Page 46 of Wolf's Bane
“Your skin. I want to lick every part of you, Solenne. Taste every part of you. Don’t let me. I’ll ruin you.” He gave a mirthless laugh at how he had gone years without speaking to another soul, and now he couldn’t stop the vile words from spilling out of him. “Half of me wants to fuck you until you can’t walk and…the other half wants that too, but you wouldn’t walk away. You’d run because you’re my prey, and I would hunt you, capture you, and mark you so no one else would dare touch you.”
Silence.
She anchored him. In the years since the bite that cursed him, every day had been a struggle to maintain control over the beast. It tore at him, wearing him down. Sometimes all he could do was let the leash slip a little to allow the beast to burn off energy. Each time left him shaky and half-starved, but ultimately more in control.
Being close to Solenne helped in a manner he had not expected. The beast’s constant fight to run wild calmed. Now the beast only wanted its mate.
“But I won’t. I swear to you, I’ll keep you safe,” he said.
“As long as I keep the door closed.”
Replying seemed pointless. She knew the answer.
“Did you find Parkell and Chambers?” she eventually asked.
“I found no signs of them.” He had found a discarded coat and a cravat caught on a branch near the back of the house, but no sign of either man. They were foolish to leave the safety of the house and dastardly to leave Solenne, Miles, and the household unprotected from the beast. “Cowards,” Alek muttered.
“I am inclined to agree. How disappointing.” Fabric rustled. “I had hoped they found themselves cornered by a beast or had barricaded themselves into a room.”
Alek had thought the same. “No signs of a struggle and no blood. My best guess is they fled when the beast entered the house.”
“I cannot believe that of Colonel Chambers. He’s a military man.”
Alek could believe it, but he kept his opinion to himself. Solenne had made it perfectly clear days ago that she could entertain no disparaging remarks about Chambers. Instead, he asked, “How is your patient?”
“Asleep. He was bitten, but only time will tell. Alek—”
“No, Solenne,” he said, knowing what she would ask. Only a small percentage of those bitten by a nexus creature ever received the curse, perhaps one in ten. No one knew entirely why some were more susceptible than others, but where knowledge failed, superstition filled the gaps.
Some said that entire families had bad blood, that the line was tainted, and it was only a matter of time before the curse arrived. Or the person invited the curse because of carelessness or a moral failing. The curse was a divine punishment from a wrath-filled universe.
That one he could believe.
“Are you? I mean, I see the signs, but they make little sense.”
“Tomorrow.” He leaned his head against the door. “Ask your questions tomorrow.”
“Will you be outside the door if I need you?”
His damnable heart stirred at the idea that she might need him. He could not risk being in the same room, so tenuous was his grasp, but he could guard her door. Sleep would be impossible regardless. “Yes. Anything you require. All night.”
Chapter 13
Aleksandar
Boxon Hill
Marechal House - A Corridor
A sharp,insistent prodding in the ribs woke him. “Get up already,” Godwin grumbled.
“Is it dawn?” Bleary-eyed, Alek stretched and ignored the ache in his shoulder from a long night of sleeping upright. A pale gray light crept through the window at the end of the hall.
“Close enough.” Godwin tossed down the silver necklace, which bounced off Alek’s face with a sting.
Alek ignored the slight burning sensation in his fingers examined the broken links in the chain. It was too useful to toss aside and a skill smith could repair the damage. “Thank you,” he mumbled, stuffing the chain into a pocket.
Godwin handed Alek a steaming mug.
