The Fallen King: The Bellum Sisters 4 (paranormal erotic romance)

by Grey, T. A.

  “You’re good to look at too that will make things easier,” he said.

  Her face scrunched, then relaxed, and then scrunched again. “What?”

  He shrugged and then pulled his swords off his back laying them next to him, but away from her in case she got any ideas. “A pleasant face is easier to look at than an ugly one.”

  Her mouth dropped open again. She did that a lot, he noticed. Her entire face was active, flashing from one emotion to the next at any moment. It’d make her easy to read. He smiled into the fire. The seer might just earn a reward after his mother’s ashes were burned to crisp. He’d chosen a worthy witch it seemed.

  “Answer my questions, demon,” the little witch said. A hint of threat lingered in her words. He’d tolerate her insolence for a little longer. She’d realize her place soon enough.

  “Stay silent and hear me well, human—”

  “I have a name,” she cut in.

  His fists clenched. “Do. Not. Interrupt. Me.” He waited until she slumped against the wall before he continued. “I was told by the seer that you will be the one to kill my mother. I thought I could do it, but that’s not the case. With the curse on me—”

  “You’re cursed?” She didn’t look angry so much as curious. Her eyes skimmed over him leaving him unsettled. He fought the urge to cover up his darkened skin, to turn away from her.

  “Don’t look at me.” He hadn’t meant to say it. It had been a knee-jerk reaction. He could do nothing to take back his words though.

  She scoffed. “Really, I can’t do that either? Get real, demon.”

  Inwardly, he breathed a sigh of relief that she didn’t notice his revealing words. “I am very real, I assure you, human. My name is King Alrik and you will call me thus. As to where you are, leave it said that you’re in the rift—the demonic nether-realm.”

  Her head fell to the side. “A king? Really?” Her eyes rolled in a way that sparked irritation. “Come on just take me home and I won’t press charges.”

  Now Alrik frowned in confusion. “How do you press a charge? You’re speaking nonsense, human.”

  Her face flashed with annoyance, her small shapely mouth pinching together. “That means I’ll go to the police, you know the authorities.”

  God, maybe he had been wrong. She might just be daft after all. “Abbigail Krenshaw if you think your human police as you call them could ever contain me, you’d be very wrong.”

  She started to say something, then slammed her mouth closed and leaned back against the wall with a defiant cross of her arms.

  “Fine, continue your little story then.”

  He stiffened as anger flowed through him. She thought to speak to him as if she had control of this situation? He took a deep breath as anger filled his blood thick and hot like syrup, warming his cold body. The rush of it went to his head like a bolt of lightning, quickening his senses. “You will kill my mother.”

  “Why?” she shot back.

  “To remove the curse that binds me.” He’d already considered the other part of the seer’s words and figured it better not to reveal the probable ending to the human’s life. Knowing she’d die in the process would not help her decision to join his cause.

  “What kind of curse is it?”

  Alrik jerked his sword into his lap and pulled out a smooth rock from his pocket. Bending over the blade in the firelight, he began pressing the stone to the edge of the blade and slowly dragging it down in long strokes. The soothing motion of sharpening his blade helped him to think. He hadn’t planned to reveal his curse to her. It brought about too many problems, problems he didn’t want to think about. His blade hissed over the metal.

  “One that I must remove. That is all.” He left it at that.

  She shook her head in disbelief. “Fine, but I’m not doing it.”

  His gaze shot across the fire to her. She flinched. Good, he thought. “You might want to rethink your words, human. I know of someone very precious to you. Someone whose life I could take as easily as I stole you from your home.”

  She shot to her feet. “My mother?” she yelled, her cry echoing off the walls.

  Alrik let out a stuttering breath as her anger caressed him like a soft hand. His eyes fluttered closed, hand flexed over the hand of his blade. “Yes, I know who she is and where she is. If you are wise you will abide me on my journey. After, you can return to her unharmed both of you will live.” He let his lie hide beneath his dark eyes. He couldn’t stop from noticing the way her heavy breaths moved her quite full breasts up and down in the most erotic way. He jerked his gaze away and stared into the fire, focusing on banishing the unwanted, lustful thoughts.

