Текст книги "Horns of Wicked Ebony"

Автор книги: Lacey Lehotzky

сообщить о нарушении

Текущая страница: 33 (всего у книги 43 страниц)

I dragged my attention forward when he shouted, “Go!”

Rokath swung immediately, not waiting for his opponent to gather himself or attempt an opening. The clang of metal striking metal jarred my teeth. Kiira sucked in a sharp breath as Rokath pressed forward, shoving the male backward. He stumbled, half-scrambling to get away from the Halálhívó.

Grem’s head nudged my thigh, and I twisted my fingers in his thick fur. Not that I thought Rokath would lose—there was no way. Honestly, I was afraid for the male facing imminent death. It was only a matter of if Rokath felt like playing with his food or making a quick meal of him.

It turned out to be the latter.

Rokath stalked him across the sand, and the male retreated, retreated, retreated, until he was pinned against the fence. Those who had been pressed against it jolted away. In an instant, Rokath had the asshole gripped by the throat and lifted off the ground like he weighed nothing more than a feather.

“I hope you see just how futile your challenge was,” he ground out, his teeth bared. His attention dragged over the crowd too, holding their gazes—terrified, angry, excited—as the male kicked nothing but air. His face turned the color of his eyes, then a lovely shade of purple. “Should any of you dare to question a direct order again, you will face a similar fate. Me.”

Rokath squeezed harder, his thick fingers digging hard into the offender’s neck.

“Should any of you disrespect the Szélhámos or the High Priestess, you will face their wrath as well.”

Just as the male’s chest stuttered, Rokath tossed him away like he was a scrap of moldy bread. His gaze locked on me and he gestured for me to approach. Shoving off the wall, I stood tall as the attention of the army fell over me. The male choked on the ground, his life prolonged only temporarily.

The scent of piss stung my nostrils as I came to a stop before him. Yet I didn’t deign to give him my attention.

“While I would love nothing more than to torture him for insulting you, mate, I recognize that you making an example of him would elevate the level of respect the rest of them will give you. You have my blessing to do as you please.”

My heart warmed at his consideration. I couldn’t deny how much I loved when this primal, possessive side of him rose to the surface.

“Together. Let’s show them we’re united beyond the words we speak to them.”

His burgundy eyes glinted with malice. Yanking the male up by the collar, he forced him to face me. I drew the dagger I used during the daily ritual sacrifice to the Fates and stalked forward.

“Weaver, Giver, Reaper, I draw blood in your name!” I shouted, letting the blade flash in the sunlight. “Reaper, curse this male who questions the holy weavings of you and your sisters.”

The first slice was across his cheek, drawing a cascade of ruby to the surface of his skin. The male grimaced. “You were only able to do that because you’re too weak to face me yourself. You need the Halálhívó to hold me in place.”

Rokath’s growl ruptured the air—feral, furious, final. The crowd surged back, away from the threat.

I laughed, low and laced with venom. “That was entirely the wrong thing to say.”

A split-second later, Rokath threw him to the ground again, pressing a heavy boot into the male’s chest. The male wheezed, ribs caving beneath the weight of Rokath’s wrath. “You’ve insulted our chain of command enough. I will not give you further opportunity to fight because you’ve already lost. And as for the insult you offered the Szélhámos, well, I’ll let her choose how she wants to end your life.”

He jerked his head, giving me permission to act. Yet I already knew exactly how I wanted to kill him. With a devious smile on my lips, I dove into my well of magic, pulling the offender’s form over mine.

Let them all watch him die by his own hand. Let them choke on the horror of it—the horror of what my rare power was truly capable of. Let them see the Fate that walked among them, alongside their Halálhívó.

Whispers broke out as I stalked forward again. The male’s eyes widened as he stared up at his reflection. “It’s a shame that you chose this route, really. You could have fucked sooner rather than later had you not.”

