He inhaled, exhaled.Stared at me for long beats.His arousal still scented the air.I feared mine did too.There was, apparently, a fine line between hatred and wanting to fuck someone to death.
“I can’t bring back your brother,” he said.“But if you feed from me, you’ll experience bliss.You’ll forget your pain for a while.”
He dragged his eyes up and down my body.I retreated back to my bed.Sat down and forced my legs to clamp shut.
“I can offer you this relief,” he said.“Won’t you at least accept that?”
“No.”
“Who was your brother?”
“None of your business.”
“Are you here just to avenge him?”
“Justto avenge him?Yes.I’m here to fulfill a vendetta to honor my brother.I’m here for your head, and I won’t leave till I have it, even if I have to gnaw it from your stump of a neck.”
“Understood.You know I won’t be able to let you go so long as you mean me harm?”
“People like you don’t ever free their prisoners.”Not a prisoner like me anyway.
“That’s not true.”
I harrumphed.I’d have to find a way to escape.He’d grow bored of me eventually.He’d lower his guard at some point.
“Since you won’t tell me who your brother is, won’t you at least tell me who you are?I’d like to call you by a name instead of ‘prisoner.’”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“If you know who I am, you’ll know who he is.There’s no separating us.”My heart squeezed with a sudden agony that stole my breath.“There wasn’t until you murdered him.You stole a part of me.Killeda part of me.”
He pursed his lips for several moments.“And why can’t I know your identities?”
I shook my head.
“Why?”
Because then you won’t bother with these games anymore.You’ll kill me right away for being a D’Arco.Then you’ll go after Alonso and Rafaela and whoever else, because Rubors will always hurt a D’Arco when the opportunity arises.
Rubors hated D’Arcos, and D’Arcos hated Rubors.It had been that way since forever.There was no changing it.
“I’ll ask you one last time today,” he said.“Who are you?”
“I’m your motherfucking punisher.I’m an envoy of Justice, sent to exact the appropriate punishment for the magnitude of your crimes.”
“You dare mention a demigod?”
“I dare a whole lot more than that.”I dared, obviously, tolieabout a demigod, which meant I might just incur Justice’s wrath.But scorchit, bring it the fuck on.Whatever it was, I just didn’t care anymore.
“I never give up,” I said.“I will have your head.”
“And I, apparently, will have my prisoner.”
“I’m notyouranything.”
He stepped closer, within range of my chain length.But when he leaned down over me, I didn’t strike.His proximity awoke the beast inside me again—and the beast was interested in activities other than rending his flesh from his bones, at least to start.
