When Sinners Kneel

by R. Scarlett

  I watched the two men fight in amazement and horror. Beau let the other fighter make the first move, but as soon as he did, Beau was ducking low with amazing efficiency and counterattacking with quick blows of his own. His arms swung low, aiming for the man’s stomach and plowed into him. Over and over.

  The cheer of the crowd overwhelmed my senses.

  There was the sour taste of a need for violence on my tongue and it mixed in with the creamy taste of desire.

  Both men were vicious, fast and brutal, but Beau—Beau was deadly, and I couldn’t look away as the fight continued.

  He was the chaos of my soul and it drummed under my skin with each strike of his iron fists.

  I couldn’t keep track of each blow and before I knew it, the other fighter was knocked out cold.

  Blood ran down Beau’s forehead and he didn’t bother wiping it away as he walked out of the ring.

  I watched him make his way through the parted crowd, up the stairs. He felt so close to me now yet still too far.

  Part of me prayed he wouldn’t see me and the other craved he would. Craved for him to get closer, closer, closer. So that the taste of everyone else’s emotions would wash away from the tip of my tongue and his would be the only one filling my mouth.

  I held my breath as he stepped onto the second level, the men shouting his name everywhere around us.

  Danny was still at my side, but I didn’t care. My sole focus was on Beau.

  The disgraced Beau Knight. The once golden boy, now layered in blood and dirt and sin. His features were sculpted by pure lightning, carving sharp cheekbones and jawlines, like a cool glass of whisky rolling along one’s tongue.

  Maybe the people at the Pit had gotten used to him, but this version of Beau was all new to me.

  I knew the beast his family saw him as, but I hadn’t known about the savage fighter he’d chosen to become here.

  I watched him scan each face, always on guard, always searching for a demon to step out of line and into his iron fists.

  Did he view me as one of them? A misbehaving demon? Someone who needed to be put back in line? Did he see me as a menace to his controlled chaos?

  I thought of his words. Of him having to deal with me and it sent a shiver down my arms, a ripple of want deep inside of my stomach, down to my core.

  Maybe I wanted him to control me. Maybe I wanted to get high off of him and indulge for once in a man of darkness and sin and let myself breathe in his wrath and sorrow.

  Maybe he was the key to finding Dolores.

  “Savage,” I whispered.

  He may be Savage—the heartless bastard, but he still was an incubus—in his blood, in the sweat sitting on his top lip and running down the side of his jaw before gliding down his strong neck. All he had to do was shift slightly and his eyes would meet mine. And at the thought, I felt the urge, the stir of impatient passion simmer low in my belly.

  And as they did, as his eyes collided with mine, I realized they weren’t completely anger and darkness.

  No. It slowly sunk in the longer he stared, unmoving, his jaw ticking to a rhythm.

  In those gleaming dark eyes was lust.

  Strong, unquenchable and desperate lust.

  I’m fucked.

  So absolutely fucked.

  Anger curled like a tight grip around my throat as I stared at the little souleater in the midst of this chaos of beasts. I fisted my hands beside me and before I could think logically, I was marching over. The shouts—the pounding of flesh on flesh vibrated against the walls, slithered across the floor and seeped within my soul. It made a steady beat of wrath.

  I had warned her. Multiple times. I had told her to stay away from this fucking hole. I’d sent her to my brother and I knew he’d told her the same. Yet she had the guts to show up at the Pit again, nonetheless.

  As I moved through the drunken, buzzing crowd, I made a quick assessment of her body.

  No new bruises or marks visible.

  No signs of freshly spilt blood.

  Her lips were back to their regular fullness which hadn’t changed since I’d healed them the week before.

  She was standing straight, her ribs hadn’t bruised any further over the last week.

  But most importantly, it meant she hadn’t tried and gotten into another fight.

  Good. At least the brat had listened to one of the things I’d said.

  I was wise enough to ignore my beast stirring at the thought of what I would’ve done if she hadn’t respected that bit of warning.

