Page 34 of Wicked Succubus

My men have taken over and are securing the area, and as much as I don’t want to leave them, I know how well they’ve been trained.

“We’re still a mile from the portal,” I mutter under my breath, calculating our chances. I don’t know if Zel can run that fast. She should be able to make the distance if she really is a shifter, but since I have doubts about that bit of truth she shared, I have no idea if she’ll be able to keep up.

“I can run,” she snaps, fire in her eyes.

I freeze. “How did you—”

“It’s written on your face,” her cheek is bleeding, and I want to grab my handkerchief and clean it up, but I stand still, not wanting to touch her unless I have to. “You were wondering if I could keep up over that distance.”

I hate that she can read me so easily when no one else ever has. It’s infuriating to feel so exposed.

“Let’s move then.” I cannot afford distractions or second-guessing. We either make it to safety or die out here. No other options left.

I grab her hand and ignore the electricity that shoots up my arm every time I make contact with her. None of them are paying us any attention. As we jump over the dead men’s bodies, I’m surprised by how many Zel killed. I mean, should I be surprised? She’s a killer, after all.

When we make it to the clearing, we’re ambushed by three more hooded figures with swords. I touch the side of my hip to make sure my sword is still there. I push Zel to the side when they come after me. One after another, they try to take off my head. I slice one of them through the heart and he goes down. You can’t tell who’s underneath the hood. It’s dark when you try to look at their faces. While I fight, the other two ambush Zel.

“Let her go,” I say. The harshness in my voice even has Zel whipping her head in my direction as she tries to fight back. I know that I sound different here than I do in her realm.

I swipe my opponent’s leg. While the other is too stunned to move, I bury my sword where his heart should be. With the assailant down, I take the opportunity to cut through his chest, slicing in different directions until the body no longer twitches.

“Take me, you don’t want anything to do with her,” I call out to the bandits.

I glance back at Zel, whose eyes narrow at me in irritation. “She’s not even fae, just a low-life human,” I add dismissively.

I know I’ve accomplished it when I see her slightly flinch at my words.

“She was in your carriage, so she must be important,” the one holding onto her says.

“She’s nothing special,” I say with a casual shrug, not bothering to look back at Zel. “But take her if you want. She makes for a good lay,” I continue dismissively to the faceless man.

I keep my tone bored and indifferent as if she is of absolutely no importance to me. I must convince these vile men she is worthless to get them to take me instead.

“Hey, fucking asshole,” she retorts, and I know she’s furious. I must have played my part well if I convinced her, too. She focuses back on the hooded figure restraining her. “Get off of me,” she shouts, “or you won’t like what I do next!”

There’s a threat and a promise in those words. I almost want to let him have her to see what she’ll do next.

“She isn’t going anywhere. She killed a group of our men.” She headbutts him hard, and his bones crack. The one in front of me flinches at the sound, and I use that to my advantage, taking him down quickly by slicing right through his neck.

“Well, that asshole had it coming. It was either me or him, and I clearly won,” she shouts back as the one holding her hostage lies dead by her feet.

I looked away for one second, and she already killed him. Who the hell is this woman?

“Let’s go,” I tell her as we make our way back out.

The land is pitch black with the exception of some trees that light up like neon green lights, but this is my land, and I know it like the back of my hand. I know the ins and outs, and I’ve traveled to nearly every place in Faerie. I will rule this land one day. I know where to go to escape the rest of them.

I recite a spell that opens the portal, and I grab her and bring her toward me in a hug as we step inside. We fall inside of my bedroom with her on top of me. She looks around, disoriented, and then she looks down at me, narrowing her eyes.

“You were going to let them take me?” She slaps my shoulder hard, and the hit packs a punch. “I’m a good lay?” She lands another punch on my chest.

Those words really got to her. It’s on the tip of my tongue to apologize, but instead, I say, “I was trying to make you sound less desirable.”

She snorts. “Like that’s going to happen.”

Before I can delve into having Zel’s nearly naked body on top of me, something stops me.

“You know . . .”

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