by Lexi C. Foss
“Get them all in the cages,” he demanded. “Except that one. She’s mine. Actually, tie up her partner, too. I want to make him watch this time.”
This time? I thought, my brow furrowing. Or, well, my brow attempted to, anyway. I couldn’t exactly move.
I was also no longer able to see.
But I could hear just fine. I could also feel.
The world seemed to shift around me, cold fingers touching parts of my body they had no business caressing.
My clothes whispered across my skin, leaving me naked on a metal chair. I slouched forward, but a leather belt around my middle held me upright. Then they clasped something solid around my ankles and wrists.
Everything danced by in a blur.
Time became meaningless.
I just waited for my body to catch up with my still-alert mind.
This was the downside to my unique bloodline. The humans were all blissfully unaware, while I remained just lucid enough to know what was happening to me. I supposed it gave me an advantage in the sense that I wouldn’t lose my shit when I finally came to again. I already knew they’d put me in a room of sorts, perhaps a cell. The door had sounded heavy, closing with a decisive thud. Chains clanked to my right, the echo of metal snapping into place.
Alaric. I could smell his woodsy aftershave.
He was going to be pissed when he woke up.
But what had the creature meant by “this time”?
Voices rose, their words indecipherable. A horde of shouts soon followed. I tried to frown, still a prisoner inside my mind.
Doors opened and closed.
Curses followed.
Was that an apology from someone?
What’s happening now?
The air seemed to shift, power infiltrating the atmosphere and raising the hairs along my arms. I recognized that electrical current and the man who came with it.
Cassius.
I wanted to growl.
He must be so pleased with the trap he’d set. However, two against fifty was hardly fair, especially when humans were in the way and creating greater concerns.
I also hadn’t anticipated facing a beast. It was sort of cheating on his part, while also serving as a fault on mine. Because I should have known by now to always prepare for the unexpected.
My fingers began to tingle, the effects of the drug beginning to wane. Finally.
Unfortunately, it was just in time for Cassius to arrive. He’d quickly subdue me in this state, particularly as my hands were cuffed behind my back.
Hell, he’d subdue me in almost every state.
That had turned me on once upon a time.
Not today.
A snarl startled me out of my misery, the sound familiar and coming from my Luci. What is she doing here?
My heart thumped in my chest.
Had Cassius brought her here? Did he intend to hurt her?
No!
If he touched a hair on her head, I would—
A lick to my shin made everything inside me still. Then a pair of paws found my thighs as Luci used me as a stepping stool to bring her nose to mine with another lick. “Ruff,” she woofed softly, shocking the hell out of me.
She never barked. And certainly not like that.
“She’s okay,” Cassius assured her, his presence taunting me into awareness. His cologne drifted across my senses, his fingers dancing along my neck.
Luci huffed as though to agree, then backed off my legs.
“I need the keys,” he said, his touch leaving my neck.
My hellhound gave another puff of air, her nails clacking over the concrete as she scampered around. A groan from nearby sounded, then a yowl of pain. I mentally flinched, but the sound hadn’t come from my baby. It’d come from something else.
“You taking that back with us?” Cassius asked conversationally.
Taking what back? I wanted to ask him. And what the hell are you talking about?
Luci gave a low growl, causing Cassius to chuckle. “That’s fine.”
Is he talking to her? I wondered, my eyelids refusing to lift.
Cassius’s fingertips brushed my arm as he went to my wrists. The hairs along my skin danced in the wake of his touch, my blood heating on impulse. “Your mind is aware right now, isn’t it, sweet slayer?” he whispered against my ear, his body behind mine. “That’s why Luci licked you. She knows you can sense her.”
The hellhound in question snorted as though to say, Obviously.
“Your connection to her is unique and rather beautiful,” he marveled. “She led me straight to you.”
Led you to me? I wanted to ask, not following his statement. You set this trap. How could she lead you anywhere?
