by Maya Nicole
"Do you think the shaman had something to do with it?" He rubbed his chin and then dropped back to the floor to continue cleaning.
"I have no idea. At this point I think only Taylor knows that answer." I picked up a book and flipped through it absentmindedly.
"Hey." I turned quickly at the sound of Amari's voice and strode across the room to hug him. When I pulled back, he grinned at me. "Did you miss me or something?"
"Shut the fuck up. We didn't know if you were going to wake up." I punched him in the shoulder and he winced. "Sorry."
He rubbed at where I had punched. "I don't even remember what happened besides that black smoke rolling in."
I recounted what had happened and everything since then. Amari sat down heavily in a chair. "Identical twins? That's a rare phenomenon."
"Yes, it is." Sammy walked over to Amari and sat in his lap, throwing her arms around him and burying her face in his neck. "Don't ever do that again."
He laughed and smoothed her hair. "I'll try not to get stuck under a dead horse."
"What do you know about twins?" Sammy pulled back and touched his face. "We couldn't find anything here in the library."
"I was cursed by a witch, so for the first few years, I spent all the time possible learning about witches and their history. They have some peculiar rituals and beliefs." He looked over at me as if getting permission to whether he should continue.
Another reason I liked Amari was that he could also read Sammy fairly well, even without a bond in place making it a whole lot easier. Despite the small smile on her face, she was nervous.
"I read a story in a book about this old crone who cursed all demons of Inferna to never be blessed with twins. She was unable to have her own children and thought it was only fair that other women only be able to have one child at a time since she could have none."
I snorted because it sounded like a pile of serpent shit to me. There was a reason witches were nowhere to be found now. They'd be burned at the stake.
Sammy traced his jaw with her fingers. If she wasn't careful, he wasn't going to be able to tell her what he was getting at because he'd be getting at her mouth with his tongue.
I sat down in the other chair and adjusted myself. It was hard being around four other men all the time, and a woman that was a walking sex goddess.
"What was the curse? To be locked away since birth and never be loved by a family?" Sammy's voice dripped with bitterness and I cringed.
I wanted my laughing, happy Sammy back. It seemed like the second we put out one fire, two more would pop up. Maybe she was onto something when she mentioned going to Earth.
Earth certainly would be great for me. I hadn't even searched that hard to find such great nuts and seeds. Had I been given more time, I could have filled up ten fanny packs with them.
I licked my lips and then stood, pulling the cushion off the chair.
"Nico, what are you- oh sweet mother of hell serpents. Where else are we going to find stashes of nuts?" Amari laughed and flinched when I threw a nut at him.
I grabbed a small handful, replaced the cushion, and sat down. "I'm not going to tell you. That would defeat the purpose of a stash."
"At this point, it's more of a hoard." Kage joined us and sat on the arm of my chair. "I found some yesterday hidden in one of Sammy's boots."
"Can we get back to the curse?" Sammy was unamused, and I frowned at her. "Please."
"When a set of twins is born, the second born is cursed to kill the other. That's all I know." He rubbed Sammy's back and she shut her eyes. "It's going to be okay, Sammy."
"No, it's not. I need to go for a walk." She stood, and when I started to follow, she turned. "Alone. I'll stay in the castle."
I didn't think it was a good idea for her to be alone, but I also didn't want to feel her wrath. Once she was gone and out of earshot, I turned to Kage. "Follow her."
"She said-"
"I know what she said, but I'm telling you to follow her." I felt like shit using my sway over him to force his hand.
If it came down to protecting Sammy, he'd fight tooth and nail to protect her. Of that, I was sure.
"I'm not okay with this." He glared at me before going invisible. As he walked past me, he smacked me in the back of my head.
It was well-deserved.
Sammy had figured out Kage was following her around the castle, so not only did I have a pissed off brownie on my hands but also a pissed off queen. Neither had eaten dinner with us, instead eating in the bedroom.
