26. Chapter 26
Chapter 26
Drakos
Sylvie had shut me out again, and Milo was at his wit’s end after she’d ditched him several times over the past week. I couldn’t blame him.
Staring blindly out of my office window at the skyline, I gazed at the hazy morning fog that would burn off later in the day. She’d been preoccupied and quiet this week, and I wanted to believe she was brooding about the attacks on their employees, but I knew it was more than that.
“Drakos.” Ivan's voice cut through the silence and my musings. I turned to find him leaning against the doorframe, his usual smirk absent. “There’s something you need to see. It was sent out maybe ten, fifteen minutes ago.” He jerked his head toward his office.
My adrenaline spiked, and I followed him. He motioned to a screen with a paused video—the image grainy and unrecognizable. He clicked play, and my mind couldn’t process what I was seeing for several long seconds. Then, it slowly sank in and what unfolded would give most people nightmares for the rest of their lives.
Ivan gave me time to wrap my brain around it. “I’ve been monitoring LeBaron's email, and I set up a program to tag any unusual activity. An email with this attached video came in from an anonymous account that has an IP address in Mongolia, of all fucking places.”
The image looked like a partially decomposed body in a plain casket. “What the fuck?” I whispered as the man moved, and I realized he was still alive.
Ivan nodded. “It’s Carver, one of Eightball’s buddies. He’s been missing for a week.” The decay was advanced, his swollen, almost unrecognizable face contorted in agony. There was a tube coming out of his mouth attached to a funnel.
It took a few seconds, but then it clicked. Scaphism. An ancient torture method the Greeks—or maybe the Persians—had used. I hoped for this fucker’s sake he was dead by now.
“Holy God,” I whispered, feeling my gorge rise.
“Whoever did this wanted to send a brutal but targeted message.” His eyes were glued to the screen. “Vicious, creative, and effective. It has the House of Spades’ signature written all over it.”
“Can you find out who sent the video?”
Ivan leaned back. “I doubt it, but I’ll try. The IP address is literally in outer Mongolia. It was also emailed to Billy Grolier and a couple of other higher-ranking MC members. The only line on the email says, ‘Vengeance is mine, and I will repay’ in Latin. Those Spades don’t mess around.” He sounded almost impressed.
“I knew they’d retaliate, but that is fucking insane .” Adrenaline pumped through me, and I started pacing his office. “I need to find Sylvie and make sure she’s safe.”
“They’re baiting the president and trying to get the MC to take care of their own mess,” Ivan murmured. “But if LeBaron gets his hands on her…” He didn’t need to finish.
“Oh Lollipop, what the fuck have you done now?” Fury and fear surged through me. Milo didn’t answer my phone call and Sylvie didn’t answer her text, so I decided to hunt her down.
“Are you out for the rest of the day then?” Misty, the ex-stripper we’d hired as our receptionist, called after me.
“Yes. And if Sylvie calls or comes by, you contact me right away.” Her eyes went wide and then slid away.
I paused in front of her desk and stared her down. “Misty, she’s in danger. You’ll call me.”
She jerked at my sharp tone. “Okay, I’ll call you. It’s, uh, Wednesday.”
I stopped and turned around. “What are you trying to tell me?”
Misty chewed her lip, then blurted out,” They started taking pole dancing lessons on Wednesdays with Sasha. They’re probably at Euphoria.”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t tell her I told you!” she yelled after me.
I dialed Roman as I strode to my vehicle. “Where’s Luna?”
He paused. “Hello to you too, and she’s at Euphoria with Sylvie. Where are you? I just saw you sitting in your office twenty minutes ago. Why do you want to know where Luna is?”
“The Spades kicked the hornet’s nest and then fucking stomped on it. I need to find Sylvie now. ”
His voice went hard. “I’ll call the security guard at Euphoria and tell him to stay with them.”
“Thanks.”
“Let me know what’s going on when you find them.”
“Go see Ivan. I’m warning you, it’s bad.” I hung up and let out a long breath.
Ever since Misty had been attacked and almost killed in the parking lot of Euphoria, security was tight here. I pulled up, and the neon sign blinked at me mockingly in the mid-morning gloom. Shoving the ornate door open, I let my eyes adjust to the dark interior and looked around. The place should've been empty, but Sasha, their instructor, stood next to Luna on the center stage, watching Sylvie glide around a pole. Her leg wrapped around it as she slowly did a backbend, her boy shorts and sports bra not hiding much.
Luna clapped as Sylvie then spun like a fucking pro, and let go. If it’d been any other day, I would’ve stopped to watch and admire the view.
Sasha grinned and patted Sylvie’s shoulder. “That’s it, you sexy little thing. You could moonlight here if things at the mortuary ever get too dull.”
