Betrayal: Immortal Protectors, Book 1

by H. M. McQueen

  Gerard shoved her aside. “Perhaps later Gia. Right now I have a plan for our guest that doesn’t include pleasure of any kind. Well actually, I’m lying. I will receive much pleasure while watching him tortured.”

  Gia didn’t seem thrilled. She glared at Gerard, but said nothing.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  After they dragged her into a room, the demons shoved Emma in and left with a slam of the door behind them. Quickly, she explored the area and searched for an exit.

  The onyx walls, bedding, and draperies gave her the creeps. An oversized wrought iron bed and two overstuffed chairs upholstered to match the wall completed the morose look of the room. A deep red throw over the back of one of the chairs provided the only color in the depressing space.

  She yanked back the thick drapes to find a bricked–in window.

  “Damn it.”Emma stumbled to a chair and collapsed into it.

  Cyn hated her now. She would never forget the look on his face.

  It was quick, but she’d seen hurt flicker in his eyes before he masked it. Emma also witnessed the change in him, from shock to sheer hatred. The knowledge that he despised her now was the hardest thing she’d ever endured.

  When she’d entered Gerard’s office, her escort motioned to a demon guard who stood behind Cyn and held a sword pointed at his back. She got the message loud and clear. One wrong move or word on her part and he would pierce Cyn’s heart.

  What now?

  Had it been worth it? Would Gerard let Briana go? A tear slid down her face and she swiped it away with the back of her hand. This was no time to feel sorry for herself. She had to find Briana.

  Besides, she was tired of sitting around and waiting. It was time to go and look for her sister.

  Emma cracked the door and peeked out into an empty hallway. Excited at her good fortune, she darted from the room and ran down the hall to hunt for the area where her sister was kept.

  She only made it a few feet when a demon grabbed her arm.

  “Master Gerard doesn’t want you out and about by yourself.”

  Emma yanked her arm away. “I want to see my sister.” She kneed him in the groin.

  “Fuck!” the demon yelled cupping the affected area. She took off running as fast as she could, the stumbling demon not too far behind.

  Finally, she turned down a corridor that seemed to go on forever until she came to an intersection. As she rounded a corner, it became clear that she was on the right track. The area looked familiar from the last time she’d seen her sister. That part of the building had very little lighting, which limited her visibility and forced her to slow. She came to a metal door that was cracked open and slipped inside.

  The empty room was the same one Briana occupied the last time. There was no sign of her sister or any of her belongings. She froze when footsteps approached. With a snarl on his lips, her angry pursuer burst into the room.

  “Where is she? Where is my sister?” Emma backed into a corner and yelled at him.

  The demon shrugged. “Damned if I know. But you need to come back with me. Now.”

  Emma dodged his first attempt to grab her. “I don’t think so.” She tried to run around him to the door.

  But he was fast. The demon snatched her by the back of her neck. She tried to knee him again, but this time he avoided it and backhanded her across the face. Emma’s ears rang from the slap. It took all her strength not to pass out but she couldn’t stop her legs from betraying her. After she crumpled to the floor, he picked her up and carried her back to the same room.

  Once inside, he tossed her onto the bed.

  Then the demon left and this time the clicking of the lock ensured she would remain.

  # # #

  Piercing agony scorched through Cyn’s entire body. He’d been trained to numb himself and not feel so much of it, but it crept through his defenses. The demons had crushed his left knee and broken several of his fingers demanding to know where Thames was.

  Fangs elongated past his bottom lip, he growled from the pain when they picked him up and half dragged him back to Gerard’s office. Unable to fight them as he was bound too tight, he decided to wait for a more opportune time.

  Back at the office, Cyn managed to bite a demon as they strapped him back into the same chair he’d sat in earlier. The sting of broken ribs dug into his lungs when the demon punched him in the stomach. He spat the blood onto Gerard’s gaudy rug.

  The room began to spin and Cyn closed his eyes slumping forward. After a few beats he shook his head and tried without success to regain his equilibrium.

  A commotion broke out. Roderick was dragged in and strapped into a chair next to his. Still bleeding from Cyn’s bite, the demon shoved Roderick as he helped strap him down. With an angry roar, Roderick head-butted him. The demon howled and jabbed Roderick in the jaw.

  Roderick shifted his jaw back and forth and raised an eyebrow, taking in Cyn’s appearance. “What the hell are you doing here?”

  At the sight of Roderick’s wan and bruised face, his fury blazed. But he managed a droll look. “I happened to be in the neighborhood. You?”

  “Heard the ambiance was pleasant.” Roderick looked around the room with disgust. “Apparently I heard wrong.”

  Despite their situation, both Protectors grinned at each other. Cyn was relieved that Roderick was not only alive, but also appeared to have his wits about him. It gave him renewed energy. He bent down, lifted the chair off the ground and swung it around hitting a demon and knocking it to the floor with a grunt.

  Roderick chuckled. “I’m impressed, neat trick. I haven’t tried that one, yet.”

  “Laugh all you want assholes, Gerard will be here soon,” one of the demons told them as they began to leave, “you won’t enjoy what he has in store for you.” The room emptied, except for two burly guards, which remained by the door.

