Crimes of Fire (Wayward Fae Paranormal Prison Book 1)

by J. N. Colon

  “My room is closer.” Tristan ignored my question as he turned down another hall. Half the Fae darted right while we went left. “We’ll stay there. You’ll—”

  I was yanked away from him, a shriek exploding out of my mouth. Icy claws of terror ripped open my center. A wraith had me. What else would it be?

  “It’s me.” A sharp hiss penetrated my ear. “Stop freaking out.”

  “Viktor?”

  “What are you doing?” Tristan tried to grab my arm, but Viktor tossed me over his shoulder and darted down the corridor.

  My fists pounded against his back. “Put me down!”

  “You’re safer with me than him.” He turned down a narrow path and slipped inside a door leading to a set of stairs.

  “Fine! Just put me down.” Watching him suck face with a pixie had left a bad taste in my mouth, but he had more experience in Fae emergencies than I did. “I don’t like being carried.” Had this been anyone else, I would have been biting, clawing, punching, and kicking my way off.

  The unseelie prince dropped me roughly to my feet. “We need to get back to my room. It’s probably the safest place here, but they’ll be coming for us both.”

  “W-What?” I sputtered in a high-pitched squeak. “Why?”

  He shot an incredulous look over his shoulder. “I’m an unseelie prince, and you’re a seelie-dae. We have enough power in our souls to get them plenty good and full.” Viktor snatched my wrist and tugged me up the stairs. “Come on. We don’t have time for explanations.”

  I yanked out of his grasp but followed him through a series of cramped hallways and doors. Small pipes ran horizontally, clanging against the walls, and electrical wires crisscrossed the ceiling. Clearly, this was not a path other inmates used, maybe not even the guards. Did Viktor have blueprints of the prison?

  After climbing another set of stairs, he stopped at a thick steel door. “Stay behind me.” He opened it slowly to peer into a hallway. The muscles in his body were tense as a bowstring. “It’s clear. Come on.” He grabbed my hand and hauled me forward.

  I didn’t pull away this time as we hurried down the wide corridor. After being in the confined maze, I felt too exposed. We passed a few thick doors, the small windows closed. I didn’t want to know what lurked behind those.

  Viktor halted so quickly that I stumbled into him. He ignored my blunder and typed a series of numbers into a keypad, way too fast for me to catch. With a metallic clank, the dense door swung open. He yanked me inside.

  My jaw dropped at the size of his cell—if it could even be called a cell. The space more resembled a studio apartment. A large bed stacked with a mountain of pillows lined the left wall, and a cushy leather couch sat in front of a flat-screen television.

  A flatscreen? Seriously?

  Gray tiles peeked out from the ajar door on the right. His bathroom probably had a shower too. Concrete, cinderblock walls, and metal stretched everywhere, but his cell was nicer than most of the foster homes I’d stayed in.

  What a crock of shit.

  The sound of metal scraping and a loud thud had me whipping around. Viktor set a lock into place and closed the cover on the window overlooking the hall. Shit. I was now locked in the room. Alone. With the unseelie prince.

  Air whooshed out of my lungs and I turned, moving a few steps deeper into the lap of luxury. That sharp, delicious scent of his clung to everything, and pine from juniper sticks filtered beneath.

  “They can’t get in here,” Viktor said. “We’ll be safe for the night.”

  The night? I had to spend the night with him?

  Images of that pixie draped over him sped through my mind. “Why didn’t you bring your little pixie with you?” Did that come out as jealous as it sounded in my head?

  “What pixie?” Viktor’s nonchalant tone further irritated.

  Had he already forgotten his latest conquest? “The one that had her tongue shoved down your throat.” My back remained toward him, but I could feel his body tense even though we stood several feet apart.

  “Oh, you mean Batina.”

  I examined the massive bed. How many girls had he brought here before? I turned away, stopping the horrendous montage of him with his adoring fan club.

  “She came out of nowhere and kissed me.” He rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. “I didn’t ask for it.”

  I rolled my eyes. “You looked really shocked. You poor thing.”

