Legends of the Damned: A Collection of Edgy Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance Novels

by Lindsey R. Loucks

  He inhaled her pineapple scent and decided he’d never wash the sheets. It’d be a shame to lose her fragrance after she left, and today was his last day with her. He fought against the shitty mood suddenly threatening to consume him. He’d make the most of this day, and then he’d let her go, and he’d go on with his life as he had before.

  The stabbing pain of Debol’s summons made him jerk upright in bed dislodging Valia’s delicious body from his and drawing a grunt from her.

  “Wow,” she brushed hair out of her face and sat up. “Fucked up way to wake a girl.”

  “It was certainly not the way I had in mind,” he ground out.

  “What’s the prob?”

  “Fucking Debol.”

  Valia tugged at his shoulders. “Forget him. Take a few minutes to wake me properly.” Her suggestive tone engaged his lust, and the fact he couldn’t act on it pissed him off. Hell, the reason he couldn’t act on it was because of her.

  He snarled and jerked out of her reach. “I can’t forget him for another twenty years thanks to you.”

  “Wow. Someone woke up wearing their grouchy-pants.”

  “Don’t forget what this is about, female. Don’t think just because I made allowances for your diet that anything has changed. You are my prisoner. Nothing more.”

  He’d swear a look of hurt washed over her features but disappeared in an instant as she jumped off the bed and stomped over to him and poked him in the chest.

  “Quit being a dickwad. Your mood swings are making me wanna break your nose again. Either tell me about this terrible thing I did to make you lose fifty years, or shut up about it. Geez!”

  “What you did to me? The nights I spent locked in your cell caused me to fail my last task and that bound me to Debol for another fifty years.”

  Her face paled, and her voice cracked. “I didn’t know. Rydin, I had no memory—”

  He didn’t want to hear about her lack of memory anymore, so ported away from her before she could finish.

  Rydin never enjoyed his meetings with Debol, but he resented this one passionately. He wanted to snap his contract holder’s slimy fucking neck for trying to steal Valia and for ruining his morning with her. He hadn’t intended to be a dickwad as she’d called him. It was the farthest thing from his mind, but his annoyance and anger had gotten the best of him. He actually wanted to apologize to her, and as soon as he got home, he would apologize the best way he knew how—by fucking her to ecstasy.

  He was sure Debol had truly wanted Baden, but he could have sent another of his lackeys or could have given Rydin a better time line. The sneaky bastard had wanted Rydin out of the way so he could use his Incubus tricks to lure Valia to his lair.

  After passing the guards’ scrutiny, he stood outside Debol’s office door and breathed deeply a few times in attempt to rein in his anger. Being belligerent with Debol was rarely a good idea.

  Rydin knocked and entered when Debol answered. The Sempire wasn’t at his side today, and he wondered if Debol had punished her severely for her mild disobedience yesterday.

  “Come, sit,” the Incubus invited.

  A muscle in Rydin’s jaw twitched as he sat, and his nerves were on edge. “Another assignment so soon?”

  Debol leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk in front of him. “Not officially. Not yet. I was thinking about our little chat yesterday. I found it to be quite interesting. Yes, quite.”

  Rydin simply said, “Okay.”

  “You are keeping her for revenge, yes?” At Rydin’s tentative nod, Debol scowled. “You know I don’t tolerate my employees lying to me.”

  What the hell was Debol talking about? “I’m not lying.”

  Debol slammed both fists on his desk, making pens bounce inches above the desktop before clattering back down, some scattering on the floor.

  Rydin thought Debol was going to go ballistic like the crazy demon he was, but after a moment he leaned back and clasped his hands behind his head, no trace of the intense anger of only a second ago.

  “I have an offer for you. What if I said I’d let you out of your contract if you bring her to me?”

  Rydin’s chest constricted as his heart slammed against his rib cage. Freedom. Debol was offering him his freedom and all he had to do was hand over Valia. Surely Debol was only fucking with his head. But what if he wasn’t? Could he do it? Could he do that to her? Hand her over to this lunatic?

