Page 15 of Covert Affections (Shadow Agents/PSI-Ops #5)

Her gut clenched, feeling like something was clawing at her from within—wanting free, wanting to lash out at the man for being too close.

She nearly gave in and let it, but he grabbed her by the upper arms and slammed her against the dumpster with ease, his yellowed teeth bared in a snarl that seemed inhuman.

He outweighed her by at least a hundred pounds and towered over her despite her being tall for a girl.

His dark eyes had an almost amber glow to them in the shadows.

The milk fell to the ground, bursting open and splashing all over the man’s booted feet and the ground. The eggs didn’t fare any better. The bag of bread was smashed between their bodies.

The man paid no mind to the milk on his boots or the broken eggs he was stepping on, instead focusing entirely on her. He leaned closer, inhaling deeply near her face and neck, his nostrils flaring like a predator scenting its prey.

Lindy’s stomach clenched more, the feeling of something wanting out growing faster and faster. Whatever it was felt dark and dangerous. Like if it managed to break free, someone would end up seriously harmed or worse—dead.

A growl rumbled from deep in his chest. It was a sound that couldn't possibly have come from human vocal cords. His eyes seemed to shift color in the shadows, taking on an unnatural amber glow that made her question her sanity and if what she was seeing was real or not.

It looked real, and it scared the hell out of her. Lindy screamed.

That earned her a hard slap to the face, knocking her glasses off.

That left her unable to see clearly, not that it mattered. The hot tears filling her eyes were blurring her vision already.

“Efren!” There was more growling, but this sounded too far away to be Cigarette Man.

It didn’t sound human either. Fear slammed through Lindy, and whatever was inside her, trying desperately to be free, surged upward.

It was almost to the surface when Cigarette Man’s head whipped to the side, his attention going toward the end of the building.

Lindy looked too and squinted, trying hard to determine what was there.

It looked like a man from the size and shape of the shadowy figure with a beard and long hair, but without her glasses, she couldn’t see that far.

The strangest sense of déjà vu rushed over her, bringing with it snippets from her nightmares.

Not the bits that left her unnerved and scared to close her eyes again.

No.

The parts that were calming compared to the rest. The portion of the dreams where she’d get quick flashes of a tall man, dressed head to toe in black, with blond hair, stepping between her and danger.

The man had acted as her champion. The urge to clap was so great she nearly gave in and did as much.

Abruptly, Cigarette Man fell against her hard before crumbling to the ground.

Lindy fell with him, her knee connecting with the broken glass.

She barely felt the pain. Her adrenaline was so high.

Looking up, Lindy expected to find the shadowy figure there.

She squinted more, unable to see clearly without her glasses.

Someone put something close to her face.

“Here,” said a familiar voice.

“Teresa?” asked Lindy.

“It’s your glasses, Kitten,” said the woman.

Lindy took her glasses and put them on quickly. It was then she saw Cigarette Man was already up and stumbling around, looking dazed and confused. When she glanced back at Teresa, she found her holding a bat that was covered in signatures.

Teresa’s attention was on Cigarette Man and the end of the building.

She smiled. “Good. He’ll keep him busy for a while.

” When she’d glanced back at Lindy, she put her hand out and grunted.

"Don't just stand there. You do not want to be involved in a dog and cat fight. Trust me. That man is so worked up he’s about to lose his shit.

" Her voice carried an urgency that cut through Lindy's shock. "I’m gonna make an exception on having him sign my bat. From the looks of the other guy, there won’t be enough of the fucking coyote to sign anything. For the best.”

Lindy's mind raced with what she'd seen, the inhuman eyes, the impossible growl, the way he'd moved with unnatural speed. She'd thought she was going crazy, seeing monsters where there were none.

Teresa’s words began to sink in. Fucking coyote?

Lindy adjusted her glasses. What did coyotes have to do with the creep on the ground?

Lindy nearly asked but resisted, wondering if Teresa had a few screws loose.

She did carry a bat around. That didn’t seem exactly sane.

