“Yes.” I practically squeaked the word, uncertain if my hammering heart was evoked by terror alone or the way his perfect face swelled my longing.
His smile widened. “And you are Tara.” It was less a question, more of a statement.
“I am.” It was only just possible to hear my response over the sound of my racing heart. I wondered if the two of them were conscious of it as well, deciding almost certainly the answer was yes. “Hello.”
Satan boomed with laughter, the noise whipping up and bouncing around the cavern.
“Hello, Tara Levinson. It is good to finally make your acquaintance.” He shot an accusing glare at Solomon, who shifted at my side.
“We came as soon as we could, Master.”
It was strange to hear the creature who had mastered me so thoroughly, and so fast, deferential, and uncertain. I glanced right to take in the look of his face.
“I imagine you did.” Satan sounded unimpressed. “But you are here now, and it is Tara’s first time in my dark realm.” His attention switched back to my wide eyes, that gleaming dark gaze glimmering with an unearthly scarlet sheen as it speared me. “Tell me, Tara. What are you feeling now you are here?”
My eyes fluttered at the disconcerting query. What was I feeling? What a peculiar question, considering I was willing to bet he could decipher the answer for himself.
“I don’t know what to think.” I didn’t know how to address the creature, and reflexively, I glanced back to Solomon, my wordless indecision prompting his response.
“Master.” He completed my sentence, patting my behind like I was a small pet that needed to be trained and encouraged into good behavior. I gulped at the notion he might actually see me that way. Bewilderingly, the idea was as arousing as it was riling. “You’ll address Satan as either Sire or Master.”
“Yes, yes.” Satan waved his hand dismissively. “But that was not what I asked, was it?” He leaned closer as though he was taking in the scent of me. “My question pertained to how you felt, not what you thought.”
“Oh.” There was no conscious decision for that word to escape my lips, yet I heard it, and it was indeed, my voice. “Well, that’s easy, I suppose.” Drawing in a breath, I lowered my gaze, trying to ignore the way their stares burned into my flesh or how tight the leather was on my skin. “I’m a little anxious, a bit lightheaded.”
I paused, my focus shifting back to Satan’s knowing face. He truly did have the most astonishing features, his dark eyes so compelling, especially when viewed against his luscious, lighter locks, and like Solomon, he was abnormally tall, though his limbs seemed absurdly lithe considering their length.
“And?” Satan’s voice vibrated past me. “What else?”
“Scared,” I forced out, and as I did, I realized he was even closer still, his huge form leaning toward me, though I swore I hadn’t seen him moving. “Of everything that’s happened to me…” The words were spilling from me now as if I had no control over them whatsoever. “Of this place. Of…” I hesitated, suppressing the gasp that wanted to rise at the next admission.
Satan tilted his head, one dark eyebrow arching at the way I’d faltered.
“Finish your sentence.” It was Solomon’s smooth tone that washed over me, goading me into concluding my confession. “Tell my Master.”
My gaze flitted to Solomon, but the draw of Satan’s dark eyes was too strong, and seconds later, my focus was back on him—the way his lips twitched and the long tongue that flicked from those lips. My brow furrowed as I watched it, and for a split second, it looked as though the thing was forked like a serpent, but when I stared harder, I could see that was just an illusion. The thought did nothing to quell my accelerating heartbeat, though.
“You.”
Time seemed to protract around me as the word echoed in my ears, and Satan’s gaze lit up at the admission.
“You are afraid of me.” Once more, his assertion was not a query, just a statement of fact. “And you are right to be, Tara.”
Now it was my turn to lean in his direction, the top half of my body drawn toward him as if his silent magic had commanded it, while my feet gripped the rocky surface below, and Solomon’s hand slipped into mine.
“I am the most ancient of all evil.” One large palm rose to stroke the side of my face, his long fingers icy cool despite the burgeoning heat in the atmosphere. “I have been around since the beginning of time. Since before the sunshine. Since forever.” He chuckled lightly. “Whatever you think you know, you do not know me, could not even comprehend, but your senses do not betray you. They understand the threat.”
