by Lexi Ostrow
She tsked at him and drew the knife slowly over her neck. Carelessly, she dropped it to the blade to the floor too close to Kellan. The warmth of the blood didn’t distract her as she swiped a finger through it and smeared it over her lips. Seraphina was playing a dangerous game. Angel's blood was addictive to any who tasted it, even if it was their own.
“I guess you’ll have to prove it to me.” She smirked.
She bent down and grabbed his head in her hands, holding him steady as he thrashed about. Her lips touched his, and she felt her heart pound. His tongue swiped across her lips so quickly, it startled her, but not as much as the sharp sensation of him nipping at her lips. It didn’t hurt, but it shocked her that he would be so forthcoming, and her mouth parted.
Kellan’s tongue dipped inside her mouth, tasting and twirling as he sought for more blood. One of his hands actually reached out and clutched at her arm, dragging her closer to him.
She was powerless as his surprising strength tugged her to him. All she could feel was the way his tongue stroked her own. Slowly, her eyes fluttered shut, and she was lost in the sensation of their kiss. She felt it as his hand released her arm and cupped her breast. When he squeezed, she moaned and arched her body towards him.
He massaged her breasts as they kissed, and tiny tingles broke out over her body. Her heart began to pound in her chest as a wave of desire began to build with every single motion. He tweaked her nipple, and it puckered in response to the pleasure-pain of the action. Seraphina felt her body begin to melt as liquid hot need pooled betwixt her legs whilst they kissed. Kellan’s hands made putty out of her senses, and she leaned against him, pressing her breasts into his blood-caked chest and deepening the kiss.
One of his hands moved behind her and tugged her into him. She should have been revolted, should have pushed back. But he bit her again, hard enough to draw blood, and his heady groan of pleasure as he suckled her tongue made her mind go blank. Kellan was drinking in her blood, and she was drinking in him.
When his fingers trailed lightly down her body and slipped inside the silk robe to flick against the curls betwixt her legs, her eyes shot open.
Realization dawned on her. She had tried to play a game and had lost, just this once. She hastily grabbed for where the knife had fallen on the floor and pulled back from the sordid kiss.
Furious, she slammed the dagger into Kellan’s shoulder and shoved him backwards. His cry was not nearly satisfying enough for the way he’d taken her game and turned it around on her, much as Lucius had done.
“Izazal! Izazal!” she shrieked as she ran out of the cell, panting heavily.
“I want an attack launched directly at the guild. I don’t want them ever making it to that harbor of theirs,” she sneered. “I want blood, Izazal. I want them to bleed and die before they ever stand a shot of rescuing Kellan.”
Still shaking, she walked past Izazal and ignored the Muriel and Santiago’s shouts as they taunted the Pure Angels in the other cells. The trembling in her body was terrifying, but not as frightening as the voice she heard next.
“Be careful, Seraphina. Too much further, and you’ll be fucking that man like you used to ride me,” Demetrious’ baritone voice boomed around her with the callous words.
Her nightmare was back, and now she had two. She’d allowed a human to kiss her, and she’d wanted him to do it again. Demetrious was dead and gone. His specter nothing more than a terrifying reminder of the past, but he held none of the danger that Kellan did if she didn’t get him under control.
Nine
“I have a gift for you,” McKenna said as he stepped away from saying goodbye to his father and the royal carriage quickly pulled away.
He turned to look at her and saw she dangled an impossibly feminine pocket watch in front of him. So feminine, it had a helm and anchor charm. When he did not grasp it out of the air, she jerked her wrist at him again, causing the pocket watch to swing close enough to tap the tip of his nose.
“Aren’t you going to take it?”
He swallowed, she couldn’t be serious. “Ah, whatever would I want it for?”
McKenna snarled, grabbed his hand, and dropped the pocket watch into it. “It is the alarmed watch, you imbecile. Demons live in the water just as they do on land. You’ll want to know if one is about to drop in on you, would you not?”
