Page 102 of Madness & Mayhem

Though now, Archer saying they are coming to see us? How is that possible?

“What do you mean, you’ll see me tomorrow?”

He chuckles, the low rasp that I haven’t heard in so long. I miss him. It doesn’t matter what I have with Reign. Archer is my… Archer.

“It means we’re packing up tonight and making our way to see you. We should be there in the morning.”

“We?” I squeak.

“Me, Kyler, Posie, and Vienna. All of us.”

My heart clenches. Vienna is coming?

“Time heals all wounds, baby Lake. Put the past to rest,” he growls.

My brow furrows. “Has she?”

He takes a deep breath, crackling through the speaker of the phone. “Yes, for the most part. Yes.”

My eyes water, and a small smile lifts at my lips. “I can’t wait.”

“Reign,” Kyler barks in the background. “You watch the news?”

Reign picks up the phone, taking it off speaker. “Yeah, we did.”

I can hear Kyler’s goofy voice muffled as he talks to Reign. I zone them out, walking back to the living room and sitting on the coffee table as I watch them continuously post pictures of us from back in Hellcrest Heights, side by side with the pictures of the people in London. It goes on and on, for so long I lose track of time altogether.

I stand out on the balcony as the sun sets, the reddish orange glow lowering over the horizon. My black hair flows over my shoulders, a color I’m still getting used to. Reign suggested we change our looks, which is an absolute contrast from my previous light blonde hair.

Reign’s longer hair has been shaved, cut close to his scalp. His cheekbones are sharper, his jawline more pronounced. He looks vicious and lethal now, most of the time with his jaw clenched and pouty lips, making me want to fall to my knees.

I run my fingers through my silky black hair as I watch the small cars below run about their lives. The vibe is different here than in the United States. Almost like it’s a little freer here, people seem more at ease.

I let out a breath as the sliding glass door opens, moments before I feel arms sliding around my waist. His chin rests on my shoulder, and I can feel his chest deflate as he exhales behind me.

“You look beautiful standing out here,” he rasps, his voice soft.

I smile softly, nuzzling into him. Reign isn’t a soft man unless it comes to me. When he’s working, it usually involves barking at people. Sometimes it involves taking a life, though he hasn’t since we arrived here. As of right now, he’s having other people take care of the deed, though I know he wants to get back to it. And he will.

I want to go with him.

I turn in his arms, until the base of my spine hits the railing. I arch into him, feeling his hands as they clench around my waist.

“You want blood. I can feel it in the way you hold me,” I whisper.

His eyes darken, flaring with a need as his fingers bruise my skin. It’s nearly painful, but it’s a pain I enjoy, and I want nothing more than to allow him to bruise every inch of my skin.

“Maybe I just want yours,” he growls.

His head dips down, his teeth scraping against the exposed skin on my neck.

“When are you going back out?” I ask, knowing since he came out of prison a few years back, he’s regularly taken down people for odd jobs. Him being the slasher of Hellcrest Heights only accentuated his thirst.

“Whenever I feel like it,” he murmurs, his lips traveling from my neck up to my jawline.

I take a deep breath. “Can I come with you?”

His lips pause, and he pulls back, looking at me with narrowed eyes. “What are you trying to say?”

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