Into the Darkness

by Nora Ash

  While eating yogurt and banana slices—straight from the tub, like a lady—I considered calling Trish to brag. As a bit of a loner, Trish was the only friend from college I really kept in touch with these days, but I knew from experience that calling my friend after ten on a work night was a bad idea. Unlike me, she had gone straight into a high-profile career at the local news station, and I wasn’t particularly in the mood to have my good spirit brought down by Trish telling me I knew nothing about the “responsibilities of a real adult.”

  So instead, I resigned myself to waiting to share my excitement, and instead decided to spend the rest of the night watching Netflix. For once, I felt like I’d earned a lazy night.

  * * *

  * * *

  * * *

  I was halfway through Paranormal Activity 3, for the umpteenth time wondering why the heck I never learned that watching horror flicks while alone in my dark loft studio was a bad idea, when I first realized that something was wrong.

  At first, I thought the creeping along my skin was simply my body reacting to the terrifying scenes unfolding on my TV. But when the sensation turned into an intense feeling of discomfort, like a prickling at the back of my neck, I finally recognized it for what it was.

  Someone was watching me.

  My pulse quickened instantly as if my heart was trying to escape my chest, and a sickening feeling of dread nestled in my stomach. Maybe I was just being paranoid. I lived on the fourteenth floor, and I would have heard someone trying to get in through the bolted front door. I was all alone.

  Yet the feeling of being watched persisted, intensifying with each of my shallow breaths.

  I was not alone.

  Despite my attempt at rationalization, I knew something was very, very wrong. While being remarkably average in almost all areas of life, the one thing that I did have going for me was strong instincts—and right now, they were screaming at me about predators in the shadows of my safe haven.

  Slowly, I reached for the remote and turned off the TV. Only silence met me when I strained for any signs of life to back up my sense of foreboding.

  “Hello?”

  I don’t know why I called out into the silent room. I’d certainly watched enough horror movies to know that that never ended well. And what did I expect, really? A potential burglar-slash-murderer to answer me?

  “Hello to you, little Kittykat,” a smooth, dark voice answered from somewhere over by the kitchen.

  I squeaked and scrambled off the couch, holding the remote out in front of my like a weapon as I stared wildly into the shadows. “W-who are you?”

  The intruder stepped out into the soft light emanating from the only lamp I had left on in the entire apartment. He was tall and strong, the muscles in his torso and arms clearly outlined through the crimson and charcoal suit he wore. His full lips were pulled into a smirk, and behind the mask covering the upper half of his face, blue eyes shone eerily.

  Lightning.

  He strolled over to my computer, letting his gloved fingers dance across the desk as he took in his surroundings. Like he had all the right in the world to be in my home.

  “What are you doing here?” I finally managed to say. Though my heart rate was slowing, my brain struggled with the idea of the city’s favorite hero suddenly appearing in my apartment. My disillusionment with his noble character aside, I was fairly certain he wasn’t here to murder me, but I still couldn’t wrap my mind around why Lightning was here, in my home.

  “You wrote an interesting article,” he said, finally taking his eyes off my belongings to lock them on mine. The sensation of suddenly being rooted to the spot was unnerving, to say the least. I felt that disturbing tingle down my spine again, as if some primitive part of my body recognized his looming power. I got the errant thought that, if he wanted to, he could hurt me, and I wouldn’t be able to stop him.

  My heart sped up again, and I had to bite my lip hard to stop it from trembling.

  “You didn’t like it?” My voice sounded hoarse to my own ears, roughened by the fear I was struggling to keep at bay. He was one of the good guys, despite his arrogance. He didn’t go around murdering innocents and corrupting the governing powers, like some of the superhumans did. Yet he had broken into my home—the one place in this city I should be safe. And I had written less than stellar things about him.

  “Well, it didn’t cast me in the best light,” he said, the smirk slipping back into place. It looked like it belonged there, quirking his soft mouth into an expression of amused arrogance. “But you did have some interesting points, and I couldn’t help but wonder where you got those ideas about the mayor and us supes from?”

  I blinked, more confused than ever. “You mean… the part about Mayor Wilkins relying on vigilantes to keep the streets safe while corruption spreads in all areas of the city?”

  “Yes, that part.” Lightning narrowed his eyes. The smirk slid off his face, leaving a thin, grim line in its place. “I need you to give me your source, and I need it now.”

  “I-I don’t have any sources.” I didn’t like the change in his demeanor. The unnerving reality of his presence in my dark apartment grew to a suffocating pressure against my frayed nerves as the power behind his gaze seemed to rush to the surface. “I just wrote the article after you…” I managed to stop myself before I added “turned out to be a jerk.”

  Lightning cocked his head, and then he walked as smoothly as a stalking panther from the desk across the open floor until he stood right in front of me. I did my best not to flinch away, but I couldn’t help breathing harder as I tilted my head back to keep my eyes on him. Despite my previous assurance to myself that he was one of the good guys, being this close to his towering frame made keeping my nerves in check more than a little difficult.

  “Are you telling me that you wrote an article practically accusing the mayor of corruption on a whim?”

