Carnival of Darkness (FaeTAL Series Book 1)
Page 6
“Ah, I see.” Well, mainly, not that I am going to allow them the knowledge that I am confused by the terminology. “He may be a, as you say, dickweed, however, he does have a point. Why have we been unable to find one measly man? He states that he has left us a hey lookie here-” I pause when the big oafs chuckle again. “As I was saying, if he has left such a thing, should we not know who he is and how to contact him by now?”
Grabbing the keyboard, I respond to the man’s message.
Apparently that is so. We have yet to find even one trace of you, which is unsettling to say the least. Why do you not just call us, explain yourself, and ask for whatever it is that you require?
The response is almost instantaneous. My cell phone, the brand new one that I was guaranteed would be secure, rings in my pocket. You must be joking. Clicking the speakerphone button, I place the phone on the round table in our war-room.
“Well, excuse the hell outta me. I didn’t realize you wanted to talk instead of text, my man. I would have called long before now.”
Clearing my throat, I make eye contact with each of my men seated around the conference table. My unspoken question is written clear as day on my face; how do they want to proceed and are they with me? Each man nods in agreement, we will find this man one way or another. Brad cracks his knuckles and grins. Kace’s fingers bang on the keys of his laptop as he attempts to trace the call.
“And you can tell your boy over there to stop trying to trace my call. Only way you’re gonna find me is if I let you. And I’m not ready for that just yet. Need to have a quick little talk first, make sure we’re all on the same page.”
Kace looks up, shaking his head and shrugs his shoulders. “He’s right, I’ve got nothing, boss.”
“Then I suppose I am listening. Get to your point quickly before I lose what little patience I have left at this point.”
“Alrighty then. At least you’re honest. Those freaky ass creatures I sent you to before, the Fallen you called them, I know where more are. I don’t have all the information I’d like to have before I contacted you, but things have escalated, and my man on the inside isn’t safe there anymore. He took down two of these fucking things earlier tonight. Once I got off the phone with him I pulled up my surveillance on the place and found a whole damn nest of the fucking things! I didn’t get a full count, but I saw at least three possibly four more holed up in an abandoned building near the back of the carnival. He’s been undercover for six month working on a kidnapping case. While some seriously fucked up shit happens at this place, these damn things take it to a new level and are killing off people. I don’t like the thought of my man in there dealing with them on his own. That’s where you come in. Get in, get rid of the group of these things I’ve tracked there, and get the fuck out. No one can know I sent you or everything we have worked for these last few months is blown to hell and back.”
My jaw hardens as he finishes his explanation. I do not take orders well. Even before I was the fucking King of the Fae, I was the leader of the FaeTAL warriors. I have been the one giving the orders for as long as I care to remember.
“Why do you think that we will do as you request?” I am honestly intrigued. Ready to see what his answer will be. What could this human possibly have that would make us do his bidding?
“Why do I- oh you have got to be fucking kidding me! For fucks sake, I just told you that these things are killing people off at the local goddamn carnival and you are worried about why I want you to take them out? Do I need a fucking reason? Do I need a goal? Because I don’t fucking have one! All I have is a whole hell of a lot of anger and frustration over a situation that I can’t do a damn thing about. I’m not even in the damn state. I’m hours away and my man is on his own. I’ve seen you hunt these damn things. Why is it so hard to believe that I just want you to do your fucking job and keep these people safe? I don’t gain a fucking thing from this, other than my man happens to be one of the people you’d be keeping safe.”
“Why all the secrecy, the cloak and dagger shit?” Brad speaks up.
“Well, okay. Yeah, you got me. That was just fun. I mean really, a security company whose server is so easy to hack that I have the owner's address, phone numbers and any other information I want in minutes. I’m a hacker man, how couldn’t I?”
Kace snorts and nods. “He’s got a point. I suck at this shit, and even I would have been tempted to mess with you, boss.”
