Saven Defiance (The Saven Series Book 4) (45 page)

“Don’t react,”
I caution him.
“He’s far too volatile.”

Rylan closes his eyes, as Dante winks, enjoying this far too much. “You’re hot, too, for a Tor,” he says to Izzy, running his hand down one side of her torso, caressing her curves intimately. To her credit, she doesn’t even flinch. “Yes,” he murmurs, as his lips brush over her cheek. “I just might. I’ll keep you.”

He moves on. “Then there are people who are an outright nuisance. People who support my idiot brother, who want to stop me. Like you.” He halts in front of one of the heirs. The man is visibly trembling with fear. “You’ll have to go.” Quick as a flash, he presses his weapon to the man’s forehead and pulls the trigger. Fern’s screams mix with the brusque pop of the gun. Nausea floods my mouth. The man crashes to the floor, dead on contact.

Logan’s rising panic mixes with mine. We lock eyes. This is bad. Real bad.

“And finally there are those who don’t matter either way. Like you.” The petite woman he stops in front of starts pleading for her life. I think I’m going to be sick. “Save it,” Dante drawls as he pulls the trigger without any remorse. “And you,” he adds, terminating the man standing beside her. “You too.” The apex of his weapon prods Alex’s forehead. Neve screams at her cousin, struggling with the guard holding her in place.

Time is suspended as I watch it in slow motion. The quick flick of Dante’s wrist as he pushes the trigger. The jerky motion of Alex’s head as his neck flips back and then lolls forward as his body slumps to the ground. The rapid darkening of his eyes as the light fades. The trickle of blood seeping out of the hole in his head. Neve breaking free and charging at Dante; other guards jumping in to restrain her before she can lift a hand against him.

Horror envelops me in a veil of despair as Dante moves down the line eliminating people in quick succession until the only ones left standing are Logan, Haydn, Ax, Izzy, Rylan, Fern, Neve, Dali, Win, and me.

Fern is shaking, on the verge of a full-blown meltdown. Rylan brushes the tips of his fingers against hers, and that one touch helps settle her down. Neve is sobbing her heart out, and I long to go to her. To wrap my arms around her. To try to provide some comfort though I know it’ll be futile. Dante has killed the boy she loves. Deprived their child of its father.

“Neve’s pregnant,”
I tell Logan. Shock, anger, and grief splays through the line.

“Put them on my ship,” Dante instructs his guards, and we are all frog-marched out through the smoldering hangar and onto a medium-sized craft bearing the Saven logo on the side.

Dante seats us in his private quarters, instructing a few of his guards to take up position in the four corners of the room. Advisor Mellor is lying in wait, smiling smugly from a large comfy seat at the top of the space. Dante sinks into a plush leather couch, pulling me down onto his lap. Logan and Ax are seated across from us, secured by metal deadlocks across their midriffs and both wrists. Logan pales as Ax hisses at Dante. I think things are about to get worse.

Dante removes a small knife from his pocket and rips the sleeves of my jumpsuit up to the top of my arms. “That’s better,” he simpers, tossing the torn material aside and trailing a finger up and down my skin.

“Keep your filthy hands off her.” Logan is a seething, writhing mass of cells primed to explode.

“Don’t react. That’s what he wants.”

“I can’t sit here and watch him feel you up!”

“We don’t have a choice. You know him. This is some kind of game. Play along and maybe you can catch him off guard and sneak into his head. You need to take control of his body in order to get us out of this.”

Feelings of inadequacy flow through our bond.
“I can’t, Sadie. He’s somehow learned how to solder a thick mental wall. I couldn’t even touch it, let alone penetrate it. The pain in my head was as real as if I’d thrown myself head first into a concrete wall. I won’t be able to astral possess him.”

I sense his guilt and frustration.
“We’ll think of something else. Right now, I think someone else needs your support.”
My eyes dart to Neve, huddled over, clutching her waist and rocking gently back and forth.
“Talk to her.”

