A visible shudder ran through Misty’s body, her skin paling beneath the heat of his gaze. Fear gripped Luna for the other girl and another knot formed in her throat. “Leave her alone, connard,” Luna spat out, her tone stronger and harsher than what she expected.
Golden eyes narrowed in her direction. “Connard?” he repeated, the word coming out in a growl. “I suppose that’s French for something not very ladylike. While you’re under my care, I’ll have to teach you how I like my females to behave.”
“Why are you doing this?” Luna cried, her words etched in pain and terror. “Why can’t you just leave us alone?”
Russo’s eyes gleamed bright, tendrils of smoke from the burning woods trailing overhead. “Because you’re mine, little girl. You were born to be mine. If your father had simply handed you over to me when you were young, all this death could have been avoided. But no, the bastard had to go and send you out of my reach, somewhere I couldn’t touch you. Do you know how angry that made me? So much blood was spilled, so much fun I had …” Russo’s head rolled back, his thin lips curled into a sadistic smile, his body shuddering under the intensity of the memory before those eyes bore down at Misty. “I have some fun planned for this one. Won’t be quite the same fun I have planned for you, Luna. My little bitch here is now spent, but I have other uses for her. A few nights in my pleasure room might show her the error of her ways.”
A cry tore from Misty’s throat, tears spilling over her cheeks, a river of despair. Luna had no idea what horrors would be waiting for the poor girl in his so-called pleasure room, but fear for her crawled up her spine.
Without warning, Russo lashed out, his fist connecting with the top of Misty’s head, sending her crashing to the floor hard. “I don’t tolerate those who disobey me, Misty. You know this. When you get home, I’m going to give you another lesson on the subject.”
Russo let out a sigh and turned back to Luna. “Let this be a lesson for you, little girl. If I say jump, you’d better jump. If I say bleed, you’d fucking better have a knife slashing your skin because if I have to do it, it’ll be more painful. Do you understand?”
Luna felt tears spill over the corners of her eyes, and anger and frustration bubbled over. “Why can’t you just leave us all alone? The demons will kill us all if you open the gate. Don’t you understand that?”
Shaking his head, Russo gave her a smug smile. “No. No, no, no, no, no. You see, I’ve made a deal with them. Did you know a few demons are already in our world? Oh yes, little one. When the portals to the other worlds were sealed, not all the demons went back. A few stayed in this world. And out of those few, one or two were able to flit back and forth, relaying messages from the demon world to ours. Demons have had their paws in human politics and businesses for centuries, playing with human lives for fun. Well, when I was younger, I came across one of these demons. At first, I was going to have some fun with it – it was so tiny I could’ve swallowed it in one gulp – but when it realised what I was, it offered me a deal.”
“What did it offer you?” Luna whispered.
“Power,” Russo whispered, fire burning in those horrifying eyes. “More power than I could’ve dreamt of. Find the human daughter of a werewolf alpha, fuck her, and get her fat with a child. Then on its first birthday, spill its blood on the site where the portal is hidden. The demons come out and play and do what they want. I get a fucking huge part of America to rule over.”
Disgust rose in Luna’s throat. “You would rape me and kill your own child just for power?”
Russo kneeled before her, allowing her to see just how far the flames of his sickness burned. “Oh yes, my sweet one. I’ll spill everyone’s blood for power. I’ll let the demons fuck you and every other bitch in this world as long as I sit on my throne. And I’ll watch them do it.”
For a second, the world stretched into a horrified silence save the crackling of the fire that ate at her family’s beloved forest. When would this nightmare end? Then a sound filtered through the smoky air. It took another few seconds but then she realised what it was.
Michael groaned, this one louder. Suddenly, Chase’s moans accompanied it. Two voices filled with pain, a song of agony.
They were still alive.
But for how long?
“Michael,” she whispered. “Chase.”
Russo stood up and wandered slowly to where Michael and Chase laid. Their eyes were still closed, their breathing laboured, but they were alive. “So, this is the new alpha of the Silver Moon pack, huh? This isn’t an alpha; it’s a pup. It’s a pathetic little pup and his runt that should’ve been drowned at birth. Should I do that to you, pup? Drown you, put you out of your misery? But where’s the fun in that? I like having fun.” Russo kicked out, sending Michael flying back onto his back. More groans filled the air.
