Page 29 of Taste of Danger

Arion pushed against Jax’s arm, and Jax let his mate out of their embrace.

With his back to them, their mate said, “About ten years ago, my uncle Alonzo betrayed our coven leader in the worst way imaginable. He slept with Ozel’s consort. Nerezza wasn’t his mate, but for a man with a black heart, Ozel loved her. They even had a child together. Akai.”

The guy who’d forced Arion to set up Casimir. Jax wasn’t sure if he should sit down for this but decided to remain standing.

“Alonzo has always been opportunistic. I swear the bastard doesn’t possess a soul.” Even from behind, Jax saw his mate’s jaw clench. Then Arion gave a derisive laugh. “He’s the one who slept with Nerezza, but I’m the one who paid the price.”

“How?” Elvine asked breathlessly.

Arion turned, his features a cross between raw fury and hopelessness. “Ozel went insane that night and murdered Nerezza. The fools had used the same bed she’d shared with Ozel. I hate my coven leader with every single breath I take, but even I find what they did to be disgraceful.”

In Jax’s opinion, having an affair in the same bed as the one you shared with your partner was the highest form of disrespect. He didn’t even want to imagine one of his mates doing that to him. Just the thought alone made his wolf go insane.

“To save his treacherous ass, my uncle offered me to Ozel, hoping to appease him by giving him a lowly pet.”

Jax pressed a hand to his stomach, feeling as if he was going to be sick. “How old were you?” He wouldn’t put his mate past 120 years.

“I’d just reached maturity.” Arion closed his eyes. “I’m 140 years old.”

Although nothing would have made the situation better, at least his mate had been an adult when… Shit. Jax was going to kill the son of a bitch. He was going to rip Ozel’s heart right out of his chest. Goddamn, Jax’s hands were shaking. That was how badly he wanted to get his hands on Arion’s coven leader.

“Is he the one who left all those scars on you?” Jax closed his eyes so he could try to beat back his wolf. For an entire decade, his sweet little vampire had been suffering at the hands of a sadist.

“I should be so lucky.”

Arion’s words chilled Jax to the bones.

“What do you mean?” Elvine asked, looking just as sick as Jax felt.

Running a hand over his hair, Arion glared at the floor. “Although I hate to even admit it, Ozel was decent toward me. Sounds twisted as hell, I know. Especially since he allowed his son to do this to me.” Arion gestured toward his body. “Akai would lie in wait whenever Ozel and I shared time together.”

Jax didn’t have to ask what that meant, and to save his and Elvine’s sanity, he didn’t ask Arion to clarify for her.

“Afterward, when I was alone, Akai would grab me and take me to his basement and unleash his hatred on me.” He swallowed roughly. “He told me that since he was only allowed one victim to brutalize, he chose me over my uncle. The uncle who had sent Akai into madness after his mother was killed. I don’t know what he used with that metal claw, but whatever it was, it wouldn’t allow me to heal. And as you can see, most of the time I was starved.” He looked at Elvine. “That’s why your blood doesn’t affect me the same way it does other vampires. I’ve gotten so used to going hungry that I learned to control my urges until they aren’t even urges anymore.”

Elvine slung her arms around Arion, holding him so tightly the man’s ribs should have cracked. Jax pressed the pad of his thumb and index fingers into his eyelids, blowing out a breath.

He had not been prepared to hear that. He knew Arion had been tortured, but…

“I need to go for a run,” Jax said, feeling himself unraveling.

“We’ll go with you. We can easily keep up,” Elvine said. “I want to see just how fast my honey bunny and pookie can run.”

“Pookie? Is that what you’re calling me now?” Jax smiled as he wiped a hand down his face then roughly sniffed back his tears. “We have a few hours before dawn. Just make sure we keep an eye on the night sky to let us know when to head back inside.”

Arion grabbed Jax’s arm when he turned to leave the room. “I had no choice with Casimir. Akai told me that if I didn’t do exactly what he said, act precisely how he wanted me to, I would be punished harder than I’ve ever been before. I didn’t want to… I mouthed to Casimir that I was sorry and even stuck around to make sure… I don’t know. I just—”

Jax enveloped Arion, resting his cheek on the man’s head. “I know, pumpkin.”

“That’s why I slipped away from Akai tonight and warned you guys. And even though Casimir tried to kill me, you don’t know how relieved I was to see him alive.”

“Let’s go for that run.” He looked at Elvine. “For that fly, too. It’ll help us burn off some energy.”

“I thought we already did that,” Arion said against his chest.

Jax shook his head. Even after what Arion had been through, even after opening himself up to them and becoming emotionally wrung, the guy still had a sense of humor. How could Jax not fall in love with him? He’d been blessed with two beautiful souls, and Jax would do everything in his power to keep them safe from any more harm.

Chapter Nine

---