Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Christian
When Eve steps out of the bathroom, my eyes wander over the curves of her body, which are only accentuated by the sheer, flowing fabric of the robe. My cock instantly stirs to life and I shift in the chair I’m sitting in.
She lifts her arms, then tugs at the low neckline of the robe. “Well. It fits. Barely. It’s as loose as it will go.”
The robe belongs to a Deb who’s several sizes smaller than Eve—and yet it drapes over Eve’s body like it was made for her, the thin fabric showing a hint of her flushed skin beneath, the front straining against her pink, round nipples.
She looks like a William Waterhouse painting come to life.
Yeah, fuck . Maybe this wasn’t my best idea.
When I stand and move toward her, I expect her to flinch, but she doesn’t. Back rigid, her expression hardens, like she doesn’t want me to see her fear. But I do. I see it in the way her breath catches. In the way her pulse thrums rapidly at the base of her throat. Can I blame her? She’s a fox that’s wandered into the path of one very hungry wolf.
Studying her face, I brush the pad of my thumb over her hard nipple, just to see how she’ll react. She flinches slightly before catching herself and narrowing her eyes at me.
“Why are you doing this? Why are you tormenting me?” she asks.
“Why not?” I answer dismissively.
“I’m not responsible for what Shadow and Ash did. I had nothing to do with it. You know that, right?”
Is this chick fucking serious? I have her throat in my hand so quickly, she doesn’t have time to react. Her skin is soft against my palm.
“Your brother nearly killed mine,” I bite out through gritted teeth. “Sliced him up, then left him for fucking dead.” I tighten my hold, forcing a little squeak to emerge from her delicate throat. “So, yeah, if I can torment the one person that motherfucker loves, then I’m going to do it.”
Her throat bobs under my palm. “I’m sorry for what happened.”
Normally, I’d scoff at a statement like that. Who gives a fuck what she’s sorry about? It happened, and that’s the reality. But there’s something in her voice, a thread of sympathy that pushes me back on my heels and forces me to release her.
I’m not used to sympathy. In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever been shown sympathy in my entire fucking life. My parents outright ignore my brother and me, and growing up privileged doesn’t exactly inspire sympathy from the rest of the world. If you’re rich, it doesn’t matter what trauma your parents dish out, apparently. You should just be fucking grateful.
But here, now, there’s softness in Eve’s eyes, and I don’t like it.
Fuck her pity. Fuck her sympathy. They’re wasted emotions.
“It’s a little late for apologies, don’t you think?” I say, recovering.
“I’m not apologizing,” she replies. “I’ve already told you that I had nothing to do with what happened. But I know how it feels. My mom was a victim of violence—only she wasn’t as fortunate as your brother. She died instantly and, yeah, it shattered me.” Her throat flicks. “That’s why I’m here. I can’t let the same thing happen to my brother. If it did…” She shakes her head. “I don’t know what I’d do...”
I’m in front of her again, lowering my head so we’re face-to-face. “So, we’re the same, is that it?”
Is this her attempt to manipulate me? Get under my skin?
She shrugs one shoulder. “The same. Different. Does it matter? We both just want to protect the people we love.”
Hm. It’s a fair point, but it doesn’t matter. This thing, her being here, goes far beyond my own personal feelings, my own wounds. It’s about making sure this shit never happens again—that this beef with Shadow and Ash is buried. Forever.
She blinks up at me with those wide, whiskey-colored eyes, and I swear to God, the ground moves beneath my feet. It’s just a slight shift, but it’s enough to wake me up.
“It’s time to go downstairs,” I say abruptly, stepping back. “There’s just one more thing you need to wear.”
“Some actual clothes?” she chirps back.
I remove a necklace from my pocket and hold it up, allowing it to dangle from my fingers. It’s long enough to slip over her head without being unclasped. “Put it on.”
She reaches for the gold pendant and stares down at it. “What is it? Why do I need to wear it?”
I bite back a frustrated groan. Always with the fucking questions. “That symbol marks you as a ward of the Burning Crown.”
She pulls a face and tries to hand it back to me. “No fucking way.”
“It’s not binding,” I say in a bored tone.
“Then why do I have to wear it?”
I shrug, already done with this conversation. “I don’t know, tradition. Just put it on, Eve, or I’ll pin you down and do it for you.”
Pursing her pink lips, she pulls it over her head with a scowl, the heavy gold pendant settling into the space between her breasts. “Happy?”
“Giddy,” I say flatly, opening the door. I gesture impatiently for her to walk out, and she watches me closely as she steps out into the dark hallway. When she reaches the main staircase, she pauses and waits for me.
Good girl. She’s learning.
I descend the main staircase with her more delicate footsteps trailing behind me. Once I reach the bottom, I’m forced to turn and watch her descend the rest of the way.
I shouldn’t have.
The robe billows around her shapely legs with every step, trailing behind her like mist. She’s watching her feet, chewing her bottom lip in concentration, feathery ribbons of dark hair brushing against her flushed cheeks…
The T-shirt was better. At least it hid that insane body.
When she reaches the bottom, I give her my back and lead her to the ballroom, opening the door to let her walk in ahead of me. Just two steps in, she gasps and reels back, slamming that juicy ass into my thighs. Her soft coconut scent wafts into the air around me, causing the blood in my veins to thicken.
The room is filled with rowdy guys, all Burning Crown members, all wearing the same thing—black t-shirt, black slacks, and a black mask that covers their faces, making each guy indistinguishable from the other.
Jackson and Ash are already waiting on the dias.
Stepping up, I instruct Eve to stand beside me. She’s glancing around nervously, and she looks like she wants to bolt, but wisely stays put.
