A cop who tosses the rulebooks to get his way…
Ian McCready doesn’t care for Alice Capshaw’s opinions about his version of justice. Her humanity makes her off-limits, but that does nothing to lessen his overwhelming desire for her. To Alice, Ian is just another bad cop as detestable as the one who destroyed her family. She’s attracted to him, yes, but he threatened his way into her agency’s murder case and has too many secrets.
When a new case resurrects ghosts Ian believed long dead and buried, his law-bending ways might result in his execution. The second Alice becomes a target, his cold heart flares into blinding existence. But following the law for her sake may end with devastating results.
Information:
Title: Bad Cop
Author: Angela McCallister
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Length: 215 pages
Release Date: October 2013
ISBN: 978-1-62266-338-5
Imprint: Covet
Praise for Bad Cop:
Angela McCallister has a special talent for bringing the readers right into the heart of the characters and she’s only just getting started!
– Grave Tells
Excerpt:
© 2013 Angela McCallister
Chapter One
If Alice Capshaw’s morning got any worse, she’d need to invest in more life insurance. Pulling at the only work-appropriate boot she could find, she hopped down the darkened hallway toward the living room. The mate to it had to be around there somewhere. A protruding lip of carpet at the entry caught her toe, and her knees hit the floor. The impact hammered her kneecaps, the ancient, thinning carpet doing little to cushion them.
“Why, why, why?” Alice rolled onto her rear to assess the damage. Her knees were only skinned, but the leggings were toast. With a curse, she kicked off her boot and peeled off the offending garment. No time to dig out another pair. She wanted so dearly to call in sick, but she’d used her sick leave.
No matter what she tried, she overslept. Three highly obnoxious alarms didn’t do the trick to wake her. Her stress-induced depression was officially bleeding into her professional life.
Pushing to her feet, she felt something at her fingertips and peeked under the edge of the battered couch.
Aha!
Of course her other boot would be under there in a completely different room from its mate. That made total sense. After slipping it on, she limped to the hall closet for her purse and lightweight, wool peacoat, slinging them on as she sailed out the door.
Navigating the stairs of her dilapidated apartment building was a near disaster. Her feet moved too fast for the rest of her. Tumbling the rest of the way was a strong possibility, but bare contact with the floor would require tetanus shots so she kept a death grip on the rail. By the time she reached the lobby, her lungs heaved like a set of bellows and burned as if the fire were inside them. Maybe she should take Piper up on the invite to Zumba on Wednesdays. No doubt she needed to get out more and could apparently use the exercise.
Dread tightened into a lead ball in her stomach as she rushed to the Vampire Liaison Office. Over two hours late and the morning was nearly gone. If she lost this job, it would crush her. Her work was the only thing keeping her above the cusp of poverty. Even with her renters, she’d lose her double-mortgaged childhood home for sure, not to mention her ratty apartment.
In the VLO elevator, she focused on deep breathing to fight off her rising panic. Maybe a life of crime would suit her well if she left the building minus her job. At least she’d look great in a catsuit. That image was immediately followed by how she’d look in bright orange and behind bars. Not so great. And then who would be there to take care of Zach?
A muffler on her racing thoughts would be nice. Waking with a headache and a completely numb scalp had to be a bad sign. Any second, the dizzy spells would start in. She weaved around the plain cubicles on the floor, avoiding eye contact with the few people not at their stations. When she made it to her desk in the open space at the far end of the room, a note from Val requesting her presence waited for her.
Unlike Human Resources, her boss had never made an issue of her tardiness. Alice had often worked evenings and on-call to facilitate the fact the VLO dealt with legal issues, regulations, and enforcement regarding vampire society, the Immortalis. But maybe she’d pushed Val too many times with her lack of punctuality.
This was it. Zach would get booted from his private facility. Where would he go? Ah, there’s the dizziness. Alice leaned against the edge of her desk until it passed. Blinds blocked her view into Val’s office so she had no sneak peek as she approached.
