Chapter One
It was a cold night, too cold to be standing outside in the middle of the park at nearly midnight. The wind blew quick making a shiver come over her skin as she pulled her coat over more, covering the top of her body as she stood there. The sounds were quiet tonight and that was good considering that the wind kept whipping around making the scents from the night air fade too quick for her..
She glanced down at her midcalf boots that she wore, she definitely wasnt dressed for the weather or for a night in the woods but this was her most comfortable attire, especially considering what she would have to do tonight. She always dressed for flexiblity cause out here you needed that most, and tonight was no different. She wore a soft cotton plaid mini skirt that had very short shorts underneath, her legs had black stockings and her most favorite black leather boots. The ones that had places for all of her toys, her favorite being the concealed 6 inch dagger.. On top she wore a white tank top which was covered by a short black leather jacket, it too had places for her covenience and right now it held a 9 mm gun.
In her hand she held yet another dagger, this one about 3 inches, it was her favorite and it definitely did the job. The sound of leaves crunching in the distance made her tense as she stood silently next to the large oak tree. This had been the spot for the last week or so. Two bodies already found and she couldnt help but feel it wasnt the end.
Most people would call her crazy for what she did but those people didnt know the evil that lurked the town at night. The same evil that she could now sense as she stood there, it made her own heart race but not with fear, with excitement, she always got this way before the hunt..
Natalie wasnt your normal twenty five year old female. Her life wasnt spent away at college or at some dead end job that she hated. No, it was spent like this, night after night, protecting the unsuspecting city from the things that went bump in the night..
She also thought better out here, away from the distracting sounds of the city streets, here she could focus and at this moment she needed that focus more then ever.
She had been an orphan since the age of 15, her father was unknown and her mother had been brutally murdered as Natalie slept. The sound of her mothers screams still haunted her. She had only caught a glimpse of the horrid act and it was enough to change her life forever.
It was at that very moment that she knew that this world really wasnt what she thought it was. It was much darker, sinister and she had looked evil right in the eye. She had nearly died that night too if it hadnt been for her brother rex rushing to her side. She had been beatened and broken, the blood loss alone should have killed her but it didnt and over time it all just made her stronger, more vigilant.
She had joined the CDA nearly a year later. The Center for Demon Activity had found her. It wasnt every day that a human witnessed a demon killing and she had become a threat to the CDA's agenda but thankfully her boss and director of the agency had taken pity on her and had seen a strength in her that she hadnt even known exsisted herself.
She became a demon slayer seemingly over night. The training was long and hard but then again she had been born on the streets of AC so her fighting skills were already quite potent. She had been the youngest slayer the CDA had ever had, at only 16 years old she could take a man down without a blink of an eye. She had no guilt, no remorse, she was a true asset to them.
And so now she stood and waited like she did just about every night and her senses were keen now too, she could feel every whisp of wind, hear every animal that hunted at night, and she was hunting too. The sound of crunching leaves came even closer and she braced herself, evil was close. Her skin pricked at the dark energy that began to surround her and she smiled, like genuinely smiled, yes tonight would be a good night..
The sound stopped now as she sucked in a breath, holding it as she blended in with the large tree but then she heard the growling from behind the tree, not only did she know it was there but it knew she was there too. She jumped out quickly, immediately finding a pair of red eyes staring back at her.
Within seconds the dark entity lunged at her, teeth as sharp as razors and claws like daggers. The fight was on..They collided in mid air, their bodies slamming together so hard that she nearly lost her breath, not to mention the demon she was now fighting only resembled a young boy of maybe sixteen but she knew better, this wasnt a boy at all. No, he was one of the possessed..
The demons preyed on the weak and vulnerable. The streets were loaded with them too making it an easy task. Infecting the young and possessing them to do their dirty deeds. It was an image that took a long time for her to get over. The news channels were calling them a new gang, one that used rituals to kill their victims but a gang they were not. Natalie knew better, she had to, she had been with the CDA for over ten years now and the truth sometimes was hard to swallow..
