Chapter 24 - Nova #3
Smiling like I didn't hear him, I stepped in further. As soon as I did that, Zeth and Nick entered behind me. The green-eyed man’s eyes bounced around, his pulse skyrocketing before his gaze went to the window behind him.
It took just a second for him to look at us, then he bolted for the window.
Glass crashed to the floor before I could get my first word out.
“Get him!”
Zeth and Nick burst forward, both of them jumping out the window like shadows unhooked from the wall, going after our now second lead. I turned to face the target.
“Hello, Frank,” I called out, hands open wide as I stepped toward him. “I have some questions for you.” He gulped, gripping something inside of his jacket. “This might sound a little old fashioned, but… we can do this the easy way,” I cracked my knuckles, “or the hard way. Your call.”
His face twisted, lips curling in rage. “Who the fuck are you, bitch?!”
I stopped for a second, forgetting I still had on the cloaking spell, and Frank lunged.
His full weight slammed me to the floor, the impact cracking through my spine and knocking the air from my lungs.
My claws burst free on instinct, raking deep into his back until I felt the tug of tearing skin and warm, slippery liquid beneath my nails.
His roar rattled the walls, raw and furious.
Dragging one hand away, I shoved my other hand into his side, claws slicing through muscle like butter. I twisted my hand inside of him until I felt something give. “What the fuck are you doing, Frank? Who was he?”
He swung for my face, but I tilted just enough that his fist met hardwood instead.
Throwing his weight to the side, he rolled away from me, staggering to get up while clutching his bleeding side.
The wound had already started to knit itself closed, red threads drawing together. I pushed to my knees, chest heaving.
“None of your business, bitch,” he spat, voice cracking.
“Wrong answer.”
I thumbed the cloaking spell off, and his fury stuttered, collapsing into dread the second my real face surfaced.
Fuck, I loved moments like that, when the break between rage and realization settled in, and they finally understood exactly who they’d picked a fight with.
The scent of fear always followed close behind, sour and sharp.
Licking at my claws as I stared him down, my bloodied mouth curved into a deceptively soft smile. “Now, tell me, Frank… what were you two talking about?”
Faint laughter carried from the hall. Conrad. I could hear his smooth, calm tone. “Oh, don’t worry about the noise. Probably a couple having a great time. I wouldn't mind having some of those wall-shaking times myself, am I right?”
Good. He was keeping people away. My grin stretched wider right before Frank bolted for the window.
“Oh, no, you don’t.”
I leapt, bones shifting midair, fur bursting along my limbs. My wolf hit the floor in front of him, lips curled, growl rumbling from deep in my chest. He froze, then jerked the hand from his jacket. A gleam caught the low light, thin, deadly. A knife.
“I–I’m not g-going to let him use me,” he stammered, trembling. “Not l-letting him use m-my body. It’s m-me or y-you. So l-let’s go, b-bitch.”
His words snagged in my mind. Use his body? Before I could ask, a faint shimmer rippled across the blade, catching my eye. Magic was carved into that blade. I took a careful step back.
“That’s right!” he shouted, his voice breaking. “He told me to… c-convince you to talk, then k-kill you with this!” Sweat poured down his temples, his skin waxy, eyes fluttering every which way. This man wasn't scared of me; he was scared of someone else. This him he was talking about.
He lunged for me, almost catching my side before I jumped back. I needed fucking answers, which meant I couldn’t kill him. Looking down at his hands again, I sniffed the air. I couldn't smell any elemental magic enhancements, which meant it was spellwork I didn’t recognize.
We circled each other, his breath hitching and my claws flexing into the hardwood. Every twitch of his wrist, every flick of his gaze, I watched for my opening. I only needed one. When a faint voice echoed down the hall, his eyes flicked toward the sound. That was when I lunged.
He moved faster than I expected, but instead of trying to slice me up, he threw it at me. Unable to dodge it fully, it sliced up my inner thigh.
White-hot agony tore through me, followed by a pain unlike anything I’d ever known.
The damn knife felt like it bit into me.
My wolf screamed inside my skull, a sound that was halfway strangled to silence as she was shoved back then ripped away from me. My wolf body shifted mid-leap. Flesh, not fur, hit the floor.
The world tilted, colors too bright, sound too sharp. My thigh pulsed wet beneath my palm, and I gripped the wound as hard as I could until my hands began to shake, blood slipping between my fingers. The cut was deep, main artery deep, and it wasn’t closing.
It wasn’t fucking closing. That was not good.
My eyes started to go out of focus as I heard him mutter, “I-I have to kill you.” His voice came from the other side of the room. He fumbled with something, and I heard a bullet load into a chamber. “I n-need to kill Nova Rossey. I need to k-kill you. It’s the o-only way.”
Hearing my name pass his lips sent rage slicing through the haze, and I used all my strength to roll where my instincts told me to. A gunshot split the air right beside my ear.
I rolled until I felt something hard stop me. A wall. Still disoriented, I tried to keep my wits about me. I sat up with my back to the wall, trying to figure out my next move.
A roar sliced through the air in front of me. This one was deep, guttural, feral. It filled the room, shaking dust from the ceiling.
Frank screamed. The crunching sound of bone meeting bone filled the air, something ripping in between the cracks until a wet gurgling sound was all that was left.
I pressed my hand to my thigh, trying to blink away the dizzy state I was in while searching for my wolf in my mind. She was there, but it was like there was a wall between us, thick and humming. The magic was still burning under my skin, eating away at the edges of my power.
Except for my heartbeat and the faint drag of something heavy moving, the room was quiet. I reached out with my senses, tasting blood and magic in the air. Focus. Anticipate.
