by Mayburn, Ann
With a growl, he gripped her by her forearms and pressed her back into the wall, pinning her there with his body. When she kicked at him, he put a muscled thigh between her legs.
“Look, I can't say anything. My god has me honor-bound not to speak of it until he releases me. So I would appreciate it if you would stop trying to tear my uniform.”
Devon hadn’t put his shields back, and his energy pressed into her and made her gasp. Her body went still in his arms, and she had to resist the urge to lose herself in the sensation. His eyes widened, and his thick shaft stiffened against her belly.
Maybe he has the bull tattoo because he's hung like one, her mind chattered as her body thoroughly approved of the hard male pressed against it. He slightly shifted his hips, pressing his leg deeper into the juncture between her thighs and rubbing against her clit. It required all of her willpower to not grind herself against him. It wouldn't take long to find the release he made her crave.
They both froze, breathing in each other's scent. Devon began to lean forward and stopped himself, stepping back and turning to the door. “I have to go. Take care of yourself.”
She didn't say anything, feeling guilty as she mentally berated her body for being attracted to such a prick. She only looked when he opened the door and left. Devon said something to Jack, who was waiting outside with an anxious look. Jack appeared solemn and nodded, going back into the TV room where Chrissy was waiting.
Devon half turned his body to look back at her then stopped himself and opened the front door. On the other side, a few of her friends from the floor happened to be walking by in full makeup and short skirts. They saw the expression on Devon's face, and they hustled past in a hurry.
The door clicked shut, and she let out a long sigh.
Jack popped his head back into the room. “I don't know what you guys were doing in here, but that was major magic. Chrissy wants to know what's going on. Since I can't lie to her, you had better figure something out. What in the gods’ names happened?”
She bit her lip. “I met Mentu, Devon's god.” As Jack's jaw dropped, she added in a hurry, “It was an accident. I didn't know what the streak of gold in his aura was so I touched it with my aura. I guess Mentu thought I was calling Him.”
“Bunny, did Mentu say anything to you?” Jack asked carefully.
“I'm not his Chosen, if that's what you're asking. He made that clear. There was another god there, but I have no idea who he was. Devon wouldn't let me look at him.”
“Devon is a smart man,” Jack said as he let out a breath. “You would have been driven out of your mind to look at a god full-on in the Spirit Realm without being a Chosen.”
“Well, at least he was telling me the truth.”
“Bunny, I've got to run. Chrissy is going to stay here with you tonight, though I'd love to take her home and show her my toys, I’d feel better if my kick ass witch was here to protect you.” Jack finished with a wicked grin.
Closing her eyes and shaking her head, she said in an amused voice, “Does Loki give you Viagra or something? Don't answer. Go home and change. We'll be fine. I'm going to call Aiden and catch him up on what's happened.”
Jack put on his tuxedo jacket. “I've already talked to him. I gave him a ring while you were doing your spell. It worked, by the way. I can see a small trace of Devon in your aura, a spark of ruby in all that sky blue.”
“Great,” she said weakly, not sure at all how she felt about carrying Devon's aura around with her.
Jack gave Chrissy a kiss good-bye and left. The room felt empty without his energetic presence. Chrissy slumped on the wall and sighed. “Oh, Eliana. I'm in so much trouble. I'm in love with a High Priest of Loki.”
“Love? You've known the man less than twenty-four hours! And what about Ryan?”
“Ryan is a meathead, all body and no brains. I can't have a relationship with a guy who doesn't get sarcasm.” Chrissy sighed theatrically. “Haven't you ever heard of love at first sight? Jack is so smart and handsome, and he knows his magic. And gods can that man eat pussy.”
Eliana made throwing-up noises, and Chrissy grinned at her.
Focusing on her, Chrissy said, “Speaking of magic, you two were doing major heavy shit in there. What's going on?”
Trying to keep her face as open as she could, Eliana said, “I'm looking into the Egyptian religions. Nuri sent him to explain different Egyptian gods and goddesses to me. Devon did invocations and a blessing spell. I think it attracted some Divine attention.”
