by Maya Nicole
"He left after he destroyed my r-r-rag." I resisted the urge to stick out my bottom lip like a child. The thought of the whole incident made me want to sit in a corner and pout. Brownies really did have maturity issues at times.
"Wait, he destroyed your rag? But you said it was vital for your survival." She put her hand on my arm. "Are you okay?"
I swallowed. "My father lied to me about the power of the rag." Her eyes widened. "My r-rag is the last thing you should be worrying about. Sammy, the atrium is growing."
"What do you mean it's growing?" Nico came up from behind me and grabbed Picard by the neck with two fingers. "He's tiny as fuck. This is what everyone wants to steal light from? How much light can this little-" A small burst of light came from Picard and Nico dropped him. "Ow! What the fuck?"
"You tell that god-damned squirrel he better not put his hands on me like that again or I will incinerate all his nuts, including the two between his legs!" Picard scaled the bed to Nico's waist pouch lying there. "Try me, nut boy!" The monkey's hand lit up.
No translation was needed, Nico put up both hands in surrender. "Geez, I'm sorry." Nico shook his head. "Can he understand us?"
"Yes." I stepped toward Sammy, who had paled and started backing away. "Are you okay? Did you know?"
"Know what?" Nico carefully snatched his pouch from the bed and secured it around his waist before Picard could do anything to it. I had a feeling that, if Picard wanted to, he could destroy them in an instant.
"The shaman is her father." Raphael pulled on his shirt and ran his fingers through his messy hair.
"He's not really a shaman." She looked at Raphael, who nodded. "He is the twin of the Creator... he's one of the creators of Inferna."
"Wait a second." Nico crossed his arms. "What do you mean?"
Sammy turned toward him and walked into his arms, hugging him. "It means I'm a bastard."
"It means, she is powerful and can use the light magic any way she wants!" Picard laughed. "Well, once she figures out how. See if she can make me some Pop-Tarts. Strawberry, please." Picard jumped around the bed like, well, a monkey. I hoped he didn't fall off and bump his head. That would be a story to tell.
Translating what he said was going to get old fast, especially if he was talking nonsense. I chose to ignore him.
Loud shouts came from downstairs and I jumped. The others rushed to grab their weapons and I stood frozen. It would be nice to go a day without having a visceral reaction to things.
Picard jumped on my shoulder and raised a tiny fist in the air. "Onward, trusty steed! To the battle!"
He was crazy. I suppose I would be crazy too if I saw death's door five times.
I followed at a safe distance and stopped at the top of the stairs. The shouting had stopped but was replaced by loud voices. I wondered if it would look like there was a floating monkey if I went invisible. I had only ever done it with inanimate objects and been fine.
"Stop being a wuss." He scrambled onto my back and hung onto the back of my shirt. "Don't let them see me."
I slowly descended the stairs until I was at the bottom. I saw a gathering down the hall at the front entrance and made my way to stand behind Nico. My palms were sweating, and I wiped them on my pants.
"This is unprecedented! You expect to just carry on without a king or a council? You are a foolish woman! I thought your father had taught you better! As much as we hated the council, we will not stand for this foolishness." There was a group of four men gathered in the entrance.
I craned my neck to see there were even more outside in the front courtyard. We were outnumbered. I could tell Sammy was worried by the stiffness in her back.
"There are bigger things to worry about than who is in charge." Despite what she was up against, her voice was strong. If I only had half the confidence she had, I'd be a changed man. "We have to stop the vacants. We can worry about politics later."
One of the men stepped forward and pointed his finger at Sammy. "Vacants led by your brother!"
Footsteps came up behind me and I glanced over my shoulder. Amari strode past me and walked right up to stand next to Sammy. "There is a king and queen."
"Then why is the king locked in the dungeon? We will not follow a queen. We tried that, and all she wanted was to get revenge." Several nods and sounds of approval filled the room.
