Corrupt Cravings (16 page)

Donavon look over, seeing the same man he saw earlier. They were all dressed in some type of period clothing, which threw him off even more. A shimmery light caught his eye, and his vision was pulled in to a necklace dangling from her neck. It had the same symbol covering his chest.
“What’s the matter, my knight? You look upset.”

His bedroom abruptly came back into focus as the vision faded. “What’s the matter? You look upset.”

The words had him tumbling backward off the bed. Their voices were exactly alike. But Marcella? She wasn’t the woman he had searched for. She couldn’t be. Although she bared some of the same tattoos, they weren’t in the right spots. But her taste…Just thinking about her flavor caused his cock to harden. No, it couldn’t be.

“Donavon, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I just need to eat. I need to think.”

He climbed back on the bed and stared at her. This all just had to be his brain grasping at straws from what he’d been through this morning. Before, all he’d ever seen was his woman’s body, never her face. Now that Marcella was here and he’d met one of her lovers, his mind had to be playing tricks on him. The fact that the demon was sitting next to her and not him fueled his hate toward the stranger, but what did all of it mean? He had no clue, but he was about to put a stop to the problem.

* * * *

Marcella finished her sandwich and forced herself to look back up. She wasn’t sure what was going on with the wolf next to her, but the vibes she got weren’t very good. Her animal was too new to pick up his moods, and she felt completely lost. It was as though she was trapped in a dark space with not the slightest clue on which way to proceed.

“Are you sure you don’t want to talk about what’s bothering you? You took a pretty ugly spill from the bed.”

Donavon looked up at her. “It was nothing,” he snapped. “Nothing that matters, anymore.” He stood and walked around to her side of the bed. “Let’s get your stuff together. Luis said we could move to the guest house. I think it will be better that way.”

Marcella took in his words and his stiff posture. “All right. Whatever you think is best.”

“I’m glad you see it my way. Oh.” He reached down to her bag and snatched her phone. “You won’t be needing this anymore.” Plastic crunched in his palm while she stared at him in shock. The pieces hit the floor, and he kicked them away from his foot.

“You son of a bitch.” The words barely came out of Marcella’s mouth, she was so pissed. “What in the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“What does it look like? You said to do what I thought was best. And
that
doesn’t involve anything to do with your previous lovers. Now get your stuff.”

“No.” Marcella stood and grabbed her bag. “I don’t want to go with you anymore. I’m staying here.”

Donavon lowered and grabbed her things. The air left Marcy’s lungs as she was thrown over his shoulder. “Oh, no you’re not. You’re going with me to our new house. And you better get used to it because this is where we’ll live for a very long time.”

“You let me down right this minute! Or else” She lost her breath as he pounded down the stairs.

“Guys, can you help me get my things out? I’m going to go put her in the house. I’ll be right back.”

Donavon turned, and Marcella got a view of the group of thugs starting to stand from the couch and loveseat. Her cheeks heated when she noticed they were all smiling.

“Hey, Arizona. You might want to teach that mate of yours some respect. A few things come to mind. Shit, you’ll have her purring in no time. We’ll take our time over here.”

Marcella gave the tanned man with dark brown hair the middle finger before Donavon disappeared with her outside. Slamming her fist into his lower back, she began to fight against him. She was tired of his domineering ways, and after what happened earlier, the last thing she wanted to do was be completely alone with him. That was giving her succubus an open invitation to take over.

Donavon slapped her ass. “If you don’t stop acting like a child, I’m going to treat you like one. Is that clear?”

Ignoring him, she continued to swing and kick. The sound of a door opened, and she lifted her head to get a good look. A small living area with light blue carpet harbored only one thing, a couch. There was no TV, no tables, just a dark blue sofa.

He continued through an open door and came to stop in a bedroom. All there was was a bed and a dresser. Marcella’s body hit the white comforter hard as he dropped her on her back. Lunging forward, she tried to make a run for it, but she was quickly flipped on her stomach.

Pressure pressed into the middle of her back and the sound of fabric tearing made her eyes go wide. What in the hell was he doing?

“Sorry, my mate, but this seems to be the only way. I’m going to get my things, and when I get back, I’ll untie you.”

A piece of Donavon’s shirt twisted tightly around her wrists. Cold metal bit into her fingers from the black headboard as he tied her up.

“I don’t know who you think you are—”

Another piece of his shirt was stuffed into her mouth and tied behind her head. Marcella tried to say every curse word she could think of. He was so going to get a surprise when he got back. Tying her up and gagging her, fucking ridiculous.

Donavon kissed her cheek and gave her a sad look. “This would have been so much better if you would have just accepted what we are to each other.” He looked away and stood.

Footsteps pounded out of the house, and Marcella jerked against the cloth. With as tight as he had her tied and the angle her hands were in, her wolf couldn’t break through the material. Letting the cobwebs take over, she basked in feeling her collector shoot through her body. For endless seconds, she just savored the comforting sensation. Closing her eyes, Marcella put all her strength behind breaking free. Even as her true self, she couldn’t budge the binds. What the hell? It was just cloth. Angry, she twisted to her back, feeling the restraints tighten to the point of numbing her hands. If she couldn’t get out, she’d destroy this room.