For over five centuries the CDA had been waging a war on evil, one that constantly threatened to throw the world into apocalyse until the last thing standing was evil itself..
The feeling of claws digging into her skin hurt like hell as she slashed the young boy with her knife until he kicked it from her hand and quickly pinned her down, he had blood lust in his eyes and a smile on his face.. They were strong in this form, almost stronger then she was and as the hands came around her neck, literally strangling the life out of her she grabbed into her coat. Not even taking the gun out fully from her jacket she pulled the trigger, almost annoyed that she would have to get another coat. She loved this coat.
As the pop rang out the boy's hands left her neck and she gasped for air as she let out another shot, this time it made then demon boy fly backwards, far enough away for her to get to her feet as she went to shoot again but her gun jammed and the demon was now rising once more looking even more pissed as it went to jump at her. She grabbed for her knife in her boot but a loud pop rang out and the demon dropped as the blood began to spill from the hole now in its forehead, she spun now too, breathing heavy and more then pissed as she looked at her coworker, a guy by the name of Cris and he held a shot gun in his hand..
"Damn it Cris, I had this" she snapped angrily as he looked at her..
"it didnt look that way to me, I told you that you should of cleaned that gun, you never listen to me" he huffed in frustration..
"Your gonna start this now Cris!" she snapped and then quickly looked back at the demon as the body began to desinigrate right before them.."fuck!" she said again, she had wanted to get this demon bastard, she had waited almost four hours for him to rear his ugly face..
"its dead thats all that matters" Cris said as he came over to her and she rolled her eyes angrily..
"I had this!" she snapped again as she shook her head in disappointment..
"Bo's pissed you know, you werent suppose to come out alone" Cris said as he looked at her..
"i dont need a damn babysitter" she snapped as she began to walk away, she hated that Bo always sent someone to cover her. She had this, she always had this and now she was left with feeling unsatisfied yet again..
"You know the rules natalie" he said as he ran up to her as she continued to walk fast through the wooded area.
"god do you always have to be such an ass kisser" she snapped as she neared the end of the trail and it opened up to a dirt road where her car was parked off to the side.
"I just saved your ass back there" he said as he came up to her and she spun around and faced him with icy blue eyes..
"this was my hunt and trust me I dont need saving from you or anyone" she swung open her car door as he stood there with an annoyed look on his face..She quickly jumped in her car..
"atleast drive me to my car" he walked up to her still opened drivers side door..She ignored him as she slammed the door shut and with a flip of her middle finger she took off, leaving dust in her wake..
The CDA was located in downtown AC, the building itself resembled a normal looking warehouse that had been abandoned but it was far from that cause inside the building was no factory but much much more.. They had stayed hidden from the public for the most part, even parts of the government and military didnt even know they exsisted. They worked tirelessly to keep this world free of the evil that threatened it. With the main hub being located in AC it was essentially the central office for most of the higher ups even though each state had its own branch and officials.
Her boss Bo Buchanan ran this division and rumor had it he had ran it from the start even though his features would place him at fifty something, they all knew he was much older then that but then again it was hard to tell because Bo wasnt your average man, none of the agents were that worked here, well except for Natalie. Each agent had an ability that surpassed others whether it be telepathy or the ability to move objects with their mind, some could even get into your mind and if you werent smart enough to resist you could go completely insane.. But Natalie wasnt like them, she was mortal, young and devoid of any special abilities except the fact that she could fight and she was damn good. She could also sense impending evil but she blamed that on her years working for the CDA, eventually one would pick up on a thing or two..
Walking inside the large building natalie was immediately greeted by her best buddy , a girl named Gigi, she too had been recruited into the agency but her abilities were far from normal, she was a healer and she had the sight which was the ability to see into the near future, as of right now she couldnt see far but she could see enough. She too was young at only twenty four but she came from a long line of agents and this was her destiny..
She was a short petite girl, standing merely five two with platnium blonde spiky hair cut into a pixie do and she dressed as edgy as she looked. If on first glance most people thought she was goth or just some tattooed freak..
