27. Clarissa
CLARISSA
M y heart still races as I make my way back to the main area of the club, my skin tingling with the ghost of Kaisner’s touch. The encounter in the office left me reeling, my mind spinning with questions and emotions I can barely untangle.
The pulsing beat of the music thrums through me as I step onto the dance floor, the flashing lights casting eerie shadows over the writhing bodies.
My gaze sweeps over the crowd until it lands on Sam and Alexei near the bar.
Sam’s worried expression eases when she sees me, but Alexei’s posture is taut, his easy confidence sharpened to a keen edge.
Sam closes the distance in a flash, her voice cutting through the music. “Where the hell were you?” Her relief is edged with irritation.
Heat creeps up my neck. “I just needed some air,” I say, the lie thin and weightless. “It was getting a bit stuffy.”
Sam arches a skeptical brow. “Uh-huh. And that ’air’ wouldn’t have anything to do with a certain tall, dark, and dangerous man you disappeared with, would it?”
Before I can answer, Alexei steps in with a smirk and two drinks in hand. “Clarissa! There you are,” he says, his grin rakish. “We were starting to think you’d ditched us for better company.”
If only he knew how close he was to the truth.
I take the drink, grateful for the brief distraction. “Never,” I say, forcing a bright smile as Sam and Alexei exchange a glance.
The music surges around us, and for a moment, I let the beat carry me, the steady thrum of bass a balm to my restless thoughts. My mind remains half-trapped in that private room, replaying every touch, every word, every charged glance exchanged with Kaisner.
Sam leans in, voice pitched low so only I can hear. “We’ll talk about this later,” she mouths. I nod, knowing there’s no escaping it.
For now, I let the music wash over me as I dance with my friends, laughter spilling from my lips even as Kaisner’s parting words echo in my mind: “No matter what happens out there, no matter who you’re with, you belong to me.”
We lose ourselves in the music, bodies pressed close, moving in time with the relentless beat. For a fleeting instant, I almost feel normal—just another woman in a club, cloaked in flickering lights and fleeting glances.
Then Sam’s voice breaks the spell, laced with worry. “Shit. I have to go. Gavriil’s in one of his moods . Apparently, he’ll send the entire Elite team if I don’t head back home.”
A protest rises to my lips, but her apologetic smile stops me. “It’s okay,” I say softly. “Go. I’ll be fine.”
She pulls me into a tight hug. “Call me if you need anything,” she murmurs before melting into the crowd.
The club closes in around me, the air thick with heat and sweat and the electric promise of the night. Bodies sway to the music, laughter rings out, and yet, beneath it all, something cold coils at the base of my spine.
A gaze—hungry, intent—lands on me. Not Kaisner’s. His is a possessive heat, one that claims and protects. This is different. Colder. Hungrier.
I keep dancing, pretending not to notice, though every nerve in my body is on edge. Human guys watch me with lust, curiosity, admiration—mundane desires with no real danger behind them.
Something darker lurks in the shadows. Predatory. Calculated. Waiting.
The hairs on the back of my neck rise. My skin prickles. I’m not only being watched, I realize.
I’m being hunted.
I sharpen my senses, my gaze scanning the edges of the dance floor. And then, I see them.
A bear shifter reclines in a secluded booth, amber eyes gleaming with feral interest. Near the bar, a warlock tracks my every move, the flicker of magic playing at his fingertips. And a vampire—utterly still—watches me with ancient, predatory calm.
They aren’t drawn to beauty. They’re drawn to influence. To me.
The truth of it crashes over me. I am not just a woman in a club tonight—I am Clarissa Draken, a prize to be claimed. A stepping stone to power.
A hand brushes my elbow, and I flinch.
Alexei’s low voice cuts through the music, a smooth invitation. “Shall we dance?”
His expression is easy, but his nostrils flare, catching the faint scent of Kaisner on my skin. He tucks that knowledge away, a card to be played at the perfect moment.
Before I can respond, he guides me back onto the dance floor, his hand firm at my waist. The bourbon on his breath mingles with expensive cologne, his every move a study in controlled dominance. The music thrums through my veins as we dance—a push and pull, a performance for the eyes that watch.
“Buenas noches, bella,” a voice purrs, cutting through our dance like a blade through silk. The words roll off his tongue with a lazy sort of charm, though somewhat slurred.
