10. Devyn
Chapter ten
Devyn
(Several hours later…)
Using my multi-slate, I sit in bed and flip through all the documents Zaiah emailed. “Remy is a fucking idiot.” Almost all the attachments from Zaiah were pictures of easily accessible handwritten notes—that anyone could have found at his apartment—or printed documents and receipts. “Why didn’t you go to the police with this information?”
Although some photos Zaiah took were blurry because of his haste, the video recording of Marco Lombardi, Remy, and my father’s phone call was enough to justify a full investigation.
We’re in my bedroom at Castle Black, and Zaiah is standing by the window watching the sun rise over the forest. The morning sunlight illuminates his fiery red hair, accentuating his beauty.
“Your father is a Shio. One of the leaders of this planet,” he says, joining me on the bed. “I couldn’t be sure which of the police, if any, were in his pocket. I needed to bring the information to one of the Black Harts whose family was getting screwed over.”
“That makes sense. We need to be smart and form a plan.”
“We?” He arches a brow and stretches out on the comforter. “Is it crazy that I already love the sound of that word when it comes to us? Light. It’s crazy.”
“We,” I agree, easily enough. I don’t give a shit if it’s crazy. It is what it is. And Zaiah is mine.
“From everything I’ve seen, I’m assuming your father is the only person from the founding families who’s involved. But I can’t be sure.”
“I agree. We need to be careful just in case. Let’s set up a meeting with my fellow Black Harts. I trust all of them, and they would have a better guess at which family members to trust. From there, we can form a better plan on how to approach the situation.”
“I have something else to confess,” Zaiah says nervously. “Remy recently started in with the threats. Leaving me messages and telling me I needed to come crawling back to him. I’m pretty sure he knew what I discovered. Lana thought one of the Black Harts would pay good money for this info. I needed an escape. I wanted to leave this planet and start fresh.”
In a move he doesn’t see coming, I flip him over onto his back.
“Wanted? As in past tense?”
“Now—” he hesitates, looking hopeful and a little lost. “Now, I’m not so sure.”
A warm feeling blossoms in my chest and this infatuation—or addiction, or whatever it is—between Zaiah and me intensifies. Two years ago, obsession took root in my heart, and I know it won’t ever let go. My hand grips his throat, a move that clearly drives my little fire wild. “I wasn’t joking when I said you were mine, Zaiah. You are.”
He shudders against me. Looks like my pretty doll likes my words.
I trace the outline of his lips. “I don’t give a fuck if you leave this planet. But if you leave, I will follow. If you stay, then I will protect you.” My fingers trail down his neck, his shoulder, his side. “You will never see that abusive asshole ever again.”
“I can’t always rely on you,” he argues. “At the very least, I should learn how to use a weapon.”
My lips twitch. “What kind of weapon?”
He bites his lip, looking all kinds of adorable as he thinks. “Hmm. Maybe a knife, like yours.”
My cock twitches at the image. “Why would someone as beautiful as you want to learn how to cut a man?”
He shrugs a delicate shoulder, my larger shirt practically falling off him. Fuck. He looks good in my clothes.
“Would you like that, little doll? Want me to teach you how to slice someone up and make it hurt? Teach you the best parts of the body to inflict the most pain while still keeping them alive?”
His breath catches and his emerald gaze meets mine. “Do you mean it? Or are you just toying with me?”
“I’m not teasing. I think it’s a good idea.” And fuck me; the thought of Zaiah with a blade is turning me on. “Maybe I can even get Zar to show you a few tricks I don’t know.” Balthazar could teach my little doll all kinds of things.
He props himself up on his elbows. “You really wouldn’t mind if I learned how to fight? How to defend myself?”
I chuckle, shoving him back down on the mattress and caging him in with my arms. “Oh, little doll, you don’t need to cause pain to protect yourself.”
Leaning over his body, I open my nightstand and reach for the blade I keep hidden inside.
His eyes widen. He’s panting now, his body reacting to my proximity. “But what if I want to hurt the ones who hurt me first?” he whispers, grinding his body against mine.
Anger and lust fill me. I trace the handle of my blade across his cheek delicately, almost lovingly. “Who else hurt you, Praeda?”
“Just Remy.”
“Fuck Remy,” I growl. “He’s a dead man. If Zar hasn’t killed him already, it’s only because he decided to take his time.” I toss the blade back onto my nightstand and trail kisses all over his collarbone. I lift him enough to yank my shirt off him before lowering myself back down to his neck.
