She ducked as a curse fell from the darkness, and the sharp heels flew back at her, to land with a thud against the wall where her head had been seconds earlier.
“I would have guessed you too old for hide-and-seek, Castille,” she said as she retrieved her sandals and tossed them aside.
She took a step back and watched as the tall shifter fell from shadow. He looked surprised, his handsome face scowling, the eyes glittering dangerously.
She tapped the side of her neck. “The tattoos will always know you, no matter how strong the cloaking charm.” She hated the fact that her heart pounded crazily inside her and that the flesh of her cheeks darkened in reaction to the sight of him.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Damn, why do I sound out of breath?
The gold of his eyes receded into twin black holes of intensity, and the clench of his jaw attested to his inner feelings. He made no attempt to hide his dislike of her.
“How the hell did you breach my security? Tank alone should have given you major problems, but the elevator doors are activated by select signatures only.”
Power clung to the man like the scent of a lover; she felt the thickness of it in the air. But it was tainted.
It should have repulsed her. It didn’t. Instead, it fed something that answered in kind, and she shifted, uncomfortable and angry.
He moved toward her but she refused to budge. When he stood inches from her body, she looked up at him, her actions measured, precise, while inside, her jaguar scratched, wanting out.
“Apparently your security measures are subpar.”
Was that anger in his voice?
“I had no problem at all.” He glared at her. “It was much too easy.”
Angry and accusatory. Where the hell did he get off?
Jaden swallowed hard, her throat dry. Damn, but she needed a drink.
She regarded the warrior in silence and shook her head. “Why are you here?” she asked again, not interested in the how, only wanting to know his reason.
He smiled, yet his eyes remained cold, flat. His hand swept upward, and though she tried to remain still, she flinched as his fingers fell across her cheek. The spark of energy that sizzled along her flesh awakened a need so intense that, for a second, everything blurred. Her animal was all kinds of agitated, and a hiss escaped from between her lips.
She yanked her head to the side and pushed him away, a low growl vibrating from deep within her chest.
“Stay the fuck away from me, Castille,” she bit out, furious at her reaction, “and answer the question.”
He cocked his head, an arrogant tilt, and said nothing.
Jaden clenched her hands and took a step toward him once more, visualizing her fist connecting with the perfect lines of his nose. It would give her great pleasure to break the fucking thing, and she flexed her fingers at the thought.
“I came for you.”
She blinked in surprise and shook her head. “Excuse me?”
The smile left him, and the way his eyes glittered had her gut twisting hard. There was no more pretending. Julian Castille was seriously damaged, and the predatory gleam that flickered briefly had her hackles up instantly.
The man was freaking insane if he thought she was going anywhere with him. He was on the edge, and she had enough to deal with.
“It’s simple really,” he began, his tone conversational as if they were buddies, friends. “You and I have something in common.”
Her eyes narrowed. What the hell was he getting at? “The only thing we have in common is our mutual dislike for each other and a fondness for whiskey, but we’re not going there . . . again.”
“We both want the portal.”
For a moment, Jaden was speechless. The portal?
“Ah no”—she shook her head—“no, no, no.” Was he on drugs? “I am so not going there with you,” she retorted, as her mind worked furiously, trying to figure out his angle.
“You will go there with me”—Julian bared his teeth—“or else.”
“Do not threaten me, Castille.” Jaden was so angry she could barely get the words out. The fucking nerve. “I am not someone you want as an enemy.”
“I will get my hands on the portal, Jaden.” He dismissed her as if she were nothing more than a nuisance and moved away from her. “I’d prefer it sooner rather than later.”
Fury rushed through her, hot and sharp. She pushed it back, knowing she could not let him get to her. She needed a cool head.
She watched as his hand crept up to his chest, and an image of his scarred, damaged skin flashed in her mind. What the hell had happened to him?
