Fatal Desire (6 page)

Christ, does he really have to do that in front of me?

He advanced until he stood only inches from her. “You forget”—he leaned in closer—”I’m much older than you.” He let his power slide across her skin then pin her in place. “Are you tempting fate, Lileta? Do you want to hear what it is I really wish to do to you?”

She swallowed the lump that crept up her throat. “No.”

His eyes flashed green before turning back to brown. “Then I ask again, why are you here?”

She dropped her hands to her side. “I’m here to ask for your help.”

He snapped the towel over his right shoulder and released his power, giving her freedom back. “Really?”

She didn’t like the smirk on his face and itched to smack it off, but realized his power was far greater than her own. She’d best tread lightly. “Cassie is only weeks away from giving birth and needs to do so back in the caves. I was hoping you might be kind enough to stand guard over them when the time comes. I’ve offered to help, but no one will question—”

He held his hand up. “No need to explain. I would be honored to assist. It’s the least I can do for all the problems my people have caused them.”

She smiled; deep down he had a soft spot. “Thank you.”

He turned and walked away from her. His ass flexed in the tight sweats, and she gave a mental sigh.
Damn.

“So, are you well?” His voice caressed her, and she hated him for it.

“Yes. I’m back to normal and plan on hunting my captors.”

He spun and pierced her with blazing green eyes. “I told you, I will kill them for what they did to you. You will stay away from them.”

Hers narrowed until she stared through slits. “You don’t own me. I will take care of this myself.”

In two steps, he stood in front of her, and large hands touched the wall above her shoulders while his body pinned her.

She had nowhere to go. His erection pushed into her belly, and her breath caught in her lungs. Hands splayed on his pecs, she shoved. “Get off me.”

His upper lip curled. “You will not place yourself in danger.”

Her chest heaved as she tried to regain her composure. Having him this close muddled her brain, making it hard to think. “You can’t stop me.” She spoke through gritted teeth, more from desire heating in her veins than anger at his possessiveness.

His lips brushed the rim of her ear. “Oh, but I can. I still hold the magic bands I removed earlier. I will not hesitate to use them again.”

“Bastard!”

“Yes, I am. Don’t challenge me.” He let his power slide along her skin, reminding her what he was capable of.

“Caleb, why do you care? You know it’s impossible for us to mate.” She could hardly wait to hear his response.

“Irrelevant. You are still mine, and a dragon always takes care of what belongs to him.”

Possessive bastard!
She wanted to be angry but wasn’t in the mood to fight with him. There would be time for that later. Besides, she hated to admit she could use his help. “Fine, how about a compromise?” She needed him to either stop breathing in her ear or run his tongue along her neck and nip at her flesh. At the moment, she didn’t care which.

He leaned back to look at her, still keeping her confined. “Such as?”

“Let me go with you. We can take them down together.” She swallowed hard, hoping he’d accept the offer.

His nose ran along the crook of her neck, inhaling. He stopped between her breasts and planted a kiss.

Her heart stopped.

The urge to shove him to the floor and have him buried deep inside her made her head spin. She resisted, not wanting to kill him. Yet.

“You know I don’t have to accommodate you, but this I will grant.” He raised his head from her bosom, eyes swirling back to brown. “I understand the need you have to seek vengeance.”

She flicked her tongue out and licked her bottom lip. He stared. If possible, his cock stiffened more against her. “Thank you.”

He pushed away and moved back to the bench. While sitting, he wiped the towel across his face. “Why do you suppose they did it?”

She gasped and tried to regulate her breathing after his close proximity. “Who did what?”

He looked up. “The gods. Why do you suppose they did this to us?”

“I wish I knew.”

* * * *

Odage stood outside the cell. Qadira pinned him with her emerald gaze; if she had her powers, there was no doubt he would burst into a ball of flames.

“What is the meaning of this?” she hissed.

“I am sorry, My Lady, but it was necessary,” Odage replied.

Pale fingers wrapped around the bars, and she shook it to no avail. “Zarek!” Qadira looked up at the ceiling as if the gesture would bring her husband, the most powerful god alive.

