“Oh, yeah,” he laughed derisively. “You value it so much that you just gave it away”—he snapped his fingers—“just like that.”
“I haven’t given anything away! I don’t even know where you got that idea from.” Cheyenne moved to look out the window, too upset to face him.
“He told me what happened, Cheyenne. I’m not stupid. I know what a woman looks like when she’s had sex. And with a guy of that caliber, it explains a lot.”
“Yeah, cause you would know wouldn’t you?” she spat, staring out at the snow-covered grounds.
“You better believe it.” She flinched at his cruelty, but then Kris was feeling pretty hurt too, so he refused to apologize. “We could have been good together, Cheyenne. All you had to do was trust me.”
She spun on him so fast it was a wonder she didn’t get whiplash. “You’re right,” she pointed at him. “We could have been good together, but you ruined that. All. By. Yourself. Don’t you dare try to place that blame on me.”
Seeing the tears in her eyes, Kris went to comfort her only to be faced with a scathing glare. Pushing her hand out in front of her, Cheyenne shook her head. “Just get out. You disgust me.”
Her words cut him to the quick. Nothing she could have said could have possibly hurt more than those three words. He tried to reach for her again, only to be slapped away.
His own eyes misting over, Kris left the room feeling worse than the day they broke up. This time he knew it was permanent. He had basically called her a slut and accused her of using sex as a tool against men. There was no way he could come back from this.
Cheyenne walked alongside Tabitha with a fire in her eyes. Two women scorned. It was a lethal combination. One everyone seated at the long dining table recognized when they appeared around the corner walking in perfect synchronization. Put them in leather and tool them out in daggers and throwing stars and they would look like Raven and Whisper, two of the most vicious hunters Erias knew.
Licking his lips in appreciation, Erias sat at the far-reaching end of the table trying to blend in. A nearly impossible feat to accomplish when you were the tallest, bulkiest person among a row of wiry females and whip thin men.
Yeah, there was no blending in for him.
Resigned to what would surly turn into a brawl worthy of Maury, Erias sipped at his Brandy and waited for the firing squad.
Cheyenne was mere feet from the table when she noticed something heinous and out of place, marring the picture before her.
There they were, Harold at the head of the table sipping at his morning coffee and reading a copy of the local newspaper. Hadley, the quiet one of the group, was opposite him taking tentative bites of her scrambled eggs. Next to her, Tim sat looking sheepishly up at Tabitha, who was standing beside her and so frigid Cheyenne wished she had brought along an extra sweater. Sebastian was on the opposite side of the table seated next to Harold; his hair mussed and wearing the stupidest, and strangely most adorable, smile she had ever seen on a grown man. Which also told her that he was flying high at present. Then, of course, Kris, who sat next to Bas stabbing his fork into his eggs like he held a personal grudge against them. The heat radiating off of him scorched her from across the room.
It was nothing like the heat that she was experiencing as her own eyes came to a rest on Erias, who sat across from Kris like he hadn’t a care in the world. A smug look of superiority playing on is rugged features. To her dismay, Cathy had tucked herself into his side and was currently chatting his ear off. Not that he appeared to be listening.
Smug bastard.
Erias watched from the corner of his eye as Cheyenne approached him from behind. Her rage was tangible. Wanting to see what she would do, he sat calmly, sipping at his drink. He could tell her exact placement by the movement of Kris’s eyes as they tracked her across the room. Poor bastard, he didn’t know that he had no chance with the woman. On the other hand, maybe he did and that was the reason for the long face.
Either way, he wasn’t going to lose sleep over trivial matters.
Kris’s eyes widened at the exact moment Erias felt her hand connect with the back of his head. Spilling Brandy down his front, Erias shot out of his seat like a man on fire, cursing like a sailor.
Grabbing her up by the arms, Erias got in her face. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” he growled menacingly.
“You sleazy, slimy, no-good piece of cow manure!” Cheyenne growled back. “You dare to break bread with my friends after everything you did to me!”