“What the fuck are you doing?” a deep voice demanded.
“Taking what’s mine,” Cassius replied, my wrists falling free from the restraints.
“Yours?”
“Yes.” The lethal edge in that single-worded reply had my heart skipping a beat. Cassius rarely used that tone. It was a warning in itself, one the other male clearly didn’t hear.
“Jed isn’t going to be pleased. He said to put her and the wolf here and guard them until he returned.”
“Consider yourself relieved of guard duty,” Cassius returned.
“That’s not how this works.”
Cassius sighed, his hands settling on my shoulders. “Luci, would you care to do the honors, or shall I?”
She gave a little snort, then snarled, and a shriek followed as heat warmed the room.
“Such a useful companion,” Cassius praised, his touch drifting to my leg and down to my ankle as he moved to my side. The restraints holding my feet in place disappeared, his hand massaging the area as though to stimulate warmth.
The distinct noise of bone crunching met my ears, telling me Luci had turned the vampire into her own personal chew toy. He wouldn’t die from her munching, but he would be in a hell of a lot of pain.
Something cold touched my side—a knife slicing through the leather restraint. Cassius caught me before my body could slip sideways, then carefully scooped me up into his arms. His chest cushioned my head as my mind fought to catch up with what he was doing.
If this had all been his trap, then why was he releasing me?
“Right, then. Shall we, Luci?” he asked.
She growled.
“What now?”
She snuffed, conveying something to him.
“Him? Seriously?”
The little whine that followed was her version of a “Yes.”
Cassius grumbled under his breath and set me down again on the hard slab. “Fine. But only because it’ll place him in my debt.”
Luci grunted and went back to her bone-crunching.
My whole body shivered against the cold ground, my limbs slowly awakening. I needed my body to move faster, for the toxin suffocating my senses to lift, but it was all a thick haze that left me useless on the ground.
I hated feeling weak, a fact Cassius knew.
Was this all a ploy to use it against me? To play with me? To hurt me? To make me feel even worse about failing this little game?
A low growl reverberated through the air, one that didn’t belong to Luci. “Don’t fucking touch me,” Alaric snapped, his voice alert and deep and filled with fury.
“Trust me, if I could avoid it, I would. Now stop slobbering all over yourself and let me finish.”
“I can save myself.”
“Sure. All that silver would be really easy for you to remove.”
“Fuck you,” Alaric seethed. Metal squeaked in protest of being twisted the wrong way, resulting in Cassius sighing in annoyance.
“I wouldn’t try it, wolf. The drugs are still working their way out of your system, and a sparring match with me will only result in your definite death. Which apparently would upset Luci, and by proxy, my Kseniya. Both are consequences I would like to avoid.”
Wolf? I thought to myself. Alaric is a wolf?
Jude’s words came back to me regarding Alaric and how I hadn’t paid much attention to his hints. Now it all came together in a flash—the way he’d scented the dead bodies from the street yesterday, how he’d been able to see in the dark, even his woodsy aftershave… He’s a shifter.
So what had the creature meant about making him watch again?
It seemed I wasn’t the only one hiding things from my partner.
“Touch her and I’ll kill you,” Alaric warned.
Cassius laughed. “Oh, I’m going to do a lot more than touch her, wolf. You can count on it.”
I shivered at the insinuation in his tone, bewilderment running through me at a rapid pace. None of this made sense. The wolf thing, yeah, okay, that did. But Cassius’s present actions were lost on me.
Had he set this up or not?
And if he had, why free me? Why help Alaric?
“I’m leaving that last one for you to break,” Cassius said. “A few twists ought to do the trick. When you’re done, head out and go left, then up. And try to be fast about it. The distraction I left for Jed and his followers is going to end in about thirty minutes.”
My world moved again as Cassius lifted me from the ground.
