Page 8 of These Dangerous Fates

I park my Ducati Diavel next to Cade’s shiny red Corvette in the parking lot off the main strip of downtown Altair. Before I even take my helmet off, people are staring. Cade’s Corvette and my bike are well known in the city, as is Sterling’s Land Rover.

“How long before someone posts to social media where we are?” Cade asks as we make our way down the sidewalk.

I snort and adjust my leather jacket on my shoulders. “It’s probably already happened.” I’m more relaxed than I have been in a while. The ride to the city on my bike and getting back to the constant attention from the public has re-centered me. And the sex with Cade.

We ignore the whispers and the cells pointed at us, and make our way to our favorite bar. The crowd parts for us, our names whispered ahead of our arrival, so we don’t have to contend with throngs of people on the street. The three of us—Cade, Sterling, and I—are the three most eligible bachelors of Lustros. We can’t go anywhere without the attention of the women, something all three of us greatly enjoy. I try not to think about my upcoming arranged marriage and the idea of being tied to one woman. I don’t want to ruin my somewhat good mood with those dark thoughts. The very idea is suffocating and makes my skin crawl.

Cade and I shoulder our way past the crowd of people waiting to get into the bar. Being one of the Triad, as the public likes to call us, has its perks. One glance from the bouncer and we’re through the front door and into the seediest nightclub in Altair.

With the dingy lighting, the edges of the main room of The Black Crow are shadowed. At any given moment, you can find at least three couples hooking up in the darkness. The farthest corner—the darkest corner—is the reason we frequent this joint. Our drug of choice flows freely in The Black Crow.

The heat from the multitude of bodies presses down on me as soon as I step inside, making sweat instantly break out over my skin. Magicals, as well as the bravest of the humans, pack the bar. The thumping bass blaring from the speakers vibrates my bones, and people pack the dance floor, grinding on each other in a dance that might as well be one giant orgy. I crinkle my nose at the scent of cigarettes and sweaty bodies that permeate the space. Emotions hit me in the face as soon as I walk in, and I tighten my mental shields, shutting them down.

To the left of the bar, a door leads to the back hallway where you can find rooms dedicated to sex, gambling, and hard drugs. On the right side of the dance floor, tables and booths hide in the shadows, and it is in that direction Cade and I head.

Sterling sits in the booth farthest from the door in the darkest section of the bar. His long silver-blond hair is a beacon that draws us forward, and his icy blue eyes shine like an animal’s in the darkness.

“It’s about time you assholes showed up,” he says gruffly as he sets his beer on the table.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, princess,” Cade drawls, settling next to me in the booth.

Another perk of our fame is the waitress bringing out drinks without us having to order them. The three of us relax and fall into the typical rhythm of a night out in Altair. We bicker, tease, argue, laugh, and, of course, flirt with the ladies who approach our table. No talk of my mission tonight or the bomb my dad dropped about marriage.

Molly and alcohol flow freely, although for me and Sterling, the buzz is minimal and wears off quickly. Our vampire and shifter natures quickly burn off the effects before we get to fully enjoy them. Cade, with his mage blood, doesn’t have that problem, and soon, he is higher than a kite and enjoying the attention of a curvy blond.

After Sterling wanders to a back room with two brunettes I’m pretty sure are twins, I settle into the booth and wait. It’s only a matter of time before I spot a woman approaching with a determined glint in her eyes. My hands settle on her hips as she sits on my lap and nips at my earlobe. Excitement burns in my veins at the prospect of what's to come, and I bury my face in her neck. The shock that shoots through me almost throws me off my game as the scent of her human blood hits my nose. This one is brave.

We trade a few flirtatious words, but we both know where this is heading and quickly cut to the chase. As she leads me to a darkened corner of the bar, I smile eagerly. Getting my dick wet twice in one night. This is exactly what I needed.

