by Fall, Carly
As much as she wanted to help her race, she didn’t want to be rutted by a monster—namely Jael.
Her cell phone rang, startling her. She stared at it a moment, knowing it was Micah. The phone was specifically for their communication, and she realized he was calling to see if she was with child.
Panic made her stomach hurt even more. She usually answered Micah’s calls right away, but she couldn’t answer it now. As the phone shrilled, she simply couldn’t reach over to grab it. She couldn’t hear the words that Jael would come and visit her for the mating ritual in two weeks.
“No,” she sniffed.
Thankfully, the phone stopped ringing, only to start up again. The screech seemed deafening within the tiled walls of the bathroom. No, she would not allow Jael to violate her flesh. It wasn’t an option. She would rather die than take him to her bed and have him—
“Mama?” Megan called from the other side of the door, breaking off Sophia’s thoughts.
“Yes?” Sophia answered, wiping her eyes.
“Are you okay? And why aren’t you answering the phone?”
Sophia realized that her thoughts had been traveling down the path along the lines of she would rather kill herself than join with Jael.
“Mama?”
“I’ll be out in a minute, love,” she called, trying to make her voice as normal as possible. After taking care of the bleeding, she stood and flushed. She stared good and long at herself in the mirror as she washed her hands. That little voice on the other side of the door was the only reason she had to live, the only thing on this god-forsaken planet she loved. If it came down to her lying with Jael, then so be it. The one thing she would not do was leave that child without someone to love her. She knew deep in her heart that Micah did not love the girl, no matter what he said. It was apparent in his actions, or lack thereof. Wasn’t it just two weeks ago that he’d been here and hadn’t even bothered to knock on Megan’s door and say hello before they’d lain together?
No matter what happened, she wouldn’t leave Megan in this world to fend for herself. Sophia picked up the phone and turned it to “off,” then she grabbed the pain relievers out of the cabinet and swallowed three of them, hoping for a quick relief to her cramps.
“Hello, honey,” she said as she opened the door, smiling down at her beautiful daughter, and shoving the phone in her pocket.
“Why didn’t you answer the phone, Mama?” Megan asked, tilting her head to the side.
Sophia studied the cherub face framed by golden curls. Megan’s eyes were dark, yet held a glint of intelligence Sophia appreciated but sometimes feared. Not for the first time, she thought Megan was smarter than her years. No, Sophia would not leave this precious being, no matter what she had to do.
Sophia grinned. “Because I don’t feel like talking to Micah right now.”
As she strode out of the bathroom, little footsteps trailing behind her, she worried of the repercussions of not answering the phone.
Chapter 22
Micah slammed down the phone. Why wasn’t that bitch answering? He couldn’t remember a time where she didn’t pick up his calls right away. It rang a few times, and then went directly to voicemail. Perhaps her phone had gone dead.
He needed to know if she was with child, and if she was, it better be with a male, for the love of the gods.
As far as he was concerned, females were useless. Of course, without them, he couldn't further the race. He worried about Megan. The little female was too smart for her own good.
He’d seen the way she looked at him. There wasn’t any love between them. Oftentimes he felt as if she could see within him and read his thoughts and knew his plans and his sins. It was terribly unsettling. He certainly didn’t possess a gift such as that, and Sophia had never let on that she had one either. Frankly, he thought the woman too stupid and too naïve, and she never let on she knew his thoughts. If she could delve into his mind, she would realize the world wasn’t as he said. Blood didn’t run in the streets, and the Colonists were not out of control. In fact, they were under his control.
He looked around his new living room. He had liked the house where Nico and Annis had fought, but once they had escaped, the Platoon had to move quickly so the Saviors wouldn’t find them. The house they now occupied suited their needs: a couple of bedrooms and a basement. He never knew when the basement would come in handy for jailing someone, just as he’d done with Annis and Cohen. Just thinking about their escape with that turncoat Nico made Micah feel violent.
