Free A Demon in Dallas by Amy Armstrong

distance. Connor growled out a warning and tried to stand in front of me, but I elbowed him aside. The wolf chuckled. Ignoring Connor, he thrust out his hand.
    “I’m Oliver Phelps, the new alpha wolf here in Dallas. I think you and I need to have a little chat.”
    Throwing his head back, he howled at the moon. The sound caused the hair on the back of my neck to stand to attention. When I turned to Connor, he too was rubbing his neck and shifting awkwardly from foot to foot—the wolf in him wanting to answer the call.
    One by one, the wolves that had been hiding in the woods emerged. Well over a dozen showed themselves, but I could tell there were more that were still hanging back.
    “Shall we?” Oliver asked, holding out his arm.
    This time, Connor succeeded in pushing me behind him. The move caught me off guard and I was too shocked to protest.
    “Let’s get one thing straight before we go anywhere with you,” Connor bit out. “I’m alpha of the Austin pack and this is my mate. She’s off limits, understand?”
    My breath left me in a whoosh. Had Connor really just said that? Mate ? Oliver nodded his acquiescence, but his smile was wry, indulgent.
    “Whatever you say, Alpha .”
    When Connor turned and met my gaze, there was no trace of humour in his smile. “Guess I should have maybe told you that first, huh?”
    I nodded numbly. “No kidding.”
     
    * * * *
     
    Alpha Phelps paced restlessly around the large den inside Charles’ ranch. The three of us were alone in the room, but Oliver wasn’t taking any chances. There were at least two wolves posted on guard duty outside the door and probably triple that amount just outside the house. My head was still spinning from Connor’s revelation, although I hadn’t had the time to process the information since we’d ploughed straight into our story as soon as we’d entered the den.
    “Why would an angel ask you to locate a demon?” Oliver asked, his eyebrows raised in query. “They don’t usually involve any other supes in their battles. Angels are incredibly secretive.”
    “You haven’t met Malaki. He’ll do just about anything to get what he wants—including blackmail.”
    With an affected chuckle, Oliver said, “Show me an angel that isn’t conniving. He say why he wants this demon?”
    “A book.” I waited a beat to gauge Oliver’s reaction, but he didn’t give any indication that he knew what I was talking about so I continued, “I don’t know any more than that. I’m just supposed to call Malaki when I’ve found it. He said he’ll tell me then where Matt is being held.”
    “And when he has the book?”
    I shrugged. “I imagine Malaki will vanquish Barbatos.”
    Oliver’s brow lifted slightly upon hearing about the demon’s name again. Connor must have noticed it too because he leant forward in his seat and cleared his throat.
    “What do you know about the demon? And the book? What’s so special about it?”
    Crossing the room, Oliver took a seat at the other end of the table. He clasped his hands in front of him and gazed at each of us in turn. “It’s the book and it’s the reason I killed Charles.”
    Frowning, I turned to see how Connor had taken the news. He looked about as confused as me. “ The book?”
    “The Book of Honorius.” His mouth lifted at the corner when he took in our blank expressions and he elaborated, “The Book of Honorius is a grimoire, an ancient text. It’s purported to contain spells used in necromancy.”
    Connor frowned. “I thought the grimoire was a myth.”
    “Not exactly. There are many grimoires,” Oliver explained. “But the Book of Honorius is supposedly the oldest. From what I’ve been able to find out, the book contains information on how to raise demons and, more importantly, how to raise Lucifer himself, who as you know remains trapped in the underworld. I don’t have to tell you what damage a book like that could do, particularly in the hands of a demon.”
    I tried to