Crimes of Fire (Wayward Fae Paranormal Prison Book 1)

by J. N. Colon

  He grabbed my arm to haul me toward the door. His fingers burned against my bare skin.

  “Let go of me,” I snapped, struggling in vain. Viktor could toss me around like a ragdoll without a lick of magic.

  He wrenched the door open and slammed me against the wall. “I don’t know how you got in, but you’re not invited.” His teeth bared, the veins in his neck popping.

  “You sure like slamming me against walls, don’t you, Vik?” Fear made me act out in a couple of different ways. One was running. One was fighting. And the other—when I knew the first two would be useless—was unleashing the inner smartass. “Are you so twisted that sort of thing turns you on?”

  “Not as much as it’s turning you on, seelie-dae.” His hands pressed on either side of the wall next to my head, that merciless gaze searing holes into me. “You’re the twisted one.”

  A humorless laugh tumbled out of my mouth. “I’d rather Faolan take me to bed than let you touch me.” Shut up, Sloane! This was the opposite of what I should be doing. And the thought of doing anything with Faolan had my gag reflexes working overtime.

  “Is that so?” A slow smile stretched over his lips.

  His elbows bent to bring his body closer to mine. We were in the same position as the other night in the rec room, but there were no witnesses. And the air between us had grown even more electrified.

  “At least you smell better.” My insides clenched as Viktor’s face lowered and turned toward mine, his nose pressing into my hair. “Mmm. You used my soap.”

  I didn’t have a choice. My personal hygiene products had mysteriously disappeared. Someone really didn’t want me to be clean. The only reason I still had a toothbrush was because I hid it in one of my cellmate’s drawers.

  Thanks for the tip, Kim.

  “I didn’t want your gift to go to waste.” My words spilled out low and breathy. Shit. My body was reacting to this asshole. I ground my teeth to choke back the waves of heat swarming me. It was useless, though. This close, Viktor’s presence overwhelmed every one of my senses.

  And they didn’t seem to mind the hostile takeover.

  He pulled back just enough to peer into my eyes, trapping me once again. I couldn’t move. Hell, I could barely suck in ragged air. He could probably see the jugular in my neck throbbing as my pulse tapped out a wild, frantic beat.

  Good thing he wasn’t a vampire.

  “You really have no idea how much danger you’re in, do you?” His threatening words didn’t match the husky tone. One of his hands lowered, pressing into the spot between my arm and ribs. His touch scorched through my tank top.

  I hissed and tried to pull away, but he wouldn’t allow me to move more than an inch within his confining arms. Foreign symbols roped his tan complexion, disappearing beneath his t-shirt, and more tattoos peeked from the collar. A silver chain around his neck glinted in the faint light. What hung on the end hidden under his clothes? The key to every girl’s chastity belt?

  “Have a good look? Find anything interesting?” He languidly studied the curves of my chest. “Not bad.”

  My limbs shook. I wasn’t sure how much more I could take before my legs gave out. Being trapped in his presence turned me inside out.

  A dark chuckle rippled out of him. “Just like everyone here, I could have you in my bed every damn night—if I wanted.”

  “Want to bet?” I had no intention of ever getting near this Fae’s bed.

  My overheated body called me a liar.

  “Too bad for you I’d rather become celibate than screw a disgusting seelie-dae.” Viktor stepped away, taking his warmth with him.

  His words hit me right in the core along with the cold air freezing the sweat on my skin. My nostrils flared and I clenched my fists, wanting nothing more than to pummel his face.

  “I don’t want to ever see you here again, seelie-dae. You don’t belong.” He pulled a juniper stick out from behind his ear, lighting it with magic.

  Could he wield fire too? Just perfect. Was there any power this jackass didn’t possess?

  He blew the cloud of pine-scented smoke in my face. “The only reason you’d be here is if you were fighting.” A sneer pulled at his lips as he scrutinized my petite body. “And that would never happen. You’d get murdered, and I sure as hell won’t be dealing with that bullshit.” He spun around and marched toward the door.

  “Why do you hate me?” I blurted, my curiosity getting the better of me. “I’ve never done anything to you.”

