Shadow's Caress. Patti O'Shea

close for the night.

      It went quickly. They’d worked together long enough to cruise through the process of shutting things down, and with the ghost finally gone, Cass wasn’t distracted.

      Genevieve’s boyfriend picked her up, but they waited until Cass was in her car before they drove off. She gave them a quick wave as they left and reached for the ignition. Nothing happened. Her heart sped up. It was dark, the parking lot was deserted and the idea of being stuck here didn’t give her the warm fuzzies.

      Cass turned the key again. Still nothing.

      Reluctantly, she popped the hood and opened her door. She didn’t know much about engines, but maybe something was loose and she could slide it back into place. She gingerly jiggled a few cables, but everything seemed connected.

      “Piece of crap,” she said and slammed the hood shut. For an instant she considered giving the tire a kick, but her sneakers wouldn’t keep her from breaking a toe.

      A shimmery warmth filled her and she realized the ghost had returned. “You know,” she told him, “you could be useful and wield some poltergeist powers to get my engine started.” Nothing. “Yeah, that’s what I figured.”

      Leaning her hips against the grille, Cass tried to remember whether any of her friends had brothers or boyfriends who knew how to fix engines. The squeal of tires made her straighten and look up. She turned in time to see a pickup truck come skidding around the corner of the big department store.

      Cass hurried around the hood. Get in the car. She needed to be inside with her cell phone, ready to call 9-1-1.

      The other vehicle’s headlights were off. That wasn’t good. Her stomach knotted.

      The truck passed beneath a light and a glint caught her eye. What made her freeze, though, was the man on the passenger side. He looked familiar. That couldn’t be—

      Hands pushed her to the ground and Cass felt a warm weight settle over her.

      Gunfire erupted.

      She flinched and the man on top of her curved his body around hers.

      Something—a bullet maybe—hit asphalt near her face, sending a spray of debris her way. She closed her eyes and brought her hands up to shield herself.

      Tires squealed again and the engine roared as the driver gunned it. Cass lifted her head and saw the shooters leaving at high speed. She started to shake. So she’d been a vampire hunter, big deal. No one had ever shot at her before. If this guy hadn’t shown up and pushed her to the ground, she might be dead.

      His weight eased off her and Cass got to her hands and knees. “Hey, thanks. I guess I locked up there for a second.” She climbed to her feet slowly, giving her legs a chance to stop trembling. “But when I saw that gun and the man holding it—”

      Cass stopped short, blinked hard and looked again. Her savior wasn’t some passing good Samaritan, it was her ghost. She recognized his energy—only he wasn’t looking quite so spectral at the moment. He remained mostly translucent, but she could see him. She took in the tousled light brown hair, the handsome face, the vivid blue eyes, and gasped.

      The last vampire she’d slain had just saved her life.