  Though the more I looked, the more I started noticing things I didn’t want to see.

  How tight her shirt was to her supple chest, how short her skirt was, and how her long legs glistened in the dim lighting.

  Like the way her little hands clasped the railing. Hands that had felt like they’d been crafted to touch me. A touch that seemed to burn my skin and cool it at the same time.

  The way the dim lights caressed each curve of her body. Curves that had felt so right when wrapped around me.

  The way her dark hair fell, caressing the back of her smooth, pale neck. A neck my fingers fit so perfectly around. A sight I shouldn’t have enjoyed with such dark satisfaction but couldn’t get out of my head no matter how hard I tried.

  In this position, I couldn’t see her features, but it was enough to awaken my beast—adrenaline from the fight still cruising through my body feeding its excitement.

  I should have left her bruised. I should have bruised her myself to leave an impression, to let my words fully sink in. Maybe that way she would’ve stayed the fuck away. Not only from this place full of deviants, criminals, and beasts. But also away from me.

  The one she needed to fear the most.

  As much as I called her a kid, she was far from it physically. She was a woman, hell bent on destroying my strength.

  I stopped in front of her, eyes flaring and showing no signs of how much I enjoyed towering over her small form. I was stronger, faster, and deadlier than her, and the darker parts of me wanted to show her just how deadly I could be.

  Her mouth—full and moody and red as the blood rushing to my cock.

  When I reached for her wrist and pulled her forward, she growled, slapping my hand away.

  That only hungered my beast further. Wrong move, kid.

  “Alexandra,” I snapped, barely refraining a growl of my own. I went for her arm again. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing here? Again.” My jaw was clenched so tightly, the last word had barely made it out of my mouth.

  “I work here, Savage,” she snapped back, her cheeks flushed due to the heat of the Pit.

  My brows lowered. The world around us fading away as a rage so vibrant it almost hurt wrapped itself around my head.

  She better not just have fucking said she…

  “Back off, Savage,” Danny said, features drawn tight. My sharp gaze cut straight to his as a vicious growl rumbled through my chest. The beast inside clawed at me, demanding it ripped the fucker to bloody pieces. I hadn’t noticed him leaning on the railing beside her. I’d been too focused on her.

  Distracted, I realized with a somber, annoyed thought.

  Danny shot me a smug smirk as if he could tell what my thoughts had been and straightened, stepping closer to Alexandra. “What she said is true. She works for me now. Therefore, she’s my responsibility. Not yours.”

  Not yours. Not yours. Not yours.

  My nails dug into my palms, drawing blood and I glared darkly at him. The fucking bastard.

  “I needed a job,” Alexandra spoke up, her stance strong.

  “And you’re gonna tell me this is the only fucking job you could’ve asked for, Alexandra.” My voice was so cold that no matter how boiling the Pit’s temperature seemed to be, the air around us turned several degrees cooler. Goosebumps rose across her skin and my own seemed to answer hers, vibrating with restrained violence.

  Danny on the other hand, he was just smiling, a victorious glint in his eyes. />
  This was perfect for him. He knew I couldn’t stand her being around him. And he was fucking tripping on the fact that he could flaunt it in front of me. He wanted to have something over me, and he knew he’d found the perfect little something.

  Fucking piece of shit.

  My eyes went back to Lex, hoping she could feel them burning holes in her skin. “Get the fuck out of my sight. Quit this fucking job. I don’t want to see you here again and if I do, you won’t like what happens. Are we fucking clear?”

  “Come on now, Savage. Don’t threaten my employees,” Danny added, his hand landing on Lex’s shoulder and rubbing a circle there. She glanced at his hand, disgust seeping into her baby blue eyes before they found mine again. It was clear she didn’t like him, but she sure as shit had no idea what that man had done to girls like her before. Because if she did, she’d be running. Lex was clueless, fucking naïve.

  She probably thought this was a pissing-contest. Hell, that’s probably what Danny thought too. But she was no fucking toy of mine. She wasn’t mine period.