“So,” she began carefully as she put more distance between them; her mouth seemed to work better the farther away she was. “You want to work together to retrieve the portal?” It was hard to keep the sarcasm from her voice, and she watched as he arched a perfect eyebrow and cocked his head.
“You will help me.”
Unbelievable.
His arrogance left her mouth agape, but he was already walking away from her before she could answer.
“You’re one hell of a prick,” she yelled at him, willing him to stop, and she swore loudly as he kept walking. Her face tightened, and her eyes narrowed into dark slits of anger. “Hey dickhead, I’m talking to you! Give me one good reason why I should help you?”
He stopped abruptly, and she nearly ran into his back. His body was hot. She felt the heat scorch the air.
He turned around, and she retreated a step, her chest heaving as she struggled to calm herself. His muscled frame was draped in casual cotton, the light-colored fabric a foil against his tanned skin. The open collar drew her gaze to the pulse that beat strong and steady at his throat, and she swallowed thickly, her mouth suddenly dry.
His long legs were encased in faded jeans, the kind that hung low; so low, in fact, that she could see the taut skin of his belly as he lifted his arm and ruffled the hair at his neck. Even though Mexico was hot as sin, his feet were encased in the same pair of boots he’d worn the night before. The man was seriously hot. Too bad he was such an asshole.
“You done?”
Her eyes jerked back up to his. “Done?”
“Checking me out. I thought you saw enough last night, but hell, if we have time—”
“Fuck you, Castille.”
“Seems to me you already did,” he whispered softly, the tone of his voice dangerous like dark chocolate.
Her arm flew out as the anger inside her erupted. She felt the power of her jaguar gather and aimed her fist for his nose. But he grabbed her just above the wrist before she made contact and twisted until a whimper eventually fell from her lips.
Small spurts of air escaped from between her lips as her chest heaved. She tried to pull away, but he refused to let her go.
“I don’t have time for games. If the portal is not found . . . if Cormac is not stopped, all hell will break loose in the human realm, and, trust me, if that happens, I will be the least of your worries. There will be such madness, chaos, and pain . . .” His voice trailed off, and Jaden’s gut twisted as fear began to grow.
Deep within the recesses of his eyes, something flickered, something haunted. She swallowed heavily, and whispered, “Let me go.”
He held her for several long moments, his eyes never leaving hers, then gently withdrew his hand.
She stood there, rubbing her throbbing wrist as her mind whirled into a thousand directions. Julian Castille had not been vacationing in Club Med for the last six months. He’d been someplace dark, twisted. He knew what was coming.
But could she work with him?
A loud crash echoed into the silence, and she jumped.
“What the—?” Jaden pushed past Julian and was down the hall in seconds, her mind and body on red alert.
She reached the main room and froze, her eyes staring at the scene in disbelief. Anger, hot and instant, burned her, and she shook her head as her jaguar protested loudly.
“Mot
herfu—”
“Shit, that’s not very ladylike.”
Her words were cut off, and she glared at Declan O’Hara as he stood surrounded by the smashed remnants of a large piece of pottery. The air shimmered around him, a barrier of magick, and Nico circled him warily, growls and hisses falling from him.
The warrior had shed his human skin and flicked his long tail in agitation as he continued to circle the sorcerer.
“You wanna call off your kitty?” Declan flashed a smile, yet his eyes, too, were as hard as Julian’s, full of darkness and secrets. “I’d hate to have to singe his fur, but if need be, I’ll fry his ass.”
Jaden ignored the sorcerer and walked toward them, her hand reaching for the large jaguar. “Nico, be still.”
The cat barked twice and hissed, but moved between her and Declan as she knelt amongst the mess. She stared down at the ruined pottery for several long seconds. Her breath fell in ragged swells as she fought to control her emotion. The ceremonial jug had been a gift from her mother, Sophia, an ancient treasure from a long ago time, and the only link she had to her mother’s family.
It was worth a small fortune, but to Jaden, that paled in comparison to what it had meant to her mother. What it meant to her.