“Master.” Solomon’s voice interjected, disrupting the hypnotic hold Satan had over me, and for a moment, I broke his gaze, catching my breath. “You toy with her.”
Satan laughed harder. “What would you have me do?” There was venom in his voice, the sound making my blood run cold. “I know you do not want me to fuck her.”
Solomon squeezed my hand. “You want to?”
“Look at her.” Satan’s voice dripped with desire, and my head snapped back to acknowledge him—to concede to the dark glint in his gaze. “Look at how you bring her to me. Of course, I want her. You knew I would.”
“I did, Master.” Now it was Solomon’s turn to chortle, haunting notes which swept over me in the air like an intoxicating lullaby. “I am guilty.”
“We are all guilty.” Satan took a step closer to me, brushing against my chest as he propped me upright. His hand slipped south, running a line over the leather at my hip to my ass. “There is no one in this place with innocence, except you, Tara Levinson, and even you are culpable for one thing.”
Pulling in hot ribbons of air, I fought to catch my breath, but oh my, his gaze was dark and alluring, and the feel of his hand at my behind so mesmerizing… What was wrong with me? Wasn’t it bad enough I’d already offered myself to one demon, but now I was attracted to the most primeval terror of all? It wasn’t enough I was prepared to surrender to Solomon. Gavin had been the true motivator for that, but this was something else. Now, I wanted to dance with the devil himself in the very pits of his lair in perdition.
Could there be any coming back from this dark place?
“No, there’s no coming back.” Satan grinned at me, his lips less than an inch from my mouth. “Now, answer the question.”
“I am guilty, yes.”
“What are your sins, child?” His brow rose with the question. “Tell me.”
I wanted to squeeze my eyes shut to block out his arrogant, beautiful face, but it was impossible. My lids wouldn’t slide closed, no matter what I instructed. I was compelled to face him, to answer for my sins.
“I’ve lied, and I’ve cheated,” I started, unsure what he wanted me to say.
I was human—of course, I’d made mistakes, I made them all the time. Silently, I called out to Solomon for support, but even though he was right there with me—I could feel his palm encasing mine—it was as if he wasn’t there at all.
He’d never been more distant.
Satan shook his head. “Do not think of him.”
Just like that, the image of Solomon in my head disappeared, replaced only by the dark, dazzling eyes of the monster holding me up. An invisible pressure pushed me to him, crushing my breasts into his bare chest as he went on.
“Think only of me and the things I ask. Those trifles you mention are scarcely even sins. They do not interest me. I am your meanest thought, child, your darkest fear, and I demand you tell me of your greatest sin. The one you bury deep inside.” He paused, tilting his head. “Or perhaps the one you do not repress. I think, with you, it is the sin you are most proud of, you should convey.”
“Gavin.”
The brute’s name cascaded, and for the first time, the sound of it didn’t furl the ball of trepidation in my belly. I no longer held any fear of Gavin or his cruelty. Solomon’s help had finally put the matter to bed.
“What about Gavin?”
T
he pressure against me lessened ever so slightly, allowing me just enough motion to move my head.
“I wanted vengeance against him.” I was impassive making the admission, my body filled with neither excitement nor anger as I recalled the pitiful man stretched out before me in the dark place Solomon had taken him. “For what he did to me.”
“What did he do?”
There was glee in Satan’s tone, and my gaze narrowing, I met it. The fear inside me still lingered, but the memory of Gavin’s fate had muted it.
“Things to me.” I almost spat the answer. “Horrible fucking things.”
The wide grinning creature who responded reminded me of the beast he was, of the true meaning of the term satanic.
“And you wanted revenge,” he purred. “Retribution for the pain you suffered.”
“Yes,” I hissed. “I deserved that much, and Gavin deserved what he got.”
