Page 81 of Dark Souls

“Grandma, he turned his humanity off. He has no connection to his feelings.”

“I know. He told me. And that may be true in every other aspect of his life, but when it comes to you, you’re breaking through. Otherwise, what the hell was he doing here?”

I frowned, chewing at my lip as I thought about that. She was right. Why the hell would he come here to see me after he told me to stay away from him and pretend he didn’t exist?

“He wasn’t very happy to hear that you’d gone to Heroux.”

“Well, it serves him right. He told me to stay far away from him. I was only meeting his request.”

“He told me to give you a message.”

I glanced up as my heart started racing. “What message?”

“He said...” She paused for dramatic effect and I wanted to punch her. “He has your phone and dagger and…his name is Luka.”

Luka.Of course, he had a hot name. “It couldn’t have been a Clive?” I dropped my head back into the pillow as Grandma burst out laughing but quickly covered her mouth to suppress it when she saw my lack of amusement.

“Would it have made a difference if it was Clive?”

“Probably not,” I grumbled. “But at least the sound of it wouldn’t turn me on. I don’t even want to speak his name out loud in case I have a spontaneous orgasm.”

“Well, at least you could give the porn a break. Just whisper his name instead,” Grandma teased, and I threw a pillow at her head. She was finding my torture far too entertaining.

After a brief knock, Sienna poked her head around the door tentatively with a smile. “Ah, you’re awake. I came earlier, but you were still resting.”

I shook my head. “Unconscious,” I corrected.

“Same, same.” She flapped her hand at me as she took a seat on the stool at my vanity table. “How are you feeling?”

“Physically? Okay.” I nodded. “Mentally and emotionally? I might need to be institutionalised soon.”

Grandma gave me a knowing look that said I could handle my shit and I replied with a small smile.

“Well.” Sienna huffed, looking a little unsure. “I hope what I am about to show you doesn’t push you over the edge.”

“What?” I frowned as she stood up and handed me her phone. I stared at the screen, which showed a stilled image of a strange, beamed ceiling. Realising it was a video, I pressed play. The camera seemed still at first, but there were noises in the background that sounded like someone moving around. Then the camera moved rapidly, and Red’s gorgeous face took up the entire screen. My breathing hitched as he stared directly into the camera as if he was searching for my soul. My eyes widened as I glanced at Sienna in panic. “What is this?”

“Footage from the hidden camera in that diamond choker. You might want to keep watching,” she said with a seriousness that made my gut twist.

I focused all my attention on the video as Luka threw the necklace away from him, and it landed on the side, giving the perfect view of his shirtless form slouched in a wooden chair. I swallowed the excess saliva that instantly appeared in my mouth at the sight of his tattooed chest and concrete abs. He lifted my knife next, my baby, and my heart tugged when he caressed the leather handle with so much care, staring at my initials that were engraved before he noticed the wooden spike hidden beneath it. My mouth dropped open when he dragged the tip of the spike across one of his pecs and blood appeared.

“What is he doing?” my Grandma whispered with alarm and it was only then that I realised she had come to the side next to me on the bed so she could watch it over my shoulder. My heartbeat was pulsing too loudly in my ears to even entertain her questioning as I watched Luka repeat the process again and again until blood was pouring down his chest from the self-inflicted wounds. When he finally stopped, he grabbed a rag and wiped his chest clean, peering down to check the cuts weren’t closing too quickly. With the blood gone for a few seconds, a shocked gasp left my Grandma while I just stared, dumbfounded at the three letters seared into his skin.

I.R.B

‘He marked himself as ours!’Rue was beside herself with glee, while I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to feel. Angry? Proud? Aroused? This man was a complete maze, one that I was very much lost in.

Sienna sighed. “Keep watching.”

“There’s more?” Grandma seemed more concerned than me.

Luka threw down the knife next to the necklace and relaxed back, looking deep in thought. His ruby red eyes had so much turmoil swirling around in them. A sudden thought came to mind about his natural eye colour. They were always red because he was always in his vampire form. What colour were they before? I was dying to know.

A loud bird noise came through the phone and made me jump out of my thoughts. Luka stared at whatever had just interrupted him and the faintest smile appeared on his lips.

“I met my mate, Raven.” That charming, deep European voice echoed around the room and my heart flipped. My eyes lifted to Sienna’s, finding hers locked on my face, gauging my reaction. I looked back down at the video. “It is not as easy as that. You know me, bird. I’m not free. I’m not whole. I’m broken. I have nothing to offer her. Have you met your mate yet, Raven? No. Because if you had, you wouldn’t be here with me, right?”

The sound of pecking against wood came through the speaker after Luka had placed some food on the surface.

---