He blinked as if he were trying to comprehend hearing his voice coming from somewhere other than his own mouth. Still holding my ceremonial dagger, I knelt, dragging the tip along his unmarred cheek until I reached the tip of his ear.

“Since you were unable to hear our commands…” I sliced, yanking his ear away from his head. Blood spurted from the wound, and he screamed. I tossed it aside and moved the blade to his eye.

“Since you were unable to see the value in the new order…”

“Wait, no!” he started, but I stabbed. I had to clench my teeth around the bile that rose in my throat. Violence had never been my first inclination—but this wasn’t senseless abuse. It was power in its purest form. And I’d wield it however necessary to prove my fucking point.

I shuffled until my dagger hovered over his dick. “Since you were offended that my mate and I could couple and you could not…” I felt the cringe of every gathered male as I sank the blade to the hilt.

Blinded by pain, the male convulsed, limbs twitching toward the sky, then collapsed backward. I let my magic go and rose, holding my mate’s gaze.

“Your orders, Szélhámos?”

“End him.” The two words rolled off my tongue with such ease.

Rokath removed his boot and replaced it with the tip of his blade, right over the male’s still-beating heart. “For the insults lodged toward the Szélhámos, my Fates-given equal.” Then, he jammed his sword down.

We remained locked in that position, both bloody, desire thrumming down our bond, as the final bits of the male’s life drifted away.

Silence reigned around us.

“Think we proved our point?” I spoke into his mind.

“I think so, little imposter.” He broke our connection and glanced around us, lips curled back from his teeth.

“Are the consequences clear?” His tone was low, threatening, and made my core flutter.

Nods answered him as far as I could see.

“Good. You are all dismissed. Assimilate into your new units by the end of the day or face punishment,” he barked, contempt darkening his tone.

Trol put two fingers in his mouth and whistled, drawing attention and issuing further commands. Rokath wiped his blade clean, then took mine and did the same. His hungry gaze raked over me, sending a shiver down my spine. “After that display, I need to be inside you.”

“Please,” I whimpered.

He glanced at Rapp. “Help Trol. I’ll return later.”

Rapp sniggered as Rokath and I passed him and entered the barracks. Then, loud enough that we could hear, he said to Kiira, “That was just foreplay for them. It’s a good thing we’ll be out here for a while.”

A small giggle escaped me as the door swung shut behind us.

Rokath had ordered their obedience; I had demanded their devotion. Not only to me, but to every sacred, bleeding, rage-honed female who walked among them.

They would not soon forget what had transpired.

OceanofPDF.com

49

Rokath’s fingers trembled against my skin as he stripped me—not with hesitation, but with desperate need sharpened by war. Here, with no knowledge of where the Angels were, every moment was danger. Every heartbeat could be our last. Every detractor could spell our death.

Leather fell away, leaving only my breasts and core covered. A shiver swept through me, and I bowed into him, seeking the heat of his skin. To remind me he was still here. Still breathing. Still with me.

His lips pressed into my neck, hot and wet. Sharp teeth trailed across my pulse point, eliciting a hiss. “You are my sacred fire. Born to wage war beside me. To live as a legend with me.”

He nipped there, and I dug my hands into the sweaty, carved muscles of his torso. The dark ink flexed and bunched as he wrapped his arms around me and backed me into the wall, bumping into a dresser in the process. I didn’t even feel the collision when all I could think about was Rokath’s mouth on me. A low groan escaped him as I reached down and wrapped my hand around his thick length.

“I love when you defend me like that,” I breathed, giving his hardness a firm stroke.

“I promised I’d always protect you, mate. That is what I intend to do. In the most violent way possible.” One of his tattooed hands wrapped around my neck, applying just enough pressure to keep me pinned in place. Those riotous burgundy eyes lifted to meet mine, offering me his savage devotion.

My blood and our bond thrummed at the sight.

“It’s been far too long since you chased me,” I gasped around his hold.