Clearing my throat to try to hold in my chuckle and keep my face void of any emotion, I make my decision. “First, let me say that we will take care of the Fallen at this carnival. As you so plainly said, it is what we do and we do it well. However, I will require that you cease with the mystery and tell me who you are. If you are lucky, we may even come to an agreement. Apparently, I have a need for your services at my company.”
“Sounds fair. I guess I should apologize for having a little fun with ya, but seriously, your system was way too damn easy to get into. My name is Mac and if your boy over to your left…” My head shoots up and I glare around the room. “Oh, uh, did I forget to mention that I have access to your security cameras as well as that webcam on his laptop? Yeah, again, you need better security on your tech stuff man. As I was sayin’, if your boy looks at his screen I’m pulling up some info you might like to have on me. I’m a bounty hunter and I think we could really work well together. I promise, no more sneaky shit. I’ll even back out of your system if ya want.”
“It seems a bit late for that offer. However, I would like to bring you here. Have you update our systems and show Kace how to keep us where we need to be. This is unacceptable and I will not allow it to continue. How quickly can you be here? I can send my jet for you if you would like.”
A strangled cough comes through the phone and echoes through the room. “Uh, yeah. I can do that. Sure. If you send your jet out to Atlanta, Georgia I can leave as soon as it’s here. I don’t have any jobs that need my attention right now.”
“Then it is a plan. The jet should arrive in the next few hours. I will send Kace to accompany you. This way you may begin training him on the trip here. Once you are here we shall see about helping your undercover agent.”
I shut off the phone before he has the chance to answer. What the fuck have I gotten us into now?
Charlee
I ease into the dream world, my mind still reeling from the day and all that I’ve been through in such a short amount of time. Where is my cowboy? Why didn’t he come to me today? I just knew he would. I had no doubt in my mind that he would help me today. I kept reaching out with my mind, sending silent messages begging him to make it stop. To get me out of here.
But he never came. No matter how hard I begged.
The dream world looks different this time. It’s darker. Almost as if a deep sadness permeates the surrounding air. I’m surrounded by the same rolling hills and flowers. The horses are still running rampant through the grass, without a care in the world. While things seem the same, there is definitely something off. The sun doesn’t seem as bright. The air is thicker, and the smell– it’s wrong. Instead of the sweet aroma of fresh grass and flowers, there is a hint of a storm in the air.
Looking around for my cowboy, I’ve given up on thinking of him as anything else. I let out a little sigh when I see him sprawled out on a hill a little ways away.
“Cowboy,” I let out on a hiccup of relief. I need to see this man, have him hold me, if only in a dream. His head pops up and his eyes lock onto me.
“Oh, my sweet Red.” He shakes his head, as if he were trying to shake me from the dream. “Why’d you have to come here again? Ain’t I been tortured enough for one damn night?”
He lies his head back down on the ground, his eyes going to the quickly darkening clouds above us. Slowly, careful of my left side and leg, I walk to where he rests.
“Sorry if me being here bothers you, cowboy. I didn’t have a choice in the matter if that helps. But, I’m glad I’m here. With you.”
“Oh sweetling, what have they done?”
“I-they...” I can’t say it. I can’t get out the god-awful things I went through that day. The tears I feel pressing against the backs of my eyes pour down my cheeks and my sobs wrack my body so hard that the pain in my ribs intensifies. When I finally get my sobs down to a small hiccup, the only words that come out are the ones I know that I shouldn’t say. The ones that are going to hurt him. Cut him the deepest. “Why didn’t you save me, cowboy?”
His head jerks back like a physical blow impacted him. His jaw hardens. His eyes go a deeper shade of green, almost glowing. The storm breaks and thunder echoes around us.
“I…” He coughs and looks away, no longer meeting my eyes with his intense gaze. “I couldn’t. I’m so damn sorry sweetling. I wish I could have. But I just fucking couldn’t.”
