Read Under the Moon for Free Online

didn’t know what to say, so she hung up and listened to Nick’s side of his own conversation.
    “Hey, it’s Nick. Jarrett. Yeah, you too. Hey, you know who’s got Jennifer…” He raised his eyebrows at Quinn.
    “Hollinger,” she said, the name popping into her head. “Jennifer Hollinger. She’s in Vicksburg, Mississippi.”
    Nick repeated the information and waited. “Okay, thanks anyway. Let me know if you find out.” He snapped the phone closed and shook his head. “We don’t cover her much. She stays by the river most of the time. Can you contact her?” he asked Quinn. “Find out if she’s okay? It’s only been two days since Chloe, but with the power he got from her, he could make it quicker.”
    Quinn nodded and went to her file cabinet to pull out the Society roster. She found Jennifer’s phone number and left a message for her, but a bad feeling grew the more she considered what they knew. She went online and checked messages again. There was still nothing else from Jennifer, and no responses on the Society e-mail loop. In fact, there was no discussion on the Society loop at all, and given the news about the leech alone, there should be dozens of messages. She checked the group settings, but everything looked okay. After a moment, she typed: I haven’t heard anything from Jennifer about Nick, and she doesn’t answer her phone. Anyone know what’s going on?
    Before she sent the e-mail, she told Nick what she was doing and asked, “Should I mention the leech?”
    He shrugged one shoulder. “Up to you. Anyone mention it yet?”
    “No. Strange.”
    “John said the Society doesn’t want to start a panic. They’ve assigned a security team to investigate it, and the Protectorate has mobilized protectors for goddesses they think might be vulnerable.” He reached for another mint, avoiding her eyes, and she wondered if that meant he was supposed to be protecting someone else. Something warm flared low in her abdomen, but she frowned.
    “I get not wanting to start a panic, but they can’t sit on the knowledge. People have to know. It’s bad enough Tanda and Chloe had no warning.”
    “They’re probably trying to avoid being bombarded,” Sam said. “They’ve got to have their hands full. This is way beyond pamphlets and PR.”
    “I guess.” But Quinn still didn’t agree with their methods. After a moment of hesitation, she added a line to the e-mail asking if anyone had heard about a leech and clicked send.
    Sam bounced his pen against his pad. “How does someone become a leech, anyway?” He directed the question at Nick. “I mean, not just anyone can do it, right? Or everyone would.”
    “Not a lot of people know goddesses,” Nick said. “So not everyone would.” He crossed a leg over his knee and stretched his arms over his head before bracing his hands behind his neck. The heat in Quinn’s belly spread and added bite. She stared at the computer screen and clicked refresh on her e-mail in-box, waiting for her body to subside so she could tune back into the guys’ conversation.
    “When was the last time a leech actually existed?”
    Sam’s question was rhetorical. There hadn’t been a leech in their lifetime. Goddess fairy tales abounded with leeches instead of trolls and witches or the specter of nuclear war. Parents lumped leeches in with child abductors, piggybacking warnings with lessons about not talking to strangers. But they never discussed how a leech came to be. Quinn hadn’t even known until she met Nick. As a protector, he had extensive training in all possible threats.
    “So?” Sam scowled at Nick, then at Quinn. “Why are you avoiding the question?”
    Nick raised one eyebrow at Quinn. She sighed. “A leech can only exist if a goddess bestows power on him.”
    “What?” Sam sat up sharply. “They can do that? You can do that?”
    “Yeah, but…no, not me. But some goddesses, yes.” Quinn hunched her shoulders a little. “Not like donating blood or