A low growl came from Nico, and I grabbed his forearm, stopping him from moving forward. He looked at me in surprise.
"King Valentino will be released in a few days when he is himself again." My mouth dropped open as I watched Sammy take a step forward. "We will call a meeting to order then."
There was hushed conversation among the men, and then the one in charge stepped forward and held out his hand. Sammy shook it firmly and then backed up next to Amari.
Once the door was firmly shut, Amari laid into the guards and Sammy turned and walked toward us. She passed us without a word and Raphael came to stand with Nico and me.
"I have a feeling if we follow her right now, she will rip our heads off." He reached behind me and took Picard. "Picard, my man. Can I interest you in an adult beverage?" He walked off with him. I didn't want to know what Picard was like drunk.
Nico pulled out his hair tie and readjusted his bun. "That murdering fucker should not be king."
I didn't know what to think. All I knew was that those men had been out for blood, and we couldn't let them have Sammy's.
Chapter 4
Samara
Damn.
My father had been right. They would kill me before I even had the crown on my head.
I marched down the stairs to the dungeon and stopped in front of Val's cell. He looked up from the book he was reading and then shut it, putting it down on the ground.
"What's wrong?" He stood and came to the bars, but I didn't back up. My heartbeat sped up as his eyes dropped to my neck before looking up again. "You shouldn't stand so close."
"You need to get over this bloodlust thing in the next three days." I crossed my arms. "My life depends on it."
He tilted his head back and laughed. "It doesn't work like that, bruja. I can't just turn it off. I wish it were as simple as that." He inhaled deeply. "I can smell your blood without you even spilling a drop."
I set my jaw and wrapped my hands around the bars, stepping even closer to him. "It does work like that. I need you to be my king."
He shut his eyes and clamped his mouth shut. I reached through the bars and grabbed him. "You caused this, Valentino. Now, you need to help fix it. The villagers want to see my head on a spike. Is that what you want?"
"I'll hurt you." He looked down at my wrist clutching his shirt and licked his lips. "You don't realize how hard it is not to rip into your flesh. That juicy vein straining against your skin would be perfect."
"You haven't ripped into me yet." I let him go and pulled the key out of my pocket. "And you won't."
"Samara." His voice held a warning, but I didn't care. I needed him to be what I couldn't. I could never be a king, as much as I hated admitting it to myself. I needed him, even if that meant he destroyed me in the process. "Don't unlock that door."
My stubbornness flared and I turned the key in the lock and pulled the cell door open. "Let's go."
"I'm not leaving this cell." He hissed, his fangs showing. "As much as I really want to right now."
"As your queen, I demand you get out of the cell." I put my hand on my knife, ready to pull it out if I needed to. I hoped I didn't need to.
"Bruja." He backed into the stone wall. "Don't do this to me."
I took a deep breath and stepped inside. "Drink from me." His lips pressed firmly together. "Drink from me and then stop when I tell you to. Prove to yourself that you can control yourself."
"What if I can't?" He looked down at the dirty stone floor.
"Then I'll stop you." I hadn't even realized Amari had come down the stairs. "She's right, Val. She isn't strong enough to be the queen."
His word
s pierced me somewhere deep inside, and I turned to face him. "I never said that."
"You didn't need to." He stopped at the cell door. "You just showed all those men up there that you didn't have it in you to be their queen. You let them walk into your home and question your ability to lead Inferna. Now, you're down here begging Val to get it the fuck together so he can be king."
My grip tightened on the hilt of my knife. He was right, but that didn't make it any easier to hear. I was scared shitless that there was about to be a civil war over the crown and I was going to be the catalyst.
"What options do I have, Amari? Only those with meat sticks or a psycho bitch that has mind control seem to be respected. I don't have a choice." I frowned. "Women are good enough to squeeze a living creature out of us, but not good enough to be in charge."
"You are the only one that doesn't see just how powerful you are." He stood in front of me and pried my hand from the knife.