  The tendons in his neck flexed. “Let me guess, you went straight to that holier-than-thou seelie Tristan.”

  Did I detect a hint of jealousy? Probably not. “What’s it to you? I like him. He’s nice.”

  “Nice?” Viktor’s lip curled in contempt. “He’s a self-righteous prick.”

  They really didn’t like each other. “And you’re any better? What do you have against Tristan?”

  His gaze swept possessively over me, leaving a trail of heat behind. “Well, for starters, I don’t like him touching things that are mine.”

  My head snapped back. “Excuse me? I know you’re not referring to me as yours.”

  Viktor closed the gap between us, his presence so overpowering I could have drowned in it. “Anything in this prison is mine—if I want it to be.”

  My breath sharply halted. He wanted me to be his what? His to torment? Or his to unravel bit by bit?

  Viktor leaned forward until I could smell the moonberry wine on his lips. I bet he tasted like it too. “I don’t want that seelie’s fucking hands anywhere near you.”

  An electric jolt rippled through my body. I sure as hell wasn’t prepared for that response. “You can’t just—”

  His lips crashed onto mine, instantly shooting a bolt of heat through my belly. All thoughts of Tristan evaporated. All thoughts of anything but the unseelie prince had been obliterated. His tongue wasted no time before slipping into my mouth, demanding entrance. And I gave it to him.

  I’d give Viktor Hale a lot of things right now.

  Shit. I was screwed. But I couldn’t stop kissing him.

  His throaty groan caught me off guard and turned my legs into jelly. He noticed my lack of stability and grabbed my hips before I hit the floor.

  “You’re not getting away that easily.” Viktor trapped me against the wall. “Sloane.” He growled my name, the sound throbbing through my body. “You taste even better than I imagined.”

  So he’d been thinking about kissing me? What else had the icy prince pictured doing with me?

  My hands drifted over his ripped abdomen, the muscles jumping beneath my touch. “You have a thing with me and walls, don’t you, Vik?”

  “Maybe.” A grin twitched at his swollen lips, and he lifted me off my feet. “You’re so damn short.”

  I wrapped my legs around his waist. “You’re just too damn tall. You’re like a Sasquatch.”

  “You must like them big because I don’t hear you complaining.”

  No complaints here.

  Viktor took control of my mouth again, his tongue playing chase with mine. His sweet flavor collided with the sharp, heady scent clinging to him. My fingers tangled in his hair, something I’d secretly been dying to do since I first laid eyes on him in the cafeteria. The deep black, almost blue strands slipped through my grip like silk or some other ridiculously expensive material.

  Flames licked at my insides, threatening to seep out and consume us both. It felt like I’d been burned by the sharp point of a blazing star. Viktor might have been the ice prince, but he was all fire and passion. His touch tore at my sanity. He made me forget I should have been running as far away from him as possible.

  Would distance be enough now? Viktor had burrowed under my skin, gotten beyond the massive barricades stopping most people in their tracks. He’d smashed his way in. So much tension existed between us that the cord finally snapped and sent us crashing into each other.

  I was supposed to kill him, but I couldn’t stop wanting him.

  Alarms should have been blaring in my head. Th
ey weren’t. Viktor Hale filled every dark crevice available. And then some.

  Like an arrow, a scream outside the door pierced the lusty haze devouring us.

  Viktor stiffened while I grew rigid in his arms. Shit. We’d forgotten all about the deadly creatures invading the prison.

  The unseelie prince dropped me to my feet, his chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath. “The wraiths.”

  My throat tightened. “Are they in the hall?”

  Viktor’s lips, still damp and swollen, thinned. “Maybe.” He reluctantly put more distance between us and then marched toward the door.

  The absence of his body heat left me shivering. I followed him across the room as he slowly opened the metal plate covering the window.

  A string of curses tumbled out of his mouth. “They’re here.”

  My heart shot into my throat. “They can’t get in, right?”

  “They’re going to try. They can sense us.” Viktor grabbed the chain around his neck and whipped it over his head. A tiny key dangled from the center. He grabbed my arm, fitted the key into a minuscule hole in my goblin cuff, and whispered under his breath. The cuff fell to the floor.