Taking a deep breath, he knew he couldn’t focus on past mistakes, but had to look toward the future. His plan was simple: first, destroy the Saviors. He couldn’t do that without the help of the Daniel and the half-breeds. After that, when Daniel eventually wore out his use and Micah had enough soldiers to make it happen, he would take down Daniel, as well as his followers. After that, he really just wanted some peace.
First, he had to find the Saviors’ hideout and avenge his people.
He checked his phone, his frustration growing. Sophia should be calling him, and he was also waiting on another call, one that could potentially bring his whole plan together.
If he received the call, he decided he would store the package at Sophia’s house in the little shed out back. It would be a pain in the ass to get the package out there, and he’d have to scare Sophia to make sure she didn’t look in the shed. He’d say something about Megan being in danger. But if he brought the package to this house, there was a greater chance of one of their nosey neighbors wondering what was going on. Although his plot of land was large, it was still in a neighborhood. No, he needed to deliver the package where there weren't any prying eyes.
He laid his head back against the couch, smiling. Closing his eyes, he breathed deeply, trying to remain patient.
Chapter 23
Oh, yeah.
Totally hot.
Brandy had Blake handcuffed to the bedframe, naked as the day he was born. A hefty erection rested on his stomach as Brandy put on an impromptu strip show to the sounds of Marvin Gaye with a promise of some H after the sex.
As he watched her breasts shimmy, her brown hair cascading around her shoulders, he knew he was damn lucky to have found her. His future was here with the woman in front of him. Although he didn’t love her, he did like her, and that was a start as far as he was concerned. He just needed to kick the H, and he promised himself he would, but not today. Tomorrow, he would rid the drug from his life.
That thought brought a tinge of sadness, as it seemed his angel only appeared when he was high out of his mind. If he kicked his drug problem, there was a chance he’d never see her again. However, he needed to think about his future, not some beautiful angel his mind conjured up in an altered state.
Brandy turned around and slowly brought the G-string down her legs. She stepped out of it and stood before him naked. Looking at him over her shoulder, she smiled and gave him a wink.
“Come here, Brandy,” he growled, barely able to hear his own voice over the sultry music. He was certain the neighbors were going crazy with all the noise.
“Not yet,” she said. Watching her mouth was the only way he deciphered her words.
A shadow just beyond Brandy’s shoulder in the living room caught his eye. He squinted, trying to decide if it were headlights outside the apartment playing tricks on him, or if someone was in the apartment.
“Brandy!” he yelled as the shadow moved again. Glancing up at her, she swayed to the music, her eyes closed and oblivious to his cries.
The shadow stirred, and Blake panicked. Yes, someone was in the apartment.
“Brandy!” he shouted again.
The shadow approached the room. He tugged at the handcuffs, silently cursing Brandy for using the real thing and not the breakaway kind.
The shadow turned into a large, dark figure, and Blake glanced at Brandy, then back at the approaching mass.
Oh, shit.
They were in trouble.
; Blake wondered who it was and thought about the heroin he had used that Brandy should have sold. Was it the kingpin drug dealer? One of his enforcers?
“Brandy!” Blake screamed, finally getting her attention.
She turned to him, and he gestured with his head as best he could to the hallway.
She strode over to the stereo and turned the music off. Blake heard footsteps coming down the hallway. Brandy appeared calm as she looked at the doorway, as if she expected someone.
“Hi, Micah,” she said as the huge man stood in the doorway.
“Hello, Brandy,” he murmured, staring at Blake.
Blake’s heart thumped in his chest as shock and fear rippled through him. He lay on the bed, truly at their mercy. Tugging one more time at the cuffs, he knew he wasn’t going anywhere.
Brandy glanced at Blake. What he saw there made his skin crawl—there was nothing but utter contempt and hate. She stepped up to Micah and made a show of giving him a deep kiss. Micah grabbed her ass and pulled her close. Okay, so they apparently knew each other quite well, and Blake remembered the time he'd come over unexpectedly and it had taken Brandy a long time to answer the door. When she did, something hadn't felt right, and Blake realized now Micah had probably snuck out the fire escape.
