by Brianna West
Frustration welled up inside me.
This impossible man was keeping our passion at bay.
I pulled away, growling with irritation. “Why do you insist on making this more difficult than it needs to be?”
Lucas' eyes were glazed over, his lips kiss-swollen, and hair in disarray. The heat pooled in my lower belly and almost made me forget why I was initially angry. The man looked thoroughly debauched.
It was sort of ironic that I was the more aggressive of the two since the simple power his energy exerted was rivaled only by Victor. He could easily stop me from touching him further; hell, he could throw me clear across this room with little to no effort.
Experimentally, I rolled my hips and heard the sharp intake of breath. I could feel the firm rising in his trousers through my own. It would seem he wasn't completely unaffected.
Game on.
I once more gyrated my hips, pulling another grunt of pleasure from him. His hands slid along the waistline of my skin-tight leggings (Cecile had given them to me as they allowed for easier movement while fighting). My stomach retracted when his fingers skimmed over a particularly sensitive patch of skin.
I inhaled a gasp of my own, rolling my head back and allowing the sensation to run through me.
I was so goddamn horny.
Lucas did crazy things to my modesty, as in that I had none to speak of when I was with him.
“Unfair,” I groaned.
Lucas pressed his lips to the exposed column of my neck, teasing the skin at first with his lips, and then with the wet heat of his tongue. It felt animalistic the way he tasted the length of my neck. He breathed me in, his arms circling my torso, and pulling me bodily into him.
“Izzy,” he whispered huskily, causing delicious shivers to course through me. “You smell incredible. You taste...incredible. I should resist...I...” he was trailing off as his tongue tasted the pulse of my jugular.
Suddenly, I knew just what he was battling within himself. I gasped with the small prick of his incisors.
Oh shit.
His arms imprisoned me as I tried to pull away.
If Lucas drank from me, he would definitely beat himself up about it afterward. I was part demon. I'm sure I was toxic in some fashion.
“Lucas,” I warned as he tasted the small wound on my neck, “you shouldn't...”
Lucas tensed, his body imitating stone. Maybe he was starting to realize what he was doing. I felt the hot rush of pain before the overwhelming feeling of pleasure overtook me.
Oh fuck.
I moaned against the onset of pleasurable waves. My legs clutched against his sides, pressing into him. I tensed slightly when the feeling of pleasure pitched.
Lucas pressed his face into me, lapping greedily at the wound. He was growling so deeply that I could feel the sound in his chest. The pleasure pitched once more, and I was gasping again. My body was becoming increasingly weaker, but the firm arms around me held me upright.
Suddenly, I was weightless and being pulled from Lucas. His body flew outwards and smashed heavily into the wall, causing the headboard of the bed to crack with the impact. My vision was skewed as I was immediately shielded by a large set of white-feathered wings.
“Lucas,” a commanding voice warned. “Control yourself.”
I was pulled close, my body molding into Victor's as he defended against Lucas' attack. I clung to him desperately when I realized just what was occurring. It was the same as the fight they had when Lucas had first drank from me.
Holy hell. Not again.
I cried out as Victor and I made impact with a wall.
“Get your hands off of her,” Lucas hissed as he attempted to pry me from Victor.
Victor's arms around me tightened while a bright light encased us. I could see the rush of light suddenly throwing Lucas to the ground and immobilizing him. Seconds ticked away before the light ceased, and he lay unmoving on the floor. My stomach lurched, and I attempted to break away from Victor's hold.
“He is well,” Victor reassured. “I put him to sleep.”
Wait, like a coma?
“To sleep...” I repeated.
“He was injured in the battle,” Victor stated nonchalantly. “It was quite unlike him to be injured, but it would seem he was determined to get to you. So you could say that he needed blood to heal and thus...”
“Couldn't control his urge,” I finished.
So this was my fault.
I pulled away from Victor despite his urging for me to stay and knelt beside Lucas.
No matter how much you like someone, if you're not good for each other, it was better not to be together at all.
My chest was tight as I watched his silent, sleeping form.
Hot tears trailed from my eyes as I turned towards Victor. “I think its best if Lucas and I didn't see each other for a while.”
Nodding, Victor helped me to my feet and wrapped me up into his arms once more. “Though it pains me, I must agree with you. It will be my great honor to take his place in the meantime.”
My heart hurt. I didn't want to leave Lucas, but I knew that my staying was making it difficult for him to remain the Lucas he needed to be. Tears flowed unrestrained from my eyes as Victor escorted me out of the room and out of Lucas' life.
Chapter Nine
So far, life had been one wrecking ball after another. I really couldn't get a grasp on what my next step should be. The only thing I knew right now, in this moment, was that my heart was breaking. It felt as though every part of myself was in turmoil as I sat watching but not really seeing the world around me.
Was this how it always felt when getting your heart broken?
I clutched tightly at my thighs, easing the pain in my chest with the physical pain in my thighs.
I didn't want it. I didn't want to feel this way. The tears had long dried; I couldn't cry anymore.
