Page 34 of Seducing Hope (The Hope Legacy)

Covering my ears against the insistent whine of the alarm, I phone Zee. He answers in a panicked voice. “Where the hell are you?”

“In the alleyway, next to the bar,” I explain. He hangs up.

The air shifts—I’m not alone.

Stepping toward the end of the alley, I squint at the outline of a gray aura. It’s not Archan or any of his men. The power feels off, malevolent. Moving toward me, he wraps his body around each facet of darkness, avoiding the green glow from the exit sign. Thin, black-tipped fingers slink out of the shadows.

“Who are you?” a raspy voice asks.

“Seems like that’s the question of the day,” I mutter.

He steps forward. The shadows follow him, forming an inky cloak around his body. Lank, chin-length black hair obscures his flat green eyes, as they roam over my bare skin. “So, you’re his new toy. You’re different than the others. Less polished, but… I see the appeal.”

“I’m nobody’s toy,” I grind out between my teeth. His pale, thin lips curve up, and he throws his head back, exposing his gangly neck. He bellows, puffing out his putrid breath, which smells of sour milk and stings my nostrils. An icy finger caresses my bare arm, creating a deep-seated chill, like I’ve been swimming in a pond in December. Lifting his finger to his mouth, he licks it.

A small smile spreads across his face. “You taste… different. There’s darkness in you.”

Anger flares inside me.

My fist connects with his sharp chin, and his eyes widen as his head snaps back.

I kick him in the chest, causing him to huff out a breath. Before I can pull my foot back, he captures it and twists my leg to the left.

Forcing my body to follow the push and avoid my leg snapping in half, I lose my balance and land on my ass, hard. A white-hot flash of pain explodes in my skull as it cracks against the concrete.

I bounce to my feet before he can land another blow, but he’s too close and too fast for me to anticipate his movements.

Stepping on the bins, I jump and flip, landing behind him. He spins around with a waist-high roundhouse kick, his knee-length coat flapping around him. Returning the favor, I catch his ankle, and my hand slips to his large, leather, lace-up black shoe; it slides off to reveal an elongated, bony foot with black-tipped toes the same length as his fingers. I drop it and wrinkle my nose—I’m not a foot person when they’re normal-looking, never mind a foot resembling something from a zombie movie.

“You should see a podiatrist about that,” I state, pointing at his bare foot in the shallow puddle.

His black eyebrows curve in confusion. Guess it’s his normal. He throws a punch at my face. I duck, and he groans as his fist crumbles some of the brick wall. That would have broken my nose.

Going to the balls of my feet, I jab my elbow into the base of his skull. He laughs, distracting me. Spinning around, he pulls me into a punishing embrace, immobilizing my arms.

He slowly sniffs my hair, and his eyes widen to form perfect discs, the green fading to glistening crimson. “I like you. Not a toy after all.”

Instead of replying, I head-butt him, causing the dizziness already circling me to nearly take my consciousness. He grunts then gives me a wicked smile.

I groan. “Awesome… turned on by pain, aren’t you?”

“No, turned on by a woman who can fight. I don’t do passive fucking.”

I shudder. “No way in hell. Let me go—now.”

He starts laughing manically. “Oh, sweet girl, in hell is exactly where it will happen.” I growl at him as faint footsteps grow closer.

He glances down the alley. “We’ll finish this dance another time. In the meantime, give him a message for me.” He whispers in my ear then releases me. Stepping back into the shadows, he grins, displaying his sharp yellow teeth, and disappears just as Zee and Aaden reach me.

Aaden touches the back of my head and brings his hand forward—dark blood shines in the dim light filtering into the alley from the distant street lamps. He narrows his eyes.

“He hurt you?”

I shake my head, which is stupid, as it makes me stumble. They each hook a hand under my arms.

“You don’t need to drag me. I can walk,” I grumble, trying to wrench myself from their grip. “What happened to you two?”

Aaden answers, “We saw Archan dancing with you, but instead of coming to help, we felt compelled to go outside. Then we couldn’t get back in. There was an invisible wall around the bar we couldn’t penetrate.”

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