He took my face between his hands. I glared at him and tried to look away, but he held me still.
"Let go of me." I bit my lip to stop myself from crying. I had never felt so helpless and lost. I knew he was right, but even the powerful can be weak.
"Tell me like you mean it. Like you'll take my head if I don't comply." His eyes darkened as he spoke and I wasn't sure I wanted him to let me go.
"I can't."
He dropped his hands and frowned. "You just proved my point."
I grabbed his hands and brought them back to my face. "I can't because I don't want you to let go of me. Now stop being a dick."
"What do you want then?" His eyes burned, and he glanced over his shoulder at Val. "Tell us what you want. You're the queen; it's time to start acting like one."
"What do I want besides to wake up and this nightmare to be over?" I shut my eyes as his thumb ran across my bottom lip. "I want Val to be better. I want you to not have to turn to stone. I want-"
His lips covered mine, silencing me. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer, pressing my chest to his. I knew it wasn't the time or the place to be giving in to my desires, but a little loving never hurt anyone.
Amari spun me so I was facing Val, who was against the wall. He was holding back, but I could tell he wanted to come closer.
"You wanted to help me with Val. We do this my way or I will have your ass up those stairs and locked out before you can pull that knife out." Amari's words sent a shiver down my spine. Maybe he should be the king.
Val was avoiding my stare, trying to press himself further into the stone wall.
"Bésame, mi rey." I only hoped I told him to kiss me and not to do something else. Raphael wasn't a trustworthy source. For all I knew, I could have just told him to eat my tit.
His nostrils flared, and he stepped forward. "Where'd you learn that?"
"Raphael." I moaned as Amari moved my hair to the side and kissed my neck. "Did I get it right?"
He nodded and cupped my cheek, his hand trembling. "How did I get so lucky?"
He kissed me, and I melted back against Amari. I felt safe between the two men, despite the fact that the one in front of me had fangs and wanted to rip out throats.
Amari spun me around and his tongue invaded my mouth. Val's fingers stroked my neck, and I shivered, desire pooling in my belly.
There was pressure on my neck and then the most toe-curling sensation washed over my body and I moaned against Amari's mouth. He pulled back and put his forehead against mine while threading his fingers through Val's hair.
"You need to believe in yourself." My eyes fluttered shut as Amari's breath fanned across my lips. "We believe in you. That's why we're all still here."
"I'm scared."
"It's okay to be scared. We're all a little scared, we just don't show it. Well, besides Kage." He ghosted his lips over mine and then pulled back. "That's enough, Val."
Val's grip tightened on my arms and in the firmest voice I could muster I said, "Val. Stop."
He made a feral sounding growl and let go, swiping his tongue over the punctures and backing up. "Fuck."
Amari examined my neck and kissed my cheek. "I thought I was going to have to rip him off of you."
"Well, you didn't." Val licked his lips. "I need to stay locked in here. I'll hunt her down if you leave that door unlocked."
His eyes were still locked on my neck and I knew that was our cue to leave even though I really didn't want to.
"I'm not a good swimmer." I dipped my toe in the pool and stared down at Amari, who had his forearms on the side. "I've been in this pool twice. Once when I had three too many glasses of champagne, fully dressed in a ball gown, and once when my father and mother were visiting family."
"You swam in the lake a bit." He pushed off the side and floated on his back. "The water isn't even that deep. Go on the cub end."
I snorted. "The cub end?" I sat down and put my feet in. "I'm fine right here."
"Such a waste of a perfectly good swimsuit." He dove under the water and swam toward me.
Amari was an excellent swimmer, gliding through the water without moving the surface. It had to be some special panther ability he had.
He resurfaced right in front of me and pushed my knees apart so he could be closer. But then I realized the real reason as he yanked me toward him and I slid down into the pool, my legs wrapping around him.
"Aren't you Mr. Smooth?" I pushed at his chest and he tightened his hold on me.
