Free Raw Power: An Urban Fantasy Novel (Demon-Hearted Book 1) by Ambrose Ibsen Page A

Heart!” And yet, here I was. Had the circumstances been different, or had the team been a little more understanding and welcoming, maybe I'd have been more cooperative. As things were however, I still wasn't sold. Wanting the witches dead wasn't enough of a motivator; I needed them to sweeten the pot if I was going to work alongside them and field their shitty attitudes all day.
      “So,” I began. “What's in it for me? I tag along, your talented Demon Heart, and... what do I get for my trouble?”
    Evidently, Kubo had been waiting for me to ask that question, because with a big smirk I wanted to punch off of his face he drew a folded piece of white paper from one of his pockets and slid it across the table to me.
    I opened it, recognizing it in an instant for what it was.
    It was one of my student loan bills. “H-hold on a second, where did you get this?” I asked. In retrospect, that was a stupid question. These guys hunted witches and other paranormal crap for a living. Getting ahold of someone's bills was child's play for the likes of the Veiled Order.
      “Working for the Order is lucrative, Lucy. You stand to make a good wage, but beyond that, my bosses have offered to pay off your loan balances in full should we manage to strike down the coven. Think of it as a little bonus.” Kubo looked satisfied, and it was because he knew he'd just won me over. There wasn't a flat-broke, debt-ridden graduate I knew who would possibly turn down such an offer.
      “Y-yeah, OK. Sounds good,” I said. And then I shut my damn mouth, lest the terms of the deal change. A decent payday and all of my loans paid off? I couldn't start looking for that coven fast enough.
    Walking over to the door, Kubo prepared to release us. “I'll be in contact when I have my orders. Keep that phone handy,” he said, pointing to me in particular. “I may call you at any hour, and you'll be expected to join me in a timely fashion at any given destination. Understood?”
    Still numb, I nodded. This must be what lottery winners feel like. It was a staggering sort of peacefulness that washed over me, sufficient to ward off all of the stress and terror I'd faced in the past twenty-four hours. One completed mission would make me a free man, squash all of that debt I'd been carrying around for years. It was an incredible relief.
    There was one problem, however.
    “Chief,” I said, standing up. “There's one thing I need to ask you, though. It's important.”
    Kubo looked at me expectantly.
    I peered down at my rags. “Can you hook me up with some clean clothes? And, you know, if you have my personal effects just laying around, those would be great, too.”

TWELVE

    Kubo was able to give me my stuff back without too much trouble. I was given a clean gown to wear in place of a shirt, since the one I'd come in with was torn up and covered in blood. My jeans were more or less OK, save for a few stains here and there. Gave them more character, I figured. My keys and wallet were returned, too, and I was surprised that the latter hadn't been messed with. The fat stack I'd lifted from those two art thieves on my hunt for the Dali, along with the money Amundsen had given me, was still inside. My car had been towed to the facility a day ago, and was waiting in the parking lot as I left the lobby. Joe and Isabella had long disappeared by the time I'd cleaned myself up. Kubo had walked off into the complex after handing over my things and hadn't said so much as goodbye.
    Coming up to the car, I climbed in and took a deep breath. Sitting behind the wheel again was surreal; when last I'd driven the old girl, I'd been a completely different person. Ignorant, naïve, blind to the world of the Beyond.
    Oh, and I guess I'd been one-hundred percent human then, too. I wasn't sure I could say that anymore, not with this new heart beating in my chest.
    I stuck the key in the ignition and sped out of the lot as soon as the mammoth gates parted and allowed me onto