Page 21 of Sweet Violence
Someone chattered a question and the leader shot them a quelling look.
I took advantage of her distraction and backed up three steps, until I could feel the hot, dusty draft from outside.
Oh yeah, I'd forgotten about the fucking dust. Ugh, I was not looking forward to the trek back.
"Why do you care?" the leader asked, facing me and looking mildly alarmed that I was so close to the exit. I backed up another step, mostly just to taunt her that I could.
"Reasons," I replied mysteriously. "Anyway, have a nice life. Cheerio."
I spun and ran as fast as I physically could, dust and dirt spraying around my feet as I fled. Sounds of fast pursuit echoed off the tall, red mountains on either side of me, travelling through the flat valley, but I didn't look back.
I held onto my knife and ran like hell.9
7
There was grit and dust up my arsecrack again, and this time I didn't have a spare shirt to wipe the awful stuff off my face. By the time I arrived back at the devil's fortress, I was in one hell of a mood.
"Out of the way," I barked at the two solemn demons standing at the giant doors to the fortress, each holding a spike-covered club. They could have been twins, their skin deepest purple and irises bright ivory with black where the whites of their eyes should have been. They were also built as big as a shed, and I wasn't in the mood to kill anyone, so I glared when they didn't budge an inch.
"Aveline Lachesi," I said irately, "resident psycho, enemy of heat, dust, and walking, renowned serial killer, and new mate of your boss. Nice to meet you, gents."
They didn't blink. I mashed my lips into a thin line, blowing a rough breath out my nose. I was on the verge of an honest-to-gods tantrum. I was tired, annoyed, andhungry—those things added up didn't make for a logical, sensible Avie.
"Don't make me burn you fuckers," I growled, narrowing my eyes. "Getoutof my way."
"I'd listen to her if I were you," a cold, empty voice remarked. "She doesn't make idle threats."
The purple giants jolted almost as hard as I did at the sound of that voice, their demeanours switching immediately from hostile to respectful and welcoming.
Fuck going in the fortress. I spun, trying so damn hard to smother a smile, but there was no denying the butterflies that burst to life in my stomach at the sight of Arkan standing behind me.1He looked as strange and striking as ever, his colourless hair hanging straight around his harshly-sculpted face, his tall, slim body draped in a long, leather coat, matching trousers, and a tight black shirt. What was new was the flash of unmasked emotion in his pale blue eyes, and the way he grabbed my shoulders and wrenched me into a stifling hug.
I buried my face against his chest and let out a long sigh, squeezing him tight enough to bruise. If wraiths even bruised.
"Where the hell have you been?" he demanded, his voice glacial. "And why are you covered in dust and clay?"
Yeahhhh, it turned out the red stone of the caves left a lovely mark too. Namely on my backside where I sat on the floor for days.
"Ugh, don't ask," I groaned, wondering if he was going to let go any time soon. Wondering if I was.
"I'masking," he replied in a scary voice that made me shudder.
"So, long story short, I went to these caves to meet this band, and they thought they could cage me, butthenthey decided to marry me to their leader's son, and obviously I wasn't into that and—"
"This is the short version?" Arkan drawled, curving his hand around the back of my head and damn near wrecking me with the gentle touch.
"And then I left, and now I'm here," I finished, grinning.
"And how many of the Band of Umber survived your wrath?" he asked, the ice in his voice warming slightly.
"Hey! All of them. What do you think I am, some sort of serial killer?"
Arkan snorted, and an awful, uncontrollable smile creased my face. I squeezed him harder, my heart thrashing with unfamiliar emotion. I kinda wanted to cry, and almost stabbed my tear ducts for even contemplating it.
I drew back from his chest, unable to hide the smile from him, especially when I saw his watery blue eyes sparkling. I couldn't have told you who moved first, but suddenly our lips crashed together. He kissed me so deep and savage, I turned weak, and a throaty sound shook Arkan's tongue as he licked my bottom lip.
"We've got an audience," I reminded him, and leaned back to give the twin purple guards a little wave. They studiously looked elsewhere.
"I could not care less, princess," Arkan hissed, and a strange explosion went off in my chest to hear that term of endearment once more.
