"You are my Vestal," he said simply, as if that said everything.
Celine placed her small hand on his chin and pulled him to where he was looking back at her again. "But how do you feel about me?"
Atticus struggled with the question. Telling her how he felt made him vulnerable. A position he wasn't used to being in. But he wanted to tell her. He wanted to scream it from the rooftops. How she was his and he would kill anyone that even thought about messing with her.
"I like you," Celine said simply. “I have for a while, and I always looked forward to you coming into the mayor’s office.” His eyes widened with surprise. Celine shrugged. "We may die out here, and I just thought I should say it once.”
His chest tightened at her words. They were something he never wanted to hear her say again.
"You aren't going to die," Atticus said gruffly. "I won't let you die."
A soft laugh came from her. Something he hadn’t expected at all. “You won’t let me die?”
Atticus snorted. “No.”
A smile played on her lips. His eyes couldn’t help but fix on the luscious lips in front of him.
Celine’s face was free of the glasses she still held. She looked like the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.
He wasn't certain who moved first, if she met him or he met her, but their mouths crashed together as their passion burned.
Atticus leaned into the kiss, taking her down onto the coat she laid out as a makeshift bed. Her sweet body pressed to his as he settled in over her.
His hands skimmed over her sides. The soft lines there only made him wish they were lying in a bed naked.
Atticus let his hands slide along the sides of her breasts. Little puffs of air filled the air as he slid them over to the front of her shirt, taking the time to palm the weight of them through her blouse. Just the feel of her made him so hard.
He kissed her hard now, slipping his tongue into her mouth the same way he’d like to slip into her body.
A burning need filled him. He was desperate to touch her in all the ways he’d dreamed.
Atticus slid his hand under her blouse and pulled down the fabric of her bra. Her nipples were already firm against his hand.
He continued to kiss her as he rolled the hard buds between his fingers, applying just enough pressure to make her moan against his mouth.
Her hips thrust up against his hardened cock, and he growled his excitement. Celine drove him to the very edge of reason.
He pulled his hand away from her glorious breasts and skimmed down the soft planes of her stomach until he reached the waist of her pants. Atticus pulled back to stare into her eyes as he slipped beneath the band and into her panties.
Moisture pooled between her thighs. The sweet slickness coated her in all the ways that made his hard cock throb to be inside her.
Atticus ran his finger through her folds, sliding her wetness over her tender nub as she bucked her thighs into the air. He moved his finger faster, slipping into her depths as he rubbed her center.
Celine gripped his arm. The sounds of their hard breathing filled the cave.
"More, Atticus," she moaned. "I need more."
He slipped two fingers into her now, fucking her with his hand as he rolled her clit with his thumb.
Her inner walls quivered around his fingers, and he knew she was close now. He fucked her even faster still, waiting for the release that he had imagined a thousand times.
"Yes," she whispered. “Oh yes.”
Celine reached up and slipped her hand under his shirt, her palms coming into full contact with his now blazing tattoo. She came hard around his fingers.
He couldn't quite explain what happened next, but they had felt it before, the connection they had shared when she touched his tattoo the last time.
It was a sort of deep connection that reached in and laid his inner most thoughts bare to her.
Damn it. It was too much. It was too fast.
They were being hunted by Thrax, and he was more worried about being able to slip his dick in her rather than finding a way out of this shit. He was supposed to be thinking up an escape plan.
Atticus pulled away from her, not able to stare down at the woman he had just finished pleasuring. He was afraid that if he did, he might lose all his resolve.
"I need to secure the perimeter," Atticus said gruffly.
"Atticus," Celine called out to him as he stood to walk to the opening of the cave.
He glanced back without looking her in the face. He wasn’t strong enough.
"Get some sleep," Atticus said. "I'll be back soon."
He stepped out into the cool, wet night air, glad for the sting of the rain to help clear his head and cool his passionate thirst.
This wasn’t the time to forget the danger. He needed to put just how amazing Celine had looked when she came out of his mind and focus on a solution.
With one last glance at the cave, Atticus moved away from the temptation inside.
Chapter Eleven
Celine jumped as a large hand wrapped around her mouth. She had just managed to get back to sleep when she was so rudely awakened.
Panic flooded through her for a moment. She prepared to bite the hand before she realized she recognized the feel and scent.
"Stay quiet," Atticus whispered in her ear. "We need to move. Thrax picked up our scent again and isn’t far off. I can’t smell him yet, but I heard him in the distance.”
So much for relaxing. Celine’s heart kicked up even more, and she shook. She stood and pulled her coat from the ground. She’d thought after so much walking and the storm, they would be safe, or that the Glycon would have just given up.
Why was he so obsessed with her? Because she smelled nice? That was the only explanation Atticus had given her. If Vestals were supposed to be something like soul mates, why did the crazy monster want her?
Celine still wasn’t sure if she believed she was meant in some strange, cosmic sense to be with Atticus, but she did know that she felt a strong connection to him in a way she’d never felt with any other man. The only thing she felt looking at Thrax was terror.
