CHAPTER ELEVEN
Zander waited for his bedroom door to latch before he allowed his muscles to unlock. If Danel had still been in the room—no telling what he would’ve done. Kyrian meant well but was dangerously wrong. Zander did want to hurt Danel.
He wanted to do more than hurt him.
The bed creaked as he ass-planted onto the mattress edge. Resting his palms on his knees, he dropped his head forward and sucked in a few long, deep breaths. The darkest part of his soul writhed within, demanding blood, demanding he protect Austin’s honor after such an intrusion. His hands were steady, his mind set on securing what was his.
He cursed. Austin wasn’t his. Could never be.
Shaking his head, he pushed down his mind-spin and focused on control. Focused on getting his respiration deep and slow. Deep and slow. He visualized the tethers binding the dangerous part of himself threatening to break free. He secured his hold, bound the dark souls polluting him tighter than ever before.
A biting electrical current raced over his skin, raising the hair on his arms. His energy was way off. And that hum in his head? Yeah, it had returned with a vengeance, slamming into his skull like a wrecking ball.
What the hell was wrong with him?
More with the breathing. Deep . . . and . . . slow.
He grabbed his pants off the floor and stomped his legs into them. It was all he could manage not to storm out into the dining room and gut Danel.
“Zander, please say somethin’,” Austin said, her panicked gaze flitting around the space.
“Shit, I’m sorry, cowgirl.” The bed creaked as sat next to her and squeezed her trembling hands. She looked small and fragile in his massive bed. An illusion, he knew. She was tougher than she looked, tougher than she realized. Even so, he hated that he’d been the one to make her feel powerless. Again. “The last thing I want is to frighten you.”
“No. You didn’t—”
He pressed a finger against her lips. “I can smell your fear, it’s an acrid burn in my sinuses. After everything you endured the past few days, you shouldn’t have to be afraid here. Not with me, and not of me.”
She raised her hand and stroked his cheek, her eyes bright and clear. “I’m fine. Are you all right? You were really mad. Like really mad.”
Danel’s insubordination pissed him off, but what threw him over the cliff was the lack of respect for Austin. “I want to ram my dagger through his eye socket and out the back of his skull.” There wasn’t one ounce of hyperbole in his statement and the way Austin tightened the sheets around herself, she knew that he meant every word. Good. She needed to realize she’d been having sex with a violent bastard.
Well, wasn’t this a Norman Rockwell moment.
He stroked her welted wrists. The wounds from the handcuffs had faded but still turned his stomach. She was frightened because of him. Had been tortured because of him. Even if he had nothing to do with it, his violent world put her in danger. Always would.
The laws were absolute. Nephilim were too volatile to have romantic entanglements and humans too frail. As soon as they found the Shedim who kidnapped her and killed Tanek, Austin would be sent back to her life.
Rubbing the tightness gripping his chest, he dropped his head forward and sucked in a few more deep breaths.
Shit. The past twenty-four hours had gone sideways. This heat sizzling between them—no matter how erotic—added a layer of complication neither one of them needed. For shit’s sake, she’d been abducted and left naked in a kill-zone. Of course, she’d be rattled. And what had he done—put the moves on and ended up with her legs wrapped around his waist.
Fuck. He truly was a bastard.
“I’m sorry you got caught up in whatever that was. I don’t know what crawled up Danel’s ass. He’s an angry SOB at the best of times, but he’s usually tight.”
She slid to the edge of the bed beside him, the smooth, tanned flesh of her thigh peeking out from beneath his sheets. “He doesn’t like humans much.”
“Ugly childhood.”
A long silence rose between them, but he didn’t know what to say to get back to the intimacy they’d been enjoying. Maybe he never would.
She patted his leg and looked up at him. “If this behavior is out of character, give him the benefit of the doubt until you hear him out. He seemed quite worked up.”
Zander pulled back and took a long hard look. Her fear hadn’t dissipated all together, but the smile she offered slew him. “Let’s get you cleaned up and find your clothes. I’m not sure where I tossed them.”