He closed his hand around the pocket watch and nodded his thanks. “Might you exchange mine with yours? This feels a bit…” his voice trailed off.
“Feminine?” she said with a smirk. “It was all we had calibrated. It belonged to a hunter in training, who did not make it past initiation.”
He sucked in a deep breath and forced himself not to engage with her. Calling to her with the communication device last night had been a sincere move. He didn’t want bad blood betwixt them whilst they had to rely on each for survival. If she wanted to go back to damning him after they were safely home, he wouldn’t mind.
Jacob shoved the pocket watch into his waistcoat pocket and walked with McKenna to the carriage where the others were waiting. “Is this because I insulted you last eve? McKenna, truly, I will behave myself, but you are something of a temptation. I am used to being blunt, and women typically do not mind my affection.”
She stopped mid-step into the carriage and turned her head back to him. “It is simply because—”
Her eyes widened, and she jumped back from the carriage for a quick moment just as a buzzing sound came from the pocket watch he could see outlined under the dingy grey ruffled shirt she wore.
“Greyston, Philippe, come quickly!” McKenna shouted as she leaned into the carriage and had her gun in hand when she leaned out.
Determination crossed over her brow, and Jacob hadn’t the foggiest what could have happened. He slowly turned and saw nothing. For half past eight in the morning, the streets were decidedly quiet. Until he heard the scream.
From above a blood-curdling yowl sounded, and he jerked his eyes up, almost screaming himself. Bats the size of small mutts flew towards the group of carriages. Three of them, with mouths gaping open to expose tiny, sharp teeth. The creatures were far too large to be anything but a demon, covered in black fur with deep wine-colored, leathery wings.
“But it’s daylight,” he muttered astounded.
Jacob couldn’t bring himself to reach for the gun tucked into the waistband of his trousers. He knew he needed to, but he was frozen to the spot as Greyston charged past.
“Pas de la merde,” Philippe shouted as he jumped out of the carriage.
“Well excuse me,” Jacob muttered at Philippe basically calling in a moron.
McKenna rushed past him and stood just behind Philippe and Greyston, who were acting as a barrier. The big Incubus Demon’s eyes were as black as they could get compared to Lucius’, and Jacob prayed Greyston used his strength, not his power in the fight.
“McKenna, stay back, Olitiau are hard to kill, and we need precision.”
“Fuck you, Philippe,” McKenna growled and pulled her gun out.
A streak of purple cut through the early morning fog and another scream tore through the quiet. An Olitiau slammed into the ground. Dust flew up where the creature fell, and Jacob stared, dumbfounded at the small hole directly under its chin.
“Mon Dieu! What is with the women in this Alliance?”
A streak of purple went through the sky again, Greyston this time.
“Bloody hell,” Greyston snarled and fired off two more shots before dropping the demon to the street.
“Are you going to stand there, or are you going to do something with yourself?” McKenna spat at Jacob.
He felt the gust of wind as one of the demons grew close, and a sharp pain blossomed in his chest. His eyes blinked rapidly at the stripe of red blooming there. His heart pounded in his chest, and he grabbed for the gun with shaking hands. The same terror from the night before grabbed hold of him, of killing something, regardless of what it was.
Jacob’s eyes clo
sed as he drew the gun up to shoot the demon. He fired and opened his eyes. The Olitiau was on the ground, but only because Greyston had tackled it there. Greyston sat on its back, barely restraining the large wingspan. Philippe said something in French that even Jacob couldn’t translate, and a green beam fired from nose to navel, splitting the creature in half.
“That’ll be a way to start the morning. Bloody fucking Nightmare Demon sleeping it off in the carriage.” Greyston scowled and walked past Jacob into the guild.
“Jacob,” McKenna shouted as she raced up to him.
Her hands made quick work unbuttoning his white shirt and pulling it to the side. Her fingers felt amazing on his skin, and he tried not to think about why they were there. They slid over the wound, and he flinched.
“It’s surface deep. I can go back into Odette now,” he said through clenched teeth.
