42
Caught in a dream
KADE
Zara staggers a little and it’s cute. Her hair is matted, and her skin is covered in cuts and bruises. Her emerald eyes contrast with the crimson of the blood staining her alabaster coloring. That bottom lip of hers keeps trembling and I want to devour it.
Fuck, she’s never been more stunning.
I glance down at my fingers, staring at the darkness smeared across them, the remnants of the life I took. A life I was forced to take. One I have no regrets about ending, and I’d do it again in a goddamn heartbeat. My brother always was a bastard and Galen’s death solves some problems but causes many more.
The aftershocks of what’s happened in this chamber will reverberate throughout the world. Every warlock will sense the balance change, and once the news of Galen’s death gets out, we’ll have a fucking power struggle on our hands. Gods only knows what will pass, but we’ll have to fight to protect what’s ours.
And that’s before every other fucker finds out that Zara’s anenchantress.
Her hand reaches up, as though she’s trying to steady herself, but it’s more than that. She’s reaching for me, offering a touch I don’t deserve. Not after all the evil I’ve committed. Not with all the evil I’ve yet to reap in our name. I clench my fists, trying to hold back my rage, the heat of my kill still burning through my veins.
There’s a visceral satisfaction coursing through me. A primal joy in knowing I’ve kept her safe and that she belongs to me. Her fingers brush against my wrist and I jerk my bloodied hand back, instinctively pulling my filth away from her softness.
She doesn’t seem to mind.
She’s always been a fucking puzzle, and in this moment, she’s more perplexing than ever.
I’m a monster, a butcher, and still, she’s here, looking at me like I’m something worth saving. Like I’m a hero. Like I’m her goddamn hero. It makes my insides twist, and not in the way I want it to.
I’ve given up my soul long ago, and she’s the one damn thing left in this world that makes me think maybe I don’t need to burn everything to the ground. And yet, I’d destroy everything for her without question and without hesitation.
Her lips part, and for a moment, I think she’s going to say something—something that’ll break the silence between us. But instead, she just stands there, trembling, the weight of what just happened settling over both of us.
“I’m not apologizing,” I finally mutter, my voice rough. “I’d kill the fucker again if I had the fucking chance. Even if the cunt was my brother. I won’t lie about it, Zara. Get used to it.”
I stop myself, frustrated, trying to wrap my mind around what the hell is happening. What’s happening to me when I look at her, when I feel her presence, when I feel this fucking need surging through my blood.
“Are you trying to push me away?” she asks, her eyelids fluttering far too fast for her own fucking good. “You should know better, Kade. I know exactly who you are. I know everything you’re capable of and the secrets you think you’re keeping from me don’tscare me. We’re the same, Kade. We’re as vicious as each other. So stop being a pussy about it and give me some fucking credit.”
She takes a step closer and I swear I want to throttle the defiance out of her. I stare at her and the fucking audacity of her as she edges nearer, speaking the truth so bluntly. Daring me to fucking do something about it.
The tension between us shifts and it’s fucking electric.
I need to touch her. I need to claim her. To remind her that there’s no escaping what we are. No escaping me. Fuck, I need to remind myself how delicious her cunt tastes and what it feels like wrapped around my dick.
Before I can take another step, Darius’s voice cuts through the air like a blade, and I can’t help but groan in frustration.
“I’m not sticking around for this,” he says from the doorway, his tone cold and disinterested. “I’ll catch up with the two of you later. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
I turn my head sharply, watching him standing there, arms crossed and unbothered by the tension in the chamber. He’s still alive. It doesn’t surprise me, not after all the fucked up shit we’ve done over the centuries. He’s as depraved as I am, maybe even more, but where I wear it on my skin, he hides it behind that grin. The same grin that always made me wonder if he was just a bit more evil than me.
“That doesn’t rule out much, brother,” I sigh.
He nods with a sharp smirk. “Yet watching the pair of you fuck yourselves stupid next to Galen’s corpse isn’t on my list of kinks. I’ve endured more than enough horror for one night. Make him work for it, Zara. He owes you a fucking good time.”
The air crackles as Darius’s smirk widens and he steps into the shadows, finally leaving us the fuck alone. I clench my jaw, but Zara doesn’t flinch. Her gaze flickers between me and Darius, a storm brewing in those fucking emerald eyes of hers. I can’t decide if she’s pissed or if the twisted idea of this makes her feel something else. Either way, Darius’s departure leaves a mark, like he’s taken a piece of the chaos with him.
Yet chaos pulls me back to her, drawing us both toward the center of the storm where no one else can touch us.
“I’m tired,” she whispers.
“I know.” I cock an eyebrow and my dick throbs.
