Rapture

by Quinn Loftis

  He had tried to get in touch with the top dogs, but none of Lorsan’s elves were returning his calls, and he couldn’t even get in touch with Trik. With the risk of his casino being destroyed and his employees quitting, he had decided to close the bar to Rapture in the early evenings. He would love to do it later in the evening as well, but he knew that it would never fly. Lorsan would come down on him with an iron fist.

  Just as he rounded the last row of penny slot machines, he came face to face with the front doors of the casino and with a group of people that he knew immediately were not there to gamble. He saw one of his security guys heading towards them, no doubt going to card the youngest one decked out in black. She might be twenty-one, but only just. These days it was so hard to tell age based on looks alone. He caught the security guard’s eye and shook his head, indicating that he would handle this himself.

  “Hello,” he said walking up to the tallest male of the group. Tony was immediately on guard when the male turned to look at him and he saw his face for the first time. His unearthly beauty clearly marked him as not human. “Something tells me that you aren’t here to spend money,” he continued in his most charming voice.

  The girl all in black stepped around the tall, stoic male and held her hand out to him. “We’re actually looking for the owner of this fine, upstanding establishment.” Tony instinctually reached out to shake her hand and was quickly reminded of why he usually made it a policy not to touch women in any way in his casino, ever, because you never know when there’s a pissed off elf on the other end of that woman. The girl gasped as the large male grabbed her waist and put her behind him, moving with a quickness and grace that was innate among the elfin race.

  Tony held up his hands in a peace offering gesture and took a step back. “I meant no disrespect. I’m Tony, and I’m the manager of Iniquity.” Suddenly, behind him there was a loud crash and then a male voice yelled out. Tony turned to see one of his security guys pulling down a man who was attempting to climb over the bar.

  “Let me guess,” the voice of the young female spoke up. He turned back around to see her peeking around the side of the large male. Her wide purple eyes shone back at him and she held a sardonic smile in place. “You have an ugly infestation of a little problem called Rapture?”

  If he thought his life couldn’t get any more messed up, he was wrong, so very, very wrong.

  “I think we should probably take this conversation to my office.” He motioned them to follow.

  “That would probably be best,” the other female spoke up this time and he could tell that she was much older than the younger one, and possibly even related.

  Elora’s eyes widened as they walked deeper into the casino, passing the struggling man that the security guards were attempting to subdue. She must have been drifting too close to the action because Cush, her fearless protector, wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her to his side. They continued to follow the man who had introduced himself as Tony, and she tried to ignore the restless itch that had started the moment they landed and had been growing worse with every passing minute.

  Once they were all herded into a spacious mahogany–paneled office, Tony motioned for them to take seats. Cush and Rin didn’t, so she didn’t either. She always hated being the only one sitting among a group of standing people.

  “You’re an elf,” Tony said bluntly to Cush.

  “What gave it away?” Elora asked him. “The incredible skin, unusual eyes, ridiculously luscious hair, or the catlike grace?”

  Tony laughed. “Yes,” he answered simply.

  “I am Nedhudir, light-elf warrior, and this is my comrade, Rincavornon.”

  “FYI, they answer to Cush and Rin,” Elora added helpfully. “Because let’s just face it, those names are as ridiculous as their lush hair. I’m Elora and that’s my mom, Lisa, and my brother, Oakley.”

  “I would like to say that it’s nice to meet you, Nedhudir and Rincavornon,” replied Tony, bowing his head slightly and without so much as a hesitation, “but, honestly, you’ve caught me at a bad time. The fact that you all show up here at the same time that I have customers trying to kill each other over a drug concocted by your people…” he pointed to Cush, “doesn’t really bode well for me.”

  “My people,” Cush gritted out, “had nothing to do with Rapture.”

  Elora felt the tension in the room jump a couple notches as the two men faced off. She waited a beat before stepping in between the two because she had to admit Tony was hot, and her man was hot. And, really, who was she to come between two hot males who want to duke it out? But then Tony took a step forward and Cush tensed and Elora decided that she would have to put her fetish aside for the greater good. Ugh, the things I give up in the name of peace, she grumbled inwardly as she stepped up and put a hand on Tony’s chest to keep him from coming closer. Looking back, that probably wasn’t the best thing she could have done.

  “I really think that the dark elves trying to take over the human race is more than enough war for both our people right now, without adding you two to the mix, don’t you?” Elora asked as she looked between the two men.

  “Little Raven, do you wish the human to die?” Elora heard Cush’s voice in her mind and her eyes snapped down to the wrist he now held in his large hand.

  “Not really into homicide; it just doesn’t do it for me,” she told him calmly.

  “Then you would be wise to remove your hand from his chest.”

  Elora looked at the offending hand pressed firmly to Tony’s chest and quickly jerked it back. “Seriously?” she asked incredulously. “You were bothered by that?”

  “Wait,” Tony suddenly spoke up, “are you his Chosen?”

  “I don’t like you touching other males,” Cush told her simply without acknowledging Tony’s question.

  “It’s not like I was copping a feel,” Elora argued.