  “Let me get this straight, if I help you kill some woman I don’t know then you’ll return me to my mother?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’d sooner believe I could throw you through this wall than a bunch of horseshit like that.”

  Alrik tensed. He needed her to believe him or this would never work. Standing tall, he stepped into her, backing her into the wall. Her chest flattened against his and he stifled a groan. Quite full breasts indeed.

  Her gaze darted anywhere but at his face, but he stared down at her until finally, without a choice, she lifted her chin and met his stare.

  “I do not lie.” Lie. “You do this with me and I’ll protect you every step of the way.” Truth. He needed her alive. “After the deed is done, I’ll return you to the earthen-realm and you’ll never hear from me again.” Partial-truth. She’d never make it back to the earthen-realm.

  He tried to read her eyes—did she buy it?—but they revealed nothing other than a stony stare.

  “Get away from me,” she said. Did his ears betray him or was that a tremble in her voice? His chest expanded and his gaze fell to her mouth. Her lips looked soft, welcoming. A soft sound caressed his ears…a hitch in her breath. A hot knot formed in his chest and shot down to his cock at the sound. Those shapely and pouty lips beckoned a man like a sin.

  Before he did something to hurt his cause, he stepped back and took his seat by his weapons.

  Picking up his whet stone, he scraped it hard across his blade. For the millionth time he wished things were different, that he was different, but he couldn’t change what was. Couldn’t change who he’d become. But he could kill his mother and hopefully right some past wrongs.

  With an edge to his voice he said, “You will help me or I’ll slit your mother’s throat before your eyes. I’ll force you to help me anyway and kill you after the deed is done. You have your choices, now decide.”

  The human pressed a hand over her heart. The pained expression on her face hit him strangely in the chest. For some reason the look didn’t fill him with a rush; instead, strangely, guilt ate at him. He didn’t have time to study the emotion he hadn’t felt in so long because he ruthlessly shoved it away.

  The human straightened her spine, lifted her chin, and stared down at him with a loathing he welcomed over guilt. “I’ll do it.”

  “Good choice.”

  In a flash, the look on her face changed. Her arms flattened to her sides, fingers spreading open to the earth. He had only a moment to feel the magic swirl around him before he felt invisible binds wrapping around his body, locking him into place in less than a matter of seconds. Under different circumstances, he might have been overjoyed to see her magic skills used so well. She didn’t even need to speak a spell to cast magic, but he wasn’t overjoyed now.

  His eyes flashed to hers and found her light green eyes shining bright like a light in the cave. The binds twisted tighter around him, binding his legs together, his arms to his side, snaking around his chest and squeezing just enough to make it difficult to breathe.

  “Stop this, witch,” he warned, his own eyes beginning to glow.

  Her body relaxed and she stumbled backwards hitting the wall. She winced, then ran up to him. He sucked in shallow breaths through the invisible binds as he brought forth his own magic. He started chanting the words
to break the binds as she picked up one of his swords. She started to lift it but she’d underestimated how heavy demon steel was and dropped it back in the sand before taking off on a sprint.

  The last of his spell left him and the binds loosened the magic around him. “Abbigail!” he roared.

  He surged to his feet with blazing fury roaring through his veins as he charged after her.

  Chapter Six

  Water engulfed her. Her mouth filled with it and she swallowed the fresh, cold liquid. The frigid temperature slowed her movements but still she slugged through it and thrust her arms through the water, kicking her legs until her muscles burned. Finally, she saw light above her and shot towards it. She burst to the surface and sucked in a breath of air. Her heart raced and she quickened her movements, paddling swiftly to the surface.

