by Kyra Quinn
“Don’t worry about the girl,” he says, dropping his voice so low I must strain to hear him. “She’s a gullible mortal. Easy to manipulate. You saw her tonight.”
My stomach drops. That fucking bastard.
“You okay?” Arachne asks, giving the leash a gentle tug. “You stopped moving.”
“Sorry.” I follow her into the house, clenching my hands behind my back to hide the way they tremble with rage. I can’t afford sloppy mistakes. If Kane wants to play games, I’ll play to win. By the time I’m done with him and Zeke, their pathetic war will look like child’s play. But first, let’s see how Kane handles a taste of his own bullshit.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Kane
“Nice work tonight,” Dagon says after the last guest leaves. “It won’t pacify them forever, but we’ve bought ourselves a little more time.”
I grunt, unsure how else to respond. It’s not as if Jerome and Ava don’t have a valid point. The Dark Hunt is dwindling our numbers more each night. An offensive counterattack is precisely what we need to push them back.
“What’s the plan?” I ask instead, leaning against the marbled countertop in the kitchen. “Wait for Lilith to show her cards and hope it’s enough?”
He shakes his head. “I don’t know. Even if we caved to the pressure and organized an attack, we’ve got nothing capable of killing an Archangel. Not even a fallen one. But he can wipe out most of Miami without breaking a sweat if we push him the wrong way.”
I grit my teeth. He’s not wrong, but I don’t have to like it. We’ve assigned lesser demons to countless hours spent digging through religious texts and lore in search of a way to end Michael once and for all. The information we found was ambiguous. The only solid lead suggested Archangels can only die by God’s hand or their own sword.
We have access to neither.
“What if we didn’t kill him?” I suggest, a fresh idea forming on the tip of my tongue. “What if we convince the Knights to handle him similar to the way we’ve handled Nadia?”
Dagon snorts. “Seriously?”
“Hear me out. We can’t kill him, but we also can’t leave him unchecked to terrorize Miami. Imprisoning him is the only actual solution.”
He rubs his chin. “How?”
“Still working on that part. But if it works, we can end this war before it claims any more lives.”
I can tell Dagon is skeptical. Fair enough, given the magnitude of what I’m suggesting. But even an improbable idea is better than nothing.
“I’ll mention it to Levi. See what he thinks,” Dagon says after the silence between us stretches into uncomfortable territory. “I doubt he’ll go for it, but it’s worth a shot.”
“Let’s hope he at least considers it. I don’t know how much longer we can convince Ava and Jerome to stand down. Violence breeds violence.”
“It’s a mess,” he agrees. “But the others won’t move against our orders. They’re angry—rightfully so—but they aren’t stupid.”
I’m not sure I agree with him, especially concerning Ava, but I don’t argue. “I should head upstairs and check on Nadia.”
His face brightens. “She did well tonight. I think it helped soothe some of Jerome’s rage to see a hunter on a leash at your feet.”
I don’t give a singular fuck what Jerome thinks. But I force a smile and steal a bottle of Macallan from the cabinet. “She’s come a long way in a brief time. I’d say she’s earned a little reward.”
“Yeah? What d'you have in mind?” He wiggles his eyebrows suggestively.
I groan. “You’re damn near seven hundred years old. Grow up.”
“Where’s the fun in that?” He winks. “Give our dear prisoner a kiss from me, too, Casanova.”
I flip him off and make my way out of the kitchen and upstairs. Tucking the booze under my arm, I unlock the door and let myself into Nadia’s room. She’s still in her tight little dress, sprawled across the bed with Arachne as if they were old friends attending a slumber party. Her eyes catch mine, and she gives me a coy smile.
“Thank you for sitting with her, Arachne,” I say, hoping she’ll pick up on the note of dismissal in my voice. “I’m sure Nadia appreciated your company.”
Nadia’s eyes twinkle. She tilts her head and says, “So you remember my name.”
As if I could ever forget. Nadia Gray’s name is burned into my brain as permanently as the brand I left on her shoulder.