Odage cringed and hoped like hell the cloaking spell worked. “He can’t hear you.”

“Odage, I’m giving you ten seconds to release me. If you do not do as I instruct, when I finally free myself from this prison, you will rue the day you were born.”

“I already do, My Lady.” He dropped to the floor and bowed before his creator. So many things needed forgiveness Where to begin? Did he start with the murder of the vampire queen? No. It started way before then. Here, on this very mountain. This fucking piece of rock that had become his prison.

The goddess knelt to the floor, legs tucked under her. Her hand reached between the bars and brushed a lock of hair from his eyes. “What has happened, my son, that would cause you to bring the wrath of the gods down upon you?”

He lifted his head, and their gazes met. Anger boiled beneath the surface, and he forced his dragon to recede. Repose would be his only friend right now. “He has her. I have no choice.”

Her eyelashes fluttered. “Who has who? Don’t speak to me in riddles.”

He let out a mocking laugh. “But the gods speak them all the time. You could have stopped this. All of this could have been avoided if only you would have killed him.”

Her lips pursed, and her eyes narrowed. “You try my patience, Odage.”

Again a sinister laugh escaped past his lips. “You know nothing about patience. I’ve waited a year to see her. Done his bidding.” He pulled himself closer until his face touched the bars. “I am the devil’s puppet, My Lady, and he has my daughter.”

Shock registered on her face.

“Well done, Odage. You managed not to fuck this one up.” The voice echoed through the room.

Qadira’s eyes widened. “Lowan,” she whispered.

Odage stood and brushed off his jeans. “I have done as you asked, My Lord. You will let me see Leria now?”

“To show you I am a demon of my word, I will allow a brief visit.”

Darkness swirled around him and pulled. Distance grew between him and the goddess until she was gone and he stood in a dimly lit room. “Leria?”

“Father?”

A girl ran from the shadows. Her raven hair pulled into a braid; she looked more like her mother than the last time he had seen her. He bent and scooped her into his embrace, squeezing her.

“Child, I have missed you.” His voice was unsteady.

Her arms wrapped around his neck. “Daddy, where have you been? Where’s Mom?”

Tears threatened to spill, but he forced them away. Instead, he kissed her velvet cheek and inhaled her scent. This would need to last him for a while.

He sat in a nearby chair and pulled her into his lap. “I need you to be a strong, okay?”

She touched his cheek. “It’s okay. I’ll be strong, promise.”

The child was wise beyond her sixteen years. “Your mother is dead.”

He tried to not let the visions of his mate falling from the sky enter his mind, but it was too late. Lowan had managed to force her to shift back to human form in midflight. There was nothing he could do. He stood paralyzed on the mountainside and watched in horror. The fall had been too high for her to survive. The love of his life lay in a broken heap at the bottom of the rocks. It wasn’t enough to take his mate from him; Lowan had taken his daughter hostage, forcing Odage to do his bidding. His mind was shattered. Killing and torture were in his blood now. Stained by the dark seed Lowan had planted, he only had one mission now.

See his daughter to safety.

He stroked her hair, cherished every second, for who knew when Lowan would force him to leave her.

“She’s with the gods now?”

“Yes, sweetheart. She watches over you every day.”

Leria smiled. “I like that. Are we leaving now?”

“No, I have not finished my business yet. Soon, I swear. But first I need you to make me another promise.” He placed his palm on top of her head, opened his mind, and flashed mental images to his daughter. “Now promise me should something ever happen, should you ever get free from here, you run and find the man I showed you. He will take care of you.”

“Times up, dragon,” the menacing voice laughed.

Chapter Six

“Men, you have your orders. We will rendezvous in the Vutha Mountains in one hour, and then we will burn the guardians from their homes. Capture any females and bring them to me. Otherwise, kill all the men.” Caleb watched twenty dragons exit his home and hoped like hell when they arrived, the guardians would be gone. Aidyn had assured him the place would be empty. Caleb hoped they were doing the right thing.

