Had I ever seen the guys kill anyone before? I’d seen them fight; each other and Rainer’s men, but this was different. Seeing it for myself made the reality a living, breathing beast staring me in the face.
I was okay with death to save our lives. I said that to myself a couple times, and I realized it was true. In the ten seconds it took for Rand to collect me from the back wall, I worked it all out for myself. If these men were dumb enough to work with the Shadow Society, helping to kill innocent people, they deserved no sympathy from me.
“You okay?” Rand slid a toned arm around my waist and caressed my cheek as if I were precious to him.
“Yeah. Yeah, I am.” I whispered and allowed him to lift me over the bodies. At least they weren’t making a bloody mess. It was the small things that really mattered.
I glanced behind me to make sure Yunez was coming, and he was, after he dragged the guys into the room and closed the door.
“What did you do in there?” I whispered over my shoulder.
He met my eyes and smirked. “I bought us more time. At least a few minutes.” He held up the two knives that I had used to stop the room from closing in on us.
Damn. So, the next set of guards were going to find some bodies. How smooshed would they need to be before they couldn’t tell that they weren’t looking at us? That was a bad thought that put all kinds of unwelcome images in my head. I twisted back around and pretended the last thirty seconds hadn’t happened.
The long corridor was much darker than when we came down it the first time. They must have turned up the brightness for us. How hospitable. Not.
I actually preferred the darkness. It meant we had a better chance of getting away. And, we might actually have a chance. The guys were jogging silently ahead of us, Egan leading the pack.
Our dim shadows danced over the walls, the only sign that we were here. The floor was carpeted, which was pretty handy when we needed to be as quiet as possible. We ran forever, taking turn after turn. It took a minute, but I realized there was a pattern. It was the same pattern that Jari took us through to get to the chapel.
Hell. I needed to remember that because it seemed to be the magic key to escaping danger of all kinds.
Egan came to a stop at an open room. It was much smaller than the throne room we walked through before, but it was just as opulent. Three other corridors extended from the room and Egan studied them all. Rand moved away from me, and pointed to the one in the middle. Egan nodded, and once again we were off.
Silent escapees, on the run for our lives.
This hallway was short and dark. The walls had to be painted black, because even the weak lanterns were hardly putting off any light. I ran into Nato’s back, and he steadied me with a hand on my hip. I buried my face in his damp shirt as we all waited for something.
The scraping sounds of the stones rearranging echoed through the small space, and light filtered in from the opening. One of my guys—Jari, Rand, or Yunez—created a doorway for us to escape. With sure, quick steps, we cleared the building.
Freedom. Blessed freedom.
The stones fixed themselves into a smooth wall behind me, and when I turned, Rand had a hand on the wall with his eyes closed. Guess that answered who used their Levan powers to get us out.
Jari stood next to him with a weird expression on his face, and his arms crossed. It was hard to tell if he was impressed or miffed. Knowing Jari, it was probably a bit of both.
I exhaled and feeling started to pour back into my numb body. There wasn’t any time to rest as Sage tipped his shoulder into my stomach and swept me up.
“Fuck,” I whispered as his running jarred my stomach. The others ran in formation around us, and soon we were on the same street the bar was on.
“Sage, put me down. We’re close enough to Yunez’s place that I can walk.”
“No.” He slapped my ass as if that would make me more obedient.
What the fuck ever.
“Now, you jackass, this hurts.” I pulled his pants up his ass and gave him the biggest wedgie known to man. He hopped around on alternating feet, trying to fix his crack situation, but I held on tight, refusing to let go until he set me down. I knew that sounded impossible, but I was determined.
My feet hit the ground, and I released his britches.
“Damn you,” He grunted and looked like he was doing the butterfly as he pulled his pants back down. I giggled my head off as the other guys joined me.
Sage, not enjoying the attention at all, bent down, and kissed me brutally hard, biting my lip. I leaned into him to deepen it, but the prick pulled my pants up my ass.