“I’m in charge now,” Dante replies, dragging his knife over the top of my suit. “And I’ll do what I want with whomever I want.” I hold very still. Ripping a line in my suit across the collarbone, he watches Logan and Ax as he slowly cuts lower revealing the uppermost edge of my bra. If he cuts much lower, he’ll expose my Eterno tattoo. Apprehension soars through me. I tear the lining of my mouth to shreds, dragging my teeth harshly between my cheeks.

The ship powers to life as Dante scans the swell of my breasts with devious eyes. His fingers flit across my bare skin, and nausea floods my mouth.

“I’m going to kill you.” Logan yanks against his restraints, desperate to come to my aid.

“And I’m going to help him,” Ax snarls, shooting daggers out of his eyes. I subtly shake my head at both of them. This will only make things worse.

Just then, the door crashes open, and a body is thrust forward into the middle of the floor. King Coryn pushes off his hands and staggers to his feet. Blood spills down his face from a nasty gash embedded in his head.

“Great,” Dante sneers. “Now we can get this party started.” He slides me off his lap and stands. “Stay put and don’t try anything or I’ll put a bullet in both their heads,” he cautions.

Rounding on the king, he peers into his face, studying it for a few seconds. His muscles seize up, and a blanket of red rage sweeps over his features. Putting the full weight of his body behind it, he rams his fist in the king’s face, causing him to teeter back. Dante advances, raining blow after blow to his face and torso. The king attempts to shield his face with his hands, but he is no match for the sheer brute force that is Dante.

When the king falls to the ground, Dante leans over him, unleashing another volley of vicious punches. Logan and I are screaming at Dante to stop, but he’s lost in some violent haze, only ceasing when the king passes out. Rivers of blood coat his swollen, unconscious face.

Hauling himself to his feet, Dante swipes a hand across his sweat-soaked brow and rubs the splatters of blood on his hands across the front of his pants. As he passes Fern, he bends down, gripping her chin painfully, and forces his lips on hers. She slaps at his chest, but he continues the brutal assault on her mouth.

Logan’s utter horror feeds down the line.
“He is completely out of control.”

Dante finally releases a sobbing Fern and heads back to his seat. Sweat coasts down my spine as rampant fear deluges my body with adrenaline. Dante lifts me up and slips under me, and I shudder when I feel his arousal pressing into me.

The ship lifts off the ground as Dante’s hands begin to wander around my semi-exposed body. I stare blankly ahead and try to think of anything but where his hands are headed. My insides recoil in abject terror. I can’t even look at Ax or Logan. Logan’s emotions are in turmoil, his rage ricocheting off the charts.

“I’ve been feeling so left out,” Dante mutters, pressing his mouth below my ear. He starts a journey up and down my neckline, leaving a slobbery trail of wet kisses on my skin. Puke rises up my throat as I close my eyes. It would serve him right if I vomited all over him.

Ax roars abuse at him and Dante chuckles. “You were her first lover,” he says, eyeballing him, “and that idiot her second.” He flicks his head in Logan’s direction before twisting me on his lap so I’m facing him. There are barely a couple of inches between us. “Want to make it an even three all round?”

His eyes glimmer with mirth as he slams his mouth against mine. Logan’s fury blasts through the line, almost deafening me. Dante holds my head firmly in both hands as I struggle to free myself. His tongue forces my lips apart, and he plunders my mouth. I wriggle on his lap, attempting to loosen his hold. “Oh, yeah, baby. Just like that.” He thrusts his hips into me as his fingers start creeping into my bra. Fearing he may take this all the way, I do the only thing I can think of.

Lowering my hand in the gap between our bodies, I grab that most private part of him and twist and twist, digging my nails in as I bite down really hard on his bottom lip. Rearing up, with a guttural wail, he throws me off his lap, and I go flying through the air. I land with a heavy thud, my butt slamming into the floor. Ignoring the searing ache spreading throughout my body, I spring up before the guards can stop me.

Dante is writhing on the floor, moaning loudly, with his hand between his legs. I jump on him and pummel my fists in his face. Blood spurts from his nose, and there’s already a cut in his lip from where I bit him. My fist rams into his left eye socket just as I’m hauled off him.

I buck in the guard’s arms, as he drags me back with a firm grip on my waist. Raising my legs, I shove into the guard advancing at the front. He stumbles a little but doesn’t go down. Storming toward me, with his fists raised, he looks like he means business.