  Viktor slowly turned in my direction with a mask of anger and disgust distorting his features. “You exist.” He wrenched the door open and disappeared, leaving me staring after him.

  His answer made me slump against the wall while tears prickled my eyes. Those words—more or less—had been said to me plenty times before. I was an unwanted foster kid. A throwaway. If someone couldn’t use me, even the queen, I was a stain to be ignored or cut out.

  My fists clenched by my sides, and I choked back the emotion. None of this mattered. Viktor Hale had no idea how right he was. My existence was his problem. Because I was here to end his by any means necessary.

  Chapter 10

  I absentmindedly pushed the scrambled eggs around on my plate as my piece of uneaten toast grew soggy. Compared to the crap I’d had before, the food at Wayward Fae Penitentiary wasn’t bad. It was better than nothing, and I often ended up with nothing.

  Kimber was somewhat apologetic about waking me up during one of her meals. Did she really have to suck energy from people during sex? What would happen if she stopped? Would she shrivel up like a raisin?

  I couldn’t really be mad at her though. If I hadn’t snuck out and followed those prancing fairies, I wouldn’t have discovered Viktor’s secret club. He obviously ran the operation. Who else had enough power and guts for that in Wayward Fae Pen? He could probably take any Fae in here, even without magic.

  The feel of his lips skimming over my ear sent hot shivers down my spine.

  Nope. Not going there.

  I shook the salacious thoughts off. The unseelie douche wouldn’t get one once of my appreciation.

  Unfortunately, Viktor Hale still consumed my mind. I couldn’t figure out what was more disturbing—that I’d agreed to kill the guy or that I’d gotten all hot and bothered when he had me pinned against the wall last night.

  A grimace spread over my face. I refused to be attracted to the unseelie prince. He was a total asshole. He killed his parents, for shit’s sake.

  You killed your foster parents.

  I inwardly growled at the annoying voice in my head. My situation was different. One, it had been an accident. And two, Frank would have hurt Jilly.

  Maybe Viktor had his reasons too.

  Whatever. We were both murderers.

  The cold plastic of the chair seeped through my clothes, or maybe it was the constant chill around my heart. I glanced around the noisy, crowded cafeteria. Most of the Fae weren’t shy about sending looks of hatred and loathing my way. I’d been tripped in the food line and nearly spilled my tray. Someone had tried to knock my water over. A few attempted to push me out of my seat with air magic, but my feet remained locked around the leg of the table.

  Why were seelie-daes so hated? Was it the untraceable magic thing? It couldn’t be the daemon thing because plenty of daemons resided at the prison and they fit in just fine. The hatred and disgust were fully reserved for me.

  And Viktor was the worst. How could I get close to him when he despised me?

  The fight club was my only way in. He’d practically said it. I wasn’t allowed in his club unless I was fighting so—

  My fork was suddenly flung out of my hand, clattering to the ground. A shadow spilled over my back.

  “Oh, I’m sorry. Did you need that?” A girl who had to be almost six feet tall sneered down her nose at me like I was a piece of discarded trash sticking to her boot. She was a stunning sight of mocha skin and wiry muscles.

  Most definitely a shifter
.

  I angled my body toward hers. “Nope. I prefer to use my hands, me being a filthy seelie-dae and all.” I used my fingers to scoop up a glob of eggs and flicked them into her lustrous ebony hair.

  Her jaw unhinged as she stared at the mess in her locks. Apparently, she wasn’t expecting me to stand up to her crap. Sorry to disappoint.

  “Damn, Alisha.” Henrick, Faolan’s beta, appeared, shaking his shaved head. “Are you going to let the tiny seelie-dae push you around? You’re going to give all us shifters a bad rep and not just the panthers.”

  Her nostrils flared wildly. “I can handle my business.” Her head snapped to the side, a loud pop echoing through the cafeteria like a gunshot. If everyone wasn’t already paying attention, they certainly were now. Alisha’s pupils grew into diamond slits. “You don’t get away with disrespecting a shifter.”

  My heart started a frantic gallop. This chick was out for blood, mine specifically. My gaze flickered around the room at the few C.O.s spotting the crowd and lingering around the balcony above. None of them would come to my aid. If anything, they were all hoping I’d get my ass chewed up and spit out—literally. Barlow and Kimber had already eaten. Not a damn soul had my back.

