Tyrant (Scars of the Wraiths #2)

by Nashoda Rose

“Balen says it’s worse at night and she’ll say or do anything in order to get what she wants. And you know as well as I what that is.”

  Damien still didn’t say anything and I silently freaked out as the puzzle pieces started to fit together.

  “Guess I can’t call you Virgin King anymore.” Jedrik laughed, but Damien’s brows dropped low and his lips pursed. The laughter ended abruptly as Jedrik shifted his attention to me. “Good luck, sugar.” He winked then jogged down the corridor and disappeared into the bar.

  Ah, what just happened? Damien was here. Jedrik left me with him, and by the sounds of it, we were leaving, not just the bar but the city—together.

  Damien moved in and I immediately tried to move back, but couldn’t because my back was already against the wall. “Damien, what—” My voice stopped. Or maybe it locked or maybe it was ripped from my throat by his eyes briefly flicking to mine. Those cold, dark eyes that were currently filled with anger.

  “Not fuckin’ now, Abby.” His hand shot out and latched onto my wrist to keep me in place.

  I gasped as the zing of electricity burned through me and I dared myself to glance up at Damien but chickened out, instead opting for staring at his chest. It was exactly as I remembered, hard, smooth hills and valleys that I’d tasted every inch of.

  Damien was the hottest, sexiest, and most demanding guy I’d ever been with. There was no soft and gentle with him; it was raw and hard and owning.

  God, when Damien fucked me, he did it how he wanted. I had no say, but it didn’t matter because it ended up how I wanted, too.

  “Stay next to me. No matter what happens, keep your shit controlled. Got it?” Damien said with a hint of his subtle Irish accent.

  “Yeah. But where—”

  “Not now, Abbs.” He was the only one besides my mother who called me that. “Head low. If they don’t recognize you, we have a golden horseshoe up our asses.”

  He tugged me forward down the corridor. I hobbled because I was shoeless on one foot, but I didn’t dare complain. I may be stubborn and have a mouth on me, but I wasn’t stupid. Damien was dangerous. Damien was a Scar. And Damien just found out I was carrying his child—by email.

  Oh, and word was he hated women. From our two nights of passion, I’d have refuted the last one, up until this very moment. Now, I was thinking hate was too mild of a word.

  He led me down the corridor toward the exit and his arm moved to possessively curl around my waist. His stride was aggressive and determined as we approached the bouncers blocking the fire exit. The two men stepped aside, one even held the door open for us. That was until he noticed my missing shoe.

  “Miss? Your shoe is—is that you, Abigail?”

  Fuck.

  Damien let me go and whirled, his fist slamming into one guy’s face, landing him on his ass outside the door. The other guy, who was closest to me, attempted to grab my arm, but Damien was quicker. A sharp uppercut beneath the guy’s chin and a hard kick to his chest sent him sideways into the brick wall.

  I heard the sharp crack as his head hit. Then the guy crumpled to the floor, a dribble of blood sliding down the side of his face. Damien dove for the other guy outside, but I couldn’t move as I stared at the fresh blood on the bouncer’s face, which was now dripping off his chin.

  The bloodthirst rammed into me and I licked my lips, pulse throbbing. I fell to my knees beside the bouncer.

  Oh, God, the scent of it was like breathing in fresh oxygen. I had to have it. I’d die without—

  “Oh no, you fuckin’ don’t.” Damien’s hands seized my shoulders and yanked me to my feet. He shoved me out the door and kicked it closed behind him.

  Crouching in front of me, he grabbed my ankle, lifted my foot, and ripped off my high heel, whipping it onto the roof of the building. Then he snagged my wrist and we ran down the dark alley.

  “Where are we going?” I asked.

  “Into fuckin’ hell,” Damien replied.

  “I’m here. What’s up?” I asked Jedrik as I strolled into the club. They knew me pretty well and the bouncers allowed me to bypass the line, even graciously held the door open for me.

  “Damien just hightailed out the back with that witch, Abby.”

  “What!” I shouted. Shit. Liam had a thing for the witch. What the hell was going on?

  “Couldn’t tell you the plan, just in case you dropped your mind shields during your thralls of passion with the bloodsucker.”

