“Thanks. I promise I’ll cook for you one day,” I said, leaning over the railing of the stairs. I stood almost at level with him.
He gave me a heated look. “I enjoy providing for my mate.”
“Maybe I want to provide for mine as well,” I said with a saucy smile. He leaned forward and kissed me, leaving me utterly breathless. “Or maybe a cold shower,” I grumbled as he pulled away.
“Why don’t you keep it warm, and I can join you while dinner simmers?”
Oh, I really, really liked that idea. Like, a lot. Sultry lust shot through my body, heating me from the inside out. I bit my lip.
“Is Roman gone?”
“For the night, da.”
I smiled. “Well, maybe I’ll just leave the door unlocked and wide open?”
“Get started, Sixx. I will be up in a few minutes.”
I loved that idea. With a thrilled, Okay! I ran up the stairs, practically tripping over my anxious steps. Being back in the human realm, in his – our? – house felt almost normal. It felt safe, which meant I could finally be with my mate without the fear of being attacked or kidnapped, or awakened by a snake... Each step I took to the bedroom felt lighter than the one before it.
Hell, I felt downright giddy. I needed this badly.
Truthfully, I imagined he needed it more than me. My poor, patient mate. I considered dropping a trail of clothes along the way but figured it would be a pointless gesture since he knew what the plan was. Why make a mess we would just have to clean up later?
I turned on the shower and let it warm up as I undressed, dropping my clothes in the hamper before stepping under the spray. I tried not to stress over my nakedness since this would be the first time he’d really see me, remembering how he’d never been shy about holding my curves before.
I heard the door creak, and I breathed out a long sigh.
“Come on while we still have hot water!” I called out. “And while I have the courage to do this,” I muttered to myself.
A low whistle sounded, and my brows bunched in confusion. I peeked over my shoulder, and my eyes went wide.
“Oh, my God!” I screamed, keeping my back to the doorway and pressing my body against the tiles. “What the hell are you doing here?!” I screeched.
“You invited me in, Seis. I can’t resist a beautiful body or an offer like that.”
“Cyril! Lea- OUCH!”
I clutched the back of my neck as a sharp pinching sensation speared me. I peeked over my shoulder.
“Do not turn around, Sixx,” Olezka growled, sounding inhuman.
“Um, can you please loosen your grip a bit and get him out of here?” I whimpered, completely freaked out that whatever pain Cyril felt was being broadcast to me.
“Oh, I’ll do more than that,” Olezka promised darkly.
“Hey! Nothing too bad!” I called out to him. I waited several tense minutes before I had the courage to turn and look behind me. Twisting the knobs and turning off the water, I stepped out of the shower and shivered. Opening the linen cabinet, I hastily grabbed a dark blue towel and wrapped it around me. I still didn’t feel covered.
I stepped hesitantly into the bedroom, but neither one of them was in sight. Breathing a little easier now that I was semi-covered, I walked over to his dresser. I pulled out one of Olezka’s t-shirts and slipped it over my head, keeping the towel wrapped tightly around me. As soon as the shirt fell to the top of my thighs, I untucked the towel, letting it drop with a heavy thud.
I had to find a pair of pants before Olezka killed Cyril. Not that he could do that without hurting me, but from the sound of him when he found Cyril in the bathroom with me, he would find another way to torture him. Cyril was a flirt. That was fairly obvious. I mean, he was an incubus, after all. But he was only taunting us to throw us off guard and make me feel off-kilter. I didn’t like it because I couldn’t plan for it, but he didn’t deserve to die for his actions.
“Where are your pants?” I whispered to his dresser as I pilfered a pair of gray gym shorts and slipped them on. I raced from the room and headed down the hallway, looking in the rooms on either side, their doors flung wide open. After inspecting the top floor, I decided to head downstairs to see if I could find them down there.
“Olezka?”