  No one ever did in the human world. Why should I expect my situation to be any different here?

  I dumped the rest of the food onto the table and grabbed my tray, slowly standing. “You don’t get away with disrespecting me either. When someone pushes me, I push back.”

  Her teeth lengthened into sharp points and claws sprouted from her fingers. “You’re going to wish you were never born.”

  Been there. Done that.

  Her body cracked and twisted as she began to shift into a panther. My breath came in ragged pants while sweat spread over my fingers, making my grip on the tray slippery. I lifted it and aimed for her left ear.

  The hit sent tremors through my arms. Damn. Did I smack a brick wall? Alisha stopped mid-shift, releasing a vicious roar. Her half-human, half-animal state was something out of a nightmare. A trickle of blood dripped down her ear.

  “You’re dead.” Large, lethal teeth muffled her voice. She lunged for me.

  My body tightened to prepare for the attack, but a hand fisted in my shirt, yanking me out of the way as Alisha jumped and shifted into a full panther.

  “Back off, Alisha.” The guy who gave me his shirt in the hall stood between us. Magic swam through the air, and the ground beneath my feet vibrated. “Do you really want a mouth full of concrete?”

  Did the guy have elemental earth magic? Concrete did contain sand and rocks.

  A sheen of slick ebony fur coated the taut muscles coiling in the panther. Sharp eyes of a hunter seared into me. I’d never been this close to a wild animal before, and even though a Fae was within the creature, I wasn’t sure how much rational thought existed.

  Alisha bared her teeth, sending a droplet of sweat down my nape, but she didn’t make another move to attack me. Instead, she backed away and took off toward the door by the trash cans.

  Henrick snickered. “The seelie golden boy saved you again.” He winked an obsidian eye. “But Tristan won’t always be there, Sloane.”

  Tristan’s shoulders tightened. “Bye, Henrick. I’m sure Faolan needs your help scratching his ass or something.”

  The dochar beta flipped him off before slinking out of the cafeteria. The other inmates slowly resumed eating, and the officers patrolled through the crowd again. Jerks.

  Tristan turned around, his navy eyes scrutinizing me. “You okay?”

  I crossed my arms against my chest to establish a barrier between us. “That’s the second time you’ve stepped in to help me.”

  His lips puckered, probably thanks to my suspicious tone. “You’re welcome?”

  “What do you want?” Most people didn’t help for free, not in my world.

  “Nothing.” He blinked, shaking his head and throwing golden-brown lock around his face. “No one else seemed too keen on helping. I might be in prison, but I was raised to stand up for people who can’t—”

  I lifted my hand, cutting him off. “If the next words out of your mouth are stand up for themselves, I’m going to punch you. I can sure as hell stand up for myself, seelie.”

  “My name’s Tristan.” The edges of his lips twitched. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re kind of adorable and scary at the same time?”

  “None that lived to tell about it.” I had to admit the guy had some cojones.

  He tapped his chin. “Good thing I didn’t actually call you those things.”

  I scoffed and tried to hold back a smile. Like most of the Fae here, the seelie was pretty damn delicious, a real boy-next-door, complete with dimples. He looked like the type to throw rocks at a girl’s window in the middle of the night.

  Fire suddenly burned the side of my face. I searched for the cause of the sensation and found Viktor Hale strolling into the cafeteria. How could this guy’s icy stare burn me so much? Memories of him pinning me to the wall last night, his body pressed against mine, sped to the surface. Heat crawled up my neck as my pulse quickened.

  I had to stop letting the unseelie prince get to me. No one, especially the guy I had to kill, should affect me this much.

  When Viktor noticed Tristan standing close by, his lips thinned into a hard slash across his face. He didn’t care much for the seelie. Did Viktor like anyone at this place?

  Strands of hair stirred around my face as a light wind kicked up. It didn’t come from Viktor. My gaze swiveled to a scowling blonde across the room. Helena didn’t seem too happy that I’d captured the prince’s attention, even if he did hate my guts.

