AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Light invaded her dreamlike state. She raised her arm to shield sensitive eyes. Something pulled on her ankles. She kicked, but the hold on her didn’t disappear. She was dragged backward and then cradled in two bearlike arms. She reached up and brushed her fingers against a bristly vine. She tugged on the vine and heard someone chuckle. She blinked furiously and realized it was a beard.
Music assaulted her ears, and she moaned and burrowed against the bear. She began to shiver and moan as invisible knives were shoved into her skull. She struggled to get away to no avail. The man had been carrying her for days. Where were they going? She hoped he was taking her somewhere nice. Male voices rumbled around her along with the cheer of a massive crowd. Maybe it was the Super Bowl. Whoever had the hottest players should win. Why didn’t they make shirtless calendars for football players like they did for firemen?
An unpleasant smell reached her, a sterile one that made her curl her toes and clamp a hand over her face before she realized she was suffocating herself. She breathed in something metallic that made her want to gag. Lights disappeared, and she was placed on something hard and unforgiving. She tried to focus, but her head was spinning. What was happening to her?
“You have spirit and guts, which is a rare enough quality to make me intervene.”
She turned her head toward the pleasant voice. She knew that voice, right? It belonged to a friend? She tried to remember and came up with an image of a unicorn prancing majestically across a moonlit beach. She panted as her body tried to fight off whatever was attacking her insides. Her limbs jerked as lava slid through her veins and started little fires in her brain. She curled into a ball and rocked. What was happening to her?
“I’ve heard of you. You killed the leader of the Black Vipers. I was intrigued but not terribly impressed since you used a gun, but tonight, you showed how resourceful you can be. I’m impressed.”
A hand brushed her hair, and she edged away. Too painful. She couldn’t bear to be touched right now, not when her skin felt as if it would fall off her bones.
“If you survive, maybe your presence will bring Gavin back to Hell. Maybe Angel too if you really are his whore. It would be titillating to get them in the pit again. I’m trying to save my annual visit, so I have to find other ways to entertain myself until then. Tonight was a pleasant surprise. I hope you don’t die. I think you have potential, and you’re quite amusing to boot.”
She lurched forward and retched. Oh, God. She would die. Something was terribly wrong.
“I’ll check on you in the morning. Good luck.”
She retched again and opened her mouth to ask for help, but the man was gone.
26
Her body was tryingto destroy itself. She tried to outrun the pain and rammed into a wall. She explored her surroundings with tingling fingertips since her eyes weren’t working. It took her several rounds to make out that she was in a room made of stone, an eight-foot square with a drain, a stone bench, and a bowl of water. She sipped water before she used the drain and then huddled in the corner. Her body was a throbbing mass. She could feel every single cut and bruise on her body. It felt as if someone was pouring acid on them. Her face vibrated as chemicals crept beneath her skin. She turned on her belly and pressed her face against stone. It smelled like a sewer, so she flipped onto her back and tried to keep her face still by squeezing it between her hands.
Time stood still. Her quick, ragged breaths filled the room. She wasn’t sure if her eyes were open or closed, and it didn’t matter anyway. She shivered as cold seeped into her bones. Slivers of fire slipped through her veins, making her cry out and claw her own skin to get it out. The crusty crucifix dug into her skin, so she slipped it off and tossed it. She didn’t care about defending herself. Hopefully, someone would put her out of her misery. She was so fucking tired of fighting.
Time passed. She vomited, drank water, and vomited again. She tried to find a spot in the room that wasn’t soiled. She was chilled to the bone and in so much pain, she couldn’t stand it. She thought of slamming her head against the stone until she knocked herself unconscious, but she didn’t have the strength. She collapsed in a corner, pressed her forehead against the stone, and willed herself to die.
All feeling began to fade as her body went numb. She wasn’t sure if she was freezing to death or if the drugs were killing her. Either way was fine with her.Now that her body wasn’t trying to destroy itself, her mind was surprisingly clear. Mickey. Was he dead? She whimpered. He couldn’t be. He was too young, and he was just doing his job. Obviously, the loser in the club was a member of the Black Vipers and called his cronies. They had been waiting for her. She was stupid to let down her guard. No one forgot a slight. It didn’t matter how much time passed. This was her just desserts. One couldn’t take a life without consequences. Well, she’d pay the price. It was worth it. She’d kill Maddog again with pleasure. Did she kill someone with a crucifix? If she had the capacity to feel, she would have been impressed at herself. Maybe Blade would have given her credit for that. Blade … He needed to get laid before he turned into a human statue.
With all the times Lyla had been attacked, she always thought how different the outcome would be if she was present. Well, she had her moment, and she had been beaten and drugged and was now locked in a cell in God knew where. And unlike Lyla, she didn’t have a Gavin to move heaven and earth to save her. She didn’t have anyone. Everyone would be fine without her. Mom had Marv, Lyla had Gavin, Honey had Beau, and Marcus had work.
Just when she thought she was getting her life together, everything fell apart. With death imminent, she could admit that Angel was right. She fell for Marcus. He broke through her shields the moment they met in Incognito, which was why his condolences made an impression on her. Her soul recognized something different about him; it just took her mind a couple of years to catch up. His position as Vinny’s replacement was a good reason to keep him at a distance. She reinforced her prejudices by holding her suspicions about his motivations. There was no doubt that Marcus was still hiding something, but it held no threat to the Pyre clan, and he was entitled to his privacy. He was the one-in-a-million guy. He was driven, successful, considerate, loving … He just didn’t want to beinlove with her. She’d heard it before. She was too wild, too impulsive, too clingy, too crazy. She needed too much, and after losing Vinny, her demands had a dark edge to it that most men wouldn’t want to deal with, especially one with a pristine reputation. She wasn’t lucky enough to snag two great men in one lifetime. She expected too much. She always had.
His promise the night Gavin and Lyla were in Hell echoed in her mind.No matter what happens, we’ll get through this together.Even though she felt nothing, a tear slipped out of her eye. He helped her through some of her worst moments. She thought she could depend on him, that they might have a future together, but it was all in her head.
You’re my fantasy.
She shook her head to dislodge his words. The way he lost himself in her meant nothing. It was just sex. She was new and interesting, and he had needs. Simple. An exchange of mutual pleasure, that’s all.
Her heart labored in her chest. She touched her face to make sure her eyes were closed and relaxed. It was time.
* * *
She sprawled on top of Vinny. They were naked in bed, post orgasm, with the gentle flow of air conditioning drifting over their sweaty bodies. She rested her face on his chest and listened to his heart gradually settle into a normal rhythm. She didn’t want or need anything else in life, just this. This man who loved her, who worshipped her. Everything would fall into place as long as they had each other.
“Why do you love me?” she whispered.
“What?” Vinny rumbled.
She folded her hands on his chest and eyed him. He looked wrecked and sated. “Why do you love me?”
He grinned. “Why wouldn’t I love you?”
“I’m serious.”
“I love you because you’re smoking hot.”