“Why Odette? I’ll grab Tate, please let him look at this. Infections run rampant on the water, I’m told. I don’t need you dying on me.” She raced off inside just as Odette walked out.
“Into the carriage,” Odette said, and he stepped in and sat just as she did across from him. “You are proving to be a dangerous asset, Mr. Tresay.” She nodded towards the group of them.
“McKenna, she doesn’t know what you are?” he asked Odette incredulously.
“No, she is not a part of the council, and I am not attending this mission.” Slowly, Odette put her hands over the wound.
Jacob felt the slightest tingling sensation as her Halfling powers worked on his injury. He looked down, hoping to watch as the skin knit itself up, but there was a blinding white glow around the area, and when Odette removed her hands from his chest, the wound was gone.
He ran his hand over the area and was shocked at how smooth and unmarred the skin was. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Now get away from Odette. You’re entirely too close to her for my liking,” Philippe said as he climbed in and kissed her.
“I didn’t think accepting your betrothal would make you more pigheaded,” she said with a laugh and climbed over his lap to exit the carriage. “Seraphina is behind this. She has spies everywhere, and I know this timing, this daylight attack wasn’t a coincidence. I’ll see to it that McKenna thinks Greyston stitched up your injury. You cannot travel in the same carriage, should any Mariners see you all exit, it would be disastrous. Felicia, McKenna and I will be down shortly. By now, McKenna probably found Tate, who knows not to expose my secret. Be safe, and keep your eyes open for another attack.”
With that, she closed the door, and Jacob heard the snap of reins, just before the carriage began to move.
“Are you all right? You froze out there, again,” Philippe said.
Jacob frowned and rubbed his hand over his eyes. He had frozen again, and then he’d closed his eyes. He could have shot Greyston.
“I know, damn it. I know,” he growled.
“Watch your tone. I don’t give a bloody fuck who your father is. You’re a subordinate to Felicia and Philippe the minute that ship leaves the harbor. If they think you’re a liability, you will turn in your gun and remain in the cabins,” Greyston said, anger in his tone.
“Fine. I have nothing to argue with you over. I could have been killed because I was too worried about killing something. I will respect your command in this instance. There is nothing else I can do.”
Both Greyston and Philippe nodded, and then the carriage fell silent. With every bump over the cobblestone, Jacob fought back his humiliation. His father hadn’t wanted him on this mission. Now that he had demanded a place, he was realizing how truly useless he was. He was slower than McKenna at running, he couldn’t keep the steam-powered bikes upright for long when he wasn’t in motion, and whilst he had a steady aim, he couldn’t seem to shoot at anything trying to take his life.
Jacob was the definition of useless, and the silence in the carriage agreed with him.
Jacob let out a low whistle as he stepped out of the carriage at the dock. The tent Odette had spoken of nearly a year ago was down, a mass of beige cloth just lying about the dock. If it bothered the merchants and sailors, none let on. They just milled about, stepping and dropping fish on it as they walked to and from their own boats. He’d seen plenty of busy days in court, and many busy nights at the guild, but never anything like this.
“Glad to see they’re sending us off with the whole of London being able to see us,” Lucius said with a small yawn as he stepped out of the carriage and stood beside Jacob.
“Well, at least we presented them with a new boat to explain the mess under the tent this past year,” Philippe said and walked past both of them.
Jacob was surprised that they had built a ship. He had been under the impression one of Mikal’s existing vessels was to be used. Looking at the grand transport at the end of the pier, Jacob began to understand why his father wanted a Royal present—new ships were costly endeavors. Now that he saw this one, though, it made sense. Whilst there weren’t many, and they certainly weren’t luxurious, there were some steam powered ships. Not long after his majesty’s rail began, they had created an engine that many ships could accommodate. This likely had something down below deck that only the Alliance knew about.
Greyston quietly got out of the carriage and walked to the edge of the pier to where the ship was waiting. Jacob tried not to be distracted by the early morning hustle and bustle of the dockworkers or the smell of fish.