  “I told you I was possessive,” Cush countered.

  “That’s putting it mildly don’t you think?” Tony spoke up again, this time to Elora. “If you’re his Chosen, then you would do well not to breathe the same air as other males.”

  “You’re mine,” Cush added.

  “Yes, we’ve established that. So when you finally meet your Chosen do you suddenly devolve and revert back to caveman mentality? Do you suddenly feel the need to drag me around by my hair?”

  “I wouldn’t give him any ideas,” Tony muttered.

  “And you,” Elora said sharply as she turned and pointed at him, “nobody is asking for a side commentary on the This is Elora’s Life show, so keep your helpful hints to yourself.”

  “You’ve got your hands full.” Tony looked passed her to Cush.

  Elora jerked around when she heard a soft huff of laughter, but Cush’s face was still as stone in his unwavering glare. “She’s worth it,” he said as his eyes met hers.

  Elora rolled her eyes. “You know what, whateve. You two want to kill each other then have at it. Those of us who want to save the world will just wait until you’re done.”

  “You’re being dramatic again,” Oakley said from behind her.

  “Nobody asked you, Bro,” Elora said, not taking her eyes off the men still glaring at each other.

  “I am not a dark elf and I have no desire to see the humans enslaved, nor do any of my people,” Cush told Tony.

  Tony folded his arms across his chest—his very broad chest, Elora admitted to herself—and looked from Rin to Cush. “You don’t get it. You’re an elf. I don’t care if you’re light, dark, or somewhere in the middle. You are only concerned with your own people. I’ve been dealing with your kind for far too long; I know exactly what you are capable of and what kind of power you wield. Those who have power always wind up wanting more.”

  “You have been dealing with the wrong kind of elves if those have been your only experiences with my race. Do you not have evil humans? Do you not have people who have killed their own? Would you condemn the entire human race because of thos
e black sheep?” Cush spoke calmly, his words measured and even.

  Tony rubbed his face, clearly exhausted, before finally responding. “Look, why don’t we just talk about why you are here. Who sent you?”

  “Triktapic, King of the Elves,” Cush told him.

  “Sort of,” Elora added as she stepped closer to Cush.

  Tony’s brow rose at her words. “What do you mean sort of?”

  “He actually thought we would be meeting back up with him and his woman at the light-elf castle, but that plan got jacked up.”

  “Is Trik alright?” Tony asked, the alarm in his voice also evident on his face.

  Cush cocked his head to the side and eyed the human. “How do you know Trik?”

  “He’s a friend,” Tony said vaguely.

  “How good a friend?” Elora asked as she stepped up beside Cush. She took his hand in hers and his warmth seeped into her immediately.

  “A very good friend,” Tony bit out.

  Elora smiled. “You’re that friend Cassie told me about.”

  “You know Trik’s Chosen?” Tony asked.

  “You could say that,” Elora said coolly.

  “Are you alright?” Cush asked her as she squeezed his hand.

  “Yes, just feeling a little restless. Touching you helps.” Elora looked up at him and hated that she was causing him to be concerned, but the energy rushing through her was getting worse. She shifted from foot to foot and bit her bottom lip. She imagined she probably looked like someone who badly needed to use the restroom. She froze in mid–shift as she realized that everyone was staring at her.

  “What?” she asked looking from face to face.

  “Is your Chosen human?” Tony asked Cush.

  Elora snorted. “Dude, I’m right here. You can ask me.”

  “Why do you ask?” Cush asked, his voice deep and low. No one missed the threat it contained.

  “Because she’s twitching like a dark elf who hasn’t nurtured their dark side in a while.”

  Chapter 8

  “I can’t even begin to describe how old I am, how much I have seen and done and experienced. And yet with all of that, still she amazes me. She is as pure as freshly fallen snow, as hopeful as new life in the spring, and she loves me. How can I ever be worthy of that?” ~Trik

  “It’s sort of creepy to wake up and have silver, glowing eyes staring so intently at me,” Cassie said as she yawned and stretched her stiff limbs. Trik sat in a chair next to her bed. His arms were resting on his legs as he leaned towards her.

  A small smile played on his lips. “Get used to it, Beautiful, because I plan to watch you sleep whenever I can.”

  “Your comment just upped the creepy factor several points,” she told him as she sat up and swung her legs over to dangle off the side of the bed. Trik eased out of the chair until he was kneeling before her with his hands on her waist and their faces level with each other, a rare occurrence since he was so much taller than she.

  “You knew I was creepy when you took me as your own, Cassie,” he pointed out as he ran his nose along her jaw.

  Cassie let her head fall to the side giving him access to her neck and she grinned when his deep chuckled sent a warm puff of air across her flesh.

  “I suppose that is true,” she conceded, her voice taking on a dreamy quality as she let herself surrender to his touch. His hands ran up her back until one was holding her neck and the other buried in her blonde locks. Trik maneuvered his body between her thighs and pulled her against

  him. Cassie felt the lips that had been at her ear press firmly against her own and she was suddenly ravenous for him. She deepened the kiss, grabbing a hold of his powerful shoulders and pulling him closer. She felt her soul rising from deep inside of her, as if it was bubbling up from the tips of her toes. She felt it reach up to meet his and just when she thought the emotions inside of her couldn’t grow any more powerful they seemed to explode inside of her.