  I was trying to protect her. I’d seen far too many girls like herself enter this place with innocent smiles and leave it in one of those body bags that were used far too often in this place, their bodies twisted and all fucking purple and black.

  And if they didn’t leave dead, then they disappeared, and nobody ever asked where they’d disappeared to.

  I’d never cared before.

  I wouldn’t start caring now.

  I wasn’t here to investigate, I was here to fight faceless demons and feel the warmth of their blood drip down my fingers.

  Whether Lex was one more notch on the Pit’s dead body count or not, I couldn’t care less.

  But my brother would. And he was my Dux.

  I’d pledged allegiance to him.

  I breathed in slowly, the anger burning my nostrils on its way out.

  Danny wanted me to make a scene. He wanted me to drag her out and let everyone in the Pit know she meant something to Savage.

  But before I could give in to the impulse and do exactly that, Lex spoke up. “I’m going on break.” She held my gaze as she moved past me, her shoulder bumping my chest.

  A simple touch, but it was enough for desire to seep through my veins once more and swirl into my anger.

  Those baby blues of hers seemed to be telling me to follow. But I wasn’t about to give her the satisfaction of doing so straight away. She had no sway or control over me, and she needed to learn that.

  I didn’t turn around to watch her disappear, but I didn’t need to, I could feel her retreating. As if my body and senses were attuned to her completely.

  I gripped the same railing she’d been holding, knuckles turning white, teeth gritting.

  I hated that a simple touch, coming from nothing but a girl barely out of her teen years, could ignite such desire within me.

  Beyond anger and annoyance, I had no feelings toward the girl. But my body had a mind of its own and it craved hers despite my best efforts to tame my needs.

  I laughed darkly at the thought.

  There was no taming me. There was no taming a man who was more beast than man.

  The beast controlled me as it pleased and it had quickly grown a taste for the little souleater.

  I knew it had everything to do with her defiance. Few beasts let themselves be defied by weaker opponents without asserting their dominance over them loud and clear.

  And I enjoyed the thought of bending the reckless little demon into submission.

  To see her, newly pink ass up in the air, face down on the ground, little moans leaving her plump lips as she offered herself to me like my own little plaything. I’d run my hands over the sensitive skin of her ass cheeks, dick hardening even further at her little hiss of pleasure and pain. And I’d watch her creaminess coating me as I drove in and out of her. Her hot flesh against mine.

  Fuck!

  I closed my eyes, tight enough to see stars and breathed in quickly, calming my raging need.

  I probably just needed a release. I needed a good, rough fuck. Soft thighs opened willingly for me. It had nothing to do with Lex and everything to do with the fact that it had been a while. At least, that’s what I told myself.

  Tegan was probably around somewhere, I could always…

  My nostrils flared as I could feel the beastly part of me recoiling at the idea.

  I needed to extinguish this fucking flame Lex had lit within me before it turned to a full blown fire.

  I opened my eyes again, zeroing in on the fight below. The blood splattered across the cement, the sweat dripping off of each fighters’ body and the brutal cry of the crowd.

  A sound that appeased me. Brought me back down to my cruel reality.

  I looked up to see Danny smiling at me. Lips twisted upwards but eyes as empty and cold as mine.

  I didn’t smile back—Instead, I turned around and walked to the back of the bar and towards the exit to the back alley—where I knew Lex had been waiting.

  I could feel the need for belladonna wrapping itself around my mind again, cold sweat running down the back of my neck. My palms were cold and clammy by the time I reached out and opened the door to the alley. Souleater or not, I needed to get fresh air and have a smoke.

  Alexandra leaned against the brick alleyway wall. Her head was tipped back, her neck stretched to the side, exposing her creamy flesh. My fingers burnt to be wrapped around it again.

  I stepped into the shadows she hid in, fisting my hands at my side. “What I said in there still stands, Alexandra. Get out of my sight, out of this place. Find yourself another fucking job.” My voice was tight and low.

  She looked at me from underneath dark, thick lashes and straightened, stepping far closer to me than I liked.