Hands shaking, she pressed the door handle and entered. Her boss glanced up through her fall of long, blond hair, and Alice smiled at her, though it was impossible to gauge Val’s mood. This would be a great time to become a missing person.
Just pretend it’s okay. Nothing happened. It’s a normal day, and you’re not suffering the early birthing pains of an anxiety attack.
“So, how’s the bloodsucking business going?” she asked with a cheer that belied her state of mind.
Val pushed aside a massive stack of files that dwarfed her petite frame and motioned for Alice to take a seat. No smile. No greeting. Okay, definitely not a good sign. As she perched on the wide leather seat in front of the desk, she peered out the picture window overlooking downtown Seattle. Buildings obstructed the view, but it didn’t matter. The scenery wasn’t on her mind.
“Late again?” Val asked.
Alice had known this would happen eventually. Her heart rate climbed, and she clamped her fingers over the edge of her seat like a vise. “It was a terrible morning. The worst luck. If a black cat had crossed my path, it would’ve died.”
Val laughed hard enough to double over in her chair, and a frisson of relief eased along Alice’s nerves. “I’ll be sure to stay away from wherever you’re walking.”
Her bated breath whooshed out. “You scared the crap out of me. I thought you were handing me a pink slip.”
“No, no, no.” Val glowered indignantly. “Like I would do that to you. Is that why you went white as a sheet?”
“I’m always white as a sheet.” Sinking into her chair, Alice pushed back the dark hair obstructing her view. “Then why the grim face?”
Val tapped her pen rapidly against the desktop. “I’m nervous.”
“And now I’m scared for real. What’s going on? You’ve got a long time before Kade’s inducting you into vampiredom. It’s too early to get nervous about that.” She’d been sure Val would never falter in her loathing of vampires, but then her boss had met Kade, the only vampire who could break through that animosity. They’d fallen fast and hard for each other while hunting down some crazed, murdering vampires, and she decided to transform into one of the Immortalis. The woman had lost her damned mind to go to that length for a man.
“I have a huge favor to ask, and you’re not going to like it.”
“You haven’t even asked, and I already don’t like it.” Alice shifted forward again, her nerves lighting up at Val’s reticence. “What’s so bad?”
“I’m taking an extended leave of absence. No one knows my job better than you. I’d like you to step in while I’m gone. It’ll be a long absence.”
“You can’t leave.” Alice was sure her chin would have rug burn, as big a surprise as this was. Val was the most driven VLO agent Alice had ever encountered.
“I have to.”
“Why? Are they booting you out already? They can’t do that. You’re not a vampire yet.”
Val hesitated, but then the tension eased from her posture. “I’m three months pregnant.”
“Seriously?” Alice jumped from her seat and squeezed Val’s hand. “Congratulations. Wow. Who’s the father?”
With a wide smile, she batted Alice’s hand away. “Ha-ha. Very funny. Anyway, with the tensions between the two Immortalis castes, security’s a huge problem. I’m going into sort of a lockdown-slash-paradise where I’ll be fawned over by a crass, perverted vampire with a sweet side I have to dig around to find.”
“Does this mean Kade’s moving you to Glacier?” Alice barely registered Val’s assent while she processed what was happening. Kade’s estate in the wilds of Glacier was hours and hours from Seattle. That meant she would basically manage VLO operations alone.
Being a liaison and enforcement chief to the vampire’s dual-caste culture was difficult enough, but the strife between Dominorum and Legio vampires would be the least of her problems. That wasn’t what gave her goose bumps at the prospect of stepping in as Vice Director of the VLO.
“Val—”
“Before you answer, let me give you the details.” She talked quickly, as if a break in speech might give Alice a chance to shoot down the offer. Which was exactly what she’d planned to do. “It’s only temporary, and I’ve squared away all the issues I could before I leave. New agreements between the VLO andImmortalis are set up. Audits have been done on the application procedures for vampire transformation. It should be calm and peaceful as usual.”