“Cheyenne,” Cheryl said worriedly, her hands fluttering in the air. “What are you doing? You’re making a scene.” Her eyes darted around the room to the patrons who were now watching them carefully.
“I don’t care! Let them watch. Let them hear what this slime ball did to me.”
Kris came to a stand beside them and talked in a low, warning tone. “I don’t think this is the best place to be airing your dirty laundry, Cheyenne. Why don’t you two take this somewhere else and work things out?"
“What?” she gasped. “I told you what he did to me!”
“I think you were confused,” Kris said in a placating tone. “Maybe had a little too much to drink and aren’t remembering clearly. You know how you get.”
“Oh, my God, what is wrong with you people! This man attacked me!” she yelled, panic rising in her chest as Erias began leading her from the room.
Leaning down, he whispered into her ear, “I suggest you watch what you’re saying about me and keep your voice down. I’d hate to see this turn out badly for you.”
“Fuck you!” she spat. Craning her head over his shoulder, she tried to plead to her friends to listen, but in the end, they only looked relieved to have her gone.
Shaking their heads and exchanging words that she couldn’t hear, but that she somehow knew was about her having lost her mind, they returned to their seats and their breakfast, leaving her to fend for herself.
The final jab came when she overheard a woman speaking to her husband. “Poor girl, she’s done lost her mind.”
Chapter 13
Behr sat alone on the floor with his back against The Gate. He hated being here. Would much rather be spending his time somewhere else. With someone else. Doing something else.
After the brief stint of phone sex he’d had with Sasha, the reason for staying here was cloudy at best. Their call had been cut short when Sasha’s husband came home unexpectedly.
The downfall of dating a married woman, he supposed.
Still, he hated being forced to sit and do nothing. That’s what babysitters were for. And he was not one of them.
Succored from the crib on war and annihilation, Behr was a warrior through and through. It went against everything in him to stand idly by with nothing to occupy him, but then times were scarce as of late on towns to pillage and demons to slaughter. He would just have to make do.
“There you are,” a sultry female voice said from within the darkness. “I have been calling for you.”
“Reception up here isn’t so great,” Behr said sarcastically. “What did you need me for, Sephy?”
Dressed in elegant white chiffon so sheer you could see every nuance of her curvaceous body; Persephone sauntered forward with a cunning smile playing on her perfect features. Her honey-blond hair fell to her hips in smooth waves, making the picture of her absolutely stunning to behold. “Does there have to be a reason for me to call on you?”
“Yes.” He studied her as she ran her fingers across the polished granite walls thoughtfully.
“You know; I haven’t been here in ages.” Closing her eyes, she inhaled deeply. “Even smells the same. If you close your eyes, you can almost hear their screams.” She cast her eyes down to him, a wicked gleam flickering in her brilliant green irises. “Angel says if you concentrate hard enough, you can feel the emotions burned into the earth all around you.” Slipping down the wall to rest beside him, she stroked his forearm and shrugged. “I prefer the real thing.”
/> Scoring him with her nails, he hissed and drew his arm back seeing beads of blood already beginning to form on his broken flesh. “Damn, someone should declaw your ass. I haven’t had all my shots, and I’d hate to come down with cat scratch fever or some shit.”
Laughing in amusement, Persephone wiped her finger over his wounds, then licked it clean. “Yum. You always did taste amazing.”
Disgusted, Behr put some distance between them. “Yeah, I hear that all the time, but usually I don’t have to bleed first.”
Tsking, she gave him a teasing slap on the arm. “You’re such a baby sometimes." With a heated once over, she leaned closer. “Want mama to kiss it and make it all better?”
“Fuck no,” Behr snapped, leaping to his feet. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but you pretending to be my momma is wrong on so many levels, not to mention just straight up nasty. No, thanks.” He shook his head vigorously.
