Domiel

Domiel

Dawn McClure

Published 2012

ISBN 978-1-59578-943-3

Published by Liquid Silver Books, imprint of Atlantic Bridge Publishing, 10509 Sedgegrass Dr, Indianapolis, Indiana 46235. Copyright © 2012, Dawn McClure. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author.

Manufactured in the United States of America

Liquid Silver Books

http://LSbooks.com

This is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents and dialogues in this book are of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is completely coincidental.

Blurb

An old enemy resurfaces…

After being possessed by demons in what everyone refers to as The Incident, Kelsey is determined to get back on the streets as an assassin. Having worked for the Alliance—a group of elite vampire and demonic assassins—for over seven hundred years, she doesn’t doubt her return—until an old enemy makes a comeback. He frames her with his own sinful actions, forcing her to go rogue to clear her name.

An unexpected mission changes everything…

As a new demonic assassin in the Alliance, Domiel is expected to take training seriously. Unfortunately, his training comes in second to temptations of the flesh. Though he’s known as an irresistible Casanova, the one woman who interests him is the only one who continually snubs him. Ironically, his first mission is to find his elusive lady and return her to Alliance Headquarters for questioning.

An unlikely partnership…

In a matter of hours Domiel’s mission changes from apprehending Kelsey to assassinating her, putting him in a damned uncomfortable position. Problem is, he starts to believe her when she claims her innocence. Together they must track down an incubus while avoiding the trained assassins of the Alliance. And if there’s one thing both newbie and veteran know, it’s that no one escapes the Alliance.

Chapter One

Alliance Headquarters

Highlands, Scotland

Jade had lost her damned mind.

“Down!”

Kelsey bent at the elbows on command, kept her back and legs straight, and prayed Jade would get struck by lightning. The Alliance, made up of the elite of the vampire and demonic species, policed their kind to keep order within the immortal sector. Having been one of the Alliance’s assassins for over seven hundred years, she’d never been pushed this far in training. They’d started at the crack of dawn, and it was now past midnight.

Shit.
She was just making excuses for being out of shape. She glanced to the male on her right, his shoulders and biceps flexed as he stayed in the position Jade had commanded. No, he wasn’t gasping for breath as she was, and she’d bet her daggers he wasn’t even close.

Lightning lit the sky, illuminating the ancient castle to the right of the training field, visible just over the male’s back. Her home for nearly eight hundred years, her prison for the past few months.

With her peripheral vision Kelsey caught sight of Jade, a fellow assassin and now lead trainer for the Alliance, walk down the line of assassins, at least a hundred in attendance. Kelsey had to give it up to the bitch. Jade made for a damn fine trainer—if not completely out of her fucking mind.

Catching Jade’s gaze was the last thing Kelsey needed, so she studied the mud right under her nose. In an attempt to take her mind off her pathetically shaking arms, she watched a lonesome ant struggle to keep its head above water in a small puddle. Its legs flailed, doing an insect replica of the doggy paddle before giving up and sinking beneath the murky water.
I feel you, buddy
.

One of Jade’s black boots landed in the puddle, the backsplash causing muddy water to stab Kelsey’s eyes and drip from her chin.

At least the ant had been put out of its misery.

Jade nudged Kelsey’s hands further apart with the tip of her dirty, black boot. “Get your nose to the ground, Kels, no excuses. Who do you think I am, Tony-fucking-Little? Get your ass out of the air!”

The impromptu thrashing had come directly from Jade, who’d come to the conclusion her assassins were getting soft—at one thirty in the morning, only forty minutes after she’d ended their evening session. She’d put her military boot down on every assassin in residence at the Alliance Headquarters, demon and vampire, newbies and veterans.

It didn’t help Jade’s ego problem that she now had the powers of an angel.

“Up!”

Kelsey briefly imagined freeing her Glock and swinging the barrel toward that annoying voice as Jade sauntered away. Too bad Kelsey was in her Victoria’s Secret pink sweats sans weapons. She had to remind herself that Jade remained one of her closest friends, so instead of daydreaming about tagging the bitch in the back with a bullet, she settled on gritting her teeth in anger and determination. Her arms burned as she straightened her elbows, pushing away from the ground.

The hand-to-hand combat training yesterday had left Kelsey with bruises up and down her body and a broken arm when she’d collapsed into bed earlier. Even though she was a vampire, her body needed time to heal, and yet Jade’s crazy ass had come charging through the castle barracks, waking everyone up for this crap.

For the better half of a year Kelsey had been training with the newbies like a pitiable loser. Her motto had come to be “
Any day now”
. She had to pass inspection this month and convince Ambrose that she was “of sound mind”—using his words. Otherwise she’d be stuck at Headquarters, which wouldn’t get her any closer to finding the demon haunting her. Time was running out. She could feel it.

“Down!”

The sound of rocks crunching beneath boots overrode the noise of the storm, and Kelsey held back a cringe when Jade marched up to her again and crouched down.
This can’t be good.

“Use your powers and wake that piece of shit demon up. If he’s not out here in two minutes you’ll all be doing this until the sun comes up.”

Kelsey didn’t have to ask who Jade referred to. Domiel, a new demonic recruit, was known for being late, though tonight he was a complete no-show. The demon had a knack for getting caught with his pants down.
Literally.

She immediately went belly down in the mud, grateful the POS flunky was giving her exhausted muscles a break so she could follow Jade’s order. Using her special ability to connect to Domiel’s stream of thought, she connected to him quickly because he was asleep—just as Jade had predicted.

Ready to infiltrate his dream like a crazed Mel Gibson in Mad Max, she pulled up short when his subconscious roared to life before her.