The ship that would be their cover truly was splendid. Better than Mikal’s best, it was a three-mast sailing ship, large enough to fit most of the palace residents inside. The sails were a stark white against the grey morning sky. Jacob inhaled a deep breath of salty sea air and coughed once. It burned, and yet, it was so much fresher than what he was used to breathing in. This is the day, Jacob. Whether you make it back or not, today is the day when you become more than just a useless nobleman.
The sound of a horse whinnying pulled him from the thought. He turned away from the ship and saw the carriage holding Odette, McKenna, Felicia and Eliza come to a stop. One by one, the women gracefully stepped out of the carriage, and Jacob’s breath caught in his throat when McKenna emerged.
He had, of course, seen her only an hour prior, but watching her step down from a royal carriage dressed in a splendid deep blue dress, took his breath away. The dress was for show, to conceal who they truly were, as well as half the weapons they needed were likely tucked under the women’s skirts. Her hair was tied back with some ridiculous feathered cap, but tendrils of curls framed her face. She looked as stunning as a Pure Angel, and he had a feeling a good number of men on the ship would act as if she was a prize to guard.
A low growl slipped past his lips, and Lucius smirked from beside him. “You realize that a gut reaction, such as that one, typically means the lady is your undoing?”
Jacob glared at the demon, annoyed by the amusement in his friend’s jet black eyes. He knew the demon wasn’t entirely wrong, especially given the sensual encounters he and McKenna had already had.
“You know what I have never understood? Why in the bloody hell are you so jovial and caustic all the time? It’s very un-demon like of you.”
Lucius laughed. “It’s part of my charm, just ask my wife.”
Lucius stepped past him to greet his newlywed wife, and Philippe and Greyston weren’t far behind. Just for a moment, Jacob felt how truly alone he was and was grateful that no coupled pairs were attending the mission together.
“We do not have long for goodbyes. It will look suspicious if we gather here for too long of a period and the vessel leaves late. I know you cannot see it in full, but if you look just in front of the ship, you can see a small periscope sticking out of the water. That is the eye of the vessel Eliza crafted. Lucius is acutely aware of the fact that he is going to destroy his beautiful chocolate traveling suit, as the only way to enter is from the water. For those of you that were not on the last mission, we were briefed on the basic workings of the
airship. I would like to follow in my father’s footsteps and do the same for this vessel, especially since Eliza will not be on board should something go wrong. I am uncertain if the communicators will work out to sea without crystals to bounce off of. They worked in Hell, but I will not pretend to understand the Pure Angels’ gift.”
Eliza was beaming so hard, Jacob had to smile at her as well.
“Before my wife starts, I would like to remind you all to hold your terror to a minimum as I’m the poor sod who will be navigating this device below the surface whilst you’re all quite safe above the water,” Lucius quipped and Eliza slammed her elbow into his stomach.
“Sooner or later, you’re going to learn to trust how fantastic your mate is.”
“Ah yes, perhaps when she is no longer creating new means of transit that could result in my untimely demise I will.”
Jacob hardly held back a chortle, but Greyston didn’t even try.
Eliza shook her head and continued, “I have called this device a submersible, due to the fact that it is submerged beneath the sea.”
She reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a drawing of the ship. Jacob had seen the drawings a few times since its construction began, but somehow, knowing that now he was looking at something real, just mere meters away, made it that much more inspiring.
“This vessel has been crafted with the finest steel we could find, largely thanks to the Angels pointing us in the proper direction. It has been welded together as best as any project. We ran multiple tests dumping it off the side of the dock and testing for water resistance. Whilst even I will not boast a depth of safety, I can ensure you that it will hold up long enough to get you to the cave.”
“This is as ominous as the last time you explained something, Eliza. Are you implying it might not be able to make the return to the surface?” Odette’s expression shifted to one of discomfort.
Eliza toed at the ground and shrugged noncommittally. “It has the potential to fail at a certain point. However, Layel will be present, and there will be will no flaws returning, as he can flash a small group.”