When he didn’t answer, I remained quiet, straining my ears to hear the tiniest sound. I walked through the living areas – kitchen, dining room, den – but didn’t see a soul. Anubis was deadly silent, which gave me an idea. I snuck over to each closed door and rapped my knuckles against the wood. I heard Anubis bark once, twice, and the third time, I managed to find the door he was hidden behind. I opened a door that I’d never noticed before.
How was that even possible? Then again, I hadn’t done a whole lot of snooping in the short amount of time I’d spent there.
The door opened onto a short landing that led to a set of concrete stairs descending to a lower level.
“This is what nightmares are made of. I mean, of course, he has a creepy-ass basement. I did just find out my mate was a secret assassin, after all,” I mumbled as I walked down the stairs. The hard flooring stung my bare toes with an icy chill.
“Careful, hellhound,” Cyril chided, “or she might find out what kind of beast you really are.”
I paused and listened, too afraid to breathe.
“My mate is not your concern. You found out she was mine, and you sought to use her against me. Why?”
“As I told you before, I wanted her.” Cyril laughed harshly. “And don’t forget – anything you do to me, she feels.”
“I will find a way to break her from this contract, and then I will kill you for even looking at her,” Olezka growled dangerously.
“Make sure you kill me before she finds out your dirty little secret, hound.”
I looked down the stairs to see Anubis staring back up at me, my cover blown. He did his happy yip bark and bounded up the stairs.
“Sixx?” Olezka appeared at the bottom of the stairs. I scratched behind Anubis’s ears since he demanded the attention.
“Don’t kill him,” I pleaded.
“Go back upstairs.”
“Please, Olezka. I’m asking you not to do whatever it is you’re planning on doing. He’s just trying to push your buttons.”
“Go. Now!” Olezka snapped, his eyes burning with barely contained anger.
I didn’t like the dismissiveness of his tone or the angry fire in his eyes. It wasn’t like I invited Cyril into the shower on purpose. I thought it was Olezka! And more than that, there was obviously something Cyril wasn’t telling us.
I turned and headed back up the stairs, anger fueling my steps, and willed my tears of frustration to stay right where they were. The worst part was that Olezka didn’t trust me to help. The realization hurt more than I wanted to admit.
Chapter 10
“Sixx.”
I groaned. My body did not like sleeping on the couch. But after last night, I didn’t want to be anywhere near Olezka. I peeked one eye open and glared up at said male.
He stood over me with his arms crossed. “What are you doing?”
“I was sleeping,” I grumbled, turning away from him and tucking my face back into the cushions.
“Sixx.”
“Go away, I’m asleep.”
Olezka sighed heavily. The next thing I knew, he lifted me off the couch. I folded my arms in protest.
“Put me down.”
“Nyet. You agreed to live with me, and you will live with me.”
“You were perfectly happy to dismiss me like I was nothing earlier, so how about we keep in theme with that, shall we?” I wiggled in his hold. The longer I had time to mull over what happened, the more pissed off I became. He didn’t trust me to help with whatever he was going to do with Cyril, but more importantly than that, I was the one who got us into this mess, and I wanted to help us get out of it. But he wouldn’t even let me do that.
Also…
“Who has a
torture chamber in their basement?”
Olezka laughed. “It is not a torture chamber. I have a holding cell in my basement because I deal with dangerous Fae criminals. Do not forget that I am still part of Sentinel.”
“And don’t forget that I’m not completely helpless. I used to help Ana with real cases, and I don’t appreciate you keeping me in the dark. I like to dig for information. It gives me some ground to stand on and makes me feel useful.”
Olezka shook his head. “He is just using you to get to me. I will handle him. I don’t trust him around you.”
“The worst he can do is make me feel uncomfortable. He’s not the rapist type.” I whispered the last part because it felt so wrong to say it out loud even though I truly believed it. Just because Cyril was an incubus and fed off sexual energy didn’t mean he was an insatiable monster. Besides, he’d had the chance to hurt me multiple times before the favor was in place and never did.