  “Oh, screw off, Arrow. And I stopped sleeping with him, you know that.”

  “Liam doesn’t know Abby’s gone, but he will soon, and I need you to distract him to give them a chance to get away. Up for it, Sass?”

  “Arrow, you stupid idiot. What the hell are you doing?” I picked up my pace, heading directly to Liam’s permanently reserved table.

  Had Jedrik lost his freakin’ head? Screwing with Liam was like calling an all-out war between the two kinds. Waleron was going to blow his top and then some.

  “She drank his blood, Sass. And she’s pregnant. It’s Damien’s.”

  Fuck.

  I bumped into what had to be a Long Neck with the reek of garbage emanating from his skin. I pushed him aside, ignoring his hiss and the quick sweep of his long, filthy fingernails across my arm. Club rules, neutral territory, but when he stepped outside, I’d deal with him.

  “Piss off,” I shot over my shoulder and kept walking toward Liam. He was shaking hands with some woman who had her back to me, and then the woman slipped into the crowd. I attempted to track the stranger’s scent, but with so many people in the club, it was impossible to tell who or what Liam had been meeting with.

  I could tell he was anxious, wondering where his little witch had disappeared to by the way his eyes scanned the club and his unusually tense stance.

  “Damn it, Arrow. What am I supposed to do?”

  “Damien needs ten minutes to get her out of town. Keep him busy.”

  “Christ, he will know this is our doing.”

  Liam’s eyes found me and he gave a nod in acknowledgement. Oh, that was so not good. A smile would be better. I slowed my pace and put a subtle swing in my hips. He appreciated a sexy woman, and since I didn’t have time to change into something sexier, I’d have to take it up a notch.

  “At the bar. Far right,” Jedrik said.

  I shifted my gaze and saw Jedrik with his back to me, leaning casually against the bar, beer in hand as if he didn’t have a care in the world. He was actually flirting with the petite blonde beside him.

  “Blood,” I said, smiling while reaching out both hands. He amiably took them and kissed the back of each.

  He didn’t return my smile, nor did he look at me as his eyes continued to scan the club. Oh shit, this was going to be more difficult than I thought.

  No use fighting it. “You look agitated. Something wrong, Blood?” “He’s going to send his vampires hunting. Can’t delay him.”

  “I never suspected you’d take her from my own club.” Oh great, he knew. Goddamn Jedrik. “However, she was rather thirsty tonight. Guess you had no choice. It was probably for the best. I assume you will attempt detox?” Before I had a chance to deny anything, Liam’s cell rang and he slid his finger across the screen then put it to his ear.

  “He knows. Why the hell did you risk taking her right from his damn club?” I asked.

  “It wasn’t the plan. Liam expected her here tonight. If she didn’t show up, he’d know something was going down. We were planning to take her after she left the club, but she tried to bite some guy’s neck and my plan went to shit.”

  Liam didn’t say a word to the caller, merely listened, but his jaw tightened and his hand curled into a fist. Pissed. But when I looked at his face there was no anger. Strange. His body was ready to erupt into a furious volcano and yet his expression was calm and controlled. Even as I breathed in his scent, I couldn’t sense anger. Did he not care we’d taken Abby?

  He lowered his cell and placed it in his pocket as he rais
ed his brows at me, as if waiting for me to respond to his previous question.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about?” Pathetic, but I had no recourse.

  “Of course you do.” He leaned forward, his eyes drilling into me. Then his arm snaked around my waist and jerked me close.

  As his mouth drew closer, I anticipated his kiss. Instead, he tilted his head at the last second before our lips touched and whispered in my ear. “Abigail was pregnant. Did you know that?” His arm tightened around me and I had trouble breathing. “No matter. The Transition would’ve killed her in such a state, and we certainly couldn’t have that. I need her alive and you will make sure that happens.” He lowered his voice even further, scarcely audible. “You were once pregnant yourself, weren’t you Delara?”

  I couldn’t control my gasp. My stomach twisted at the mere mention of my secret. How the hell did he know that? No one knew I’d been pregnant. No one. Not even Jedrik.

