Page 75 of Villains and Vengeance
He doesn’t though.
He sits on his heels in front of me.
I just stare at him, eyes flicking to the water. I’m so fucking thirsty and he knows it. I almost don’t want to play whatever game this is, but if there’s a chance of a drink, I have no choice.
I bite even knowing it’s a trap, giving him a nod and he holds the cup out to me. I start reaching out to take it when he smirks and pours it out all over the floor and his shoes.
‘Lick it up,’ he orders.
When I do nothing, he grabs hold of the base of my neck and forces my head down to his boots, grinding my face into the black leather.
‘C’mon,’ he goads. ‘You wanted some water. Clean my boots with your tongue while you’re at it.’
‘Fuck you, Daemon,’ I grind out.
His laugh is cutting as he pulls me back up by the hair. ‘You’d have to beg me to, baby.’
‘That’s bullshit and you know it,’ I retort, remembering what he did when I was strung up in here by my arms.
‘Hope the sex rooms calmed you down the other day,’ I add. ‘Wouldn’t want your clan to have to execute you for losing your incubus shit.’
His arm darts out before I can even flinch, grabbing me by the throatagain. I’m fucking terrified, but I force a grin and spit into his face, or at least I try to, but my mouth is crazy dry. It’s the principle though. I’m not just gonna lay down and take whatever these assholes dish out if there’s still fight in me.
He lets me go and pushes me back a step, getting a glint in his eye that makes me second-guess riling him up. I’ve pushed him too far. I know that look, I just haven’t seen it on him before.
I flinch away and throw up my arms to shield my head on pure instinct combined with some of my darker memories being so close to the surface.
He got kicked out of the clan because of me. He hates me the most. He already tried to throttle me. Maybe it’s his job to try something else since Iron isn’t getting anywhere quickly with his magick.
And, of course, beatings are the natural next step. I wonder if enduring a pummeling is a perishable skill. Guess I’m about to find out.
But nothing happens and when I slowly open my eyes, it’s to find him watching me with something akin to unease, which is completely insane. I must be imagining it, or Iron is messing with me and I’m too exhausted to even know it.
‘Somebody hit you, baby?’ The worry I thought I saw in his eyes is gone and the tone he uses is taunting, but his voice is soft and I’m not sure what to make of his question.
A lot of guys want to be the good guy, I’ve noticed. Even when they’re clearly the villain in everyone else’s eyes, they mostly never realize it. They’re always the hero of their own story, so every atrocity they commit gets explained away in their heads. Maybe violence against a woman isn’t something Daemon usually holds with unless he’s trying to choke the life out of me: the deserving bitch who screwed up his life.
I’m sure as hell not about to tell him anything about my past that he can use against me, so I laugh it off.
‘You know me,’ I say lightly. ‘I’m always pissing people off. It’s literally my job.’
But all he does is frown, stand up, loom over me for a minute, and then leave the room.
Alone once more, I let out a slow breath. Ugh, I feel like I’ve done a triathlon that I couldn’t train for. I mean,I imagine. I’ve never participated in a triathlon, and I never will thank you very much, but I’ll bet this is what it feels like. I promise myself that if I get out of this, I’m going to add a ton of cardio to my daily exercise drills.
I look down at the floor and, while no one’s around to see my shame, I do stoop down and slurp at the water that’s collected in a divot in the floor.
Yep, I’m not above much these days in the Mountain. But that’s no revelation.
I close my eyes and rest my head against the wall. I hear someone else come in and look to see who it is this time.
Maddox stands over me. I close my eyes again.
‘You’re stronger than I gave you credit for.’
I chuckle. ‘Iron’s probably just tired. He’ll get me tomorrow, show me he’s a big, bad, fae incubus.’
‘Perhaps he would if there was going to be a tomorrow, but there isn’t for you, Jules.’