“Leave him alone, connard!” Luna spat.
“There’s that word again,” the older werewolf said, pointing his finger at her, his voice low and growling. “I don’t think I like it very much. Don’t use it again otherwise I will hurt your brother. While I like the idea of a knife to his throat, I don’t think you would, so mind your fucking manners with me.”
Luna glanced at her brother and Chase, wishing she could crawl over to where they lay and pull them into her lap. But she knew she’d never get that far. Instead, she sank further into the snow, the feelings of hopeless and despair crashing over her, pulling her under, threatening to drown her in their murky depths.
“Are you ready to come home with me, Luna?” Russo asked, his fingers trailing over her brother’s throat. “Say the word, and I’ll leave your brother and his pack alone.”
Luna’s breathing started to come in short bursts as panic rose. Desperation flowed through her mind, and she clenched her fists in the snow as Cassandra’s voice suddenly sounded in Luna’s brain.
“You cannot go with this man. You can’t even say you’ll go with him, even if it is just to placate him. If you do, it means all life on Earth as we know it will be destroyed. It doesn’t matter if you’re willing to go with him or not – as soon as he has you, the demons have us. They will devour humanity, reduce it to ash and embers. This vial is the only way to escape that fate. I wish there were something else I could give you, but this is all I have. I’m sorry, but for the world to live, you may have to die.”
Cassandra had been right. Her death would end all this madness, would save Chase and Michael. Would save the world. How could she not end this now while there was a chance?
The tears continued to fall as she glanced upwards. Chase’s eyes were finally open, fixating on her face. A small, sad smile tugged at the corners of her trembling mouth. She would never see those beautiful brown eyes again, never see that cocky grin light up his gorgeous face. Those hands would never touch her body again, never hold her tight. She’d never get to experience those butterflies fluttering against the confines of her stomach when he glanced in her direction again. She’d never have the chance to tell him that she loved him.
Pain crashed into her at the realisation. Damn it. It had taken her right until seconds before her death to realise how much she loved him. The pain clawed at her heart, and another wave of desperation crashed over her again, pulling her under.
Michael’s eyes drew her attention. The sea-blue eyes flecked with amber were swimming with pain and anguish as they flickered to her hand as it moved towards her jacket pocket. It was then that Luna could see realisation dawning in them. Michael’s mouth opened, his face etched in horror as Russo’s fingers started to squeeze, but not with his own impending death.
Luna’s fingers curled around the vial, and she opened her mouth, ready to say the words that would sculpt her fate.
Nineteen
“Non,” Luna told him, her voice trembling as the words spilled out of the mouth. “You can’t have me. I’d rather we all die than let you use me to unleash the demons into our world.” Pure rage burned in Russo’s golden eyes, his thin lips curling downwards
in indignation, at her words.
Russo shoved Michael out of the way, sending him sprawling several feet away. Luna flicked open the cork of the vial, hurrying as fast as her trembling fingers would allow her. She could feel the coldness of the glass bottle even before it touched her lips, could taste the bitter aroma of the poison before it reached her tongue.
This is it, Luna thought as the vial finally touched her lip. Goodbye, my love. Russo was inching towards her, anger etched across his face. She thought she could hear him shouting, but the world was mute to everything but her pain, her sorrow. This was it. At least her death would save the world. That was something.
Ready and willing to swallow her dark fate, Luna closed her eyes. Russo’s face wasn’t the last thing she wanted to see as she lay dying. How long would it take for the poison to work? Would it be a slow, lingering death full of pain or would it be a sudden ‘lights-out’ kind of thing? Either way, she was going to find out for herself.
As her eyes closed, she made out Russo’s face, contorted in anger, and she expected to feel the first bite of pain at his hands, but there was … nothing. Just a whoosh of air, a cold breeze mixed with incredible heat. Gasping, Luna forced her eyes open.