He strode into the bathroom, tossed the condom and brought a warm, damp cloth back for her. Then he scooped Stetson up from the floor and plopped the ninety-pound ball of chocolate fur beside her. His reward: a pink tongue slapping up his neck and a rapid-fire smack of his tail on the bed. “I’ll go see what’s up Danel’s ass. Feel free to shower, soak in the Jacuzzi, or lounge in bed. Whatever you like.”
Turning away to give her some privacy, he wasted no time pulling on his clothes and gathering his weapons. He had every intention of leaving her and her dog to sort themselves out until he looked back. Her long chestnut hung hair tousled in the sexiest way, her lips still pink and a little swollen from their wake-up session.
“You look damn good in my sheets, cowgirl.” He knew the moment she could see him because her eyes widened and locked on him. Drawn by an unstoppable force, he leaned over her, tilted her head back and claimed her bottom lip. Gently, he lingered at her mouth, playing, brushing over her velvet lips. “Thank you for before. Feel free to fall asleep on my bed anytime.”
Each time they kissed, heat exploded between them, and now that he’d had her wrapped around his hips it burned so much hotter. Gas on flame. The perfect storm.
She ended their kiss and flopped back onto the bed, breathless and flushed. “Go, before Danel comes back and gets another eyeful.”
Zander growled. Danel should never have gotten an eyeful of her gloriously undone and hot as hell. That was private. “I apologize, again. Him intruding was unforgivable.”
Austin sat before him beautifully naked and unabashed. Worrying her bottom lip she shook her head. “I’m not worried about modesty. I am, however, concerned about all the glass I heard shatter when you had your meltdown. My feet are still sore from yesterday. Could you help me to the bathroom and bring my sneakers from the spare room, please?”
“That I can do.” Austin squealed as he scooped her up and carried her to the ensuite, nipping the soft round of her shoulder. He felt like he could bench-press an SUV, carrying her naked, with permission this time.
Oh, the sacrifices he made in the line of being a good host.
“Sorry about the nose, Greek,” Danel said, glancing up from where Kyrian had ass-planted him amongst the ancient texts he’d poured over all morning.
Kyrian stretched his face and gave his head a shake. The guy’s hair flipped around and then fell perfectly back in place. He tossed a bloody cloth in the wastebasket, his nose straightened and already healing. “No worries. Tensions are high annnd you hit like a girl.”
Danel snagged his coffee off the table and glared at the empty hallway back toward Zander’s bedroom. “How long does it take for him to cover his ass and get out here?”
“As long as it takes.” Kyrian dug beneath the scroll mountain heaped on the mile-long dining table and pulled an aged tome closer. “You said your peace and we narrowly escaped being struck by lightning. Let him simmer down before round two. What was that about anyway? You find something about his mark glowing?”
With one finger Danel scanned the faded text before him. “There’s no search engine for the Dead Sea Scrolls that says, ‘when your leader turns into a giant night-light you’re in deep shit’. I’m working on it, though.”
Kyrian leaned back and scowled at the ceiling. “I hate this. Not knowing. The men upstairs must know who the Cherub is by now and possibly why she came down. Would it kill them to share a little?”
Generally, no contact with the archangels was a blessing. Not these days.
“What I want to know,” Danel said, “is how the hell Zander ended up unconscious while Tanek was taken, and why he’s in there polishing his rocks with the human when he should be tracking down the Shedim. His duty is to Tanek and this garrison. He’s way too smart to be this fucking stupid.”
Kyrian grunted. “I wouldn’t lead with that if I were you.”
Danel heard the warning buried in Kyrian’s tone. Despite their bound existence, the Greek was a refined SOB. Danel had never understood the bond between him and a Molotov cocktail warrior, like Zandros of Kish.
Kyrian flipped open his lighter and lit up. From the exotic blend of the tobacco he rolled, to his designer wardrobe, to his sense of honor in battle, the guy was solid. No extremes. So, if Kyrian was worried about Z, then they should all be worried.