Air, come to me. Hear my call.

Even though she couldn’t talk, she knew she still had the power to invoke the element. A breeze rushed past her, and she laughed into the gag. Marcella imagined the wind spinning around the room almost like a small tornado.

Clothes from her bag began pouring out, flying around crazily. Long strands of her dark hair covered her face as the mattress began to shift underneath her.

More, air. More!

Glass from the windows began to rattle against the pressure inside the small room. The mattress disappeared, flying across the room. Marcella hit the box spring hard. White bedding spun through the air, and she smiled in satisfaction. There. Let him figure out what could have happened.

Thank you, air. You may go.

Sadness washed over her. It was time to say goodbye to her collector. She knew Donavon would be back soon, and she couldn’t risk him finding her in this form. Turning herself back into a wolf, Marcella spun back to her stomach and felt heat rush to her fingers. They throbbed against the new circulation.

It wasn’t a few minutes later when yelling erupted behind her. And it wasn’t just Donavon’s.

“What the fuck! Marcella!”

Fabric tore, and she was spun so fast, aching raced down her arms. Her mate’s scent surrounded her as she was crushed into Donavon’s chest. He reared back and started patting her body down for injuries.

“Are you okay?”

Pulling back, she glared at him. When he noticed the gag, he tore it off. Marcella licked her lips. “Do I look okay to you?”

“What in the hell happened?”

She let her eyes get even smaller as she cut her gaze into his. It might have been wrong of her to lie, but he’d have to be taught a lesson, and this was the only way she knew how. “How am I supposed to know? I couldn’t see anything. Or do you not remember placing me on my stomach?”

One of the men looked around, shaking his head. “Bro, it looks like a tornado whipped through here. But we were outside and there’s not even so much as a breeze.”

Donavon pulled her back to his hard chest and started rocking her. “I’m sorry. God. I don’t know what’s come over me. This isn’t like me. I shouldn’t have tied you up. What if something worse would have happened?”

“Yeah, could be a fire next time, bro. I wouldn’t do the whole tying up and leaving thing again.”

Flashes of her true death caused her body to tremble as she tore her eyes away from the pack member who had mentioned it. For so long now, she’d tried to forget about the fire she caused on accident, resulting in her own family’s death. Nausea threatened against the bitter truth.

Donavon’s grip tightened. “Fuck, you’re shaking. I’m so sorry. Marcella, talk to me.”

Looking up, three men stood around the bed. Donavon followed her gaze.

“Get out, all of you.” He turned back to her. “Talk to me. Why are you so afraid? Is it because of what I did? I swear it will never happen again. What in the hell was I thinking?”

The men filed out of the room, and she waited until she heard the front door close. Tears escaped her eyes while she searched for an explanation. Nothing came to mind but the truth. Should she tell him? If she was going to continue this, there was no reason to lie.

“I told you I was from Ingleside. That was the truth. I lived there with my family. Not long ago, I lost them in a fire. You can say I died that day.”
Literally, but he doesn’t have to know that yet.

“Oh, fuck. Marcella. You don’t know how truly sorry I am.”

His fingers gripped into her back. The softness of his lips trailed kisses across her forehead.

“Donavon, I miss them so much.” A sob passed her lips as Marcella fought for breath. Jason had been right. She should have faced this pain a long time ago. Now that she was talking, she probably wasn’t going to be able to stop.

“They didn’t deserve to die. God, why couldn’t it have just been me? They were so good, and I’m not.”

Marcella’s breasts were heaving with every sharp breath she tried to take. So clearly, she could see her mother’s face and her two brothers and stepfather. They were beautiful. Perfect. And yet, by some unknown reason, she’d accidently killed them by manipulating the energy and causing the outlets to explode while she slept.

“Let it out, love. Just let all the pain go.” He sounded so much like Dominic, she cried harder. “That’s right. I’m here for you. I won’t leave or hurt you. I promise.”

Rubbing the tears from her eyes, she froze while Donavon lifted one of her hands and stared at the bruises encircling her wrists. His eyes filled with tears, and she watched as he turned away.

“You’ve been through so much, and I’ve gone and bruised you. In our community, that’s not tolerated. Women are to be cherished. I’ve already failed you.” He took a shuttering breath. “I’ll take my punishment when the sun goes down.”

Marcella tried to sit up, but he wouldn’t let her go. “Wait. What do you mean punishment?”

“Just that. Don’t worry yourself over the details. I shouldn’t be gone for more than an hour.”

Panic set in as she tried to understand what he was saying. “You’re going to get someone to hurt you because of these?” She held her hands out to him to display the darkening marks.

“Yes.”

“But I did that by fighting against the bonds. That wasn’t your fault. There’s no reason for you to go anywhere.”

“If I wouldn’t have tied you, it would have never happened. The decision has been made. You won’t talk me out of it.”

Reaching for his face, she angled him so his eyes met hers. “What will they do?”