Restless energy ripples through the room.
Eve shifts closer to me, but I’m not giving her sanctuary. Not yet. Stepping aside, I place my hand on the small of her back and push her forward.
Electrified anticipation fills the silence.
“Gentlemen!” I call out. “Good evening. Thank you for coming on such short notice. I’d like you to meet tonight’s prey—Eve Savano, our peace offering from Shadow and Ash.”
Cheers echo off the walls of the cavernous room.
“There are quite a few of you who would like a taste of her, but we do have to send her back in one piece, so the Sacred Sons have decided to host this Fox Hunt as a way of keeping the peace…”
More cheers, coupled with excited barks and howls. It’s been a while since we’ve had a hunt like this, and the excitement that ripples through the room is palpable. It’s an energy like no other.
I grab her face. “The hound that hunts down this pretty little fox gets to keep her—” The barks of excitement drown out my words, and I’m forced to raise my voice so I can be heard over the commotion. “Yo! Shut the fuck up,” I yell and the room instantly quiets down. “The winner gets to keep her until it’s time to send her back to Shadow and Ash, all used up and filled…with love for the Burning Crown…”
She says something, but it’s drowned out by the cheers that ricochet off the walls. I glance down at her, pleased to see the horror on her face. Maybe it’s cruel, but it’s also necessary.
“We’ll give you thirty seconds to hide,” I say to her. “Upstairs is off limits.”
“ Thirty seconds ? This house is huge. I can’t even get down the hallway in thirty seconds.”
I glance out at the mass of guys. “What do you think? Should we give her more time?”
There’s a collective cheer that quickly quiets down.
“Okay,” I say with a shrug. “Three minutes.”
She opens her mouth—to argue for more time, I’m sure—but I release her face and pull out my phone to start the timer. “Your time has started,” I tell her. “You’d better get going.”
Spinning on her heel, she darts down the dias steps in a cloud of lacy fabric, her long, shapely legs carrying her across the marble floor and out the side door that leads to the hallway. She may try to leave the house, but we have security stationed at every exit, so she won’t get far—and the failed attempt would eat away at her three precious minutes. So, win-win.
With Eve gone, I text Austin, whom I’ve already installed in the laundry room at the back of the house.
In two minutes, shut it down.
Got it.
Jackson and Ash pull their masks off.
“So, what’s the plan?” Jackson asks.
I shrug. “We hunt.”
He laughs—and it’s an unsettling sound, because Jackson never laughs. “Come on, dude. You think I don’t know you? You’ve got something up your sleeve.”
“I have no clue what you’re talking about.”
Jackson scoffs jokingly. “Come on, man. I saw the pendant. You didn’t think I’d catch that?”
Honestly, yeah. I didn’t think he’d catch the necklace. But, whatever. Doesn’t matter. Jackson won’t derail my plan.
Ash glances at Jackson. “What the fuck are you talking about? What’d you catch?”
Jackson shakes his head, amused by all this. “Don’t worry, man. You’ll see.”
“Just fuckin’ tell me,” Ash says, pissed that he’s being left out.
Jackson ignores him. “Only one guy can win,” he says to me. “What are we gonna do with the others? All this pent-up jizz can’t be good. If there’s no outlet, then fists’ll fly and I’m not mopping up blood yet again tonight.”
“I’m miles ahead of you, brother,” I say, slapping Jackson on the shoulder. “A bunch of Debs are coming over later so we can continue the hunt after Eve is found. They’re standing by.”
“Nice,” Jackson says.
My phone alarm goes off, and before I can even say, “Let the hunt begin,” the overhead lights cut off abruptly, plunging us into near darkness. The room explodes with activity, fifty horny guys rushing to one of two doors that lead out into the main part of the house.
“You guys are fucking assholes for not telling me what’s up,” Ash mumbles in the darkness, still pissed that Jackson and I are keeping something from him.
I see Jackson’s shadow as he turns to leave. Ash follows him.
“Dude, stop being a pussy,” Jackson says. “You’ll find out soon enough…”
Candles flicker in sconces along the walls, but they do nothing to chase away the darkness in a room this large. Prior to everyone’s arrival, I’d asked a few members to light the candles throughout the house, keeping with tradition. The flickering flames cast long shadows and make the hunt more challenging.
But I’m not here for the challenge.
My purpose is much darker.
Slipping my mask on, I stride out into the heart of the house. Masked figures move through the hallways like ghosts, laughing as they search every shadow and crevice for our little fox.
With one final glance at my phone, I walk into the music room and sit down at the grand piano. I place a finger on an ivory key, and a high C note pierces the silence.
Since joining the Burning Crown officially, I’ve only attended two other hunting parties, and even in this house, there are only so many places someone can hide. The fox is usually found pretty quickly.
Not this time.
As I expected, there’s no one in the music room. It’s not off limits for the hunt, but on a normal day, it’s usually locked to protect the delicate instruments inside, so even when it’s open, people tend to stay out. There’s no real place to hide in here, anyway—it’s a beautiful room, but intentionally sparse. There’s a grand piano, a harp, a couple of antique tables, and a few places to sit. That’s it.
Well, on the surface, anyway.
Pulling a blunt out of my pocket, I light the tip and let it dangle from my lips as I half-heartedly tap out a melody on the piano— Für Elise , the first song my grandmother taught me how to play. I was probably twelve or something, and it’s one of my happiest childhood memories—one of very few.
As I tap on the keys, I realize I’m just stalling. What comes next has to be done. My plan can’t move forward until it happens. I’m aware of that, and yet, there’s a lingering thought that’s been haunting me ever since Eve walked through our front door—once this thing is done, it can’t be undone.
Can I live with what happens next?