Page 54 of Cursed
“Shh.” He yanked me to his side and scanned the crowd.
I struggled against his arm, which became an effective band of iron locking around my waist. “I’m serious. If you don’t let me go, I’ll...” I’d what? Scream? Hit him? Call the police? My phone was in the car, yelling would do no good since the entire building seemed to have turned into sheeple, and hitting Cain would be the same as slamming a fist against a concrete wall.
“Precious.” His voice, low and calm, carried that hint of gravel I’d heard the first time we’d met. “Believe it or not, I’m trying to save you.” Cain turned in a circle as if looking for someone, with me locked to his side. “Your friends looked upon my mark, which means they were five seconds from tearing each other apart, you included.”
“You’re out of your mind.” Even though he sounded completely sane, hehadto be a nut. There was no other explanation for it.
Or maybe there is. How did he make you walk to him...against your will?I crammed my voice of reason back into my brain. I could only deal with one crisis at a time.
“Fuck.” His fingers dug into my skin as his body tensed. “We have to leave right now.”
“Oh, how cute,” a clipped, accented voice purred from somewhere behind me.
A slight tremor shook Cain’s fingers, but his face remained impassive. “Malachi,” he said, spinning in a half circle and dragging me with him.
Ten feet away stood a man even larger than Cain, dressed in black leather pants with silver buckles marching up the legs. A dark-gray shirt stretched across bulging muscles. Covering his forearms were wrist guards. He looked like a gladiator.
But his costume wasn’t what dragged my attention from the form-fitting clothing and purple-black hair framing his cold, hard face. Stretched out behind him were enormous black wings, at least fifteen feet from tip to tip. They were splendid and terrible.
Where in the world did he find them? Must be custom-made and worth a small fortune.
“Get behind me,” Cain whispered, shoving me backward with a firm grip on my upper arm.
“Hey, stop. I can take care—”
“So,” Malachi said as he paced our direction, his steps confident. “This is the prize. You still think like a human, Cain, which is unfortunate for you, but a windfall for me.”
Huh?Why wouldn’t Cain think like a human? I held back a snort, wondering if the last of my sanity was truly slipping.This is turning out to be the strangest night of my life.Really,whatwas in the punch?
“She’s mine.” With his other hand, Cain held it palm out, as if he could stop Malachi’s forward advance.
“And now she’s not.” Malachi stopped in front of Cain then leaned to the side, his eyes meeting mine. His irises were a deep shade of purple.Surely, he’s wearing contacts.Raising an arm, Malachi made a flicking motion and something dark flew from his fingertips, pushing against Cain, forcing him to stumble.
“No.” Cain’s voice strained. “My time’s not up yet.”
“Do you really think Lucian cares who brings her to him?” Malachi towered over Cain, who sank to his knees, his hand still clutching my arm, the force nearly pulling me to the floor, too.
Adrenaline surged through my veins. I had no clue what was going on, but my sixth sense said even if this was a hallucinogenic dream, Cain was my ticket out of here. This Malachi person—no, angel—wasn’t a nice guy. Not even neutral.
“Stop it,” I yelled, pushing myself in front of Cain even though my entire body shook from fear.
Malachi’s cold face softened, and he let out a low chuckle. “Aw, how sweet. A human protecting another human, or”—he thrust a hand into my hair and pulled me to his chest—“ahalf-human. Cain is a weak outcast. Always has been, always will be.”
His fingers tightened in my hair, pulling at the roots, and I moaned through the pain and kicked his knee, but he didn’t stir.
In the back of my mind, I wondered who Lucian was and why both Cain and Malachi seemed to hold him in such high regard, but the steady, tightening grip of his hands in my hair forced me to grab at Malachi’s wrists in a desperate attempt to relieve pressure.
“Malachi, please.” I couldn’t see Cain, but his panting breaths were loud in the frozen throng of people. “If Lucian finds out, he’ll be furious you took—”
The pressure on my head released, and with its loss, I fell backward onto Cain who caught me.
“Youbitch.” Malachi sneered and backed away. He held out his arms to stare at his hands then lifted a hate-filled glare to me. “You will pay for this.” Curls of smoke rose into the air. The smell of charred flesh overrode the fragrance of Cain’s masculine scent.
What’s he talking about? I didn’tdoanything.
“I’m sorry,” Cain murmured near my ear, still kneeling as he carefully pushed me to the side.
Whatever Malachi had done to imprison Cain must’ve lifted because Cain jumped to his feet, wrapped me in his arms, and didn’t let go.
