Darkblood Prison: Demon On A Dime (Supernatural Prison Squad Series Book 1)

by G. K. DeRosa

  Mom.

  “Then about something new Remy had seen. The seer didn’t go into detail but Thax did mention Delacroix specifically, inquiring as to his progress. Another voice I didn’t recognize confirmed that the demon was still working on it—whatever it meant.” Talon turned to me, his eyes meeting mine for the first time since yesterday. His lips tightened into a thin line, and he didn’t say anything for the longest moment. His eyes raked over me as if he were trying to read my mind and maybe with this stupid bond he could. “Azara, I think there’s a reason you can’t remember anything from the night you were brought in.”

  My pulse skyrocketed, distant screams echoing in my mind.

  “I think Thax may have orchestrated the incident at the faery club to get you into Darkblood Prison.” He ran both hands over his face and exhaled a long breath. “He didn’t mention your name specifically but from the bits of conversation I picked up, it makes sense.”

  All the air whooshed from my lungs in an instant. My chest constricted, and I couldn’t breathe. “What?” I choked out.

  “We’ve got to figure out what really happened that night, and the only way to do that is to get your memories back.”

  A swirl of hope kindled in my heart.

  “I knew she couldn’t have done something like that…” Logan muttered.

  I shot him an appreciative smile, but a pang of guilt wiped the grin from my mouth. He was wrong; I was capable of something that terrible. I’d sucked the life from that narkin demon just yesterday, and I would’ve done worse if Talon hadn’t stopped me. I almost confessed my dark urges when the dragon cut me off.

  “There’s more… Right before the guards surprised us, Thax mentioned Vander. Then the narkin gored me with his tusk and all hell broke loose.” Talon’s eyes darted to mine before pivoting back to Logan.

  “Are you sure, T?” Dallas asked. “Maybe it was just what you wanted to hear…”

  “No,” he snarled. “I know what I heard. I’m sure of it.”

  Vander, the best friend I killed?

  “Even if he did say his name, there are about a dozen reasons to account for it,” Hayden offered.

  “Maybe,” Talon gritted out. “Except when I went to visit Vessa last week, she confirmed the SIA never recovered Vander’s body.”

  Who’s Vessa? A jolt of jealousy juddered through my middle. I shoved the unwanted sensation down. It’s just the stupid dragon blood bond—you are not falling for someone who hates you.

  “Hmm, that is odd.” Logan scratched at his chin, the day-old scruff grating against his nails.

  “I wouldn’t have thought that much of it except for that other part I’d overheard about the half-blood demon girl.”

  Logan’s eyes widened, his jaw tensing. “Thax said half-blood specifically?”

  He nodded.

  “But there are thousands of half-bloods between both worlds, right?” My brain finally started working again after the initial shock of information overload. “Why do you think he was talking about me?”

  Talon’s smoldering irises flicked to the triangular sigil on my arm. “He mentioned your tattoo specifically.”

  My throat tightened, and I swallowed hard. “But I thought lots of demons had marks like mine.”

  “None that glow,” Talon muttered, searing me with those mesmerizing eyes.

  Logan’s expression darkened, and his lips thinned into a hard line. “Okay, so let’s assume they are talking about Azara. It only confirms the idea that it’s not safe for her here. Garreth won’t condone his granddaughter staying at Darkblood with Delacroix and Thax planning gods’ know what.”

  My thoughts flitted back to the rush of energy I’d felt when I’d consumed the narkin demon, and anxiety racked my insides. “I can’t leave now. We have to figure out what happened.” And I have to get my murderous urges under control.

  “I won’t risk your life, Azara.” An unyielding expression carved into Logan’s face. Sometimes the gargoyle reminded me of my dad. A twinge of nostalgia squeezed my heart. I missed my parents like crazy but admitting what I’d done would hurt ten times worse. If I could prove that I’d been set up, I could finally face them.

  Talon cleared his throat and glanced at me from the corner of his eye. “I have an alternate suggestion. I’d have to run it by a few higher ups at the agency, but I wanted to get your thoughts on it first.”