So Brandy was fucking Micah. There wasn't any hurt, just worry as he realized how screwed he was.
“Brandy, what’s going on?” he asked.
“What’s going on is that I’m getting rid of you and getting paid to do it,” she spat, slipping on her robe.
“Let me introduce myself again,” Micah said, stepping over to the bed. “I’m Micah, the head of the Platoon.”
Blake rolled his eyes. “I know who the fuck you are.”
“Good.”
“Brandy, what the hell is this?” Blake demanded.
She marched over to the bed and leaned down, her face inches from his. “This is me making up for all the heroin you’ve taken the past two weeks. This is me finally get a decent payday, and this is you getting out of my life.”
She stepped away and stood behind Micah, who pulled a syringe out of his pocket.
“He likes heroin, right?” Micah asked over his shoulder.
“Yes,” Brandy answered.
“Good, because that’s what I’ve got.”
Micah leaned forward with the needle, and Blake fought to get loose of the handcuffs. He brought up his legs, almost connecting his foot to Micah’s head, but Micah caught it.
“Don’t fuck with me, Blake,” he sneered, pushing Blake’s legs down to the bed and leaning on them. Blake couldn’t move. He struggled against the handcuffs, but Micah caught his arm, held it still, and pierced Blake’s vein with the needle.
Blake’s body involuntarily relaxed, the fight gone in just under a minute. His vision doubled as Micah moved to stand behind Brandy.
“You, my friend, are my ticket to destroying the Saviors,” Micah said, unsheathing a knife from his back.
Blake tried to laugh off the comment.
“Laugh all you want, Blake, but you are worth fifty thousand dollars to your own government. I just need to deliver you alive, and I'm waiting to hear about the drop off location. I’m taking you to a place where you won’t be able to escape.”
If Blake was out-of-his-mind-high, he wouldn't give them any trouble, hence the shoot-up. With the heroin coursing through his body, he was truly incapacitated and not a threat in any way.
Brandy stood with her arms crossed over her chest, a smug smile on her lips. “And I get twenty thousand of that, you piece of shit. That’s enough to pay off my dealer and have a lot left over.”
Micah settled his arm around Brandy's shoulders and pulled her to his chest. She didn’t fight it. It was the embrace of lovers, people who had been in close proximity before. As darkness crept on his peripheral vision, he shook his head, unable to speak. He knew what was to come next, but he couldn’t get the words out because he was so damn high.
The last thing he saw just before he blacked out was Micah slicing his knife across Brandy’s throat. Blood sprayed on him, the walls, the floor, and Brandy reached for her neck, surprise etched in her face. Gurgling noises came from her throat as she tried to breathe, and after a moment, her eyes rolled in the back of her head and she went limp. Micah dropped her body at his feet.
That girl is headed for nothing but trouble, and she’ll take you down with her.
No truer words had ever been said.
Chapter 24
Sophia sat at the kitchen table and listened as Megan explained the physics of a bumblebee being able to fly.
“They aren’t supposed to be able to fly, Mama,” she concluded. “Their body weighs more than their wings should be able to carry.”
Sophia smiled. “That’s amazing, isn’t it?”
Megan grinned and nodded. “I thought so.”
“I guess it's also a good lesson to not let people tell you what you can and can’t do. Don’t let people put limits on you and your—”
A loud pounding on the front door startled both of them. Micah wasn’t due for another two weeks, but Sophia still had her phone off. Perhaps he’d come to check up on them, but it was most likely that Micah was very angry that she couldn’t be reached.
Sophia stood and quickly jammed her phone into a kitchen drawer. If Micah was indeed upset because she was unreachable, she would claim ignorance, make a show of looking for her phone and finding it. She hadn’t been able to answer her phone and tell him that she was without child—it had been easier to ignore his calls and try not to think about how he would react. She imagined Micah would not be in a good mood after twenty-four hours of being ignored.