He grabbed his dagger from the table and slid it into the sheath at his waist, furious with himself for letting that damn female talk him into accompanying him while tracking her captors. He must be a sadist, because the only thing the woman did was torture the hell out of him. When he pinned her to the wall, he was within seconds of tossing her to the floor and claiming her. He’d wanted to bury himself so deep inside her he would forget his name. One thing was certain, while in Vandeldor, he would be calling on his goddess Qadira to find out exactly what was behind this mate of his. Maybe she could break this bond between them so they could both move on.

He conjured a portal and stepped through. On the other side, he stood on the mountaintop and looked out over his true home. Sadness encompassed him as he remembered the days past when his people lived here in the mountains and the guardians were spread out among the forest and the ocean. Children of both species had played together in mock battles, practicing for the real ones they would encounter as adults. Since the war with Drayos over three hundred years ago, both species had taken a beating. The guardians remained here in Vandeldor, but the Draki had spread out into the human world to live. Perhaps one day they would all come together again and bring joy and laughter back to their home. It would have to wait, though; today, he was about to destroy it.

“Diego.”

“Yes, Commander?” The tall Draki stepped forward to stand in front of Caleb. Donned in a black T-shirt and black jeans, his cropped brown hair and three-day stubble made him look a menace. He sensed the young dragon’s itch for a fight.

“Any activity?”

“No, sir.” Diego rubbed his chin. “Do you suppose they all left?”

He pretended to scan the area. “Hard to say, either way we need to burn the place down. Leave nothing standing.”

Diego stood tall. “Yes, sir.”

Caleb shifted to his dragon and took flight. Heading straight for the king’s home. There would be no satisfaction gained in completing this task. He circled low and flared out his senses, detecting no life. It seemed they had indeed all gotten out.

He let loose the first wave of fire, sending the flames crashing through a window. The front of the house exploded, debris spewed into the air. He circled to the right and came in for another attack, sending another rush of fire until the home was engulfed. He headed back toward the mountains and landed next to Diego.

“Report.”

“We found no life, Commander, but not a structure stands.” Diego’s reply was full of venom.

“Send the others back, we will stand watch.”

“Yes, sir.”

Diego ran off to relay the message while Caleb stood and watched the fires burn. He half expected the gods to strike him down this very moment for the destruction he created. Perhaps they were waiting until they thought he forgot then would wreak their havoc. Diego moved in beside him, and he turned to gaze at his younger sibling.

“Diego, you trust me with your life, yes?” Caleb asked.

A dark brow lifted. “Of course, what kind of stupid question is that?”

“The guardians knew about the attack and fled.” Caleb stared out over the burning terrain.

Diego clenched his jaw. “Who would have told them?”

“I did.”

“What the fuck! Why would you do that?”

He pinned his brother with his gaze. “Odage has lied to us. He killed their queen and is in league with a demon high lord who plans to open Hell’s Gate.”

Diego’s jaw dropped, and he brushed a palm over his face. “I’m fucking stunned.”

Caleb laughed. “Not as much as I, dear brother. Not as much as I.”

“So what now?”

“We must play it cool until we figure out where Odage is, and even then, we cannot tip our hand. He must be taken down.”

“Son of a bitch. Odage is the strongest among us. It won’t be easy. Not to mention those that will follow him no matter what he’s done.” The young Draki plopped down on a rock.

Caleb sighed. “That is why you must renounce your alliance with me when the time comes.”

Diego jumped up, standing inches from Caleb’s face. “Like hell I will.” He turned and paced, his fists clenched and unclenched. “I wasn’t there for you when you were taken and tortured. When you watched our brother die. I’ll be damned if I will leave your side now.” He moved back in front of Caleb, his finger jabbed him in the chest. “I’m older and stronger now; I can help you.”

Caleb remained the epitome of patience. “Your strength is not in question. However, I have another very important task for you.”

His brother crossed his arms over his chest. “What?”

“Take care of my mate.”

Diego’s arms fell to his side. “The hell you say?”

“Yes, seems the gods have seen fit to mate me with a Kothar Demon named Lileta.”