“That doesn’t feel so good, does it?” He smirked and stepped away like his work was done.
“Don’t worry, I’ll help you, my love.” Yunez stepped up behind me and before anyone could protest, two large palms landed on my ass, gave a nice firm squeeze, then pinched the fabric and tugged them down just enough.
“I can’t believe you just did that,” Nato said without any inflection at all.
“Really? You can’t? Come on, man, we all know where this is going.” Jari looked between Rand and Yunez.
Sage nodded but didn’t add his opinion while Egan beamed like this was hilarious. Weirdo.
A mob of people came around the corner, and I was almost crushed under their stampede of…spandex?
Jan, Yunez’s friend, relative? Was leading the charge; behind him? Cabbie and a mass of Cherries all in stiletto heels, tight and shiny bodysuits, and a plethora of sex toys.
They pulled up short, and Cabbie gasped when he saw us.
“We were coming to rescue you from the Shadow Society’s evil clutches.” Cabbie panted.
“We obviously saved ourselves.” Jari grinned and pulled me into his side. “Thanks to the genius mind of our own Iss, here.”
Jan crossed his arms, not looking any worse for wear as Cabbie bent over and grabbed his knees.
“What?” Cabbie spat at Jan as he caught him looking. “I told you that cardio is not my thing. Looking damn fine in a kimono, I can do that in my sleep. Running halfway through the town in stiletto heels is hard work.”
Jan scoffed but couldn’t hold back the amusement shining in his eyes, “I bet it is.” And, his voice clearly said he thought it was ridiculous.
“I’d like to see you try it,” Cabbie straightened and stared down at Jan. And, by that, I mean, tall Cabbie, who was five inches taller with his kickass knee-high boots. So, in all, he was four inches above Jan. Jan stayed where he was and didn’t appear intimidated by Cabbie in the least. In fact, there was almost electricity crackling in the air between them. For real, it looked like tiny sparks flashing in the scant inch between their chests.
Did I smell a romance brewing?
We’d been lucky so far, avoiding anyone in the streets, but the door opened to the bar, and drunk patrons stumbled through. We were half a block away, but if they came this way, we’d be easy to recognize. The moonlight was too bright tonight to hide our features, and we hadn’t worn our cloaks.
Yunez strutted past my Lusty Legion and the Cherries. “Let’s get over the line. We’re almost to safety, and it would really eat ass if we got caught ten feet from my property.” He started whistling as he disappeared around the corner. My LL and I all shared a quick look before we scrambled after him.
The Cherries took up the rear, I was assuming to protect our backside and I snickered. How hilarious would it be if some of those women were wielding some kind of butt plug?
Rand came up beside me and quirked a brow. I simply smiled and shook my head.
The Cherries came to rescue us. No way was I going to crack a joke when they were within hearing distance. That was just rude, and believe it or not, old lady Smith raised me with better manners than that.
The pace Yunez set was no crawl, but he made it look effortless as he strolled through the street. Another block and we came to the wrought iron gate covering his entrance. He threw up his hands dramatically
, and they opened from the inside. All of his properties were secure, but I had no idea what made them so safe.
“Couldn’t anyone open the gate and storm the castle?” I said castle because his property really did remind me of one, or at least a small stone mansion. It was only missing the mote.
Rand had stayed by my side and leaned down to answer me as we started to move through the gate. “It’s keyed to his signature and a very select few. Not just any Janer member could open it. And, he’s so strong in illusion, most people just see an old abandoned building they are convinced is haunted. Usually, between the two, there’s no one that would dare breech it. And, if they did, a small army is here at all times to defend it.”
A small army. We had been hidden away in the room the whole time, so we really only saw each other and maybe the occasional worker that delivered food or clean towels. That was about to change. This was my destiny, and I was about to grab it by the balls.
By the time we reached the hallway for our suites, only my LL and the two tagalongs were with me. If Rand and Yunez could be described as tagalongs. It was more like they were the puppeteers, positioning us where they needed us and hoping we followed the movements as they pulled the strings.
