CHAPTER 5
Zarreth
Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! She wasn’t supposed to find out.
Frankie slaps my arm away, so I chase her down the stairs.
She stops dead in her tracks when a pungent, metallic odor hits us.
Confusion flickers across her face, pulling her a step back when she looks at me.
She only now notices the crimson splattered across my bare chest and hands, the knife tucked in my belt.
Her thighs rub together, the scent of warm honey mixing with the sickly scent of blood.
Is my little mate actually turned on seeing me like this?
Maybe this won’t be as bad as I think it will be.
But then her focus shifts, that calm she only gets when she’s about to do something I don’t like. Yeah, it’s going to be bad.
“What’s going on?” she asks.
I search her eyes, wanting to protect her from the monster on the other side of the soundproof door—to protect her from the monster inside of me. But she deserves to know the truth, even if it means she never looks at me the same again.
Lifting my arm, I brace myself and let her take the lead. I stay back as she steps through the doorway, giving her space to make sense of what she sees.
The naked demon shackled to the ceiling is making incoherent noises, his screams having died down to sobs.
Bloody horns lay next to his broken feet.
The wounds on his back are still open from when I ripped his rib cage apart a couple days ago.
His body is slow to heal, but I’m thankful his lungs are back where they belong.
I don’t want Frankie to see the monster I am capable of becoming.
Her lips part, but no sound comes out. I wonder what’s going through that pretty head of hers. She’s never seen this side of me. The side that gets off on spilling the blood of those who’ve hurt her. Will she be scared now that she knows how deeply my obsession with her lies?
She cautiously circles the demon. Her face gives nothing away, but there’s black smoke radiating off her skin.
She’s not as calm as she looks. The tension around her is thick, like the slightest change could set off a storm.
I’m desperate to know what she’s thinking, but I don’t dare break the silence.
I search her face for any type of reaction, but it’s pretty fucking hard to concentrate when she looks like a gothic pornstar.
Her shorts are so short, I can see her ass cheeks jiggle with every step she takes.
The black fishnets and choker, mixed with her big innocent eyes and pigtails, make my cock harden to the point of pain.
She reaches up, careful not to slip on the bloody plastic under his feet.
Her leather corset lifts, exposing a sliver of flesh when she grabs his chin.
“Look who it is,” she purrs. Raising herself on tippy toes, she leans in and whispers, “Guess you turn me on, after all. Seeing you like this makes my pussy wet.”
Holy shit! I run the palm of my hand over the bulge in my jeans. I don’t know what I was expecting her to say, but it wasn’t that. Frankie hates that word, but damn do I love hearing her say it.
Cronus blinks a few times, trying to focus on her.
“Y-you. I should have…” He slurs, too weak to finish his sentence as his eyes roll to the back of his head.
I’m starting to wish I hadn’t bled him out so badly so Frankie could have more fun with him.
Apparently, someone likes to play with her prey before going for the kill.
Still holding his chin, she slaps him across the face. “Wake up! I haven’t even started with you yet.”
He groans, blinking rapidly until his eyes focus on her again.
His Adam's apple moves up and down, but his swollen mouth makes it difficult to tell if he’s trying to speak or swallow.
Finally, he pulls his head back and spits right in her face.
He’s fucking dead! I’m at her side before she has a chance to wipe it off, my fist connecting with his fractured nose.
Frankie grabs my arm, stopping the next blow. Her eyes flicker black as she wipes a hand over her face. “Sit down,” she orders, pointing to a folding chair not too far from her. “You’ve already had your fun.”
Just when I thought my dick couldn’t get any harder…Fuck! It’s all I can do to keep from pushing her onto her knees and fucking her sassy little mouth, but I owe her this, so I do as I’m told.
“He’s all yours,” I say, handing her my knife.
Smiling, she takes it from me, turning it around in her hand, smoke swirling around her wrists. She gazes up at me, her eyes more black than green now. “I think I’m going to enjoy this.”
She turns back to Cronus, and I smack her ass on my way to the chair. She’s not the only one who’s going to enjoy this. Fuck, she’s sexy.
The blade drags from his sternum to his groin before she drives it into the soft spot above his thigh. “Oops.” Her eyes glow beautifully as his screams bounce off the walls. “That was a close one. Little Cronus is lucky he wasn’t in the way.”
I chuckle. I didn’t think I could enjoy torturing Cronus any more than I already have. I guess I was wrong. Maybe I didn’t need to protect Frankie from this. In fact, I think she needs this.