Fuck , no. “Lesson's over,” I barked, striding across the room toward them. I saw Milo standing off to the side, arms folded, looking annoyed and frazzled.
Sylvie turned and grinned, flashing me both dimples. “Drakos? What are—”
“You have exactly three seconds to get your ass in my vehicle,” I growled, cutting her off.
Luna sucked in a breath, and Sasha put her hands on her hips. “Hey, we’re not done.”
I pointed at Sylvie as the smile slid off her face. “She is. It’s dangerous for her to be anywhere near you two right now.” I tried to reign in my anger and fear as I faced Sylvie. “Give Milo your keys and get in my car.”
Milo walked over and held out his hand. Sylvie ignored him. “What flew up your ass this morning?” Her eyes narrowed and defiance radiated off her.
My eyebrow shot up. “Now that’s an interesting turn of phrase, considering what you and your fucking cousins have been up to this past week.”
I could see the second it all clicked. Her eyes went from angry slits to a wide, “oh fuck” expression.
Luna’s head swiveled between us. “Sylvie, what’s he talking about?”
She glanced over at Luna, then whipped her head around, as if looking for the nearest exit.
“Don’t even fucking think about it,” I growled. Without another word, I scooped her up over my shoulder, and for good measure, gave her pert ass a loud smack. She reared up, cursing me as I marched her out to the parking lot. I didn’t give one single shit about causing a scene.
“Put me down. I’m not going to run,” Sylvie demanded.
I gave her a few more sound smacks. “No, you’re not.” I tucked her inside the passenger seat and unceremoniously slammed the door on her rebuttal. Luna ran up and handed me Sylvie’s bag. Then she turned to Sylvie and held her hand up to her cheek in the universal “call me” sign.
“Thanks,” I clipped. “Now get back inside and have Milo take you home.” She stared at me, and something in my eyes must have clued her in.
“Something happened with OutKast, didn’t it?” She didn’t wait for an answer. “Don’t be too hard on her. She’s been taking care of her family and everyone else around her for a long time.”
Luna’s words cut through some of my anger, and I let out a long breath. Then I walked around to the driver’s side, gearing up for a long, loud fight during the drive back to my loft. Instead, Sylvie gave me the silent treatment. I could see her mind working as she stared unseeing out the window, her arms folded across her chest.
Fifteen minutes later, I pulled into my garage and turned off the car. We sat silently for a moment before I turned to her. “Ivan has surveillance on LeBaron’s email account, and I saw the video you and your cousins sent.”
Silence hung between us until she sighed and climbed out. We went upstairs, and I took her hand and led her over to the couch. Gazing down at her bent head, I ran through the implications and probable blow-back as I tried to reason it all out.
“I’m working to keep you safe and breathing, but you’re shutting me out. And scaphism, for fuck's sake. You caused Carver’s body to rot while he was still alive, then you sent a video of it to his fucking motorcycle gang.”
Her head turned to the side, avoiding my gaze. “Fenn wanted to blow up their compound no matter who was in it. What we did only took out one man, and it’ll be something they never forget.”
“Jesus H Christ. You’ve got that right.”
Sylvie’s leg started bouncing. “Look, I get it. You're mad.”
Leaning forward, I put my elbows on my knees. “At first,” I admitted. “But more than that, I’m scared out of my fucking mind for you. I haven’t felt this kind of fear in years, and I don’t much care for it. This past week, you broke your promise to me and ditched Milo, and you shut me out. I can’t help protect you if I don’t know what the hell is going on.”
She clasped her hands together. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I was afraid you would be disgusted with me and my family. We didn’t plan to kill him at first, but he admitted he was with Samuel when they raped Camilla. He… they…” She couldn’t finish.
It all made sense now. I waited, letting her get it all out. Her breathing sped up. “If you saw the video, you know he bragged about what they did to her.”
“I didn’t watch it from start to finish,” I told her quietly. She sat, breathing heavily and working to keep her emotions under control. I wanted to gather her in my arms and tell her to rage and scream and do what she needed to let it all out. But the need to keep her safe won out.
“I’m sorry, love. I’m so fucking sorry. But what you did is like waving a hunk of raw meat in front of a wild pack of dogs. And that’s what most of those men are—rabid dogs.”
“I can take care of myself. I’ve been doing it for a long time.” Sylvie gazed up at me with fathomless, dark brown eyes. Her desolation and anger made my heart squeeze, and I rubbed my chest as if trying to soothe an ache. And that’s when I knew . I didn’t just care about Sylvie, I fucking loved this fiery, independent, protective, rare woman.