The lock on the door turned just as she reached the entryway, and it swung open. Micah stood in the doorway, Jael right behind him.
“Hello, Sophia,” he said.
“Micah! What a surprise!”
Micah and Jael moved into the small area and shut the door. Sophia backed into the living room. “Please, come in,” she said, gesturing them to the spacious area so she didn’t feel so crowded around the two large males.
“You haven’t been answering your phone,” Micah chastised.
“I’m sorry, Micah,” Sophia apologized, staring at the floor so he couldn’t see the lie on her face. “I must have misplaced it somewhere, or the battery is dead. I haven’t heard it ring.”
“Very well,” Micah said, stepping in close to her. “Are you with child?”
Sophia stared at his boots and shook her head.
Micah let out a long sigh, the disappointment and anger blazing in his features.
“In two weeks, Jael will visit for the mating cycle,” he announced.
Bile rose in Sophia’s throat and she glanced over at Jael. He sneered at her, and an involuntary tremble shook her body. Jael’s sky-blue gaze bore into her, his black hair slicked back away from his sharp features. She couldn’t imagine allowing him in her most intimate flesh, to feel his breath on her skin, to smell his maleness. Frankly, it took everything she had in her to get through the rituals with Micah, but she simply couldn’t imagine performing the act with Jael.
“In the meantime, I’m going to put something in the shed out back. You are not to go in there, no matter what. Do you understand me?”
She nodded absently, still unable to comprehend how she would tolerate sleeping with Jael.
“Shut the blinds in the back,” Micah ordered as he opened the front door. “What we do is none of your concern, Sophia.”
Glancing up at Micah, she wondered what they were putting in the old, empty shed. They never used it to store any of their gardening tools. The eight-by-eight-foot building looked as if it had been there for years, rotting in the hot Arizona sun. Micah had piqued her curiosity.
“It’s dangerous,” he continued. “I would hate to see Megan hurt, and she won’t be as long as you stay away from the shed.”
Micah knew her weakness—her daughter. She would do anythin
g to keep Megan safe, and now fear replaced the initial curiosity.
“Of course, Micah,” she said.
He nodded. “Now go and close those blinds,” he said as he left. Jael hung back for a moment, his stare piercing and uncomfortable.
Stepping in close and invading her personal space, he whispered, “I can’t wait to fuck you, Sophia.”
Her breath hitched as his finger trailed down her cheekbone, to her neck, over her collarbone, and down her breast. He brushed her nipple with his thumb, and murmured, “Hard, Sophia. I like to fuck hard.”
Despite her fear, her nipple hardened under his touch, and she cried out as he twisted it between his forefinger and thumb.
“Jael!” Micah shouted from the front drive.
“Remember that, Sophia,” Jael whispered. “Hard and fast. I want to rip you open from the inside out.”
Tears stung her eyes, and she stepped back from him, crossing her arms over her chest. She refused to look away, to show weakness even though she was certain in was written all over her face.
“Good-bye, Sophia,” Jael said in a loud voice. “I’ll see you in two weeks.”
The door shut, and Sophia hurried to the back of the house and drew the blinds to the sliding glass door. She heard muffled noises on the side of the house, as if Micah and Jael struggled with whatever they were moving. She fought the desire to peek through the slats.
“If we turn out the lights, they won’t be able to see us,” Megan whispered from the hallway.
Sophia closed her eyes, wondering how much her daughter had heard of her exchange with Jael.
“Mama, let’s just take a peek,” Megan murmured, grabbing Sophia’s hand.
Sophia looked down at her little angel. When did this girl become braver than she was? All she ever wanted to do was protect Megan, but the girl seemed hell-bent on pushing boundaries with Micah.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Megan,” Sophia said.
Megan walked over to the light switch and turned it off, sending the kitchen into darkness.