Dark Awakening (16 page)

Arms stretched above her with manacles tightly cinching into her skin, Alison
’s
happy images faltered
. Like a movie reel breaking, her happy thoughts were stopping with quick efficiency. The pain from the blows
brought her
to the surface frighteningly fast.

             
Just ignore it. Ignore him.

But Conlin wasn't one to be ignored. No matter how hard she focused away from him. He'd hit hard
er
, push her hard
er
,
and say
something worse than before. He
cut
her clothes of
f
using a knife
with a jagged, serrated edge. He touched her with soft
hands that curled her gut and produced bile in her throat.

Ignore it.

Hands squeezing her thighs, her breasts, touching her as if he owned her. He cursed and screamed, railing at her for making him lose Sarina.
For leaving him two years ago.

"That bitch would have made me so much money. You ruined that for me." The man acted
like
he didn't live in a mansion and wasn't a
royalty in the
lyk
aen community
. But, who knows, maybe he'd run out of money.
He always was a big spender and hadn't worked a day in his life...for anything.

She struggled to bring back her safety images.
Alison forced herself to think about the nights she spent in Rome's arms. How safe and content she felt, even while she was
struggling to trust him. She
pretend
ed that
she trusted him
all
along that
he was hers and she he really cared about her, as muc
h as a man can with a woman. He
held her
like
he c
ared. She understood now with that
he did care. He was a trustworthy male.

"You think you can ignore me?" A brutal, harsh laugh lashed over her. "I don't think so.
Jenner, bring me the table." A
servant
in the corner of the room bowed and quickly exited,
then brought
back a metal tray table that looked like it belonged in a hospital.

Alison stared at the ceiling seeing Sarina happy and kissing her mate on her wedding day. The image faltered at the hiss of metal sliding against metal. Cold fear had her sweating. She chanced a look down and saw the table. It took everything in her not to gasp at the line of knives, and at the end, a hatchet.

He didn't miss her fearful gaze. "So you finally see what I've been working on, love? You know, I let you go two years ago. I know you think you escaped, and you did, but if I had wanted you back then I'd have gotten you. Even your father's pathetic threat couldn't have stopped me."

Alison stared forward, her heart once again racing too fast in her chest. She wanted to run. Her body was screaming at her to do
something
.

"I contented myse
lf at the time with punishing Gerald
."

Her stomach dropped out from her.
Not the man who helped her!
She finally turned her face away, her vision blurring
with tears
.

"Of course he didn't come back after his little...affair with you. I had him tracked by my best sentry. Years of tracking experience, you see." A soft hand cupped her breast and she flinched. He squeezed and tugged the flesh. Her skin crawled
like
a million centipedes
w
alked
over her.

"I killed him so slow
ly
, so thoroughly, it satisfied me for quite
some time
. Then I relegated myself to pretending you never betrayed me." He laughed suddenly, the sound loud and mocking.
"Then King
Brunes
came to me with a little offer.
A bride with an
extravagant
dowry. And to top that all off, just who happens to be Sarina's best friend? Alison Bennson. It couldn't have been
more perfect
. Money, a biddable wife, and her closest friend my runaway female." His hand curved aroun
d her throat
.

Alison gagged with a mixture of disgust and hate.

"She never would have been biddable, and she never would have
married you
." She glared
into
his cold eyes.

"Well you're right about one thing. She married that disgusting dog. Not even a
Pride member
, but her reaction isn't unexpected. After all, when a man's an Alpha the females are more than ready to drop their panties and spread before them. Did you fuck him, Ali?" His hand squeezed her chin
until
hot blood pulled there in his vicious grip.

"Fuck you!" It hurt, but she jerked her head out of his tight grasp. Her skin throbbed with pain.

He only smirked down at her. "I plan on it. Later. I saw you noticed my special tray here. I decided to try something new
seeing
as
you’re
my honored guest tonight. I had each of these
weapons,
oh I mean tools, made specifically for you. See, they're made with pure silver."
             
             

Suddenly she
laughed,
a real, belly laugh. He stilled like a cobra ready to strike. "Oh my god. I just realized something. This is all because you can't take
being
dumped. God, you are
pathetic
!"

It was probably the wrong thing to say. Even after he plunged a knife into her thigh, burning his own hand in the process, she laughed.

* * *

Slices and cuts peppered her skin. The coppery smell of blood mixed with her vanilla scent
turning it into a vile concoction.

Her torso and thighs looked like someone had splattered lines of red paint over her. Her sense o
f time seemed to be suspended
. The cuts hurt, each dip into her a hot burn that seared
through her with biting pain. But after about a dozen or so, she found she could focus back on her happy thoughts.

She retracted her mind from the present, from the monster sweating above her with a scalpel. He dug in particularly deep in her side and she gasped, unable to hide it.
She could practically feel his excitement...
could
smell his arousal.

