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Masters of Seduction Volume 2: Books 5-8: Paranormal Romance Box Set

Page 23

by Lara Adrian et el


  That would explain why the magic felt familiar and yet unfamiliar at the same time. The female sex demons had disappeared from the world centuries ago.

  “An ancient and noble House,” he murmured.

  The mist swirled, the potent energy filling the circle. “You are…Furia,” the Succubus at last said.

  Tiege gave a nod of his head. “I am.”

  There was the sound of something that might have been a chuckle. “They always were handsome devils with the charm of an angel.”

  He flashed a wicked grin. Thankfully Sloane wasn’t close enough to give her opinion of his supposed charm.

  “True.”

  “And so modest.” There was a pause as the spirit studied him with an intensity that Tiege could physically feel. “Why have you disturbed my rest?”

  “I need information,” he readily admitted.

  “What information?”

  Tiege pointed toward the gem. “Why you created this.”

  The mist quivered, as if the spirit was deeply affected by the sight of the necklace.

  “Inanna’s Tear,” Leila at last breathed. “So the time has arrived.”

  Tiege felt a surge of hope. Clearly the gem was more than just a pretty bauble with a spell wrapped around it.

  Now he had to pray it could offer him some way to destroy Marakel.

  “Tell me what the magic will do.”

  “It was intended to counter angel magic.”

  “Angel magic?” he muttered. That wasn’t what he’d expected. “Why place it in the pendant?”

  There was a hesitation, as if the Succubus was considering her words. “To answer the question, I must reveal something that has been a closely guarded secret,” she at last said.

  “I will do my best to share only what is necessary,” Tiege promised. He wasn’t Jian from the House of Xanthe, who used secrets as weapons.

  “I suppose it doesn’t matter anymore. At least not to me,” the female muttered before the mist seemed to solidify with an internal resolution. “There are a rare few within the House of Akana who possess the gift of foresight.”

  Tiege arched a brow. “I’ve heard whispers, although the House refused to confirm or deny the rumors.”

  “Can you imagine how tedious it would be to have endless petitioners lined outside our palaces, desiring a glimpse of the future?” Leila demanded. “As if we were their personal fortune tellers.”

  Tiege grimaced. She had a point. What could be more priceless than a glimpse into the future? Every demon in the world would be clamoring to know what their fate was going to be.

  His lips twisted. And that didn’t even begin to cover how valuable it would be to their various business ventures. Who didn’t want to know which stocks were about to triple in value?

  “You had the foresight?” he demanded.

  “Yes.”

  “What was your vision?”

  “I saw the Master of the House of Akana trapped in an angel’s web.”

  Tiege rose to his feet, a sudden knot of fear lodged in the pit of his belly. Jian had warned that the angels were trying to influence Marakel and undermine the protection of the Obsidian Throne, but none of them had suspected the bastards had been directly responsible for attacking Akana and his men.

  “What is an angel’s web?”

  “A spell that traps a demon in his own mind. He’s alive, but unaware of the world around him,” Leila explained before continuing with her story. “It seemed impossible, but there was no mistaking the image of the Master and two Watchmen lying in the darkness, surrounded by the magic.”

  “Damn.” Tiege clenched his hands. He’d never heard of the spell before. Now it sent a shiver down his spine.

  “I assume it came true?” the female asked.

  “Yes.”

  The mist shuddered. Even in death the Succubus feared the mere thought of an angel invasion.

  “Have they returned?” she breathed.

  Tiege shook his head. “Not yet, but we fear they may be using the Oubliette as a meeting place to plot with Marakel.” He paused, considering the impact of what he’d discovered. Unfortunately, he still had more questions than answers. “Do you know why the angels would target the House of Akana?”

  “No.”

  Of course she didn’t. That would have been far too easy.

  “What else did you see?”

  “Nothing, but I could sense that it would be imperative for the Master to be awakened, so I created the pendant.”

