Page 17 of The Hunchback

Esmeralda’s lips parted, and my tongue invaded her mouth, hungry and demanding despite its clumsiness. My woman’s own lack of experience only fueled my possessiveness and the need to brand her as mine. When my hands slipped under her chest bandeau, reciprocating her touch, Esmeralda moaned against my lips, reawakening that strange power within me.

Lowering her bandeau, I broke the kiss, and my mouth latched voraciously onto one of her taut nipples. My tongue swirled around its dark brown button, reveling in its unusual texture and the salty-sweet taste of her skin. The throaty sound of her voice moaning my name had even more blood rushing to my groin.

Too drunk with pleasure and desire, hungry for more of the divine power building in my chest—power I could feel myself sucking right out of my woman—I ignored the lancing pain steadily growing in my back.

With a boldness I’d never believed myself capable of, I slipped my hand under the waist of her skirt, inside her slip, and straight to her burning core. Esmeralda cried out my name, her back arching off the tree, involuntarily pressing her chest to my face as my tongue continued to lave her nipple.

Despite having never been with a female before, I wasn’t clueless about a woman’s anatomy or how to pleasure one. Perched at the top of the spire for two decades, I’d seen my fair share of naughty action in the streets of Paris, the woods surrounding the temple, and even in the temple gardens themselves, both days and nights.

But never would I have imagined the silky wetness that greeted me when my fingers explored Esmeralda’s core. The sound of her labored breathing and sighs of pleasure, the way she shivered and gyrated her hips in response to my touch, her feverish hands on me, fisting my hair and clutching one of my horns, had me mad with lust.

On instinct, I accelerated the movement on my hand massaging the little nub at the apex of her legs. I could feel her begin to crest as her body trembled against mine, and her moans came in louder, shorter bursts. I covered her neck and face with kisses, sucking at her tender flesh, willing her to climax for me.

And then she did.

Lightning literally struck between us, electric tendrils writhing all over her body as she cried out in rapture. A massive bolt of power emanating from Esmeralda slammed into me. The blissful sensation reverberated directly in my groin, tearing an orgasm from me. But as I spilled my seed, relieving some of the strain on my cock still confined within my pants, my roar of ecstasy quickly shifted into one of agony.

I tore myself away from Esmeralda and stumbled a few steps back before falling to my knees. A constant stream of energy poured out of her and flowed into me. My body craved it, wanted more of it… wanted ALL of it. But my hump felt on the verge of bursting open. Palms resting on the ground, head hanging low, I gritted my teeth through the pain of searing hot blades stabbing at my spine.

“Kwazeem?” Esmeralda asked in a shaky voice filled with concern.

From the corner of my eye, I saw her fumble with her chest bandeau to cover herself while rushing to my side.

No! No! Don’t approach me.

Which each step, the intensity of the power within grew and with it, the agony robbing me of coherent thoughts. Her warm palm settling on my shoulder in what should have been a comforting gesture felt like vicious claws slashing me to the bone. I cried out and instinctively batted her hand away with far more force than intended. She yelped and cradled her wrist to her chest. The debilitating pain in my back kept me from expressing the guilt and horror I felt at having physically hurt her in any way.

“You’re doing this. Move away!” were the words that tumbled out of my mouth instead of the apology I’d intended. “Get away from me.”

“But—”

“GO AWAY! LEAVE! I DON’T WANT YOU HERE!”

My vocal chords hurt having shouted so loud. Esmeralda’s choked sob, followed by her quickly fading steps barely registered through the fog of misery that had engulfed me. Although the ball of power she’d fed into me had finally stopped growing with her departure, it pulsated strong and bright like a glowing sun in my chest. Each pulsating sensation renewed and enhanced the stabbing pain in my hump. Through blurred vision, I watched my hands swell at an exponential rate, and purplish blotches appear on my bluish-grey skin.

The last thing I saw before my eyelids swelled, forcing my eyes closed, was the worried face of Victus landing in front of me.

Chapter 8

Esmeralda

Ineeded answers. And, more importantly, I needed to help Kwazeem. Things had started out so perfect before he went completely berserk on me.

I’d never felt more hurt and more rejected than in that instant. For the few hours that followed, I’d remained curled up on my bed, feeling dirty and lower than dirt, thinking he’d cast me aside for being too easy, or for having lost interest now that he’d gotten what he’d wanted. What a stupid reaction on my part. Clearly, Kwazeem had been in pain, but my mind had remained stuck on his words, ordering me to leave the minute I’d climaxed.

It took me far too long to get my head straight and see that situation for what it had been; his condition suddenly manifesting itself. Then again, I was feeling emotionally drained. Ellen’s words replayed in my mind while I attempted to decide what to do. I’d been too lost first in pleasure and then in hurt to rationalize what had happened. Now, with my head clear, I remembered the way his hump appeared to grow and heave, stretching the shirt that had previously sat loosely across his shoulders. His hands, clutching the ground, had appeared swollen with patches of redness. But, through all that, and from the very moment Kwazeem had begun kissing me, a flow of energy had formed between us. No… not a flow.Myenergy had been flowing towards him.

And yet, just like in the chapel during my first Chant here, my power had felt enhanced, stronger than ever before. At the same time my Light had flown into him, his aura had fueled me, replenishing it in a continuous cycle of give and take. I couldn’t dismiss Ellen’s words that a Fallen would drain me of my Vestal power. But what had happened didn’t align with what she said.

A quick look at the clock indicated it was already a little after two in the afternoon. Jumping out of bed, I splashed some water on my face and swiftly changed into clothes better suited for hiking. There was enough time for me to catch a shuttle to and from the Godswood before nightfall.

But first, I needed to check on Kwazeem.

More grateful than ever that there was no rehearsal today, and that both Frollo and the Light Maidens were absent, I snuck back to the hidden passage, keeping my power in check so that he couldn’t sense my approach. Finding his house empty worried me. I hastened down the path to the river, stopping a far distance away as soon as I noticed his silhouette sitting on the ground by the tree, the remains of our picnic carefully tucked back into the basket. Although I couldn’t clearly see from where I stood, Kwazeem appeared to be cradling the costume I had brought him to his chest. I couldn’t tell if the pained expression on his face stemmed from his condition or from whatever thoughts tormented him. However, watching him pet his imps reassured me he wasn’t in any physical distress.

For a moment, I considered approaching him again, but decided against it. I wasn’t sure if he would welcome my presence just now, and I wouldn’t know what to say. Turning on my heels, I made a beeline for the public transport hub at the edge of the open market. Naturally, I stood out in the crowd despite my common outfit. Vestals rarely traveled amidst the common folk, using instead the Chariot of Light or private transportation provided by the Praetor.

However, I didn’t want to alert Frollo as to my whereabouts. Using either of the latter methods would have required a pilot taking me to my destination. While I had no intentions of hiding that visit from him, I couldn’t risk him preemptively warning Old Nan against telling me anything. Instead, I rented a Tear—Vesta’s Tear to be more precise. Shaped like a drop of water lying horizontally, Tears were private shuttles only big enough for two passengers and a small cargo at the back. It traveled great distances at high speed, purely relying on either solar or Vestal energy. Despite the disturbing name for a vehicle, Tears had proven themselves beyond safe even in heavily trafficked areas. Thanks to their advanced GPS system and autopilot ability, the small vessels could be dropped anywhere on the planet, and it could autopilot itself back to the closest Tear hangar.

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