“I’d like to talk to Iss.” Rand turned and blocked our path, so we stopped abruptly.
“Not tonight.” Nato lead me by him with a gentle grip on my hip.
Yunez shook his head in exasperation as if he was dealing with his favorite errant puppy. “You know, Nato. I was very lenient when I gave all of you time, weeks if you recall. But that is over. We need to be strong, and we need to be together. And, it is Isolde’s decision if she wants to talk to Rand.”
“You’re right, and we will give this our best effort; one hundred percent. I give my word.” Nato nudged me between him and the door to our suite as he glanced over his shoulder. “But tonight has been traumatizing enough without adding any more heart-to-hearts. Isolde needs sleep. We plan to give it to her. The rest of us could use a good few hours of rest, too. We’ll meet you in the courtyard in eight hours,” The door opened, and Nato pushed me through as every one of my Lusty Legion followed.
I wanted to yell at Nato for making such assumptions about what I would or wouldn’t do. Sometimes, he could be so high and mighty when it came to me. Only this time, I was beyond exhausted. Mentally more than physically, but the mind was the most draining, wasn’t it? So why argue with him?
In my best impression of a zombie, I showered the residual energy from the night away, brushed my teeth, and got on pajamas. At this point, I did look up to see the guys taking turns in the shower and at the sink. How far we’d all come. I’d never seen them naked together, not really, before tonight—last night—with Jari and Nato. Now they were swinging dicks left and right, and they didn’t even notice, or care.
If I wasn’t so beat, I would ogle them a little more. Nato was right though, the last twenty-four hours had been hard. I could study them more after I was fully rested.
The mattress bounced when I threw myself across it facedown. Air fluffed around me as the covers flattened beneath my body. The guys could rearrange me how they wanted; I was officially checked out.
My conscience floated precariously on the edge of waking and dreaming. The provocative pull of sleep almost had me, until I was rolled over and covers were yanked out from under me.
“Fuckers,” I grumbled as they slid in next to me. They didn’t acknowledge I spoke at all. It was like they knew me by now. And, I guessed they did.
A feeling of peace infused my bones when Sage curled up against one side, wrapping a thigh over my legs and a warm palm under my shirt on my lower back. Jari’s clean scent reached my nose to let me know he was positioned on my other side, tossing his limbs over me and Sage.
The steady breathing finally did the trick and pulled me under into lala land.
As if I had never laid down, my eyelids popped open. One second I was deep in REM, and then next, I was staring at Egan’s smooshed face. Huh, they must have rotated through the night. The curtains were shut tight in our room, but we must have left the curtains open in the main living area of the suite. Weak residual light fell through the doorway, kissing everything in its path, making it super easy to see all of Egan’s features. His tanned skin was wrinkled where he was pressed into the pillows.
I twisted under the covers, stretching my arms above my head and doing my best to remain silent. When I rolled to my other side, Sage was staring at me, wide-eyed and bushy tailed.
Or maybe wide-eyed and slightly demented. The way he was channeling his inner creeper right now said he could easily be a serial killer. And, not the kind that put away Lucky Charms.
I covered my mouth to contain my morning breath. “Why are you staring?” I whispered.
He blinked slowly like he was zoned out, and when his eyes focused on me, he whispered back, “I’m reminding myself that you’re here and alive. That we’re all alive, and that I shouldn’t be a jackass anymore by running away. Next time I get the urge to leave, I’ll convince you all to go with me, and we’ll stay on Yunez’s property.”
There was a lot there; he hadn’t said anything surprising, but he seemed wired. “Have you been to sleep?”
He shook his head once on the pillow, “I don’t think so? Every time I close my eyes, I see Egan dead on the floor, or I hear your screams as we’re crushed in that white room.”
Ah, so he was not only shocked and afraid, he was also sleep-deprived. I scooted closer and burrowed into his chest. “It’s okay. We all made it out okay, and we’re learning from our mistakes.”
His chin bumped the top of my head as he nodded. “We are, and we need to be stronger.”