  “A miscarriage at eight months, I understand.” He tsked. “A shame. Waleron’s?”

  “None of your goddamn business,” I sneered.

  “Sass, you okay?”

  “Did they tell you if it was a boy or girl?”

  I shoved back with all I had and slapped him across the cheek. His smile faded and he rubbed his cheek, a murderous glare in his eyes. “Guess I deserved that.” He nodded toward the bar. “Tell your watch dog to keep his distance.”

  Jedrik weaved his way toward us. Shit, starting a fight in Liam’s club would be suicide. “Back off, Arrow. I’ll handle this.”

  “Sass, what the hell?”

  “I said leave it. He won’t hurt me. Get out of here.”

  “Sass, I don’t think—”

  “Please.” I heard him sigh and knew he’d listen.

  “Wouldn’t Waleron like to know he’d sired a child? Well, a dead one, but still.”

  “You goddamn bastard,” I shot back, fury enveloping my entire body and the wine glass on the table trembled. Before long, my rage would erupt a domino effect of shattered glass.

  “Calm down, beautiful. Your secret is safe, but it comes with a price. Until Abigail has gone through detox, I want you.”

  “That’s impossible,” I said. “You can’t have me any longer. I told you it’s over.”

  “Oh, but it isn’t. And I can. You’ve hidden many things from Waleron, including the pregnancy. You can hide this, too.”

  Months of hell, running, pregnant and alone. When I couldn’t run any longer—hiding. “And if I say screw you?”

  He hesitated, as if making certain he had my full attention. “Then I kill your child,” Liam said, his expression waiting for my reaction.

  “My child is dead. You just said so yourself. I miscarried.” What the hell was he playing at?

  He chuckled. “I see your perplexity. To be expected, of course. It was a long time ago.” He shrugged. “You see, you don’t know if I’m lying, and yet, as a mother, you can’t take the chance that I’m not.” His fingers bit into my waist. “But, my love, I will have the witch. And if you don’t find a way to bring her to me alive after detox—then I will kill your very much alive child.”

  No. No, he was lying. I’d seen my baby born. They’d shown me the body. “You’re lying.”

  “Perhaps.” His hand slid up my arm and caressed the back of my neck. I went to pull away, but his grip tightened. “But think about it, Delara. How did I know about your pregnancy? How did I know you carried until the eighth month?”

  My knees gave out and I would’ve collapsed if it wasn’t for his arm around my waist. His teeth nipped the tip of my ear before he said, “Tell your friends to keep the witch alive and I will keep your child alive. I think that’s a fair exchange.”

  Bile rose in my throat and I swallowed several times. No. God, please no. Please, this would destroy Waleron. I wanted desperately for it to be true, but it couldn’t be. It was impossible.

  But I felt like a piece of glass breaking into tiny fragments.

  Oh God. I choked back a sob.

  “I’m curious as to how long before I see Waleron at my door?” He stroked his finger down my arm. “How long before he tries to rescue his love from my bed? How long before he discovers the truth?”

  I THREW OPEN THE car door of the Audi a block away from the club. “In,” I said, blocking her path back toward the bouncer. I didn’t trust her not to try and run back for a taste of blood. From the hungry look in her eyes as she hovered over the bouncer, she was ravenous.

  What the fuck had I gotten myself into? Hell was an understatement.

  She paused before getting in the car. “Damien…” Her voice trailed off at my scowl. Then she climbed in and my eyes skimmed from her ankles up to her thighs. Those fuckin’ great thighs that had been wrapped around my hips numerous times as I fucked her against the wall, in the chair, shower, bed, floor, against the window of the hotel room.

  Jesus, I cursed beneath my breath. Thinking about her legs and ass is what had landed me into this mess in the first place.

  I slammed the car door.

  How was I supposed to live with this chick with those memories fucking with my mind?

  I fished the keys out of my jeans front pocket and folded in the other side. I started the engine, shoved it into gear, and peeled out of the alley.

  I’d rather be in the arms of Hades than stuck in this car with a chick I’d stupidly fucked. It was like being trapped with a woman in a coffin that was nailed shut—my worst nightmare. Then add in to the mix the woman wanted to sink her teeth into my neck and drink my blood.