“I'll say. Jack and I were on the other side of the wall feeling all buzzy. I can't imagine what it was like behind Devon's wards.”
Eliana's phone rang, and she saw Aiden's number on the caller ID. Looking back at Chrissy as she headed out the door, she said, “I'll be right back. I need to grab something from my car.”
“On the way back, can you grab me a Diet Coke from the vending machine downstairs?” Chrissy asked as she changed the sheets on her bed. With a nod, Eliana waved and left.
Chapter
The wind blew a long strand of Eliana's hair over her face as she leaned against the brick wall of her dorm in a small outdoor picnic area. She was alone right now. It was too cold for anyone to want to hang out, even if the sunset was beautiful. Tugging her black leather jacket closer around her neck, she dialed Aiden's number.
“Hello, darling,” he said with obvious pleasure.
“Hi, Aiden. I miss you.”
“I miss you too?”
“Hold on one second,” she said as she set the phone down and twisted her hair into a quick bun.
“Sorry about that. The wind keeps blowing my hair in my face.”
“What are you doing outside?” He sounded concerned, and she smiled.
Shifting back and forth to keep warm, she said, “Chrissy is up in our room and mighty curious about my life right now.”
“I don't like you being outside alone. Tell me what's going on.”
Taking a deep breath, she told him what had happened that day with Devon and Jack. He laughed at the part concerning her throwing a shoe at Jack and laughed even more when she described how smitten Jack was with her roommate. She described the spell that Devon had done with her and the subsequent meeting with his god, Mentu. She didn't mention the harem girl outfit or the fact that Devon had almost kissed her. There was enough going on right now without adding that can of worms to the mix.
He was quiet after she finished. “Well, I think we can nail down your patron god as being of the Egyptian pantheon.”
“Aiden,” she asked as she watched the sun set in an orange ball, “what did that other god with Mentu mean when he said my time of Trial?”
“Sometimes that is what your time of Choice is called. Some gods put their Chosen through some type of moral test before they pick them. But I'm not sure if the Egyptian gods do that. You would have better luck asking Nuri or Devon.”
“I want to be with you, but Jack wants me to hang out with Chrissy tonight. Tomorrow is Saturday. Are you free?”
“I have to run some errands in the morning. Can I pick you up around 11? We can come back to my house and have lunch. Do some work on your shielding,” he said and then lowered his voice. “Or we can just come back here, and I can eat you for lunch instead.”
“Oh my.”
She watched the sunset and noticed Kyle walking toward her with a big smile on his face. He wore a black leather bomber jacket and carried a backpack. “I have to go, Aiden. I'll see you tomorrow.” She quickly closed her phone and smiled at Kyle.
He came over and grinned. “Hi, Eliana. Hey, do you drive a big white Cadillac with a pink bear on the dash?”
“Yeah, I do. Why do you ask?”
Kyle groaned and gave her an apologetic expression. “Ahh crap. It is your car. Your two front tires are flat. You must have run over something that punched your tires enough to give them a slow leak.”
“Fuck,” she said as she imagined the repair bill.
“That about sums it up. I have a couple cans of that stuff that's supposed to plug your tire and fill it enough to get it to a gas station. Let's go give it a try and see if we can save you a towing bill.”
She glanced toward the dorm where Chrissy was waiting for her. “Okay, but we have to make it quick.”
“No problem. It's getting cold out here, and I don't want my fingers to fall off. I find them useful for a variety of things,” Kyle said with a cheerful smile.
They moved out to the parking lot together, discussing how their classes were going and the chances of the football team doing anything special. Big Fran was parked toward the back of the lot. As they got closer, her heart sank. She could see the car tilting forward.
She darted around the side of the car and bent over to inspect the damage. “They are totally flat. Shit.”