  She heard his gasp as his fingers dug into her flesh. She welcomed the minute amount of pain that it brought because it proved to her that this was real, that she really was in the arms of the man she loved. It proved that she had survived her brief stent in hell, addicted to Rapture, parading herself in front of dark elves and begging for her next fix. His teeth tugged at her bottom lip and she smiled at his playfulness and when she would have pressed him further, he began to pull away. Their breathing was rapid, chests rising and falling quickly, lips swollen and wet. She was sure they were a sight to behold.

  “I will never tire of you, never cease to be amazed by you, and I will never get enough of you,” he told her as he stared into her face in awe. Cassie wanted to balk at the way he looked at her. Who was she to have someone like Trik looking at her as if she invented indoor plumbing? This powerful being knelt before her, touching her reverently, as if she were the most precious thing in his world.

  “Silly human,” Trik teased, “you are the most precious thing in my world. Don’t you know that yet? Have my actions not revealed that?”

  “Sometimes it’s just hard to believe that you love me, not…,” she held up her hand to stop his rebuttal, “not because I don’t think I’m worthy of your love, but because it just seems impossible. Dark elves, light elves, a whole other realm? I mean, seriously Trik, if I told people about this they would think that Lisa had sold me some bad incense or something.”

  Trik brushed her messy hair from her face and ran his thumb across her lips. His eyes met hers and pinned her in place, but it was his words that held her captive.

  “After centuries upon centuries in darkness, with enough blood on my hands to condemn hundreds of men, I found you. That, my love, is something to truly be in awe of. And for some reason you want me, when I deserve nothing less than your scorn, you give me acceptance. When I deserve your shame, you find pride in who you think I can be. When I deserve your judgment, you give me grace and love me anyway. It is I who should be unable to believe that any of this is real, Cassie. It is I who should be worried that I’m going to wake up and realize that this was all just a dream and that you aren’t real, that you aren’t mine.”

  She smiled at him as she pressed her forehead to his. “We are quite the pair aren’t we?”

  “That we are love.”

  Cassie looked past him to the window and saw the light of the sun was beginning to break through the darkness as night was quickly fading into day. “Today is a big day,” she told him with what she hoped sounded like enthusiasm, though she was really dreading it.

  Trik’s lips twitched in amusement as he stood and pulled her to her feet. “You forget that I can hear your thoughts when we’re touching, A’maelamin.” He switched to speaking to her thoughts as he stroked her flushed cheek. “You can’t hide from me.”

  “I’m not hiding. I just don’t want you to think that I don’t support you,” she explained honestly.

  “Hmm,” Trik said, drawing the word out as he searched her eyes. “I know you support me. I know that you will stand by my side, but I don’t expect you to be doing cartwheels over the fact that we are going to war.”

  “I know, but I feel like we need to go all Braveheart for the warriors who will be fighting to get them all pumped up,” she told him as she stepped around him and headed for the bathroom. “I always thought it was weird in the movies that right before a big battle, the leader always gives this big speech to get the men all excited,” she called out over her shoulder. She turned just as she was shutting the bathroom door and met his eyes. “Because really all they were doing was just getting them pumped up to go and die.”

  Trik stood staring at the now closed door, his Chosen’s words ringing ominously in his mind. It was his job to get his warriors inspired for the coming fight, but not to die. He needed them to fight on to be victorious in spite of the casualties that were bound to happen. It was his job to encourage them, but it was also his job to prepare them for the battle they would be facing and what a battle it would be. Despite his y
outhful appearance he was ancient, so he had no grand designs that they would charge into combat and emerge on the other side unscathed. It would be ugly, bloody and deadly. That is what war was. But just as it was death, it was also life. It was a new beginning and an end to old ways.

  “Ready?”

  Cassie’s voice drew him back from his thoughts and he turned to see her standing, dressed in the clothes of a light-elf warrior. His mouth dropped open and he had to make a conscious effort not to drool.

  “You look incredible,” he told her breathlessly.

  She smiled at him. “Syndra said if I’m going to be a bad ass, then I have to look the part.”

  The snug dark brown pants hugged her thighs and calves, lovingly accentuating her curves. The sleeveless green vest fit just as closely. The elfin material moved with her body, allowing her free range of motion so that she wouldn’t be hindered in a fight. Her knee high brown boots tied around her legs and he grinned when he saw a dagger shoved down in the built in holster. Yes, his Chosen was a warrior, and she was hot.

  “It suits you,” he told her with a wink.

  She snorted. “Right, now if only I had the moves to go with the clothes.”

  Trik took her hand and began to lead her from the room. “Beautiful, you got moves, don’t doubt that. But today we’ll just be adding to your repertoire.”

  “Fantastic,” Cassie groaned.