His hand on my hip bites into my side as his fist clenches. I cry out and pull away.
“Fuck!” His hands go in the air, no longer touching me at all. He’s acting like I’m scared of him. I may not fully understand why, but I trust him. At least here in the dream world. “What did they do, sweetling? I need to know. Fuck me sideways, I don’t want to know, but I need to hear it. I need to take the pain from you and hearing it will help with that. Promise.”
His large, calloused hands cup my cheeks. His thumbs wiping away the remaining tears from my face. “I know it’s hard, sweetling. But if you wanna heal, you have to talk about it. Don’t hold that shit in. Trust me.”
His eyes are begging me as much as his words. He needs this from me, no matter how badly I don’t want to say the words.
“It wasn’t all that bad in the beginning. Just a bunch of threats and being pushed around a little. Heck, the no food thing was the worst of it then. After that they gave me some water and bread and tossed me back in the cell for a while. I couldn’t really keep track of how long, but it was starting to get dark when Fred came in. He pu-pulled me from the cage by my hair. Th-threw me to the ground and started kicking me.” I pull in a breath and try to keep the tears at bay. I can get through this. I have to. He’s right and I know it. If I bottle this up, it will kill me.
His fingers draw soft shapes on my back with one hand. The other finds mine and holds tight. He doesn’t say a word, but his eyes are telling me that he’s there for me. That while he failed to protect me earlier, he’s here now and he will get me through this. He’ll make it better, somehow. I take a deep breath.
“Once that was over, he left me lying there for a bit. Didn’t seem real worried about me going anywhere. I don’t blame him. Pretty sure I have a fractured leg or ankle and several broken ribs. It hurts to breathe when I’m awake. It’s not so bad here in the dream world.” I don’t say it out loud but I know that I had a punctured lung as well as a few other busted organs. Had I been fully human still, I’d be dead. Now for the hardest thing of all. Oh god, I don’t want to talk about this.
“I know sweetling, I know. But you have to.”
What the? I didn’t say that out loud, I know it!
“Don’t focus on that just yet. Dream world remember? How about we work through this last part of what happened and then, if you wanna, we can talk about how I heard that?”
I nod and gulp past my fear. Doubt. Disgust. Will he push me away once he knows? What man wants a woman that’s been through what I have? A woman that’s been touched that way? I’m so damn dirty. His finger under my chin forces me to meet his eyes.
“I will never push you away, sweetling. No matter what else happens, always know that.”
A jerky nod is my only response. I sit with my head on his shoulder just breathing in his comforting scent before finishing.
“H-he… he... oh god, cowboy. He hurt me so bad,” I whisper. “He made me... he held my jaw open and told me he’d kill me if I hurt him. I didn’t fight. I was already so beaten down. I gagged, but he didn’t stop. He kept hammering into my mouth.” My voice breaks and I force back the tears threatening to overtake my words. “So hard. So fast. It was rough. His hand probably left bruises he squeezed me so hard. I hurt, cowboy. So desperately, still. Once he finished... he made me swallow it. Then h-he... he raped me. Over and over again. H-he violated me in every way possible. I feel dirty and used and-and-and I just want to feel clean again. Can you make me clean, cowboy? Please,” I beg, my voice breaking off in a sob.
Fred
My focus is fucked. After such an awesome damn torture session today, I can’t seem to think of anything else. That bitch was as close to perfection as I’ve ever gotten. Her whimpers, screams, and words begging for mercy will feed my spank bank for months to come. Not that I’ll have to beat it myself. That bitch will be handling my needs for me on a regular fucking basis.
She is mine, damn it.
I don’t know what it is about her, but damn. Feeling my dick slide into her. Knowing the amount of pain I was causing because she was far from wet for my entry. My entire body shakes with a shudder of pure bliss at the memory. While I thoroughly enjoyed forcing her to suck me until I came like a champ, just like I planned, fucking her was possibly the best thing I have ever experienced.
