Gena Showalter - [Lords of the Underworld 13] (27 page)

When the demon acted up again—and he would—Kane would just have to find a way to shield her. Because if he was going to die with a smile on his face, he needed her by his side.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

T
HE
MOMENT
K
ANE
burst into the hotel room, Josephina launched a pillow at his head. He stopped in his tracks, and she launched another.

“You snake!” she shouted. “You horrible, despicable snake!”

The door shut with a loud thud. He held up his hands, all innocence. As if he wasn’t a lying, cheating scum who’d betrayed her the day after their wedding.

“Tink, it’s just me.”

“I know!” She jerked the ring from her finger and threw it at him. The monstrosity slammed into his chest before thumping to the floor. Angry beyond measure, she picked up the gun he’d given her and pointed the barrel at his chest. Her hands were shaking, her blood as hot as fire. “I said no, just to save you, but you
insisted
I marry you.”

Darkness descended over his expression. “You plan to murder me to get free of me?” So softly asked.

Tearing her up inside.

Tears welled in her eyes. His hair was tangled, his eyes bloodshot, and his skin pallid. Obviously, too much pleasure with the blonde from the sidewalk had drained him. His clothing was wrinkled and torn—had the female gotten rough with him? Her stomach heaved.

“Yes! I saw you with her,” she croaked. “Saw you kiss her.
After
you’d had sex with me and promised to be faithful.” A few hours ago, she would have called it making love.

But never again.

A muscle ticked in his jaw, the catalyst to a deep, dark coldness that began to fall over his features. “You invaded my mind.”

Planting her feet on the floor, she raised her chin. “I sure did.” At first, she’d been so excited by her success. She was bound to Kane in a way she’d never been bound to another, so, of course she could reach him the way she’d never reached another. But then she’d realized there was a pretty female standing in front of him, and he couldn’t take his eyes off of her lips.

Josephina had wanted to die.

She’d also wanted to kill!

“Tink,” he said.

“Don’t Tink me! I’m not your Tink. Not anymore.”

“Put the gun down, and I’ll explain everything that happened.”

“I don’t want the gory details.”

He raked a hand through his hair, causing the strands to stand on end. “Give me a chance. Please.”

“I did! And you betrayed me at the first opportunity.”

“I hated every moment of it, I promise you. Disaster wanted her, I didn’t. He was destroying everything around me. I wanted to calm him down, that was all. He promised to leave you alone if I kissed her, and I wanted so badly for him to leave you alone.”

She hadn’t been able to hear Disaster while in his mind, but she’d certainly heard Kane.
Swear it,
she remembered him saying.
Swear you’ll leave Tink alone.

One of the tears escaped, slid down her cheek. “What would you do if the situation were reversed, and I smashed my mouth against some strange man, just to save you?”

His eyes narrowed. “I would have ripped him to pieces, put him back together and then ripped him apart again.” He approached her, aggression in every step. “I made a terrible mistake. But I promise you, I wouldn’t have done anything more.”

“It doesn’t matter. It still hurt.”

“I’ll never do it again, you have my word.” Another step closer. “A Sent One came—”

“Sent One? And stay where you are!”

He froze, his mouth curved in a tortured frown. “A Sent One is a winged warrior tasked with fighting evil, like an angel, only...not. He told me to starve the demon, no matter what Disaster does, and eventually you’ll be safe.”

“Oh, I’ll be safe all right,” she said quietly. “I’ll be safe away from you.”

“Tink.” He took another step toward her.

“I said stay back!”

He didn’t. He increased his speed. Instinct kicked in, and her finger flexed on the trigger.
Pop
. The gun recoiled, smoke curling from the barrel. Horror filled her.

Kane was in front of her a second later, swiping the gun out of her hand and tossing her on top of the bed. Before she finished bouncing, his weight slammed into her, pinning her down.

“We’ll work on your aim. Later.”

“Let me go!” Josephina fought against him with all of her might, beating her fists into his face, his chest, trying to buck him off with her body. Not once did he try and deflect her blows.

