Page 40 of Twisted Desire

“Skylar—”

“I don’t trust him, Nik.”

“Sky, please,” he says in my ear.

I grind my molars, running through an obscene collection of curse words in my head before I finally growl, “Fine,” convincing him to let me go. We don’t exactly have time for an in-depth discussion about whether or not his supposed son is going to double-cross us.

Quickly unsheathing the knives from the holders attached to my thighs, I send them flying toward our attackers, catching a couple of them in the arms. A sense of victory sparks in me when they cry out and sink to the ground. I would much rather have sunk the knives into their chests, but the goal is to take them down, not take them out. For now.

An alarm starts blaring as I close in on the other gunman, interrupting my focus, and Nikolai pulls me back just in time to avoid a bullet to the neck.

“Fuck,” I mutter, then shoot him a quick, “thanks.”

Another Experiment member waltzes into the hallway, and her eyes widen when she sees Aaron standing on our side. Though I’m nowhere near convinced he’s on our side, the sight makes me smirk.

With a deep growl, Nikolai advances on the last guard. Rage is burning around him like violent electricity, and he’s doing nothing to rein it in. These people stole his family from him. He’s lived with guilt for years believing his son was dead.

The guard’s face pales as his eyes widen, and I don’t need to see Nik’s face to know the murderous look he must have in his eyes.He’s going to kill him.

Should I stop him? Yes.

Will I stop him? No way in hell.

It’s selfish—of both of us—but he deserves a little vengeance on The Experiment, and me allowing him that... Ah shit. No. I can’t do it. Knowing Nikolai, he’ll regret it later. He was the one who had to remind me why we’re here. It’s not about violence and death; it’s about saving our people.

Son of a bitch.I have to stop him.

“Nik,” I say softly.

“I know, Sky,” he hisses.

“Then back off,” I tell him. “You don’t want to do this.”

“Oh, I really do.” The rage around him flashes bright but dims a few seconds later. His shoulders lift with a heavy sigh, and then he makes quick work of knocking the guard unconscious, dropping him against the wall with the others who have since passed out from the pain of being stabbed.

He backs toward me, and I grab his arm, pulling him to my side. Before we can say anything to each other, the woman steps forward, pressing a button on what looks to be a phone, and the alarm stops.

“Aaron,” she says in a steady voice. “Honey, think about what you’re doing right now.” She might sound unconcerned, but the waves of vibrant fear pouring off her would say otherwise.

“He’s my father, Robyn,” Aaron says, stepping closer to us. “And she’s—”

“Nope,” I cut in, and Nikolai chuckles despite the terrible timing. I’m nobody’s mother. Children are gross. However, I’m pleasantly surprised that Nik’s apparent spawn doesn’t seem to be working against us. Yet.

Robyn’s voice grows louder, sharper. “They’re monsters.”

I shrug, though I’d rather throw a punch at her. “We’re cool ones, though.”

The disgust is clear on her face, making it much more difficult not to add her to the pile of bodies a few feet from us.We need information, I remind myself.

Nikolai shifts, disappearing from beside me only to reappear a second later right in front of her. Robyn reels back, shrieking, and Nik follows until she’s backed against the wall.

“Nik—”

He holds up a hand, and I pause. He knows what he’s doing.

“How many other members of The Experiment are in this building right now?” Nikolai’s voice takes on a lulling, persuasive tone. No human is able to resist it. His stupid charm probably doesn’t hurt any, either.

Her body trembles. “F-four.”

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