A door closed at the end of the hall and Kyrian raised a brow and exhaled. “Keep it calm, Danel. Keep to the facts. Highlight what you know and avoid your opinions about the woman. Remember, he’s our commander now.”
Danel rolled his eyes as Zander’s heavy footfalls drew closer. Tanek had been a great commander. A real leader. He doubted Zander could rise to be worthy of polishing his vest, let alone inspire loyalty. The garrison stood on shaky ground and the future on the horizon made him itch.
Kyrian threw him a scowl. “I wouldn’t fight back if I were you. You crossed a big line.”
Danel cursed and waited. This was going to suck. Zander would rip him a new one, and Kyrian was right, he needed to take the hit.
When the Sumerian barreled in, Kyrian moved to the side and stayed clear.
Danel braced for impact and hit the wall hard. Zander slammed him back, the drywall buckling to the curve of his skull as his brain rattled. A Group of Seven oil painting clattered to the floor, the frame splintering as it landed on its corner and spiraled beneath the table.
Zander’s dagger arced through the air like a missile, sinking with a hollow thunk into the drywall beside Danel’s ear. Whether protocol, pride or bull-headed stubbornness had taken Danel over, he didn’t make one move to defend himself.
Zander slammed an iron hand into his sternum, gripped his jaw and leaned close. “Enter my quarters again and it better be with an engraved fucking invitation, otherwise, the next dagger won’t be twanging in sheetrock. I’ll sink it into your nut sac and twist until you beg for death. Are we clear, Persian?”
“Crystal. Next time I’ll let you get your grind on and wash my hands of the whole mess.”
“Watch your mouth.”
The loss of oxygen brought white spots to block his vision. The lights flickered. Shit. The guy was off the rails. With a steel forearm pinned against his throat, Danel let the message sink deep. “Yeah, I hear you, Z.”
When the hold released, Danel leaned against the wall for support. Laws of conduct were instituted for good reason. Nephilim held together the structure of existence, the living, breathing architecture of the Otherworld. Zander was garrison commander. Danel needed to follow orders whether he liked it or not.
“What’s this life or death discovery you need to share?” Zander rolled his shoulders, flexing his fingers in and out.
Danel extracted himself from the wall and put the width of the table between them. “I reviewed Nephilim law, specifically those forbidding emotional intimacy with humans.”
“And?”
He thrust his chin forward and met his commander’s glare head on. “I think you’ve been enthralled by the human. You’re not yourself. I think you’re being manipulated into breaking your covenant with the Choir.”
Zander tightened his hands into white-knuckled fists. “And?”
“And what? You were glowing in that warehouse when you found her. You were glowing again in your bed with her just now. You’re distracted and off point—”
“I’m fine.”
“Bullshit. If you think I didn’t notice the woman come up the elevator with Kyrian, when she was supposed to be secured in your guest room, you’re dreaming. You sent her out of reach. Our world is collapsing and you’re more concerned with the safety of one sheep than the directives that govern our existence.”
Zander jabbed a silver-ringed finger at him. “I don’t answer to you. I’m in charge and I’m telling you, the woman is a moot point. Sex doesn’t violate duty. She poses no threat.”
“You’ve got your head up your ass, sir. Your hunger for that female goes beyond sex. It permeates the very air we breathe.”
Zander smiled. “You don’t live here, Danel. If you want fresh air, the door is that way.”
No matter how much he wanted to get away from this cluster fuck and inform their superiors they were in serious trouble, he couldn’t. Zander was his brother and superior. He believed in the system. Had to. It was the one thing that kept them going when things went dark.
Danel shook his head. “There’s shit hitting on all fronts. If you can’t focus on what’s happening, I will. Tanek’s death is tied to you. His body was delivered to you. The Cherub was snatched right in front of you, from your club, while looking for you. The fact that this human has you panting like a dog in heat is no coincidence.”
Kyrian cursed from somewhere behind him.
