So confident.

Why was she so afraid?

They stared at the trees and the fog that drifted from the swamp. Insects chirped and called out. The heavy odor of vegetation filled the air.

Heather approached Jade. The witch pulled out a gun and pushed it into Jade’s back. It had better still be unloaded. She’d checked the gun right before they parked. No bullets. At least, there hadn’t been any in the chamber then.

“Move,” Heather told her, but the word broke with nervousness.

Jade exhaled heavily and started walking. Az was beside her, being “pushed” forward by Tanner. They went straight ahead, going deep, deeper into the swamp. As they walked, the calls of the insects began to die away even as the fog thickened around them.

Maybe the insects sensed the predators in their midst.

Shadows began to move in the fog. Big, menacing. Growls reached her ears. Those were the same growls that she heard in her nightmares.

A pond waited up ahead. The water lapped lightly against the shore.

Laughter drifted in the air. Cold, cruel. The sound made her spine snap even straighter.

Then Brandt stalked toward them, seeming to just appear in the heavy layer of fog. He was smiling and his eyes were on her. “I missed you, baby,” he said. The words were those of a lover. The claws that ripped from his fingertips were the weapons of a beast.

The barrel of Heather’s gun shoved harder into her back. “I want my money!” The witch’s frantic call. Heather should really try playing this thing cooler.

Slowly, Brandt’s gaze trekked from Jade’s face to the witch. He took another step toward them. One more. His eyes narrowed on Heather. “I suppose it’s a good thing you lived. You have proven useful over the years.”

Okay, now that gun was jabbing Jade so hard that it hurt. “I guess we were both more than just pieces of trash to be thrown away.” Now this came from Tanner. Az wasn’t speaking. He was just glaring at Brandt as if he were marking the panther for death, which he probably was.

Brandt smiled at Tanner. “Welcome back, brother.”

Jade’s gaze flew to the cop. His claws were out and at Az’s throat.

Then Brandt clapped his hands together. A guy with a big, black bag came running toward them. “Payment,” Brandt said with a wide smile, “for a job well done.” He pointed at Jade. “You led me on a nice chase, but the hunt’s over now.”

He shouldn’t be so calm. Jade clenched her hands and refused to show fear. Brandt should have caught the mixed scents by now. He should be enraged. Not mocking and controlled.

Brandt tossed the duffel bag through the air. It landed in front of Jade’s feet. The barrel of the gun was immediately removed from her back. Heather scrambled around and grabbed the bag. She jerked it open.

Nothing was inside.

Heather’s head whipped back. “What the hell are you trying to do?” Her gun lifted and pointed at him. The barrel shook.

“Since when does a witch need to use a human weapon?” Brandt asked, voice flat. “Why not just use a spell to knock out your captives?”

Because they hadn’t been willing to play that way. Heather had sure wanted to use her magic mojo, but Jade hadn’t been willing to run the risk. The witch could just kill them while they were out. No, thank you.

“Because he can’t be knocked out,” it was Tanner’s snarl that answered Brandt.

Jade slipped back a step. Her right hand began to rise slowly. Not time to pull her own weapon, not yet.

“You know he’s not human.” Tanner’s claws had drawn blood. The red drops slid down Az’s throat. “He can resist Heather’s magic.”

Brandt’s nostrils flared as he studied Az. “Who are you? Why the hell are you in this fight?”

Because she’d pulled him into it. Because—

“I’m the man who made Jade scream last night.”

Oh, ahem, yeah, but she’d made him shout, too.

Brandt’s claws lengthened. She saw a muscle jerk along his jaw. Finally, his control was showing signs of cracking. “I will make you wish for death.” A promise he’d carried out before, to others.

Even when she’d begged him to stop.

Begged and fought, but Jade hadn’t been strong enough to help.

This time, things would be different.

“You’re not doing this to me again!” Heather threw the bag back at him. “I did my part. I brought them here, now I want my money!” Power, magic, seemed to vibrate in the air around her.

“Walk away, Heather,” Brandt told her softly. “While you have the chance, just turn and walk out of here.”