“That’s why we’re going to train our asses off. And, you all will make a man out of me.” It was a sad attempt to make him laugh, but he had apparently never seen Mulan, because he completely ignored my comment.
“We are going to train. But we need to be stronger,” he mumbled, and wrapped his arm over me, pulling me tighter into his chest. “I promise not to do it again; I won’t run away.”
“Okay, I believe you.” I kissed his bare chest and rubbed soothing circles in his back. It was like he was having some kind of meltdown. His eyes were wide, and his breathing was too fast. In an effort to slather him in comfort, I squeezed him tight, tangling my legs with his.
Okay, sighing might not be a universal sign of comfort, but when someone exhales, and relaxes into you, it’s almost like it pulls the tension right out of your body with a string.
In this case, it was complete bullshit, because it didn’t work.
“The guys are going to hate it, I hate it. But it’s the only way,” He mumbled. That seemed like it was more to himself than me.
“Want to tell me what you’re talking about?” I whispered. If he kept this up, I was going to start waking people up. He was worrying me with his incessant, repetitive mumbling.
“Let’s go,” he shot out of bed like an over-caffeinated squirrel, only the sad and depressed kind. Although, the way he was able to keep quiet while he jumped over Nato and then lifted me over the edge was impressive.
I tugged my nightshirt down so my ass wasn’t hanging out, but Sage didn’t care. He never stopped as he dragged me out of the suite, through the back courtyard and to Yunez’s door.
He pounded three solid times then waited while staring hard at the wood like it held the secrets to the new Seven Wonders of the World. Earth, I mean. I really wanted to ask him what was up, but his actions made him seem almost fragile.
I was afraid if I broke through his current reality, he would shatter into a million broken pieces in the grass.
I turned my back to him, so it wasn’t awkward. Rays of morning sunlight bathed the courtyard, the grass glistening like dark blue diamonds under the fine sheen of morning dew.
The door creaked open behind me, and when I twisted around, Yunez stood there in adorably rumpled cat pajamas, rubbing the sleep f
rom his eyes.
“Nato said eight hours. It’s been five, you’re too early.” He grumbled as he smoothed his wild locks into something more presentable. Sage didn’t care, he just reached back to snag my hand and pushed into Yunez’s place with me following behind.
“I’ve been thinking; a lot of thinking. We need all the advantages we can get.” He stopped in the middle of the room and spun to face Yunez. One long finger pointed at me. “Bond her.”
The fuck?
This boy had lost his ever-loving mind.
“Care to explain your line of thinking?” I sputtered. This was too much for so early in the morning; I needed to sit. The fluffy couch called my name, and somehow, my feet shuffled me to it, and I plopped down unceremoniously.
I had to give Yunez credit. He didn’t look confused, excited, or unwilling. Groggy was the best word to describe him as he ambled over with none of his usual swagger, and sat down in the chair.
“Some people like morning sex; I actually have to wake up before I can perform, sorry.” He rubbed both eyes now and rested his head on the back of the chair.
A giggle slipped out at the ridiculousness of his statement. He didn’t want to bond now because he was half-asleep? Okay then.
“This isn’t a joke. Iss needs more power, and we need to train. You hinted that she needed Mannos in her Lusty Legion. Tell me you didn’t intend to be one of them, and I’ll call you a liar,” Sage crossed his arms and lorded over Yunez like he was actually stronger than him. Maybe one day he could be with the bonds between us, or at least equally powerful, but that wasn’t true for the present.
“Isolde, my love. Would you be a dear and get me a strong cup of coffee?”
Blech, I hated the Fennin style of coffee. But I still went to his kitchen and prepared a cup. It took several minutes because their technology was so old school here, I was essentially boiling water and mixing the coffee into it. Instant coffee, did I say gross?
When I turned around, Sage was glaring at Yunez, who had his eyes closed, happily ignoring him.
Secrets of the Mazza: A Paranormal Romance (Mazza Series Book 3) Page 9