy of darkness. He turned. A police car pulled to a
stop beside his pick-up. Zane slid Stella a glance. Her
face had gone white; even her soft, pouty mouth seemed to
blanch. This time when he reached out and placed what he
hoped was a reassuring hand on the small of her back, she
didn't pull away from the contact. In fact, she leaned into
him and damn it, he liked it.
His heart kicked up a notch and a protective heat encased
him. Yep, there was no denying it. He was here for her and
judging by the way she shook at the officer's approach, she
was more of a wreck than he imagined.
A portly cop rounded the car. His large belly hung over his
gun belt, hiding the buckle from all except those with
supernatural, x-ray vision.
"Evenin'" the officer said, his pudgy face tinged red with
the effort it took to climb the stairs. Silverton's finest
certainly needed to lay off the Moon Pies and R.C. Colas.
"Evening," Zane said, sliding his arm around Stella's
waist, savoring the feel of the trim arc beneath his hand.
"Officer Lankford," Stella said, her voice quaking. "What
can I do for you?" Lankford ran stubby fingers through his
graying hair. "Sorry about Ms. Lou," he said eyeing the
house.
"Thank you," she managed and looked away. Was that shame he
sensed? Silence echoed through the still evening air.
"Is there a problem?" Zane asked, hoping to ease the
tension that racked her soft, curvy body. Damn it, he
needed to stop.
"Not really," Lankford remarked shifting his weight on
stout legs. "There's just been a rash of-" He looked over
his shoulder as if he feared the shadows in the nearby
woods listened to his every word. "โฆa rash of animal
sacrifices."
At Stella's sharp intake of breath, Zane glanced her way.
If possible her face grew paler, her skin almost
transparent. "A-Animal sacrifices?" Her voice was weak and
her fear apparent by the trembling of her delicate jaw.
"Yes. I wanted to advise you that what with the solstice
and all coming up, you know them silly kids pretending to
be pagans and devil worshippersโฆwell, you might want to
keep your eyes peeled."
She nodded. "Are they happening here? On Lou's property?"
"Nope, but real close." He pointed south. "Over by
Paulson's farm."
"Oh, that is close," she whispered.
"What sort of sacrifice? Cat, dog?" Zane asked. He glanced
at Stella and saw by her expression she thought he was a
freakin' ghoul. The truth was you could tell a lot about a
devil worshipper by the animal he chose. God, he hoped
Lankford didn't say goat.
"Some chickens, a cow, but mostly goats."
"Damn," Zane mumbled.
"Those poor animals," Stella said, her hand coming to rest
on her chest.
Lankford nodded. "Well, just wanted to give you a heads up.
Call dispatch if you see anything at all strange, all
right? And Ms. Campbell, try not to get into any trouble."
"Oh, yeah. Okay," she replied but her words sounded weak,
her breathing heavy. The warning apparently lost on her as
she stared past the fat cop and toward the direction of
Paulson's farm.
"Good." The officer tilted his head toward them and ambled
off leaving Zane to wonder just what sort of evil had
brought him to this place.
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