How had this happened? I carefully avoided anything faintly resembling commitment, and my history with women was carnal and transient. But Sylvie had gotten past my defenses and cynicism.
She gazed at me with glassy eyes. “Camilla wakes up screaming, reliving what happened to her. She’s not getting better, and the nightmares aren’t going away. He taunted us and boasted about what he did, then told me I’d be next. I thought about castrating him and sending him back to that fucking MC club with his balls stuffed in his mouth. But in the end, he needed to die.”
Her bravery and brazenness scared the shit out of me. “But you painted a bright red target right on your back.”
She started to stand. “You’re right, my back. This isn’t your fight.”
Fuck that. “ You are my fight, and I’m not leaving your side until this is resolved. I’m also officially bringing my partners in.”
She shook her head. “No. You don’t owe me anything, and your partners aren’t going to be happy getting dragged into my family’s mess.”
Crowding her, I knelt and took her hands in mine. "My partners will help protect you because you belong to me. They became my family when our own families shipped us off to that fucking academy and we tried to protect each other. They’re in this, just like I am.”
She wrapped her arms around my neck and let out a sob, her body bucking against mine. “I’m so sorry for what happened to you.”
Pulling her closer, I drank in her warmth and held her tight. I was a bastard and would probably burn in Hell, but I wasn’t above using her protective streak if it meant I could protect her from herself.
“They beat us for fun. Tortured and whipped us, pissed on us. Boys disappeared. Those cells they kept us in…” My stomach tightened, remembering the vast fluctuations in temperature and the smell of our own excrement after so many days. "One night, after a particularly bad session, a few of us made a pact with each other, and since then we've done whatever it takes to keep that promise. Accumulating power, money, skills. All so we’d never be helpless again. I’m giving you that protection.”
“Drakos…” She stroked my face and watched me with murder and sorrow in her eyes. If only my own mother would’ve had a fraction of Sylvie’s fierce protective streak.
I squeezed her gently. “I'm telling you this because you're not just some woman I'm fucking. You’re the last woman I’ll be fucking. You're a part of us now, and I protect what’s mine.” I fisted her hair at the nape of her scalp and leaned in to murmur in her ear. “Even if it’s from yourself.”
A heavy silence fell, and the air around us thickened as her eyes searched mine. “Okay,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “Why am I more scared of this than LeBaron and his men?”
My shoulders relaxed and my lips curled. “Because you have a warped sense of danger.”
She took a deep breath and shook herself a little. “If I’m yours, you’re mine too. But you don't get to make decisions for me, I’m not one of your brainless little fuck toys.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Do you want to be?” She smacked my arm, and I smiled. “Maybe you can start using that brilliant, scary mind of yours to avoid getting hurt or killed, alright? And quit ditching Milo.”
“You’re a bossy asshole sometimes, Baphomet.”
God, that mouth and her dry, seductive tone slid through me. Picking her up, I put her on my lap and leaned in to nibble her neck. “Baphomet? A goat-headed devil god? You looked that one up, didn’t you?”
“It’s a good one. Admit it,” she shot back, arching her neck to give me better access. “If I’m yours, then you’re mine too.”
Heat and deep satisfaction rolled through me. “I am. But you need to trust me.”
“Trust,” she echoed softly. “Such a deceptively simple word.” Vulnerability shadowed her eyes.
I put both arms on the back of the couch, not wanting to crowd or spook her. “It is. We have the rest of the day before us. What would you like to do?”
Her eyelids slid to half-mast. “Oh, I don’t know. What would you like to do?”
“Suck and lick you. Bend you over the couch and fuck you hard. Play chess, complain about clients, and eat dinner together. Laugh and tease you, then fuck you all over again.”
She shifted restlessly on my lap and rubbed herself against my hard cock. “Can we start with that first and last part?”
I smiled wickedly. “Absolutely. Are you up for another game of strip chess?”
“Hmm, I have something else in mind.”
My body went tight as she slowly slid down until she knelt between my legs. “What’re you up to, naughty girl?” I asked softly.
“Taking what I want.” She ran her nails up my thighs, sending tingles shooting straight to my dick. Unzipping my pants, she gently pulled my hard length out and bent over to slide her tongue over my slit, keeping her eyes on mine. A little precum leaked out and she licked it up.
“Jesus,” I ground out as she opened her mouth wider and slid down my length, working me leisurely. My hips bucked at one point, and she gagged a little when I hit the back of her throat. I started to lean forward, and my hands came off the couch, but she pulled off. “No, keep your hands there. I’m in charge this time.”