Persephone rose to her feet with a scowl so fierce it could have put fear in the devil himself. And considering that she was his wife, it probably had. She had the man whipped frontward, backward, and sideways. It was a wonder that she wasn’t the one running Hell. The woman knew how to lay down the gauntlet in a way that would make even the strongest hard ass cry for his mommy.
“Now I remember why I always preferred Erias over you. He doesn’t cry like a pussy.”
Folding his arms over his chest, Behr gave her an I am not a pussy look.
Glancing around again, Persephone narrowed her eyes on her surroundings, then returned her hateful gaze to him. “What are you doing here, anyway? I didn’t give you any orders. This is Erias’s station.”
He shrugged. “He called me in last night to watch the place. Since we no longer have Camiel and Solodad to rely on, apparently we are a bit understaffed,” he said, referring to the Brotherhood and their refined numbers. He shook a playful finger at her. “Someone’s been slacking lately.”
“It’s not my fault those two lacked the skills to hold off a demon attack.” She pursed her lips in a pitiful pout. “Besides, finding a suitable subject takes time, something I am short on lately.” She turned her pretty pout on him, looking up at him from under a row of thick pale lashes. “You don’t know how hard it is to be a wife and a warden and still be expected to create life while overseeing all of you and making sure your needs are met.”
Behr wasn’t moved in the least. No doubt, she probably was a busy little god, but she had never made sure their needs were met. Not in the least. Persephone preyed on the dying and played on their weaknesses. For the members of The Brotherhood, she would promise them what they craved most, vengeance. In return, they pledged their eternal servitude.
And their soul.
“What did you come here for, Sephy? I know it looks like I have nothing better to do than listen to you rambled all night, but I do.”
She screwed her face up in distaste. “Whatever. I want you to watch over Erias. He is monitoring a female, and since he’s been neglecting to answer my calls, I want to make sure he isn’t getting off course.”
Yeah ‘cause heavens forbid they should care about anyone besides her highness. Never mind have someone who might care about them in return.
The problem with that was he had already seen E, and even though he hadn’t witnessed his direct interaction with the female, he’d recognize that anguished, preoccupied look on a man’s face any day. And knowing E and his winning personality, the only thing that could throw him or a man of his caliber off his game would be a woman.
They were a trifling bunch.
“Just watch him and report back to me if you see anything… funny going on.”
By her tone, he knew exactly what she meant by ‘funny’. She didn’t want him getting attached to his subject. And since it was obvious that he already had, it could only end one way: badly.
“Yeah, yeah, your wish is my command and all that,” he said blandly.
She flashed him a brilliant smile of satisfaction before poofing out. Good riddance.
“E!” he called into the ether. “We need to talk.”
Taking up residence at his wall once again, he waited for him to answer.
“Bite me again and I swear to the gods!”
Erias threw her across the room with such force that her feet rose a solid foot off the floor and when she came down, she flopped onto his bed with stunning accuracy.
“Touch me again and your arm won’t be the only thing I take a chunk out of, you bastard!”
Leaping to her feet, she charged at him. He caught her with a stiff arm to the shoulder so hard she whirled around. Dizzy from the unexpected blow, Cheyenne stumbled forward, barely having enough time to throw her arms out to catch herself before she collided with the wall.
A ferocious growl ripped from her throat as she gathered herself for round two. Before she could make it fully to her feet, Erias was grabbing her by the waist and hauling her to the bed. Like a feral feline, she twisted and contorted her body in an attempt to claw his eyes out.
“Get off of me, you oaf!” she hollered.
He ignored her while he pinned her down with his own body. Even using all of his weight against her, she proved difficult to wrangle. Snatching her wrists, he struggled to pull them over her head.
“Quit squirming,” he grunted, narrowly avoiding a black eye while she thrashed about beneath him.
“Fuck you!” she screamed before trying to spit at him.
Dodging it, Erias laughed through his fury. “Nice try, sweetheart, but you’re going to have to come up with something else to hit me with. I’m a fast learner.