I start off slowly, teasing him with my tongue, before finding the spot I know will drive him crazy. Then, I begin sucking hard. I alternate between claiming bites and rough sucks until I’m sure the spot is tender. He tips his head to the left, giving me better access, and I move over several inches before starting again.
Zaiah is writhing and thrusting against me and his eyes have rolled to the back of his head. “What are you doing to me?”
I’m pretty sure he’s referring to how I make his cock so damn hard, but I smirk and tell him the part I know will piss him off. “I’m claiming what’s mine. Now everyone will know.”
His eyes snap open. “Wait, what?” He shoves me off him and rushes over to my mirror. I laugh when he sees the mess I made on his neck. Mine.
“Fucking asshole! There’s no way I’m going to be able to cover this up.”
I smirk. “That’s the point, love.”
His head whips back my way. He opens his mouth, probably about to tell me off when my multi-slate dings with an incoming message. I stand up, bracing myself for what I’m about to read.
As soon as I read the threatening message from my father, I punch a hole through the wall. “That bastard.” I punch the wall again, needing to feel the pain in my knuckles. “Fuck!”
“What’s wrong? Who was that?” Zaiah sounds different. Almost as if his voice is laced with fear. Even with us submitting to our carnal desires, never once did he sound like this—actually afraid. I don’t like it. I silently promise myself I’ll teach him everything I know when it comes to fighting and self-defense. I’ll hire the best of the best until he feels safe in his own skin.
Zaiah is a good man, and something tells me I can trust him with this. I drop my hand and let him read from my multi-slate.
He scans the message with this adorable furrow on his brow.
“Is he talking about your sister?”
“Yeah.” I shake my head. “He’s a piece of shit. There’s a reason I continue to make videos as Demon. I’ve been saving up most of my money for my mother and my sister in secret, just in case we can’t ever access their money again. He has everything tied up, and if he’s murdered, everything stops to investigate who killed a founding family member. Meanwhile, the family’s money he invested elsewhere might never see the light of day.”
Zaiah nods. “So, if your father is alive and rotting in prison, your mother may be able to fight it and get her money back.”
“Exactly. Speaking of money…” I tap on my bank app and wire Zaiah his money from last night.
He checks his multi-slate as soon as it dings. “What the fuck is this?”
I grin. “Your cut. Looks like I underestimated just how pretty you sound when you’re whimpering.”
His cheeks flush. “Shut up.” He shakes his head. “Devyn. This is too much.”
I tug him to me as I sit on my bed. Zaiah sits on my lap, straddling me.
“It’s not, Doll. I need you to promise me something. When shit hits the fan with my father’s scandal, I need you to take my mother and sister off-planet.”
“You trust me that much?”
I tuck some of his pretty red hair behind his ear and nod. “I do. I’d prefer to go with you, but I’m the Shio heir. I might need to stay for a bit. But I promise I’ll follow as soon as I can. And plus, you said you want a fresh start.” A part of me thinks he needs that fresh start and time to heal. He needs to get away from everything that reminds him of Remy and his abuse. This scandal will only bring attention to those who feared him.
“Like I said, I’ll follow you. It might require me to be momentarily preoccupied.”
Zaiah pouts.
“Why did you switch majors?” I ask suddenly, an idea forming in my head.
His head jerks up. “How did you—” He laughs. “You know what? Never mind. I did it for Remy and regret it every day. I recently requested another major change, but it was declined. I wanted to switch back to fashion, maybe take online classes and get my life back.”
I grin. “How do you feel about Raynetel?”
His mouth falls open. Raynetel is a safe planet famed for its cutting-edge fashion, boasting fashion-forward universities that are light years ahead of our time. It’s the perfect planet. My sister, mother, and Zaiah will be safe and happy there.
“Raynetel would be a dream come true,” he breathes.
“Good. Then let’s do it. We’ll talk to the other Black Harts and make our plans. And if you need to go first, you can find us a house near the school of your choice.”
A slow smile spreads across his face, and he wiggles on my lap. “You know, people might not care what happens to your father after the investigation.”
“Hmm. That’s a good point.” I laugh. “Maybe I’ll have Zar give him a visit.”
His smile widens. “This is fucking crazy. How is this my life?”
I grin back, wrapping my fingers around his pretty, marked-up throat and yanking his lips to mine. “It’s our life now, little fire. Crazy or not. It’s ours.”