I turn to find León Regalis, the lion shifter alpha, disheveled and reeking of whiskey.
His smile is arrogant, but there’s a wild edge to it.
“Mind if I cut in?” he says, reaching for my hand.
And when he speaks, he does it with the entitled ease of a man who’s never been denied anything in his life.
Alexei’s hold on my waist tightens like a vice. “ I mind,” he growls, his voice a low rumble.
León’s smirk widens. “Come on, Clarissa,” he says, ignoring Alexei. “Ditch this mutt and dance with a real man.”
Tension sparks between them, electrifying the charged air.
“León, don’t—” I start, but the crack of a fist cuts me off.
León stumbles back, blood trickling from his split lip, fury burning in his eyes. “You’ll pay for that, wolf,” he snarls, snapping his fingers.
Suddenly, we’re surrounded.
León’s men step from the shadows, bodies tensed, eyes hard.
Alexei shoves me behind him. “Stay back,” he snarls.
In a flash, chaos erupts around us. Fists fly, glass shatters, screams pierce the air. I’m shoved, jostled, struggling to stay upright. Alexei moves like a force of nature, his strikes precise and devastating, but for every man he drops, another takes his place.
Just when it seems the tide might turn against us, he lands a brutal blow to León’s solar plexus, dropping him to his knees. Seizing the moment, he grips my hand and drags me through the roiling crowd.
We’re almost at the door when Alexei stiffens, his body going still.
“Alexei?” My voice wavers. “What’s wrong?”
He turns, and my breath lodges in my throat. His features have shifted, elongated—feral. His eyes glow yellow in the strobe light, and when he opens his mouth, I see fangs where normal teeth should be.
“Mine,” he growls, the word a claim, a threat. “You’re mine!”
Sheer black dread washes over me.
“Alexei, don’t!” I try to back away, but his hand shoots out, gripping my arm with bruising force. He pulls me close, his hot breath fanning across my face as he leans in, fangs bared and ready to claim me.
A single, deafening crack splits the air, cutting through the pulsing music like a knife. My ears ring, the world around me muffled as if I’ve been plunged underwater. The crowd freezes—a tableau of shocked faces illuminated by the strobing lights.
Then, pandemonium.
The bass drops out, replaced by screams and the thunder of hundreds of feet as people scramble for the exits. Bodies press against me from all sides, panic a living entity in the air. The acrid smell of gunpowder stings my nostrils, mixing with the sweat and fear emanating from the fleeing crowd.
Another shot rings out, and the concussion echoes in my chest, my heart stuttering in response. Glass shatters to my left, the tinkling of falling shards barely audible over the chaos. Warm liquid splatters across my face.
Alexei’s grip on my arm loosens, his eyes wide with shock. He opens his mouth as if to speak, but only a gurgle escapes. Then, like a marionette with snapped strings, he crumples to the floor.
I stand frozen, unable to process what I’m seeing.
Alexei lies motionless at my feet, blood pooling around him, his unseeing eyes staring up at me—I can’t breathe. I can’t think. The world tilts and spins.
Suddenly, strong hands grip my shoulders, pushing me against the wall. A blurred face swims into focus before me, lips moving, forming words I can barely hear over the high-pitched ringing in my ears. He shakes me gently, repeating himself until his words finally break through the fog in my mind.
“Are you all right?” The voice seems to come from far away. “Clarissa, can you hear me?”
I stare down in horror to see my pristine white dress now stained bright crimson. My gaze drifts to Alexei’s body, drawn by shock and disbelief. A hand grips my chin, forcefully turning my head away from the gruesome sight.
“Don’t look at him! Look at me , Clarissa. Look at me!”
I blink, focusing on the face before me. Kaisner. His eyes are wild with concern, his jaw clenched tight. When I see the gun holstered under his jacket, realization dawns, cold and horrifying.
“Y-you... you shot him…” I mumble, my body shaking uncontrollably. “You...” I try to take a deep breath, but my lungs refuse me. Black spots dance at the edges of my vision. Panic sets in.
“Clarissa!” Kaisner’s face blurs before me, his voice distant and distorted. “Clarissa, breathe! ”
But it’s too late. The world tilts sideways, darkness rushing in to claim me. The last thing I’m aware of is Kaisner’s strong arms catching me as I fall.
Then, blissful nothingness.