Atticus kicked dirt over the fire pit and then scattered the wet leaves he had brought in before turning back to her. She could see through the branches out the front that morning was still a bit away. She didn’t know if it was a good thing or bad thing that they’d be fleeing into darkness.
Celine thought before she was tired, but with all the hiking and the never-ending fear, she now knew what true exhaustion felt like. Though that same fear also now helped to keep her moving. Maybe adrenaline would save her life in the end.
Atticus pointed to the back of the cave and walked over to her side. "We stand a better chance of escaping the further into the cave we go. I tried to lead him off in another direction with your scent, but I’m not sure if he’ll take the bait," he said quietly.
Into the cave? Celine had assumed they were going to make a break for the woods.
She glanced toward the opening and then into the darkness of the cave. “Is it safe?”
He glanced back to the branches covering the opening. “It’s better than being out in the open,” he said softly.
Celine nodded. She was scared as hell and didn't really know what to expect. All she had wanted from the Azilians was answers, but now the fateful choice to go to their compound had trapped her in a living nightmare.
Still, she held on to hope. It wasn’t easy to put all her trust into one person, but she did. Totally and completely, she trusted Atticus. Even setting aside her feelings for him, he had experience dealing with Glycons.
Celine reached out and threaded her fingers through his. Atticus might not be ready for public displays of affection or anything at all, but she needed the comfort, especially if she were going to walk through a dark cave.
She resisted the urge to ask him if there might be some sort of monsters in the cave. While some of his statements suggested that there could be much more to the
world than she’d ever expected, she doubted he would willingly lead her into a dangerous situation.
Slowly they made their way into the darkened tunnel, their foot steps producing an eerie echo. Pitch black surrounded her on all sides, and she couldn't help but think of the dream she'd had last night. The Shadow Man had hunted her in the dream, coming after all the people that she loved.
After her nightmare-free night, she’d hoped that the dreams were gone. Now, they were back and felt even stronger than before.
Just thinking about it made her pulse race and palms sweat. She still couldn't quite process that it might be true. Or that Atticus agreed it could be true.
Sure, she might be accused of believing in things that didn’t exist often enough, but this was different. It was a bridge too far. And if it seemed farfetched to her, what must it seem like to everyone else?
Of course, now she was running with a hybrid into a cave to escape a monstrous Glycon. The limits of reality didn’t seem as rigid as they had a few days before.
“I got you,” Atticus whispered into the darkness, likely feeling her anxiety over the Shadow Man and mistaking it for a fear of the cave.
Celine might have laughed if it all weren’t so completely crazy. In the end, she supposed worrying about the Shadow Man was pointless. She figured all she could do was deal with the monster in front of her at the moment.
Maybe the Shadow Man was real. Maybe he wasn’t. The other monster, the Glycon Thrax, was not only real, but he was still hunting them and close.
The deeper they walked into the darkness, the more she realized the chill from the morning had dissipated. It wasn’t just that it wasn’t chilly. Instead it was far warmer than she remembered it being outside. That didn’t make sense to her.
She walked slowly, her hand gripping his. He kept a steady pace, with no stumbling to her surprise.
“You can see in this can’t you?” Celine said.
“I can see well enough. I have good eyesight even for a hybrid.”
She fell silent, thinking his response over. She could make out the barest hints of a shape in the darkness, but otherwise was blind. It was only his presence that pushed panic away.
Atticus rubbed his thumb across the back of her palm. "Not much further," he said softly. “We’re almost there.”
Celine wasn't exactly sure what Atticus was looking for but trusted him nonetheless. For all she knew, he found some camp sight, complete with a lantern. She doubted it, but that didn’t stop her from hoping.
Ahead, a small light came into view. For a moment her eyes had trouble adjusting, and Celine wondered if it were some sort of mirage in the darkness. She hadn’t heard of such a thing, but she didn’t exactly spend a lot of time running around in caves.
Shapes grew into true shadows, which grew into jagged walls of rock and stalactites and stalagmites. Not a mirage, actual light.
The farther they moved, the brighter the light grew, and the more she believed they were approaching an opening in the cave. Hope filled her heart.
The heat was unmistakable now. A nice warm heat, like the kind she might find soaking in a warm bath. It reached through the chill of the night, right into her very bones. Celine was already feeling far more relaxed than she had before.
They stepped into the opening the light was coming from, and she was surprised to find a large, cavernous room. Small holes littered the ceiling allowing light from the dawn sun to shine into the room. She let out a breath, realizing just how happy she was to be free of the oppressive darkness.
Still, as much as she liked the location, there was a more basic concern tugging at her.
"Is this safe?" Celine whispered. "Won't Thrax smell us in here? Maybe through the holes?”
Atticus breathed in deeply and shook his head. "You smell that?"
Between concentrating on walking and worrying about the Glycon, Celine hadn't particularly been paying attention to the smell. But now that he mentioned it, there was definitely a strong odor in the room.
"Rotting eggs?" Celine asked, and wrinkled her nose at the smell. Not all that pleasant for sure. Celine could only imagine it would be much worse for the hybrids and the Glycons.
Atticus shook his head. "Sulfur.”