A foggy mumbling registered in her brain. The monster was talking.

"Did you like my letters I sent you?"

Numb silence except for the
hiss
of her skin
splintering
.

She shouldn't, but the question burned inside her. "Why did you do it? Why did you
jerk off on my bed?
" She looked at him, fury shaping her features.

He actually looked away, red tinting his cheeks. Then it was gone and he was grinning, a bold hand cupped her sex. "What can I say? I'm a man baby. I came over to see what
you were
up to
. Then I saw those tussled
bed sheets
and realized just how much I missed you. You always did have such a sweet little body, Ali. You used to hold me so tight when I fucked you."

She nearly spit at him.
Would have if her throat didn’t hurt
didn’t feel like her
tonsils
had been ripped out.
"I never came. Not much of a man you are, Conlin. More like a pathetic excuse for a child. Humans can fuck better than you can. I
laid
with you because I cared for you, not out of pleasure."

She pulled back at the rage
that
contorted his features. His hands were white fists, his shoulders tightly bunched muscle. He shifted then his fist plowed into her face.
He
didn't stop, either. She lost count at twelve.

Tightening her will, she imagined Rome coming to her rescue. Maybe someone would find out she was gone. Perhaps Sarina called her and got worried when she didn't answer. Perhaps,
Rome would sweep in like a furious lykaen mate, ready to fight to protect his woman. Even as his knife struck her, her heart panged. She wanted to be his so badly. If she made it away from Conlin she wouldn't let her fears keep her from having what she wanted.

Wow, great time to decide that.

Chapter 1
5

Rome waited outside of the mansion.
Nighttime
was creeping in, the sun
going
down and casting the world into oranges and pinks. The team gathered around him. Their pace made snails look fast.

He couldn't stop the growl that came out of his throat, or the power of his beast rushing through him. He
was
stronger in this form and thirsted for blood. Conlin's blood. He would tear the man's throat out with his teeth.

The Alpha's order was the only thing keeping him in place, keeping him from ripping through the house and tearing anyone who so much as crossed his path into pieces. Vane and his siblings looked like they were going to war wearing
guns, knives
, and
Kevlar vests.

Jacks pushed a vest into his chest.
He growled menacingly at his once friend. The
man's jaw tightened. He looked contrite, ashamed, but that didn't matter. They'd taken his woman and Jacks could have helped.

Unable to control his able, he n
eeded to lash out at something—
anything.

"What were you doing when I called you?"

Jacks glared back at his friend, his jaw clenching from side to side. "You have your problems and I have mind. Let's just leave it at that."

"I have a problem because you weren't here doing your job."

"Maybe you should have been guarding your woman when you knew Conlin was after her instead of going to work like it was a normal fucking Monday."

Rome's fist shot out and caught Jack's jaw. The human stumbled back a step but righted himself.
On most people that hit would have sent him flying ten feet. Jacks always did have a
jaw of steal.

"I'll let you have that free one because I fucked up. You know how I feel about making mistakes."

Rome breathed deeply, taking calming breaths. That shit didn't work. He was more jacked up then if he'd been on crack.

"I thought Vera was a fighter. Where is she?" Rome frowned at the change in subject. He put on his Kevlar before answering.

"She's incapacitated. She was staying in the guest cabin. They ambushed her, and killed two of our guards before taking Alison."

Jacks tensed.
"Is she all right?"

Vane stepped forward looking like he belonged on t
he cover of a military magazine with his Kevlar,
sidearm
, belt holding mace, a
tazer
, and God knows what else.
"She's fine. We're ready to go."

His older brother Darie
n was here too.
His brother never talked anymore. Rome remembered a time when
his brother smiled, laughed, joked.
Something had died in him with that woman with that baby.
Darien’s problems were his own though.

Rome took a deep breath and nodded. "Execute."

Darien and Vane took off towards the mansion while
Ro
m
e
and Jacks took the right. They flanked around the side of the house to the backdoor,
and
took out two guards before they had time to use their
Walky-talkies
.

Rome
smashed through the back door, raising his two guns and drilling bullets at the guards.

"Upstairs." Rome could smell her. His heart was a hard drum beating in his chest. The scents of blood and vanilla
sent
his beast into a full rage.
He didn’t feel anything about killing these
guards
. Had no thoughts as to innocence or guilt.

They made their way through the house. Guards swarmed out of the living room. Rome lost his guns in a tangle of limbs and kicks. He roared and threw the two thugs off him, slamming them into the wall.

The first thug recovered quickly, tore a knife out of his
belt,
and lunged at him. Rome dodged the blow, grabbed the man's
wrist,
and snapped it until bone cracked.
The man howled
and Rome drove his fist into
his
face with all the strength in him. Blood spattered and bones broke under the force. The man collapsed to the ground
with a heavy thud
.