  Her feet sank into sand as she stood and, without time to take in her surroundings, she rushed into the forest. It looked strange. The leaves too green, the flowers too pink and red on the buds. Not a tree she’d ever seen before. Aside from the gray and pinkish swirl of the hazy sky above her, the forest looked familiar and she stuck to it, her lungs burning with every breath she took.

  She raced through the forest. He had magic skills she’d never witnessed before. Hell, the fact that she’d been able to bind him when she hadn’t used magic in years surprised the hell out of her. She’d just been so mad, so desperate to get away from the demon that some deep-seated magic had come forth.

  It didn’t take long for her gait to slow and her muscles to burn. She didn’t run much. In fact, never. Her lungs felt like they were on fire but she couldn’t risk stopping to catch her breath. She could almost feel him right behind her.

  The demon was insane. Straight up fell-way-off-the-tree crazy. How did he find her? Why her? Why did his mother curse him? These questions roared in her head with the need for answers.

  The forest broke and she stopped, her gaze swinging behind her searching for a dark, deadly man. Maybe his magic wasn’t as good as she thought because he was nowhere in sight. Good, really good. She took in the scene in front of her. The strangeness of it was enough to make her want to stick to the forest but it didn’t seem very big or like the best choice right now. In front of her was rocky, dirt-laden land. Two crumbled stone buildings looking ages old reminded her of an ancient battlefield. What she didn’t find was anything that looked like a city or town and no people.

  A sound made her freeze and flatten her back against the tree. She strained, pressing her lips together and breathed as quietly as she could through her nose as she listened. There it was again. The whoosh of leaves being brushed. He was closing in on her!

  Without a second thought, she took off on a sprint for the stone building where a small rocky hill led up to it. The incline was too steep to run up so she went on hands and feet and crawled up, kicking up chalky rocks and sending them tumbling down behind her. She winced at the noise she made but continued.

  Breathing hard she made it to the top. Her energy waned fast and she found it took her longer to stand up and run for the temple than she wanted. She made it and breathed a sigh of relief as she darted inside. With her back to the cold stone, she tried to collect her wild thoughts. The ceiling of the temple had caved in on one corner, and the inside was empty save for the stone floor.

  “Abbigail!” the wild demon roared.

  She squeaked then slapped her hand over her mouth to stifle the noise hoping like hell that she wasn’t too late. God he sounded close.

  He yelled her name again, this time sounding farther away and off to the left. Her eyes shot wide at her one chance. He’d check in here for sure. Hell, she knew she would if their roles were reversed. She spotted her next goal out of the crooked opening of the temple and saw a fierce mountain in the distance. It looked unused and old. Trees and foliage grew thickly up to the white peak. She didn’t need to go up it; maybe if she could get to the base she could trek around it until she lost him. The forest looked thick enough that she might be able to lose him.

  “Abbigail!” His voice came back, closer to the temple.

  This was her chance.

  She tore out of the opening, her feet slapping against the dirt and rocks. She didn’t turn back to see if he saw her, just kept her eyes on the mountain and mentally calculated the distance. A couple hundred yards at least. The land wasn’t flat but lifted and dipped in waves. Eyes wide, more scared than she’d ever been, even when the demon had come to her house, she let her instincts burst inside her, and flat-out ran.

  The mountain came closer and closer, getting bigger as she neared. The heavy, thick tree line surrounding it beckoned her with welcome arms. Something flashed in the trees. She kept running. An animal. A stroke of fear went down her spine but still she ran straight towards it.

  A distinct sound came from behind her. Her heartbeat pounded like drums in her ears as she pushed her body harder. He’d spotted her and his heavy steps were coming right after her.

  Another flash of movement darted in the forest. She had no clue what kind of wild animals lived in the nether-realm where a variety of demons resided, but none could be as bad as the demon after her. None of them had threatened to kill her mother.

  She smiled with joy. Less than fifty yards—nearly there. She’d make it. She heard him calling her name, his heavy steps beating the rocks. After she got a safe way in the forest she’d turn and look back, but not now.

