The Sea Witch: A Wicked Villains Novel

by Robert, Katee

  Without taking her eyes off the other scene, Ursa reaches over and presses her free hand to Zuri’s lower stomach, circling her clit with her thumb. Zuri moans and picks up her pace.

  “Slow,” Ursa murmurs. “Enjoy yourself, love. Gaeton can last a very long time; no need to rush.”

  I turn my head enough to see them. Isabelle is relatively new to the club, but she’s jumped in like a fish to water. Both Gaeton and Beast have been regulars for a long time. I’ve scened with both of them, though Gaeton more than Beast. And yeah, Gaeton can last for hours when he’s feeling particularly motivated. He drives into Isabelle from behind, and I can see how red her ass is even from this angle. He squeezes her cheeks with every thrust, and she’s writhing and moaning around Beast’s cock.

  It’s hot as fuck.

  Even hotter to be watching while engaged in our own little scene.

  Zuri obeys Ursa’s command, slowing down until she’s barely moving. The little circles she makes with her hips have me gripping her, though even I can’t tell if I’m hanging on or trying to guide her movements. It doesn’t matter. Ursa has things well in hand.

  “We have an audience.” She speaks softly, just for us, even as she keeps stroking Zuri’s clit. “She doesn’t fuck you like a little virgin, does she, Alaric?” She keeps speaking, obviously not requiring a response. “No, she fucks you like a little slut.”

  There’s something about us having sex, my head on Ursa’s thigh, while she plays with Zuri’s clit, all without looking at either of us… It threatens to incinerate me. It’s like we’re an afterthought, like us rutting right here, the wet sound of Zuri’s pussy taking my cock doesn’t matter in the least. Like it’s barely worth noting.

  Because we’re hers.

  I grit my teeth. “I’m close.”

  “No, you’re not.” She tugs on my hair and finally looks down at me. “Zuri will ride you until she’s finished and you will not come until I give permission. Do you understand?”

  I stare up into her face, enraptured. “Yes, Mistress.”

  “You say ‘yes, Mistress’ and then you disappoint me. Don’t do it tonight.” She gives my hair a sharper tug. “Hold still, Alaric. Let her use you. That’s what you need, isn’t it? You love playing the toy just as much as our Zuri does. Little sluts, both of you. So ready to fuck where anyone can watch.” Ursa sighs as if she’s losing her patience. “Might as well make it worth everyone’s while.” She reaches up and yanks Zuri’s dress down, baring her breasts, and then goes back to playing with her clit.

  Zuri slows down even further, the little tease. She arches back and braces her hands on my thighs, putting her full body on display. I knew she was an exhibitionist, but this is just further confirmation. She gets off on knowing people are watching, on knowing that they want her.

  “That was an invitation, lover. You know how she loves her breasts played with.”

  I skate my hands up Zuri's sides and cup her breasts. I’m rougher than I mean to be, but Zuri grinds down on my cock and moans loudly. A reminder that our girl appreciates a little hurt. I pinch her nipples, testing her. Harder and harder, as her strokes become more frantic, her head tilting back and her long fall of hair moving over my thighs.

  Ursa pinches Zuri's clit and then she’s coming, loud and messy enough to turn heads. Ursa shifts her hand down to grip my cock around the base. “Now you may come.”

  I drive up, fucking Ursa’s hand, fucking Zuri’s pussy. Again and again, until I can’t hold back any longer. I come, pulling Zuri down onto my length, onto Ursa’s hand, as I empty myself into the condom.

  I drag Zuri down for a kiss, losing myself in the taste of her. She finally eases off my cock and rises up to kiss Ursa, too. Then she grimaces. “I’d like to clean up before we leave.”

  “Of course.” Ursa motions to the doorway on the other side of the room. “There are bathrooms and the like through there. Don’t tarry.”

  “Yes, Mistress.” She presses another quick kiss to Ursa’s lips and then climbs off me.

  I get up long enough to dispose of the condom and then rejoin Ursa on the couch. She has a pensive look on her face. I take her hand and lace my fingers through hers. “I meant it.”