Of course. It made perfect sense considering they were in a lava cave. Many of the hot springs in the area were formed from lava caves, and some were even known to have a sulfur base formed of left over minerals from their time as magma tubes.
“Are you okay?” Celine said.
“I can ignore this, and I doubt Thrax will guess what we’re doing.”
Atticus nodded toward the back of the cave, and Celine followed, feeling safer again for the first time since being awakened.
Steam filled the air around them. He stepped a little closer and wrapped his arm around her as steam hissed around them.
"It's the cool morning air meeting the warm air in here. If we go a little farther, I think you'll like what I found."
They walked past the steam-filled room. Celine was certain her curly hair was now a wild mess from all the steam, but she wasn’t about to complain. As far as hideouts went, this one wasn’t all that bad, even if it’d take her a bit to get used to the smell.
She was surprised when they stepped into a beautiful room. A small stream trickled through an underground passage, likely connected to the creek they had previously walked in and drank from. A beautiful blue hot spring sat in the corner.
It was odd. Like discovering a hot tub in the middle of a dungeon.
"You think the water is safe to drink?" Celine said, licking her dry lips.
Atticus nodded. "I tested it earlier and had no problems," he said. “Once Thrax moves on, we’ll make a break toward the compound. I don't really know what's out there, but we can't stay hidden in here forever."
Celine nodded. The idea of being back out in the open scared the ever-loving shit out of her, but they couldn’t live in a cave. Not like they had rabbits hopping around to eat.
They also needed to see what happened back at the Azilian compound, and she worried about Allison. If Thrax hunting her had something to do with her being a Vestal, then Allison might be a target as well.
But for now, she’d enjoy where they were. Sometimes it was about the little things. And right now, the little things were all they had.
Chapter Twelve
Atticus crept through the woods, listening for even the smallest crunch of a branch. He’d heard Thrax in the distance before pushing Celine deeper into the cave, but that was still far off. That didn’t mean he couldn’t come sooner than later, and so it was good to play it cautious.
If Atticus had any other option, he wouldn’t even be outside the cave. The harsh reality was that he might be able to ignore hunger for a while, but he doubted Celine could. The spring provided plenty in the way of drinking water, but it wasn’t exactly like there was a refrigerator stocked with meat.
He’d taken the time to move the wood from the front of the cave and set up a new firepit for cooking, but it would be pointless without something to cook.
The rabbit had been a good find, and it’d helped keep her from really feeling hunger pains. Atticus had been lucky the previous night even to find the rabbit. It was unlikely he would be near so lucky today, so he would need to travel farther from the cave than he would like.
He didn’t like the idea of leaving Celine alone, but at least there, surrounded by the sulfur, she would be safe from Thrax. If it came down to it, Atticus could even lead the Glycon away from the cave. It didn’t matter if it cost him his life, he needed to make sure that she was safe.
First, though, he needed to make sure she didn’t starve. He let out a low growl. Nothing. The animals in the forest had been spooked, likely by the unnatural presence that stalked their land.
With nothing on land to hunt, he would have to go to the water. The small stream that flowed through the cave branched deeper into the woods. He leaned over to drink some of the water,
glad they at least had access to that in the cave.
Something darted through the water. He nodded to himself. It was only a few fish, but at least it was something. It’s not like he planned to live in the cave for weeks. He just needed some small meals to tide them over.
Atticus picked a nearby branch off a tree and fashioned it into a small spear with the help of rock. Not exactly the cutting-edge in tactical gear, but serviceable enough.
He inspected the spear and then nodded to himself, satisfied. There were many things about his current life he couldn’t control, but surviving in the forest played to his skills. For a brief moment, he didn’t worry about Glycons and instead reveled in the pride of a man who was about to bring food to his woman.
Like he’d done it a million times, he launched the spear into the water. His lightning-fast reflexes made it easy to catch the fish. He pushed the skewered fish farther down the spear as it flapped its tail, trying to get away.
Atticus launched the spear again at another passing fish. Then another. He repeated the task until he had enough fish on the stick for a decent meal.
He glanced up at the sky through the trees. The light from the dawn was growing into that of full day. He’d need to hide away for the day and hope that the large Glycon moved on.
Thrax seemed obsessed enough to keep following, but how long could that last? The Glycon said Agatha wasn’t his master, but the showdown at the old mill proved she had at least some hold over him. Atticus doubted she would tolerate him spending too much time rushing through the woods after Celine.
One other thought boosted the hybrid’s confidence. He’d only heard one screech earlier. Thrax might be the only Glycon hunting him. Although Atticus still held the disadvantage, he had a chance of beating Thrax one on one.
Atticus returned to the cave and cleaned the fish with the help of the stream. He kept the stick submerged to keep the fish cold. It’d be a delicious meal later to share with Celine.
The food issue handled for the moment, he headed to the spring, positioning himself near the entrance. He had encouraged Celine to rest, believing Thrax would pass by, and they would be free to escape that evening. Or at least he hoped.
Atticus: #8 (Luna Lodge: Hunters of Atlas) Page 6