“It has,” he agreed. “Unfortunately, there’s nowhere for us to go here.” He crowded me until our bodies were entirely flush. Bracing his forearms on either side of my head, he leaned down and whispered in my ear. “But you can fight me. I’ll wrangle you with my shadows. Force you into the position I want you to be in. Use your mouth before I ruin you over and over again with my cock. You’ll be utterly at my mercy.”

Heat bloomed between my thighs at the image he painted for me. “What are you waiting for, Rokath?” I landed the taunt like a well-placed strike. Darkness surged from my palms at the same time and collided with his torso.

My mate stumbled back, a wicked smirk rising to his lips. The sight of it sent ice skittering down my spine.

His magic swept from him like he commanded the night, veiling the room in obsidian. Heart hammering against my ribs, I shimmied to my right, keeping my steps light. The wisps undulated, and Rokath emerged from between them. I wasted no time ducking under him and out of his reach.

Once again, I disappeared. Yet so did he. Our room morphed into a void, disorienting me.

“My little imposter.” Rokath’s voice seemed to come from multiple directions at once. “You’ll never escape me.”

“Watch me,” I quipped, the thrill of our play racing through my veins.

A thump sounded to my right, and I lunged left. Onyx smoke whispered in my ear. I called on my own power and flung it in all directions. Wood splintered, and he cursed. I smashed my lips together to smother the smile. Easing my way backward, I searched for the entry to the bathing chamber.

The stone gave way and I slipped around the corner, back hugging the cool surface.

Our bond tightened as he approached again, loving our game as much as us. Obsidian pooled in the entryway as I set a trap for my mate. The heady taste of power coated my tongue. While Rokath normally claimed the upper hand in our relationship, my control had improved significantly. And tricking him was far too fun to pass up.

Primal need scorched our connection. Two sniffs sliced through the thick black fog as if he were searching for my scent. “It’s almost as if you wanted me to catch you so easily.”

Yet as he took another step, I tightened my fist. His heavy boots snapped to the floor. A low, sinister laugh that raised the hairs on the back of my neck followed. “Is that the best you’ve got?”

In a blink, the void dissipated. Midday sun filtered through the windows behind me, momentarily blinding me. “I’m almost disappointed.”

A smirk adorned his ruggedly handsome face. His eyes mapped our close proximity like it was a battlefield.

“Don’t be.” A similar grin pulled at my lips. I yanked on my magic like I was tugging a rug out from beneath a piece of furniture. He stumbled, shadows leaping from his hands to right himself, but I was already shimmying past him and into the bedchamber.

His footsteps pounded behind me. I whipped around, his body a blur of ink. We crashed into the dresser a second later, splintering it to pieces. “So devious, little imposter. I fucking love it.”

Our mouths met like a storm breaking open, all flashing teeth and thundering tongues. A metallic tang swept between us as I bit his lip. He groaned, the sound so masculine that wetness dripped from me. A second later, he was cupping there.

“This needs to go,” he decided, ripping the fabric covering my center away with one strong motion. The bite from the fabric stung, only heightening my pleasure.

“This too,” he added, shredding the bind around my breasts with the same ferocity.

Cold air ghosted over my nipples for only a moment before his hot mouth replaced it. A wanton cry caught in my throat. I dug my nails into his shoulders to steady myself against his onslaught. Broken wood scattered around us, and the last thing I wanted was to impale my foot.

As if he sensed the direction of my thoughts, Rokath hoisted me up his body and carried me to the desk. It sat haphazardly away from the wall, and I realized that was what I’d thrown him into before.

He didn’t bother straightening it as he laid me out on the top like it was an altar and he was preparing to worship. Our mouths tangled again as he worked his belt loose. When his cock sprang free, it slapped hot against my thigh.

Rokath broke our kiss, leaving me breathless. Onyx thorns wrapped around his arms, and before I could react, they leaped forward and captured me in their hold. Like I was nothing more than a puppet, he spun me so I was on my back with my head hanging off the end of the desk.