  “Alaric—”

  “I meant it,” I repeat. “I mean it. I love you.”

  She exhales slowly, studying my face. “I…love you, too.” The words sound jagged, as if she’s forced them out. “It’s not easy admitting it, but it’s the truth.”

  “I know.” It’s there in every touch, in the way she takes care of me, in her offer to share her bed tonight and in the future. I lean in and kiss her. “I’m keeping you, Ursa. I’m yours and you’re mine. No matter what else happens.”

  When I lean back, she has a vulnerable look in her dark eyes. For the first time since I’ve met her she doesn’t immediately mask it with a careful smile. She just lets me witness it. Ursa cups my face in her hands. “You’re a gift, Alaric. No matter what else you believe about yourself, believe that. You’re priceless to me.”

  In that moment, I believe her.

  Completely. Truly. Without reservation.

  Chapter 28

  Zurielle

  It doesn’t take long to right myself and clean up in the bathroom. I linger a few extra minutes, trying to catch my breath. I can appreciate how even the bathrooms in the Underworld are all understated elegance and somehow sexy. I walk through the door and nearly run over Hercules. “Oh. I’m sorry. I didn’t see you.”

  Hercules glances in the direction of the public playroom and then looks at me. “Come with me.” He takes my arm and turns me in the opposite direction, moving quickly enough that I have to skip every few steps to keep up.

  “Hercules, what are you doing?” I try to get a good look at his face. He doesn’t seem angry or scary at all; just really intent. But that doesn’t change the fact that he’s practically dragging me in the opposite direction of where I want to go. “Let me go.”

  “There’s someone you need to see.” He stops at a door at the end of the hallway and looks up. I follow his gaze to a security camera tucked up in the shadows of the corner. The lock on the door flashes green and he pushes through, taking me with him.

  I hadn’t been in this part of the Underworld when I was here before, but I saw behind the scenes enough to recognize an employee hallway. It’s plainer than the public hallways, with dark-gray walls and equally dark-gray tiled floors. Hercules turns us to the right, and I dig in my heels and say the one thing guaranteed to make him listen. “Hercules, you’re scaring me.”

  He slows and huffs out a breath. “I’m sorry. I just didn’t think I’d get a chance to get you alone and then there you were, so I had to hurry before someone saw us.”

  He gives me another tug, but I refuse to budge. “That is not an explanation.”

  Hercules moves closer and lowers his voice. “Your sisters are here.”

  Of all the words I expected to come out of his mouth, those didn’t number among them. I blink. “What?”

  “Zuri, Hades is going to kick my ass for this. Can we please talk while we move?”

  I finally nod. If this were anyone else, I’d expect a trap of some sort, but Hercules has no more love for Olympus than I do. And he’s so good. Good enough that my father never worried about us spending time together when we were teenagers, back before Hercules was driven out of the city by Zeus. I shiver and try to keep pace with his longer strides.

  He leads me to a set of stairs that go down to a floor I do recognize. The employee suites, which is where I stayed the night when I was here earlier this week. Sure enough, Hercules stops in front of the very door I was in before and opens it, all but shoving me in.

  I narrow my eyes. “How much trouble are you going to get in because of this?”

  He smiles so suddenly, I almost back up a step. “Oh, Hades will flog the shit out of me, or maybe have Meg do it. I can handle it.” If the look on his face is any indication, he’s anticipating i
t. A week ago, I’d be worried for him, but I’ve seen firsthand how pain can ignite into pleasure for some people. For me, even, though I’m still dipping my toes into that particular pool.

  I’m stalling. I know I’m stalling.

  I take a deep breath and turn to face the room. Not all my sisters have come, which is a relief of sorts. It’s only Aya and Jael, the two sisters closest in age to me. Looking at them, someone not familiar with our family might not think they were even related. Aya is like me in that she favors our mother. Short, petite, straight dark hair, and warm beige skin. Jael is very much our father’s daughter. She’s tall with an athletic build, wavy red hair, and the kind of pale skin that immediately burns on contact with sunlight. They wear identical expressions of worry, though.

  Hercules releases my hand. “You don’t have long, but I’ll give you some privacy.” He steps out the door and closes it softly behind him.

