Assassin's Kiss (7 page)

“… ach nig heltrun.”
She finished with the Demonish words for
let it be done
, a common ending to spells. Blue eyes studied the metal on his hands, not looking any higher than his forearms. “Next.”

Zeebi handed her the collar. Smooth but burnished, it was pewter colored, with a hinge on one side and a clasp at the other.

Tessa held it in both hands, opening it like a book, raising it to the level of her eyes. “Bend down.” Her voice came out harsh and clipped. But Scorpio saw the movement of her throat as she swallowed, saw the flicker of emotion in her eyes. Was she nervous to put this on him? Did she despise being this close? Or was it something else?

He leaned down as far as he dared, not wanting to make her nervous. But gods above, this position put him too damn close to her neck. With her arms raised to clasp the collar, the center of her top gapped, giving him a cock-hardening peek at the tops of her breasts. The motion of her arms sent the smell of honeysuckle swirling rampantly in the air. Gods. Shit. Fuck.

He fought for control as her fingers grazed his neck and metal snapped together. Again, she spoke the words to a spell that would undoubtedly weaken his muscles.

But his mind and his soul stormed with life and single intent, greedy for her.

Her hands hovered near his neck as she continued the spell. He noticed the slight shift of air, detected the tiny tremor of her littlest finger, and could practically feel her physical touch through the breath of space that hovered between them. Sentences spun from her lips, words he didn’t understand but which lashed him to her more tightly with every syllable. He remained leaning down, partly because she hadn’t asked him to straighten, and partly because he wanted to soak up every second of being this close to her.

She released a quick breath as she finished and stepped back. Relief flooded her beautiful face. “Done.”

But he held her eyes, daring her to look away as he slowly, one vertebrae at a time, stood to his full height. Blue eyes stared back, alternating with confusion and anger.

Anger won, and she abruptly turned away. “Let’s go.”

“Um, okay.” Zeebi tossed a curious glance at Tessa, then swung back to Scorpio. She eyed the cuffs and collar, holding a hand out as if checking them, but not touching Scorpio. “He should be fine,” she said to Hallon.

Scorpio heard her, but his mind and eyes were fixed on his mate as she strode away. Perfect, feisty witch. And he’d bet good money that she was as affected by this little spell session as he.

Tessa’s skin hummed with nerves as they walked away from Bronwy lands and toward Vespera. Though she couldn’t tell if it was from the pull to be in her homeland or the danger of venturing onto enemy territory.

Or was it the presence of the towering Lash demon they’d brought along for added protection?

Everything about him confused her. The facts which, by the way he had
never
disputed, were cold and awful. Yet his words and actions were…normal. Not angry, not malicious, not taunting or demanding. He hadn’t asked to speak in his defense. Nor had he asked if and when he could leave.

In fact, he seemed ready to settle in with the coven. And that last fact perturbed her in a wholly new way.

“Torth to Tessa.” Zeebi walked up right next to her, sunlight bouncing and refracting from her ever-present opal necklace. “You are so zoned out. Maybe not a good idea right now. Traveling toward the enemy and all.”

Tessa shook her head, wishing she could shake off thoughts of Scorpio as easily. “Yeah. Sorry.”

“Soooo…” Zeebi flicked a glance to Scorpio, who walked near the front of their group, flanked by two male guards. Two others walked behind Tessa and Zeebi, and that was the extent of their raiding party. Any more would be cumbersome. “He was so docile when you put that stuff on him. I thought he’d make a break for it.”

Tessa shoved a hand into her pocket, unable to get Scorpio’s words put of her head.
I’ll stay close. That’s a promise.
What the ever-loving heck? Her heart still raced, remembering the sincere glow in his eyes as he gazed at her like she was the only other living thing in their world. With just a few words, he’d gotten her flustered and bewildered. Gods, she had to shut this fluttery, all-wrong feeling down. “The guards had weapons drawn on him.”

“Yeah, and he heals at light-speed.”

“Not with the dampening spells.”