Alice opened her mouth to respond, but Val cut her off again.
“There’s a fat raise.”
“A raise?” Her attention perked. Well, that changed things.
“Yes. You’re pay goes up to $102,000 per year. And Alice, it’ll be about a year.” She pressed her hands together tightly, a sure indication of her nerves. “And you get to pick your own executive assistant.”
“My own mini-me?” Alice bit into her lip. This could stave away all her financial problems. She could catch up with her mortgages, and her worries about Zach’s care could be postponed. The pay raise was more than $40,000 over what she made.
On the flip side, it would mean working with law-enforcement officers, the most myopic, crooked pack of swaggering cocks ever spawned. Not that Val wasn’t an agent, but she didn’t feel like one to Alice. Val had respect for the law and didn’t get hung up on her own power.
“I’m not qualified. I don’t have a degree.”
“Don’t need one,” Val said. “Trust me. I considered that, but you’ve worked here longer than I have and know my duties inside and out. You’re the one who fills in when I’m on leave. You know every agency I collaborate with. It’s not like my criminal justice degree has come into use here. It’s been on-the-job training, most of it from you. Come on, Alice. I need you.”
“You know I hate—”
“Yes, I know. I promise you won’t have to deal with law enforcement much at all. Mostly by e-mail or phone or videoconference, when you must. You can do this. You’re the only one I trust to do this for me.”
“What if I run into trouble?”
“Ever heard of a phone?” Val’s wry smile knocked her over the edge of her inner debate. She didn’t have much choice. It was a huge opportunity to dig out of the money pit she’d sunken into. Zach’s care cost nearly ninety grand, the total climbing every year. If she hadn’t received money from her parent’s trust for some of it, she might have knocked over a bank long ago.
On the down side, apart from a small amount of contact with the VLO’s own SWAT, Alice hadn’t done much beyond long-distance correspondence with the other enforcement agencies. Val’s absence would change that. There were inane meetings to attend, joint conferences, investigations. It wasn’t like she was afraid of cops. She just hated them from top to bottom, all of them. For such a glittery pay raise, though, she’d learn to wear mouth guards.
“All right. Where do I sign?” God, she couldn’t believe she was desperate enough for this.
Val happy danced in her seat. “Yes!”
“You’re being ridiculous.”
“See? No one else here would have the guts to tell me that. You won’t regret this.”
She tucked her hair behind her ear again. “Honey, regret is where I live.”
A few pages of paperwork slid in front of her. “Just some forms,” Val said.
“Well you came prepared.”
Her boss didn’t miss a beat. “Yep. So who’s going to be your mini-me?”
“Oh, that’s easy. Can I get Piper?”
“Sure. I’ll take care of that on the way out. She works in Admin, right? You’re not just choosing her for moral support, are you?”
“Why else?”
Val laughed as she rose from her chair and grabbed her jacket. For the first time, Alice noted the jeans and sweatshirt her boss wore in place of her usual business casual attire.
“Wait. You’re leaving now?”
“Uh-huh. I have to go, but call me if you need anything.”
“What good would that do? You’ll just screen your calls.”
She waved as she backed out of the office, no doubt making a hasty escape before Alice changed her mind. Now that she had a chance to look around, she noticed Val’s personal items, pictures and such, were all cleared out. That little Tinker Bell had been too damn sure she would agree to this arrangement. Well, her boss hadn’t been wrong.
She flipped through the top files in the stack Val had left. Vampire transformation applications. They’d all been processed. With the agreements between humans and Immortalis in place, she wouldn’t have to manually process any herself. At least Val left breathing room to adjust to the new position. She relaxed into the cozy seat behind the desk when the phone rang, and she answered out of sheer habit.
“VLO. Valerie Craig’s office.” Oops. That would take conscious effort to correct. It was her office for a while.
“Hey, Alice. It’s Gunner. I’ve got a murder vic, a freshly turned, brand spankin’ new vampire. Tell Val to get her ass down here with her investigators. The scene’s secure.”