At my words in Cyril’s defense, Olezka’s lips pressed tightly together, though he continued carrying me up the stairs to our room.
“What’s wrong now? I won’t fall into his arms just because he’s a flirt,” I scoffed.
The muscle in Olezka’s jaw ticked.
My eyes widened in disbelief. “Please, tell me you don’t really believe…”
“Humans are fickle. My brat had a human once; she turned her back on him as easily as flipping a switch. I thought things would be different for us since you are mine, but seeing you be so protective of this other male…” Olezka shook his head. “Stay away from him, Sixx.”
“I want to be your partner, Olezka.”
“And I need you safe,” he argued, placing me on the bed. I felt a stab of disappointment that he obviously wasn’t listening to me. Nothing I said was getting through his thick skull. And the worst part was that this was proof he clearly didn’t trust me. He thought I would betray him with another man.
That cut deep.
“I have to leave for a couple of hours. Kallan called; they have a lead on a possible distribution site for Dreamscape. You are safe here, I promise.”
But I felt anything but. I felt disappointment, hurt, and distrust. When Olezka tried to kiss me goodbye, I turned and gave him my cheek instead.
“You will see it my way, Пчелка.”
I very much doubted that.
****
Agitated after Olezka left, I ended up tapping my foot restlessly and staring blankly at the page of my book, sure I’d read the same paragraph twelve times already. Nothing worked to soothe my mind. I stewed over our argument. I was convinced I could hold my own with Cyril. I could! Not to mention I would never cheat on Olezka. Not in a million years.
As big of an idiot as he was being, I still cared about him. The warmth I felt when I thought of him didn’t fade. My irritation grew, most definitely, but the love was still there.
“Screw it.” I hopped off the bed and hurriedly dressed. After pacing for a good minute, debating my next course of action, I jerked my chin up, the decision made. I strode to the bedroom door and jogged down the stairs.
‘Helping’ didn’t have to mean putting myself on the front lines, which only made my anger grow when I thought about how little faith Olezka had in me. Sure, I could see his side. Each time Cyril and I were caught alone together, I was in some form of undress, and it never looked good. But it didn’t excuse the way he was treating me.
Then, to question my loyalty.
My eyes narrowed.
I’d show him.
I’d do what I did best.
Research.
****
My hand reached out, but before I could wrap it around the knob, I snatched it away. That was my eighth attempt. I breathed in and exhaled loudly.
“Ask for forgiveness, not permission,” I gritted out, giving myself another motivational speech. Or sentence. Whatever. Okay, I can do this.
I reached out again and twisted the knob, pushing the door open. I cringed as it creaked. Anubis lifted his head, watching me.
“I don’t need your judgment right now.”
Anubis groaned, crossed his front legs, and placed his head on his paws, watching me with a worried gaze.
“It’s okay. I promise. I won’t do anything stupid,” I reassured him… and myself. I stared at the impenetrable darkness ahead of me. “Besides this, I mean.”
But as I waited for the niggling sensation that I was doing something wrong or stupid to sweep over me, it never came. I felt calm and confident in my decision. Cyril was keeping something from us. Something vital.
“Fudge it all.” I took a deep breath and walked down the stairs. Squinting, I tried to force my eyes to adjust to the darkness faster. The light from upstairs offered just enough guidance to pick out a switch. I flipped it, and a bare bulb flickered on.
“Of course,” I muttered.
“Ah, I know that voice. Hey, Seis. Come to finish what we started upstairs?”
“Nope. Where are you?”
“Over here.” His voice came from the back of the room.
I stepped off the bottom step and was surprised by what I saw. Olezka wasn’t kidding about having holding cells. There were two; the first one was empty but contained a twin-sized cot. The second one housed Cyril, who looked utterly bored, his arms hanging out of the bars. I walked over to him and sighed.
“I am so sorry.”
He gave a lazy smile. “Why are you sorry?”
