Claim the Night. Rachel Lee

Theresa sighed. “Sorry. But Jude is a little, well, overwhelming. It was kind of weird the way he made those guys leave. And then he moved so fast!”

      Chloe responded easily, even as her fingers typed rapidly at the keyboard, no doubt researching Terri’s assailant. “He’s a sprinter. Or was.”

      Good lie, Chloe. Sometimes he thought Chloe would lie under oath to protect him. He hoped they never had to find out.

      “I guess that would explain it.”

      “You need to talk?”

      “I’m just trying to absorb it all.” Theresa laughed uneasily. “I moved from one near rape to another in a matter of a few minutes, then your avenger boss came out of nowhere and cowed those guys as if … as if by magic.”

      “It’s his confidence,” Chloe said. “Most cowards won’t take on a man who knows he can take them out.”

      “Really? There were four of them.” And she sounded awfully dubious. He couldn’t blame her.

      “And Jude knows all the martial arts. He’d have had them all flat on their faces before you could blink.”

      “Oh.” Theresa didn’t sound as if she quite believed it.

      Well, not all the martial arts, Jude thought, mildly amused. His inhuman speed had a lot to do with it.

      “Look,” Chloe said after a minute, “you don’t have to worry about Jude. I’ve worked with him for four years now, and I can promise you he’s one of the good guys.”

      “That’s good to know.”

      “Yeah, he has his moods. He can get impatient. He hates it when his night gets messed up. He even gets crabby and short-tempered at times. You know, like the rest of us.”

      At that Theresa gave a small laugh. “Okay. It’s just … I’m sorry. He’s your boss and you like him.”

      “Just what?”

      “Well, somehow he feels different. I can’t explain it.”

      “He is different,” Chloe said. “If this were a comic book, he’d probably be one of the super-heroes.”

      He really needed to tell Chloe not to go over the top like that. That was downright embarrassing.

      Theresa spoke again. “What’s he going to do with the information about the guy who tried to attack me in his car?”

      “Well, if the cops don’t have enough to arrest him, I suspect Jude will pay him a visit and convince him to forget he ever met you.”

      Too close to the truth, Chloe. Watch it.

      “How is that going to help? It’ll probably just make the guy madder.”

      “Trust me,” Chloe said, “when Jude puts the fear of God into someone, it sticks.”

      Terri asked for the restroom and Chloe offered to show the way.

      Jude had fully opened the door of his office when Chloe emerged from the hallway to the rest room. She saw him and glared at him, obviously annoyed that he’d been eavesdropping.

      Not that he cared. He jerked his head toward his office, then went inside to wait. And Chloe, of course, made him wait. She must have filled the teakettle and put it on the stove before she meandered his way. Chloe drank tea as if it were the staff of life.

      “Close the door,” he said.

      “Eavesdroppers rarely hear anything good.” She sniffed as she closed the door.

      “I’m glad I listened. You need to avoid making me sound like Superman.”

      Chloe shrugged. “I gotta explain it somehow, boss. You keep doing these little things that make people suspicious.”

      “Only when I have no choice.”

      “Choice or not, that woman is observant. Scared as she was, she noticed things. So how do you want me to explain it? Oh, my boss is a vampire?”

      He glared at her.

      She glared back.

      “Just watch it,” he said finally.

      “If you watch it better, I can watch it better.” Chloe sniffed yet again, evincing worlds of disapproval. “You ought to be grateful I’m such an inventive liar.”

      With that she pointed at the clock wordlessly, then walked out.

      Jude stared at the closed door, and finally gave in to a grin. It was too damn bad Chloe wasn’t his type.

      Then, gauging his time, he decided he could at least escort Terri and Chloe to the nearest precinct station and get the process rolling before he’d need to hurry back here.

      More time with that woman and her narcotic scent. He needed to have his head examined.

       Chapter 2

      An hour before dawn, even police stations experienced a lull. While hospitals were in their most critical hours, the rest of the city, including the criminal element, was finally sinking into sleep.

      Well, it was a relative lull, anyway. Jude accompanied Theresa, who looked singularly unhappy, and Chloe, who looked as if she were enjoying this change of pace, into the station and up to the desk sergeant. As a PI, he wasn’t entirely unknown in some of the precincts, though seldom was his arrival truly welcome.

      Sgt. Davies knew him, though, and greeted him pleasantly enough, though not exactly warmly.

      “Ms. Black,” Jude explained, “needs to file a report. She was attacked twice tonight down near Mason and Crick, and I witnessed the second attack.”

      Davies’s eyes leapt to Terri as Jude indicated her with a wave of his hand. “Twice? Crap.” Then he looked at Jude. “And I suppose you’re in your usual rush?”

      Jude frowned at him. “All I can do is confirm part of her story. And I do have an urgent case.”

      “You always have an urgent case.” Davies sighed. “Well, you’re in luck. I’ll get you to Detective Matthews. She always seems to have time for you.”

      Not entirely the detective’s own choice, thought Jude with grim satisfaction. He’d implanted a suggestion four years ago, and occasionally reinforced it. And he certainly found it useful to have an ally of sorts within the police.

      In less than five minutes they were in the Robbery-Homicide squad room, although the case would probably be better handled by the sex crimes unit. Regardless, Matthews never refused to see Jude.

      She was a tall woman of about forty with a no-nonsense air and short gray-flecked hair. Attractive, but in a subdued way. She chose not to flaunt.

      The squad room was even more quiet than the rest of the station because those on shift were out on cases that had occurred tonight, and the rest were doing what mortals do at that hour: sleeping at home.

      “Okay,” Matthews asked. “What happened?”

      Once again Terri seemed reluctant, so Jude plunged into describing what he knew, and giving a description of the four thugs who had surrounded her. And he was starting to get impatient because the prickling on the back of his neck had begun to grow uncomfortable. He glanced at the large wall clock across the room. Forty-five minutes and he had to be home. Period.

      Matthews took Terri’s personal information, then asked her, “What do you do for a living?”

      “I’m a forensic pathologist. I just started working at the M.E.’s office last week. And, Detective, I can’t be late for my shift.”

      A forensic pathologist? Hot damn, Jude thought. A contact of that kind could be extremely useful.

      Matthews