Alice’s panic bubbled back up. She’d met Gunner, a Washington State policeman, but a cop was a cop, and he never seemed to be in a good humor. “Uhm. Actually, Val’s taking a leave of absence. I’m her replacement.”
“Oh.” He only paused a moment. “Then you get your ass down here. And you’d better be quick about it before the Legion gets their fangs into the case.”
In a state of numbness, Alice took down the address before hanging up. Someone had put a curse on her. In all the time she’d worked for the VLO, the string of human murders a few months ago had been the only trouble to pop up. Why’d this happen the day Val left?
The enforcement part of the job had always been close to nil, considering how rarely crime involvingImmortalis was committed. Normally, she could leave it to the detectives, but as Val’s case had demonstrated, a crime of murder magnitude required a hands-on approach from the Vice Director. Her. She knew all the steps in directing an investigation, even indoctrinated two Vice Directors into the job, but there was no avoiding the facts. If the victim wasn’t a rogue, she was expected to deal directly with theImmortalis. More specifically, the Legion Trackers. Maybe Guns had the right idea, and she could put them off. At least until she left the crime scene.
After calling out the CSI team, she reached for her coat and purse while a chilly foreboding crept into her. Accepting this position may have been the worst decision of her life, and she wasn’t altogether sure the fat pay would be worth it.
If day one was any indication, this was going to be a long damned year in hell.
Chapter Two
Ian’s blood boiled. Ignorant humans. He resisted the urge to throw them around like bowling pins. They had no business being at the scene of a vampire’s murder. It shouldn’t have taken all damned day before the Legion Trackers learned of the situation from Seattle Police Department’s scanner. Even the VLO hadn’t bothered calling in the Legion.
Pushing past the sentries outside, he shoved through the door of the abandoned house. The windows had been boarded up to guard against squatters. Little good that had done. Old clothing and filthy blankets littered the carpet in the living room. There were a few needles and a limp condom. Nice. Even homeless junkies got more play than he did. He’d never imagined they’d give a second thought to using protection. Then again, it could have been a mode of transporting illegal substances.
Most of the commotion came from the kitchen area. When he ducked his head in, he confirmed the kitchen was the crime scene. The filthy dump had been dusted, and a photographer was packing up. A couple of officers and the medical examiner were bagging the body of a surprisingly young newly turned.
“Stop what you’re doing. Who gave you authority to remove evidence?”
They continued working the vampire into the body bag and barely spared Ian a once-over, much less a response. With rage hot enough to scald, he rammed one of the officers against the island behind the body. The man grunted but lacked the strength to fight a vampire’s might.
“I suggest you answer me.”
“That would be me, Tracker. And I suggest you keep your hands off the other LEOs.” A woman’s voice lined with iron addressed him.
With reluctance, Ian released the other officer and rose to face the woman possessing a complete contempt for procedure in regard to vampires. Her frosty gray eyes matched the iron in her words. They were enough to put a chill to his anger. She was nearly a foot shorter than him, the top of her head reaching his shoulders, but her willowy, gently curved shape made her seem taller. Her crossed arms betrayed her agitation, though he couldn’t see it in her placid expression.
His pissed off faltered. Long, dark lashes framed those striking, nearly colorless eyes. Pale, delicate features drew his gaze, from her smooth brow to her pert nose to the tiny hollow above her rosy lips. Her skin was so radiant, flawless, he wanted to lick it just to discover if it tasted as creamy as it appeared. She was quite…cute. And familiar. Then he remembered where he’d seen her before.
“Alice?”
She tilted her head and her brow furrowed. “Have we met?”
“Yes.” Something in her eyes told him she knew damn well who he was. He’d been briefly introduced to her at the Ancients’ mansion several months earlier when Kade’s parents had been executed, leaving Kade as the heir apparent to the Immortalis throne. Even then, Ian had experienced the same magnetism when their eyes met. Ignoring the impulse to call her on her pretense, he extended his hand. “Killian McCready.”
