“And if he doesn’t? What then? I can’t just make another collector to take his place.”
“Why can’t you? Just create a new one and transfer your powers into him. Jason will just become a regular collector.”
Tears came to her eyes as she looked at Samael. “I will not! To be my other half, I need to love him. I don’t want someone else to love! Jason will not be replaced. He couldn’t be.”
“Suit yourself, but a child is in your destiny. At some point, you’re going to have to come to a decision. Jason or the death of everyone you lead. You pick.”
Fighting against the resistance, she felt the rage sweep through her. Looking back and forth on the bonds that held down her arms, a laugh escaped out from nowhere. And to think that the damn thing left. Nope, the demon was still here. The absence must have been her refueling.
Another laugh left her mouth while bursts of hate exploded in her chest. Her succubus might have been a sexual demon, but a demon none the less. The combination of anger and seduction was dangerous. The power she held went beyond evil. No one had ever pissed off her succubus enough to find out just how powerful she was.
Testing her arms against the chains, she ripped one up with all her strength. The thick metal snapped with a loud pop. Everyone froze while she pulled her other one free and stood on top of the mattress. The wings pushed against her skin, and for the first time, she released them, feeling them curl around her protectively.
Heat poured from her eyes, and blackness shelled her vision. The feathers came into focus, and all she could see was the dark tint again. Black feathers, black vision, it was the color of evil.
“Holy fuck.”
At Donavon’s voice, she uncurled the wings and felt them go behind her. Looking at the chains on her feet, she reached down and ripped them free.
“Samael, ah, you wanna do something?”
She watched as the dark angel looked toward Dominic and shrugged. “What in the hell do you want me to do? I’m not going against her. Way too powerful for me. I’m not even going try.”
“Fuck.” Dominic stepped forward. “Marcella, what are you going to do?”
“Jason will not be replaced.” The seductive purr of her voice had all the men taking a step forward. But she didn’t want any of them at the moment.
Closing her eyes, she heard the multiple doors slam open. Reaching inside her mind, she found Jason in his room. Mentally plucking him from the bed, she jerked him into her tower. When she opened her eyes, he stood startled next to her other men.
“Dom, what in the hell is going on?”
“Just don’t say or do anything, Jason. You do not want to piss her off.”
“Would I sound like a pussy if I said I was scared?”
Dominic laughed. “It’ll never leave this room. I don’t blame you one bit. Marcella isn’t herself right now.”
“No one is that powerful. I was fucking levitating, dude. Not. Cool.”
Tremors shot through her body, and Marcy could feel herself convulse. This wasn’t right. She was being taken completely over. Her sense of self was almost gone. The words kept coming from her mouth, but she didn’t have control on what was said the majority of the time.
“Samael.” Her voice sounded distant as she tried to change back into her collector.
“What is it, my queen?”
“Help…me.”
“Oh, hell. I was really hoping you were getting a grip on your creatures. I really had faith that you were coming around. Here, keep still.”
“I thought you said she was stronger than you?” Donavon asked lowly.
She watched the dark angel look over at him. “She’ll never be stronger than me. My station wills it so.”
Dominic shook his head. “But you’re just a demon master. She can turn into one, too, plus anything else. I don’t understand how you’re more powerful.”
“Take my word for it. She’ll never overpower me. Ever. It’s virtually impossible.”
Hands clasped around her face, and Samael hesitated just before he pulled her lips to his. Liquid fire shot into her mouth, searing everything it touched until it settled in her toes. She felt her collector stir and jolt as it was forcefully ripped upward to her ankles. The further it climbed, the more the fire caused her to fight.
“What in the hell is he doing?”
Donavon’s voice came out like a growl. Dominic answered him. “He’s bringing her collector back. Her creatures are getting stronger, and they’re taking her over. They seize her mind, so to speak. It’s almost like she has different personalities. Marcella must have realized what was in Jason’s cards. I think your ass just got saved, my friend.”
Jason’s throat cleared. “What do you think she was going to do?”
Donavon laughed. “Samael told her she needed to create another collector and take her half from you to put in him. You’d just be a normal collector if she did.”
Marcella heard a gasp come from his throat just as the cobwebs reached her chest. Her voice was completely gone as she continued to scream with no sound. She wouldn’t doubt if the heat seared her damn vocal cords.
“She was going to do it? I can’t live without her somehow inside of me. If I can’t taste her, at least I can feel her. There’s no way I can do without both.”
Once again, Donavon’s voice responded. “Have you ever thought to let her go completely? Like, just walk your ass away and not look back. Maybe go off and find your own mate?”
Thick silence settled in the room at his question. Marcella tried to rip away from Samael, but he wouldn’t let her go.
“I will never leave her, wolf. I’ve already told you about the connection the two of us share. Don’t turn into the asshole I warned you about.”
“Yeah, well, I told you not to like me. The way I see it, we’re all here, and where are you? Right here crying because you can’t man up. Real nice, our queen needs fifty more just like you.”