Satan’s focus shifted to Solomon, the intensity of his gaze leaving me for the first time since we’d been pressed together.
“And you did this for, Tara?”
“Yes, Master.” Solomon’s voice washed over me. “I took care of the miserable mortal man.”
Satan’s attention slid back to me. “Now, I understand your dedication to my friend, Solomon. Now, his allure makes sense.”
“I owe him everything.” Yet again, the sentence fell from me, but this time, I had decided the words. This time, it wasn’t just Satan controlling my body and my mind. I meant them with whatever sentiment my heart still exuded. “I am his.”
The hand squeezing my ass rose to my shoulder, gripping it lightly.
“Your dedication is touching, little mortal.”
I gasped as he addressed me the same way Solomon always had.
“You are a credit to him.”
Satan stepped away, and just like that, the strange, powerful hold he wielded over me lifted. I lurched in his direction, hands reaching out to break my fall, but just as I was doomed to hit the rocky ground below, my body halted, hovering mid-air until I was slowly righted back to my feet. Heart pounding, I glanced back to the one I knew had protected me, and Solomon smiled in my direction.
“Thank you for bringing her, Solomon. She is a delight.”
“I do as you command, Master,” he answered, drawing me back to him wordlessly. I stumbled to his hip gladly, my hands pawing at him like a small child who’d lost their way and been reunited with their parent.
“Yet you refuse to share her?”
I turned back to the place Satan stood to find his brow risen, daring Solomon to defy him.
“I have no aspiration to share her, Master.” Solomon’s hand shifted to my hip, steadying me.
“And if I push you? The girl is not bound to you? Your souls are not tethered?”
I glanced up at the demon at my side. “Tethered?”
Satan edged closer. In my peripheral vision, I saw him moving, though I swore his feet never even touched the ground.
“It means bound.”
“I know what it means!” I turned, hissing the words at him with disdain, and as soon as they left my lips, I recoiled into Solomon, stunned at my own audacity.
What the hell had I done?
I was engaging with Satan himself in a silly argument. Tension furled in my tummy, and time stood still as I waited to see the outcome of my foolish error. Relief threatened to drown me when his face relaxed into another smile.
“She has spirit,” he praised, his attention on Solomon. “I like that, yet my point stands. You have not chosen to take her as your own.”
“No.” Solomon’s voice was stern, knotting the anxiety at my core again. “Our kind does not rush into those types of commitments.”
“Indeed, yet without it, you leave her vulnerable to any demon who stakes his claim. You have brought a precious jewel to the very pits of hell, Solomon.”
“I will protect her.” His answer was immediate, and despite my confusion on the subject, my heart swelled with solace at the fierceness in his tone. Solomon would protect me. I didn’t question it. “With my very being, I will not permit any other to cause her harm.”
Satan glanced up into the dark shadows of the cavern.
“So, it seems we have an impasse,” he muttered. “A demon who clings to the jewel he has found but refuses to make her his own.”
“You know me too well, Master,” Solomon replied. “I shall not be rushed into this decision, but I stand ready to take the helm in your absence—should you still want me to?”
“Of course, I still want you to!” Satan huffed. “You would have both been banished from my sight had I not wanted you, but your resistance vexes me.”
Solomon chuckled. “Let me think on the matter, Master. Let us speak instead of the more pressing matter. How I can serve you while you deal with this pesky Guardian problem.”
“So be it.” Satan pressed his lips into a hard line before he paced back to a large stony chair and seated himself. “Come forward, and we shall discuss it.”
I watched, dumbstruck as my master stalked behind him, and left me alone on the other side of the huge chamber, I followed gingerly after him. Yet even as I went, my mind raced with queries of the things I’d discovered. What was this tethering of souls Satan had referred to, and why was Solomon so reticent to commit to it? Satan had made it sound like my best chance of survival here, but my master hadn’t seemed so keen.
And who or what was the Guardian Satan now had to deal with?