  “Um…” I hadn’t fully formed that thought in my mind while writing the piece. I’d just pointed out some possible loopholes with the way things were run in St. Anthony, but it wasn’t that far of a leap to make. And then it dawned on me. If Lightning was here, asking questions about my sources… My eyes widened.

  “Oh, my God! He is corrupt! Isn’t he?”

  Annoyance filtered across the superhuman’s features, but he remained silent as he studied me.

  “Is that why you’re here?” I asked. “To shut me up?” Was he working for the mayor? My mind was suddenly alight with conspiracy theories any of the crazy bloggers bemoaning the existence of superhumans would have been proud of. But that was just it—there were plenty of crazies out there, telling the world that the mayor was corrupt and that even the supposedly good “supes,” as Lightning referred to his kind, were dangerous. Why did I get a visit from the friendly, neighborhood hero?

  Lightning scoffed, but didn’t move his unnerving gaze from mine. “If you were smart, you would stay clear of antagonizing the mayor and the supe community, little girl. But if you insist, I’m not gonna stop you.”

  I gaped up at him. “Then why are you here? And if it’s so dangerous to antagonize you and the mayor, then why is The Truth still allowed to publish all his ramblings?”

  Lightning rolled his eyes and finally looked away, toward my dark computer screen. “I thought you were a serious reporter? You’d think you would know the answers to those questions. I’m here because I thought you had access to information that I need, not just random speculations. And The Truth,” his gloved fingers actually did air quotes as he named the city’s most laughed-at news blog, “never hits close to home, so it’s not a threat. You, my sweet one—you did. And you are undoubtedly going to regret it.”

  Fear started creeping up my spine again, but this time it was not for the masked intruder. “You mean…?”

  He shrugged. “It’s unlikely I’m the only one who assumed you actually knew what you were writing about.”

  About a million different images of what that meant crowded m
y mind. My stomach clenched as I imagined my own mutilated corpse being fished out of the river. If Lightning was right, and some of the more unscrupulous of the superhumans decided I was a problem…

  “What am I going to do?” I stared up at the masked man, completely forgetting that he wasn’t necessarily the uncompromising hero everyone thought he was. “Please, you have to help me!”

  Lightning pursed his lips. His eerie eyes had a distinctly sardonic slant. “Oh, I do, do I? I thought I was ‘a symptom of everything that’s rotten and diseased in the Dark City,’ not ‘the masked hero the people of St. Anthony rely on when their elected officials fail them.’  ”

  Hot anger mixed with my panic. Was he really mocking me?

  “I’m glad my prospective death amuses you!” I hissed, giving him my best glare. “You’re even more of a scumbag than I thought.” Okay, so perhaps antagonizing the unnaturally strong man who’d broken into my home wasn’t the smartest choice. I grimaced and stroked a hand across my face to calm myself. “I’m sorry. I—”

  “Have a big mouth and an unfortunate temper?” he interrupted. He grinned, but behind the blue light of his eyes lay something slightly sinister. “Maybe you could show me what else that wicked little tongue of yours is good at.”

  My cheeks warmed at his less-than-subtle insinuation, and I narrowed my eyes at him in warning. I might have been desperate for his help, and yeah, he was mouth-wateringly good-looking, even with that mask, but suggesting I get on my knees to earn his protection was clearly just to get back at me for my article. “Some hero you are.”

  “I never claimed to be a hero. Maybe I just like saving pretty girls so they’ll suck my cock, and somewhere along the way, people started assuming I did it out of the goodness of my heart?”

  He was toying with me. I knew it, yet his crude words and the way he was looking at me, as if I was something to be devoured, had my heart throbbing hard in my chest. Pressure seemed to wrap itself around me, caressing my skin and fogging up my mind. Uninvited images of wrapping my lips around his hard cock broke through my flustered annoyance, and something down low clenched in wanton sympathy. A soft groan made its way out of my throat and hung in the air between us as an audible proof of my mind and body’s sudden betrayal.

  I shook my head and ripped my gaze from his, trying to get a grip. What the heck was going on here? Seconds ago, I’d been terrified and more than a little annoyed with him, for pity’s sake!

  “What’s the matter, darling?” Lightning’s voice was a soft, sensual purr, and it made my nipples pebble inside my loose t-shirt. “Is there something you want?”

  The image of his cock flashed in my mind’s eye again, but I managed to bite my lip before I moaned. And suddenly it dawned on me. It was him. He was using some sort of power against me!

  Outraged, I snapped my focus back to him. “What the hell do you think you’re doing? Stop that right now, or I swear to God, I’ll—”

  The soft brush of his thumb against my bottom lip made my voice falter into a low whimper. His touch was warm, and even though it was light as a butterfly’s wings, it sent a shock of electricity straight to my clit.

  “Or you’ll what, Kittykat?” His voice swept over me as lightly as his touch, turning my insides to liquid heat. His eyes burned into mine, pushing at something at the very core of my being.

  Oh, God. Heat from his body seemed to melt into my pores as he moved closer, ruining any ability I might have possessed to resist him. I tilted my head back and parted my lips, staring up at him. He was so impossibly beautiful, every line and every angle oozing raw masculinity. And above it all those strange eyes glowed, demanding my submission.

