Dragonslayer (Twilight of the Gods Book 3) Read Free

Although…” She opened the folder and rotated it so he could see. “There is a report here from a few years ago of a wolf in the area.”
    He didn’t try to stifle his laugh. That one was Grace. When she’d first rolled into town, she’d run down a demon. She’d panicked and called the local sheriff, who hadn’t been able to see through the glamour as Grace had. Carl still thought Grace was a little loopy. “It wasn’t a wolf.”
    Jacey looked up sharply, and since he couldn’t tell her that it had actually been a demon, a fire jötunn from Muspelheim by way of Asgard, he said, “German Shepherd. A woman who’d recently moved from the city ran into it on a gravel road. She’d never seen a dog that size before.”
    “The sheriff said wolf.”
    “It had been run over by a car a few times. When they examined it, the vet determined that it was actually a German Shepherd. Is that not in the report?”
    She scowled at the piece of paper in her hands. “You’re sure about that?”
    “I’m sure.” Her disappointment tugged at his heart, but he ignored the sensation. “Sorry. No wolves. They found a mountain lion in Des Moines last year, but they usually don’t make it this far east. Maybe you’ll get lucky and find tracks.”
    “It’s not that.” She gave him a wry grin that brought out the dimple in her cheek. “Just one more thing I had to follow up on. What kind of predator leaves nothing behind?”
    Not any kind she was likely to be familiar with. “You’re the wildlife biologist. What do you think it is?”
    “I guess I’ll have to stick around until I figure that one out.”
    “That’s not all bad,” he said, and then mentally cursed himself. Because it was bad. Really bad. They couldn’t have a Midgardian snooping around, not even one with dimples.
    She blushed and looked down at her drink. “It’s inconvenient. Especially when there’s not a hotel nearby.”
    He felt a fleeting temptation to offer her a bed, but he knew she’d never take him up on the offer. He didn’t really have any experience with normal Midgardian women, but he was pretty sure saying something like that would only make him sound like a creep. There was also the fact that Aiden would kill him for bringing an investigator into town because he was bored and lonely.
    “We’re not much of a tourist destination. I would go back to the highway. Head south for about twenty miles and the motel will be on your right.”
    She pushed her drink aside, still half full. “Well, I’d better get going then. Thanks for your help…”
    “Christian.”
    “Christian.” She smiled fully, a sweet, guileless smile that felt like sunshine on his heart. “It was really nice to meet you.” She nodded at her card. “Call me if you hear anything, okay?”
    He took the card and slipped it into his pocket. “Happy hunting.”
    He watched her swing her ugly coat around her shoulders as she walked toward the door. She braced herself for the cold before pushing the door open. A gust of wind slipped inside as she left, sending a chill over his skin. A moment later, Beth rejoined him.
    “You heard that?”
    “Every word,” Beth said.
    “Keep it to yourself for now. I’ll let Aiden know.”
    Beth took a sip from her drink. “Can’t be a jötunn. Even if one slipped past us, it couldn’t survive that far away from the fault.”
    Especially not since Raquel replaced the wards. He stood up and reached for his coat. Beth’s expression held all the worry he felt.
    When he turned to leave, she put a hand on his arm. “What are we going to do about it?”
    He forced his voice to remain steady. “We find whatever is out there before Ms. Morgan does, and then we kill it for her.”
     
     
    Christian pulled into his driveway and sighed when he saw the light through the curtains. Company. There was no car parked out front, which meant it was someone who lived close and didn’t mind walking. He had a pretty good idea who it was, and for a