  “What?” Logan and I blurted in unison.

  “Azara’s power is… impressive. And I have a feeling we’ve yet to scratch the surface of what she’s capable of. The SIA is always looking for talented supernaturals. I may be able to convince them to let her work off her sentence on one of the squads.”

  “The SIA’s slayer squads?” Logan exclaimed as my inner thoughts echoed his words.

  He shrugged. “Yeah, why not? She wants to make up for what she did.” He twisted toward me, trapping me in his gaze. “Right?”

  “I do.” That definitely was not what I’d had in mind, but if it meant freedom from these obsidian walls, I’d take it.

  “I think it’s a great idea.” Hayden wrapped his long arm around my shoulders and squeezed me into his side. “I think the pumpkin would make an excellent addition to our team.”

  Talon shook his head and clucked his tongue. “I didn’t say anything about our team.”

  “But it would make the most sense, T,” interjected Dallas. “How else are we going to keep an eye on her and surveil Delacroix in here?”

  “Let’s talk about this later, guys. In private.” He gritted out the last part, and I had to suppress a smirk. I definitely had gotten under Talon’s skin. I wished I could say the opposite wasn’t true as well.

  Logan rose, his wings once again hidden beneath his stony flesh. “Fine, let’s reconvene on this in three days—that brings us to Garreth’s deadline. I’ll speak to whoever I have to in the SIA to vouch for Azara. Just let me know what I have to do, Talon.”

  He nodded. “Will do.”

  The warden turned to me, the firm set of his jaw softening. “You sure about this, Azara?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Soft footsteps padding across the floor woke me from a fitful sleep. I’d tossed and turned for hours before finally drifting off only to be bombarded by nightmares of delicious demon souls. Eew. I’m so gross. Rolling over, I lifted my heavy lids to find Talon pacing the length of our cell. The silver glow of his irises illuminated the dim space. I glanced back to the bunks, and Hayden’s throaty snores filled the silence.

  It only took a minute for my eyes to adjust to the dim lighting. They focused in on Talon’s bare torso like magnets drawn to the North Pole. I watched him for a while, the muscles in his back tensing as if his wings were straining to break free. The silver dragon along his chest writhed with his movement. Its scintillating scales shimmered in the darkness.

  He was impossibly beautiful. And a dick. I found I had to remind myself of that more often lately.

  His hands clenched into fists at his sides, his fingers opening and closing with each pass. A vein throbbed in his forehead, a perfect match to his manic pacing. Tension radiated from his taut body and leeched off in waves. It echoed within my own body, reaching all the way down to my toes.

  Talon whirled on me, his irises finding mine in the darkness. “Something on your mind, inmate?”

  So busted! I gulped and sat up, wrapping my arms across my chest. “I was going to ask you the same thing.”

  “Instead you decided to watch me like a stalker?” The ghost of a smile hitched up his lip.

  “I didn’t want to interrupt your manic pacing.”

  “Umhmm.” He crept closer, his broad shoulders looming over me.

  My heartrate ratcheted up a notch. His mountain fresh scent descended over me, and I inhaled deeply. Stop that! I glanced up and immediately regretted it. His inner dragon was starting to look at me like I was a tasty piece of meat. “When is this going to go away?” I blurted.

  “What?”
/>   “This thing between us.” I pointed back and forth from his bare chest to mine.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Again, that slight twist of his lips.

  “Then why do you act so bipolar with me? One minute you hate me, then the next you’re all sexy, bedroom eyes.”

  His lips contorted into a frown, and he folded his big body onto my bed. The mattress squeaked under his massive weight. He huffed out an “I’m sorry.”

  My eyes nearly bugged out of my head. “Excuse me?”

  “I never considered that this might be difficult for you. I was only concerned about my part in this situation. Not just the blood bond, but all of it. It was easier for me to see you as the bad guy and now with this damned connection we share, I’m finding it more impossible each day. My emotions are jumbled up with yours and it’s confusing. And complicated.”

  “Well, thanks for apologizing.” Never thought I’d hear those words come out of his mouth.