“I’m sorry,” he rasped. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t want to do it. I hated myself. I hated being there. I hated the woman. I was sick about it. I just didn’t see another way, but I should have done something, anything else.”

“Get off me! Let me go!”

“I can’t. I can’t let you go. I don’t know how much time we’ll have together, and I want to savor every single second.”

She stilled long enough to glare up at him and pant, “Do you have any idea what it feels like to see your husband kissing another woman?”

Silence drenched with shame.

Silence that drove her into a deeper madness. She erupted, beating at him until her hands were throbbing and her lungs were burning from the forcefulness of her pants...until all she could do was collapse on the mattress and sob for the precious trust he’d torn to shreds.

Kane rolled onto his side and gathered her close. He cooed to her, smoothing the hair from her face. His breath fanned over her cheek, and she hated the sensation—because she loved it.

Finally, the sobs quieted. Her eyes were nearly swollen shut, and her nose was stuffed up. Every ounce of energy she possessed had drained from her, and yet still she tried to sit up. “I don’t want to—”

“Just let me hold you,” he beseeched. “Please.”

She relaxed against him because she had no other choice. Dizziness had taken root, and refused to leave.

His hands lowered to her neck and massaged, and she thought he was...trembling? “I hurt you, and I dishonored you, and I am so sorry, Tink. I’m so sorry. I was stupid.”

She wasn’t going to respond. She wasn’t. But the words, “Why did you pick her?” slipped from her, and she cringed. The woman had been everything Josephina was not: blonde, as delicate as the Fae royal family, with smooth hands and pale skin.

He buried his face in the hollow of Josephina’s neck, saying, “I didn’t. Disaster did.”

That shouldn’t have made her feel better. Nothing should have made her feel better. But...it did, she realized.

“I know you’re sorry, Kane. I do. I believe you weren’t acting from a place of desire. But I can’t do this. I can’t live like this, always wondering what you’ll have to do with other women to satisfy the demon.”

“I’m going to starve the demon. I won’t do anything to satisfy him ever again.”

“You say that now. But what happens when his hunger becomes too much to bear? How can I trust you?”

“What are you trying to say?” he croaked.

She steeled herself. “I had no idea I was such a jealous person, but I am, and I don’t think that’s going to change, and I don’t think I can forget what I witnessed. So...I’m...leaving you, Kane. I don’t want to be with you anymore.”

Warm liquid trickled down her skin, as if...as if...Kane were crying. “Please, don’t leave me. I need you. I’ll make it up to you, I swear. I’ll never even look at another woman, Tink. I’ll cut out my eyes first. I’ll never touch another woman. I’ll cut off my hands first.” His arms tightened around her. “Please. Please. I need you. I’ll be in hell without you.”

Right now, she was in hell
with
him.

“You won’t have to put up with me for long, I promise. Please, Tink. Please.”

He kissed her nape. He kissed her jawline. He kissed her ear and her cheek and her brow, her eyes and the tip of her nose. Her mind tried to compute what he’d just said. Something about his words bothered her. Something about not having to put up with him...for...
oh, my
... He licked the seam of her lips, and she opened automatically, her newly awakened body craving what only he could give. Their tongues brushed together, and she tasted...salt. He
had
been crying. Because he couldn’t stand the thought of being without her.

Desire bloomed, urgent, insistent, traitorous. Her blood heated, and it had nothing to do with rage. She tried to remain quiet and still, but the more he kissed her, the deeper he kissed her, and the deeper he kissed her, the more she moaned and groaned and writhed against him, desperate for more.

As she tried to fight her body’s response, he peeled her clothing away, then his own, but somehow his lips never left her, never gave her a moment to think past the pleasure. He stole the air from her lungs, provided her with air from his own. Without him, she couldn’t breathe. Didn’t want to breathe.

Skin against skin. Heat against heat. Softness against the most rigid steel. He surrounded her. He was hard, fully aroused, and hyper-focused on her. His gaze watched her, gauging her every reaction, his mind calculating his next play. His fingers moved on her, in her, stoking her need higher. His mouth followed.

