Page 41 of Blood Submission

Chapter18

Shea knockedon Nik and Aiden’s door. Their apartment was on the same floor as hers and Christian’s, just on the opposite side of the hall. As soon as the elevator doors had closed, taking Dante with it, she’d done an about face. Watching the numbers above the door, she saw it going down, all the way to Dante’s underground hideout.

Leaning back against the wall, she’d debated whether or not to tell anyone. He obviously had a human down there, nothing unusual about that. What was unusual was that he was taking the person food. Dante had never gone out of his way to keep someone alive before. Something wasup.

Grace answered the door. Her mahogany hair was pulled back in a high ponytail, and her green cat eyes were makeup free. In her hands she held a ball of spines, otherwise known as Mojo, her hedgehog. Or “Prickles,” as Aiden called him. “Hey, Shea. What’sup?”

Shea smiled. She liked Grace. “I need to talk to Nik and Aiden. Are theyhere?”

Grace stepped out of the way. “Yeah, of course. Come onin.”

The guys were enjoying their downtime by sitting in the living room, watching recordings of MMA fights. Shea plopped down in the plush chair that was near the window. “Guys, I think something is up with Dante.”

Aiden held one hand up, palm out in the universal sign for, “You’re going to have to wait, something good is about to happen.” Sure enough, the guy in red shot out a high kick and hooked his leg back around, effectively catching his opponent in the head with his heel and knocking him to the mat. He didn’t get up again.

Jumping up off the couch, Nikulas held out his hand for a high five that never came. “Yes! I told you, man! I told you.” Dropping his arm, he settled on clapping his hands together and high-fiving himself.

“Yes, yes, Nikulas. You told me.” Aiden rolled his eyes. Obviously, he wasn’t as thrilled about the results of the match. “It doesn’t mean anything, mate. I’ll still kick your arse later, because you aren’t able to do that particularkick.”

Nik stopped his happy dance and planted his hands on his hips to frown down at his best friend. “What do you mean? I can so do that kick. I just don’t when we’re sparring because you get all butt hurt if I mess up your prettyface.”

Aiden scowled back. “Well, there’s no need to be ungentlemanly about it, mate. I thought we’d agreed onthat.”

Nik sat back down. “We did.” Grinning, he looked over at Shea. “What’s up, Shea?”

“I think something’s up with Dante,” she repeated.

“Other than the fact that he returned to us with a mate in tow and now has her locked up somewhere in the bowels of the building and is probably forgetting to feed her?” Aiden asked with an innocent expression.

Shea was confused. “Wait, it’s his mate he’s got down in his tortureroom?”

Nik plopped back into the cushions of the couch and glanced over his shoulder to run an appreciative eye over Emma, who’d just come out of their room to join Grace in the kitchen. “Yup. Didn’t you smell her onhim?”

“Well, yeah, but I thought it was just some random derelict that he’d found and fed from on the wayhome.”

Grace and Emma wandered over, and Aiden held out his hands for Mojo. The hedgehog grunted at him, crawled up his arm, over his shoulder, and curled up in the hood of his hoodie.

“What’s going on with Dante?” Emma asked as Nik pulled her onto hislap.

“He found, and is probably currently shagging, another Moss witch,” Aiden said. “His mate, it seems, as he hasn’t killed heryet.”

Grace sat down beside Aiden, a look of concern on her face. “I don’t know him, but I’ve heard plenty. Should we be worried forher?”

Nik shook his head. “No. He won’t hurther.”

“Are you sure?” Emma asked him. “He doesn’t seem like the type to sit and listen to reason.”

“She’ll be fine,” Nik said. “His instincts won’t let him hurt her. Remember how you were all worried about Keira? And see? Luuk never laid a hand onher.”

Emma gave him alook.

“What?” he asked innocently. “She’sfine.”

“Where is she?” Grace asked.

“Probably in his room in the underground,” Shea answered. Dante would do what he would do. And no matter what the guys thought, that concernedher.

Grace gave her a confused look. “The underground?”

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