Arachne pushes to her feet in a single graceful motion. She blows Nadia a kiss and says, “I’ll come back up a little later to do your nails. Ciao, darling.”
She sashays out of the bedroom without a single glance in my direction. Smug little bitch. Perhaps I should reconsider how much time I’m letting her spend with Nadia. The two of them together could spell trouble.
“She’s nice,” Nadia says after Arachne’s footsteps disappear down the stairs. “You know. For a demon.”
I chuckle. “You haven’t seen her pissed off yet. We didn’t recruit Arachne from Hell for her sweet disposition.”
There’s something different about Nadia tonight. She doesn’t avoid my gaze or shy away from me for once. Her body language is open. Inviting. She pats the spot on the bed Arachne sat moments before, beckoning me to join her.
“Someone’s in a pleasant mood,” I say, dropping onto the mattress next to her. “Did you have fun at the meeting?”
Her nose wrinkles, and it’s the cutest damn thing I’ve seen in decades. I turn away and busy myself with opening the bottle of booze. Anything to distract myself from the perverted fantasies flooding my head.
“I don’t know if fun is the right word, but I appreciate you letting me attend,” she says. “It was interesting to see old enemies in a fresh light.”
“Here.” I pass her the now-open bottle. “I forgot to grab glasses, but I figured you might want a stiff drink after tonight.”
She laughs, taking the bottle from my hands and bringing it to her lips. Her face scrunches as she swallows a mouthful. She wipes her glistening lips on her arm and smirks. “No sense in dirtying dishes, right?”
“Classy girl. I knew I liked you for a reason.”
She throws her head back and laughs again. Her giddy energy is infectious, and I’m laughing with her in seconds. We pass the booze back and forth between us, trading quips and superficial stories until the bottle runs dry. I can’t remember the last time I’ve had this. Someone to talk to about things other than war and scheming. There’s an intimacy to it I don’t have words to explain. For the first time in decades, I’m able to unwind and relax for a while.
“What was it like?” I ask her after the bottle’s gone dry. “Giving up everything to join the Dark Hunt?”
Her cheeks are flushed with alcohol, her eyes glassy. She presses a finger to her lips and ponders the question before shrugging. “Fine, I guess. I didn’t have much to give up in the first place, so that wasn’t a tremendous deal. It was scary for a while, though. Even after training with Zeke for months. It’s always a mix of terror and exhilaration with the hunt.”
Not the answer I expected, but I’m not sure what I assumed she’d say. I knew some part of her had to enjoy her work. “What will you do next?”
“Hmm?” She’s staring right at me, but she doesn’t seem to hear me. She scoots closer, close enough for her bare thigh to touch my leg. My body stiffens automatically, but she reaches up and presses her hand softly to my cheek.
“Is it okay if I kiss you now, sir?” she whispers.
Those words are all it takes to snap my self-control. I grab the back of her neck and pull her against me, crushing my mouth against hers. She gasps, but her lips part to allow my tongue entry. Her kiss is hungry and needy, and I have no trouble matching her enthusiasm. I’ve wanted this since the moment I saw her picture on my table.
I roll on top of her, pinning her body to the mattress with my weight. Her hands roam through my hair before traveling down my sides. She stops at the hem of my
shirt, her tiny hands sliding under to caress my abdomen and chest. Everywhere she touches, my skin tingles with warmth.
This is a terrible idea. Every alarm bell in my head screams at me to stop before things go too far. She’s drunk, and I’m not entirely sober. I’ve imagined fucking Nadia a million times. But in all my fantasies, I was the one who took her down. Seduced her. She wasn’t even a willing participant in half of them.
But now she’s under me, begging for more with her ravenous kisses. I don’t have the strength to deny her. Not when I’ve craved this for two years. I slide my hand up her leg and grab a handful of her round but firm ass. If her lips didn’t taste like my personal brand of heroine, I’d sink my teeth into her backside and mark my territory.
“Kane,” she whispers, her voice breathy as she pulls away. Her pupils swallow most of her irises, her eyes wide and glassy. “Kane, I-I want you. Please.”
