Page 23 of Villains and Vengeance
‘Fine,’ I growl. ‘I’m not okay. I need that human bitch in front of me. On her knees. Begging for her life.’
On her knees begging for her life, not for anyotherreason.
‘We all do,’ is all Maddox says, ‘but I know that’s not the only problem you were having in there.’
He starts walking down the corridor.
‘My advice is to try to get over it quickly so you can feed properly. Don’t want to get weak in here.’
‘Fuck you,’ I mutter.
I’d forgotten he knows more about my past than the others.
I rest my forehead against the stone wall. Maddox and I have our problems with each other. We always have, but I’m being a dick to him and I need to tone it down. He lost as much as the rest of us and he’s feeling it the same as we are. Yeah, I was pissed when he made me leave. I still am, but we have bigger problems right now.
We’re all in the Mountain. If we want out of here, we need to work as a clan.
CHAPTER7
JULES
‘You ate ALL the canned food? Already?’
Stunned, I rifle through the food bag, but all that’s left is one tin of ravioli. I sit back on my heels, hardly able to believe it.
‘How could you eat that much food in less than TWO days?’
And when? I’ve been here or close by for most of that time.
The insufferable incubus just shrugs. ‘Faster metabolism. You probably should have factored that in when you and your pet spider decided to keep me here.’
My eyes narrow of their own accord and I resist the urge to launch myself at him. I wasn’t going to venture out of Siggy’s cavern again until go-time, but we have no food and there’s still twelve days and fifteen hours before the window. I checked the spot yesterday, hoping it would be sooner, but my luck is clearly continuing in the same vein as it has been recently.
Axel just regards me innocently, pretending he’s not gloating, that he didn’t do this on purpose just to make life difficult for me. Without a word, I grab the bag and leave the bunker. It’s Thursday I’m pretty sure and that means it’s fight day. I need to go while Dante and most of his guards are off in the main cavern watching two or more supes beat the shit out of each other.
I glance back, wondering if Axel will try something while I’m gone. He did this for a reason and I can’t underestimate him even if he hasn’t attempted escape. But maybe he just wants his people to have another chance at grabbing me. Climbing down to the ground, I notice Siggy moving to the bunker. She stops just outside the door, staring like a cat waiting for a mouse to come out into the open. If she had a tail, it would be flicking back and forth. She hasn’t tried to go inside, so I’m pretty sure Axel will be fine so long as he doesn’t provoke her.
I give her a wave and head out. A patrol is close by. I was listening to their voices echoing earlier. I think I heard Iron and Jayce poking around too. But I’m a little surprised they aren’t trying harder to find Axel to be honest. From what I remember when I was with them, I thought they’d be going crazy with worry for their missing clan member. But maybe their caring for each other was for my benefit. I mean I was supposed to be there to learn about them, to find them their perfect mate. They’d have been wanting to put their best selves forward. I should have known it was bull. I mean they are demons.
I’m not trying to be a xenophobe, but demons aren’t typically known for their kind and caring personalities. I have experience with them, both in and out of the prison, and I can’t say much of it has been positive.
I sneak through the tunnels and at the one-hundred and fiftieth step, I find the hole in the wall and slip through. Crawling quickly to Dante’s room, I find it deserted and hook up my rope. I slide down into the room, landing lightly and I pause, listening for anything out of the ordinary. But all is quiet.
I go to the boxes and start filling up my bag, planning how I’m going to ration Axel from now on. I’ll have to keep the food outside the bunker or he’ll just do this again.
I’m almost done, when I geta feeling. There’s no sound, or anything, but a shiver flutters down my spine and I turn to find Silas creeping up behind me. Stalking me. A grin on his face that tells me he would rather accept risking Dante’s wrath than save me for the demon king to play with first.
‘I thought I scented something tasty.’ He makes a show of smelling the air.
And I’m suddenly in his arms, his fingers in my hair, pulling my head to the side. He presses his nose into my neck and inhales deeply.
‘I heard your name’s Victoria,’ he breathes.
His fangs scrape across the flesh of my throat and I swallow hard, easing my tiny garlic spray out of my bra and hoping there’s enough in it to give me an escape window.
Thankfully, he’s clearly not in a rush. He wants to draw this out and savor it.
Vampires.