“Let me show you how much you mean to me,” he pleaded as he rose up, placed himself at her core. “Let me make love to you.”

“A-all right,” she managed to say. “One last time.”

His gaze met hers, and oh, the hurt she saw was devastating. She wanted to snatch back her words, but her own hurt choked them before they could form.

“I
will
win you back, Tink. I will earn your trust, and you’ll want to stay with me.”

He covered his massive length with a condom and sank inside her.

She cried out, arching to take him deeper.

He didn’t move for a long while, just remained in her to the hilt, filling her, making her grow more desperate by the second. Her breasts ached, so needy. The crevice between her legs throbbed, practically weeping. Her skin burned, so feverish. Her body was the war zone, and he was the soldier determined to win it.

“Kane,” she said on a moan. “I want...I need...”

“Me, Tink. You need me.” He slid out...out...then back inside her, and this time, he slammed hard, making her see stars. “I’ll give you everything.”

* * *

J
OSEPHINA
CAME
AWAKE
gradually, slowly becoming aware of the warm pool surrounding her. Warm pool?

She blinked open her eyes, wallpapered walls coming into view. She was in the hotel room she shared with Kane, she realized, and in bed. Kane was behind her, his arms wrapped tightly around her as if he feared she would run away. After lovemak—uh, having sex, they must have fallen asleep. How many hours had passed?

Gingerly she sat up, and, body aching from the passion of the night, turned to face her hus—the guy she was sleeping with. Horror filled her. “Kane. You’re bleeding.” His poor shoulder...there was an open wound, exposing muscle, maybe even bone, and a flow of crimson raining to the sheet.

“What’s wrong?” he asked sleepily, groggily.

“You’re bleeding. I shot you, and we both thought I missed, but we were wrong, because now you’re bleeding.”

Like her, he blinked open his eyes. A slow grin lifted the corners of his mouth.

“You spent the entire night with me.”

“Listen to me. You’re injured. I shot you.”

“No, you did miss. Disaster somehow drew the bullet out of the wall and gave it another try. He succeeded. Thankfully, the thing went all the way through. Now, did you hear the part about spending the entire night with me?”

“You were shot while I was sleeping, and you failed to wake me up?”

“You needed to rest. Like I was going to disturb you.”

How could he act so casual while
bleeding to death?
She hopped from the bed and raced to the bathroom to gather a cup of water and clean rags. By the time she returned, he had rolled onto his back and lay propped against the pillows, the very picture of male satisfaction. She cleaned him up as best she could and applied pressure to stop the bleeding.

“You should have told me,” she chided.

“I was content and didn’t want anything to change.”

“Yeah, well. I’m sorry I tried to kill you,” she said on a sigh.

“Don’t be. I deserved it.”

“No, you didn’t.” She cut up the clean end of the sheet and wrapped the material around his shoulder, using it as a bandage. “What you did with that woman, Kane...”

“I know, Tinky Dink,” he said sadly. “I know.”

Tinky Dink. A new nickname. Her heart constricted painfully. “You did it for me, and I get that, but it still hurts.”

“It will never happen again, I vow it, no matter what Disaster does or says. You’re the only one I want, the only one I’ll have.” A heavy pause. “Will you stay with me?” he asked quietly.

Would she? Hurt still swam through her veins. Kane had been hers. He’d chosen her above all others. Finally, she’d mattered to someone other than her mother. No longer had she been a nothing. A servant and blood slave had become the envy of every Fae female and probably even some of the men. But who would envy a cuckold?

He said he wasn’t going to do it again, like thousands of men had said to thousands of women throughout the years.

Maybe, last night, she could have walked away from him. But what the demon had meant as harmful—the bullet—had actually softened her. Seeing Kane in a small pool of blood, realizing how close she’d come to losing him...

I’m not ready to lose him.

If—when—the demon acted up again, they could revisit this topic. Until then...