She shook her head, vaguely heard Nico hiss as she carefully picked up a large piece and turned it over in her hands, her long fingers caressing it lovingly. Her heart contracted, and her chest tightened, full of sorrow as she eyed the shards.
The energy in the room shifted, and she looked up at Declan as he let the barrier fall. She tried to cloak her true feelings but wasn’t successful.
“I’m sorry,” he said simply. There, deep within the recesses of his eyes, she saw a spark of compassion. It lightened his features briefly, then disappeared.
Weariness, bone-chilling and dense, swept over her, and she sighed softly as she began to gather the pieces together. She sensed Julian at her side the same time Nico’s growl warned her.
“You will not touch these,” she whispered roughly, hating the thought of anyone other than herself holding the pieces that meant so much.
He stood back, and she went about her task with careful precision. Long moments of silence accompanied her, and when she was done, she stared down at the pile. Her heart broke. She knew it was beyond fixable.
Just as her world would be if Cormac was successful. They needed to find the portal and destroy it immediately, or every loss she’d suffered would be for nothing. Every sacrifice she’d made would have been in vain.
She stood quickly and shook the sadness from her mind. There was no time for pity. She could deal with that later, when she was alone.
She looked up at Julian. “I agree that we can accomplish the task much more efficiently working together than apart, but I’ll only do it on one condition.”
Nico growled loudly, and she glanced at the animal in warning as mist crawled along his limbs.
Julian nodded slowly. “And what would that be?”
“You need to share everything. For us to work together, some kind of trust needs to be established. I need to know where you’ve been, what you went through.” She paused and glared at Declan. “What your endgame is because I sure as hell don’t believe it’s all about puppies and rainbows. You have an ulterior motive, and I want to know what it is.”
The dark energy that slid along Julian’s skin vibrated, and her breath caught as she felt the caress of his power.
Julian glanced at Declan and nodded. “I’ll tell you what you need to know when . . .” His voice drifted off and he arched an eyebrow.
“When what?” she mimicked, irritated at his superior attitude. She was going to have to break that real quick.
Julian nodded toward Nico, who now stood in his human form a few feet away and snarled.
“When your boyfriend puts on some clothes and leaves us alone.”
Chapter 7
It took a considerable amount of energy to control the darkness that tickled along the edge of Julian’s mind. And it was fierce . . . the need he felt to crush Nico in such a way that maximum pain would be involved.
The warrior stood proudly, his naked body a testament to his hard past. His skin glistened with sweat, and the heavy muscles were adorned by several jagged battle scars.
Nico bared his teeth and took a step toward him as Julian clenched his hands, a vicious smile sweeping across his face.
“You will show her respect, Castille,” Nico snarled.
“Respect needs to be earned,” he said silkily, “then kept.” Julian nodded, his voice matter-of-fact, “something you know firsthand, no? Crazy Nico, isn’t that what they call you?” He stood loosely, with his hands at his sides, waiting for the warrior to strike.
“For fuck sakes, I don’t have time for this.” Jaden turned to him, her chest heaving and skin flush with heat. His eyes ran over her, and his gut tightened as she licked her lips and exhaled.
“You need to shut your mouth because I’m this”—she pinched her fingers in his face—“close to kicking your ass but good.”
Damn but she was fearless.
“I think I might enjoy that,” he whispered, surprised to find his thoughts falling from his lips so readily. His words were soft, meant only for her ears, and her skin darkened in response. It gave him perverse pleasure to know he was the cause of it.
“Move away from her,” Nico growled, and Julian glanced at the warrior, hating the way he looked at Jaden as if he owned her.
“You couldn’t protect your woman. What makes you think you can do any better with Jaden?”
Nico’s face whitened, and the air stilled, thinning, as if it were sucked away into a black hole of nothingness. It was a low blow, and he knew it, but Julian didn’t give a flying fuck. Truthfully, he just wanted to hurt, spread that lovely sensation wherever the hell he could.