“Pfft.” Zeebi waved a hand. “So it’ll take him an extra day. And if he got away, there would be no spell.”

Tessa shot her friend a look. “What are you getting at?”

“Tess.” Zeebi grabbed her hand. “When you put that collar on him he looked ready to eat you up. In a good way.”

“Oh my gods, Zee!” Tessa scowled. “There is no
good
way! He’s a prisoner and a murderer. What’s wrong with you?”

“It was intense, that’s all I’m saying. Like you were some kind of goddess.”

“No. That’s crazy. There were a dozen people around us. What could he possibly do?” Tessa shook her head, playing dumb, though she knew exactly what Zeebi meant. “And by the way, keep your voice down. He can probably hear us.”

I’ll do whatever you need me to do.
His words lingered in her ears, as well as the up-front, penetrating look he’d given her as he spoke them. Even though she hadn’t asked the question, Hallon had.

Somehow, she knew he wasn’t going to try to leave. Watchers had purpose in everything they did. Laser-focused. So what was his purpose, his focus? Shouldn’t it be getting out alive?

Maybe it was. Maybe that’s why he was agreeable about this whole excursion.

Or maybe he just wanted to scope out the area for potential hiding places?

“So what. He has to know he’s a gossip topic.” Zeebi pushed a blond lock off her shoulder. “Anyway, I think it was a good idea to bring him along. Score one for Winston.”

“Yeah, I guess. We’ll find out soon enough.” Despite what Zeebi and Winston thought, Tessa still couldn’t bring herself to trust Scorpio.

“Tessa,” one of the guards dropped back to her. “The prisoner says he wants to talk to you.”

“What? No.” She recoiled, shaking her head. The last thing she wanted was to have him
talk
to her again. No damn way. The unnerved butterflies from their last conversation still lingered in her belly.

“Oh my gods. Be nice,” Zeebi said. “He’s helping us out here.”

“He freaking owes us!” Tessa hissed. “What’s gotten into you anyway?”

The guard cleared his throat. “He had some questions about your restraints. Said something about a witch at Lash Watcher HQ who created something similar. But ahem, better, he said.”

“What?” Tessa’s eyes swiveled to the muscular back of Scorpio, striding fifteen feet ahead. Now he was insulting her ability? Hold on a goddamn minute. Acting weird was one thing, but throwing insults? When he was the one at fault? Hell no. She stalked forward.

She idly wondered if he could feel her shooting daggers into his back as she neared. She knew she was good. That’s why Damien wanted her so badly, and why Bronwy had scraped by all these years. She would never brag about her affinity, but no one got to tell her crap like that, unless they had the same skill set and were truly better.

A situation she had never encountered.

He turned as she approached. The sunlight did its best to shine on the dull metal collar and, for a split second, she felt a stab of dislike that he had to wear it. But the casual look in his eyes brought her anger back in an instant. “What is your problem?” she spat.

Golden eyes lingered on her face a second too long before he spoke. “Besides the obvious?”

“You’re seriously going to insult me?” She poured condescension into her words. “You think you can get out of those?”

“No. Magic’s not my thing.”

“Right. Killing is.”

A muscle ticked in his jaw. “I deserved that.”

“Damn straight.” Tessa glared ahead at one of the two-headed chipmunks that proliferated like flies in these woods. “Are we done?”

“Have you ever thought about working for the Watchers? There’s a spell department at HQ. Some of the oldest and best witches around—”

“No. Why would I do that? This is my home, and I have plenty to do here.” She swallowed the unwelcome emotion that his question evoked. Learning from other witches would be a fantastic opportunity, but she couldn’t leave Bronwy. Not when her skill was vital to them. “They need me.”

“What about a specialized training then? Temporarily?”

Tessa scowled. “Really? I didn’t think your boss was the type to let people leave with knowledge they gained from his little fiefdom.”

“He’s not a dictator.”

“Why do you even care?”