The last thing I see is his fist coming right at me.

Then there is nothing but welcome oblivion.

When I regain consciousness, raised voices are the first sounds I hear. Spreading my eyes open, I try to get a lock on our surroundings. I’m slumped sideways on a torn couch, my wrists and ankles bound tightly. I push myself into a seated position and stare, open-mouthed, at Logan’s mother’s cabin. The place looks like a tornado went to town on it. Every surface his been destroyed. The floating counter lies in shattered pieces. Kitchen cupboards hang off their hinges, and slivers of crockery litter the floor. Pictures have been ripped from walls and torn apart. Light fittings have been wrenched from the ceilings, and the mirrored staircase has massive holes in the steps. Broken shards of mirror and glass line the surrounding floor.

Logan is kneeling in the middle of the floor, clutching crumpled, torn photos in his hands. “Why, Dante? Why destroy the last link we have to Mom?”

“I want no reminders of that slut!” he screams at Logan, muscles bulging and rolling under his shirt.

“How can you say that after everything she did for you?”

Dante snatches Logan up off the floor by the scruff of his neck. “All that she did for me? She ruined my damned life, that’s what she did!” He lets go of Logan’s shirt and starts pacing the floor.

Ax catches my eye from his place on the floor. Everyone else is lined up there too, sitting, knees bent, their wrists and ankles similarly bound. Two of Dante’s guards stand in front of them, weapons raised and pointed at my friends. The rest of the guards congregate at the door.

“What are you talking about?” Logan eyes his brother suspiciously.

Dante storms toward him and grabs him around the throat. “Don’t pretend like you don’t know.”

A quiet moan emits from the other end of the couch, and I look over at King Coryn. He is only coming around now. Dried blood cakes his face, and both his eyes are swollen so badly he can barely open them. His lips are cut and still oozing blood. He coughs, producing a harsh, raw, croaky sound.

Logan pushes Dante away. “I. Don’t. Know.”

“The king needs water.”

“And I need you to shut the hell up.” Dante stalks toward us, snatching the king up roughly from the couch. His fists clench and unclench at his sides as he narrows his eyes at the king. “Did you at least love my mother?”

“With all my heart,” he confirms, without hesitation.

Dante’s lips pull into a sneer. “But you failed to protect her. To protect me.”

“I know. I’m sorry.” He plants his hand, carefully, on Dante’s shoulder.

Dante rips his hand away and shoves the king back. “Sorry? You’re sorry?” he screams, fisting tufts of his hair. Again, he shoves King Coryn, and he falls back onto the couch beside me. My eyes find Logan. He looks every bit as confused as I am. Opening his mouth wide, Dante throws back his head and bellows at the top of his voice. Then he drops to his knees, an anguished cry cleaving from his mouth. “You left me with him? Why?” He addresses the king, and the show of genuine agony on his face surprises me. “Why didn’t you take me to Narik?”

Logan walks to my side, sitting down on the arm of the battered couch.

“Your mother asked me to watch over you both, and I did. But I couldn’t remove you from your father’s jurisdiction. He would never have tolerated it. I tried to do what I could from afar.” The king looks decidedly uneasy.

Dante’s face pales and he quiets. “Are you saying you don’t know? That’s your story?”

The king shunts forward on the couch until he’s only sitting on the edge. “Dante, I don’t understand what you’re implying. You’re going to have to be more specific.”

Dante unfurls himself from the floor, straightening to his full height. “Stars.” His eyes flicker manically, and then he howls with laughter. “Figures the bitch never told you.” Logan bristles but I blast a caution down the line. Dante laughs again, muttering under his breath. He is acting even crazier than usual. “Stand up,” he instructs King Coryn. “Look at me. Tell me what you see.”

The king rises on uncooperative, unsteady limbs until he’s standing toe to toe with Dante. Neither of them speaks and apprehension wafts through the air. They continue to stare at one another, and I’d love to be inside either of their heads. After a couple of minutes, the king staggers back, eyes out on stilts, as he clasps a hand over his mouth. Dante braces his feet apart and folds his arms over his chest in a clear defensive gesture.