by Katee Robert
The Beast
A Wicked Villains Novel
Katee Robert
Trinkets and Tales LLC
Copyright © 2019 by Katee Robert
All rights reserved.
Cover art by By Hang Le
Editing by Manuela Velasco
Copy Editing by Lynda M. Ryba
Ebook ISBN: 978-1-951329-91-4
Print ISBN: 978-1-951329-00-6
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Also by Katee Robert
Wicked Villains
Book 1: Desperate Measures
Book 2: Learn My Lesson
Book 3: A Worthy Opponent
Book 4: The Beast
Book 5: The Sea Witch
Book 6: Queen Takes Rose
* * *
The Island of Ys
Book 1: His Forbidden Desire
Book 2: Her Rival’s Touch
Book 3: His Tormented Heart
Book 4: Her Vengeful Embrace
* * *
The Thalanian Dynasty Series (MMF)
Book 1: Theirs for the Night
Book 2: Forever Theirs
Book 3: Theirs Ever After
Book 4: Their Second Chance
* * *
The Kings Series
Book 1: The Last King
Book 2: The Fearless King
* * *
The Hidden Sins Series
Book 1: The Devil’s Daughter
Book 2: The Hunting Grounds
Book 3: The Surviving Girls
* * *
The Make Me Series
Book 1: Make Me Want
Book 2: Make Me Crave
Book 3: Make Me Yours
Book 4: Make Me Need
* * *
The O’Malley Series
Book 1: The Marriage Contract
Book 2: The Wedding Pact
Book 3: An Indecent Proposal
Book 4: Forbidden Promises
Book 5: Undercover Attraction
Book 6: The Bastard’s Bargain
* * *
The Hot in Hollywood Series
Book 1: Ties that Bind
Book 2: Animal Attraction
* * *
The Foolproof Love Series
Book 1: A Foolproof Love
Book 2: Fool Me Once
Book 3: A Fool for You
* * *
Out of Uniform Series
Book 1: In Bed with Mr. Wrong
Book 1.5: His to Keep
Book 2: Falling for His Best Friend
Book 3: His Lover to Protect
Book 3.5: His to Take
* * *
Serve Series
Book 1: Mistaken by Fate
Book 2: Betting on Fate
Book 3: Protecting Fate
* * *
Come Undone Series
Book 1: Wrong Bed, Right Guy
Book 2: Chasing Mrs. Right
Book 3: Two Wrongs, One Right
Book 3.5: Seducing Mr. Right
* * *
Other Books
Seducing the Bridesmaid
Meeting His Match
Prom Queen
The Siren’s Curse
To readers who prefer their love triangles to end happily for everyone involved.
Contents
Content Warning
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Acknowledgments
Content Warning
This book contains the aftermath of a parental death by cancer (it happens before the beginning of the book), which may be upsetting for some readers.
Chapter 1
Isabelle
We have to do something.
It has to be you, Izzy.
For the good of the family.
My sisters’ voices ring in my ears, even hours after our conversation. I stand on the curb and stare up at the building before me. It looks nearly identical to those around it: a nondescript gray square reaching into the sky as if it has every right to be there. It’s not remotely the same. No, this place arguably holds the most power Carver City has to offer. Neutral space. Every territory leader has an open invitation to come and go—for a price, of course. My eldest sister has been here a few times, but I’m strictly forbidden from attending.
Or I was before my father died.
It’s been months, and the grief still clings to me like a second skin. During my darkest days, I wonder if it won’t cling forever. My father was supposed to live for decades yet, to pass power to his daughters and retire to do whatever powerful men do when they’re no longer running a territory. He was fond of saying he’d like to spend his last days surrounded by dogs and grandchildren.
It won’t happen now. Cancer took him and there’s no getting him back.
I have to close my eyes against the cascade of emotion. I don’t want to be here, walking into the devil’s den. I’m not the leader like Cordelia. I’m not the genius like Sienna. I am simply the youngest. The woman who never quite grew up, the one who values her personal freedom above all else. My sisters were always destined to hold positions within our father’s organization. I was allowed to find my own way. Up until my father’s death, I believed that way would lead me on countless adventures and travel across the world. To freedom.
That’s no longer an option.
The first step is the hardest: to keep moving toward the fate I want nothing to do with, to not turn and run until I’m somewhere far from Carver City and the chains my sisters are asking me to encase myself in.