  Yes, she’d stolen fifty years from him, but if he handed her over to Debol, he knew it would cost her the rest of her life, however long or short it would be at his hands. Picturing Valia at the Incubus’s mercy made his blood burn. He imagined that feisty light in her eyes clouding over, being replaced by hatred. Even worse, being replaced by despair. Subdued, nothing but a shell of her lively self.

  But he prized his freedom above all, didn’t he? He’d been waiting for so long and had been one task away from achieving it. The one hundred years he’d served Debol, done his bidding—all for nothing because of her. He knew what he had to do.

  Debol’s words cut into his thoughts. “Interesting indeed.”

  “What?”

  “Rydin, the only reason I’m not having you beaten for lying is because I don’t think you know you are.”

  Rydin started to lose his shit and ask the Incubus what the fuck he was talking about, but Debol’s next words chilled him. “You realize I can simply assign bringing her to me, right now, your next task and offer you nothing in return.”

  Yeah, Rydin damn well knew he could do just that, and the urge to smash Debol’s face in had never been greater than at this moment. He’d considered hiring someone to kill him in the past but decided against it. It was difficult to know who you could trust and if the attempt failed, he would automatically be bound to this bastard indefinitely—terms of the contract. That wasn’t an option.

  Rydin’s hands curled into fists, but he kept cool. He had to keep cool. “I’m not finished with her yet.”

  Debol sighed. “Oh yes, yes, I’m afraid you are. But, I’m a reasonable male. The original offer still stands. Bring her to me, now, willingly and I’ll remove ten years off your contract.”

  Rydin pushed himself from the chair. “Fine. I’ll have her here in an hour.”

  “You have fifteen minutes, Ferox.”

  Instead of porting directly back to his home, Rydin walked for a couple minutes, a sinking, twisting sensation filling his gut. Neither option pleased him, but with so much at stake, he didn’t know what else to do. The decision made, he quit stalling and ported home.

  Valia was laid out on the bed looking sexy. Delicious. The light green lingerie he’d bought her was one of the best purchases he’d ever made. He looked at her longingly, wishing they had more time. Wishing he could touch her, taste her, thrust inside her once more. Their time together had been too short. His need for revenge not satisfied, he told himself. It wasn’t fair he’d waited so long to find her, and he was already losing her.

  “Whatcha starin’ at, Rydin?”

  Valia’s voice drifted through his mind like a caress. He moved to the bed and offered her his hand.

  She pouted. “Was hoping you’d join me.”

  He reached in his pocket and pulled out the handcuff key, dangling it above her.

  A frown crossed her face and was quickly replaced by surprise. She jumped off the bed, obviously excited about being set free, leaving him. It angered and hurt him that it was so easy for her. Hurt? He didn’t know why that word had entered his thoughts and quickly dismissed it.

  “About time!” She held out her arm for him to remove the cuffs. “You could have taken them off sooner. They’re marring my awesome skin.”

  He removed the cuffs and was shocked when she jumped right back on the bed. Why hadn’t she simply ported away? There was nothing stopping her now. “What are you doing?”

  She laughed and said, “I’m waiting for you to ravish me, Ferox.”

  She was free and she still wanted him? Kno
wing that made letting her go so much harder. “You must go,” he said.

  Her brows drew together, the smile disappearing from her face. “I must go? Thought ya wanted me here until midnight.”

  He looked at his watch. “Female, you must go. There isn’t much time.” He walked to the side of the bed, where the clothes she wore the night he found her laid crumpled on the floor, and picked them up and tossed them to her. She made no effort to catch them and they fell to the bed. The last thing he’d expected was to have to force her to leave, but he couldn’t deny it elated him

  She stood and rounded the bed to face off with him. He didn’t understand why she was sticking around. He assumed she’d port away as soon as the cuffs were off.

  “What’s up, Rydin,” she demanded. “Your aura is all fucked up.”

  She poked him in the chest, and he realized he’d actually miss that annoying habit of hers.

  His aura? He didn’t have time to decipher that comment. “Unless you want me to deliver you, in handcuffs, to Debol in five minutes, grab your things and port away from here,” he said through gritted teeth.

  Valia blanched as if he’d struck her, and she took a step back. “You wouldn’t.”

  “Apparently not. Which is why you must go.”