  The Abby I’d met that day in the grocery store was indistinguishable now. I glanced at her and noticed how pale she was and there were dark circles under her eyes. Also missing was that sexy, feisty smile that made my cock hard.

  It had been fucked up how attracted I’d been to her, since I rarely paid attention to women. I couldn’t say what it was or why I decided to spend those two days locked between her legs. Delicious though it was, it had been a mistake, one I was now paying for.

  I swore we’d used condoms every time we’d fucked. I never fucked a chick without one. But we’d done it so many times, I wasn’t sure anymore.

  But the reason I didn’t remember about the condoms was because I’d never been that out of control with a woman. It had been this driving need to take her again and again.

  Irresistible. Raw. Wild.

  And fuckin’ stupid.

  I knew better than to fuck a goddamn witch. One who was young, unbelievably sexy, and a smart-ass.

  Jedrik must have enjoyed himself sending me that email with the subject line ‘Condom fail.’ I thought it was a joke.

  Then shock, disbelief, and, finally, fury simmered for the flight back to Toronto, only to emerge when I met Jedrik at Keir’s and got the full lowdown on Abby’s situation.

  Why the hell would she drink vampire blood? It didn’t make sense. Did she want to be a vampire? Be Liam’s fuckin’ slave?

  That sounded nothing like the chick I knew. She had trouble giving me control when I fucked her. Of course, I always got my way and Abbs learned that fast.

  The girl was confident enough to hit on me at the grocery store. It was unexpected when most women looked at me and ran in the opposite direction. My scowl, tatts, and indifference kept chicks at a distance. They were a pain in the ass; case in point, the situation I was in now.

  What had I been thinking when I agreed to detox her? Shit, we didn’t even know if it would work. Balen had been the only one to ever fight off the poison of the vampire blood, and it had taken him two fuckin’ years.

  Abby was what? Twenty-one, a witch, and pregnant. With my kid. It was an impossible situation.

  I ran my hand through my short, dark strands then pounded the steering wheel with the heel of my hand. “Fuck.”

  “Damien?”

  I made the mistake of looking at her. Her long lashes fluttered—ones I’d kissed, licked, and touched with the ti
p of my finger.

  Irre-fuckin-sistible

  “Damien, I’m sorry. I told Jedrik not to tell you. I didn’t want you to know. ” Her palm rested on her abdomen, and my hands tightened around the steering wheel. “I just think maybe it will be best for us both if someone else does this detox thing with me.”

  I grunted.

  “It’s not that I don’t appreciate you coming all the way here, but I have no idea what is going to happen, and Damien, I don’t want you to see me like this.” Her gravelly voice drifted off on the last few words.

  “There’s no one else.” And there was no one else, because only Balen, Jedrik, and now Delara knew about this. If Waleron found out, there was the issue of the Wraiths becoming involved, and, of course, Trinity. Most likely, the Wraiths would insist on Abby’s death, and Trinity… well, who knew what that bitch would do. Throw Abby to the wolves, literally.

  “Maybe Jedrik can—”

  “If Jedrik disappears for any length of time, Waleron will know. I’m a solitary, no Talde, and Waleron contacts me through email or cell. I’m the only choice.”

  “But—”

  “Abbs,” I barked.

  She lowered her head and shut up. A much different reaction to my warning than the last time we were together. I remember her laughing when I’d instructed her to take off her clothes and lie on the bed. Then she stood on the bed and did a dance for me without removing a single piece of clothing. That lasted five minutes, and it only lasted that long because she did look fuckin’ cute and sexy as hell, even if she wasn’t naked.

  Then I’d tackled her, ripped off her clothes, and showed her what happens when she ignores my instructions. She’d begged and moaned under my tongue for a good hour.

  “Maybe I can do this myself and you can—”

  “I’ll deal with this shit.” I slammed my foot on the accelerator and the car jerked forward.

  “I’m not anyone’s shit,” Abby retorted.

  I felt her eyes delving into me, but I refused to look at her. I didn’t need to, because I knew exactly her expression—pursed lips with adorable furrowed brows and flaring nostrils. She had that expression when I called her a ‘little red-haired pixie.’