Page 11 of Queen Takes Sunfires 1
She shrugged, a wry smile tugging on her lips. "You saved me, even though you didn't want to. I'm pretty sure I would have died without you. So what are we?"
Letting out a low grunt, I turned my attention back to the road. "Aima, descended from Gaia's daughters, the great goddesses of the world. You're a queen, gifted with powers from whichever goddess founded your line."
"I don't know."
"Bullshit," I retorted. "All queens know their house and line from the moment they can talk. They know their power and how they'll use it."
"Power? What power? I was lying dead in an alley. I don't remember what happened. All I know is that my name is Karmen."
I jerked the steering wheel hard and swerved off the freeway, taking a random exit. I slammed on the brakes and threw the gearshift in park. Leaning closer to her, I snarled a threat. "Well listen here, Karmen of no house and no memory. I know full well how much power you'll wield once you claim a Blood or two, and you can fucking count me out. You got that?"
She wasn't intimidated by my loud voice or aggressive stance. In fact, as my tone roughened, her jaw firmed and a glint shone in her eyes. A warning of the fiery temper contained within. "I don't even know what the fuck you're talking about, wolfman."
"Sure." I sneered, letting my wolf shimmer closer to the surface. He howled inside me, hungry for blood. "You know I carry a wolf inside me, but you don't know what you are. You don't know about power."
Her mouth flattened out in a grim line that made even a rabid wolf hesitate. "You think some mean words and a little hint of teeth are enough to scare me? I've seen..." The spark blew out of her, and she stared back at me with dead, cold eyes. "Too fucking much."
Her voice cracked ever so slightly on that last word, as if she was near tears. But her eyes were hollowed out with grief and pain. Staring into those dark chasms, I knew one thing for sure.
Karmen of no house and no memory had lived through enough bad shit that it was a fucking blessing that she couldn't remember what had happened to her.
5
Karmen
Too bad this man isn't as trustworthy as the beast he carries inside him. I could have used a loyal man like him.
The thought startled me, as if someone had woken up inside me to speak in my head. I wasn't entirely sure where the thought had come from. It didn't seem like mine. I didn't know anything about wolves to decide if they were trustworthy or loyal. Let alone men.
My stomach churned as if I'd swallowed a vat of acid. If what the doctor had said was true... Then I knew one man very well indeed. Or at least well enough to carry his child.
I turned away, uncaring of his rage. He was all bluster. He might believe that he was a big, bad wolf, but I'd seen the real monster before, and this man wasn't anywhere close. Though that didn't mean I trusted him. At all. "Thank you for at least helping me leave the hospital grounds. Just take me somewhere I can shelter once dawn comes. Then I'll be gone."
My words threw him. He sucked in a hard breath but didn't immediately reply or move to start the vehicle again. I could still hear his heart thundering loudly inside my head. He smelled so different from the humans at the hospital. What had he called us?Aima.I mulled the world around in my head. It felt right. The same way my name felt right.
He'd called me a queen, descended from a goddess. I searched inside myself for any hint of power from beyond. A drop of godly blood. Anything that supported the idea.
Inside me, all I found was an empty wasteland. My soul was empty, blasted by endless heat into a desert so barren and devastated that not even sand would swirl across the baked, cracked earth.
"You... Why...?" He growled, shaking his head. "I have so many questions that I don't know where to begin."
I tipped my head to look up at the dark sky, searching for any hint of light on the horizon. But there were too many buildings and lights to see much of anything. "How long do I have before it's daylight?"
"Why does that matter?"
"They’ll come with the sun. I need to be hidden before dawn."
"They who? Where do they come from? You're not making any sense."
I didn't have time for his nonsense. If dawn was close... I wasn't going to be trapped in this car with him. I felt the door, searching for some kind of handle.
His hand dropped down on my thigh. "Look—"
I flinched away, slamming my body against the car door. "Don't touch me!" Panicked, I pounded my bare hand on the glass. Harder. I'd shatter the window if I had to in order to get away.
He pulled back. "Hey, Karmen, easy. Sorry. I won't touch you again. I swear it. Please, you're going to hurt yourself. I'll take you somewhere safe."
Gasping for breath, I leaned my forehead against the cold glass. Waves of pain flowed over my body. Fire in human form. Crackling flames and energy like the first sign of danger I'd seen in the hallway.