At first, all she could make out was flames. Tendrils of red and orange flames licked upwards, snarling and biting, thick grey smoke billowing into the sky. A curtain of darkness stretched across the once-blue sky, while fire consumed the dying trees below. Then two pools of blue, as though the darkness had been struck, and the shielded sky behind it finally allowed to shine through. It wasn’t until Luna found her feet back on the ground that she realised those blue pools were eyes.
“Pierre,” she breathed, relief flowing through her before she was forced to bend over and cough up the smoke and ash she’d inhaled. “You’re here.”
“Sorry, ma petite,” he told her, his eyes assessing the scene before him. “I was stuck dispatching a few werewolves who had no rights in your brother’s territory.”
Deep menacing growls sang around the burning clearing. “What did you do, freak?” Russo demanded, spitting out the last word.
Pierre shrugged, looking deep into those molten gold eyes, burning with a hatred Luna had never thought possible for anyone. “Your scouting party was feeling a little cold in the pit on they fell into on the other side of the forest. The holes the spikes made in their bodies really let their body heat out, so I was very nice and sent a few fire orbs their way. I never realised werewolves were so flammable. So sorry, mon ami.”
The flames of anger flared brighter in Russo’s eyes, the embers leaping and twisting in a fiery dance. Luna wondered if it was possible to melt under the intensity of those eyes.
“You killed my brother!” came a shout to one side. Snake Goon leapt towards Pierre, his lips pulled back and a snarl emanating from his throat as he soared over the ground, fast and weightless. Pierre’s face remained emotionless, but his hand quickly flew into his jacket pocket, pulling out a small scarlet orb. Throwing it in the direction of the shifter, Snake Goon exploded into flames just a hair’s breadth from where Pierre stood, his limbs flailing madly, screaming until his body burst into nothing but ash, scattered by the wind.
Stunned silence permeated the clearing, only broken by the sounds of flames consuming the trees. For a second, Luna could do nothing but stand there, watching the last bits of ash float away on the breeze, mixing with the soot from the ever-encroaching fire. She’d seen the tormented souls of the dead appear out of orbs, the severed paw of one of the pack on her doorstep, and watched as the light of life die in a shifter’s eyes before, but watching a man explode in front of her … that was something new.
Not that her brain had time to reflect on it. Howls sailed through the sky, their menacing sounds deafening. “Kill them all but keep the bitches alive!” Russo screamed.
Suddenly, the howls ceased, and then Luna felt it. Tendrils of power, of energy, rolled through the air, sweeping and cascading over her. Silver shimmers lit up the darkness that had blotted out the sun, only to fade and reveal several wolves snarling in their directions.
Air swept past her face, pulling at the flesh, the wind drying the tears forming in her eyes as Pierre pushed her away just as a large grey werewolf leapt in their direction. The snowy ground, half melted under the heat of the ever-increasing flames, welcomed her warmly, its arms outstretched to catch her in a lover’s embrace. Glancing upwards, the wolf snapped its sharp teeth towards Pierre’s neck, but the dhampir had the creature firmly by its own throat, straining to push it away from his tender flesh.
A flash of silver caught Luna’s eye.
Her dagger.
Crawling to her knees, she attempted to leap for it, but something barrelled into her right side, sending her flying several feet in front of her. A choked cry for help forced its way up her throat but the sight of a dark-coloured wolf slowly inching towards her pushed it back down again. Dark eyes focused on her face. Adrenaline flew through her veins like a salmon in a river, but Luna could do nothing but freeze. Fear paralysed her, and the notion of running just increased the terror that gripped her. The wolf crept closer and closer, one giant paw after the other until its sickly hot breath flowed across her skin. Her pulse vibrated in her eyes and sweat dripped down her spine.
The dark wolf pulled back its jaw, flashing dangerously sharp teeth that promised to easily slice through her skin like a knife through soft butter. Luna’s breath lodged in the back of her throat, her eyes widening.
Then the wolf disappeared, a dark blur hurtling to the right. Glancing upwards, Pierre reached down to pull her to her feet, his lip split open and stained with blood. “Get your dagger,” he ordered. “Then get Michael!”