She hesitated before her slender fingers slid against his until their palms touched. A more sensuous handshake never existed. It made his abs clench imagining where he wanted those small hands on his body.
“Alice Capshaw.” Her assessing scrutiny held a flare of heat. Encouraging. “Your accent is stronger. And what happened to your hair?”
So she did remember. A corner of his lips lifted in a half smile. Well fuck me running. How long had it been since he’d last smiled without faking it? He tried to ignore the nip of worry following that realization. Apathy was an early precursor to the vampire madness, vesania, and he sure as hell wasn’t getting any younger.
“What’s wrong with it?”
A faint coral pink bloomed across the apples of her cheeks. Maybe she hadn’t realized she’d spoken aloud. “Uhm. Nothing. It’s just very…short. Most vampires favor long hair.”
“Every few centuries, a change is a good thing. And about the accent, my Irish comes out more when I’m angry.” His gaze swept along her curves, and his voiced dipped to a rasp. “Or passionate.”
She nodded but didn’t say anything more. In fact, she seemed outright uncomfortable, her focus moving to the activity around the room. Anywhere but on him.
“Where’s Val? She would have called me.” As soon as the words left his mouth, he wanted to recall them. Taking such a critical tone with her wasn’t exactly the best way to get answers. Or under the skirt clinging to her beautifully rounded hips. Goddamn. A fierce burst of lust to have those sexy thighs wrapped over his shoulders knocked his outrage right off-kilter.
Icy eyes stared back at him, oblivious to his rather explicit fantasizing. “Val’s taken time off. I’ve stepped in for her. And it’s not procedure to call in the Legion every time there’s a murder.”
“Except when the vic is a vampire.”
“He was turned this morning. He’s not official.”
“It’s not reversible. He wouldn’t have woken up the next day partly cloudy with a chance of humanity.”
“I’m well aware of that, Tracker.” She said his title like it was a dirty word. “It doesn’t change the fact that the victim is legally human.”
Her arms crossed again, tightening her sweater over her breasts. A dozen hellhounds couldn’t keep him from dwelling on her plump cleavage. Even in the midst of contention, she made his mouth water. Damn, he needed to get laid.
When she didn’t respond, he dragged his gaze up to her sweet, heart-shaped face. Too bad her words weren’t so sweet. “So we’re going to argue over jurisdiction? That’s a first.”
“What do you mean?”
“Most agencies can’t run fast enough from murder cases, especially where the Immortalis are involved.”
“I might have done the same.” She glanced toward the murdered vampire as he was lifted to a gurney. Her gaze darted away, and her voice went buttery soft, a purr that traveled the length of his spine. “But that was before.”
“Before what?”
She chewed her bottom lip a moment, lost in thought. His eyes were drawn to that full, pouty lip. The way she worried it with her teeth made him lose focus, and more of his blood drained southward without permission.
“I saw him.” She gestured toward the gurney rolling out of the kitchen. A darkness haunted her expression, one that hammered at doors inside him he’d believed sealed forever.
“It doesn’t matter to you that he’s a vampire?”
“I’ve never had a problem with vampires. I like vampires, and he deserves justice as much as anyone.”
Ian felt those words down to his bones, his chest constricting with the emotion they brought up. He swallowed the lump in his throat. “Yeah, he does.”
“I’m not giving up the case.”
Stubborn, frustrating… He leaned in close until they were nearly nose to nose. Surprise and a tidal wave of pleasure struck him when she didn’t back away, though her rhythmic pulse went into overdrive at the column of her throat. It wasn’t fear he detected. The subtle scent of citrus, vanilla, and something sweet he couldn’t put his finger on enticed him to bury his face in her thick, silky black hair and rub all over her skin. Against his will, his fangs descended.
He’d pounce on her at this rate. Muzzling his wayward thoughts, he brought himself back to their argument. “I’m not letting you keep this case from me. Is this a good time for you to make waves with theImmortalis? Because I sure as hell don’t mind waving the human flag and cozying up if it keeps us from fighting.”