  “Stop saying that and tell me what the hell is going on,” she demanded but kept her distance now.

  “Because of your attempted escape, your first night here, one of Debol’s spies saw you and reported your presence. Debol demanded I bring you to him, for which, he will remove ten years off my contract. I let him believe I’d accepted his offer.”

  “Ten years? I’m worth way more than ten years,” she huffed.

  He’d laugh at her truly offended look if the situation wasn’t so dire.

  “I’m surprised you aren’t taking it. That’d be the icing on top of your revenge cake.”

  “I don’t want that icing on this cake. You deserved to be cuffed, fucked, and spanked more than any female I’ve ever encountered, but you do not deserve that fate. The way he treats his Sempire prisoner in front of me is disgusting. I cannot imagine what he does to her privately.”

  Valia paled. “He’s holding a Sempire prisoner? We have to help her.”

  “No!” Rydin hadn’t intended the word to burst out so violently. “He has guards. Many guards and because I’m contracted to him, I can’t help you.”

  “You’d help me if you could? Wait. What’s he gonna do when he finds out you let me go?”

  “It won’t be pleasant to be sure, but I am Ferox and I will survive.”

  She gulped. “Will you be beaten?”

  “At the very least.” He looked at his watch again. “You are out of time. You must go.”

  “But the Sempire-you-I haven’t told you—”

  He pulled her into him as he crushed his lips to hers in a quick, urgent, brutal kiss, then set her away from him. “Now!”

  Rydin sank onto his bed as she disappeared. That internal void returned as soon as she’d gone. He needed to put her out of his mind. Saving her was probably the one and only noble thing he’d ever done in his life, and now he would pay for it. He wouldn’t die, but Debol would make sure he suffered, although Rydin suspected that suffering would be nothing compared to the torment of losing Valia.

  Valia’s clothes lay on the bed. He picked them up, held them to his nose and inhaled. He’d miss her scent. Hell, he’d miss everything about her.

  Chapter Six

  Valia appeared outside her family’s mansion, inside the veil between the human realm and the demon realm. That odd discomfort, the longing for something that overtook her when she was separated from Rydin, coated her insides. She needed a moment to pull herself together.

  He’d let her go. After what she’d done to him, he’d let her go, and he was going to suffer immeasurable pain because of it. Because of her. She couldn’t let that happen. He’d already suffered enough because of her. She hadn’t even gotten around to explaining about the aura binding. She wondered if he’d still have let her go if he’d known that. She just needed a plan. Sucking in a deep breath, she twisted the knob, opening the elaborately carved, wooden door and stepped inside.

  “Valia! Where ya been?” Fin’s voice greeted her.

  Fin was a dear friend who’d lived with her family and worked as their chef since before Valia had been born. He was a stunning specimen of male, but oddly she’d never been tempted to get freaky with him.

  He grabbed her in a bear hug and kissed the top of her head before stepping back to survey her appearance. “Nice outfit,” he said, smirking at her lingerie.

  “Isn’t it?” she said and twirled.

  “So, where ya been?” He repeated his earlier question. “Araya went from mildly annoyed, to frantic, to pissed off. She figured you were dodging her because of all the wedding planning.”

  Valia snorted and frowned.

  “Whoa, a frown? Haven’t I heard you say how frowning gives you wrinkles?” he joked.

  “Fin, something seriously shiteous is going down. I’ve been in the demon realm.”

  “How? Why? Are you okay?” The look of shock on his face spoke volumes.

  “Do me a favor? Will you buzz Araya and let her know I’m okay and it’s not what she thinks? I need to find my mother and I’ll fill you in later.”

  Fin opened his mouth, but before any words come out, Araya, her sister and Talith, their mother, came out of the game room and exclaimed “Valia” in unison.

  Valia threw up her hands. “Before you both start, listen. I’ve been in the demon realm. I didn’t know it at first, but I was abducted.” She laughed at that. “Anyhoo, I have to go back to help Rydin, but I need a plan. Oh, and we need to have a chatty chat, dear mommy. You know, about my transition.”