I'm sure they were doing other things in the bedroom besides eating dinner.
"I still have some tequila left. We can play a drinking game." Raphael walked into the sitting room, carrying the bottle, and moved Amari's feet off the sofa so he could sit down.
"Where's Shelly?" Amari put his feet on Raphael's lap.
"Who's Shelly?" Val cocked his head to the side and sounded sad. He had been quiet all day, replying in mostly one-word answers.
I didn't like it and it made me highly suspicious of what was going through that blood-sucking head of his. I couldn't even get a read on his emotions. Was he about to lose it again and rip us to shreds? Did he want to steal Sammy away to his vampire lair?
With Val, things were uncertain, and that bothered me.
Amari looked down at his hands, and Val crossed his arms over his chest. I looked between the two and narrowed my eyes. "Hey, is everything all right between you two?"
"No. It's not. Because he won't tell me who the fuck Shelly is." I couldn't quite place the emotion that came from Val, but at least it was something instead of apathy.
We didn't know who the fuck Shelly was either, and I hadn't seen Amari slinking around with any of the servants. I'd cut off his balls if he did that to Sammy.
Amari seemed confused at Val's sudden burst of emotion. "Shelly is the name I gave to the squirrel toy that Raphael gave me. He has to keep it because it makes me shift and do weird shit."
I threw my head back and laughed. It was the funniest thing I'd heard in days. "You named it Shelly? That is the most precious thing I've ever heard."
He picked up a pillow and threw it at me. I dodged it and held my stomach from laughing so hard. Raphael had a few good guffaws about it too, but Amari and Val were still tense.
"What about that game, man?" I motioned to the bottle Raphael had placed on the table. "We should enjoy ourselves because tomorrow we have a planning meeting and have to start preparing for our next drive to take care of Taylor."
"Can't we just send Kage to kill him? He's killed a few before." Raphael took the cork out of the bottle and poured the clear alcohol in the shot glass.
"We can't ask Kage to do something like that. It would ruin him." Val scooted forward in his chair. "How do we play?"
"It's a stupid game, really. It's called Truth or Shot. We ask each other questions, and if you don't want to answer it truthfully, you have to take a shot. I think it might be a good way for us to get to know each other better given our new bromance." Raphael was a little too inventive with his vocabulary.
"Bromance?" Amari sat forward. "I would hardly call what we have a romance of any kind."
"Our dicks have been inside the same woman at the same time. We have the most epic kind of bromance known to man." Raphael shrugged.
"Have you already been drinking?" I rubbed my beard. He probably was constantly drunk judging by the crazy shit that came out of his mouth most of the time.
"I don't want to answer that question." Raphael grinned, grabbed the shot glass, and drank. "I have a question for Nico."
"This is going to be fun." I rolled my eyes and sat back in my chair, already knowing I'd probably answer just about anything they threw at me. I had no secrets now that they knew I turned into a giant squirrel if given strong enough nuts.
"If you let anyone give it to you up the ass, who would it be?"
"Easy question. You. You have the smallest dick." I smirked and took the shot anyway. "Want me to ben
d over the chair right now for you?"
"That's not how this game works. It's not Truth or Dare. And, I do not have the smallest dick." Raphael refilled the shot glass. "Your turn. Pick anyone of us and ask us a question."
"Raphael. Who would you let stick it up your ass?" I was already enjoying myself immensely and we were only on the second question.
"You can't turn around and ask me the same exact question." Raphael's face turned pink. "But since I never told you that, I'll allow it."
"You're so full of it. Now tell us, who do you want to pound you?" I wiggled my eyebrows and looked at Val and Amari, who didn't seem to be having as good a time as Raphael and I were.
"That's a tough question. While your dick piercing does intrigue me, I would have to pick Amari because he knows how to take care of a lover in the bedroom."
I could cut the tension rolling off Val with a knife. He looked like he was about to lunge across the table and wring Raphael's neck.