Her eyes widened, and he couldn’t pull away. They were the color of moonlight with a darker gray shadow along the edges. “That bad?”
He blinked a few times and eased out of her personal space, mentally shrugging off the spell she’d cast over him. “Yes. A split between the castes is bad news for humans. We would have free rein to feed at will.”
“Point taken.” She tapped her lip thoughtfully, drawing his attention right back to that spot. It wouldn’t be so damned distracting if he didn’t want to lick and nibble there.
Her gaze took an indulgent trip down the length of his body, spiking him from room temperature to supernova. Hell and damnation. His blood was actually, honest to God, moving in his veins. Even admitting she was an intriguing combination of feisty, kissable, and at least physically interested didn’t explain that response.
“How do you propose we solve our problem here?” Traitorous arousal turned his demand into a low-pitched, husky invitation—which she thankfully overlooked, her attention snapping to his face like a naughty, guilt-ridden schoolgirl.
“Your problem,” she said. “I have the case already. First on scene. Victim is legally human.”
He gave her a flat stare. “Do you want me to haunt you? I will. I’ll shadow you everywhere, even during daylight.” The idea of shadowing her held an appeal that should spur him in the opposite direction, but a sinful part of him hoped she’d hold onto her resistance.
She scowled, an adorable little crease forming between her eyebrows. “You can’t do that.”
“Watch me. I’m a fairly mature vampire, Alice. Daylight doesn’t hit me as hard as most, and my happy arse can handle a little burn.” When she collapsed onto a barstool at the island counter, he restrained a grin. He definitely had her. “You might find it hard to get the vampires to talk. In fact, I guarantee they won’t talk to you.”
“That’s tampering with witnesses.” Her expression went flinty, her eyes reflecting something intimately akin to loathing. Unexpected, but fuck her loaded glare. It wasn’t his fault no one would talk to her, but he would use that fact if it nudged her to cooperate.
“So sure I’d be the one behind that? The Immortalis isn’t too keen on humans right about now.”
“You don’t care one bit about twisting arms and forcing your will, do you?”
“Sometimes that’s the only way to get things done.”
“Fine.” She stood abruptly, nearly knocking the barstool over. “We’ll share this one. Don’t call me. I’ll call you.”
With a purposeful stride, she pushed past him. The seductive sway of her hips entranced him for a moment before it sank in she was walking out. What the hell?
“Alice.” Before she slipped out the door, he caught her arm. She glared daggers at his hand where it cupped her elbow. “I’m not trying to take anything from you. I only want to find out who did this and make him pay.”
“I know what you’re trying to do.” She jerked her arm away. “It’s how you’re doing it that I have a problem with.”
“I’ll need—”
“Whatever it is, my assistant will help you.” Without another glance, she slipped out the door.
Ian’s gut knotted with unsteady tension. Should he be pissed or perplexed? He was leaning toward sheer confusion. The last time he’d seen her, following the deaths of the Immortalis‘ ruling couple, she’d seemed blithe and cheerful, cracking jokes with the royal family’s subjugates, the human servants awaiting transformation. Guess he’d gotten the wrong impression. Alice had a temper. She was no pushover, and she apparently had no love for Legion Trackers.
He faced the room. A newly turned vic with the body taken away to a secluded place. On closer inspection, he noted the candle wax on the yellowing linoleum. Had the VLO team caught that? He inhaled deeply. The scent of several sources of blood hit his acute senses. Would the team have caught that? This was no case for humans.
The crime scene tugged at his memory, taunting him with its familiarity. No fucking way. The candle wax, the body moved and drained, the positioning—it all pointed to the Infancy Killer, but he’d put an end to that case nearly half a century before. This had to be an isolated incident. Someone could have had a personal problem with the victim. It could have been a hate crime against the Immortalis. Yeah, that had to be it. But no matter what he told himself, the uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach wouldn’t go away. It told him there’d be another murder. Soon.