Crazy or not, she’d come out of nowhere when Lindy needed help, swinging a baseball bat like some kind of chain-smoking avenging angel.

“Come on,” Teresa stressed as her gaze swept the back alley as if she were on high alert and expecting someone else to jump out and cause an issue.

“Th-thank you.” Lindy looked over to find she and Teresa were alone now behind the grocery store.

A second later, loud snarls and growls came from the wooded area that had the path to Lindy’s house cutting through it.

Lindy jerked backward as the noises grew louder, sounding like two huge wild animals were trying to tear one another’s throats out.

Teresa pointed to an old blue convertible Cadillac parked off to the side. “Get in. I’ll give you a ride.”

“How did you know I needed help?” asked Lindy, her voice still shaky.

Teresa grinned. “Lucky guess.”

Lindy had a feeling that was all she was going to get out of Teresa for the moment. “Thank you,” she said, glancing back at the dumpster. “Is that my blood or his?”

“I sure the fuck hope it’s his there. We don’t need anyone tracking you by yours,” said Teresa. “How bad is your leg?”

Lindy opened the passenger side door of the Cadillac and glanced down at her knee, only to realize she still had glass stuck in her knee. She pulled the piece out and tossed it out of the car. She tried to wipe the blood away, but all she did was smear it.

Teresa threw the bat into the back seat of the car and nodded to her.

“What in the hell are you waiting for, an engraved invitation? Get in the car before one of them comes back. They ain’t locals, so I don’t know if one is any better than the other.

They’ll be able to track your scent and your blood, so we’ll stop by my bar and get you cleaned up before I take you home, Kitten. ”

“Smell my blood?” asked Lindy, her head snapping up at the strange comment. Track her scent?

“Oh, Kitten, we need to have a long talk,” said Teresa.

"About what?" asked Lindy, pulling the door closed, wondering if she was going from the frying pan into the fire.

Her knee began to throb, reminding her it was cut open.

Teresa’s gaze went to the injury.

Lindy cringed and tried to staunch the bleeding.

“We’ll get that cleaned up and I can try to walk you through how to channel your gifts into healing,” she said.

“Gifts?” asked Lindy, too overwhelmed to make sense of what Teresa was saying. Not that the woman was making much in the way of sense.

Lindy’s mind kept replaying what had happened—the glowing eyes, the inhuman growl, the way he'd moved like something out of a nightmare. She had to be imagining things. People didn't have eyes that glowed or make sounds like that.

Teresa started the engine, her expression grim but knowing.

"About the fact you're not crazy. What you saw back there wasn't your imagination playing tricks on you.

Monsters are real, Kitten. And you're more than you appear to be.

If I had to guess, and I'm rarely wrong, I'd say you've got succubus in you. Not sure how much. But I know it's enough that it reacted with mine when we touched. And if I’m right, you have at least a little cat in you—like me.”

Succubus? Lindy had read about them once. Teresa believed they were real?

Lindy’s mind raced. “I’m sorry, but what are you talking about?”

“A succubus,” said Teresa slowly, as if Lindy might be too stupid to get it if she spoke fast. “And wolf and cat DNA. Could be a big breed cat. Could be a house cat. How the hell would I know which? I’m not a scientist. I’m a bar owner.”

Lindy’s brows met. “You think I’m a demon? And you think demons are real and that people can have cat DNA in them?”

Great. Her savior was a nut job.

Teresa tossed her head back and laughed as she peeled out of the parking lot of the store. “I know demons are real. You’re not one of them. You’ve got Fae in you. Did I forget to lead with that? I don’t have it, but you clearly do. You caused the spark between us. Your power did it.”

“Fae? Power?”

“You gonna keep repeating everything I say to you?” asked Teresa, annoyance in her voice.

Lindy shook her head but nearly repeated what Teresa had just said.

“Good. Now, let’s get your knee taken care of. Then I’ll tell you all about were-coyotes, wolf and cat-shifters, Fae, and succubi.” Teresa flipped on the radio, drowning out any hope Lindy had of asking more questions.