“I’ll stay.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

K
ANE
ORDERED
ROOM
service. After he and Tink had eaten their weight in hamburgers and fries, he spent the rest of the day teaching her how to fight the biggest and the baddest of threats with her fists, blades and bullets. His shoulder gave him a little trouble, but he pushed through. She was an excellent student, a natural—unsurprising, considering she fought her way out of hell with no training whatsoever. She listened intently, put her whole heart into practicing, and what she lacked in strength she made up for in speed and cunning.

He was glad. He wanted her prepared for life without him.

Just how long would it take to starve Disaster to death?

You’ll change your mind,
the demon said, but he was no longer laughing.

Disaster couldn’t imagine starving because he’d never experienced it; even now, his appetite was sated. Seeing the sharp edge of hurt still hanging in Tink’s eyes...yeah, Disaster had feasted. But that wouldn’t last. Kane wasn’t going to let it.

Whatever the demon threw at him, whatever danger he encountered, he was done acting the fool and catering to the very nature he despised. Tink was getting his best, and nothing less.

When he felt like he’d pushed her hard enough for one day, he gave her a gentle nudge forward. “Take a shower. We need to leave. I don’t want to stay in the same location much longer.”

“All right.” Panting, damp with perspiration, she disappeared inside the bathroom.

He wanted to join her, but didn’t dare. Not until she invited him.

She emerged a short while later, a towel wrapped around her luscious little body. Hair as black as night dripped at the ends. “Your turn.”

He halfway expected her to be gone by the time he finished, which is why he rushed, and yet he found her standing in front of the bed, looking shockingly sweet in a black leather corset top with purple ties at the bottom and a long, puffy skirt with dark lace.

“Where’d you get the clothes?” He cursed himself for not yet taking her shopping, as promised.

She shifted uncomfortably. “Some guy with wings and a spike of green hair down the middle of his head stepped into view, dropped a bag, winked at me and stepped back out of view.”

Malcolm, the Sent One, he realized with a bead of annoyance. He’d stepped from the spirit realm into the natural, clearly. “You should have called for me.” The moment his snippy tone registered, he cringed.
Dial back the anger.
She was in a fragile state where he was concerned, and he had to tread carefully.

Her eyes narrowed. “There wasn’t time.”

At least she hadn’t yelled. Very gently he said, “Next time, if someone appears, no matter who or what they are, no matter how fast they appear and disappear, or if you think they’re my best friend, call for me. Okay? Please. Just in case I need to intervene.”

She nodded stiffly.

“Thank you.” He dug through the bag and found a plain T-shirt and pants, dropped his towel and dressed.

Tink turned away, and he had to brush flickers of sadness aside. Things wouldn’t always be this strained.

“Let’s take off,” he said. “We’ve got a long journey ahead.”

“Where are we going?”

“You’ve always wanted to spend time with the Lords of the Underworld, and I want to—”

“Drop me off?” she interjected tersely.

“No. I’m staying with you.”

He got her outside, in the heat and light of the day, and scanned the crowds and buildings, searching for anything suspicious. This close to Times Square, there were flashing lights and stores everywhere, both offering great cover.

He dialed Lucien, but it went to voice mail. Next, he tried Torin. The warrior answered on the third ring with a curt, “What?”

O-kay. A very un-Torin-like greeting. As Kane led Tink around a corner and up to a coffee cart, he said, “I’m in Manhattan. I need Lucien to pick me up.” Lucien could flash from one location to another with only a thought, even between realms. “Me and my wife.”

At the counter, he held up two fingers.

Torin sputtered out a very undignified, “Wife?”

“Didn’t the boys tell you? Lucien, Reyes, Strider and Sabin were at the wedding.”

“They’ve been a little busy thinking up ways to find Viola and Cameo.”

“Cameo?” He tensed. “What happened to her?”

“The same thing that happened to Viola. She touched the Paring Rod and vanished.”

An instant flood of worry threatened to drown him. “What’s being done?”

“Anya talked to some guy she met while in prison,” Torin said. “He helped create the Rod, and he assured her the females were still alive. Just trapped.”

He pushed out a relieved breath.

“Give me the deets about your girl.”

“Her name’s Tink—”

“Josephina,” she interjected loudly.