Danel continued. “Are you even aware of the storm that’s brewing around you?”
Zander stared at him like his neuropathways had misfired and nothing connected his mouth to his gray matter. “I’m a shit-ton more aware of what’s brewing than you. Researching ain’t the same as living it, Persian. For all you know about books and history, you don’t know shit about what I’m dealing with here.”
Danel studied the lustered hardwood and took a breath. When he raised his head, he met Zander’s glare with as much rationality as he could muster. “With everything going wrong, how about we scrub the woman and eliminate one problem.”
Zander’s head was shaking before he finished talking. “We can’t scrub her until the archangels figure out her vision. What if she’s walking down the sidewalk and hears a Djinn talk and starts screaming? Plus, the Shedim behind this knows where she lives. I want them destroyed before she goes back to her life. It’s not safe to send her back yet.”
“It’s not safe for you to be feeling her the way you do.”
Zander leaned heavy into his palms and pegged him with an icy glare. The four feet separating them wasn’t enough. “I’d stop commenting on my sex life if I were you.”
Danel grabbed the book off the table and read aloud the text they’d heard ten thousand times over the millennia. “The begotten of the fallen exist to serve and maintain the balance of the Choir.” He skimmed down the paragraph, blah, blah, we’re screwed. No choice. Blah, blah, “For if a male should ever cross the boundaries of the heart forbidden, the dead shall surge within, the darkness consuming the warrior’s soul, his grace lost e’ermore.”
A feminine gasp had them pivoting to the open doorway. The brunette was there, her mouth agape. “You’re forbidden to be with me? You could lose your soul?”
“Only if he cares about you,” Danel said, dropping the book back to the table. “If you were just a warm body for a quick fuck, he’d be fine.”
Her eyes widened further.
Zander looked like he wanted to snap his neck, but said nothing. What could he say? To say she meant more to him, proved his point. To say she meant nothing beyond a warm place to stow his cock insulted the woman he just had pressed beneath his hips.
“You’ll have to excuse Danel, sweetheart,” Kyrian said, shooting him a cool green glare. “Danel is far more successful with women when he’s naked. Once he starts flapping his big mouth, it all goes to hell.”
Danel scratched his jaw with his middle finger and looked at the human. Fresh from the shower, damp hair pulled back in a ponytail, wearing jeans and a knit top, he could almost see the appeal. The woman had a Kate Middleton thing going on.
He stroked his goatee and offered his best impression of a polite smile. “Zander’s feelings certainly seem stronger than an urge to satisfy. That is dangerous. To him. To you. To all of us. I interrupted you because the scriptures speak of a deadly curse unlocking if a warrior loses himself to a woman. Until we know who or what has been manipulating things between you two, Zander needs to keep his distance.”
“Manipulating things?” she blinked.
Danel nodded. “I believe there may be a Darkworld spell or enthralling involved. The Shedim had you for days before we found you. You were drugged and out of it. You’re having side-effects none of us can explain.”
Zander strode to the doorway the muscles in his shoulders and back threatening to bust the seams of his black T. “Danel can postulate till he’s blue in the balls, but he’s guessing. I’m not under any spell.”
“Maybe,” Danel said, “but can you be sure you’re not being manipulated? It’s happened before.”
“Fuck you, Danel,” Zander growled.
“I’m just saying that until we find out for sure where those cuffs came from and what they did to her, you two need to stop with the heated looks.”
Zander’s eyes narrowed. “Or what? You threatening me?”
Danel’s gut twisted. “If you force me to it, I’ll go to the suits to request your removal as garrison commander. At least until you’ve got your head on straight.”
The air snapped with a sudden electrical current, Zander’s beast dangerously close to the surface. “You’d go to those totalitarian assholes and put me under a microscope? After having each other’s backs for millennia?”
Danel met Zander chest to chest. “I’m trying to do the right thing for the entire squad, Zandros. Your duty to Tanek and this garrison supersedes any itch you need scratched. It’s about damned time, someone reminded you of that.”