“Donavon, enough.” Dominic growled. “You don’t know what happened. Do not pass judgment on Jason when you didn’t see it firsthand.”
“Fuck, I’ve tasted her. I know how consuming she is, but you don’t see me trying to attack her. You don’t think my wolf doesn’t want to tear into her, too, and taste what she’s really made of? Yeah, the dragon is probably harder to control, but I doubt it isn’t something he can’t get over if he at least tries. I have. It’s simple. Stop fucking being a pussy, and ignore your cravings.”
The sound of a fist connecting had Marcella bouncing in Samael’s grip. The cobwebs reached her eyes slowly. The dark angel was dragging it out on purpose. She stopped moving and glared at him as shuffling and yelling erupted around them.
Samael’s blue eyes rolled, and she felt her change complete. If she could have said something, she would have told him off, but no words would leave her mouth.
Turning, she saw Dominic leaning over Jason, trying to pull him off Donavon. Fists were flying evenly between the two men. “I didn’t like you then, and I sure as hell don’t like you now,” Jason shouted, throwing another punch. “Whatever made me think you’d changed is beyond me!”
“Because I’m right. You probably betrayed our queen in the past, just as you have now.”
Horrified, she watched them switch positions. Donavon threw Jason over and pulled Dominic over with him.
“I’d never intentionally hurt her. I love Marcella.”
“You’re hurting her now!”
“We’ve been through this before, my queen. If you protect them as you did in the past, they will never resolve their problems.” His hands eased across her back as a sign of comfort. Marcella turned and looked at Samael. So many things wanted to be said, but she couldn’t talk, and it only hurt her more. She hated seeing her men fight amongst themselves. They needed to be friends. They needed to trust each other. And as much as she hated it, she knew to believe Samael.
Dominic pulled Donavon off while Ambrose helped Jason to his feet. Both men were bloodied, and her wolf mate’s face looked even worse, and poor Jason didn’t look any better. The pure hate they showed to one another triggered something in her mind. She pushed it away as she stepped forward to chide them.
Walking over to Jason, she watched as his eye contact broke from her new mate. Multiple expressions crossed his features while he looked down at her. Using the voice in her head, she communicated with him.
“I won’t deny that you’ve hurt me by your rejection. But I do understand it. I’m sorry for the pain I’ve put you through with my succubus. Please forgive me.”
Jason’s large arms scooped her up, hugging her body against his tightly.
“Marcella, I’m so sorry for not trusting myself with you. Please understand that I’m only doing this because I don’t want to see you hurt.”
Clutching her fist in his hair, she pulled his face from her neck and made eye contact with him.
“You hurt me more by rejection. I would rather die a thousand deaths by your dragon than miss a moment without your touch. Don’t you see this? You and I are one. I can’t do this by myself, Jason. If you won’t come back to me, I’ll have to find someone else to complete me, and I don’t want that.”
“I don’t either.”
Biting her lip against the tears, she looked away from him. Clearing her throat, she wiggled her way down.
“Men, I must speak with Samael in private.” Her voice was barely audible, but she knew they had heard her.
Dominic took a step forward. “Samael, we have a problem. The angels have seen Marcella.”
“What!”
No words could describe the cold, evil feeling that crept into the room at his outburst. All the things the men had said slammed into her at once. Men were watching. But angels? That didn’t seem like such a bad thing.
“How did this happen?” Samael took a step away from her and zeroed in on Dominic.
“My succubus.” She grabbed the dark angel’s arms, knowing his hostile attitude was narrowed in on her demon mate.
“What about it?” Samael snapped.
Dominic quickly cut her off. “I neglected to tell Jason or Donavon about the news. They went outside. When Marcella disappeared, I wasn’t sure at first where she went to.”
“So you failed me? You failed our queen?”
Dominic’s mouth opened, and she watched as his head went down. She yanked Samael around to face her. “Don’t you ever say anything like that to one of my men again. No one failed me. You act as if the problem can’t be taken care of. Now what in the hell is going on?”
“Nemmy. Ring any bells, my queen?”
The name was spat with such distaste and hate it took her a moment to really focus on Samael’s question.
Nemmy, Nemmy.
“Nope. Sorry. I have no clue who that is.”
“Well, I guarantee you he hasn’t so easily forgotten about you. Why do you think he and his partner are sitting outside even as we speak?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “How the fuck am I supposed to know? You can bet your ass I’m going to find out.”
Marcella instantly vanished to the front yard. “I know you’re out there! Come forward.”
“What the fuck are you doing?” Samael picked her up by her waist. As his face settled in her neck, she was zapped with pleasure so intense she let out a cry.
“Let her go!” one of them yelled.
Just as all her men appeared behind Samael, two strangers raced across the street in their direction. The moment Marcella looked into the long, blond-haired guy’s eyes, she knew he was Nemmy. She wasn’t sure how, but she knew it deep in her soul.