As she started to stand, she felt a sharp jab and a burn in her hip. Confused as to what was going on, she turned around to see Kyle standing there with a needle and syringe in his hand and a wide grin on his handsome face.
“Night-night,” he said with a wave.
She felt whatever Kyle had injected her with flowing through her veins, leaving a path of fire in its wake. Stumbling against the car, she tried to run out into the aisle of the parking lot, but Kyle caught her around the waist before she made it more than a step.
“Whoa, easy there,” Kyle said with a laugh as he jerked her back into his arms.
She saw two guys walking past them. Frantically she tried to make a noise or raise her arms to get their attention.
They peered over at her with a questioning look. Kyle laughed again and held her close to him, kissing the top of her head. “She had too much to drink at the tailgate party. Poor thing, I told her not to do so many beer bongs.”
The guys laughed with Kyle and ambled on to the dorms. Hot tears began to trail down her cheeks. The darkness was beginning to close in on the edges of her vision now. Holding her with one arm, Kyle opened the door to his truck and tossed her in the seat.
She lay on her side, trying to keep awake. Before she completely lost consciousness, she heard Kyle get in the truck. He was whistling a merry tune as he tossed a blanket over her. With the darkness complete, the drugs overtook her.
****
Aiden hunched over in pain, the sharp recoil of the blessing he had used on Eliana breaking as it was released to correct some harm. His heart started to hammer in his chest and he launched to his feet, then crumpled to the carpet as more pain poured into him. Something bad had just happened to her, something seriously bad. Gritting his teeth, he rolled over to his side and jerked his phone out of his pocket.
Bracing himself against the agonizing sensation of fire flowing through his veins, he called Devon.
“Hello, Aiden,” Devon said. “What's up?”
“Eliana is in trouble. My blessing on her broke.”
Devon went silent, and he heard the sound of Devon's siren turning on. “I'm on my way over. I need your help as her Mentor to find her. I placed a tracking spell on her, but that'll only get me to her general area.”
“She was outside of her dorm a few minutes ago. We need to start there.”
“Okay, we'll start in that area and work out way out.”
“I'll pack up and call Jack.” His hands trembled as he yanked open the top drawer of his dresser and began to pull out boxes of ammunition. A Trijicon night sight joined the Colt M16 on the bed.
“We don't know what we're going up against, so pack some surveillance equipment as well and a medic kit,” Devon replied before he hung up.
Chapter
Consciousness returned to Eliana like a slap in the face. Not daring to open her eyes, she remained as she was. She didn't want Kyle to know that she was awake. She needed to buy herself time to think and figure out what was going on.
Panic rose in her, a small animal with sharp teeth that gnawed at her willpower. The blessing bit back, giving her some Aiden's strength and careful self-control. For a moment it was as if he was with her and she could almost smell his psychic scent.
Focus, woman, she thought fiercely, you can't look, but you can hear and smell. Use what sense you can.
Trying to hear over her hammering heart was difficult, so she went with smell first. Wet cement, oil, some funky mold smell. The floor was rough and cold under her cheek, and slightly gritty. She still wore her clothes and jacket, but it felt as though her hands and feet were tied.
She counted the beats of her heart and willed them to slow and was finally able to hear the hum of crickets. There were no sounds of breathing other than her own, so she opened her eyes the tiniest fraction of a sliver. In front of her stood nothing but a wooden wall and a stained cement floor. Opening her eyes wider, she saw that she was lying, facing a wall. There must have been a window because enough moonlight shone through to illuminate the room.
She rolled her eyes as far as she could in all directions while trying to keep her breathing deep and even. The edge of a table was visible adjacent to the wall by her feet and cobwebs hung on the open beam ceiling. Lying there for another few minutes, she debated if she should move her head to try to see more details of where she was. Tension filled her body, and she almost lifted her head half a dozen times before chickening out.
If only there was some way to know if anyone else was here, she thought, wanting to cry but afraid that someone would notice.