Ellis

Days pass without another visit from Sam. I’m both relieved and anxious. He rarely goes so long without stopping by. I’m sure it has to do with him needing to remind me of the threat constantly looming over my head if I were to try to break it off with him again. Usually, when I don’t see him for a while, the next visit is torture. Literally.

Allie’s worry about me only continues to grow. Every time we hangout, she eyes my fading bruises with concern. Only once since his last visit has she broached the subject of me leaving him. I shut her down hard enough she hasn’t mentioned it again.

My dad has been busy with work, so I’ve barely seen him this past week. But he knows what is going on. He’s seen the bruises and cuts after every visit from Sam. It’s impossible he hasn’t heard the screams coming from my bedroom when Sam is here. He won’t do anything, though. He has a plan, and that plan includes me, married and out of his life, with a son-in-law he can show off and be proud of. It doesn’t matter if that son-in-law abuses his only surviving daughter.

Every day my depression grows. The constant weight sitting on my chest gets heavier. The cold emptiness inside me spreads further. None of the coping techniques I learned in therapy work anymore. My life has been in a downward spiral since that night ten years ago, and Sam’s betrayal only quickened that decline. Reading no longer brings me joy. The peace I used to find while playing piano is gone, and I don’t know where to find it again. My energy is almost non-existent, and I have to force myself to go to the gym because I know Allie will tear me a new one if I don’t.

Most of my time is spent in bed lamenting my life, and wishing I could find a way out of this horrible situation. Thinking about the future, about the rest of my life tied to that abusive asshole, is too much to bear. I’m not sure how I’ll survive this life. Something has to change.

Allie has noticed my weight loss, but I have no appetite, and everything I manage to swallow threatens to come back up anyway. I don’t want to deal with her concern though, so I force myself to eat. Making a salad, I keep my thoughts solely focused on what I’m doing—tearing lettuce and chopping veggies—because numbing myself is better than all the emotions that threaten to overcome me. The rhythmic chopping as the knife hits the cutting board is oddly soothing. It’s predictable. I know when it will happen, and it’s in my control. Unlike so many things in my life.

I’m so focused on keeping my mind blank, I don’t hear him approach until his arms wrap around my middle. It’s like ice water poured into my veins. My heart ceases beating for a second, and I squeeze my eyes shut. I want to crawl out of my skin as his warm breath fans across the back of my neck.

“I love when you wear your hair like this,” he whispers and grabs a handful of my messy bun. He painfully yanks my head to the side and licks up the side of my neck.

Shivers erupt over my skin, and not the good kind of shivers. “I wasn’t expecting you.” Even I can hear the bleakness of my tone. It seems I can’t even muster enough fear anymore.

He chuckles darkly. “I thought I would surprise you.”

I don’t comment because he doesn’t really want me to. My scalps stings as he grips my hair tighter and uses it to pull me around. Dragging me across the kitchen, he leans against the door, blocking anyone from coming in. Not that anyone ever does—I’ve accepted the fact that no is going to save me. He shoves me to my knees and the pain barely registers as I plunge down deep into the numbing fog that I try to surround myself in whenever Sam touches me.

“One of these days, you will learn to appreciate the things I do for you.” Sam releases my hair long enough to undo his belt and pants, shoving them down his thighs.

A glittering green light swirls in the air and sends my heart racing. I wait for the pain as he fists my hair again, tugging the strands roughly. The magic wraps around my wrist, binding them together in front of me. It burns. I always think I’ll see blackened flesh curling from my bones, but it never leaves a mark. The green light slithers up my arms and chest to wrap around my neck and jaw, bringing tears to my eyes as it forces my mouth open in a fiery vice.

Sam’s eyes glow with twisted desire and madness. He rubs his thumb along my lower lip before slipping it inside, pressing down on my tongue. The taste of salt from his skin makes saliva pool in my mouth. At eye level, I have nothing impeding my view of his free hand fisting his cock and moving up and down as he pleasures himself. A bead of precum forms on the tip, and just the sight of it makes bile crawl up my throat, the burn of it matching the band of magic wrapped around my wrists and jaw.

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