They should all experience the hole that was inside him.
His eyes fell back to Jaden’s, and he snarled before turning away.
“You’re an asshole,” she spit at him.
“Yeah, that’s the second time he’s been called that today,” Declan interjected, his tone light. Ever the comedian.
Jaden snapped, “You don’t get to talk to me, not after what you’ve done.” She shot a look of such loathing toward the sorcerer that Declan closed his mouth and remained silent.
Declan glanced at Julian, his face screwed up into a caricature of what the fuck?
Julian looked down at the pile of clay and instinctively knew the piece had meant a lot to Jaden.
“Nico, take Cormac’s spawn down to the hub; I’ll be along in a bit.”
Nico’s eyes never left Julian’s. The warrior flexed his muscles yet remained silent. Julian saw the pain there; it was something he recognized and knew intimately.
He fucking lived with it every day.
He cracked a smile and raised his chin in invitation. He sensed the jaguar was on the cusp, and Julian stood lightly, ready for battle. Inside, he felt his animal stretch, the power within him flex, and he reveled in the sensation.
It told him that he was still alive even if part of him was cold and dead.
“Nico, he’s not worth it,” Jaden said softly as she moved toward the warrior. She put her hand on him, and Julian’s skin burned with a need that was foreign.
“It’s all right, I’ll be fine. I need you to contact Finn and get him down there, too.” She glanced back to Julian, her eyes narrow, her lips thin with anger. “Castille and I need a few minutes.”
Nico remained quiet but didn’t move. The air was charged with things unsaid, acts undone, yet the woman between them pleaded for calm.
“Nico, please,” Jaden said softly, “I don’t have time for posturing. Just go.”
Julian studied the way the warrior looked at Jaden, and it took a lot for him to remain still. Nico wanted her or, at the very least, wanted to protect her.
But she’s mine.
The thought slid through his
mind, and he paused, surprised. What the hell was that about? The woman meant nothing to him.
Julian sighed wearily, suddenly tired of it all, and nodded to Declan. “Go with him, I’ll be there as soon as Jaden and I . . . have a conversation.”
“If you touch her in any way that’s inappropriate, I will kill you,” Nico rasped.
“You could try,” Julian began as he turned from the warrior, “but I’m way ahead of you since half of me is already dead.”
As he spoke, he felt a whisper of regret for a life unlived, a chance that was never to be. He’d never be whole again, would never be free of the pain, both physical and emotional, unless he accomplished what was required.
And even then, the odds were a total crapshoot.
“Go, Nico.” Jaden’s soft whisper and her obvious affection for the other jaguar grated on his nerves. He felt fingers of tension work their way across his jaw as he clenched his teeth together tightly.
Jaden whispered something to Nico, too low for even his ears to hear, and though he pretended to turn from them, he would have given anything to know what she’d said to calm the warrior. A promise from a lover? A reward for good behavior?
The jaguar was seriously pussy whipped if he was gonna let sex rule his actions, but then again, Jaden DaCosta was a damn fine piece of ass. He should know. He’d tasted her on a long-ago evening, not unlike the one that was fast approaching.
His eyes swept the length of the room, taking in the magnificent view that the endless wall of glass afforded, and he studied the waning sun as it began to descend lower into the sky.
He heard the elevator doors open.
“Dude, I need a drink. You think we can hit the bar on the way down?” Declan’s voice drifted back to him as did Nico’s answering growl. Julian shook his head, wondering how the sorcerer could remain so flip in the face of such darkness and death. He supposed it was how he dealt with the pile of shit that was his life. The same pile of shit Julian needed to dig out from under.
He watched as Jaden crossed the room and opened a cupboard that was located near the window. He saw her reflection in the glass, and it afforded him a chance to study her without her knowledge. Her lean body was covered in a simple skirt and blouse, both professional yet feminine. Her generous breasts strained against the thin fabric, and his gaze lingered.
His Darkest Salvation Page 6