"We're just dicking around, chill out." The second I finished speaking, Val lunged and sent the chair and me to the floor.
"Don't tell me what to do, squirrel." His grip wasn't tight, but his eyes traveled to my neck. "I bet your blood tastes like nuts."
"Do it and see who's missing their nuts tomorrow morning." I shoved him off me and Amari grabbed his arm. "Whatever the fuck has gotten your panties in a knot, you need to fix it."
"Let's go outside and talk this out." Amari was in a stare-off with Val.
"Oh, so you're comfortable being alone with me now? Not afraid I might rip your throat out?" Val snapped.
I stood and righted the chair. Raphael had a dazed expression on his face. "Hey, Raphael, what's-"
My vision suddenly went fuzzy, and I held onto the back of the chair. I blinked hard, trying to clear the feeling. Amari stumbled and fell toward me, taking me down to the floor with him.
I groaned and tried to push him off. I didn't understand what was happening. I tried to shift, but my body was too weak.
I turned my head toward Raphael, and he was slumped on the couch. Whatever was affecting us, he was no match for it.
My eyes tried to close and I fought it hard.
I didn't fight hard enough.
Chapter 14
Samara
I woke feeling refreshed and less emotional than I had felt in days. Strong arms were wrapped around me, and I sat up, looking down at Kage and only Kage. Where were the others?
The day before I had reached my limit and needed space. Of course Nico sent Kage after me. I wasn't mad at Kage; he didn't have a choice.
"Kage?" I shook his shoulder and he stretched, slowly opening his eyes.
I hardly ever saw him sleep, so waking up with him wrapped around me was a pleasant and welcome surprise.
"Good morning, gorgeous." He reached up and moved my hair behind my ear. "You look well-rested today."
"I am." I looked at the empty space on the other side of him. Maybe they had slept in the room and were already up and about. "Did they sleep in here?"
He frowned. "After Raphael came in to grab his alcohol, none of them came back."
"They are probably passed out downstairs." I slid out of bed and padded to the window, pulling the drapes to the side. "Oh, my lady hell horse."
The sky was still dark, but it was most certainly a dark blue color now. I didn't quite know where the light was coming from since the moon was still the same.
Kage came to stand behind me and slipped his arms around my waist, putting his chin on my shoulder. "Do you think it will be like Earth?"
"I guess if I wanted it to be. Raphael said something called a sun makes their sky light, but I don't think I'm that powerful." I put my hands over his and we stood at the window, marveling at the sky.
I turned in his arms and kissed him, his lips waking me up the rest of the way. It felt so right, but at the same time, it felt like a brick was in my stomach, weighing me down.
He cupped my cheek and frowned. "I'm starting to be able to feel how everyone is feeling." His brows furrowed. "It's only been a little, but something feels... wrong."
"I feel it too." I pulled away and went to my closet to put on clothes.
We headed down the stairs to find out where everyone was and to eat breakfast. We would be planning our next moves against Taylor, and if I wanted to stop myself from biting anyone's head off, I needed food.
Kage pulled me to a stop before we reached the bottom of the stairs. "Stay here."
"What-" He shot me a warning glance, and I was so taken aback by it that I stayed where I was.
He walked down the hall toward the entrance. "Sammy. Come quick!"
I ran to him and stood staring at the four guards in the entryway. At first they looked to just be standing against the wall, but then I saw the white webbing holding them in place and across their mouths.
"Widows." I took my knife out and began helping Kage free the four guards, starting with their mouths. "What happened?"
"They came out of nowhere! Thousands of their spiders!" One of the men put his hands on his knees, inhaling deeply. "It was like they had us under a spell and then they stuck us to the wall."
"We couldn't even move our bodies to try to stop them."
"I've never seen so many. The women were nowhere to be seen. They must have been close though."
I put my hand up to stop them. Widows didn't typically just imprison their prey and leave them. They ate them and left no trace of them ever existing. It was one reason why the crown could never do anything to stop them. There was never any evidence.