A sexual, passionate fantasy with a long-legged, redheaded woman momentarily shocked Kelsey. The chick was straddling him while he sat on a plush chair. Dressed up in black go-go boots, a maid’s apron, and nothing else, she was seriously going to town on the demon.

Their slick bodies came together in a rhythm Kelsey hadn’t experienced since before her possession. Domiel’s strong arms were wrapped around the woman’s slender waist, holding her tight. She rested on his powerful thighs, her pale skin in contrast to his golden. His head thrown back and his features locked in a vision of unrelenting ecstasy caused Kelsey to take a deep breath.

The sight of Domiel’s fantasy raised Kelsey’s heartbeat more effectively than Jade’s thorough thrashing. He looked every bit the demonic stud his reputation suggested. He’d cut his black hair short, practically into a Marine’s high and tight. His face and body were chiseled from the training sessions he
had
shown up for, and his corded muscles strained as the female worked him. Utterly breathtaking. She couldn’t take her gaze off him.

The tenderness with which he held the female captivated Kelsey the most. His large palms stroked her glistening skin. With a passionate sigh the woman angled her face toward his. His eyes were closed when they kissed, his features drawn together as if he were relishing his time with this woman.

Strange.
He’d slept with half the Alliance. She didn’t think he cared for a single one of his screws. He went through lovers like a druggy on crack, either searching for his next hit or in the process of taking one, his mind always on his addiction. Hell, word around headquarters said he’d even got a tat right above his dick that bragged in bold, black letters,
I feel a sin coming on.

And yet he looked to be savoring this particular dream girl.

Kelsey cleared her throat, touching just the edge of his dream state to alert him of her presence. She had no desire to get up close and personal while he and his fantasy woman reached orgasm—which by the way they were moaning, could be any second now.

When his light golden gaze found Kelsey standing there, he only smiled. He obviously didn’t think she truly stood there in his subconscious. He likely believed his fantasy was about to get a whole lot kinkier.
Not
happening. “Hey, get your ass onto the training field. Jade is thrashing the crap out of us, and you’re—”

The redhead turned around, and it was like looking into a mirror.

Shock hit her so powerfully it took her a full minute for her mind to wrap around the obvious. He was fantasizing about
her
. With red hair—and a tacky tramp stamp on her lower back.

For a few seconds she couldn’t move, could only stare at the two of them as her mind did flip flops and her mouth hung open. With an arrogant flick of his wrist he invited her to join the subconscious sex fest, and she nearly vomited in her mouth.

“Wake up and get your ass to the training field.” She pulled out of his dream so hard and fast, she inhaled a great deal of mud, and God knew what else, up her nose and into her mouth. Hopefully the ant had pulled a Houdini and made an escape. Otherwise…

Sputtering, she came to her feet and coughed until her throat burned raw. The rain seemed to come down harder, the wind blew with arctic intention, and the lightning flashed brighter than before she’d used her powers—before she’d witnessed the pathetic sexual fantasies of a manwhore. Or so it seemed. Was she in shock? Sensory overload?

“Is he coming or not?” Jade yelled over the rumble of the storm, oblivious to Kelsey’s gagging.

Oh, he was coming all right—with her as his sexual fantasy chick. He’d never hit on her, nor showed any interest whatsoever. Not that she’d hit
that
. Nothing more than a walking erection on ecstasy, Domiel couldn’t keep it in his pants, and ninety percent of the females in the Alliance would concur. The other ten percent were either involved in a relationship or favored their own sex.

“Well?”

Kelsey swiped some of the mud from her face as she turned to Jade. There really wasn’t anything she wouldn’t do for Jade—one of her closest friends—but now was
not
the time to fuck with her. Before Kelsey could tell her to piss off, Alexia came running up to them, out of breath and cheeks slightly pink. “Kels, Ambrose wants to speak with you.”

Jade merely quirked a brow at Kelsey, obviously not aware of how close Kelsey was to beating her down into the mud. The three of them had been members of the Alliance for centuries, as tight as sisters, and it wouldn’t be the first time they’d brawled. In fact, they’d each sported bruises and broken bones for far less.

Throughout the years they’d fought their way to the top of the Alliance, Jade becoming a lead trainer, Alexia a leading assassin, and Kelsey … well, she’d fallen off the wagon thanks to a run of bad luck and a demon who—if she had anything to do with it—wouldn’t live out the rest of the month.

She turned to leave with Alexia, thankful for anything to get the hell out of there. The training with Jade was bad enough, but she wanted to be long gone when Domiel finally dragged his slutty ass to the field.

Besides, it looked like Ambrose had finally decided to end this training bullshit for her. Not two days ago she’d confronted him about putting her back on the streets, knowing if she didn’t find the demon who’d come to her during her possession, she might lose him. Ambrose had tried reading her mind at the time, and his probing had prompted her to put up a block. Instead of continuing the conversation, he’d acted pissed off.

I guess I read him wrong
. She practically skipped off of the training field, no longer caring about the rain pelting her skin or the raunchy fantasies of a newly-fallen demon.

When they passed the bushes lining the castle walls, Alexia roughly pulled her aside, honing in on Kelsey’s injured arm. “Ow! What the hell are you doing?”

Alexia’s gaze shifted to the castle and back to hers. “Get the hell out of Dodge, and I mean
now
. Don’t take your cell with you, because they can track it. Just go recon and get the hell out of here. I overheard Ambrose talking to Sven and Roger, and they’re going to issue an order to have you questioned. Something about murdering innocents in Paris. You need to get your ass over there and clear your name.”