Page 62 of Sanctuary of the Shadow
Malaikah could only thank her lucky stars she was still a ways from the tavern. If he’d caught her outside, it wouldn’t be hard to piece together that Harrow and Raith were staying upstairs. She was doubly grateful she’d had the foresight to have Raith climb through the window rather than go in through the bar, because at this point, that was probably the only reason these guys hadn’t figured out where they were. Raith didn’t exactly blend in with a crowd.
But perhaps the even bigger questions were: Who was this Oracle? Did she know what Raith was? Whose side was she on? Would she want to kill Raith to protect the Seer, like Darya, or would she want to weaponize him, like Furie? Or just sell him right back to Salizar for a shitload of money?
There was no way to know. All Malaikah knew was that she wasn’t inclined to trust gangs that waylaid lone females in dark alleys. She hadn’t been willing to give up Harrow to Salizar, even when Harrow’s life could be in danger, and she definitely wasn’t willing to give her up to a random stranger she’d just met who’d given her no reason to trust him.
“Wish I could help you find your fairy-tale romance,” she said with a fake sigh of disappointment, “but I can’t. Sorry about that. Can I go now?”
The snake didn’t answer for a long time, just studying her with those bright green slitted eyes until her palms started to sweat. Finally he nodded. “All right, kitty cat. Play your games for tonight. You’re free to go. But I want you to pass on a message.”
“To whom?” she asked innocently.
“Tell them the Oracle has information they need. Need as in life-or-death need. Tell them she means no harm. If you decide to trust me, go to the tavern in the center of the Underground. There’s a sign out front with a snake eating its tail. Ask for me.”
“Who are you?”
He flashed a fanged smile at her. “Ouro.”
“As in ouroboros. As intheOuroboros.” Hewasthe leader, damn it.
“The one and only.”
Why, oh why, had she thought it a good idea for Harrow and Raith to stay at that damn tavern? Well, it would have been a good idea if Raith hadn’t suddenly become such a hot commodity. It was the perfect place to remain anonymous, but if you weren’t anonymous to begin with, well, then it sucked.
Malaikah needed to speak to Harrow more than ever, but there was no way she was going there tonight. It was time to retreat.
“Okay, Ouro, I’ll remember your message. Though I don’t know what good it’ll do, since I’m just an innocent little ‘kitty cat’ on her way home from a harmless drink with friends.” She shot him a glare, still not pleased about the nickname.
“Much obliged, kitty cat.” He flashed his fangs again and flicked a hand at the wall of muscle. “Let the lady pass, gentlemen.” The men parted, and Malaikah sauntered out of the circle, pretending her heart wasn’t still slamming in her chest.
“Take care on your way back,” Ouro called after her. “Lots of unsavory people in these parts.”
She couldn’t resist saying over her shoulder, “Yeah, I’m really starting to get that.”
His low chuckle met her ears though she was already halfway down the alley.
“Goddess fucking damn it,” she muttered under her breath as she stalked away. Harrow and Raith were in deep shit, and by association, so was Malaikah. This attention did not bode well for a woman whose entire life consisted of hiding from would-be assassins.
One day she was going to march right back into Kambu, cut every one of those traitors down at the knees, and take back her family’s lands once and for all. Then there’d be no more hiding.
But for now, she just needed to protect Harrow. And pray to the Goddess that the Ouroboros gang didn’t think to look upstairs at their own damn tavern.
Chapter Thirteen
Five days later…
Harrow sat naked astride the most gorgeous male she’d ever seen, his hard length buried inside her. Tilting her head back, she fondled her breasts, her hair swaying across her back. Below her, Raith dug his fingers into her thighs and fought to keep from taking control. His jaw was clenched, and his arms were so tense, veins bulged along the thick muscle.
Over the days they’d spent locked together in this room, she’d learned that Raith liked to be in control during sex. At first, his touches had been gentle, exploratory, hesitant. Then, as they learned each other’s bodies, he’d grown fiercer and more demanding. As he gained confidence and realized how responsive she was to him, he’d begun taking control more, deciding where they would go in their play and even initiating it when Harrow wasn’t expecting it.
She loved it. She loved everything. She loved h—
Nope.She blocked the rest of that thought out for now. Five days was not enough time to go there, even if those five days had been some of the most wonderful of her life.
Raith sat up, gripping her waist with big hands and forcing her to lean forward so he could suck her nipples. It felt divine, but she shook her head with a playful smile and pressed him back down with a palm on his chest. Yes, Raith loved to take control, but this time Harrow was supposed to be the one leading, just because. Because it was fun, and they were playing together. And her Raith loved to play, so he’d agreed to her game.
Needless to say, he wasn’t doing so well.
Growling in frustration, he went back to gripping her thighs, arms straining as he still fought to control her movements. She fought him right back. He wanted her to go fast and hard; she wanted to go slow. Oh, Harrow loved fast and hard, too, but this was her game, and she was going to make him work for it.
