As if she was psychic, a text popped up from Kyra.‘Girl night tomorrow? I need a break from all this testosterone!’
Eva grinned, typing her reply out quickly.‘Please tell me that all that testosterone is at least giving you the best orgasms of your life?’She could imagine her best friends face, Kyra very easily embarrassed when it came to sex.‘Don’t keep me waiting,’she quickly added before Kyra could respond.‘I need to live vicariously though you!’It had been a while since she went out and had the chance to meet someone, her work taking precedence over her social life.
Phone clutched in hand, Eva glanced up at the family photograph on the wall, touching her fingertips to the glass like she did every time she came home. “Evening guys,” she said to her parents. “I know, I know, I’m home later than normal. You wouldn’t believe the drama.”
She knew it was crazy that she spoke to her parents’ picture, but she had found comfort in it for the few years she was forced into care. She’d been alone for over ten years, her parents dying when she was just a teenager. She enjoyed telling them everything about her day, well, everything except men. Even in death she didn’t think they would want to know it had been a dry spell.
Dropping her keys on the side table she headed straight for the kitchen in the back, placing the leftover lasagne into the microwave and setting the timer before grabbing one of her homemade muffins.
If it could be baked, Eva would make it. It was different to dance, but it was something else she loved to explore and experiment with. It was just a bonus that at the end she got something delicious to eat, well, most of the time it was delicious. Sitting herself on the counter she began to nibble the edge, watching the countdown glow just as her phone buzzed.
‘Firstly, Xee told me not to kiss and tell. Secondly, you’re tragic. It’s a good thing I love you!’
Eva smirked, her finger moving quickly over the touchscreen as she began to reply. A loud bang caused her to jump, her phone dropping from her hand to crash on to the floor.
“You stupid cunt,” Lucas snarled, hands wrapping around her arms in an iron grip. “Do you really think you could ever be with anyone other than me?” He threw her across the room, her stomach connecting to the sofa hard enough that the whole thing knocked onto its back, taking her with it. He kicked at her ankle, and Eva let out a scream as she felt the bone break before he reached down to grip her throat, pulling her up as if she weighed nothing, her lungs screaming for air.
Eva pulled at his fingers, scratched down his arms but nothing moved his clutch. His face was void of the humanity so many vampires wore, his once warm brown eyes completely black with rage, his lips pulled back to reveal large fangs.
“I marked you from the beginning,” he spat at her. “And now I’m going to make you mine, forever.”
His fingers finally released, allowing her to take in a much needed breath, but the respite wasn’t long lived. His fangs struck, the pain paralyzing before she felt the familiar burn of his venom. She pushed at his shoulders, trying to break the seal but with every passing second she weakened.
For fuck’s sake.
She was going to die, and she was still covered in glitter.
Chapter2
Kace
TWO MONTHS LATER
Kace relaxed into his stance, fists clenched as he waited with the patience of a predator. His opponent huffed out an unsteady breath, red-faced and sweating so much it would obscure his vision soon enough.
His ribs ached, but not broken from the numerous hits he had allowed to land. His knuckles bled through the wraps he was made to wear, not that he received much protection from the thin fabric. He could heal almost any damage faster than any other Breed, a gift from his curse, he supposed.
Finish him!his beast roared inside his mind, needing to feel the warmth of the opponent’s blood against his skin. They both needed the cages, a safer way for him to exert some of the extra aggression he carried without hurting anyone. Well, hurting anyone he wasn’t fighting.
The Vault was a shady business deep within the undercity, run by an equally shady guy, that consisted of illegal hand-to-hand fights, no holds barred. There were no weight limit or restrictions, you could fight anyone you wanted for the right money. Admission to the place was cheap enough it encouraged attendance, but the real money was in the bets.
He always bet on himself, and because he didn't lose, unless it was on purpose, he had a nice little nest egg. His brothers all contributed in different ways to the Guardians. One controlled several multimillion-pound companies as well as a little bar. Another was a computer genius with sought after hacking skills, and there was even one who made and sold some of the best weapons on the continent.
Kace, in contrast, beat the shit out of people.
His opponent’s muscle tensed, the kick coming less than a second later. Kace caught it with little effort, frustration making him growl. He wanted a real fight, not one where he could predict every move before his challenger even thought of them.
The Fae had blue pearlescent scales along the edges of his face, and more of a snout than a humanoid jaw. He couldn’t tell which type of Fae he was, only that his strength was close to a mid-predator shifter, but weaker than a vampire. A Vamp would have broken at least three bones, fuck, even a shifter would have caused more damage than Crocodile Face.
Sometimes he needed the pain, needed a reminder that he was alive, that he had survived. He needed the discomfort to remind him not to kill.
Kace’s fist shot out, connecting to Croc’s cheekbone with a satisfying crunch. He had pulled his punch at the last second, wanting the fight to last long enough that he started to feel the slight calmness of exhaustion. It was the only thing that settled his beast, that stopped the bastard who shared his soul from riding him for more violence, for more death. All his brothers carried the same burden of their own shared souls, and yet he had to be landed with the one homicidal maniac.
A heavy snarl vibrated between his ears, fur pushing beneath his skin as his beast tested the boundaries of control. Only a year or so ago his beast would have won, and would have forced a shift into his alternative shape. Even after all the training he still lost himself in extreme situations, or when he couldn’t be bothered to act civil.
His beast knew three things, violence, hunger and sex.
Sometimes that’s all he wanted too.
