He narrowed his eyes at me. “Exhausted?”
I grinned, all too aware of what he was likely thinking. “Oh, I wish it was like that. But no.” My brows lowered as I said, “The little human has more secrets than we thought.”
Locke strolled around the room, his assessing gaze still taking in all the damage. “What secrets? And why the fuck does it look like a monster brawl happened in here?”
“And where’s Dar?” Kade growled. His rounded ears became pointed, and I knew he was using his wolf hearing to detect our brother.
“Unconscious in his room,” I said, answering Kade’s question first.
“Unconscious?” Kade asked.
“We gave Raine a dose of Silver Sand, as I told both of you that we would, and while she didn’t turn into a monster, something strange happened,” I explained. I went on to tell them about her resisting Darian’s song, even though he pushed himself past his normal limits and the unusual winds that had torn through the room. I also explained how Darian had been rendered unconscious.
When I finished speaking, Kade was stone-faced as he said, “And you think she created the wind?”
I shrugged. “Can’t see what else would have caused it. It sure as shit wasn’t Darian or me.”
“I’ve never heard of anyone who could control the wind,” Locke said, his face devoid of emotion.
Kade pinched the bridge of his nose and paced away from me. “What the fuck does this all mean?”
Locke was preternaturally still as he said, “It means the two nights are up, and she still hasn’t turned into a monster. The wind is another sign that the curse is affecting her, but it’s not enough. The Week of Orash is almost here, and your methods haven’t worked. So now it’s my turn.”
“If our methods haven’t worked, yours won’t either,” I pointed out. “You didn’t see what Raine was like just now under the influence of the drug. If that didn’t get her to change, I doubt anythin’ else will.”
“He’s right,” Kade agreed.
“We’ll see,” Locke replied, and I didn’t like the cold glint in his eyes, but I kept my mouth shut. We’d all agreed to let Locke try his way after the two nights were up, and though I knew he could be a bastard when he wanted to, he was nothing like his father. He wouldn’t break Raine.
CHAPTER 8
~ Raine ~
Thetwonightswereover, and I was still human. Or at least, that’s how I appeared on the outside. After the experience with the Silver Sand, I wasn’t sure if “human” was accurate, but I still had rounded fingertips and fragile, soft skin, and no horns had speared through my hair. I wasn’t sure whether to be happy about it or annoyed. If I was the one who’d created the vortex of wind, I was obviously no longer ordinary, but no matter what Kade, Asher, and Darian had put me through, my appearance hadn’t changed.
Pulling back the blanket, I sat up, immediately recognizing the wolf shifter’s soft bed and sparse room. It took me a moment to realize Asher must have carried me there, and a slight smile curved my lips at the thought of the demon. The monster was kinder than he pretended to be.
Thankfully, my bone-weary exhaustion had left me while I’d slept, and I peered at the other side of the bed, disappointed when I found it was empty.Has Kade even returned yet?The faint scents of sandalwood and coffee lingered in the air, but that wasn’t surprising seeing as it was Kade’s room. What was unusual was the way Kade’s scent was mixed with the aromas of cedarwood, ash, and spice.Locke’sscents. My brows lowered when I thought of the moody vampire with onyx eyes.Why the hell does it smell like—?
As if he could read my thoughts, Locke stepped from a shadowed corner of the room, blue light washing over his body, and I almost fell to the floor in my haste to jump out of the bed.
I stiffened as the monster’s dark gaze roved over me, sliding up my body as if he was tracing my every curve. Lifting my chin, I forced myself not to squirm at the attention, and I internally muttered a thank you to the goddess Falia that I was wearing the same black leather outfit I’d been wearing when I took the Silver Sand. It was better than standing before Locke in only a shirt.
“What are you doing in here?” I demanded, glaring daggers at the male.
He took another step forward, and I resisted the urge to move backward, all too aware of the fact I was weaponless. Not that weapons probably would have helped against him.
“Have you forgotten our agreement,beautiful?” he said with a smirk, his predatory gaze never leaving me. “The two nights are up, and as far as I can see, you’re still human. So now I’ll be throwing everything I have at you to try to get you to change.”
Ignoring the rapid beating of my heart, I folded my arms in front of my chest and stuck my hip out. “How could I forget?” I responded dryly.
His smirk grew wider as he continued to stare at me with his unnerving black eyes. I forced myself to stare back as my mind thought of all the horrible things he was going to do to me. Except…the images that came to my mind didn’t look like torture, and as his scents of cedarwood and spice grew stronger around me, my body warmed in response. I resisted the urge to fan my face and swallowed, forcing myself to get a grip.Goddess, I need fresh air.
“I’m not afraid of you,” I said, unwilling to let him know how his presence rattled me. I was lying, of course. I would have been stupid not to be afraid of him, but for the moment, his wings were nowhere to be seen, and his claws weren’t out either, so that was a good sign, right?
His nostrils flared, and his gaze slid from my exposed neck to the deepVof my top before lifting back to my face. Then he moved so fast that my brain struggled to process what had happened. One moment he was across the room, and the next, he was in front of me, only an arm’s length away. Hunger shone in his dark eyes, and it wasn’t just lust-filled desire but as though the monster was actually ravenous. His tongue slid slowly along his bottom lip, and I blinked as I took in the fangs that now peeked from between his lips.What did he say his kind drink again? Oh, right. Blood. He said they need freaking blood to survive.Fuck.
This time I did take a step backward, hoping to get across the message that I really didn’t want to be his dinner. Or did I? Even now, while he was staring at me as though I was some delectable platter of food, the bond between us hummed, telling me to get closer to him.Confusing fucking bond.Thankfully, I had good survival instincts and was fully prepared to gouge his eyes out if need be.