A breeze brought a faint whiff of trees and the sound of rustling leaves to her. Okay, I'm in a forest. Now if Smokey the Bear would come rescue me, that would be wonderful.
She summoned her courage and gave one of her fingers a twitch, hoping it seemed like an involuntary reaction. She waited and waited, listening for all she was worth.
What if you're blowing your only chance at escape? What if no one is out there? What if they are coming right now, and you're almost out of time? The little voice of panic screamed in her mind.
What if you're wrong, and they are watching us right now? Besides, it's time for brass-balls bitches, not whiney girls, so shut the fuck up and let me get us out of here, she said to that little chattering voice in her head. The voice of panic had nothing to say back, so she dismissed it and let her foot twitch. Still nothing happened beyond an occasional breeze over her cheek.
She was about to lift her head when she heard the sound of a cell phone ringing. She nearly reached for her pocket when she realized that wasn't her ring tone.
“Hello, David,” Kyle's voice said from the other side of the wall. “Yeah, make a left right there and follow the dirt road. We're in the old barn on the right. She's still out of it, but the tranquilizer you gave me should wear off soon, and the aphrodisiac should kick in.”
Kyle paused to listen to the person on the other end of the phone. “I know. Yeah, I get it, no touching her until you get here. As long as the drugs you gave me worked, she should be confused and panting for a dick, virgin or not. I see your headlights. Talk to you in a minute.”
Eliana's mind raced as the sound of tires rolling over gravel came from somewhere in front of her. Think, woman. Use that brain that got you a full ride at the university. Kyle thinks you're going to wake up horny and hot for him, and he thinks you're a virgin. That has to mean something. And Kyle can’t be a Chosen, the ring Jack gave me never turned black around him. That means that maybe you’re strong enough to take him. You know he's on the other side of the wall, so now is the time to look. She felt sick to her stomach as the engine turned off.
Taking a deep breath, Eliana lifted her head and rolled her shoulders to see where she was. She heard the sound of a car door open and then Kyle and another man talking not too far away. She was in a small room of what Kyle had said was a barn. This was probably a workroom. It was abandoned and dusty, empty except for a workbench and some buckets. The windows were broken out, and she could see only the outline of a tree and darkness beyond its branches.
There was a pile of blankets on the other side of the ro
om along with Kyle's backpack with a blue tarp underneath it. Hearing the sounds of the voices getting closer, Eliana glanced at her ring and felt her stomach clench. It was a dead black in the moonlight.
Hastily, she rolled back into the position Kyle had left her in. Hands bound in front of her, knees drawn up in a fetal position, hair obscuring a portion of her face. Keeping the thought of being in Aiden's bed with his breath in her ear, she slowed her own breathing to what she hoped someone in a drugged stupor would sound like.
She almost flinched when a light swept over her eyes. Keeping her breathing even, she watched the glow behind her lids brighten.
Heavy footsteps rattled on the boards and stopped next to her.
An unfamiliar voice said, “For some reason I thought she would be bigger. With all the fuss that's being made over her, I expected some scary warrior bitch. I could stomp this little girl into the floor with one foot.”
Must be David, whoever the fuck that is. When should I start to wake up? I need to get them to untie my hands or legs. I'm not going to be able to do anything like this.
Kyle nudged her feet. “Don't worry. She's got tits like a porn star. Little big in the ass though. I like my women skinnier.”
She felt a brush of energy over her. It felt slimy and made her want to shudder and scrub her skin with scouring powder.
“Well, she's shielded pretty tight,” the unfamiliar voice said. “Looks like Aiden had time to teach her that much. If she doesn't wake soon, I'm going to give her a shot of adrenaline. That'll get her going.”
Feet rattled the boards next to her head as the men moved to the other side of the room. The thought of another drug in her system gave her the strength to stop playing possum. She let her eyelids flutter and began to groan from low in her throat. The sound of footsteps rushed back to her side, and two pairs of hands rolled her onto her back. She stretched her legs out and mumbled something incoherent as she tested the bonds around her hands.