  He blew out a breath and leaned forward, raking his hands over his face and through his dark hair. “The blood bond affects my dragon most. He’s the one tied to you, and he’s a lot stronger than I like to admit.”

  His body leaned closer, and I didn’t think he’d even realized he’d done it. His shoulder brushed mine, and an electric charge skimmed my skin. He cleared his throat but didn’t move. “In regard to your question earlier, I don’t know when it’ll go away. I’ve never given my blood to anyone before. From what I hear, the effects could be different on a half-blood because of your humanness.”

  “Thanks for the explanation.” At least now I understood it was his dragon that got all lusty around me.

  “Hayden and I had a little talk earlier, and he convinced me I’ve been kind of a dick. I blamed you for all of those deaths and I suppose it wasn’t all your fault. So yeah…”

  I nodded. I was so shocked at this talkative, understanding, apologetic version of Talon that I couldn’t even speak.

  “I suppose I owe you a thank you too. Hayden told me you guarded my passed-out ass while my brothers were handling the demons.”

  “Nah, it was nothing.” A small smile pulled at my lips.

  A throaty growl vibrated his barrel chest and silver eclipsed his irises, his pupils morphing to reptilian slits. He trapped my chin between his thumb and forefinger and tugged me closer. Our breath mingled as his lips inched toward mine. I sucked in a ragged gulp of air, and my insides went haywire. I could almost feel his blood surging through my veins, begging to be reunited with his body.

  When had he gotten so close? His heart rammed through his t-shirt and thrummed against my chest. “Talon…” I muttered and placed my hand on his insanely firm pec. He’d just finished telling me this wasn’t real.

  He stopped his forward advance and dropped his gaze to my lap. He growled a curse, and his fingers closed around my dingy blanket. “I can’t control him…” The rough edge to his tone had my insides clenching.

  I held my breath as Talon teetered on the edge of the bed. A swell of emotion pummeled my insides right before he whirled at me. His lips crashed into mine like a raging storm finally freed.

  My brain said stop, but my body refused the command. Every single nerve ending lit up as his tongue lashed against mine, his teeth nipping at my lower lip. He growled against my mouth, and the heat of a thousand fires ravaged my insides. Holy dragon babies!

  The lights flashed on, and Logan’s dark form appeared through the glass. “Oh good, you guys are awake.”

  I almost fell forward when Talon leapt back and jolted off the bed.

  “You were right, Talon. Vander is alive.”

  Read on for a special sneak peek of Darkblood Prison: Demon Double-Agent and you can pre-order it here. If you missed the blueprint of Darkblood Prison, you’ll find it right before the first chapter and you’ll find Azara’s Bloodline if you keep flipping!

  Don’t forget to join GK’s Supe Squad, my exclusive Facebook group and get a bonus deleted scene from the story. And we can chat about all things books!

  Thanks for being an awesome fan!

  GK

  Sneak Peek of Darkblood Prison: Demon Double-Agent

  Chapter 1

  Vander is alive. Vander is alive. Logan’s words bounced across my skull like a ping pong ball. My heart smacked against my ribs, and the roar of my thundering pulse echoed across my eardrums. The Supernatural Intelligence Agency officer that tried to bring me in the night of my soul-sucking bender was alive. I didn’t kill Talon’s best friend.

  “What?” Talon’s gruff shout jerked me from my wandering thoughts. He peeled himself off the obsidian wall of our cozy cell and met Logan as he walked in.

  Not a second ago, my dragon bodyguard’s fiery lips had been pressed to mine, but when the warden appeared, he’d flung himself to the opposite corner of our cage so fast my head spun.

  I tried not to focus on the pang of hurt streaking through my insides and concentrated on the good news. One less person to add to the tally of my murderous spree.

  Logan’s gaze shot to mine, his darting eyes running over my disheveled hair and skimpy tank top. Heat blossomed across my cheeks. It was almost worse than one of my dad’s stare downs. How much had he seen before Talon shot across the cell?