“Izzy,” a distant voice called to me.
I was normally a very optimistic person. I liked to believe I was even hopeful when there wasn't hope to be borne. As if it had been stripped from me, I couldn't feel optimistic anymore.
“Izzy.”
My blood made me connect with others artificially. It was this blood running through me that made me special. I, the person, was not. Lucas deserved better.
I clenched my fists so tightly that my nails bit into my palms. The heat of pain was the only momentary comfort I found in my grief.
It was the same feeling as when I had lost my mother and father all in the same day; their presence in my life had ceased to be on both an emotional and physical level.
The world could end tomorrow, and I wouldn't care.
“Izzy,” the voice said with more insistence, “you must eat.”
I looked upwards to the person the voice came from. I would have wondered if I had died and gone to heaven if I didn't know better. Victor's brow was drawn down in concern. Since I had made the decision to extricate myself from Lucas' life, I had no one else to blame for this pain I was suffering. I couldn't even find the humor in it.
Usually, I would use this as an opportunity to ogle Victor, but I no longer felt motivation to.
I felt empty.
“I fear if you refuse to eat,” Victor started as he lifted me from my seat that I had been in for endless hours it would seem, “then I will be forced to make you.”
“Is she still refusing to eat?” a soft, French voice asked from beyond.
Sighing, I closed my eyes to her voice. Cecile had tried, unsuccessfully, since I had come to stay to pull me out of this funk I was in. I wasn't even motivated enough to be embarrassed that my boss—for all intents and purposes—was carrying me through the house.
Victor's hold on me was gentle but firm. Everything the angel did made a statement; he could easily make me do anything he wanted but would much rather my consent. It was this kindness that made my emotions renew.
I didn't want anyone to be kind to me. I wanted to hurt. I wanted to be hurt.
>
Still, it was hard to fight someone who would never fight back. Victor was firm, but he would never divulge my need for violence.
At this moment, he was so gentle it made me want to cry.
“Izzy,” Cecile whispered sadly, “you mustn't do this to yourself.”
Gustave was sitting at the table, his eyes drawn to me in concern. He didn't move towards me; I think he was afraid of how I might react if he did. Instead, he offered me his brilliant smile. The man was smooth, but even he fell short on how to comfort me.
I didn't want to be comforted.
I was placed in a seat and immediately handed a plate of food. Victor sat down beside me and pointed to the food with a purposeful gaze. “Eat.”
“Yes, mother,” I grumbled as I reluctantly stuffed a slice of bacon into my mouth.
I wasn't exactly catatonic—that would solve a lot of my current issues—but I wasn't myself either. This empty feeling had grown exponentially in the week I had been here.
I left Lucas, like a large butch vampire version of sleeping beauty, a week ago exactly—and a large part of myself with him.
There was this tugging feeling inside me as if I was attached to him by a string that every day would grow tighter, only seconds away from snapping. Every so often, I could hear his voice in my head, calling to me and demanding I come home. I'm not sure how much of that was real and how much was of my own creation.
Victor had mentioned a week ago that our connection to each other was complex on many different levels. Victor and I had connect through our minds, giving him unlimited access to my every thought and emotion, which meant I was literally unable to keep anything from him.
Lucas and my connection was not quite as well defined. I wasn't really even sure what Lucas and I shared. It was unclear if my feelings for him were truly my own or if they were somehow manifested with this connection of our blood.
Regardless, what I felt for Lucas exceeded anyone I had met to date.
I shoved another slice of bacon into my mouth when Victor made eyes at me.
“I'm eating,” I grumbled sharply as I shoved a bit of egg in as well for good measure.
I hadn't had a mother for almost half of my life, but I do remember on several occasions her nagging me to eat. Victor was becoming incredibly good at nagging.
“I nag only because I care for you,” he proclaimed.
Yeah, yeah.
I scoffed a bit before leaning back into the chair and staring straight up at the ceiling.
If one week was this difficult, I could only imagine what several would do to me.
Making up my mind to end this pity party, I straightened and stared directly at Cecile. “Let's get out of here.”
Her answering smile was agreement enough. Watch out world; the bitch was back.
–
New York City was just as I imagined it would be: a city that never slept. The streets at night were just as busy, if not busier, than they were during the day. Cecile held my hand as she navigated the streets, leading us along sidewalks and alleyways in her search for our next target.
I would easily get lost in these streets. I was directionally challenged and quite capable of losing my way in the streets of my own hometown. That's how I earned my nickname Dizzy Izzy.
Catchy, I know.
I hadn't been involved in any of the action since my head was hardly screwed on right recently. Victor had been a little hesitant to let me get back into the field, and rightfully so, but had agreed on the condition that we would only take on what could easily be handled by one.
Cecile was talented enough for the both of us. Since she had made a home in New York City, she was used to the Dark creatures that lived here.
Apparently, there was a lot of Light and Dark creatures living in New York. Many of them pursued dreams like normal humans.
Aspiring Light and Dark artists? That could make one steamy drama.
