Dark Daze
Page 12
Ian wanted to plug his ears. He didn’t want to listen to how casually Kingsley spoke of what he did to other human beings. Perhaps the man was more monster than the creature.
“He taught me a little charm for a blank book and when the enchanted paperback goes out, the person who reads it unlocks the story. My friend here is living it out, just as you are, but the fear feeds him. It makes him strong, and subsequently, it makes me rich.”
Kingsley again hefted the novel he’d been enchanting when they entered, showing them the cover. Balrath closed in. Electric arcs snapped along Ian’s fingertips, and he jumped away from Brie, fighting to suppress the power surging through him. The sparks died down.
“Don’t be mad,” Kingsley said, obviously misreading the reaction. “Your anger is pointless, really. After all, what can you do? Now you know the truth, so this story must have a tragic ending. You, my boy, are going to finish off this little tale. You and Balrath here are going to fight to the death, which you will lose with noble heroism. Then he’ll rip your pretty girlfriend there to shreds, though her death won’t make it to the final edits.” His tone was conversational, and Ian found himself wanting to shred the arrogant bastard with his bare hands.
“Perhaps there will be a sequel. Your mother…or maybe your best friend…Readers love a good sequel.” The words were spoken more to himself than to them, but they made Ian’s blood boil, still, he fought the power within him.
What would unleashing it mean? If he did let go, would he ever be able to control it again? At this close proximity, would he hurt Brie? So many unanswered questions ran through his head, but Kingsley and Balrath weren’t waiting for him to sort them out.
“Until you breathe your last, or my reader is finished reading, it won’t be over. Since the book is already out, and I can’t trust that bitch to keep the schedule, we might as well end it now. My readers deserve a fantastic ending, don’t you think?”
Balrath’s dark eyes rose toward the sky, and beneath the sinister orbs, a set of sharp, malformed teeth gave the nonexistent face the appearance of a grin. Taking an involuntary step back, Ian held his arms wide to protect Brie. The teeth seemed to grow from the darkness and didn’t appear to be stopping. The sharp claws and fangs were starting to dominate the figure as grin turned into snarl.
Ian tried to move forward, but the cloth of his shirt held him.
“Ian, no.” Brie’s voice was an octave too high.
“I have to do this, Brie.” Ian pulled her clutching hands from the back of his shirt.
The mouth opened, revealing more spiked teeth lining its throat. How would he ever fight this creature?
Eyes gleaming with pleasure, Kingsley’s stared with rapt attention. Balrath swooped toward Ian, snarling. Great gobs of slime ran down its teeth into the blackness below. His palms slick with sweat, Ian snatched a heavy wooden chair from along the wall and smashed it across the hideous smile, which floated in the darkness. The solid mahogany thudded against Balrath, reverberating through Ian’s shoulders. The demon reeled from the force of the blow. Claws slashed out, rending Ian’s shirt and biting into the flesh beneath. His muscles contracted, and Brie’s scream told him it was bad. Balrath turned his head, while Ian rained a second blow, biting into the chair and breaking it into firewood.
Ian thrust the broken chair legs at the monster’s mouth and eyes. The four feet the creature towered over him made it difficult for him to judge where the blows would land, so he kicked out at the darkness. His foot connected with a solid mass and his ankle twisted. Pain slammed through him, from foot to hip. Balrath seized his chest, hoisting him, as a father would lift a child into his arms. Its nails pierced his sides, and the world blurred into searing agony. Brie’s feral cry pierced the darkening edges of his mind. A jarring motion shook them both. Balrath wailed in surprise and threw Ian to the ground.
Ian’s back adjusted with a loud crack when he hit the ground. Cool cascades of relief washed over him when he tried, and was able, to move his limbs. He scooted back, his hands crackling with blue light.
“What is that?” Kingsley shouted from his corner. “What the hell is that?”
Brie stood over Ian, a chair in her hands, while Balrath advanced toward them. A loud snarl came from the doorway. Before the demon could turn, Buster jumped like a rabbit through the air. The dog hit Balrath, and they both fell. Buster held on to something too shadowed to see and shook it vigorously, growling.
“No!” Kingsley dropped the book and stalked toward the dog. “The dog is supposed to be out of the story by now!”
Ian stared at the blue sparks on his fingers, which encompassed his hands. Oh God. It was happening. He tried to push the power down. To regain his control over it.
“I was very specific about this in my incantations. Why the hell is this mutt here?” Kingsley ranted to the darkness.
Balrath grasped Buster by the scruff and tossed the yelping dog away. Buster rolled, coming up near Ian’s legs, feet braced and fangs bared.
Tears flooded Brie’s cheeks as she crouched beside Ian, taking his glowing hand before he could pull it back.
“It’s time now, Ian,” she said, her voice exuded calm strength. “I trust you. I trust us. And whatever happens, I love you.”
Ian’s gut clenched. Brie was right. He had to do what he must to save the future victims of a madman and a demon. He couldn’t control the electricity, but for once in his life, he wouldn’t fight it.
“Damn you, woman. This is your fault. I’ll kill you myself! You’re ruining everything.” Kingsley turned to face them, taking a step toward Brie.
Ian’s skin crackled and his chest seemed to swell as though he’d held his breath too long. A burst of blue light shot from him, and his body convulsed. The years rolled by in reverse. He loved Brie. He met her. His mother hugged him at his graduation. He broke his arm. His father fell before him.
The crackling energy filled him, became him. Pure energy pulled at his edges, breaking him into pieces.
“No. No. Stay with me, Ian. Don’t leave me.” Brie’s voice anchored him in time and space, giving him form. The room went dark, and then he was back.
Balrath’s eyes and mouth widened even farther when the electricity engulfed him. An eerie shriek filled the dungeon-like room. Dark mist rose from the creature and encompassed Kingsley. The writer froze, clutching at his chest. He stumbled and fell, wide-eyed and dead before he hit the floor.
