Page 34 of Monstrous Grave

“What?” I voice, only causing him to chuckle once more.

It’s a sound I’ve grown accustomed to during all the times I tried to ignore him during our encounters leading up to the heist.

Where am I now? I’m sure as fuck not in my apartment. Has the fucker kidnapped me, taken me against my will, and now he’s…licking me?

“You taste like the most delicious meal I’ve ever had,” he growls, his voice too erotic in my intoxicated mind. “I told you to meet me at the cliffs, but you were a bad fucking girl, Arcane.” He takes a deep breath. “So, I brought you to them instead.”

His touch sends shivers down my spine, but I refuse to succumb to the pleasure he’s coaxing from my body. What is Viper doing here? More importantly, why?

My mind is in a daze, unable to grasp the situation as he licks me. Curses and worries fly out the window the minute I reach my climax, and he drinks in every single ounce of it.

The moment the pleasure dissipates, I summon a final surge of energy to break free, scrambling up the bed. Dizziness overtakes me, the room spinning, but before I can confront Viper behind me, to see his face clearly, he forcefully pushes my head against the wall, leaving me with no choice but to oblige.

“Now, now, little angel. You’re not allowed privileges.”

I move to scream, needing to put as much distance between us as possible despite being tied to a fucking bed. He is the enemy, for fuck’s sake, the harbinger of death from a rivaling family who has come to take me.

Oh God. What have I done?

The moment he must feel I’m about to scream, his glove-free hand covers my mouth, preventing the sounds from escaping.

A growl tears from his throat. “Scream all you want. There’s no one for miles to hear you.”

Slowly, he eases the pressure on my head, and I turn toward him as the silken bands dig into my wrists, seeing his eyes full of conflicting emotions. He’s right; screaming won’t get me anywhere, mainly because of the waves crashing outside, their echoes plunging the world into a terrible wonder. A storm is brewing, coming to bring death and destruction, as two descendants from rivaling families meet.

He assesses me, his words whispering against my ear. “If I untie your hands, do you promise not to scream?” He gives me a serious look.

I look at him, then nod, allowing him to untie the bands holding me captive to the headboard. As soon as my other hand is freed, I sink my teeth into his palm pressed taut against my mouth. It makes him groan as he recoils, waving his hand as if to alleviate the pain. Using the momentary reprieve, I slip my remaining hand from its silken restraint and bolt toward the door, hastily pulling up my shorts. My heart is a relentless beat in my chest as I reach for the handle.

Before I can grip it, his voice cuts through the air like razor blades, freezing me in place as if a wind from the Antarctic has swept through the space.

“Running won’t save you, Arcane,” he sneers. “You’re mine, and there’s nowhere you can hide from me. Nowhere in the world where I wouldn’t find you.”

He advances toward me, and I turn to face his mask-covered expression, my hand still reaching for the door handle. My thoughts are scrambling, trying to figure out the situation.

“Why am I here, Viper?”

Somehow, as he hears the name, his body flinches—a slight motion that I would have missed had I closed my eyes. It makes my brow furrow, waiting for his response, analyzing his reactions as he scrutinizes mine.

We’re like two predators, trying to figure out who is the most dangerous one, who’s going to attack or flee first.

He takes another step closer, yet still far away, even as the interior reveals itself to be a cottage of some sort—not solely one room.

“I’ve already told you, you’re mine,” he merely states, a simple sentence yet laden with so many unspoken words.

“It doesn’t make sense. None of it makes sense. We’ve met, what? Like a few times. Are you fucking insane?” My voice takes on a higher tone, and I watch as the anger slowly, gradually comes forth within him.

He clenches his fists, veins and mouthwatering tattoos prominent as the hoodie slides up his arms. He’s the same height as me, yet in this moment, it feels as if he looms before me while stalking closer. With uncertainty gripping me, my hand gravitates toward the handle, slowly turning it.

He seems to contemplate my words for a few seconds. “Devil angel,” he says, a silent warning and a reminder, causing my heart to crash inside me.

Those words are far too familiar, words I don’t even want to remember.

“You killed all those guards. You’ve been following me. I don’t belong to you. What the fuck, Viper?” I scream at him.

Anger radiates from me in waves as I desperately try to forget those two words he uttered. My breathing becomes labored.

“I did it because you’re mine,” he roars. “I will kill anyone who touches you.”

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