“Because Olezka can be overprotective.”
“Don’t worry, Seis. He’s right to be protective of you. But what brings you down here to my humble abode?”
“I think there’s more to your story.”
Cyril leaned back and raised his brows then gripped the bars to anchor himself. “Other than the fact that I’m a charming, devilishly handsome miscreant?”
I gave him a bland look, annoyed with his deflection. “If you want my help getting out, then you need to give me something in return,” I said, crossing my arms, determined to be just as stubborn as he was.
Cyril’s lips twitched before his joking demeanor melted away. He released his tight grip on the bars of his prison. “There’s that determined human with whom I was trapped in that dungeon! I wondered where she went.” Cyril moved to his cot. “Alright, I will tell you my tale of woe and want, if that’s what you desire.”
I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Cyril always had a flair for the dramatic. During our time together in our old prison cell, he regaled me with stories to pass the time. I did the same for him, but my stories usually included four pit stops, two side roads, and stories that never really concluded.
“I came from poor streets with even poorer people. Being a para didn’t help. My mother was a succubus who shouldn’t have had children. But she did – me and my sister. She was often reckless and garnered quite a bit of debt—both to humans and paras. When my father found out about me, he came to take me from my mother. He had no ties to my sister because she was not of his blood, but I refused to leave her behind with our mother because I knew she would only use her for selfish gains.
“In the end, my father took my sister in as well. He was an incubus and taught us everything we needed to know to protect ourselves. Unfortunately, when I turned seventeen, he passed away rather unexpectedly. My sister was still in school and, since coming to live with us, had been thriving. After his death, our mother crept back into our lives with lofty promises of bringing the family back together. I knew she wasn’t to be trusted and tried to keep my sister sheltered from most of it. It was during that time that I learned how to fight, and I got good.
“I caught the attention of some of the people my mother owed money to, but worse than that, they started paying close attention to my sister. She was the good one. Always did well in school, excelled, even. She had a full scholarship. I kept her out of this life as long as I could. Unfortunately, Key and his organization were connected to some of the brokers I’d been paying off by throwing fig
hts or winning them. They owed him, and he wanted us.
“Key used us as leverage against each other. He placed my sister under lock and key, keeping her far from me while he used me in his fighting rings. The threat of what he’d do to my sister if I failed hung over my head like a noose. I’d weed out the weaker ones, and if they were strong enough to beat me, he would move them along. He started drawing my blood, saying it was to test my strength, but I knew he was up to something.” Cyril finally paused in his story and took a deep breath before fixing his uncanny eyes on me. “You saved me, Sixx. But I need you to help me save her.”
Silence reigned for a moment before a quick bark from Anubis broke it.
Olezka was home.
Chapter 11
Panting, I stood by the island, using it to hold me up. Swallowing hard, I tried to slow my breathing. It didn’t work. Anubis’s tailed thumped against the tile from his place beside me.
Cardio. This is why people did fudging cardio. I heard heavy footsteps and tried to remain calm. I thought of soothing things – wind chimes, soft blankets, fuzzy kitties – but my head was still stuck on my conversation with Cyril.
Roman stepped into the kitchen, eying me speculatively. “Uh, you alright, Sixx?”
“Yup! Great! Where’s Z?” I about smacked my hand against my forehead. I never called Olezka Z anymore.
Too chill! Too chill!
“Not sure, I figured you two were…”
“Oh! Oooh, no. I mean…”
“Look, Sixx, I don’t need to know about yours and my brother’s sex life. You make him happy, and you two are mates. I get it. But fuck, no.” Roman shook his head and walked over to the fridge.
I couldn’t help bobbing my head up and down in a continuous nod, for which he gave me a strange look.
“No, that’s fine. I understand. I mean, I don’t because I don’t have any blood siblings, but I can imagine. Yeah, okay. Yup. I just came down for a snack.”
Sixx and the Incubus: The Sidekick Chronicles Page 7