  # # #

  Emma leapt to her feet when the door opened. A succubus sauntered into the room. The blonde demon looked around the room as if measuring it. She swung a key ring from a long red fingernail. The succubus was about her size, but with bigger boobs. She sized Emma up and raised her eyebrows, as if in disbelief. “I don’t get the big deal about you. You have that Protector crazy for you and now it seems Gerard wants you prepared to be with him tonight.” She smiled, revealing the tips of her fangs.

  “I am Gia.” The succubus walked up to her and looked her up and down with disdain, then grinned. “I get to play with your Protector tonight. He is quite a looker and well hung too.” Gia pushed her golden hair back from her face.

  Emma stiffened. The female was trying to get a rise out of her.

  She succeeded. “What the hell is going on? I am not going to prepare for shit! I want to see my sister now.” She stomped closer to where Gia stood and shoved her. “And stay away from Cyn bitch.”

  Gia laughed. “You are a fool. Do you really think Gerard will keep his promises to you? You’re not even a full-blooded demon.” She slapped Emma across the face. “And bitch I will not only touch the Protector, but I will fuck him so good he will forget all about you by the time I’m done with him.”

  Emma went to grab her by the hair, but the succubus proved to be fast. She dashed out of the room, a trail of laughter behind her.

  Emma kicked the locked door. The metallic taste of her own blood filled her with rage. She held her hand to her mouth and drew back blood stained fingers. The damned succubus busted her lip. She barely felt it as she replayed Gia’s comment. “Do you really think Gerard will keep his promise to you?”

  Oh God. What have I done? What are they doing to Cyn?

  Several demons entered the room. Emma tensed. What now? They held her down while some human females tore her clothes off.

  Emma fought and screamed until she was hoarse while they massaged perfumed oil all over her. Then she was dressed in a black, sheer gown and gold chains were placed on her ankles and wrists.

  Emma raised her wrist and inspected the jewelry. �
�Seriously?” The male demons carried her to the bed.

  She remained there, dumbfounded, not sure what else to do. Her life had spun out of control.

  Why hadn’t she seen Briana?

  Briana was dead.

  The consciousness of it hit and Emma’s stomach lurched. She ran to the bathroom and threw up. She continued retching long after anything came up.

  Determination alone gave her the strength to stand up. After rinsing her mouth, Emma walked out and paced the room in wait for Gerard. When he came, she would try her best to kill him — with her bare hands.

  # # #

  Kieran’s sword arm throbbed. He’d never fought so many demons at once. Although most of them were low-level and lacked battle skills, they made up for their shortcomings with sheer numbers. While he fought, he’d become separated from the others. He gasped for breath as he ran down a corridor. Julian’s call sounded in his earpiece.

  The Roman’s strong voice boomed through his earpiece. “Fallon, Thor and Rowe, get out now. West end exit is clear. Kieran go on ahead about two hundred feet, there will be a door on the left. Go in and wait for direction.”

  Kieran wanted to argue, but he was so tired he could barely keep ahead of the demons. In a burst of adrenaline, he dashed down a winding corridor and found the door, opened it, and stepped in. His breathing was labored as he waited in a cramped closet-sized room. His pursuer’s footsteps rushed past.

  A few moments later, he heard Fallon’s voice over the distinct rumble of the Protector’s motorcycles. “We’re off the premises.” Good.

  He began the task of assessing any injuries while he waited in the pitch black for further instructions from Julian. Suddenly the door opened and a high-level sex demon, an Incubus, stepped inside and closed the door.

  Kieran raised his sword, but he was so drained that the demon easily disarmed him and held him against the wall. The Incubus was his same height, but was stronger at the moment. Kieran went for the dagger in his boot and kicked his foot out to retrieve it.

  The male huffed at him. “Kieran if you stab me in the ass, I’m going to knock you out.” Then the demon stepped away from him and held his hands up. “I’m Sebastian, Julian sent me to help out.”

  Kieran had heard of him. Sebastian was a powerful Incubus, but no one knew exactly what side he was on from day to day. It was rumored that he sold his services out to the highest bidder. It didn’t seem to matter whether the person that hired him was a demon, a Protector, or a human. So Sebastian must have been the other spy, not a second droid like he’d assumed.

  Kieran kept a close eye on the Incubus, who picked up his sword and handed it back to him hilt first.

  “We don’t have much time. Gerard is planning to implant explosive devices in your friends. We have to beat him to them.” Sebastian opened the door and stepped outside. He scanned the hallway and motioned for Kieran to follow.

  They walked in silence until the Incubus stopped by a door and held up two fingers, to let Kieran know there were two demons inside. Sebastian opened the door and two bulky demons blocked his entrance.

  One eyed them with suspicion, obviously too dumb to realize who Kieran was. “Master Gerard wants no one to enter here until after the implants are…”

  Sebastian cut his head off before the demon finished the sentence. He turned when he heard the body of the other demon hit the floor as Kieran did the same.

  Both bodies evaporated as they hurried inside to release Roderick and Cyn.