Rokath rounded it, his dick bobbing with each step. His magic moved, shackling me in place. But ebony snaked over my skin, eliciting another cascade of pebbles. Up my inner thighs they swept, and involuntarily, I pressed them together. Rokath’s power shoved them apart.

His burgundy eyes raked over me like he was a male starving. Fisting himself, he pumped once, twice, three times. My attention snagged on the arousal leaking from the tip and dropping on the floor. “Open wide. I’m going to ruin that smart mouth of yours.”

I flattened my lips in defiance. Darkness flashed in his eyes, and my core clenched. More of his magic wrapped around my legs, squeezing tighter. “Is this the game you want to play?”

I nodded—a pure, unquestionable challenge. He’d have to earn my mouth. My body. My everything. Not because he commanded me, but because I chose to be his.

He’d win his opportunity to claim, and after, he’d fall to his knees in worship.

His hardness brushed against the seam of my lips. “Then let’s play.”

Shadow crept higher, higher, higher, until it vibrated a breath away from my slick heat. The gentle touch of it was driving me wild. I thrashed against the binds again, trying to relieve the ache building there.

Then, like Rokath himself were between them, the cold, black smoke caressed my clit. A gasp fled my lips before I could stop it, and Rokath leaped on his opening. The first thick inch of him pressed into my mouth. Then the second.

“Good girl,” he praised, his magic continuing to ghost over my center.

A whimper slipped out as the tip hit the back of my throat. Yet this angle was better than others, and I didn’t gag quite as hard as I normally did.

“That’s it,” Rokath growled, bracing his hands on either side of my head. “Take it all.”

He thrust again, then dragged out to the crown before repeating the motion. Our eyes locked on where we joined as he quickened his pace, using my mouth just as he’d promised. His power kept me coiled, offering a mix of featherlight brushes across my center and tight binds around my arms and legs.

I couldn’t silence the sounds I made, which only seemed to spur him on. “I’m going to come in your mouth, and you’re going to swallow all of me,” he gritted out, his abs flexing. “Tap the table twice if you understand.”

A tendril of his magic loosened, allowing me to do just that. His hips jerked harder, and he went deeper still. I dragged in a breath through my nose, growing dizzy from the lack of air. Then, he buried himself completely, and jets of hot cum spilled down my throat. “Fuck, Assyria,” Rokath groaned, body trembling.

He withdrew, allowing me to swallow. Darkness dissipated, and I pushed upright. Holding his gaze, I licked my lips. His nostrils flared, and a muscle feathered in his jaw at the sight.

“Spread those pretty legs for me,” he commanded.

Offering him a saccharine smile, I did just that.

“So. Fucking. Wet,” he praised, eyes locked on my core. He stepped forward, his dick still engorged and hard. Planting a hand on either thigh, he opened me further. His thumbs swiped through my arousal. One he ground into my clit, rubbing a slow, torturous circle.

“Rokath,” I mewled, bucking into his hand.

“Do you like that, little imposter?”

I nodded, eyes rolling back as he added a finger. “How about that?”

“Yes,” I whimpered. “But I’d like another too.”

“Would you?” he rasped. “I didn’t hear much of a request in that statement.”

“Please add another finger.” My center pulsed around the one already inside me.

“Good,” he praised, giving me what I asked for. It still wasn’t enough.

I ground into his hand, chasing the pleasure my body was primed for. “I’m going to make you come around my fingers. You’re going to gush over them so when I stroke my cock again, it will be completely soaked in you. But you’re going to do it quietly, so the whole camp doesn’t hear.”

“Yes,” I agreed immediately. He added a third finger, spreading me wider. A moan, recklessly loud, clawed up my throat.

“Those sounds you make are downright sinful, Assyria. There’s a reason I don’t want anyone else to hear them.”

He circled my entrance, spreading me wider.