I’ve never seen her magic dance around her skin like this, waiting for her command. I wonder if she realizes how in control of her powers she is right now. All she needed was to let go and trust herself. I’m so fucking proud of her.
His screams die down. “F-fucking bitch,” he rasps.
“I should’ve torn open…” His words twist into a wet, ragged cough.
“…your dirty cunt…when I had the chance.” He snarls, finishing his sentence.
It’s all I can do to keep from ripping out his fucking spine, but I’m curious to see what my mate will do, so I unclench my fists and force myself to stay seated.
A slow smile creeps across her face as she uses the tip of the blade to lift his head. Blood pools under his chin, and rolls down her arm. “Talk about my cunt one more time, and I’ll pop your eye out so it matches the other one.”
He tries smiling, but only half his deformed face works. “You…wanted…it,” he grits out.
She stills, but her magic doesn’t. It begins swirling around his body like it’s itching to kill him, but his eyes are not bleeding yet, so she’s still in control. “I wanted it?” she says, with an eerie chuckle.
She grabs his dick, clenching hard as she digs the blade deeper into his chin. “I WANTED IT?” She screams so loudly even I flinch. “Just like you want this?”
She plunges the blade through his bottom jaw, making him choke on his tongue. More blood runs down her hand. The gurgling noises in his throat serve as excellent background music as Frankie raises the knife for him to see.
“Or maybe you want this?” She pulls his dick tight.
His mouth opens, but instead of a scream, blood leaks out, pouring down his chin.
A dark cloud surrounds his body and disappears into his skin, sucking the life out of him.
His eyes and ears are now bleeding from her magic.
Laughing, she quickly brings the blade down and slices it through his shaft, severing it in one swoop.
She throws her head back, laughing harder when her fingers open, the chunk of flesh landing next to his horns.
I’m not sure if she realizes he’s hanging limp and lifeless, her powers having already taken his last breath.
But I don’t think this is about killing him.
It’s much more than that. It’s an outlet. It’s therapy.
Her laughter breaks, first into screams, then sobs. “I fucking hate you!” She continues stabbing him, over and over until her hands move to her temples. She jerks her head side to side, like she’s trying to shake the thoughts out. “No! No!”
It takes every ounce of discipline I have not to go to her, to comfort her. She needs this, and she needs to do it alone.
“You can’t control me anymore!” she snarls, letting me know it’s no longer Cronus’ body she sees. It’s Aradon’s. “You’re dead!” She stabs him again and again. “You’re dead!” She screams between each jab until his intestines lay in a bloody heap beneath his feet.
“You’re dead,” she mumbles one last time.
The knife drops, clattering to the ground.
She sinks to her knees, darkness pouring off her in waves. Sobs fill the room, her bloody hands covering her face.
Her magic presses against me, searching for something to latch onto, but it can’t get in. I want to go to her, but my instincts are screaming at me to stay put.
She turns her head, black eyes piercing into mine as I go still. “Do you feel it?”
I’m not sure what she’s talking about, so I simply shake my head.
She reaches into her pocket and pulls out a small knife. Where’d she get that from? “I feel it. I feel it all the time. It’s always there. Too far to see, too close to escape. It drives me mad.”
I can’t quite identify the emotion on her face as she flips the knife open. “I just need it to stop.”
The blade cuts across her cheek before I can react. A thin line of blood trails down her face. The shadows pull back, hovering close to her skin.
I may not have been able to identify the look on her face a moment ago, but now? Her eyes roll back. A soft sigh leaves her lips.
Euphoria.
And I am fucking furious.
I’m beside her in less than a second. Tearing the knife from her hands, I flip it shut, shoving it in my pocket.
“Give it back!” she screams, frantically slamming her fists into my chest.
I throw her flailing body over my shoulder and walk to another set of cuffs chained to the ceiling. My hand waves, sending the dead body up in flames. It’s the best I can do. I’m not taking the time to clean up all this blood. Someone has a lesson to learn.
“There is no fucking way anyone hurts my mate…not even you.” I lock her wrists in the cuffs. A low sound tears from her throat as she jerks against them.
“If you need release, you come to me. If you crave pain, you come to me.”
Her gaze snaps to mine with a snarl. She can bare her teeth all she wants. I’m not going anywhere.
I lower my voice, forcing her to listen. “But know that I will break you. I will shatter you to fucking pieces. And when it’s over, you won’t run to a blade. You’ll finally remember who the fuck you are.”
Because she’s mine.
And I am hers.
And I will not lose her to the dark.