“—and she’s half Fae. A royal, a daughter of their king. Wait till you see her. She’s the most beautiful woman ever created. But she has as many enemies as us.”

“Hey,” she said. “I don’t have that many, and only one is my fault. Actually, no. The Phoenix is your fault, too. But thank you for saying I’m beautiful.”

Two steaming cups were set before him. He stepped aside to doctor both with cream and sugar, then gave one to Tink. He remembered the longing looks she’d given the coffeepot during his breakfast with the royal family.

He watched as she sipped, closing her eyes to savor, and his chest constricted with a longing of his own.

“—time and place,” Torin was saying.

“Wait. Sorry. What was that?”

“Stop lusting after the ball and chain and pick a time and place to meet,” the warrior repeated. “I’ll make sure Lucien is there.”

“Two hours. Sabin’s old apartment.”

“Consider it done.”

He severed the connection. Then, seizing any excuse to touch his woman, he slipped the phone into a pocket of her skirt. “Guard this for me,” he said.

“Will your friends like me, do you think?” she asked, and nibbled on her bottom lip. “The few I’ve actually met have only seen me at my worst.”

He heard the uncertainty in her tone. “The wedding was your worst? Honey, your worst is most people’s best. My friends will love you.” If not, Kane would hand out some serious beatings. “They’ll guard you with their lives.”

“Yeah, but what if they think I’m all wrong for you?”

“Impossible. You’re perfect for me. Besides, wait till you meet
their
wives. Or have you already heard stories?”

She shook her head. “New reports of your most recent exploits haven’t yet come in to the masses.”

It was humiliating to know they’d never realized they were being spied on. “Well, Sabin and Strider are consorts to bloodthirsty Harpies. Lucien is engaged to Anarchy. All three females are annoying, always stealing weapons out of my room, but as they would say, they’re simply amazeballs—and so are you.”

A smile—small, but there. “Thank you.”

He soared. “Is there anything you’d like to purchase before I take you out of the city? Anything at all. I plan to get you some clothes, but we can also get shoes, purses, jewelry, whatever you’d like.” If he had to buy her affections, he would. He didn’t care how pathetic that made him. He just wanted her happy.

“No. Really, I’m good.”

The vibrations in his wedding ring intensified significantly, startling him. Frowning, he held the metal band to the light. In the center, as if the band were a movie screen, he watched Red shove his way through a crowd.

Kane glanced up—and spotted Red, shoving his way through the crowd, closing in on him. The ring had known, had...warned him?

“Is something wrong?” Tink asked.

“Yeah. We’ve picked up a tail.” He trashed his coffee, did the same to Tink’s.

“Hey,” she grouched. “I wasn’t done with that.”

“Sorry. Don’t want you to burn yourself.” He launched forward, barreling past oncoming humans, dragging Tink with him. With his free hand, he withdrew a dagger.

“Who’s the tail?”

“One of William’s kids.” No. Scratch that. All of William’s kids were probably here. Those four were like ants: never alone.

“What are they, anyway?”

“Trouble.” And they weren’t coming near Tink. He would kill them first.

Yeah. It was time to kill, he decided. He’d warned the Rainbow Rejects about what would happen if they came after Tink. The warning had been a courtesy to William. His last courtesy. The boys hadn’t listened. Now, Kane would follow through.

“I’m going to hide you in one of the shops, okay? I need to have a chat with the boys, and I don’t want you to—”

“Kane!” Tink vanished.

No, not Tink.
Kane
. No longer was he racing down the sidewalk with his woman behind him. He was standing in a narrow hallway, white fog wafting all around him. A shout of denial split his lips as he turned left, right, searching for Tink.

He clawed through the mist, only to discover—more mist. He checked his ring, but there was no longer a reflection. Panic set in. Where was he? What had happened? Not many beings had the power to flash another without contact. Only Greek and Titan royalty, and—

The Moirai, he realized with sickening dread. They’d used their powers to transport him from New York to their home in the lower level of the skies.

