Page 1 of Empowered
Chapter I
Shyam
Thick red hair flowed freely around my face as soft supple lips kneaded mine. They compelled me to match their pace—slow and steady—even though I wanted to consume them fully. The smooth tongue driving me wild teased my own into seeking another taste. I drew in the breaths that were fed to me, inhaling them deep down into my chest—absorbing them into my soul.
The lips that I coveted pulled out of reach too soon, leaving me yearning for more. They moved to my jaw, skimming gently over my stubble. Soft kisses diffused across my chest as beautiful petals of hair trailed lower, tickling my face as they drifted further down my body.
Smooth thighs hugged my pelvis taunting me as lush lower lips rubbed along my length. The bouquet of red hair on my chest parted, revealing the face of the angel smiling down at me.
“Amelia,” I whispered, smoothing my thumb across her fair cheek. Her green eyes shone with the same adoration that had just rolled off my tongue in her whispered name.
Her radiant body stayed upright, displaying her nymph-like features. The light streaming from the windows highlighted her round breasts sprinkled with delicate freckles. Pink nipples stood at their peaks, tempting me to taste them.
Silky sheets caressed my skin as she lifted her hips up, taking me inside of her, squeezing me with her tightness. Moans escaped from my throat as she rocked on top of me with long and lazy strokes. I thickened inside of her, chasing my glorious release.
Our hands found each other’s, our fingers intertwining as we fell over the cliff together. Her forehead pressed against mine as we took our last steadying breaths to settle the waves of emotion that we shared.
My hands held her face closed to mine. “Amelia,” I whispered. She pulled away slowly, not saying anything in return. “Amelia,” I called out again, hoping she would come back to me. The warmth of her body left my frame, leaving me cold and hollow. “Amelia!” I cried out louder, commanding her to return to me. She ignored my demand, moving farther away from the bed. I tried to force my arms and legs to move to retrieve her. My limbs wouldn’t listen to the nerve impulses fired by my brain. Paralysis left me frozen to the mattress. I screamed for her to come back to me. “Amelia!”
I jolted awake from my dream. My nightmare.
My senses returned and I was aware of the hell that I had returned to. The room was dark even though it was probably after noon. Time was irrelevant in perdition. Torment had no limit here.
Empty scotch glasses lined my bedside table.The sheets were damp from the cold sweat that had overtaken my body, but I didn’t get up to change them. Nothing mattered anymore. I was numb inside, all motivation gone.
The days had blurred into each other after I received Amelia’s necklace from my enemy. I called off the search for her because the evidence of her death had shone back at me in my own hands.
I lay buck naked in bed, the precum from my wet-dream-turned-nightmare drying into a sticky mess on my dick. I was exhausted from the hurricane of emotions that churned inside of me and I didn’t want tofeelanymore. I just wanted to sleep it all away. However, my brief reprieve was always ruined by the same nightmare. The very one I had just had. And when I couldn’t sleep, I just lay in my bed, replaying memories of her.
Tarun didn’t kill her. I did. And I deserved the guilt that consumed my soul.
A knock sounded at my bedroom door. I didn’t bother answering it. It could only be one of two people, my maid, or my brother. If I ignored them long enough, they would hopefully go away.
“Hey.” I could see Jai leaning against the doorframe from my periphery, but I didn’t acknowledge him. “I know it’s late, but I brought you breakfast. Or, rather, that shit you normallycallbreakfast. Salmon with some sort of tasteless weeds grown by Icelandic orphans in an organic meadow, or something or other.”
I didn’t respond.
He continued, “Yeah, that doesn’t sound tempting to me either. Let’s hit up the bar for some scotch and cigars? My treat.”
He sighed, exasperated from effort he was putting in. “Look, I’ve been trying to be supportive and sensitive, but this kid-glove, gentle bullshit isn’t my thing.”
This time, I answered. “Go fuck yourself,” I muttered. I didn’t want his pity. I just wanted him to leave me the hell alone.
His image grew larger as he got closer to the bed. He yanked the pillow out from under my head, causing my head to drop directly onto the mattress. He slammed it onto my head, behaving just like the annoying little brother he was. I pushed the pillow to the side to uncover my face.
“Get the fuck up. This isn’t like you, man. I get that you’re heartbroken. I’m torn up about Amelia, too. But her body is still out there. You owe it to her to give her the proper burial she deserves and kill that motherfucker for what he took from you.”
Reluctantly, I sat up against the headboard, using the last bit of energy I had stored away. My head swam from getting up too fast. I hadn’t been upright in so long that my balance was off. “You don’t think I know that? You don’t think that I curse myself every minute for getting her involved? You don’t think that I want Tarun six feet underground for fucking with me?”
“Then what the fuck is stopping you? Man up. Get up out of this pigsty,” he said kicking a pile of clothes on the floor. “Salena is still alive. We can at least save one life. Do it for Mom. Do it for Amelia. If you really loved her, then get your ass up.”
I had never discussed my true feelings for Amelia with anyone, but hearing Jai talk about them stung deep inside of my chest—so bad that my breath stopped for a moment. Tears blurred my vision, threatening to fall.
My brother realized he had achieved what he needed to—shaking me out of my half-dead state to get a reaction. Satisfied, he softened his approach and took a seat at the edge of the bed. His voice was gentle and full of sympathy as he witnessed my torture. “Shyam, you have to do this. We need to finish this.”
“I know,” I said solemnly, diverting my eyes from his. He was right. Staying in bed and mourning was just giving Tarun license to take more of what was mine.
“You won’t be alone. You’ll have me by your side.” He put his hand on my shoulder. I knew he’d always have my back. But he also needed me to have his, too. This wasourbusiness and although he never said it, he depended on me just as much as I did on him. I couldn’t let him down. He was the only family I had.