  So that was how he got them off. I rubbed my wrist, feeling something strange stir in my core. Was it my magic?

  Viktor slipped the chain back around his neck. “You should be able to protect yourself in case.”

  My jaw slackened. “I don’t know how to use my powers.”

  He trapped my face between his hands, giving me a little shake. “If they attack you, Sloane, you will use your magic.”

  His command yanked my spine straight. Viktor’s meaning was clear—use my magic or die.

  A myriad of shouts rang out in the hall. Viktor pivoted and peeked through the window again. “Balfour!” He began undoing the lock. “Sloane, stay here.”

  “What!” I shrieked. My voice had never gone that high. “You can’t go out there.”

  “Lock this behind me.” He grabbed my shirt to roughly yank me forward. “Lock it and don’t come out. I mean it.”

  “Fine!” Once he vanished into the hall, I slammed the lock into place with trembling hands. Viktor knew more about these creatures than I did. Actually, I knew nothing. He could handle himself.

  I shouldn’t be worried over his wellbeing anyway. If he died tonight, it saved me from having to kill him.

  I slumped against the door. My fingers moved to my lips, the same lips he’d been devouring a few minutes ago. Viktor had to die. It was either him or Jilly.

  A cold sweat crawled over my flesh. Damn it. I wanted to hurl. Viktor was out there. He could be dying right this second.

  The hairs on my nape suddenly rose, shooting a chill across my body. Something loomed right on the other side of the door. I could feel it, like an icy blade skating down my nape. I twisted around, my hands splaying on the cold metal.

  I slowly slid the plate away from the small window.

  A scream stuck in my throat as the face of death stared back. Blood red eyes pierced mine from beneath the shadows of a black cloak. Needled-like teeth gleamed, and two narrow slits sat where the nose should be.

  The wraith’s tongue flicked out, forked like a snake, and swiped through the air. A low rumble vibrated the thick steel separating us. He wanted my soul.

  The door rattled violently, and I stumbled back. My breathing came in quick pants. A high-pitched screech echoed. Could that thing break down the door?

  I rubbed my wrist where the goblin cuff had been for weeks. I tried to remember how I used my magic to set the house on fire, but nothing rose to the surface.

  The keening groan of metal on metal reverberated through Viktor’s cell. My pulse spiked to astronomical levels. I’d better figure this magic thing out before a wraith barreled inside.

  A familiar roar bounced down the hall followed by a thud rattling the door. I ran forward and peered out of the window to find Viktor wrestling the wraith that had been trying to get inside. The creature’s body wasn’t completely solid, and the cloak floated around it like a shadow, ominously drifting through the air. A vibrant glow lit the unseelie prince’s eyes while wintry air chilled the atmosphere.

  The wraith let out screech moments before it froze. Viktor’s massive fist reared back then punched the creature into a million pieces of ice.

  Holy shit. Viktor could definitely handle himself.

  But then four wraiths appeared out of nowhere, converging on him. My throat tightened as one of them managed to remain on top of the Fae while the others held him down.

  Oh, no. It was going to suck his soul out. Viktor fought to toss the wraiths off until two more joined the fray. They had him. And their rapid screeches told me they knew it.

  My hands moved before my brain could catch up. I grabbed the handle, yanking the lock out of place. The metal thud boomed loudly enough to catch their attention. It didn’t matter. I still ripped the door open and darted into the hall.

  Chapter 18

  Chaos swarmed the hall, filled with inhuman screeches and shouts from the guards. Wraiths slithered around the Fae, the hunger for our souls palpable. What the hell had I been thinking by opening that door, giving up my refuge and rushing into the hall to face a danger I knew nothing about?

  “Sloane, no!” Viktor’s gravelly voice sliced through my frantic thoughts.

  Oh, yeah. I did it for the unseelie prince. So stupid.

  Heat glided through my veins as my hand lifted. It was coming, the power.

  A ball of energy built in my core and a scream tore from my mouth as I released the pressure. A brilliant flame formed in my palm and then shot out, hitting the group of wraiths seizing Viktor.