“Oh, and next time, be more forthcoming. I know you could smell the hybrid and his pals before you entered. Which means you walked my Kseniya right into the proverbial wolf’s den, all the while knowing the risk. I understand and respect your motives, but if you ever put her life in jeopardy like that again, I’ll kill you myself.”
Cassius snapped his fingers and whistled. “Time to go, Luci.”
She grunted at him.
“Then bring the arm. Just don’t get that shit on my furniture.”
My brow furrowed—providing me with momentary relief because I’d actually moved—but my lips refused to work. I wanted to ask what he meant by his furniture. However, I suspected I’d have an answer in a few minutes.
“Remember, twist, then go left and up. Good luck, wolf.”
13
Cassius
Fuck.
Fuck.
Fuck.
The word rolled through my head on repeat as I cradled Kseniya’s curvy little body against my chest.
When I’d arrived at the nightclub to find the massacre of blood and human remains, my heart had fucking stopped. Then Luci had grabbed my hand with her mouth and tugged me not so gently toward a door at the back. Down we’d ventured into the dungeons of this world’s version of hell.
Several vampires had stood near the bottom, guarding the door. I’d destroyed them all in a matter of seconds, leaving a scowling hellhound at my side. I hadn’t understood her annoyance until I saw her handle that idiot who tried to stop me from freeing Kseniya.
Apparently, Luci had a thing for vampire bones. When I’d killed all the guards, they’d turned to ash, leaving her without a treat. Now she had a humerus in her mouth that continued to regenerate while she chewed. That had to hurt the owner like hell, but I didn’t care. He deserved the torment for getting in my way.
As did the one they called Jed. I didn’t know him, but I intended to meet him after observing the aftermath of his nightclub bloodbath. However, there’d been more pressing matters on my mind tonight—namely, finding Kseniya and freeing her from that hellhole.
Now that I had her secured in my arms, I felt a little better, but that damn curse continued to riot in my thoughts.
Without her amulet, she could be killed.
Something I’d thought to use as a taunt against her, yet it’d backfired completely. Because someone else had almost taken her from me.
A hybrid, from the smell of him.
No wonder he created such a mess. Wolves weren’t known for their table manners. But to take out a nightclub would raise a lot of red flags. If the slayers didn’t take him out, other vampires would because he was putting their very existence at risk.
Although, he seemed to have an army of trained minions.
I shook my head. Not my realm, not my responsibility.
Hmm, but my little killer would probably consider it her task to dismantle his power trip and destroy him. Maybe I’d help her, after we had a long talk about the past.
She began to stir against me, her eyelids lifting to reveal a pair of beautiful purple irises. It really was a striking color on her, making her all the more alluring. Or perhaps that was just her. I’d always found her irresistible. Now was no different.
“Why?” she rasped, her voice rough and barely audible.
“Why what, sweetheart?” I asked as I set her on the marble counter between the two sinks in my bathroom. I gently guided her back to rest against the mirror, not wanting her to fall over and gain yet another bruise. She was already bloodied up enough, something that should have thrilled me but didn’t.
Talking to Sapphire, and then to Dimitri, had fucked everything up in my head. I no longer knew what to believe where Kseniya was concerned. However, I intended to get to the bottom of it, just as soon as I cleaned her up a bit.
“Are you asking why I saved you?” I guessed when she didn’t elaborate.
She stared at me for a long moment, her body still not fully recovered from whatever sleep agent Jed had used in the nightclub. Given the general disarray of the scene, I suspected he’d played with his food a little first, allowing them to run around in terror before knocking them out cold. There’d also been metal wires everywhere, suggesting a net had been used as well.
Sick bastard.
Kseniya cleared her throat, then dipped her head slowly in the affirmative.
“Because the only one allowed to hurt you, sweet slayer, is me,” I said, bending to brush my lips over hers. “Now I’m going to clean you up, and we’re going to have a chat.”
She responded by slowly lifting her middle finger.
I smirked. “Careful, baby. I might take that as an invitation.”