A primal growl crawls from my throat as I bury my teeth into the side of her slender neck. I tear the dress off her in one rough pull, neither of us concerned by the fabric ripping on its way past her curvy hips. I drink in the sight of her against the mattress wearing nothing but a pair of lacy black panties. Every drop of blood rushes from my brain into my dick. I’ve seen her naked dozens of times since her arrival, but not like this. Not gazing up at me with those starry eyes full of lust.
She grips the bottom of my shirt and slides it over my head. Throwing it onto the floor, she traces the lines of my scars and tattoos with her index finger. Her chest heaves with short, ragged breaths that make it impossible not to stare at her erect nipples.
Her hands tremble as they find my belt. Interesting. Perhaps she isn’t as experienced sexually as I expected. I nudge her out of the way and unloop the leather from around my waist. She knocks it from my hand onto the ground. Throwing her arms around my neck, she pulls me in for another needy kiss. Her hands slide south and fumble with the brass button of my jeans until they pop open.
The anticipation is almost more than I can take. Her fingertips dip into the waistband of my boxers. I moan against her mouth, biting her bottom lip until a faint coppery taste coats my tongue.
Nadia pulls her lips away and tugs at my jeans. “Take these off. I want to feel you.”
My cock twitches at the sultry way the words sound on her tongue. Lucifer help me. If she keeps saying the perfect things, there’s no way I’ll be able to let her leave my bed again.
I push to my feet and slide my pants to the floor, leaving my boxers in place. Nadia licks her lips as she watches me undress, and all I can picture is how beautiful she’ll look with my cock between her lips. It’s hard to believe she’s the daughter of a witch instead of a succubus. No other woman has pulled me this close to the edge with so little stimulation.
I need to regain control of the situation, for both our sakes. Pointing at the floor in front of my feet, I order her to kneel. She does, clasping her hands behind her back so her tits are pointed proudly at me. I grope each one before dropping my boxers.
“You know what to do with this?” I tease.
She blinks, staring at my crotch with something between shock and terror. “Holy fuck.”
“Unholy, actually.” I wink. “But thank you. Go on, give it a taste.”
She reaches for me, timid. “I don’t—I’ve never—”
“You’ve never given a blowjob?”
She shakes her head, the blush of her cheeks deepening. “The hunt kept me busy. I don’t have a lot of experience with sex.”
The thought of being the one to corrupt her innocence only excites me more. “It’s easy. Hold your mouth open and swirl your tongue around while I fuck your pretty face.”
“What—”
She doesn’t finish the word before I grab her by the back of her head and shove her mouth down on my throbbing erection. She gags for a second, but soon adjusts to me slowly pumping myself in and out of her mouth. Her tongue swirls around my shaft until I tilt my head back and groan. For someone who supposedly has no idea what she’s doing, she’s doing a damn convincing job of it.
I’m usually all for foreplay. A slow, tortuous buildup makes the inevitable explosion at the end ten times more fulfilling. But I don’t have the patience for it tonight. The only thing I can think about is burying myself inside of her.
“Tell me, pet,” I say, still sliding my cock back and forth between her lips, “do you have a favorite position?”
“Mm-mm,” she returns, the sound vibrating up the length of my shaft.
Dealer’s choice, then. I grab a fistful of her hair and pull her off me, lifting her to her feet before tossing her face-first onto the mattress. She pushes up onto her elbows, but I’m behind her before she can move from the mattress. I dig my nails into her hips, lifting her ass to me. Gripping the base of my shaft, I rub the head of my cock along the center of her soaked panties. Fuck. She needs this as much as I do.
Sliding her panties to the side, I thrust myself inside of her without warning. She yelps, but I tighten my grip on her hips. She’s tighter than any woman I’ve been with in the past, warmer and wetter than I could have imagined. I suck in a deep breath, pacing myself before I explode inside of her too soon.
“Fuck, Kane, you feel amazing,” she moans.
I smack her ass in response. She pushes back and grinds her ass against me, and what little self-control I had left snaps. I drive myself into her as hard as I can, reaching around to grip her neck as I thrust myself in and out of her. It’s too good, and I will not last much longer, but I don’t care. Lucifer himself must have crafted this pussy with me in mind.