  Tiege bit back his disappointment. It wasn’t that he wasn’t happy as hell that they had a way to waken the Master of Akana. But he’d been so confident that the magic would be connected to Marakel.

  He glanced down at the gem that shimmered at his feet. “Why didn’t you tell someone what it was for?”

  “If I had shared my vision then some fool would have tried to alter the future, even though it’s impossible,” Leila said, disgust thick in her voice. Clearly she’d endured more than one person trying to alter their destiny. Or maybe she’d done it herself. “And another would have twisted my words to suit their own needs so they could waste the spell on some ridiculous plot to gain power.” Without warning the teardrop necklace floated an inch off the ground, the air prickling with magic. “It was far better to wrap the pendant in a compulsion spell to reveal itself when angel magic touched this world.”

  Ah. So he’d been right in one thing.

  It hadn’t been a coincidence that the jewel had been found at this particular time. It’d clearly been triggered when Jian had brought the bodies of the Master of Akana and his Watchmen out of the Oubliette.

  Careful to avoid the dangling silver chain, Tiege leaned down to grab the gem, wrapping his fingers around it. It felt warm against his skin, but not painful.

  “This pendant will waken the Master?” he asked.

  “Unless he’s been physically harmed.”

  That was a question Tiege couldn’t answer. Only Jian had actually seen the missing Incubi.

  “Do you know why the angels would waste their magic to incapacitate a Master rather than just killing him?” he asked the question that’d been nagging at him since Jian first revealed he discovered the bodies.

  “I would guess because a deathblow would have been felt throughout the demon world,” Leila answered, her tone indicating that she was surprised he would have to ask.

  “Damn,” he muttered. It made perfect sense. The angels had clearly tried to keep their intrusion into this world a secret. At least until the bastards were prepared for a full-blown attack.

  But why Akana?

  The question was whirling through his brain when the sound of Sloane’s voice sliced through the magic that filled the circle.

  “Tiege,” she shouted, the sound of her footsteps running up the hill echoing through the air. “Tiege, we have company on the way.”

  Shit. Tiege forced himself to concentrate on the mist that was already beginning to dissipate.

  “How do I use the pendant?” he demanded.

  “The magic is female,” Leila said. “Only a woman can cast the spell.”

  His brows snapped together. He’d already sensed the magic was feminine in nature, but he didn’t know that it could be created so only another woman could cast it.

  “But there are no more Succubi…” His words were cut off as the mist slipped from his control and faded back into the hieroglyphs. “Hell.”

  Leila had created a spell designed to wake her distant descendant, but she hadn’t seen enough of the future to realize there wouldn’t be any females left who could cast the damned thing.

  “Tiege.” Sloane had reached the top of plateau, her urgency vibrating in the air. “We need to get out of here.”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Sloane watched as Tiege at last gave a shake of his head and turned to move out of the circle. She instinctively angled her body so she was between him and the approaching cars as she urged him to hurry down the narrow pathway
.

  The last thing she’d wanted to do was interrupt his ceremony. Even from a distance she could hear the low sound of his voice, which she assumed meant that he’d been able to contact the dead. But the second she’d caught sight of the flash of headlights, she’d known the vehicles were headed in their direction. The area was too isolated for a stray motorist to pass by at this time of night.

  Now she led him toward the waiting Jeep, easily sensing his weariness.

  Her concern increased when he crawled into the passenger seat without one protest. Rounding the front of the vehicle, she slid behind the steering wheel and started the engine. Then, shoving the Jeep into gear, she stomped on the gas and had them hurtling across the sand at jaw-breaking speed.

  When Tiege remained silent, she glanced in his direction, grimacing at the sight of his tightly clenched features and the beads of sweat on his forehead.

  “Are you okay?” she demanded.

  “I will be,” he promised in frustrated tones. Either his meeting with the dead didn’t go as he wanted, or he was annoyed by the toll the ceremony had taken on him. Maybe both. “Can you tell who’s chasing us?”