“You’re so tight. I need to loosen you up again before you’ll be able to take all of me.” His fingers curled against that spot deep inside.

“Whatever it takes to make it fit. I just want it. Want you. Need you,” I panted as he drove me closer and closer to the edge of ecstasy.

A low laugh rumbled from him. “So greedy. Do you need to be reminded how to ask nicely? It seems you’ve forgotten today.”

He ceased all movement, and I made a noise of protest. “Please, Rokath. I need to be filled. Claimed.”

“That’s better,” he said. His fingers worked faster this time, his thumb drawing circles over my sensitive bud in a way that sent my walls clenching.

My head dipped back as I was lost to the pleasure he delivered. My hips moved of their own accord, and he spread my legs wider so he could work them deeper. “Oh, yes,” I hissed as he hit the perfect spot.

“Come for me, Assyria.” He flattened a hand over my mouth, bowing me across the desk. “Drench my fingers.”

My center fluttered at the starved look in his eyes. I nodded against his hand. He dug the heel of his palm into my clit. “Only for me. Because you’re mine.” The way he uttered his possession of me was my undoing.

With a cry muffled by his hand, I shattered. “Rokath,” I whimpered, though he couldn’t hear me. He didn’t stop, not even as I became so sensitive I backed away from him. Every drop of pleasure wrung from me was a victory to him.

With a growl, he released me, allowing me to heave in air. True to his word, he wrapped his wet hand around his dick and stroked. It shone in the light after only one swipe. Then, he yanked me to the edge of the desk, the hard wood digging into my lower back as he threw my legs up on his shoulders.

Planting a kiss on the inside of one ankle, he lined up with my entrance. “Since you were so good and coated me so well, I’ll give you my cock.”

When he pressed into me, it wasn’t simply to fuck—it was a ritual, one only he knew how to perform.

“More. Harder,” I begged. Then, I hurriedly added, “Please.”

“That’s more like it.” The deeper he went, the more my body coiled tight. He was so fucking thick. Every nerve inside me was alight with pleasure—it was impossible not to be with how he stroked every single one of them.

“Fuck, the feel of you,” he groaned. “How I want to worship your cunt every moment of every day. There are simply not enough hours to accommodate how long I want to spend inside you.”

When he bottomed out, I sucked in a sharp breath. My hamstrings ached from the position, but it was the type of exquisite pain that heightened my pleasure. Rokath moved his hands to them and massaged, loosening the aching muscles for me. “I’m going to break this altar from how hard I’m going to fuck you.”

“Do it,” I shot back, my tone all breathy need.

He retreated, then slammed his hips into mine. The slap that echoed around the space clashed with the one after that, and the one after that, as he drove into me. One hand pressed into my lower belly, pinning me in place. The other wrapped around my neck.

“Tell me,” he commanded, his tone making me grip him.

I knew exactly what he wanted to hear. “I love you, Rokath,” I moaned as he circled his hips. The legs of the desk scraped over the ground as he slammed into me. “I belong only to you.”

We jerked backward again, and stars exploded in my vision.

“You belong only to me.”

This time, his thrust was accompanied by a low, animalistic rumble. His brows pinched. His mouth opened and he dragged in air. Sweat slicked his forehead and torso, dampening the backs of my legs as he pounded into me, harder, faster.

The edge of the desk smacked against the wall, and I gripped the sides of it in a desperate attempt to remain on it. Rokath yanked my arms overhead instead, pinning my wrists against the wood and allowing me full use of my lungs once again. “I command all your pleasure. It is by my will that you come.”

I nodded, breath hitching as he bottomed out. My walls tightened with each pass, gripping him hard enough that he swore.

“Fuck, Assyria. You take me so well. Made for me,” he managed to grit out. Pleasure engulfed our bond, drowning all other emotions save for one—love.

Our eyes locked. Rokath had me at his utter mercy. I clawed primal sounds from him simply because he was inside me.

It was a dichotomy of power.

