Blood Slave: A Realm Walker Novel Read Free

best friend and it was Juliana’s fault she was dead. Juliana had been hunting a sadistic serial killer and kidnapper that went by the Thief. Too late, she had discovered her partner on the case, Detective Warren Taft, and the Thief were one and the same. Thomas kept trying to convince her that she wasn’t to blame for his sister’s death, but it was difficult to believe that when the killer himself told Juliana he’d done it because of her. Rachel, her niece, wasn’t buying it either. Juliana shook her head to clear it. “I’m going to square my weapons away and get the hell out of here.”
    After trudging up the hill, she knelt down to dismantle the gun and put it back in the case. She deliberately ignored the blue light that lit the area from the portal. Nathaniel was lead, it was his job to deal with the techs and she’d gladly let him do it. After making sure her sword hung comfortably across her back, she picked up the case and made her way back to the clearing to find Nathaniel baby talking to the zombie dog.
    “I’m headed home, boss man.”
    He gave her a lopsided smile. “Don’t forget, you’re on rookie detail in the morning.”

Chapter Two
     
     
    By the time Juliana stepped out of the portal in front of the Roma hotel, her eyes were raw as if she’d been through a sandstorm and her lids kept drifting shut. Sparing only a brief moment to wonder if anyone would notice if she curled up in the chair right inside the door and went to sleep, she trudged through the ornate lobby. Her dirt covered clothing and the weapons she carried fit in far better on a battlefield than the middle of a five star hotel. She always felt out of place amidst the opulence of the Roma, but never more so than right after she finished a job.  Though, with all the practice she’d been getting lately, she was doing better at ignoring the disdainful looks from the paying guests.
    After she told Nathaniel she was headed home, she’d been waylaid by the M.E., then by one of the techs, and then an agent. On and on it went. Trying to get everyone to talk to Nathaniel instead had been a pointless exercise as the werewolf had been too busy making kissy faces at his new pet to pay attention to anything around him. The only time she saw him even acknowledge anyone else’s presence was when he snapped at the techs that approached and tried to take the mutt. The last she’d seen it, it had been curled up against Nathaniel’s chest, sleeping. If zombies slept. Hell if she knew.
    It was now over two hours after she’d originally intended to come home.  The three hours of sleep she’d had the night before was catching up to her. She ran a hand down her face in an effort to wipe away the bone-numbing exhaustion. It didn’t work. In fact, probably all it accomplished was making mud from the dirt on her hands and the sweat on her face. No one would ever accuse her of being the epitome of beauty and grace that was for certain.
    Nicholas the concierge materialized in front of her as she neared the front desk, though he didn’t phase in completely. From the waist up he was as solid as anyone else, below that he was just wisps of smoke. He floated backward as she walked. If she hadn’t been expecting it, it would have scared the crap out of her. In fact, the first time he’d done it, she shrieked in surprise. Now that she knew he was merely projecting an image of himself to her and wasn’t actually half-disembodied, she’d calmed down. It still unsettled her, but at least now she knew what he was doing.
    No matter the time of day when she returned to the hotel, Nicholas greeted her personally. He’d been told repeatedly it wasn’t necessary but he obviously wasn’t going to listen so she didn’t bother anymore.
    “Welcome home, Ms. Norris. Is there anything I can provide for you this evening?”
    She gave him a little smile. “No, thank you, Nicholas. I just want to go to bed.”
    He nodded once and disappeared. Nicholas was an