A light tread, four-footed and careful, slowly moved closer, but it wasn’t the pattern of a predator hunting. Each step was slow, cautious, hesitant. The air shifted with it, carrying a wave of emotion that wasn’t mine: sorrow, regret, fierce protectiveness that wrapped around the edges of my fear.
I should’ve flinched when something wet pressed against my thigh, but I didn’t. Focusing on what this beast was doing, I realized it was using its tongue to lick at my wound. Warm, steady, and deliberate, it coaxed the heat and pain out of my body until my breath evened and the shaking slowed.
Somewhere in that strange rhythm, my body began to relax on its own.
The wall between me and my wolf thinned, threads of gold weaving through the dark.
The licking became less insistent, more soft, lightly tracing my skin, and heat curled low in my belly.
I let go of the fear, the pain, the fight, just felt.
The magic’s burn faded as my pulse steadied. My wolf stirred beneath my skin again, no longer locked away.
Whoever the creature was, I could feel it. An apology pulsed through every careful touch, each deep breath. This creature was taking care of me like it owed me, like it was mine.
The tongue shifted upward, just shy of my center, and I couldn't help the soft moan that tore from my throat.
The licking continued, slow and deliberate this time.
I didn't know what was going on with my body, but the more the beast licked at my skin, the more liquid my bones became.
My legs moved, falling open, thighs trembling as pleasurable magic raced up and down my back.
The change between emergency healing and sensual tasting came quickly. The air around me shifted, and hands gripped me, fingers digging into my flesh as they spread me even wider. The voice that followed was low, accented, breaking on the words. "My mate. My love."
Then a long, wet stroke lapped at my center, and my spine turned into jelly. My mind was muddled with magic and pleasure, not letting reason make its way through.
"More." The word scraped out of me, barely recognizable. The familiar scent of spicy warm strawberries filled my lungs, and I let it seep into my pores, wanting to drown in it.
The hesitation vanished. His mouth worked me over, nipping, licking, mapping every inch of me. My breath caught. Stopped. Started again in short, desperate bursts. A whine built in my chest.
Each touch came slowly. Deliberately. Heat layered upon heat, building in waves that never crested. My hands fisted against the hardwood beneath me, nails biting into my palms. My hips rolled, seeking more pressure, more friction, more everything.
My vision sharpened, then it blurred again as I squeezed my eyes shut. He held me there, balanced on a cliff's edge, never letting me fall.
"Please." My voice cracked.
Forcing my eyes open, I looked down to see the wound on my thigh was now smooth, sealed skin. Below it, rich brown hands touched with gold were curled around my thighs, the strength of his hold whitening his knuckles.
I looked up. Pale yellow eyes stared back. Dark loose strands fell around his face like a lace curtain. His mouth glistened.
"Please what?" His rumble vibrated through my bones.
I blinked again before recognizing who it was. Deslen. He was on his knees in front of me, resting between my bare legs. His smile curved, slow and knowing. His tongue dragged across his bottom lip like he never wanted to stop tasting it, tasting me.
"Please," I called out absently, my gaze completely captured by the movement of his tongue. "Make me come."
Light flooded his expression before something sharper replaced it.
One hand slid down my thigh, and he leaned in toward my face, close enough to smell myself on his lips.
A shudder rolled through me, and I almost closed my eyes again until his forehead met mine.
His hair fell forward, shutting out everything else.
"I would kill hundreds—" Two fingers pushed inside me. I gasped, back arching. "—thousands, for you, my heart."
His fingers moved. In. Out. The rhythm threatened to unravel me. His forehead pressed against mine harder, grounding me, calling me to look deep into his eyes.
"I want to kill that man all over again for daring to hurt what’s mine."
My heart slammed against my ribs. Heat flooded my cheeks. Pressure built behind my chest like it was getting ready to break open.
A moment of rational thought hit me at that moment, clearing my mind of whatever was happening between us. He didn't know me. How could he be so sure? How could he give his whole heart so readily? And to me?
Unable to keep my desires at bay anymore, I surged forward, crashing my mouth against his.
The taste of us together, a slice of sweet magic with a twinge of copper, caused a moan to vibrate between our lips.
The mark on my arm flared white-hot, but I couldn't focus on anything except his mouth, his fingers, and this moment.
A third finger entered, stretching me, and stars burst behind my eyelids.
His hand wrapped around my throat, tilting my head back as he swallowed my gasps. His thumb found my clit and circled, firm, relentless. Three fingers pumped hard and fast, pushing me over the edge as my body locked up, clenching so hard I felt like something might break.
The orgasm that ripped through me spread across my body, and I tore away from his mouth, crying out his name.
He groaned against my neck, teeth sinking in hard. Wet heat splashed across my stomach, and for one glorious second, I felt it. That connection. That golden thread of a bond. Fate tying us together.
Footsteps thundered. Voices shouted my name as my mind came back online. Conrad. Zeth. Nick. I looked up to see all three of them stumbling to a halt in the doorway.
A growl tore from Deslen's chest. He shifted into a massive black jaguar, covering me with his body until he paused. When he took a few sniffs toward the three of them, the tension drained from his shoulders.
He shifted back into his human form. Standing before them, smiling brightly, he extended his hand to them. Completely naked.
"Oh! I didn’t know I was blessed with mate-brothers.” His confident voice was peppered with excitement. “I'm Deslen. So happy to finally join the pack!”
One second passed, then another. None of them moved to shake his hand. Instead, three sets of eyes dropped to me on the floor instead. Three identical expressions silently said, ‘This is your fault.’
Fuck.