  She glanced in the rearview mirror, her jaw tightening as she realized their pursuers were steadily gaining ground.

  “I would guess Watchmen,” she muttered, catching sight of the dark form perched on top of the nearest truck.

  Only an immortal would take that kind of crazy risk.

  “Damn.” Tiege scrubbed a hand over his face, his body leaning heavily against the door of the Jeep. “I’m too weak to battle them.”

  “I got this,” she assured him, stomping on the brake to make a sharp turn to the right. Then she had the gas pedal shoved to the floor as they bounced over a dune and headed down the bank of a dry riverbed. “Hold on.”

  “Shit.” Tiege slammed his hands on the dashboard as she took a curve on two wheels. “You’re enjoying this.”

  Was she? Sloane kept her gaze locked on the narrow path hidden at the end of the riverbed. Her adrenaline was thumping through her body and her heart was lodged in her throat. It felt good. Almost as good as being pressed into the mattress with Tiege between her legs…

  She abruptly squashed the erotic images. Now wasn’t the time to be distracted with X-rated memories of sex with a gorgeous Incubus.

  “It’s my job.”

  “You are—” He cut off his words as she headed over another dune and entered the mining town that’d been abandoned years ago.

  “What?” she demanded, glancing in the rearview mirror to make sure she wasn’t being followed before she pulled behind one of the decrepit wooden buildings.

  He released a long, hissing breath. “Going to be the death of me.”

  Her lips twisted into a smug smile as she caught a glimpse of the headlights moving north of the ghost town. She’d managed to shake them. At least for now.

  “Not tonight,” she assured him.

  Tiege glanced out the window, taking in the half-dozen buildings that were a good breeze away from catastrophic collapse.

  “How did you know this was here?”

  “I did some research when you were in the shower,” she admitted. She didn’t say anything about being able to tap into the military satellite system. A woman needed her secrets. “I like to be prepared.”

  Tiege turned to flash her a wry smile, pulling out his phone to send a quick message. “I think we lost them.”

  Sloane nodded, but she waited until she was sure the vehicles weren’t going to double back before slowly heading out of the town. Then, reaching a road that would lead them back to Vegas, she picked up speed.

  “Did you learn anything of value?” she asked as he slipped the phone back into his pocket.

  “Yes. We need to get the pendant to Jian.”

  She scanned the area ahead of them, refusing to lower her guard. Just because they’d shaken one enemy didn’t mean another wasn’t lurking in the dark.

  “Why Jian?” she demanded.

  Tiege held up his hand to reveal the tear-shaped gem that glowed with a pale blue light.

  “The magic is supposed to waken the Master of the House of Akana. Jian is the only one who knows where he’s hidden.”

  Sloane briefly inspected Tiege’s pale face before returning her attention to the road. She didn’t have to ask if he was disappointed. He hadn’t made any secret of the fact he hoped the pendant could help him avenge Portia’s death.

  “So you’re returning to Hong Kong?”

  “We’re returning to Hong Kong,” he corrected. “I’ve already texted Jacob to have the jet waiting.”

  She frowned. She’d expected to return to the Greece villa now that the ceremony was complete. Tiege didn’t need an extra guard to meet with his fellow Masters, did he? Once he was on the jet he should be safe.

  Of course, he was still weak, she sternly reminded herself. Maybe when he was back at full strength he would realize there was no need for her to travel with him.

  “You should feed,” she abruptly announced.

  She sensed his surprise at her words. Why? He was clearly drained from the ceremony and in dire need of regaining his strength.

  “I know you’re talented,” he at last muttered, “but I doubt you can drive like James Bond and feed me at the same time.”

  She white-knuckled the steering wheel as shock jolted through her. Had meeting the spirit clouded his mind? He had to know it was impossible for her to risk feeding him. Not after they’d had sex more than once just hours ago.

  “We could stop at the hotel—”

  “No.”