"Oh my god, thank god your ok, I saw..." Gigi said as she grabbed natalie into a huge bear hug and Natalie winced as the deep slashs to her body began to burn..Gigi pulled back quick.."Your hurt" she began with worry..
"Im fine" natalie said quickly, she hated looking weak, she strived on being the strongest human they had ever seen..
"Your lucky your not dead" the sound of her bosses voice made her sigh, she definitely wasnt in the mood for this, if anythng she wanted a stiff drink.."what the hell were you thinking Red" he snapped at her. He had nicknamed her that because of her long red locks, it was almost endearing at times but not now..He was pissed as he looked her over, shaking his head.. Within seconds Cris was joining them..
"she doesnt think remember, she just does" Cris said dryly as natalie shot him a look.."by the way thanks for leaving me out there by myself" he walked past her and into the great hall as natalie stood there..
"in my office" Bo turned from her, god she had really never seen him this pissed before and it was unnerving..
"He's really mad Natalie" Gigi said quietly.."You should of waited for Cris"
"Not you too Gi, I had this" natalie huffed as she walked past her friend, just because she was the only person here without an ability didnt make her weak cause she was from that..Fighting demons for nearly ten years did that to a person..
She made the quick walk over to the large office that held Bo and she took a deep breath as she entered without knocking, she had already had her speech planned but when she saw the pair of crystal blue eyes looking back at her, the ones that always sent her reeling, well it made her see red..
"what the hell is he doing here" she spat angrily as she stared at the nearly six foot three, man with long dark hair.. His name was John Mcbain and everyone who worked there knew him, his reputation for slaying the most demons and his ability to leap through time was undoubtedly his prized possession..
John McBain was not like the agents in this building, he was from an elite team of Universal demon hunters and he was immortal, word had it that he was nearly two hundred years old even though his features looked that of a man of his early thirties.. Two thirds of his body was covered in tattoos and muscle covered everything. His reputation far surpassed him and those around him either feared him, or respected him greatly. He wasnt from their time, he had come from the 1500's in Ireland and he was a god, like truly a warrior for the gods. He was a protector of the innocent but Natalie didnt see him as such, what she saw was an oversexed arrogant bastard that spent too much time drinking and sleeping with random women but she had to give it to him, he definitely was something to look at and he knew it..
"Nice to see you too Natalie" he smiled as his eyes traveled over her barely clad body, she rolled her eyes at him. As much as her body at times had wanted to sample the goods he had to offer she knew that would never happen, not in a million years. He may be a gorgeous god, pun intended but he was also a womanizer and his lists of conquests were ridiculously long..
The first time she had met John was when she was on a hunt a few towns away..She was in the struggle of her life with a very powerful demon that she had been hunting for days.. She had almost lost her life that day if it hadnt been for John stepping in at the last minute, like the very last minute after he had watched with a smug look on his face as she fought off the demon. He had enjoyed the fight and she was more than pissed at his arrogant behaviour. Just moments prior they had been in a heated argument about him showing up at her spot, at the time she had only heard stories of the great John McBain..
He had been just as arrogant and oversexed as always.
"You really shouldnt be waving that thing around, your going to hurt yourself" John had said as he smiled at her. She couldnt believe it was him, in the flesh, he had been merely a folk lure to her but he was there and in the flesh, the infamous John McBain.. She had seen pictures of him before, pictures that apparently didnt do him any justice. He was a gorgeous man, like GQ material..
His long dark hair landed right at his shoulders, his build even bigger then it looked in pictures and his eyes, those eyes a girl could stare into for hours but she wasnt like every other girl and she knew his kind, actually she knew all about him and she stiffened some as she held the long dagger in her hand..
"I know who you are" she kept her eye on him as she stood there defensively..
"and I you, so why dont you put that thing down sweetheart" he grinned as he looked her up and down..
"Not a chance, what are you doing here" she said quickly as her heart began to race a bit, he was like the epitome of sex and his overwhelming power made it hard to breathe. This is definitely the closest she had ever been to a immortal god.
"I could ask you the same thing" he smiled as he began to walk slowly around her as she followed him with her eyes..