“It’s not.” Her voice came out a little stronger, but she grimaced as though it pained her to speak. I didn’t like that.
“Did they injure you?” I asked, running my palms over her nude form, checking for any significant damage.
Bruises blemished her pale skin, and she had a few cuts that I suspected came from the wires, but she otherwise appeared all right on the surface. Though, that didn’t mean she lacked internal damage.
I brought my wrist to my mouth and bit deep. “Here.” I lifted the wound to her lips. “Drink.”
She glared at me. “No.”
“It’ll help you heal faster,” I pointed out. “It’ll also give you the energy you need to release yourself from whatever drug he used on you. Be smart, not stubborn.”
Her eyes narrowed more, but I could see the wheels turning inside her head. Accepting my strength would provide her with the energy her body desperately craved. It would also allow her an escape from the weakness she had to be feeling at present.
And if there was one thing I knew about Kseniya, it was her hatred for frailty.
Her mouth sealed around my wrist, her tongue working over the laceration to lap up the essence her wounded form badly needed. My cock hardened in response, the intimacy of the moment one neither of us could deny. I saw her interest in the dilation of her pupils and the flaring of her nostrils. Her thighs clenched next, her sweet arousal an enchantment in the air that caused my stomach to tighten with need.
She was the only one I ever allowed to drink from me.
The only one I ever cared enough about to heal.
An entire history existed between us, one underlined in illicit lust and forbidden touches such as this. They all came to the forefront of my thoughts, dragging me closer to her.
I’d nearly lost her tonight. Because I’d left her inferior and alone. Because she’d fallen into a madman’s trap. Because she’d been too exhausted to see the danger lurking right before her eyes.
I could see that exhaustion in her now, in the heavy bags beneath her eyes, the way her limbs seemed thinner and more fr
ail than usual.
She hadn’t slept last night because of my compulsion, then she’d walked into that club without her amulet, her duty to her job outweighing her own will to survive.
I shook my head, frustrated with both her and myself. When I came here for her, I intended to play and torment her, but finding her battered and bruised in that chair hadn’t pleased me at all. And something told me that even if I’d been the one to reduce her to that state, I still wouldn’t have enjoyed it.
She took one final swallow, then removed her mouth, her eyelashes fanning over her cheeks as she lowered her gaze in astute submission. I didn’t like it. I didn’t like belittling my darling killer in such a way. I wanted her strong and formidable, not sad and broken.
Fuck, it was such a conundrum.
A week ago, I wanted to watch her burn.
And now… now that I had her naked before me, meek and humbled, I wanted nothing more than to watch her rise from the ashes and blossom into the fiery phoenix I knew existed beneath her soft skin.
I cupped her jaw, tilting her head backward, forcing her violet eyes to meet mine. Then I reached into my pocket to pull out her amulet with my opposite hand and pressed it to her palm. “Put it back on,” I told her. “I won’t take it again.”
Unless I intended to kill her. That would be the only exception. And if I found out all of this had been a lie, that she was truly just a masterful performer, then I would annihilate her.
However, for now, I wanted her strong. I wanted my Kseniya back. I wanted my equal, my partner, my love.
With shaking hands, she fastened the chain around her neck and shivered as the magic reacted to her wounds, helping her to heal in time with my blood, restoring the slayer inside her.
I stepped away from her to focus on the shower, the two heads in the ceiling springing to life to drench the obsidian rocks below them.
My entire bathroom had been crafted from a variety of dark colors, the ornate counters composed of black marble and adorned in gold fixtures. The floor was a slate gray, and the walls were an almost silver tone. I preferred darkness; it called to my soul. Which was why my adjoining bedroom held a similar color palette.
Kseniya’s cheeks were flushed as I returned, her muscles twitching to life as though preparing for a fight. But the urge left her as I began unbuttoning my shirt, allowing the fabric to part and reveal my toned physique beneath.