Balrath burst into shadow, fading into the darkened corners of the room.
Ian struggled to sit, but Brie pushed him back. Suddenly the pain hit him, and he gritted his teeth so hard they creaked. Several of his ribs were broken, and he felt like he’d been stretched on a medieval torture rack. Buster limped to his side, one leg hoisted off the floor and a bloody gash on his head.
“Aren’t we a sight?” Ian laughed, a bitter, dry laugh.
Brie jerked frantically at his shirt, opening it wide. The claw wounds on his abdomen, deep in a few spots, weren’t going to be fatal. The puncture wounds on his side seemed light and would probably heal without any trouble. Brie’s ashen complexion and gaping mouth worried him.
“Are you okay, Brie?”
Brie stared at him, eyes shining and hand over her mouth. “You’re alive.” She hugged him tight, and pain shot through him.
“Not for long if you don’t let me go.”
She helped him struggle to his feet.
“What are we going to tell the police?” she asked as the three of them limped to the elevator.
“We aren’t telling them anything. It looks like he had a heart attack and fell onto the broken chair. Either way, it doesn’t look like something we could have caused, and even if it did, we aren’t connected to him anyhow.”
“I suppose you’re right. It does look like he fell on the chairs, and if they don’t test the blood, they might think it’s his.” Brie helped him into the elevator and hit the button for ground level. “But what if they test the blood? Our
fingerprints, our blood, our hair, carpet fibers. Aren’t all those things in here?”
“Do you have a criminal record?”
Her brow furrowed. “Of course not.”
“Then it’s unlikely they would have any of our information on file. But if they come to us, we’ll just have to tell them he was in league with a demon, and using your psychic twinge and my electro-starter capabilities we took them down and saved the world. They’ll believe it, right?”
She smiled. “I can’t believe your joking at a time like this.”
“Look at him. How he’s dressed, he looks like a nutcase. If they come to us, we’ll say he kidnapped you and tried to kill you. One look at this place, and I’m sure they’ll believe it. Not to mention, I’m sure a little looking into the people in his past will lead the cops to a number of other unexplained murders of Kingsley’s old enemies.” He faced her as the elevator started to rise. “Besides, you know why I feel giddy enough to joke, don’t you?”
Brie shook her head. “You’ve gone insane with agony and are delusional?”
“Well, there is that.” He tried to smile, but he was sure the pain turned it into some sort of ghoulish grimace. “It could also have something to do with love.”
“Excuse me for being dense, but I’ve just watched a demon beat the man I love to a bloody pulp. What the heck are you talking about?”
“You said it yourself. I still love you, Brie. I’m alive, and I still love you more than I ever imagined I could love anyone. And you love me too.”
She huffed out a laugh, her mouth wide.
“We won. I may not feel like a winner right now, and I’m certain to have scars. There might even be repercussions, but as long as I have you, I can’t seem to care. So yeah, I’m going to joke and laugh and, when I can move without pain, make love to you until I can’t recall what the sun looks like.”
Tears filled her already watery eyes, and her mouth met his in a flurry of joy. Buster let out a bark, wagging his tail. Brie pulled back from the kiss, favoring him with a wide smile.
“You saved us all.” She squeezed him. “Once you’re better, you won’t be seeing the sun for some time. I’m going to make sure of it.”
“You’re gonna marry me too.” He groaned at the pressure of her embrace. “As soon as I’m healed, anyhow. Otherwise the honeymoon might just kill me.”
Excerpt – Captivated
The room was solid black carpet. Walls, floors, all covered in soft carpeting. In the center of the room a solitary light lit a stage. A stunning blonde stood there. Two attractive men flanked her. She ran a hand over both of their well-muscled chests at once, then moved her fingertips down to wrap around their hard cocks. Both men stared intently at her naked breasts, their fingers at work between her spread thighs. Tonya bit her lip as the dark-haired man kissed the blonde then lowered her to the ground. The blond man crouched down next to them, his gaze finding Tonya's in the darkened room. His chin lifted an inch, his lips pursed. The men kissed and licked the blonde. One man on the floor and one man kneeling behind her, they positioned her on her hands and knees between them. Tonya swallowed hard. Swollen cocks positioned, they entered her, and the blonde threw her head back, eyes closed. Bodies writhing, they moved together, moaning their ecstasy.
She bit her lip, her fingertips rubbing lightly across the flesh of her thigh.
Masculine hands slid over her waist and down the undersides of her palms to play at the skin her fingers caressed.
"Caught ya, lass."
A thrill jolted through her, shooting straight to the little nub between her legs.
"Right sexy ta watch, isn't it, love?"
She squirmed to relieve the throbbing ache that formed between her thighs and licked her lips. The club; the nude, writhing group; the man behind her, touching her—it was everything she craved. She stood on the precipice of desire as she had always wanted. Perhaps now she could go wild and let herself be…kinky. The word brought a smile to her lips. Instead of turning, she pressed back into the muscular chest behind her, feeling the hard erection through his jeans.
"Ya see how excited the lass is?" His fingers played across her thigh, inching closer and closer to her panties.
About the Author
Ava Delany is an alter ego, the dark and erotic side of an enigma. She comes out to play in the consummate darkness of midnight and hides again with the coming sun. Who is she? Hard to tell. You may enjoy trying to discover her secrets if you come into her world and play in the dark.
http://avadelany.webs.com/
Other books by Ava Delany
The Beginnings Trilogy
A Librarian's Desire
A Soldier's Woman
A Surprising Day
The Homecoming Trilogy
The Soldier's Return
The Librarian's Love
The Wedding Night
The Fetish Club Trilogy
Captivated
Dominated
Fallen
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven