by Jane Hinchey
I was falling for him. Part of me wanted to fight it, to pull away and protect my already battered heart, but another part wanted to give in, to fall into the emotion, embrace it with all my heart and let love lead the way. But my anger won out. Anger that he'd brought my emotions to the surface, that he was worming his way into my affections—worse, that I was letting him, against my better judgment.
I smashed my lips to his, my kiss rough, urgent. He met me head on, tugging at my lip with his teeth.
"I like it when you play rough," he panted.
"Me too."
Within seconds we were both naked, our clothes scattered on the floor. Scooping me up he carried me to the bedroom and tossed me on the bed, following me down.
I gasped when he lowered his head and the heat of his mouth enclosed my nipple. He sucked hard. I cried out, my hands tangling in his hair and tugging.
He reached between my legs and worked me with his magical fingers, thrusting in and out, not too gentle, yet not too rough. It was just right. Perfect. He angled his fingers and white hot pleasure speared through me. My hips jerked as I clutched at him, gasping. Reveling in my reaction, he repeated the move, rubbing me, edging me closer and closer to oblivion.
"I want you inside me," I rasped.
He trailed kisses along my jaw, down my neck, and over the curve of my breast. "Say please," he teased.
"Please," I moaned. "I want you. Please." I worked my hand between our bodies and took his erection into my fist.
He groaned against my skin. "Fuck."
"That's what I'm hoping for." I chuckled softly, my hand pumping him until he snatched it away and pinned my wrists above my head.
Then he pushed into me, hard and fast. I stretched around him as he filled me, my body on fire. When he began to move, I wrapped my legs around his waist, meeting him thrust for thrust. He groaned his approval.
My own need built, hotter and stronger. I pulled him down for a kiss, our mouths mimicking the motions of our bodies. He picked up the pace, driving into me impossibly fast. The friction was delicious. It built, stringing my body so tight that finally my climax ripped through me, shattering me. He followed, pumping hard until everything stilled. Now that the storm was over, he collapsed on top of me.
Eventually he rolled, adjusting us both until he was spooned behind me.
"Did I hurt you?" he asked, his voice ragged.
"No. Not in the slightest."
"I think there's something you need to know. Something I need to tell you," Maddax murmured against the nape of my neck.
My body was sated. Exhaustion pulled at me after the primal release he'd just given me. "Oh?" My eyes drifted closed as sleep began to claim me.
"Mmhmm. I think I'm falling in love with you, little fire bird."
My eyes shot open, all thought of sleep forgotten. I twisted my head to look at him.
"What?"
"I don't want there to be secrets between us. I have feelings for you. Very strong, very real feelings. And before you start throwing up hurdles like your father and your Phoenix heritage and all of that, you need to know that I don't care about any of it. I care about you—a damn lot. And I'm pretty sure you care about me too."
He cocked a brow as if daring me to disagree.
"Er…maybe," I admitted. Honestly, I wasn't ready to bare my heart to him yet. Yes, he had found a way to get past my defenses. He was important to me. Our bodies fit together perfectly, so perfectly that it was scary. But feelings? I swallowed hard. They were a foreign concept to me.
I rolled over to face him. "You need to know something." Looking into his blue eyes, I tried not to let myself get distracted. This was important. "I'm new at this. I don't know what to do or what to say, and I'm pretty sure I'll screw up. Often. I need you to be patient with me."
"That, I can do." He was stroking his thumb over my bottom lip again. I couldn't think. My tongue slipped out to taste him and his eyes darkened. "But be warned, words like ‘I love you’ might slip out."
"You can’t," I protested. "It's too soon. You don't know me, not really. How can you love me?"
He shrugged. "My heart knows. We can't see what the future will bring, but I know you're here with me now, in my arms. And it feels so right. So perfect. There's no one else for me but you. That's what my heart knows."
He took my breath away with his declaration. I hadn't been expecting it and didn't know how to respond. Yes, I was falling for him, but—my thought processes stopped when he kissed me. His tongue swept into my mouth. I welcomed it, welcomed him, and more pieces of the wall I'd built up around my heart crumbled.
Dragging his mouth from mine, he dragged kisses down my neck, murmuring against my skin. "Don't think. Just feel. Feel the love I have for you."
Maddax had left for work, so I was alone in his apartment when Tomb called.
"Interested in a fight?" he asked.
I grinned. "Always." My life had been turned upside down. Getting back to doing what I loved, and getting out of my own head, would be just what I needed.
"Word is out about your change from human to Meta," he told me. "Generated a lot of interest in the circle. I got several requests to front you in the ring."
I grunted. "Word travels fast. Where and when?"
"Tunnel 45Z, beneath the forest dome. One hour."
"I'll be there." Disconnecting the call, I rummaged around in the bag Maddax had packed for me, grinning when I saw that he'd included my sparring gear.
I did a twenty minute warm-up session in the apartment before leaving, although the lovemaking sessions with Maddax were proving to be quite a workout on their own. With a smile tilting my lips, I headed to the forest dome. Maybe after the fight, I'd spend some time in my forest clearing and get my head straight about my growing feelings for Maddax.
I entered the tunnels undetected. Pulling up the map on my mini-tab, I got my bearings and headed toward 45Z, where Tomb had said the fight would be held. I was almost there when I heard voices. Ducking behind one of the big pipes, I waited, listening. Were they doing maintenance in this section today? Tomb usually had his finger on the pulse when it came to the tunnels. He knew where the workers would be and where they wouldn't. It surprised me that he'd gotten it wrong.
Footsteps came toward me. I shuffled as far behind the pipe as I could get—then frowned.
Was that Maddax's voice?
Sighing with relief, I realized he must've gotten the alert from Tomb that the fight was on. Maybe Tomb had arranged an opponent for him as well. With a welcoming smile on my face, I was about to step out to greet him when I heard their conversation.
"So you're fucking her to get close to her? Smart move, my man, smart move." I didn't recognize the voice.
"It's not what you think. That just sort of…happened," Maddax responded. My heart stopped and I held my breath, waiting to hear what he said next.
"I don't get why her father hired me to kill her if you're already on the job," the other man said.
"I'm not on the job," Maddax replied, "I'm on a job."
"Well, it would've made more sense for the old man to give you the hit, since you've already earned her trust. Christ, you've got her sleeping in your bed. How easy would it be to smother her with a pillow? Simple, clean, no mess."
My heart leapt in my chest, thundering so hard I feared it might burst. I couldn't comprehend what I was hearing. Not only had my father hired an assassin to kill me, but Maddax was in on it? I couldn't hear them anymore. The rushing in my ears drowned out all sound. There was a sharp pain in my chest, an ache in my stomach. The hurt rolled through me until I felt like I would explode.
Stepping out from behind the pipe, I confronted the man who had stolen my heart, then destroyed it.
"Emilea!" His eyes widened in surprise, followed by dread.
Yeah. Busted. I crossed my arms over my chest and waited.
He glanced at the man next to him, then back at me. "It's not what you think."
"She i
s magnificent," the man said, his eyes devouring me. "It's such a shame we have to kill her."
"We don’t," Maddax said, just as I said, "Try it."
I recognized the green eyes of the stranger. He was the guy who’d attacked me in the alley. An assassin sent by my father. My hurt built to a whole other level.
"I see you don't have the balls for this one, Maddax," the stranger said, grinning. "Not to worry, I'll take care of it. The bounty will last me a year. She's worth it."
With one smooth movement, he slipped a dagger from his belt and threw it. I watched as it sailed through the air, directly at me. With uncanny ease, I caught it and threw it back, my actions so fast the human eye couldn't follow them. I gave a small grunt of satisfaction when the blade sank to the hilt in his shoulder.
"Fuck!" he swore, pulling the knife free and jamming a hand to the wound to stem the flow of blood. "Take her down, Maddax. Now!"
"Emilea, please. It isn't what you think." Maddax slowly approached, palms held out toward me.
"So you haven't been spying on me? My father hasn't hired an assassin to kill me?"
He stopped, his brows knitting in a frown. "It's true what your father has done, but I'm not involved. I swear."
"You don't work at UniFinance, do you?"
He paused, then shook his head. "No."
"So many lies." I couldn't stop the hurt from creeping into my voice. I'd believed him—believed he loved me. God, how stupid could I be? I should have known better, known that money motivated people to do horrible, cruel things. I could feel my control slipping. My eyes filled with tears as the hurt and pain escalated. If there was one thing I wouldn't allow, it was for him to see me cry.
"Emilea," he begged.
"No."
"If you don't fucking finish this, I will," the stranger snarled, leaping at me.
Before he got close, my hands shot up and flames blasted from my fingers, sending both men flying backward. They skidded along the tunnel floor until they hit the far wall with a thud. I didn't stop to check if they were alive or dead.
I ran.
"We need to make this quick," I told Tomb. "Men are after me. They want to kill me."
"What? Who?" Tomb demanded, outrage darkening his features.
"Assassins sent by my father." I shouldn’t have been surprised by his actions, but I never thought he could hate me so much that he wanted to see me dead. Never. I kept pushing the thought out of my head, because if I allowed the reality of it to sink in, I feared I'd curl up in a ball and cry until there were no more tears. And I didn't have time for that. My life was at stake.
"I'll help you." Tomb patted my arm, and I smiled. "I'll rally the fighters and we’ll take down this assassin—and anyone else your father sends. This isn’t right."
"Thank you, Tomb."
"You must stay hidden. Don't let the cameras see you. Come to my place tonight. I’ll have a plan ready." He punched something in on his mini-tab, and then my own mini-tab vibrated. Glancing at it, I saw he'd sent me his address. He lived in the arid zone, my least favorite place, but beggars couldn't be choosers.
"Go now," he said. "Stay hidden, especially from the Eye. I’ll see you tonight."
"The fight?"
He shook his head. "Don't worry about the fight. They’ll understand. We will make it up to them later."
Giving in to impulse, I hugged this small, wiry man, holding my breath against his stench. He needed a wash in the worst way, but he had a heart of gold. In this whole mess, he was the only one I felt I could trust. He'd known who I was from day one and didn't give a hoot who my father was, nor that I was rich. To him, I was a fighter who could make him a lot of money. Nothing more, nothing less. We'd formed a strange friendship—one that I was now counting on.
Hurrying out of the tunnels, I made my way back to ground level. I couldn't risk travelling through the city center. There were too many cameras—and, as Tomb had said, the Eye, a viewing platform at the very top of the dome where the presidents of the six planets involved in the Complex experiment could come and see how things were progressing.
I kept my head down and made my way across the forest commerce center, staying close to other groups so I could blend with the crowd. I knew my blonde hair could easily identify me, but I had a plan. I just needed to get into the jungle.
My communicator activated, and I glanced at it. Maddax. He wasn't dead, then. I could only assume the assassin wasn't either. I pressed my palm to reject the call. Could they trace me through this? Tomb would know, but I wouldn't see him for hours yet. I should have asked him when I had the chance.
Before slipping into the jungle, I stepped into a Uni Homewares store and purchased a knife. I had begun to form a plan. Once I reached the jungle, I set off at a jog, venturing deeper and deeper into the trees and vines, letting myself be swallowed by the vegetation. I paused beneath the overhang of a tree to catch my breath and check that no one had followed me.
I figured that Maddax would expect me to hide in the forest and search there first before moving onto his next guess: the jungle. I needed to find a good hiding place before he got here. For now, the base of this tree would work fine. Pulling my tunic over my head, I sat in my bra and pants, stretching my legs out in front of me. And then I braced myself for what came next.
I pulled out the knife I'd just purchased and cut a strip from the bottom of my tunic, placing it on my thigh. Then I eased the tip of the blade into my left palm. Blood pooled from the wound and dripped down my hand. Ignoring the stinging pain, I wedged the handle of the knife between my thighs, then, with my fingers, I pushed into the wound, feeling for the implanted communication device in my palm.
I was convinced Maddax and the assassin would be able to track me through the electronics implanted by the Complex. I needed to make sure that didn't happen. It would mean I'd be cut off, unable to contact Tomb, but the risk was worth it. Grabbing hold of the device, I slowly pulled, watching as the electronic circuit board, with its offshoot of wires, slid free from my palm. I dropped it to the ground and wrapped the strip of tunic I'd torn off around the wound in my hand.
There was only one more device to get rid of. I wasn't sure if it could be used to track me, but the small chip they'd injected behind my ear to stop Metas from infiltrating my mind had to go. Since I was no longer human, it was no longer effective. I felt around for a bit with my fingers until I located it. It was tiny, only the size of a grain of rice, and just beneath the surface of my skin. I pierced my skin with the knife, digging the blade under the chip and popping it free. Dropping the knife, I pressed my fingers against the wound to stem the bleeding, then wiped my bloody fingers through my hair.
I placed the communication device against the trunk of the tree and smashed it with the handle of the knife. I did the same with the small chip from behind my ear. There. I was free of anything that could potentially be used to track me. I was safe.
For now.
I leaned forward and scooped up handfuls of dirt, which I rubbed over my head. The dirt stuck to the blood, matting my hair and disguising the blonde strands.
As I rose to my feet, I kicked dirt over the bloodstains on the ground and rearranged the foliage to cover the broken electronics. Once done, I pulled on my tunic then headed back toward the entrance to the jungle, not taking the path I'd entered, but instead moving in a large loop. When I was within eyeshot of the entrance, I scouted for a place to hide. There, up high in a tree—the perfect spot. With my knife tucked into the waistband of my pants, I shimmied up the tree and wedged myself amongst the branches. I had a bird’s-eye view of the entrance, but was still sheltered from prying eyes.
I stayed in the tree for hours. My body ached from the uncomfortable position, but it was nowhere near as acute as the pain in my heart. I'd had plenty of time to think, but it was still hard to believe my father wanted me dead. Even though we weren't flesh and blood, he was the only father I'd known. And even though I'd been happy to be free of him, I'd nev
er dreamed that he hated me enough to resort to this. I'd cried silent tears, mourning for the man I'd grown up desperately trying to please. He didn't want me. Didn't love me.
Sometimes, thoughts of Maddax pushed through, and I tamped them down. I couldn't bear to think about his betrayal yet. The pain of it cut deeper than my father’s. I thought he loved me. I had lowered my guard to let him into my heart, my life. To discover he was working with my father against me was devastating. I feared that if I allowed myself to think about it now, I'd shatter into a million pieces. Instead, I sat in the tree and plotted out my next moves.
I would go to Tomb's tonight and see if he could find me temporary accommodation. I wouldn't be able to avoid an assassin while trapped inside the Complex, so my next plan was of escape. How could I get out of here, preferably off the planet entirely? And if I could get off the planet, where would I go? Not back to Raxu; my father's influence there was too great. So where? I wondered briefly about my birth family, where they were from. Could I find them? Would they welcome me if I did? And how would I even begin to start looking?
I had nothing, other than the possibility that my mother had blue eyes and blonde hair.
"That is an interesting look," Tomb said as he opened his door and ushered me inside.
His apartment was small, just an open-plan room containing a single bed, a dining table with two chairs, a sofa, a small kitchen, and a bathroom the size of my closet.
"Come in. Sit." He indicated my bandaged hand. "What happened?"
"I removed my communication device." I took a seat at the table and unwrapped the dirty strip of fabric. The wound was already completely healed.
Tomb sat down opposite me, his lips almost twisting into a smile. "What did you do to your hair?"
"Wet it with my blood, then rubbed dirt in it. I figured it was a bit of a beacon. I didn't want to be identified coming here."