  Talith’s eyes widened and Araya’s mouth dropped open. Before they could recover from their shock, Valia motioned for them to follow her. “You can grill me in the dining hall. I’m dying for some pineapple and kiwi. You should see what they eat in the demon realm.” She scrunched up her face for effect. “Crapnasty shit. Ick.” Yeah, she’d liked it once she’d gotten past the appearance, but it was more fun to be dramatic about it.

  Kean, Araya’s eighth-Incubus fiancé, sat at the large table chatting with Darcon, Talith’s number-one guard. Valia liked to call him Darcy because it annoyed him. Kiberry sat at Kean’s side. She giggled at that. Kiberry was a baby Tengur demon. Araya and Valia had found him alone in the orchard, and they’d become his surrogate mothers. He had four-inch legs, a thirty-pound body covered in black-and-blue-tinged fur and large wings. Oh and a mouth full of scary teeth. Kiberry had pounced on Kean the first time he’d seen him because he thought Kean was trying to hurt Araya. Now he followed Kean around like he was a puppy.

  Valia almost drooled at the array of fruit piled high on platters. She rushed forward, grabbed a chunk of pineapple, and stuffed it in her mouth. She closed her eyes as the sweet and tangy juice coated her mouth. “Hey, Incubus.” She greeted Kean. “Hey, Darcy.” She laughed when his narrowed eyes.

  “Valia!” Araya exclaimed. “What the hell is going on? You can stuff your face later. Talk.”

  They all sat around the table, and Valia explained the basics of what had happened but left out the part about binding Rydin’s aura. She wanted to talk to her mother alone about that.

  Talith spoke first. “Valia dear, why would you want anything to do with that demon, much less help him? He abducted and imprisoned you.”

  Kean, Araya, and Valia all snorted at the same time. Talith had abducted Kean and imprisoned him, and she’d abducted Rydin and imprisoned him. Hypocritical much?

  Talith ran her fingers over her blonde hair as if to smooth it even though there wasn’t a strand out of place, and she had the nerve to look indignant at their collective snorting.

  “He’s suffered enough because of me. You. Us. Whatever. And we need to have a chat about that later, but right now, I need a plan. The nasty Incub
us who holds his contract—”

  It was Araya’s and Talith’s turn to mimic each other. “Incubus!”

  “A full-blooded Incubus?” Araya squeaked. Valia nodded and Araya continued. “Oh no way! That is way too dangerous. You guys can hardly bear to be around Kean,” her eyes went all dreamy, “because of his alluring scent. You know the powerful draw of it.”

  “I’m immune to your love puppy’s scent now.” Valia turned to Kean and winked. “As for Debol, he might smell delicious, but I can handle it. I want him dead. It’s the least I can do for Rydin.”

  “I think Valia has a crush,” Fin joked. “I’ll help just based on that. I’ve never seen you all gooey over a male before, only lusty.”

  “I’m not gooey!”

  He smirked at her. “Whatever you say.”

  “If that doesn’t convince you, mommy dearest, maybe you’ll want to help the Sempire he’s been holding captive.” She knew that would infuriate her mother. Talith was a proud Sempire, proud of her species and wouldn’t stand for that.

  Talith sucked in a harsh breath. Araya followed suit. “How do you know he’s holding a Sempire?”

  “Rydin told me and it doesn’t sound good.”

  “Of course it’s not good. It’s probably already too late for her. There is no cure for a Sempire addicted to Incubus semen.” A brief expression of true sorrow crossed her features. “But better to get her out of there than to let her continue suffering at the Incubus’s hands, but Fin will not be involved.”

  “Talith—” Fin began.

  “Fin,” Talith interrupted, “you can’t go to the demon realm.”

  “Why not?” Valia asked. “He’s a badass fighter even if he is a little flabby from all the cooking he does.” Okay, there wasn’t any flab on Fin, but that’d teach him to call her gooey.

  “Absolutely not,” Talith said. “Darcon can spare you a few guards if you insist on this ridiculous crusade, but Fin can’t go and you’re not going either.”

  “Oh but I am, Mother. I’m sixty-one years old, for fuck’s sake. And Fin, hell, he’s been around a lot longer than me.” She looked at her friend and asked, “How old are you anyway?”