Chapter 10 Eryx #2
With a yawn, she leans against the wall.
“As much as I am glad to have helped these women, I’m happy it’s over now. Doing two in one night definitely took a toll.”
I nod, unsure that if I open my mouth, I won’t confess to wanting to steal her away.
If I took her now, she would be mad—but would she really fight me for long?
I can give her pleasure in my embrace and protection from the dangers of this world.
Even as I think it, maybe it would be wise to talk to her.
Nory has always managed to surprise me. If I told her of my wish to take her away, maybe she would go willingly.
Our time together is coming to an end. This may be the only chance I have to take her from this stagnant environment and thrust her into one where there is only me.
If she understands how desperate I am for her, it could be just the thing to break through any final barrier keeping her confession at bay.
And if it’s not, I will spend our final hours together in total bliss. My primal nature stirs after a deep slumber at the thought of keeping her. Even if she tries to flee, I’ll capture her and pin her beneath me until she is begging for my cock once again.
I shake myself and decide to go with a reasonable approach.
“Nory,” I say, crossing over to her and taking her in my arms. She comes willingly, and that gives me enough hope to press on.
“I’ve been thinking…we should leave the Snowlands.
Together. We can make a home—just the two of us.
Somewhere far away from here. You have more than enough money to leave this all behind.
I do as well—enough to get us a house deep in The Woods where I am more powerful and can protect you better. ”
Her lush mouth parts. Blinking green eyes up at me, she is quiet as a dozen emotions flash across her face. My hands tremble along her back as hope dances through my veins.
Only to be shattered in an instant.
“No.” The word is said so softly I barely hear it. Before she says anything else, she’s pushing away from me and taking a step back. “No—I—I couldn’t. My life is here—I just killed all those men to keep it. Not to mention my responsibilities. Here I have a purpose. What would I have if I left?”
“Me.” I reach for her, but she sidesteps me. “You would have me. Don’t you want that?”
Desperation claws at my stomach. With the distance she’s putting between us, I realize that I’ve played my hand wrong, and if I don’t act decisively now, I could lose her forever. Have I truly misread her so completely?
There is a brief moment of hope as a look of longing dances in her eyes. Silence stretches as if she is considering it despite her quick refusal. Then, as if a sheet of ice has encased her, all warmth leaves Nory. Her skin turns paler as her eyes turn stoic.
“I always expected you to leave. Especially with our bargain complete.” Her voice is odd—breathy—not that of the confident woman I’ve come to know. “Now I have the means to live my life the way I wanted to before my mother’s passing—alone.”
My eyes roam over Nory as I stare at her.
I’ve heard her words, but they don’t make sense.
These past weeks together could not have been a lie—she promised me forever every time I touched her.
Now she is claiming otherwise, that our time together was fleeting.
I’ve felt her heart and tasted her soul. Nory is mine.
With the undoing looming, I have no choice but to give in to my madness.
A desperate male will do anything to secure the thing he wants most in this world.
I’ve never wanted anything as much as I want Nory.
I let the mania devour me, and the monster I am floats to the surface.
Her body jerks as she watches the change come over me.
While I may look the same, the male before her is different from the one she’s come to know. He can taste her lies and will stop at nothing to have her.
A dark chuckle permeates my chest. Nory backs up a step, but I quickly come upon her.
“You can’t mean that.”
A stubborn tilt to her chin and the defiance in her eyes is the only indicator that the real Nory—my Nory—hasn’t been devoured by her icy denial.
“I do,” she spits.
Another chuckle leaves me as I grasp her upper arm.
“You expect me to believe you’ve been biding your time—waiting for me to go—with my seed still drying on your thighs.
” I inhale deeply, licking my lips and delighting in the faint trace of her I find there.
Her cheeks darken as she tries to free herself from me.
“I know you, Nory—better than you know yourself. I’m the only one who’s seen the real you—tasted her too. ”
She trembles as I lower my face to the juncture of her neck and shoulder. Licking up her throat, my lips find their way to her ear.