Inside, the facade of normality continues. I step into the elevator and take slow breaths that do nothing to calm my racing heart. I don’t know if I can do this. It seems simple enough from where my sisters sit. Our two most formidable generals have left us and are making no plans to return. It’s imperative that they stay, so we will do anything to ensure it happens. Simple.
Except it’s not simple at all. Not for me.
The elevator doors open and I step into a room that’s my first indication I’ve left the real world, such as it is, behind. The room is uniform marble, giving the impression of being unmoored. The only furniture is a single desk, and a beautiful Black man sits behind it. He looks up as I approach and gifts me with a smile that seems to brighten the room. “Welcome back to the Underworld, Isabelle Belmonte.”
Of course he knows who I am, even though this desk sat unmanned the only other tim
e I came to the Underworld. Being the daughter of the so-called Man in Black is enough to make me a strange kind of famous. I give him a practiced smile even though all I want to do is turn around and leave. “Thank you.”
He rises gracefully and motions to the large black door dominating the wall behind him. “Since it’s officially your first time, Megaera will need to speak with you before you engage in any activities.”
Activities. Such a mundane word to encompass a very un-mundane topic. I know what goes on here, of course. Everyone in Carver City does. Power and kink and sex. The thought thrills me even as my palms go clammy.
I had wondered if Hades would acknowledge our very short, very ill-fated meeting several weeks ago. From the front desk man’s greeting, he is. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. I came here before looking for some insight into our problem with Beast and Gaeton, but Hades gives nothing away for free and I’m not desperate enough to make one of his infamous deals.
If tonight goes poorly, I might have no other choice.
I nod at the man at the front desk, keeping my expression locked down. “Is Megaera available now?”
Another of those beautiful smiles. “She is. Please go ahead.”
“Thank you.”
Approaching the giant door feels like approaching the entrance to the Underworld in truth. Once I cross this threshold, there’s no going back, which is fitting because there wasn’t any going back from the moment my sisters sat me down and laid out what will happen to us if Gaeton and Beast leave permanently. More intense skirmishes with our borders. Maybe even war, if it comes to that.
I’ve just lost my father. I will do anything to ensure my sisters stay safe. Anything.
Even reach out to my exes under these less than ideal circumstances.
The door gives easily beneath my touch and I step through into darkness. I blink, trying to adjust. It’s not truly dark back here, but the intentionally dim lighting creates a strange intimacy I don’t know what to do with. I stop short, trying to take stock of the room. A large oblong bar in the center surrounds a truly overwhelming statue of what appears to be an orgy. Deep booths line the walls on all sides, many of them occupied. A door on the other side of the room has a short white woman standing in front of it—obviously security of some kind. Through there is where the kink happens, where people shed their civilized selves and engage in all manner of things that I can only know about in theory.
Beast and Gaeton may be patrons of this place, but they never brought me here. Neither of them ever—
My brain feels strangely buzzy and detached and I can’t decide if I’m relieved or disappointed that I don’t see the men in the lounge. Either they’re not here yet, or they’re already in the back playing with other people.
I have no right to the jealousy that stings my chest. None. Gaeton and I haven’t been together in over a year; my relationship with Beast ended a mere month after mine and Gaeton’s did. They are single and free to do as they wish with whomever they wish.
I rub my hand against my chest, my palm skating over silk. I dressed carefully tonight in a short black dress that clings to my body and teases at what I may or may not be wearing beneath it. I’m still not sure it’s the right choice.
I’m not sure of anything any longer.
“Isabelle.”
The white woman who approaches seems perfectly at home here. She wears tailored slacks that nip in at her ankles to display expensive red heels and her equally crimson blouse drapes over her lean body in a way that feels downright sexual. Dark hair falls to her shoulders in waves and does nothing to soften the sharpness of her features. But then, this woman doesn’t look like she’s interested in blunting her edges. She gives me a smile that doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “I’m Megaera. Come with me.”
I fall into step behind her, my body obeying before my mind has a chance to catch up. It’s almost enough to make me dig in my heels on principle, but I can’t afford to have my entrance to the Underworld barred.
We head down a hallway and through a door into a study. Once again, I stop short and try to process. It’s a deep room decorated in grays, with an arrangement of couches on one side and a desk on the other. The lack of color should make it feel cold, but somehow it’s welcoming in a distant kind of way.