"For wanting to escape so badly, you sure do have those thighs locked tight." His hands slid down my back and palmed my ass. "I don't know if I like your ass or your tits more."
I grinned and wrapped my arms around his neck and pushed my chest out.
"Why choose?" I licked my lips and he groaned. "I'm not really in the mood tonight, though."
He laid his head against my chest. Besides the stress of having Val locked up in the dungeon and the impending meeting with the village assholes, we would be figuring out what my brother was up to.
We couldn't go into a meeting with angry villagers and have no intel. Knowing his exact location and what happened to my people was important for our cause.
It should have been everyone's cause, but they needed to be affected by it personally to truly care.
"You're always in the mood." He kissed my cleavage and pulled back to look at me again. "Did I do something wrong? Is it because I called you out on your bullshit?"
"What you said was pretty harsh." I traced a finger over his collarbone and he shut his eyes. "It was something I needed to hear though."
"I'm sorry if it upset you." He kissed my cheek and then trailed his lips down my jaw. "What if I told you I just wanted to bury my face between your legs, would you be in the mood then?"
I laughed and ran my hands over his head, a moan escaping as he lightly kissed my throat and the top of my breasts. My back hit the side of the pool and I tightened my legs, rubbing against him.
"You just had your face there last night." I gasped as he sucked my nipple through my bikini top. "Why don't we all just go to Earth, forget all this bullshit, and live the rest of our lives having lots of sex at Raphael's?"
He pulled the string tied at my neck and the top flopped into the water, my nipples hardening further as the air hit them. "Oops." He kneaded one breast, rubbing the nipple with his thumb and sucked the other into his mouth.
"I guess that's a no... oh, hell serpents, yes." I moved against him, sliding his erection along my clit.
I squealed as he lifted me out of the pool, his muscles straining, and put me on the side. "Lie back, and scoot to the edge, my queen."
I groaned, his words causing me to want to clench my legs shut to quell the burn. I'd let them continue to call me their queen for the time being, I got a thrill from it.
"If I refuse?" I licked my lips as he slid his hands from my knees and up to my thighs.
"You're going to refuse me?" He hooked his hands around the back of my knees and pulled me to the edge.
/> I fell back and put my forearm over my eyes as he spread my legs and licked me through my bikini bottoms. I was well aware I was spread out on the side of the pool for all of Inferna to see, but quickly forgot about that fact as he moved the fabric aside with his tongue and licked the length of me.
"What was that, my queen?" He kissed my inner thigh and then pulled my bottoms off and they plopped next to my head. "What happened to refusing?"
He pulled me again so my ass was practically off the side of the pool and buried his face between my legs, his tongue slipping inside my folds and finding my clit. I gasped as he used his hands to spread me open and press his tongue under my sensitive nub and then pressed his nose against it.
"Amari," I panted and writhed against the ground, my legs falling open further. "Fuck, you're so good at it." I moved against his mouth as he used his entire face to bring me pleasure.
My orgasm built and exploded out of me in a scream as his fingers delved into me, working me hard. I rode his face and hand until I melted into the ground.
Amari pushed back off the side of the pool and dipped under the water before coming up and sliding his hands over his face and then down his chest into the water. "Stay just like that."
I propped myself up on my forearms as he wrapped his hand around himself. I could barely make out what he was doing, but his face and the motion of his arm said it all.
"You don't want me to come help you with that?" I sat up all the way, keeping my legs spread. "After all you just did for me?"
"Open up wider." His arm worked harder and he groaned as I opened my legs as wide as possible. I cupped one of my breasts. "You're so fucking beautiful."
His head tilted back slightly and his mouth opened as he panted. His hand worked faster and I slid my hand down my body. I spread my lips and he moaned, the muscles in his neck straining.
"Oh, fucking ball of yarn." He sank under the water and bubbles rose to the surface.
I laughed and slid into the water just as he resurfaced. "A ball of yarn, hmm? Maybe you can tie me up with some."