  She blinked at his fierce rejection. “No?”

  His exquisite face was impossible to read. “They’ll be watching the hotel,” he said. “We can’t risk going back there.”

  She shrugged. He had a point. His enemies would no doubt be keeping a watch on the hotel, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t easily find a female willing to give him what he needed.

  “You could have Jacob bring a female with him.”

  She could feel his anger blast through the air, prickling over her skin and twisting her stomach with raw lust.

  “Why are you so eager to shove me into the arms of another female?” he rasped.

  Sloane flinched. The thought of him with another woman was…hell.

  Sheer hell.

  Which was why she needed to get him on that plane and get herself back to Greece where she could thank Petros for giving her an opportunity, and then hand in her resignation.

  The sooner she could put this male in her past, the sooner she could try to build a new future. One that didn’t include lethally gorgeous Incubi.

  “You need to regain your strength,” she pressed.

  He gave a sharp, humorless laugh. “And you’re not offering?”

  Sloane was unable to prevent the shudder of longing that raced through her body. Why was he tormenting her? Did he have any idea of what it cost her to deny his request?

  No. He couldn’t.

  To him, the feeding was nothing more than sating a need. While she was aching for something that could never be hers.

  “I…”

  “Well?”

  She licked her dry lips, acutely aware of Tiege’s heated gaze as it monitored the sudden heat staining her cheeks.

  “I thought Incubi avoided feeding from the same source. You know…” She coughed, feeling oddly reluctant to say the word. “Because of the…”

  “Mating?”

  Something painful sliced through her heart. Sloane grimaced, forcing herself to concentrate on angling the Jeep off the road and toward the empty tarmac at the back of the airfield.

  “Yes,” she muttered, her voice thick with an emotion she didn’t want to name.

  Perhaps realizing she was fragile enough to shatter beneath his mocking, Tiege sucked in a deep breath.

  “I’ll worry about feeding later,” he muttered. “All that matters right now is getting to Jian.”

>   “Fine.”

  “Park here,” he abruptly commanded. “We’ll walk the rest of the way.”

  Sloane obediently stopped the Jeep and turned off the engine. They were still shrouded in darkness, but less than a few feet away the bright lights that surrounded the airport turned the night to day.

  With a swift efficiency, she double-checked her weapons, holding her gun in one hand as she shoved open the door of the vehicle. She wasn’t worried about the human guards. She had enough demon blood in her veins to avoid their unwelcome attention when she wanted. But she wasn’t stupid enough to think that whoever was hunting Tiege wouldn’t have eyes watching the airport.

  She could only hope that she and Tiege could slip past before their enemies realized that they were here.

  “Let me go first,” she commanded in low tones.

  “No way in hell,” Tiege snapped.

  She turned her head to meet his dark scowl. “I’m your guard,” she reminded him. “It’s my duty to make sure there aren’t any traps waiting for us.”

  The copper eyes flared with a fierce emotion. “You’re fired.”

  “I’m…fired?” She studied him in confusion. She’d done everything in her power to protect him, including feeding him when that wasn’t in her job description, and now he wanted to fire her? Anger, and something that felt perilously close to betrayal flooded through her. “Why?”

  He grimaced, no doubt sensing her pain. “Shit.” He glared at her in frustration. “Okay, you’re not fired. But you are about to get a new job title.”

  His bizarre words only intensified her bewilderment. Why would she want a new job title? It wasn’t like she could become one of his Watchmen. Unless he meant he intended to make her a household servant?

  No. Way.

  She was a warrior, not a domestic drudge.

  “What does that mean?”

  He made a sound of impatience at her blatant suspicion. “We’ll discuss it later.”

  She gave a shake of her head. “Did that ghost rattle your brains?”

  “I spoke with a spirit, not a ghost,” he snapped, continuing to glare at her. “And she’s not the female responsible for rattling my brains.”

  ~

  Tiege knew he was acting like a crazy man.

 

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