It made me interested to know how many current celebrities were harboring secrets of the magical sort.
The great thrumming of the city's essences was almost too much to decipher. The intentions of so many were overwhelming. It was like the crashing of waves. The closer I would get to one, the deeper I would feel it. But then in an instant, it would fade out and another would take its place.
Cecile assured me that I would get better at focusing them. It was another training aspect of the evening.
She led me by hand down another dimly lit alley—there seemed to be an endless supply of them—her heels clicking noisily on the asphalt. The sounds echoed around us: drops of recent rain water, mice scattering in and out of buildings and trashcans, and the subtle hum of voices around us.
My ears had naturally tuned in the sounds around us, kind of like Spiderman. I could even hear the whispered conversations near and far. But that took a lot of concentration to do, so I only used it when I needed to.
Two men spoke quietly at the far end of the alley she had led me into.
Cecile had assured me that this experience could be used to train myself and probably also help get some of this repressed emotion out. However, these two were hardly powerful.
I mean, come on, talking secretively in an alley? That was hardly original.
Smart people generally didn't speak out in the open like some common criminal because they, unlike these two idiots, used their intellect and encrypted that shit.
“The goods are due to arrive tomorrow evening,” the taller man disclosed softly. I held back the snort I almost gave way to.
Idiot.
“Well, hello, gentlemen,” Cecile greeted in her sing-song voice. “It had been my hope that you would have heeded my warning from our previous meeting.”
Idiot repeat offenders. Even better.
Their bodies stiffened considerably with the sight of us. The taller of the two, who oddly reminded me of a rat, had clutched his hands into fists and widened his stance. Guess he was preparing for a fight.
Stupid is as stupid does.
In this case, fighting someone who clearly outmatches you.
A deep blue glow collected within his palms. So Rat-face was a magic user.
My eyes narrowed, harnessing a small collection of my own power, which was a pulsating orb of interweaving colors.
Two could play at that game.
I dodged as the blue light surged towards us. There was a loud impact as it hit wall I had previously stood in front of, effectively cratering it in.
The other man, short and stocky, morphed into a large panther. Midnight fur and glowing gold eyes accompanied its large frame and carnal growling. The sight caused me to hesitate minutely as the large creature clamored forward with a guttural cry.
Cecile easily immobilized it midair when it started to lunge for us.
Thank god she thought quick on her feet; otherwise, kitty may have just had me for dinner.
Despite my earlier convictions, it was alarming to see an animal of that size.
Rat-face had recovered, calling out and thrusting his arms out like something straight out of a made-for-tv-movie.
Instantly, the area around us began to crumble and fall. The asphalt beneath my feet gave out and separated. I stumbled but recovered enough to throw my sphere of light towards him, lunging sideways to avoid the expanding opening beneath me. The sphere slammed into his core, sending him flying backwards and into the farthest wall. His body burst into ash instantaneously, startling me with the sight of it.
Cecile had returned the floor to its previous state, asphalt and rock reverting back to its place beneath us. Never had I missed the floor beneath my feet so much until now. I was lucky that she worked quickly since the opening had nearly swallowed the entire width of the alley.
With the movement of one arm, Cecile bound the fat-man-turned-panther securely before diving into her pocket to make the call for transport. She was a woman after my own heart as she stood, phone held between her ear and shoulder, arm outstretched to fat panther man bound
beside her, and inspecting her nails of the other hand for any possible breaks.
She was one badass chick.
“Are you ready, petite fleur?” she asked while giving me one of her winning smiles.
Yeah. I had need this.
“I was born ready.”
–
The rest of the night was a series of badly acted fight scenes; the critics would have slammed these villains without remorse.
Most of these people were just as idiotic as the first two. I had come to find out that there were two responses to our coming: fight or flight. While the larger half were smart enough to acknowledge the large degree of difference in power, the remaining half decided they wouldn't go down without a fight.
We were happy to enlighten their stupid with our awesomeness.
I had surprised myself on several occasions with my nimble fighting skills. It was as if the woman I had been just a month ago no longer existed within me.
I should seriously invest in a cape.
While Lucas was not forgotten, I had enjoyed my evening. It had offered me the only sense of getaway since I came here a week ago. So, you can imagine my disappointment when it all ended too soon for my liking.
“You were amazing, Izzy,” Cecile said as we strolled into the house.
“Thanks,” I said with a small sideways grin.
Spanish was sitting next to a chattering Gustave, his face drawn down as though he was one word away from throwing the table.
Poor enormous Spanish.
Despite how many years he had been a part of this team, he still had very little patience for Prince Charming's overzealous storytelling.
“Mon ange!” he greeted after capturing sight of us. “You look much better.”
I guess that was meant to be a compliment as my eyes strayed to my clothing, which was torn in a lot of places and covered in filth from the New York City streets.
My heart clenched when I realized that I inadvertently had begun to seek Lucas out. I knew that I wouldn't find him, but my eyes still searched the room just in the small chance he was there. I could feel him, as if he was close by, and my body was immediately seeking him out.