"Im working" she said with a deep breath, it was hard to concentrate around him, too hard actually, her eyes landed on a tattoo on his bicep..
"do you like it, its my families crest" he began as she quickly looked away..
"Yeah well tribal bands were like so 1990" she said sarcastically and he laughed, like really laughed, it made her nervous as she watched him..
"You really are a spit fire, I didnt think the rumors were true" he shook his head as he grinned..
"funny thing about rumors, just the other day I was overhearing someone call you" she began as he moved closer..
"why so angry, Natalie" he said as he cut her off.."were on the same team here" he cocked his head..
"Last time I checked you were on a team all your own" she said quickly...
"Ouch" he ran a hand through his hair, his long, shiny, looked like silk hair, she couldnt help but stare but then he smirked and she quickly looked away..
"Listen some of us actually have a job to do, so if you dont mind" she began to turn from him, god was it hot in her or was it just her?
"Oh its definitely hot, scorching actually" his words caught her off guard and she quickly spun and looked at him and he smiled..
"anyone ever tell you that its rude to lurk in someones mind!," she said with a shake of her head, it was common knowledge that all the immortals could read minds, she had somehow forgotten that and she best keep her thoughts of him to a minimum, the last thing she needed was for him to have that kind of power over her..
"and I like what I hear" he licked his lips seductively and she flushed some and then quickly glared..
"of course you would, pig!" she said quickly as his eyes got wide..
The sound of rustling in the nearby bushes made her quickly look but it was too late, within seconds she was being tackled to the ground by a huge guy, his eyes were like two black holes and his smile was as evil as they came. She wrestled with the demon, kicking and jabbing her dagger anywhere she could. Out of the corner of her eye she saw john just stand there, watching her as she fought against this evil being..Seriously now would be a good time for him to jump in but he did nothing of the sort.
She managed to roll their bodies until she was straddling the demon, rage in her eyes.."Go back to hell!" she yelled as she went to lunge the knife into the demons chest but he reacted in seconds, a glimmer of a smile on his face as one of his hands broke free and he grabbed her neck, tossing her aside like a ragdoll as the wind got knocked out of her and she landed merely feet away from John as he looked down at her.."You can jump in anytime!" she snapped at him as she tried to get to his feet but he just grinned at her and within seconds she was back on her feet as the demon stood across from her..
"Is that all you got" the demon seethed as it ran for her and she quickly pulled out her gun but he was so much faster and stronger then her and within seconds he had the gun pulled from her hand as he grabbed her, pinning her back to his body as he put a strong arm around her chest..
The feeling of evil so close and being pressed against it made her stomach feel ill and then she felt the cold steel against her temple as the thing breathed into her ear.."I am so going to enjoy this" his breath was icy cold as she tried to fight against him but it was futile..She braced herself, waiting for the gun to go off but that never happened and the next thing she knew was that she was being shoved to the ground as a loud snap was heard and when she finally turned herself over, still laying on her back on the cold ground she saw the lifeless body of the demon, its neck snapped almost in half as John stood there over the body..
It took her a second to regain her footing and then John was walking over nonchalantly, he put his hand down to her.."it was about damn time!" she snapped at him..
"You could just say thank you" he smirked and she refused his hand as she quickly got up, dusting herself off as she glanced at the body and watched it disintergate.. She stalked over and grabbed her gun from the ground..
"I hope you enjoyed the show...jerk!" she spun from him but he was in front of her in seconds and just the close proximity made her body tense and begin to swell from so much male heat, so much power, thick and hot..
"I could think of a way you could repay me" he licked his lips and went to touch her long red locks, she moved seconds before he accomplished that act..
"In your dreams McBain!" she snapped at him and then quickly got the hell out of there before she had lost all control..
He was staring at her again as she stood in Bo's office, it was as if he was mentally taking off every article of clothing, it was hard to breath, hard to focus but she knew him all too well and she wasnt going to allow herself to go there even if her body was being traitorous..She quickly looked to Bo.."why is he here" she snapped again, getting angry now but mainly at her own body and how it was betraying her..