He sped down the hall. He’d been here before, knew the way, and didn’t need to look to know the walls were comprised of thousands upon thousands of braided threads. Those threads vibrated, coming alive, playing scenes from his life—past, present, and maybe even future—but he didn’t allow himself to stop and study.

He was careful to breathe as little as possible. The air was laced with some kind of drug, something to keep him pliant, and maybe even susceptible to suggestion. Tink thought the Moirai operated that way, that they weren’t really controllers of fate, but rather massagers of it, pushing and kneading, tricking, until their victims were putty in their hands, blindly following wherever they led.

Not me.
Not any longer.

He reached the end of the hall and entered the weaving room. The three hags sat on wooden stools, each female hunched over the loom, with her long, white hair frizzing over her shoulders.

Klotho had spotted hands and spun the threads.

Lachesis had gnarled fingers and wove those threads together.

Atropos had pupil-less eyes and snipped the ends of the locks.

“Send me back. Now.” The last time he was here, he’d shown the utmost respect. He’d kept his tone level, his gaze averted. This time he whipped out his demands, his gaze direct. The outcome was too important.

“You made a wrong turn.” Klotho cackled.

“Such a bad wrong turn,” Lachesis reiterated.

“Bad turns lead to bad ends,” Atropos said without any inflection. “You should have married the other one. Or two.”

No. No, he wouldn’t believe it. Tink belonged to him, and he belonged to her. He wanted no one else—would have no one else.

“There’s still time to change directions,” Klotho added.

“Oh, yes, there’s still time,” Lachesis reiterated.

“That’s the only way you’ll survive the pain,” Atropos said.

Kane came forward, with every intention of shaking the females into submission. “Send. Me. Back.”

Klotho looked up and frowned. “You’re ruining our tapestry, warrior. The scenes you’re creating aren’t as colorful as the ones we wish to create.”

They’d predicted his future for the
colors
his actions would lend to their
blanket?
Inconceivable!

Roaring, Kane slashed his dagger through the threads closest to him. Moved forward, slashed through more. All three hags gasped with horror.

“You’re going to send me back to my wife, or your throats are next.”

“You wouldn’t!” the one in the middle gasped.

“If you’ve seen my past, and gotten a glimpse of my future, you know I’ll do much worse than that.” Determined, he stalked forward.

* * *

O
NE
SECOND
J
OSEPHINA
was being dragged by Kane, the next she was on her own in the middle of a crowded sidewalk. Shock had her stumbling to a halt, but she quickly righted herself. Where had he gone?

She spun, searching the area, trying not to panic. People, people, so many people, each on a mission, marching in every direction. A building here, a building there. Birds on the sidewalk, pecking at trash.

“Kane,” she shouted.

The lady next to her jolted back, as if she’d gone insane.

“Kane,” she shouted again. There was no response.

He’d...abandoned her? Decided she was too much trouble?

“Someone must have flashed him away,” a voice said from behind her. “How perfect. We’ve been looking for you, female.”

Trying not to cry out, she whipped around and faced the male from her nightmares. The handsome Red, capable of morphing into the monster she’d drawn into herself.

First rule of fighting,
she thought, recalling Kane’s rules
. Act casual.
“I don’t know why. I want nothing to do with you.”

“We wish to spend time with you.”

Anger burned through her. “I advise you to reconsider. I’m a biter.”

His brothers stepped up beside him, flanking him, and all three stared at her with rapt fascination.

“For you, I won’t mind teeth marks,” Black replied.

Humans continued to walk around her, the females stopping to give the warriors a second and third glance, as if interested in exchanging numbers, before realizing the males weren’t the type to be played with and hurrying away.

Refusing to back down, she said, “I know what you really want, and my answer is no. My ability only works with my consent.”

Red offered her a slow smile. “Getting your consent won’t be a problem.”

If he’d hoped to intimidate her, well, he’d just done a great job. She was certain there had never been a colder smile.

Second rule of fighting. Don’t be afraid to show off your weapons. Sometimes fear will drive people away.
“I’m willing to fight for my freedom,” she said, proud of her lack of quivering. She withdrew the blade Kane had given her. Where
was
he?