Page 84 of Madness Behind the Mask
And I’m still entirely fucking baffled.
“Why?” I ask again. “Why am I here? Is this a peace offering?”
He laughs, warm and delightful. “There’s that naivetyagain. No…After tonight, bloodwillrun through our streets like never before. Antonio will wonder if we’re creating an alliance to take him down, so he will attack my Family for the first time. He will hit harder, probably kill quite a few of my sired.” He shrugs nonchalantly, as if they mean nothing to him. “Might even kill Colton and a fewborn ones.”He grins. “That’ll be a favor.
“But no… We’re not creating an alliance.” He stands up straight and tends to the cuffs on his sleeves. “We’re going on a date.”
My mouth drops open.
And I laugh.
Thirty
HER
14AUGUST1947
Rolling my lips in, I manage to stop laughing, but as soon as I look up at him, I start off again. The cycle runs round and round, and every time it begins again, I laugh harder, louder until tears start rolling down my cheeks, andI can’t breathe.
Gasping with my arms wrapped around my waist, I struggle to stop again. But it’s not just him I’m laughing at anymore. It’s the whole fucking messed up situation. Hepretended tothreaten all those people for adate? He scared mykidsand my husband just tokidnap me for a fucking date?
“I’m married!” I rasp between the laughter, but it isn’t jolly and hilarious. It is wild and panicked because I’m so fuckingangry.
His nerve! His fuckingnerve!
As if I am a mouse for some cat to play with.
Lifting my head, I clench my fists hard so I don’t swing them into his arrogant face. “I just lost my daughter and you want...a fuckingdate?”
Laughter pours out of me now in an uncontrollable current. I can’t stop the madness from flowing. More so, I don’t caretostop it. My dad isn’t here to be disappointed in me. My husband isn’t here to witness my unladylike and unShadowlike behavior. My children aren’t here to be scared ofmamagoing crazy. It’s just Aleric and me in an empty building of some sort that I haven’t even looked around at.
“You can’t bow to death when you wade through it as often as we do.” He shrugs. “Besides, you have two more, so it’s not like it’s been a great loss.”
I finally stop laughing.
I finally stop trying to fight hitting him too.
Screw peace.
Screw negotiating.
Screaming like a feral alley cat, I launch myself at him, my hands going for his very chokeable throat.
Holy shit, she’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. Her face is twisted in not just anger butvengeance. Her lips are curled, and it’s so cute that she doesn’t have any fangs. Her eyes are narrowed intogreen slivers that stand out even more against the red flush of her cheeks. A vein throbs at her temple. Her nostrils flare. Her scream turns into a growl, and I want to kiss her. To gather her up in my arms –
Her fist connects with my throat.
Gasping, I stagger back, bending in half out of reflex. Throats, like kneecaps,don’t care how powerful you are. A damaged windpipe is a damaged windpipe. There’s no way to muscle up that part of your neck.
Her knee connects with my lowered face, breaking my nose and making my eyes tear. The shot of pain slamming through me reverberates with a deliciousness that stirs my cock, and I groan.
Or rather wheeze as my throat has yet to heal from her attack.
I “trip” over my feet and go sprawling onto my back. I want her to hit me while I’m down. I want her to straddle me, hover her pussy over my chest as she pummels me with her little fists. Like a little kitty cat. A little pussy cat. Before I yank her up my chest to sit on my face.
Another groan is pulled from me as I imagine her taste so well.
But she doesn’t follow me down to the ground.