  Jael rushes forward. “Thank the gods you’re here.” She grabs my shoulders and eyes me. “You’re a mess.”

  “Jael.” Aya smacks her hands. “Stop manhandling her.” She turns to me. “Zuri, we’re here to save you.”

  I blink. “Save me?”

  “I don’t know what the Sea Witch said to trick you, and it doesn’t matter.”

  “Father is furious, but he’ll get over it once you’re home safely. He’s just worried about you.” Jael clears her throat. “He’s threatening to bring his people to Carver City and rescue you himself.”

  “We thought this would be a better option.” Aya takes my hands. “Are you okay?”

  Am I okay?

  Such a simple question, with no simple answers. I look from Aya to Jael. “What are you doing here?”

  Aya worries her bottom lip. “Hercules reached out. He knew we’d want to know you were safe.”

  I’m going to throttle him when I get a chance. I had every intention of talking to my sisters. After. After the auction, after this week, after I figured out what I’m doing with my life. They want answers, and I have none for them. Not yet. “So you came for me.”

  “You’re our sister. Of course we came for you.” Jael glances at the door. “He said we don’t have much time. Come home with us. Once you’re back in Olympus, there’s nothing the Sea Witch can do. Father won’t let her.”

  I shake my head, trying to clear my circling thoughts. “You said Father is organizing his men?”

  “Yes.” Aya’s watching me with dark eyes so much like my own. “Zuri, what’s going on here? We thought you were captive, but you don’t look like a captive.” She hesitates. “You look…happy.”

  Because I am happy.

  The thought, so mundane on its surface, is anything but. I’m happy here in Carver City with Ursa and Alaric. We still have things to work out, but that doesn’t change the fact that they make me happy. That I care about them.

  That I…love them.

  Alaric shocked me when he said the same. I wanted to brush it off, to ignore it, to not look too closely at the way my feelings mirror his. But standing here with my sisters, there’s no hiding from the truth. I’ve gone and given my fool heart to both Ursa and Alaric.

  And now my father will bring his men and try to take me back.

  Even though he attempted to keep us from his business, Father always maintained security at the house and any time we ventured outside those four walls. I’d have to be particularly naive not to recognize those people as the killers they are, especially in hindsight. It’s there in the eyes, an emptiness that scared me even though Father acted like they were part of the scenery.

  If they come for me, they’ll hurt Ursa. They might even kill her. And now that Father knows Alaric played a part in this, they’ll do the same to him.

  Ursa is a leader of a territory. She has security and scary people that answer to her, too, but the only one I’ve seen is her head of security, Monica. I can only make decisions based on the facts I know.

  Ursa and Alaric are in danger.

  My father isn’t going to let me go; he’s going to try to take me back.

  My sisters offer an opportunity to dodge the coming conflict.

  I hold up my hands. “Give me a second. I need to think.”

  Jael shifts from foot to foot. “You don’t have long. Hercules said he could get us ten minutes and we’re coming up on that fast.”

  “Give her a second,” Aya murmurs.

  If I stay, Father will come. If I go, I’ll hurt Ursa and Alaric, possibly beyond measure. I’ll hurt myself beyond measure. I don’t want to leave them, don’t want to walk away from what might be my chance at a real happily ever after. Not one that I imagined while wearing my rose-tinted glasses, falling for the fantasy of someone instead of the real person. I see them. I love them. I want a life with them.

  If I leave, they’ll still be alive.

  That’s worth more than everything. More than happiness. More than love.

  My throat feels tight and hot, but I manage to say, “Okay.” I try to think. “Just give me a second to—”

  “There’s no time.” Jael starts for the door. “If she knows you’re leaving, she’ll try to stop you.”

  She might not, but Alaric certainly will. The thought of walking away without saying anything is a horrible one, but what’s the alternative? Letting them convince me to stay and one of them being hurt because I didn’t move quickly enough to hold off my father?

  No, Jael’s right. We have to go now.

  Aya shakes her head, still watching me closely. “Are you okay? You don’t look happy to be going home.”