  I kept one eye on the bathroom floor and the other on the entrance as I moved the stringy mop head back and forth across the tiles. Being at the sight of multiple crimes had my hackles raised. Toilet water had been spewed all over me and then my clothes were stolen during a shower. I wouldn’t be surprised if another attack happened within these dingy walls.

  “Is this the shipment?” A low, rumbling voice in the hallway caught my attention.

  I leaned the mop on the wall and quietly tiptoed to the door, peeking out. A slim male inmate passed a wooden box to a burly C.O. who had to be a shifter. He looked like a freaking bear in his human form.

  “It arrived this morning before breakfast.” The prisoner gently tapped his knuckles on the box. “It’s fresh so be careful, Grayson.”

  Officer Grayson’s fingers ran around the edge of the lid, and he started to lift it.

  The inmate’s hand landed on the top to keep it closed. “I wouldn’t do that. You know things like this from the Otherworld are fickle on Earth. That’s precisely why it’s illegal here.”

  According to Revnick, Wayward Fae Penitentiary butted up to the Otherworld. I guess a doorway existed somewhere on the premises. Was some kind of illegal trade going on? What did that box hold?

  “Wouldn’t want to destroy the merch.” The officer angled the box onto his hip, holding it with one meaty arm. “Got payment, Xander?”

  The prisoner, Xander, reached into his pocket, pulling out a wad of cash. “Vik appreciates your service.”

  Of course the unseelie prince would run some kind of black-market business in the prison. What else did that guy have his hands in?

  The two guys parted ways, and I darted back into the bathroom before either saw me. I leaned against the wall, replaying the scene in my head. What kind of merchandise would be illegal on Earth? Potent pixie dust?

  “I thought I’d find you here.”

  Son of a bitch. In the few moments when I hadn’t been watching the door, Helena slithered in, a glower twisting her features. The prison uniform button-down gray shirt was tied into a knot just under her ribs to display her toned abs. Blonde ringlets shimmered even under the grungy lighting of the bathroom.

  A tired sigh drifted out of my mouth as I shuffled over to the other wall and grabbed the mop. “Don’t you have something better to do than haras
s me? Maybe you need a hobby, like repeatedly slamming your head against a wall.”

  “I came to warn you.” She crossed her arms against her chest, poking out one of her hips.

  I stopped mopping and rested against the handle. “Warn me about what? That you’re going to torment me day in and day out until I crumble into a weeping mess?” I flashed a shit-eating grin. “Not happening, princess. Vik handed me the same bullshit, and he’s not finding much success in that department either.”

  Her eyes turned into raging twin sapphire flames at the mention of the unseelie prince. “Keep his name out of your mouth, Fae trash,” she spat. “He’s what I’m warning you about.”

  I waved my hand through the air. “Please continue.” I’d love to hear this.

  Helena strode forward, her boots squeaking on the wet tiles. “Stay away from Viktor. I’ve seen the way you look at him.” Her lips curled downward in disgust. “He’d never touch a filthy mutt like you, so stop making a fool out of yourself.”

  My unexpected laugh bounced through the hollow room. “You think I want to bump uglies with Viktor Hale?” That was the last thing I wanted to do. Punch that smirk from his face? Yes. Knock him off his elitist high horse? Hell yes? Kill him? Well, I didn’t have a choice in that. But sleep with him? Not even.

  The heat crawling up my nape told me otherwise. “Helena, he’s the last guy I’d ever jump into bed with.”

  “I’m sure. Like you’re too good for him.” Her shoulders pulled back, and she haughtily tossed her curls like she was some princess telling off the help. “Just keep your dirty hands off of him.”

  This chick seriously thought I’d move into her territory. The edges of my lips twitched. Her misery sent happy flutters through my body. “If you’re so certain Viktor wouldn’t touch a filthy seelie-dae like me, then you shouldn’t be worried, right?”

  “Well, yeah, I just…” She sputtered a few times. “I wanted to make things clear, that’s all.”

  I really shouldn’t antagonize her since the psycho ballerina had a habit of attacking me, but my mouth was already opening and taunting words were tumbling out. “Unless, of course, you are afraid I could lure Vik into my arms.”