Demon Huntress

Well, she took care of Shu lan's mom when she was pregnant with Shu lan."

"Then you know she's half-demon."

"My mother had sensed a demon pregnancy," she said carefully.

Ming jie smiled, nearly taking her breath away. "Get in the car. We have a lot to talk about."

Shu lan sagged against the front door, shaking uncontrollably, as though she was coming off a drinking binge to put college kids to shame. She covered her mouth with her hand as her stomach rolled and rebelled. Why would Ming jie lie like that?

Because he's a demon. Duh.

So why had his words hit her on a level so deep she couldn't climb back out of the pit she'd sunk into?

Think back to when you were a kid.

She didn't want to, but everything that had separated her from the other kids came crashing back. She'd been stronger. Faster. She'd read others' emotions by the odors they gave off. Her need for vitamin C

had been overwhelming and crippling at times, something doctors had never understood or explained.

Not that any of those things were proof of what Ming jie claimed. No way was she the spawn of hell. It wasn't possible. She'd have felt it somehow. She'd have known.

So why had she kept her exceptional vision, hearing, and strength a secret from everyone including her mother and, especially, The Berus? Deep down, had she suspected?

No.

Fury exploded inside her, and she put her fist through the flimsy door. Ming jie had made her question her beliefs about demons, her loyalty to The Berus, and now, her very heritage.

"You bastard," she shouted, but she didn't know if she was cursing at Ming jie or whatever had fathered her, human or demon.

All she knew was that she needed to kill something. And unlike earlier when she hadn't taken Ming jie down where he stood, this time, she'd show no mercy.

Ming jie gripped the steering wheel hard and tried to ignore his body's needs as he worked Ren fu for information. He'd left Shu lan mired in confusion, rage, and harsh truths, but the image of how she'd looked was burned into his brain, leaving him in a state of s.e.x.u.a.l frustration. It was a curse of his species that once they were aroused, release was all they could think about.

"Tell me everything you know about Shu lan," he said, pulling onto the interchange that would take him toward Greenwich Village where Ren fu lived. "Was her mother human?"

"Yes, she was."

"Then, if your mother sensed the demon pregnancy, why was Shu lan not destroyed or fostered at birth?"

As Namtar demons, Ren fu's parents' ability to detect demon blood in humans allowed them to sense pregnancies that would result in half-breeds. They then took care of the infants accordingly.

"When Shu lan was born, there was no indication that she was part demon. Once her mother gave birth, the demon vibes disappeared." Ren fu smoothed her hands down her t.h.i.g.hs as though her black fishnets were wrinkled. Her micromini leather skirt wasn't, for damned sure. "Ming jie, I've been checking up on Shu lan for years. I've never sensed the demon in her. I thought maybe Shu lan's mother had some demon blood in her from way back in her family tree, and that's what my mom had sensed. But tonight I felt it in Shu lan." She paused for a moment. "Something's not right."

No, something wasn't right, including Ren fu's explanation, but for now, he let it go. "I think her demon DNA never fully integrated with the human. A bite from an Alu probably triggered activation of dormant genes." He glanced over at her. "Why would you be checking up on her over the years?"

"Curiosity."

Again, her explanation didn't ring true. "Why so curious tonight?"

She sank her teeth into her lower lip in a way that reminded him of Shu lan. Which set off a blast of heat in his body that couldn't be hotter if he were standing next to a lava beast.

"My parents are missing," she said. "I think The Berus is involved."

Gods, the Berus had its fingers in more pies than a baker. "And you were what? Going to kidnap Shu lan?"

"If that's what it took to get some answers," she said, pinning him with a look that said he'd best not lift a finger to defend Shu lan. "And I will get those answers."

Son of a bitch. The list of those who wanted Shu lan strung up grew longer by the hour. And that didn't make him happy, dammit. "Why do you think The Berus took your parents?"

"Because someone is killing demons and selling their parts on the underworld market, and you know damned good and well The Berus is responsible. My parents are being held as leverage."

A chill ran down his spine. "Leverage for what?"

Her ominous pause made the chill spread to the rest of his body. "They want me to work for them. To remove the parts that'll be sold. Obviously, they've expanded their operation and need more help to harvest the parts. That's why I've been trying to contact you. To see what you knew. But I ran out of time today when they called and said they had my parents."

"Bastards."

"That's a nicer word than I've been using to describe them." She threw her head back against the headrest and stared at the roof. Her small b.r.e.a.s.ts jutted forward, the dark valley just visible beneath the neckline of her crimson corset top. Creamy, lightly freckled swells pushed up with each breath, the way Shu lan's had when he had her on the bed, working her into a passionate frenzy.

The temporary cool-down his body had experienced a moment ago only made the sudden flare of heat even more marked. Flames licked at his skin and burned deep into the muscle, the bone.