I cum in a matter of minutes, exploding inside of her until my fluids drip from her swollen sex. She collapses onto the mattress with a soft moan. A tangled mess of copper curls hide her face, but I imagine she’s smiling. Fuck, I am.
“That. Was. Amazing,” she says, her voice breathy. “I finally understand why people are so crazy about sex.”
I can’t help but chuckle. “It’s enjoyable, if you’re with someone who knows how to please. And trust me, pet, you have seen nothing yet.”
She slides over and snuggles against my chest. I tense, but I don’t push her away. Is this what humans do after sex? Lie around naked and covered in body fluids while they hold each other?
“Kane,” she whispers, not lifting her head to look up at me, “can you stay tonight? I’ve had the worst nightmares since I got here, and I think maybe I’d sleep better with you holding me.”
My eyes dart towards the door. “Demons don’t sleep.”
“No, but half-witches do. Please?”
Fuck. How am I supposed to turn her down now? “I’ll stay for a while. Until Dagon or the others need something.”
“Mmm.” She nuzzles her head against me. “You’re so warm. This is nice.”
I hate that she’s right. With my arms wrapped around her narrow waist, my body relaxes. The tension in my muscles slowly eases until I close my eyes and imagine melting into the mattress with her. I press my hand against her chest until I can feel the slow, rhythmic beat of her heart beneath my palm. Her legs curl around my own until we’re a tangled mess of limbs. I don’t know what to label my current emotional state, but I can’t deny how right it feels.
I lose track of how long we stay like that. Holding each other. I focus on the slow rise and fall of Nadia’s chest for a while, forcing myself to stay present in the moment. There aren’t many moments in my immortal lifespan worth holding onto, but this is one of them. I want to remember every insignificant detail about the time we shared tonight.
Nadia’s weight shifts beside me. I consider opening my eyes and investigating, but I’m too damn comfortable to move. She had damn near half a bottle of booze to herself earlier. Her tiny human bladder will probably send her back and forth to the toilet for most of the night.
I listen as her footsteps pad quietly across the floor. Not towards the bathroom, though. They move a few feet from the bed and stop. Fabri
c rustles.
I snap my eyes open to find her kneeling on the floor a few feet from the bed. My pants are sprawled in front of her, and her trembling hand clutches a small silver switchblade she pulled from the pocket. I roll out of the way seconds before she dives at the bed, sinking the knife into the mattress.
“Fuck!” she roars.
I fly to my feet and snatch the blade from her hands, throwing it to the floor with a growl. Snatching her wrists in one hand, I grip her chin with the other and force her to look me in the eye. “Was this your plan all along? Did you think you could kill me?”
“I had to try,” she spits back. “Like it or not, I’m not some gullible mortal girl anymore, Kane. I’m a fucking soldier, and a better one than you.”
Her arrogance is almost more infuriating than her betrayal. My hand twitches, but I stifle the urge to slap her. If I let myself lose control now, there’s no guarantee I’ll be able to stop myself. People foolish enough to betray me rarely live long enough to tell the tale.
I snatch her up by her neck. Her feet kick as she claws at me, gasping for air. I bring her face inches from mine and hiss, “It was a noble attempt, pet, but you’ve made a grave mistake. One I will make you pay for.”
She yelps as I toss her onto the bed like a ragdoll. I grab my clothes from the floor and storm out of her room naked, slamming the door and locking it behind me.
“Arachne!” I boom, voice echoing off the vaulted ceilings through the house. “Bring the prisoner to the red room and restrain her. She’s earned an additional punishment.”
* * *
Lying, manipulative bitch. Two hours after her pathetic assassination attempt, rage still clouds my thoughts. I sit on the balcony outside my bedroom and chain-smoke cigarettes until the pack is empty, turning over various punishments in my mind. Beating her sounds cathartic now, but it won’t carry the lasting impact I crave. Whatever I do to Nadia needs to sting as much as her betrayal did. I’ll teach her a lesson she won’t forget for the rest of her mortal days.