  The warden cleared his throat and pivoted to the looming dragon a few inches from his face. “I just got word from one of my gargoyle teams. They overheard some chatter at a bar when they were trailing a group of Thax’s narkin demon guards. According to the warlord’s men, he’s being held somewhere inside the castle.”

  “But we were just there,” Talon hissed and raked a hand through his hair, driving it up in messy spikes. “How did I miss him?”

  “We both did, T. This isn’t just on you.” Hayden’s raspy voice caught me by surprise. He rolled out of bed, sweeping his blonde locks behind his ears.

  “So we’ll go back and get him.” I had almost as much stake in this as Talon. One less innocent soul had to count for something, right?

  Three pairs of blazing orbs shot to mine, their intensity forcing a shudder up my spine. “You’re not going anywhere near him,” Talon growled.

  A punch in the gut would’ve hurt less. I wrapped my arms around my middle to keep myself together. Why would I be so stupid to think he’d be nicer to me now that I hadn’t killed his friend? No, Talon was his same dickish self. As his icy glare bored into me, the hurt morphed into anger. A second ago he couldn’t keep his dragon paws off me, but now I was a threat to his friend?

  I popped my hands on my hips as every ounce of guilt evaporated. “Eff off, Talon,” I snarled back. “I’m the only one in this room that can open a portal so the way I see it, you better beg me to take you.”

  He stomped toward me, his eyes widening with each stride. “You’re out of your mind if you think I’d let you get anywhere near the Underworld. Especially now that we know this was some sort of set up. You think I’d go half-cocked in the middle of the night into some suicide mission without any sort of plan? If so, you have no business even considering becoming a part of the SIA, and I rescind my invitation.”

  Fury rolled off the self-righteous dragon in suffocating waves. I was pretty sure I’d be able to feel it even without the stupid blood bond.

  Hayden jumped in between us, placing a large palm on each of our chests. “Okay, you two, save it for the training room, huh?” Then he turned to his brother with a soft smile. “T, I know how much this means to you, but take it easy on the little pumpkin. She’s just a newb, remember?”

  Talon tossed his head from side to side before finally taking a step back. He huffed out a breath and pivoted to Logan. “Is there any way your guys can confirm Vander is alive besides hearsay?”

  He nodded. “I just spoke to the team leader, and they’re working on it. As soon as we get confirmation, you’ll be the first to know.”

  “Thanks, I appreciate that, Warden.”

  Logan’s eyes darted from me to Talon an
d back. “Whatever is going on here must be resolved. Do you both understand me?”

  “But—” I snapped my jaw shut, cutting myself off. With my lips pressed together, I slowly dipped my head.

  My insufferable bunkie did the same.

  “We will find Vander, and we will bring him home,” Logan added. “But not without a good plan in place or with a disorganized team. We’ve already seen what can happen if we’re caught unaware. I won’t have a repeat of that or worse.”

  The three of us nodded.

  “Now get some rest, hopefully by tomorrow we’ll have proof of life and we can begin to set things in motion.”

  “Night, Logan.” I wiggled my fingers and gave him a smile. He threw me a tight grin in return. Yup, he’d definitely seen something between Talon and me, and he was not happy about it.

  When the door whooshed shut behind the warden, I slumped back into bed. I had no idea what time it was, but between the scorching kiss with Talon and the news about Vander, my adrenaline was on full throttle.

  Or maybe it was an echo of what Talon was feeling.

  My grumpy bunkie paced the length of the cell, his jaw clenching in time with his heavy footfalls.

  Hayden lumbered back to the bottom bunk and sank into the mattress. His long legs hung over the side of the bed as he stretched his arms and let out a big yawn. “I’m really happy for you, T. I know what losing Vander did to you. Your first brother is going to be back for good now. This is really great news for everyone.”

  Talon momentarily stopped his manic pacing to meet his BAFF’s—best angel friend forever’s—eye. “Thanks, Hayden. I hope you’re right.”

  An indecipherable expression flashed across Talon’s face, darkening his eyes. Uncertainty? Fear? I searched the tangle of emotions swirling inside me, but it was too difficult to decipher the twisted mess.

  “One thirty-eight, you up for a little training before the sun comes up?”