  The escape was relatively easy. They encountered and dispatched a couple more demons. The Protectors left the building through a side entrance Sebastian led them to and jogged to the waiting vehicles. Kieran and Roderick got into Fallon’s Jaguar since Fallon had taken Kieran’s motorcycle as planned.

  Cyn climbed on his motorcycle and sped off into the night.

  Almost two hours later, Cyn walked into his house. It seemed like a long time ago that he’d left the house with Emma.

  Emma.

  He refused to think about her.

  Her betrayal hurt worse than any of the injuries and cuts the demons inflicted on him.

  Now he understood Kieran more. No wonder his brother refused to even consider any kind of interaction with a human woman. From now on he would rely solely on the females Julian provided for sex.

  His brother had offered, but he’d refused to spend the night at Kieran’s house. He wanted— no he needed to be alone.

  Thankfully his brother took Blue and Brock to his house after he dropped Roderick off.

  Once home, Cyn walked through the empty space to his bedroom. He reeked of demon. He peeled off all his clothing and tossed it on the floor. Tomorrow he would burn them.

  He still smelled. “Gah!”

  With tense fingers, he pushed the code to lower the security shields and made a beeline for the bathroom.

  He allowed the hot streams of water to wash over his bruised body until the water was no longer warm.

  With just a towel wrapped around his waist, he fell back on his bed and huffed out a deep breath.

  Emma. The woman had lied to him from the very beginning, and he’d actually fallen for her.

  What an idiot.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  “The Supreme Ruler must be freed. That should be our ever-present goal. Nothing else matters.” Gerard slammed his fist down on the table, sending several glasses of blood tumbling to the floor. He hit the table again while he studied the face of each high-level demon that surrounded his conference table in the dimly lit meeting room.

  “We understand how important it is for us to secure Thames’ release,” Lionel, a British born Master demon, replied with a bored expression. “Unfortunately, the Protectors have him in a well hidden location. You had two of them here and they didn’t reveal any useful information before they so easily escaped. Either they don’t know or your guards need lessons in torture.” Lionel purposely pointed out his failures.

  “The Protectors didn’t know anything. If they knew even one blasted useful thing, believe me they would have talked.” He spat out each word while he jabbed his index finger towards Lionel.

  Lionel pushed Gerard further. “The only Protector that knows Thames’ exact location is the Roman. You’re wasting our time. I don’t appreciate you having all of us gathered here, putting our lives at risk just so you can parade around feeling important.”

  The demon enjoyed the game but his eyes did widen when Gerard’s fangs dropped and he leapt across the table to grab him around the neck. They grappled on the floor snarling. Gerard shoved Lionel’s face into the carpeting gratified at the demon’s groans. Lionel struggled without avail to loosen his hold.

  Sebastian stood up, stretched and yawned. “I for one agree with Lionel. We might as well paint targets on each other’s asses while we’re at it.”

  Several demons laughed as the damn Incubus continued. “With or without Thames, it’s apparent that our kind is quite successful at multiplying and getting everything we require to thrive amongst the humans.”

  Gerard shoved Lionel away and jumped to his feet, his rage now focused on Sebastian. Each step that he took toward the Incubus was measured and controlled, on the verge of losing control yet again.

  “Well, well, so the Incubus thinks he can just stand here and point out the obvious. I don’t give a fuck about the success of our kind as you put it. Those low level demons out there are not what is going to assure us total power. The only one who can assure us total control of the world is Thames. Only when he is free will we have ultimate power over all.”

  When Gerard was within a few inches of Sebastian, he snarled at the younger demon. “I am not even sure you are actually on our side. You are a whore that sells out to the highest bidder.”

  Gerard didn’t pursue his challenge any further when Sebastian’s fangs sprung and a deep growl emanated from low in the younger demon’s throat.

  It had proven impossible to gauge Sebastian’s power level the tim
es he’d tried. Gerard didn’t trust the Incubus, but he didn’t want to alienate him either.

  The Master demon turned away flinging his hair into Sebastian’s face. He went to stand at the head of the table and glared at the room.

  When Sebastian retracted his fangs, he was disappointed. He hoped for the opportunity to order his guard to attack the pompous male.

  Gerard threaded his fingers together in front of him, and spoke slowly, “Thames was spawned for the sole purpose of ending light and casting the world into beautiful darkness. The Supreme Master’s powers are far beyond those of any other demon on earth. Somehow almost a thousand years ago, the Protectors became aware of his existence and captured him. But I have no doubt whatsoever that I will be instrumental in his liberation. The freeing of the Supreme means great powers to those who assist him.”

  Gerard glared at Sebastian, who rolled his eyes, but Gerard was undeterred. “We will persist in our campaign to free him, even if we have to kill each and every Protector to reach our goal. Many Protectors died during Thames’ capture and hundreds of demons have died over the years trying to free him. I for one am willing to die trying.”

  Gerard spoke on for some time and finally quieted when he realized only a few of the low-levels who were too afraid of him to leave, remained in the room.

  Sebastian stood outside the door as Gerard stormed out, shoving demons out of his way. “What the hell do you want Incubus?”

  “I’m leaving. Have to head back to my club. The sun is setting.”