  Because I’m not, though I’m not sure I can explain it to either of my sisters. We’ve been taught to hate and fear the Sea Witch our entire lives. How can they understand that I’ve fallen in love with her? “I have to stop father.”

  Aya frowns. “If you’re sure…”

  “She’s sure. Let’s go.” Jael grabs both our arms and muscles us toward the door. “I don’t know about you, but I’d rather get out of here before our window closes and the Sea Witch has three captives instead of one.”

  “This is neutral territory.” I let her tow me to the door and open it. “Hades rules here.”

  “Yeah, well, I don’t expect he’ll be happy to lose out on his percentage of your auction fee.” Jael glances at me, taking in my shocked look. “Yeah, we know about the auction.” Her determination flickers, replaced by guilt. “I’m sorry we weren’t there to save you from it.”

  “It was my choice.”

  But she’s not listening. She opens the door and pulls us out into the hallway. Hercules is waiting for us there and though he’s perfectly still, there’s an impatient tension in his body. He looks at us. “Well?”

  “She’s coming with us.”

  Just like that, I am back to being the little sister. The follower. The innocent one in need of protecting. The one incapable of standing on her own. I dig in my heels for a moment. “Promise me that no matter what happens to the money, Alaric’s debt remains paid.”

  He hesitates but finally nods. “I promise I’ll make sure he stays out of Hades’s debt.”

  “Okay.” There’s nothing left to do but go. I let my sisters all but drag me from the building and down to the street where a nondescript gray sedan waits for us, it feels like they’re shoving me back into a skin that no longer fits. One I’ve outgrown at some point in the last week.

  Half a dozen times, I open my mouth to tell them no, that I’ve changed my mind, and half a dozen times, I stay silent. What price can I put on Ursa and Alaric’s lives? I can’t. The cost of losing them is too high.

  It doesn’t matter if it feels like my heart is shattering into half a million pieces. They’re alive. I don’t have to live in a world where they no longer exist, even if they’re no longer in my world.

  Jael slouches back against the seat and exhales. “That went so much smoother than I expected.” She drums her fingers on her thigh. “Though I’ll admit I’m kind of disappointed
we didn’t get a look at her.”

  “Jael, hush.” Aya takes my hands. “Zuri, you look sick. Are you okay?”

  I’m not okay. I’m not sure I’ll ever be okay again. I should try to smile, should fall back into my practiced way of ensuring my sisters don’t worry about me, but the mask feels cracked beyond repair. But how can I tell them the truth? I swallow hard. “I’ll be fine.” Even that lukewarm statement feels like a lie.

  Aya finally nods and turns to Jael. “We have to be careful sneaking back in. Father’s going to be furious.”

  “He’ll get over it.” Jael sounds so unconcerned, but then she’s always been fearless. Even with him. Especially with him. She takes after Father in more than just her features and hair color. She’s got his temper and brashness, too. It means they clash more than he does with any of my other sisters, but somehow she gets away with whatever she wants to despite that. Or maybe because of it.

  Aya lowers her voice. “We have to talk about how to broach the subject of Zuri being back.”

  At this, I stir. “I’ll take care of it.”

  “Zuri—”

  “I said I’ll take care of it.” I look at my sisters. “I chose to leave. I’ll talk to Father myself when we get back.” It only gives me a couple hours to figure out what to say, how to handle the coming confrontation, but it will have to be enough.

  We pass beyond the Carver City limits, and I close my eyes, the last of my shock fading away. Anger takes its place, a deeper, darker rage than I’ve ever known. He couldn’t just let me go. Couldn’t let the Sea Witch come out on top. No, he had to be right, to win, to regain his possession. Even if I find a way through this, it’s too late now.

  Ursa and Alaric will never forgive me for making the choice I have tonight.

  I’ve lost them.

  Chapter 29

  Ursa

  Zuri’s been gone longer than she should be. I try to be patient, because as tame as tonight has been compared to some of the things we’ve done, it’s still a significant jump forward in our relationship. I’m feeling a little unsteady, so it stands to reason that she and Alaric are as well. I suspect our progress forward will be all fits and starts, but it will be progress.