Holding my palms up, I eased back and laced my fingers behind my head. She smiled, those fucking dimples popping, and went back to work. Sylvie wasn’t as experienced as most women I’d been with, which made me a goddamn hypocrite because I fucking loved that she was learning with me. Her innocent abandon and enthusiasm made me want to explode seconds after her lips slid down my length. Her natural sensuousness made me burn to bury my length down her throat. She experimented with quick strokes, then slow and deep ones, pulling off occasionally so she could work her tongue along my head and study my reactions.
I avidly watched her pink lips slide along my length. “Your mouth feels like paradise. Relax your throat and open up for me. That’s it. Sweet fucking Jesus,” I groaned as my hips thrust up into her mouth, clenching when her throat took some of my length. She worked me for several minutes, and I was seconds away from exploding when she pulled away, saliva and precum stringing from her lower lip. She wiped it off with the back of her hand, stood, and tugged her shorts down.
A snarl escaped me when I saw the glittery aqua-colored thong underneath. It was from Euphoria. “Tell me you didn’t plan to dance in that for anyone but me.”
Her lips quirked up. “Sasha thought we needed the full exotic dancer experience.”
My eyes narrowed as Sylvie wrapped her hand around my wet cock, squeezing it nice and tight. Frustration and lust swam through me, and I wanted to grab her hips and slam her down on my hard length. I also wanted to spank her sweet, firm ass for even thinking about dancing in public with just that scrap of fabric on. Which, again, made me an asshole for all the times I’d enjoyed watching women at The Emporium.
“Keep the thong on, but pull it to the side and take my cock,” I ordered.
Sylvie’s eyes narrowed, but her neck flushed and her pupils dilated, giving my little hellion away. She liked when I ordered her around while we fucked. “You aren’t—”
“Or I can take you over my knee and spank your sweet ass and pussy if you’d prefer.”
She made a show of slowly bringing her palm up to her mouth and graphicly licking it, then sucking a few fingers. When her hand was nice and wet, she grasped my cock, squeezed it, then pumped firmly. “You forgot you aren’t in charge this time,” she murmured chidingly. “Keep your hands where they are.”
My jaw clenched but I kept still. She let go of me and slowly slid down my body. Then she put my shaft between her tits.
My eyes slid shut. “Yeah, that works too.”
Pushing her breasts together, she tit fucked me while I thrust my hips along her chest as she lazily watched me. An orgasm started crawling up my spine, but she pulled away again. And that’s when I figured out what she was doing. “Are you… edging me, Lollipop? Do you like playing with fire?”
She licked her lips and smirked. “I learned from the best.”
Her breasts were rosy, and her nipples had gone rock-hard. I wanted to lunge at her and take her down to the floor, but I kept my hands laced behind my head. “Be my good little fuck toy now and straddle me properly, pull your panties to the side, and slide your wet, tight cunt over my hard cock. It’s time to climb up and ride me.”
She shivered and let go of her breasts, studying me with bright, lust-filled eyes. Sylvie seemed to like being dominated but struggled with taking orders. Her reticence made the times she did obey me that much sweeter.
Leaning in, she patted my cheek, then slid her thumb inside my mouth. “Alright. You deserve a reward.” She climbed back into my lap, pulled her panties to the side, and worked herself down on my length. I licked and bit her thumb while I took in her flushed face. She closed her eyes and threw her head back, moaning as she rode me. I let her struggle.
Rolling her hips, she pulled her thumb out and planted both hands on my chest as she fucked herself on me. I leaned back and watched, fascinated, as her breasts bounced and her eyes met mine at first then rolled back in her head. “I want to come,” she whimpered.
“I can help you with that,” I murmured, bringing a hand to her hip and trailing the other to her pussy.
She grabbed it and brought it to her mouth. “No. I’m going to get us both off.” While she sucked on my two middle fingers, she trailed her own down to her clit. I felt her clench around me as she worked herself and sucked.
In this delicious game of hers, it seemed I couldn’t use my hands, but I could use my mouth. Leaning in, I sucked and licked on her left breast, biting down on her nipple until she arched into me. Then I worked her other breast. Her movements sped up, and I sucked on her until she cried out.
My hips snapped up to meet her, and I leaned in and licked up her neck, biting under her jaw and ear. “Come for me. Squeeze my cock with your wet, tight little cunt until you squirt all over me.”
I followed my words with a few brutal thrusts, and seconds later I slammed up into her and came as she threw her head back and wailed softly at the ceiling, orgasming hard.
When our breathing slowed down and evened out, she slumped against me. I wrapped my arms around her, then stood, and walked us to my bedroom, still buried deep inside her. I wasn’t done with her yet, and things were going to get rough when I told her what I planned. Sylvie didn’t know it yet, but I had more than just playing chess, grilling, and fucking on the agenda this week.