  He dipped his head down and I swayed mindlessly toward him in search of the kiss my lips were tingling with anticipation for. But instead of pressing his mouth to mine, he went for the side of my head, letting his sweltering breath tickle across my ear.

  “If I was truly the asshole you made me out to be, I would bend you over the couch and fuck you rough and deep while you are high on my influence.”

  I shuddered as the thought of his powerful body forcing me down and spreading me open made a rush of liquid soak my panties. God, how I wanted that, wanted him…

  Lightning brushed his lips over the side of my neck, and I tipped my head to allow him better access. While I might have been aware, on some distant level, that he was manipulating me, it felt too good to fight it.

  He took the opportunity to turn me around and, before I managed to even wonder at what he was going to do, he sank his teeth into the back of my neck.

  Bursts of sensation shot through my nerves and into my very blood as he clamped down on the sensitive pressure points there.

  “Ooh!” I moaned, my body going limp even as my arousal spiked. My mind went as lax as my body as I surrendered completely. Yet as soon as I closed my eyes and gave in to the dark rush of endorphins, he let go.

  I stumbled forward and blinked. The pressure of his powers withdrew from both my body and mind, leaving my thoughts clear as day again. Unfortunately, the uncomfortable ache between my legs didn’t disappear, nor did the wet reminder of what he’d been able to do to me.

  Outraged, and a little frightened, I spun back around to stare at the man who had just made my body burn with need.

  Lightning smirked down at me, clearly enjoying my frazzled state. “You’re welcome.”

  I blinked, and the fear subsided somewhat as my anger took the front seat. “I’m welcome? What the fuck was that! Y-you just … mind-raped me!”

  “That, Kittykat, was a taste of why you need to start being smarter, if you want to survive. You think someone like The Shade will stop when I did? You think making your pussy tingle is anywhere close to what some of the bad supes would do to you? When you wrote that article, you stepped into my world—and it’s a dangerous place for a human.”

  I couldn’t hold back the cold shiver that traveled up my spine when he named the scariest villain this city had ever known. “T-The Shade? You really think that he would come for me?”

  Lightning shrugged. “I wouldn’t be too surprised. He’s not your biggest concern, though. Not anymore. My mark on your neck should warn the other supes off—even that bastard. Keep your head down and write about what you normally do—flowers or dresses, or whatever. Hopefully, that should be enough to get you off the radar again.”

  I touched the back of my neck where my skin still throbbed from his bite. There were far too many “shoulds” and “hopefullys” in Lightning’s reassurance for my liking, but he seemed calm enough about it to soothe some of my worries.

  I forced my fingers away from my nape. “So… I’m safe?”

  Lightning shook his head as if I was a particularly slow child before finally turning away from me and walking back toward the kitchen. “No, Kathryn. You’re not safe. You will never be safe in this city. But if you start acting smart, you have a chance. Don’t stick your nose where it doesn’t belong—my mark won’t protect you if you overstep again.”

  “What does it mean? Your mark?” I asked as I took a few hesitant steps after him. “Why does it warn the other superhumans away?”

  His low chuckle emanated from the darkened kitchen. When I got close enough, I saw his shaded outline crouched on my open window ledge, ready to leap out into the night. He turned his face toward me, and his blue gaze lit up his wry smile.

  “It means you’re mine, Kittykat.”

  Three

  As it turned out, I had been right when I thought a video of Lightning would boost my blog traffic. I found this out after I logged on to delete my article, but by that point, it was already way too late. It was all over the Internet, alongside my stupidly smiling profile picture. Maybe if I’d had the wits to take it down immediately after Lightning’s surprise visit, I would have had a chance, but I’d been way too shell-shocked to be that smart.

  I’d spent the entire night in a fitful daze, tossing and turning in my bed—lost between ter
rifying nightmares of being chased by everything evil in St. Anthony and surges of inexplicable lust. Even now, when I was sitting bleary-eyed from lack of sleep, sipping my coffee and staring at my face next to The Truth’s coverage of my article, I squirmed in my seat when I thought about my late-night guest.

  You’re mine, he’d said.

  What the heck was that supposed to mean? Did superhumans own us regulars like livestock? Would someone killing me be viewed like cattle theft used to be viewed in the old west? It had been abundantly clear last night that I didn’t know anything about the true nature of the people with special abilities who walked among us, and right now, that thought worried me more than it ever had.

  Frankly, it terrified me.

  The way Lightning had manipulated either my mind or body—I wasn’t entirely sure which—had some pretty horrible implications. If they could mind-fuck with everybody, then they could control everything, and no one would be the wiser. Was that what this whole thing was about? Was the mayor being corrupted by the bad superhumans via mind control?

  My pussy throbbed longingly at the thought of Lightning’s hot breath against my ear, whispering about the filthy things he could have done to me while my will was his to control.

  “For fuck’s sake,” I hissed, willing my body to stop behaving like it belonged to a cat in heat. Lightning had been the poster boy for sexist pricks everywhere last night, and there was absolutely no need for my ovaries to spazz out like this a full ten hours after he’d released me from the mind control, or whatever it was.