Megaera moves to perch on the edge of the desk and waves an elegant hand at the chair in front of her. “Sit.”
I sit.
She studies me as if she wants to peel apart my skin and poke around inside my head. It’s not a comfortable feeling, and I have to force myself to hold her gaze despite every instinct demanding I drop my eyes. Finally, Megaera sits back and props her hands on the desk. It should look casual, but it somehow gives the impression of a predator about to pounce. “I’ll admit, I never expected you. Not after Hades sent you packing with your tail between your legs.” She tilts her head to the side, still studying me. “I should bill you for all the damage Beast and Gaeton have caused this club, all because of your pretty little pussy.”
I blink. “Excuse me?”
“You’re in the Underworld, sweetheart. There’s no point in playing coy. You’ve never come to play before, which means you have a reason for being here and I highly doubt it’s because you’ve suddenly developed a lust for kinky good times. If that were the case, you would have already indulged with those two fine specimens.”
She’s making too many jumps. I can barely keep up. “What are you talking about?” Except I know, don’t I? Did I truly expect to walk in here with no questions asked? Hades and Megaera don’t hold influence over the main players in Carver City by being fools.
“Keep the playacting for the men, Isabelle. That shit doesn’t work on me.”
At her derisive look, I tense. She’s right. Playing innocent won’t get me anywhere in here. I should have known better. That role usually works better with men, anyway. I straighten the tiniest bit, though it’s still a challenge to hold her gaze. “I need them.”
“Now we’re getting somewhere. Elaborate.”
How much to tell? I decide to stick with what’s public knowledge. “They’re our generals.”
“Mmm. Seems to me like they were your generals when your father was still alive.” Something like sympathy flickers through her brown eyes. “Sorry for your loss.”
“Thank you,” I reply automatically, just like I have every other time someone has offered their condolences in the last few months. The words mean nothing, change nothing. Every person in this city could drown in their apologies and sorrow and it still wouldn’t bring my father back.
Megaera finally sighs. “Hades has decided to let this little drama play out despite my reservations, so you’ll be allowed into both the lounge and the playrooms, provided you follow the club rules. Consent is our god, Isabelle.” She gives me another long look. “You have subbie written all over you. I’d say I don’t understand how those two managed not to drag you in here at one point or another, but I know all too well about how misguided men can be when they put you on a pedestal.”
I’m not sure what I’m supposed to say to that. “Thank you for access to the club.”
“I doubt you’ll be thanking me before this is over.” She shakes her head and pushes off the desk. “I can’t keep you from approaching them, but if they aren’t interested in talking, you don’t get to force the issue. You might be the precious princess in your territory, but this is neutral space and our rules prevail over all others here. Do you understand?”
“Yes.” If I’d been able to corner Gaeton and Beast in my own territory, I wouldn’t need to come here. But they’ve been slippery. I’m not even sure Gaeton has been home in over a month and he’s not taking my calls—any of our calls. And Beast? Even when he was in my bed, he felt like more ghost than man. No one can pin that man down if he’s not interested in being pinned down. It was one of the things that drew me so strongly to him initially, a way I thought we were kindred spirits.
Me
gaera nods again, but not like she likes it. “Do you have a basic understanding of kink?”
“Yes.” One could argue that I have more than a basic understanding, but it’s all theoretical. My respective relationships with Gaeton and Beast were both vanilla, which is something of a startling revelation now that I know where their tastes lie. They may have attended meetings at the Underworld with my father over the years, but to the best of my knowledge they didn’t indulge until our respective relationships had ended. I don’t understand it. They must have known what they liked, must have known they weren’t being completely fulfilled in my bed. And yet neither of them ever said a single thing about it. I want to know why; one of the many answers I don’t have a right to, but crave all the same.
She motions to the door. “Then by all means. Go play. Mind your manners or you’ll be bounced out of here so fast, that pretty head of yours might spin right off your neck.”
I rise slowly to my feet. “You know, most of the time when people decide they don’t like me, they’ve actually met me first.”
Megaera raises a perfectly shaped dark brow. “I’m not most people, and even if I were, I consider Gaeton my friend. Beast is one of our patrons. I’ve witnessed the damage you did to them, Isabelle. Some things are unforgivable.”