"Are they still here?" It was possible they came to seek a position on the council.
"No. They headed down the hallway and went into the sitting room."
I took off running and skidded to a halt just inside the room. No one was inside, but Raphael's bottle of alcohol sat open on the table with the shot glass full next to it.
"Where are they?" I ventured further into the room and put the cork in the alcohol.
"S-S-Sammy." Kage's voice shook, and I turned to find him standing near the fireplace. "It's a n-n-note."
Written in a spiderweb in the archway of the fireplace was a message that read: Come to our home, he wants you alone. Bring any friends, they'll meet their ends.
I grabbed onto Kage's arm to keep my knees from giving out. "He has them."
The fastest way to get to where the widows lived was by air. Tony and Miles had returned from their hunting the day before, without a clue of all that had happened and our need for them.
That was the problem with depending on a giant and a hell serpent for transportation. They operated on their own schedule and would disappear for months at a time to hunt for food in the outer areas of Inferna.
"My lady, Miles has been anxiously awaiting to serve you again. You are his favorite." Tony put down the rope ladder leading to the basket with seats on Miles’ back. "We hope it will be a smooth ride for you today."
"Thank you, Tony." I climbed into the basket, with Kage right behind me. He was invisible since the message had been clear to not bring anyone else.
"I can get you within about five miles of their lair and then you’re on your own." Tony climbed on his saddle at the front of Miles and we took off.
As much as I hated flying, it was fast and comfortable most of the time. The added benefit was the protection of a fierce giant and fire-breathing hell serpent.
"Have you flown before?" I turned to Kage, and I put my hand where I thought his leg was. I laughed when it touched his crotch instead.
"No, but if flying is going to get me a handjob then it's not so bad." His voice sounded shaky, but otherwise he didn't seem to be having a panic attack.
"No hanky panky in flight!" Tony turned over his shoulder and winked. "I knew there was someone with you, just didn't want to call you out on it in case someone was listening."
"Thanks." I kept my hand on Kage's crotch and he shifted in the seat. "What's wrong, Kage? Is flying m
aking you uncomfortable?"
"You heard what he said." I rubbed the outline of his cock and he made a strangled noise. "Sammy."
"Kage." I crossed my arms. "I was just teasing. I need something to distract me."
His fingers ran through my hair and my head moved back slightly. His lips pressed against the base of my ear. "Let me distract you then."
He slid his tongue across my skin and kissed his way to the base of my neck. I moved my head to the side.
I already felt wetness between my legs. "When we get to our destination, it will be nearly nightfall. We're going to have to find somewhere to sleep."
"I like the sound of that." His lips slid over mine and I shut my eyes, getting lost in the taste of him.
He started sweet enough, but then his mouth became greedy, sucking and nipping at my bottom lip. It was completely the wrong time and place to be getting frisky, but it was also the most appropriate time since I didn't know what the hell we'd face once we got to where the widows were.
If any of my men had cheated on a woman, I wasn't sure they'd even still be alive. Widows feasted on men that treated women wrong, favoring those that cheated or did other deplorable acts to women.
While I wasn't completely opposed to their methods, they were also a reclusive bunch and had no males left. Once you started looking for faults in someone, you found many, and they had led themselves straight into being at-risk of extinction. No one would mate with them, and all the mates they did end up taking were devoured for whatever reason.
Our lips finally disconnected as Miles banked to the right and then landed at the base of a mountain. We climbed down with our weapons and packs.
"Thanks, Tony." I walked to the front of Miles and put my hand on his gigantic snout. His eyes closed halfway as I gave him a scratch. "Thank you, Miles."
"Be safe, my queen. When you need a ride back, send a raven and we'll be there in a flash." With that, he and Miles headed back into the sky.
"It's getting darker. I think we should find a place to sleep." I kept my voice low in case there were eyes and ears watching me.