  “I want to learn how to fight—” she started.

  I tsked, shaking my head. “You’re not going anywhere near the ring again.”

  Ignoring me, she continued. “And I want you to train me,” she said, the last part filled with demand, leaving no room for argument.

  “Fuck no,” I bit out. “I’d destroy you in a second.”

  She glared. “I’m not only here to learn how to fight. It’s more important than that.” She straightened, but she would never tower over me. That was one thing I had her won on. “I’m looking for someone. A friend. She said she was coming here and that was the last time I saw her.”

  I tsked. “If she didn’t come back, then she’s long gone. It’s fucking dangerous here. Women are treated like scum and abused.”

  I watched as her body tensed and those big blue eyes widened. Guilt gnawed at the edges of my soul, and I pitied her because it just proved to me how naïve Lex was. That she would still hope that her friend had survived in a hell like the Pit.

  “She’s not gone,” she said, her voice growing louder, but her entire frame shook and by the wideness of her eyes, I knew she was looking for hope in me. “I know she’s still alive. Somewhere.”

  “And that somewhere isn’t here,” I said simply. “Now leave.”

  “You’re not listening to me, Beau,” she snapped, features drawn tight in anger and annoyance. She pressed her lips into a thin line, and sighed. “Look, I know she’s not here. That much was obvious the first night I was here a week ago. But I know this place is part of the reason why she disappeared. I know it’s where I’m most likely to find the answers I need. So until I do, you’ll have to suck it up, all right?”

  I stared at her in silence, confused between my anger and admiration at the way she’d just spoken to me. No one, other than my brother, ever dared speak to me so freely. At my prolonged silence, her gaze started wandering over the lines of my body—from my black boots to my worn jeans and over my groin—and then pausing.

  “Lex—”

  “You’re bleeding,” she whispered and I followed where her gaze rested. My knuckles were bloody and bruised, fingers coated in redness. I fisted them, but froze when her fingertips to
uched them. “You said you’d punish me…” Her eyes darted up to mine, gaze swirling with fire. Her voice was barely above a whisper and fuck if the sound didn’t go straight to my cock. “If I came back, you said you’d punish me. Or were those all empty threats?”

  The beast growled deep inside, wanting to show her what I truly wanted to do to her, and I caught her wrist, trapping it in my hold. Her fair skin against my tattooed hand. My darkness against her pureness.

  “If you’re trying to piss me off, kid, by all means, keep going and I’ll show you what happens when little girls like yourself piss off the big bad wolves,” I hissed and took another step, this one leaving barely any distance between us and I felt her body heat radiate onto my skin. I bent my neck so I could keep her gaze locked on mine. “Is that what you want, Alexandra?”

  Her shaking lips parted. “Yes.”

  My entire body froze at her honesty. She was playing me. Trying to get a reaction. Trying to tempt the beast.

  I scowled. “You want to play, huh?” My breath hit the tip of her nose and I watched her delight as she shivered. “I don’t play, Alexandra. I take. I use. And I don’t feel.”

  Her eyes shot to mine and then to my lips. Her mouth fell open. I shouldn’t have taunted her. I shouldn’t have teased the edge of forbidden and danger. But when I saw her doe eyes glimmer in want, and her bottom lip fall open in a sigh, my hard length jerked. I wanted to let my cock kiss her there, I wanted to see it disappear between her pink lips. And as those images pushed through my mind and resolve, I realized I couldn’t resist the fight. Not anymore.

  “Use me,” she breathed out.

  The muscles in my jaw clenched and unclenched, and I shifted forward. When my fingers touched the tip of her chin, so close to her bottom lip, she leaned into my touch.

  My control always ran thin when she was near. Like a moth to a flame. And I was the fucking flame. I knew I would burn her—destroy her and I’d enjoy doing it.

  “You want my dark soul?” I asked, low and breathy.

  “Yes,” she whispered, shaking against my touch. I grabbed her other wrist and she froze, her eyes flitting to mine. Want and fear glimmered in them.