  Movement flashed again in the forest. Something shorter than her. That’s all she got to see before it disappeared behind a mass of wide tree trunks. She neared the forest but never got to enter it.

  A creature stepped out and she dug her feet into the ground to stop. A scream curled up in her throat but never escaped. Something nasty and very scared uncurled inside her. This thing would kill her without blinking, she just knew it.

  It looked like something out of a nightmare. Evil yellow eyes with red spider web veins glared at her. Its bony body looked undernourished with knobby knees, elbows, and knuckles with extra-long fingers sporting a set of black hooded claws worthy of a bear. Surrounding its bony body was a layer of hard looking muscle. Its greenish skin looked leathery and rough to touch. Black claws stuck out sharp looking from its fingertips. The creature peeled its blackish lips back and hissed, bearing rows of sharp pointy yellow teeth.

  She’d heard about other demonic creatures in the rift. Evil, horrible ones that feasted off living flesh, whose poison could kill within minutes. Was she staring at one of these creatures?

  Abby started walking backwards. Her hammering heart pounded recklessly as the creature took a step towards her and didn’t stop. She wanted to turn and flee but couldn’t give this strange, hairless creature her back. It had green skin and was short probably not even five-feet tall yet its small size didn’t ease any of her fear.

  Its jaw snapped open wide like a snake’s mouth detaching its jaw to eat a large prey, then a horrible ear-piercing cry split the air. Abby couldn’t fight her instincts anymore. She turned and ran—straight into the arms of the crazy demon.

  “Stay back!” he demanded.

  Finally, an order she could comply with. He thrust her away and she toppled backwards landing hard on her butt. Half scooting backwards on her butt, she watched as the demon lifted his arms over his head and unsheathed the two swords from his back.

  The creature’s eyes swung to the tall, dark demon, then sprang jumping the clear twenty feet that separated them as if he had bounced off a trampoline. The demon didn’t move. Abbigail watched wide-eyed as time slowed. The demon’s teeth bared, its claws spread open ready to slash as it fell towards the king with a nasty cry. And yet he never moved.

  Abby crushed handfuls of dirt in her hands. Her muscles tensed as the creature neared the demon. “Watch out!” she screamed. She didn’t know why she’d decide to help the demon now but she couldn’t take back her scream.

  She didn’t need to say anything apparently because as the creature nearly l
anded on the demon, he slashed his swords in a cross pattern. The creature howled in agony and goopy green blood spurted from its body. It dropped almost neatly at the demon’s feat, twitching as it died.

  Abby couldn’t catch her breath. She knew she was shaking but couldn’t do anything about that either. The demon stepped over the creature, and then turned so he faced her. With a cold, hard look in his eyes, he lifted his sword then swung it down in an arc.

  Abby screamed as the creature’s head flew from its body, severed.

  She couldn’t catch her breath. Her heart wouldn’t slow down. She was breathing too fast and she knew it. All she could do was watch as the demon strode towards her, sheathing his blades with practiced ease. He stopped in front of her with an expression she could only describe as enraged. His hands hung at his sides, curled into tight fists.

  “This land is dangerous and you’re not going anywhere. You need me,” he said.

  She agreed, but she couldn’t form any words. He studied her, a slow frown forming at his rather nice looking mouth.

  “Breathe slowly, Abbigail.”

  She shook her head hard. No, she couldn’t. Her breaths came too fast and shallow. She knew a panic attack gripped her. She’d had them before. The most embarrassing of which happened during her first real crime scene.

  The demon knelt beside her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She tried to push away from him but couldn’t do anything more than raise her hands to his chest and curl them in his wet shirt.

  “You must breathe slow and deep. Do it now!”

  She wanted to slap him for trying to order her not to have a panic attack, but she couldn’t manage to do that either. So there she was. Her escape plan had failed and she now sat in the arms of the man who had threatened to kill her mother and wanted her to murder someone she didn’t even know. Not that knowing the person might make this any easier, but still it was the principle of the matter.