My brow furrowed at the competing ideas. Anything which needed his personal attention must be powerful indeed.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Solomon
She sat at my side, trembling, as I discussed the specifics with my master. The devil, as they said, was always in the details, and it was those that mattered as he ran me through the likely agenda for the coming days. There was no way of knowing how long it would take to deal with the problem of the Guardian, Cathy Bateman. It seemed Damon had failed in his endeavor to weaken her. He had claimed her without too much of a fight, but it had not reduced the mortal’s power. In fact, if anything, her authority seemed to have swelled after their union, drawing another of her kind to her side, which would not do.
The witchcraft—once risen to support Satan—had twisted, inspiring a bloodline who had sworn to resist all things Satanic. The few from that bloodline had grown, becoming an influential group who was a constant thorn in the demonic’s side. Satan was right. If there was any hint Cathy was related to those original witches or even if she was only a lone wolf, her light had to be snubbed out—once and for all.
I glanced at my little mortal as Satan described what would be expected of me in his absence. Nothing sounded too onerous. The other six princes would govern, but if a ballot of the seven was required, I would have jurisdiction to vote on my master’s behalf. I would also be in charge of his selection of sinners while he was away, which meant ensuring each new recruit sent here for a tranche of wrath-related offenses was given personal service even though Satan was away. As I listened, my attention tuned into Tara’s thoughts. She was devouring every word we exchanged, her breathing increasing as her heart rate accelerated. I sensed it all. I could hear her quickening pulse as clearly as the ideas conjured and burst in her mind. Sensing the weight of my stare, her gaze shifted from her lap to my face, and I offered her a smile.
“Ah!” Satan paused, and I turned back to the place he was sitting. “You have other things on your mind, I see.”
My lips curled wider. “Just the usual torrid needs, Master,” I assured him. “Tara will wait for me.”
Satan rolled his eyes, the gesture almost comical in a beast as powerful as he.
“You two are making me envious,” he replied with a purr. “And that is not a sin I am used to executing, Solomon.”
“I would apologize, Master, but I know that is not what you seek.”
“No.” He rose from this throne, his expression determined. “No, it i
s not. After all this time, I seek a little of what this delightful mortal has brought into your existence, my friend. A little lust and desire.” He flashed a wicked grin in my direction.
“It’s been too long. Too long down here in the darkness. Too long since I walked the earth and tasted its sugar for myself. Perhaps this Cathy Bateman will change all that for me.”
“She will if you want her,” I reminded him. “No mortal can refuse you, Sire. You are the ultimate seducer.”
“I know, and it is time I reveled in the status once more.” His eyes flickered salaciously as he descended from his stony throne. “Most of what you will need has been discussed already, Solomon, but if you require guidance, you know how to reach me.”
“Indeed, I do, Master,”—I nodded, gesturing for Tara’s hand—“but I shall endeavor not to trouble you.”
“Trouble if you must.” Satan laughed. “Just permit me the time to enjoy the sins of the flesh as you have.” He signaled to my mortal, and our attention shifted to Tara.
“I want to thank you, child.” He stepped in her direction, flashing her that devasting smile again.
Tara lifted her head, rising to her feet to greet his advance, although she was still several feet shorter than us both.
“For what, M-master?” She glanced at me nervously, her thoughts confirming how uncomfortable she was referring to a second demon that way.
“For reminding me of the carnality, sweet Tara. All that sweet flesh I’ve failed to suckle for so long. It was the way you captured Solomon that prompted me to go out and find it again. It was the scintillating look in your eyes.” He smirked. “That is what I have missed. That is what I want. I have impunity. I am a leader of the darkness. Few have the power to cast me out, and none can destroy me, yet it has been decades since I was driven by pure, unadulterated lust.” He lowered himself in front of her. “You gave that to me, Tara Levinson, and for that, I shall always offer gratitude.”
Defy Me: A Paranormal Demon Romance (The Demonology Series Book 2) Page 16