After taking my anger over Brett’s betrayal out on her and forcing my dick down her throat, I didn’t think it could get any better. Little did I know that when I slammed myself between her struggling thighs into her tight heat, I would see goddamn stars, I lost it. I pounded away until I came a second time and still wasn’t ready to stop, so I kept on pounding. Harder and harder. Her sobs growing louder and urging me to keep going. To grind harder. Hit deeper. Little did she know her pleas for mercy were better than any moan of pleasure could ever have been. Once I released my seed in her amazing fucking pussy a second time, I thought I would be sated. But as I pulled out and caught sight of her tight pucker, I knew that I was far from done with this bitch. I flipped her over, slammed my hand on her ass so hard a bruise formed instantly at the same time my still hard dick went in balls deep. Best. Fucking. Thing. Ever. Her ass was made for my dick. The blood dripping from between her delicious pussy lips made me want to lick on her, something I never do. Why would I? That’s pleasure for them not me. But for this woman, I was going to break my usual routine. Not that I hadn’t already by reaching the pinnacle of ecstasy so many fucking times in a row.
Shaking my head, I force the memories away. Now isn’t the time for reliving it. Now it’s time to deal with the fucking traitor.
Christopher
“So you are the infamous Mac that has been toying with me for the last few days.” I reach my hand out in welcome. While I am still a little ticked off at his antics, I have to admit that if I were able to, I would probably do the same in his position. When our hands connect in a strong shake, an electric shock shoots through our hands and he grunts. His free hand shoots to his left pec and my eyes widen. The man’s scent just changed.
“What the fuck?” He blurts, his hand rubbing the spot gently.
Brad jumps up and rushes to get between me and Mac as if I could not defend myself if needed. I snort, inelegantly, and raise my brow at Brad in a silent command to move the fuck out of my way.
“You have seconds to explain yourself, Mac. I will only stop my men from taking you down for so long. Who in all of Danu are you, and what the hell do you want?”
“Huh? I don’t understand. I’m exactly who I told you I was. What the hell is going on here, and can you please tell blondie behind me to put the fucking gun down? My neck is twitching like a mofo.”
Surprise flashes across Jax’s face before he wipes it away,
his weapon not wavering an inch.
“What is going on here is that you aren’t a fucking human, my man. You smelled human on the plane and when we were all sitting around here waiting on Christopher to get here. The second your hands touched your scent changed to match ours. That shit just doesn’t happen!” Kace seems as flabbergasted as I do and the rest of the guys look confused and ready to kill.
“N-not human? Uh, man you’ve lost your shit. I’m just a normal fucking man. My momma raised me and I ain’t ever been anything different. Well, mainly.”
“Explain.” The one word command echoes through the silence in the room.
“Well, since I hit puberty I’ve had this weird-ass sixth sense thing. I just figured it was a good damn gut instinct. It’s not like I can read fucking minds or something. I just know what way to go sometimes or when something is a really good or really bad idea. That’s all. Still, that don’t make me not human.”
“Why are you rubbing your chest, Mac?” Brad interjects.
“‘Cuz it fucking stings, that’s why!” Grumpy damn man.
“Open your shirt.”
“Uh, thanks. But no thanks.”
“Do not make me force you. Jax still has the gun pointed at your head, and he will not hesitate to fire if you so much as twitch in my direction. Trust me on that.”
Nodding to the men surrounding me, I step forward as I wait to see if he will be opening his shirt or if I will. Either way, I will see what is making his chest sting. Although, I already know. I can sense it down to my fucking bones.
“Ah, fuck me sideways, man. Alright, alright, I’m doing it.”
His large hands shake as he unbuttons his shirt. It doesn’t take long for me to see the bold Celtic symbol for strength sitting prominently on his chest. A soft glow radiates from the tattoo that marks him as a one of my men. As a member of the FaeTAL warriors.