"John is helping me on a case" Bo stated flatly and she couldnt help the roll of her eyes..
"helping? Now thats a word that shouldnt be used in the same sentence with him" she said rudely as she refused to look at John.."the only person he helps is himself and you know that"
"you know he is a great ally for us" Bo began and Natalie still couldnt understand how Bo could respect him, I mean it was common knowledge that John only helped when it benefited him even if it was dealing with evil directly. Just a few weeks ago a bunch of rare artifacts had been stolen from a local museum and it had Johns name written all over it even though the local police continued to be baffled as to how the artifacts were taken when the state of art alarm system had never gone off.. John had been the only person so to speak that had the ability to get such items undetected but he would never admit to it..
Natalie made a sound of disgust.."ally my ass!" she said angrily..
"well im sorry you feel that way cause as of right now he is your greatest ally natalie" Bo said seriously as she blinked in shock and looked at him..."say hello to your newest partner"
For a second Natalie had thought she heard him wrong, partner, was he out of his mind! She couldnt even get a word out as she spun and glared at John, she was beyond pissed. He spoke before she could.."You may want to look into anger management sweetheart, I hear it does wonders" he grinned..
"I am not working with him Bo" she snapped in complete and utter shock, there was absolutely no way in hell she would or could work with him, she worked alone, she always had, she preferred it that way and the idea of working with John, needless to say it filled her with rage..
"i told you that she wasnt ready for this" John said dryly but a knowing smirk was on his lips..
"you stay out of this!" Natalie pointed her finger at him and then spun to Bo.."why are you doing this, you know he cant be trusted Bo just a few weeks ago he was caught selling artifacts to a demon!" she yelled out...
"think as you may Natalie but I have made up my mind" Bo said firmly and she gasped in shock again..
"Im not doing it, and you cant make me!" she was absolutely livid as she stood there..
"ouch, now your really hurting my feelings" John interjected with a grin..
Bo looked at him.."why dont you give me a moment with natalie" he said quickly..
"with pleasure" John smiled and quickly left the room, Natalie was enraged but Bo spoke before she could..
"You do not have a say in this Natalie, must I remind you that I make the orders around here, the same ones that you decided to break yourself tonight when you headed out alone" Bo was pissed as he looked at her..
"Your doing this because of tonight!" Natalie could barely see straight she was so mad.."I work alone!"
"NO you dont, you work for me and the next time you put yourself in danger like you did tonight then I will pull you from any or all cases" Bo rumbled loudly and it actually shocked her..He stepped closer.."You are out of control Natalie and your one of my best agents, dont make me strip you of your title"
Natalie gasped.."wow.." she said in shock.."do you even hear yourself Bo, he is the reckless one, he is sworn to protect innocence and he cant even do that right!"
"You live by the same rules and you cant seem to follow them either, if you ask me you make a perfect team with him" Bo said angrily..
"I cant work with him, I cant...give me someone else, anyone else" she began to feel like the walls were closing in on her. Just the mere thought of having to work closely with John was enough to send her into an all out panic attack and she hadnt had one of those in years..
"I made up my mind" Bo turned from her and walked back to his desk..She was reeling.."You could always just go back to your normal life" he said as though he could read her thoughts but she knew he couldnt..And so much for a normal life, she didnt even know what that was anymore and Bo knew it.."Your working with John, like it or not" he finished as he looked at her now..
"fine!" she snapped as she clenched her fist and gritted her teeth hard..
Bo picked up a file off of his desk.."You may want to look this over, it seems a very wealthy human has been dabbling in black magic and some how he has gotten his hands on a very rare book" even though she was still quite pissed right now she stared at him in shock..His look was knowing..
"what book?" she said as she tried to control her anger..
"the book of death" his words made a gasp leave her mouth cause anyone who was anyone in the CDA knew what that book was and what it had meant. It had the ability to cause instant death with merely a look or a gesture and as of minutes ago the book was considered a myth but by the look on Bo's face it was very much real and that idea was sickening cause who ever had that book could ultimately have the power to summon the greatest evil of all, satan himself!