It was amorous hate.

It was mollified violence.

It was agonizing pleasure.

All of it was the eclipse of us.

“Please, I need to come again,” I pleaded, the desperation in my tone disregarded. “But I want you to come with me. At the same time.”

We’d forever be a single soul in two bodies, but if our ecstasy exploded at the same time, we’d be as close to one as we could ever possibly be.

And I wanted nothing more than that in that moment. With everything we were risking, with everything that came next, I needed this with him.

With my mate.

“I’ll fall apart without it.”

Rokath nodded, agony in his eyes as he sensed that vast longing, that sharp fear rising within me. “Lose yourself in me. I’m not going anywhere.”

He dragged himself over that deep spot inside, tearing a gasp from my throat.

“That’s my good girl,” he growled, hips slamming into mine. The force of it crashed the desk into the wall. He switched his grip from my wrists over my head to my hips, dragging me to the edge again.

“Now come for me.”

He drove into me, so fast and so hard I had no other choice but to cry out. “Don’t you dare stop.”

“Bite your hand,” he commanded, and I shoved my fist into my mouth, trying to stay quiet when I was so close to shattering.

Then, a crack sounded, and the ground rushed to meet us. Shadows burst from him just in time to cushion our fall, but he didn’t stop fucking me for a second.

He knew I needed this. I knew he did too.

I barely registered that we were now on the rough-threaded rug as my entire world became the place where Rokath and I joined. His cock throbbed inside me, and my walls offered the same rhythm. I whimpered again, brows pinching as the sparks of pleasure fanned into a full blown inferno.

“So. Close,” Rokath gritted out, his fingers gripping me to the point of bruising.

The pained expression he wore, the ecstasy flooding our bond, and the sight of him giving me everything fractured me. With a cry, my orgasm ripped through me, burning up every thought, every worry, every reminder that we were fighting for something larger than ourselves beyond these walls.

I bit down so hard on my knuckles that I drew a hint of blood. Rokath’s hardness pulsed inside me. He groaned—deep, feral, destroyed—and came. With a harsh jerk, he pulled out. My pussy ached at his absence. Hot cum gushed over my stomach.

Dizzy and pleasure-drunk, I lay beneath my mate. Salt slicked our skin, and air burned our lungs. Blinking, awareness returned to me. Something sharp dug into my shoulder. I tilted my head, registering the chaos and fractured furniture.

“Oops,” I giggled, pressing the back of my palm into my mouth to stem the flow.

Rokath shook his head and shoved off the ground. His muscles flexed deliciously with the motion, and I wanted nothing more than for him to bury himself inside me again so I could claw at those carved peaks and valleys.

Instead, he reached down and hauled me upright. After a moment’s consideration, he swept my legs out from under me and carried me into the bathing chamber. “Can’t have you stepping on something and being out of commission for our next fight. Need you there.”

The sentiment spread warmth from my scalp to my toes.

Rokath opened the taps for the tub. I slid down his sweat-soaked body and stepped into it. Despite the small size, he joined me, pulling me into his arms.

“I needed that,” he admitted, brushing a kiss to the top of my head.

“I can’t lose you.” My voice cracked. Even after everything—the battles, the late nights spent reshaping the realm, the small moments between—that fear still had its claws buried deep. It didn’t matter how powerful I had become in my own right. How I’d united my sex and forced the males to accept us. How the mythos of us had spread like a wildfire.

If Rokath died, I wouldn’t merely grieve. My soul would be shattered into a thousand tiny shards. Each would rip up my chest and leave me breathless. I’d be broken, bleeding, and desperate to join him in the next life.

His heart hammered against my cheek, and I clung to it. Because it meant he was alive. Still here. Still with me.

Because the Angels were out there. Watching. Waiting. Plotting.

Who knew if or when we’d snatch a moment like this again.

All I knew was that if he fell, I would follow.

There was no him without me, or me without him.

OceanofPDF.com