Snapping back to reality and desperately trying to ignore the terror that wanted to consume her, Luna watched as another werewolf lunged at them, this time knocking Pierre to the ground. Turning away, she frantically looked for her dagger. Where was it?
A glint of metallic shone in the midst of melting snow. Yes! Dashing towards it, something dark crept into the corner of her vision. Without blinking, Luna lunged towards the ground, her fingers catching the hilt of the dagger just as a sharp claw raked over the back of her head. Fire ran through her veins, but her outer form felt frozen. Crying out with the sudden sting of pain, she twisted on the ground, the dagger outstretched in her hand. Something warm spurted out across her flesh.
Heart hammering in her chest so hard she feared it would explode, Luna lifted her head, dreading what she would find. Lips drew back from fanged jaws. Wide dark eyes met hers, her dagger nestled between them, blood trickled and seeped into dark fur. Bile rose and burnt the lining of her throat as she stared at those eyes, the light within them fading until they finally died, the wolf’s body falling lifelessly to the ground.
A streak of red forced her attention up. A shimmering ball of scarlet hurtled through the air. Terror squeezed Luna’s heart as she realised where it was aiming.
“Michael!” she screamed.
Still on the ground and barely moving, a bald shifter in human form stood over Michael, getting ready to strike a heavy fist to the back of his head. The orb hurled through the smoky air like a shooting star until it crashed into the shifter, sending him crashing to the ground. Luna watched as the flames engulfed him, leaping over his flesh like an uncaged tiger, a living wall of red flames until he, too, was nothing but a pile of ash.
Rising to her knees, the snow seeping through her jeans and running down her legs, Luna glanced around the clearing. Chase was finally on his feet, fighting off one shifter in human form. Pierre was fighting off another two wolves, Misty struggling against two herself. Two beasts lashed out at her, their paws slicing at the flesh on her forearms, sending shrieks of pain flying in the air. Dropping to the ground, Misty swept her right leg out, sending the lighter coloured wolf onto its back. Silver shimmers sparkled around her arms, giving the blood flowing over her arms a luminescent glow. Luna watched as fur spro
uted from her skin, her hands elongating, becoming paws and fingers into claws. She forgot Misty had the rare ability to change partially.
The female werewolf lashed out, raking down the flanks of the darker coloured wolf, drawing a high-pitched whine from it. The lighter wolf jumped up, its jaws snapping in her direction. Pain stretched across her face, Misty dropped again, her transformed hands clawing through the air. Bright red blood prayed in an arc from the creature’s throat as she brought one hand up, its whines overpowered by the sound of Misty’s screams as the other wolf clamped its powerful jaws onto her thigh, bringing her down to the ground.
Limbs shaking and fearful for the woman who she’d once seen as an enemy, Luna jumped up and sped off in Misty’s direction, adrenaline exploding in her veins. She couldn’t let Misty get killed because of her. The darker wolf had let go of Misty’s thigh, but the screaming hadn’t stopped. Luna ate the distance between herself and them, lunging just before she reached them, her dagger aimed at the creature’s neck.
But she missed.
Luna crashed into the wolf, her fingers gripping its fur so tight she imagined her bones would break under the force. Lines of dull, burning agony cut across her ribs and back. Rolling several times and with all the wind knocked out of her lungs, Luna found herself face to face with a snapping jaw. Choking on the scream lodged in her throat, those jaws inched closer and closer to her face, its rancid breath hot on her cheeks. Calling on all the strength she could find within her aching body, Luna pushed the wolf back, her face red with exertion until suddenly it disappeared.
As she sucked in a deep breath, she watched as livid gold eyes replaced the snapping jaws.
For a second, Luna wished that she had to deal with the crazed werewolf than its alpha.
“Enough!” Russo cried, slinging the werewolf through the air followed by whimpering a few seconds later. “I told you to kill the men and capture the girls. Instead, what do you do? You attack the girls, and the men are still alive. Fucking idiots.”
Temptation Of The Moon: A Silver Moon Novel Page 16