He shot her a molten stare and Tessa’s eyes skittered away. She found a safe spot to look straight ahead, several yards down the path, and fought the sudden tumult in her belly. Those eyes were too dangerous. With heat and unguarded sincerity, they threatened to unravel her resolve to keep despising him.

“You could improve, and you could also teach others. It’d be mutually beneficial.” His deep voice rumbled over her like a wave she couldn’t avoid.

Tessa got the feeling that it was way more than that, but she had no desire to dig deeper. In fact, she regretted even starting this conversation. “I’m not interested. And what are you, anyway? Thought you were a warrior, not a scheduler.”

“I do what’s needed.” His strong hands flexed in the black gloves.

“Whatever.” She half turned away.

“Tessa.” His voice held an edge. “Your affinity with metals is rare. If this is any indication of your skills, then Arawn would be happy to employ you at HQ. You’d be paid well.”

“I don’t need the money,” she lied. Her coven could definitely use it.

“You could send it back here,” he said, voice softer. “Hallon could save it or spend it, whatever he wanted.”

“What?”
She turned enraged eyes on him. He’d gone too far and she was on the verge of screaming obscenities. First Damien wanted her for her power, now Scorpio thought the Watchers could
benefit
from her? “Is that supposed to be some kind of peace offering? My coven gets a few gold bars in exchange for losing me? And that’s supposed to make up for Vespera gouging us all these years? Which is a direct result of
your
actions?”

“No, I—”

“Save it. I’m no one’s pawn, no one’s little metal-bending witch. Not yours, not Arawn’s, and not Damien’s.” She huffed out a breath as fury churned through her blood. “Goddamn it.”

“What?” Scorpio’s voice changed from casual to one of barely-contained anger. “
What
did you just say?” All soft edges gone, a lethalness coated his words.

“I’m not a fucking wind-up toy to make spells!” Her voice rose, and behind her, one of the guards coughed.
Crap. Cue the gossip machine.

“Not. That.” The words fell from his lips like artillery shells, heavy and primed to explode. “What did you mean about Damien?”

She glanced at the killer beside her, and his eyes flared with rage. Well, shit. She hadn’t meant to let that detail spill. “Nothing.”

“You’re lying.”

“You’re right.” She held his gaze. Resentment rode her and she was ready for a fight. “I’m lying. But it doesn’t concern you.”

A snarl started low in his chest. His mouth was set in a hard line and if it were possible for a person’s anger to make it hard to breathe, he was succeeding. “Tell me.”

“You’re hardly in a position to demand anything, demon.” She crossed her arms and picked her way over a root on the path.

“It’s not my position I’m concerned about.”

“Hard to get answers when you’re bound and caged.”

“If I want answers, I get them. None of this matters.” He raised his wrists. “But you do.”

She resisted an eye roll. “You didn’t know me before you fell out of the sky and landed here.”

“Doesn’t matter. Tessa.” The way he growled her name sent an unwanted shiver down her spine. “What’s going on with Damien?”

She debated. It was none of his business. But did it matter, when there was nothing anyone could do to change it? And anyway, it was public knowledge among both covens.

She didn’t know why he cared. Well, if he had delusions about her in some way, that was his problem. What was he going to do about it? The cards were all in play, no going back. “Fine. You want to know?” She poured flippancy into her words and turned to face him as they walked.

“Tell. Me.” His words were a furious, biting demand.

“In a few weeks, I’ll become his wife.”

C
HAPTER
6

S
CORPIO’S BREATH FROZE IN HIS
lungs. A primal roar of fury built behind his sternum and he readied to bellow across the entire acreage of woods. No way. No
fucking
way.

Tessa was
his
.

He hadn’t found her, only to lose her to some asshole manipulating her people.

And the fact that Damien was even able to abuse the power of the dark ley lines was Scorpio’s own fault.

His lungs screamed for release from the tightness of his muscles and chest. He heaved out a breath, forcing his vocal cords to remain silent. No matter his rage, his mate was nearing enemy territory and he wouldn’t jeopardize her safety by shouting his fury.