  The unseelie prince scrambled up and used air magic to shove the others back. Down the hall, the warden and a couple of guards battled what had to be over two dozen more wraiths.

  I raised my hand, calling upon the fire again, and tossed a flame at the creatures crowding a few officers. Two wraiths caught fire, shrieking and rolling across the ground. Officer Garrett used the sizzle stick to encase one in violet electricity.

  Definitely don’t want to get hit with one of those ever.

  “Get back inside, Sloane!” Viktor cursed and flung another wraith into the wall.

  I tossed my hands in the air. “I just saved your ass. Don’t I get a th—”

  A figure slammed into me, taking us to the ground. Air yanked from my lungs as pain ricocheted across my back. The wraith’s scarlet eyes gleamed like blood on fire. His tongue licked my cheek, and he tittered happily.

  My skin crawled at the slimy sensation, pouring hot anger through my limbs. I kicked the creature off and twisted to scramble up. Sharp stings ripped across my shoulder blade. Shit. Before I could regain my footing, I hit the concrete again.

  The wraith forced me over and clambered on my chest. Black shadows floated around him. He leaned forward, those sharp teeth flashing. I gagged on the stench of rot and death. He released a chilling laugh.

  “You will be tasty.” He grabbed my chin with clawed fingers, licking my cheek again. My insides tightened against the disgusting gesture. “So small for such big power.” He opened his maw and breathed deeply.

  Ice converged across my entire body. My ears popped. Pressure tugged at my chest. Violent pain tore at my core, like razors splitting me in half. I couldn’t even scream. Every ounce of strength fled from my muscles. Blinding white crawled over my vision.

  An angry snarl exploded through the hall and the wraith screeched, releasing his hold on my soul. He went up in flames right on top of me before quickly fizzling into smoke until nothing was left.

  I gulped air as Viktor appeared above. And here I thought catching them on fire a little bit was cool. Viktor obliterated them with his power. Clearly, I had nothing on the unseelie prince.

  He snatched me up, his arm slipping around my waist as I swayed. “Now who saved whose ass?”

  He had me there.

  The pounding of feet hit
the corridor as more guards appeared, ready for battle. Had all the wraiths converged here to kill the two of us?

  “Viktor, take Sloane back in the room,” Warden Balfour commanded, “and stay with her.”

  The prince’s brows furrowed as he glanced at the remaining wraiths. “Are you sure? I can help.”

  The warden shook his head, his usual sleek silver hair in disarray. “We’re fine. Get inside.” Tears riddled his clothes and a few spots of blood speckled his hands, but his glowing light-blue eyes reminded me he was an unseelie with elemental magic. I could sense the power flooding off of him.

  Viktor gave a quick nod and reluctantly ushered me back into his room, releasing his hold to set the lock into place. His shoulders tightened as he watched through the window.

  I wiped sweat from my forehead, choking back the urge to smack myself. Why the hell had I gone out there and saved him? If I’d just let him die, then Jilly would be safe.

  My palms pressed into my face as angry tears threatened to fall. What a stupid move, Sloane.

  Viktor’s body heat permeated my personal space before he pried my hands off. “Are you all right?”

  “Yeah, I just…” I choked back a massive lump in my throat and blinked a couple of times. “There’s a lot in this world I don’t understand.” One of them being the reason I saved him.

  His face hardened. “Which is why you should have stayed in here.”

  Viktor had no idea how right he was.

  “Well, I didn’t,” I snapped. “I saw all of those things on you, and I reacted. Next time, I’ll stop myself from helping.”

  “Good because I don’t need help.” The veins in his arms popped as he strained, his nostrils flaring. “You could have died out there.”

  “So could you!” Why was I arguing? I agreed with him.

  “I know what I’m doing,” he shouted. “I’ve been in this world my entire life, and I’m not stupid. I know what I can handle.”

  My molars ground into each other. I wanted to punch that irritating mouth of his. “So now I’m stupid?”

  “Yes.”

  Even though I agreed, I couldn’t stop myself from lashing out. I lunged forward and shoved him. He didn’t budge so my fist flew at his face.