“Fuck you!” she snarled, snapping her teeth at him like she would take a chunk out of his face if she could reach high enough.
Probably would too.
“Not big on originality are we?” He let out a heavy breath at having one arm securely tied to the iron bed frame over her head.
“Go to hell!”
“And her vocabulary expands. I see you’re a fast learner, as well. Now.” He grunted against a bolt of pain as his nether regions came under assault. Gripping her jaw in his fingers, he put them face-to-face. “You better knock that off before you make me really angry.” Ripping her arm over her head with enough force to tear it from the socket, Erias began securing it to the bed frame.
“Guess you’re a bit of a slow learner, huh?” she taunted, going for another knee shot to the groin.
Jerking out of the way, Erias pinned her with a lethal glare. “Not as slow as you might think.” Smiling triumphantly, he rose from the bed and surveyed his handiwork.
“When I get out of here I’m going to gut you like the pig that you are,” she promised, tugging at her restraints. They didn’t budge an inch. What was he, some kind of fisherman or something? No one she knew could tie knots like that, unless they worked the docks.
Or had experience escaping from prisons, or their bedroom as a teenager like she had.
She almost smiled at the irony of it all.
As a teen, she had performed many escapes with the use of bed linens and a little well-placed rope. She had mastered the skill of knot tying. Now she was being held prisoner, tied to a bed frame much the same way she had tied her sheets to hers.
Only then she hadn’t been a prisoner. She had been an escapee.
Wrenching at the silken ropes until her wrists felt like they would detach, Cheyenne threw her head back on the pillow in total defeat.
Fuck it all, she was so screwed.
Screaming at the top of her lungs until her throat was raw; she had to reel in her emotions before she started crying from the fear and frustration coursing through her.
She would not let that bastard see her cry.
With a blank stare, Erias moved to check the bindings. Not that he wasn’t absolutely positive that they would hold. He was. He was a pro at bondage, both the scary kind and the fun.
“I’m heading out,” he said in a cold, distant voice. “You can scream all yo
u want. No one will hear you. I—”
“How do you figure that?” she cut him off, her voice thick with attitude. “You’re not the master of sound. Unless you’re some kind of magician and have figured out how to bottle it up or make everyone in a fifty-mile radius suddenly go deaf, you can’t promise that.”
“A fifty-mile radius, huh?” He laughed jovially. The woman was seriously warped if she thought— Covering his ears against the ear shattering pain of her screaming like a banshee, he waited for her to be quiet.
Looking pointedly around the room, then sliding his gaze back to her, he raised his brows in appreciation. “Impressive. But”—he cocked his head and cupped his ear—“nope, not a sound. As I said, no one will hear you. Scream your head off, baby. Scream all you like.”
He side stepped as her foot swept over the side of the bed trying to connect with his thigh. “Oh I do hope you hold on to that fire. I love a woman with spunk.” She screeched in frustration that only amused him more. He gave her a patronizing pat on the head.
“Try to stay out of trouble and when I get back, assuming you’ve been a good little girl; I will bring you dinner, and if you're lucky, I might even let you feed yourself.”
She sneered at him. “Oh you’re so gracious, kind sir,” she said in her most sarcastic rendition of Scarlet O’Hara. “You’re generosity knows no bounds.”
Pursing his lips and narrowing his eyes in his best I-am-not-amused look, he flashed from the room, not caring what she thought. It served her right for being such a pain in the ass. He chuckled at the thought that she was probably shitting her pants right now. Then he sobered, realizing who would be responsible for cleaning up the mess.
Damn. He really needed to think before he acted.
He appeared in front of Behr, who was sitting in the same spot against the wall where he had last seen him, looking as if he had never moved.
“You called?” he asked, meeting Behr’s gaze.
“Yes, sir,” Behr said, coming to a stand. “I just got a visit from our little hellion.” Erias looked at him expectantly. “Need I mention that she was not happy?”
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