“Maybe I just need to fuck you again so you remember.”
Nory rears back, fire burning her eyes. Her chest rises and falls. The hard peaks of her nipples bead along her dress. I can scent the delicious state of her pussy. Her anger is real, but so is her desire. Good, I’ll just—
A sharp knock at the door breaks through our tense silence. She glares up at me, and I reluctantly release her. The quicker she gets rid of whoever is at her doorstep, the better. She won’t try to flee or alert them of my presence here—of that I’m certain.
“This conversation isn’t over,” I growl, before slinking into the shadows.
“Just stay hidden,” she hisses back.
Throwing me one last exasperated look, Nory turns the brass knob and thrusts open the door.
The scent from the other side sets my body on edge—it is distinctly male.
From my hidden vantage point, I can see an older man there.
His clothes are in disarray, with a few spots of blood marking the collar of his shirt.
A fresh gash has been carved into his cheek.
In his hand is the thin upper arm of an elderly woman.
Nory’s color has gone pale as the man stomps into her home, dragging the older woman along with him.
“What is the meaning of all this?” Nory demands.
Tossing the old woman to the floor, she hits the ground with a cry. The man’s hand wraps around the handle of a dagger as he points a bony finger at Nory.
“Don’t play dumb with me,” he barks. “My friends—you’ve killed them all. Everyone said I was crazy—that bad luck had just befallen them. Well, I wasn’t buying that. Knew something worse was at play.”
Unsheathing his dagger, he points it at the older woman. There is a trail of blood leaking from her temple and soaking the collar of her shirt.
“Didn’t take her long to confess after a few hours of persuasion,” he sneers. “Her husband told me just how to keep her line should he not be around to do it.”
The older woman has gone deathly pale.
“I’m so sorry, Nory. Forgive me, I never meant to—”
“Be quiet, you old hag!” he shouts.
The man’s eyes shift on Nory, turning from angry to lecherous in an instant.
My blood boils as I watch him drift closer to her.
The deadly tip of his knife points directly at her.
Nory remains still, her eyes never leaving him.
My brave, beautiful Nory—she knows there’s no reason to fear him. Not with me here.
He assured his death the moment he walked in here.
“As for you, Nory,” he sneers. “You will die for killing my friends. I’ve told the other men in this town who haven’t left in fear and are already on their way.”
Looking her up and down, he bares his yellow teeth as he licks his lips.
“I’ll have a little fun with you.” His hands fall to the buckle of his trousers. “Before the others arrive and want a turn.”
The old woman on the floor begins crying in earnest as the man takes another step forward. Nory’s green eyes fly to where I’m hiding—able to find me even when I’m cloaked in shadow—and that’s all the urging I need.
Emerging with a growl, the man doesn’t even have the chance to scream before I pin him to the wall and bite into his throat.
Hot blood flows over my lips and down my throat.
The older woman screams at the sight. I’m vaguely aware of her rising from the floor and stumbling out the door—her sounds of terror echoing in the night.
I rip out the man’s throat and spit it on the ground. His body falls in a heap at my feet, and red blood soaks Nory’s floorboards. Blood spills down my chest and over my armor. From through the open door, I can hear voices approaching quickly.
Whirling towards Nory, her cheeks are pink as I step towards her trembling body.
“It’s not safe for you here.” I hold her by the waist, savoring the heat of her body. “You are coming with me. Now.”
Nory swallows loudly before shaking her head.
“No.” Her protest is weak.
The voices outside get louder, and if we don’t leave now, more blood will be spilled. As much as I would relish it, I’d much rather have Nory all to myself than taste one more vile drop of blood.
“Have it your way.”
My fingers tighten on her waist before hoisting her up and over my shoulder.
Turning from the carnage in her front room, I push through the open door and feel the night air envelope us.
Slinking into the darkness unseen, Nory comes to life on my shoulder.
She screams and beats along my back. Bucking and thrashing in my grip, her attempts to escape me are futile.
The Woods loom up ahead. My steps never falter as I walk towards it, a smile playing on my lips.
“Finally.”