14. Chapter Fourteen

Following the delicious trail of fear left by my mortal, I hunted her through the darkened city streets I'd come to memorize over the past few years. Her scent lingered in the air like a beacon for my predatory instincts, making my mouth water and my cock ache.

I moved slowly, torturing myself by prolonging the chase, but I'd waited too long for this moment to ruin it. Rushing wouldn't do all my hard work and patience justice. I wanted to take my time, draw it out, even if the thought of finding her was driving me to the brink of insanity.

The urge to mark her, brand her, claim her as mine was quickly taking over, drowning out every other thought. Everyone needed to know who she belonged to, my mark a warning for anyone who dared to touch her again. They would suffer a gruesome fate.

I knew Jovie well enough to know she wouldn"t go home to the tiny apartment she shared with her sister—she cared too much about Lennon to lead me there, even though I would never hurt her. Jovie didn"t know that. In her eyes, I was an evil, murderous monster, and she wasn't wrong. I might not have originated in Hell, but evil had always run in my veins. It"s why I was cursed in the first place. My sins, my transgressions.

However, I didn't get off on murdering innocent humans, only those who deserved it.

Moving through the shadows, using them to shift unseen as I traveled through the streets, I let my restored magic flow freely through my veins, crackling over my skin and vibrating through my bones. It had been so long since I"d been at the height of my power. I couldn't wait to test it, hone it, master it all over again. There would be plenty of time now that I'd reclaimed my freedom.

It was almost comical how such a powerful being like myself could be so transfixed, so completely fascinated by a human like Jovie, but there was clearly more to her than met the eye.

Recalling the look of surprise on her face before she fled the tattoo shop, I smirked. An underlying curiosity had hovered beneath her terror. It was obvious in the way she hesitated, in the look in her eyes. There was a part of her that wasn"t afraid of me.

She had every right to fear me, especially considering I could turn her to dust with a snap of my fingers, but I intrigued her. I'd saved her and she wanted to know why.

Soon, she'd know the simple truth: I wouldn't hurt her. I couldn't, especially not now that I'd claimed her.

I would never allow harm to come to her, by my hand or otherwise. I would wipe out armies, destroy continents, if it meant keeping her safe, but that didn"t mean I wouldn"t completely ravage her, fucking her until she was a whimpering mess beneath me.

I wanted to fill all her holes with as much of me as she could take. I wanted to make her shatter apart, just so I could put her back together and do it all again. I wanted to feel her lips wrapped around my cock, watch her swallow every inch of me. I wanted her and I wanted her now.

In a swirl of shadows, I stopped, tilting my head to smell the air again. She was close. I could feel her, her frantic heartbeat fluttering against my skin like a siren's call. Fear, twisted with sadness and despair, tainted the air and gave me pause.

Was she sad for the mortal I"d murdered? Surely not. Surely she knew what the worthless shred of trash had planned to do to her.

A growl rumbled in my throat.

I never wanted her to think of another male ever again. I wanted to consume every bit of her mind, fill every part of her soul. Even if she hated me for killing the disgusting excuse of a man, I didn't care, as long as I was the only one haunting her thoughts from the time she woke to the time she fell asleep.

Just as she would be my undoing, I would be hers, one way or another.

I focused harder, my magic crackling beneath my skin, and followed Jovie"s trail down a darkened alley. She"d never gone this way before, at least not in the years I"d followed her. Did she know where she was going? Or had logic succumbed to fear? Did she have any idea where she was headed?

Picking up my speed, I grew more anxious to end this game of cat and mouse. Hunting her did dark things to me, filling my head with a clash of filthy thoughts. The longer it took to find her, the more twisted they became.

My cock stirred, imagining her trembling and afraid when I found her. I could almost hear her pleas already, the sweet sing-song of her cries until she realized that I wasn't going to hurt her. At least, not in ways she didn't enjoy.

I stopped again, taking a deep breath and searching the air for signs of her. The fear was more potent here, the scent of her sweet, fruity perfume lingering. I scanned the street, using my magic to slowly shift between shadows down the sidewalk. The beat of her heart thrummed faintly in the air, and with every step I took it beat louder, raced quicker.

Yes, she was close.

Her scent led me to an abandoned building with boarded up windows and doors. It was derelict, condemned, and from what I could tell, vacant apart from a single person inside.

Thiswas where she"d chosen to hide? I smiled, the thought of her waiting for me making my cock twitch. She must have realized running was pointless and decided to hide instead.

She'd made it too easy, but I couldn't blame her. Running truly was pointless.

Dissolving into a cloud of shadows, I shifted through the brick wall and materialized in an old office room. The smell of blood clung to the air, and my insides twisted. It had the same, sweet metallic twang as Jovie's when she'd shattered the mirror.

Had she been injured? Was that why she"d hidden?

I scanned the room, breathing deep, the metallic twang assaulting my senses.

"Come out, my precious mortal," I said, my voice reverberating off every surface of the room. "It"s pointless to hide."

I wasn"t surprised when there was no answer. Of course, she wouldn"t obey. I didn"t expect anything less from my stubborn human, and it only heightened the excitement for me. I was still searching, still hunting, moments away from catching and using my prey as I saw fit.

Moving through the room silently, I weaved my way through the maze of old office furniture, my eyes zeroing in on a large cabinet in the corner. My smirk broke into a grin as her heartbeat became louder, beating wildly. Her fear was so potent it leaked through the doors, assaulting my senses. It was delicious, but I knew it didn't taste nearly as good as she did.

My mouth watered at the thought of tasting her, of running my tongue over every inch of her body.

Reaching for the handle, I whipped the door open. At the same time, a fist came flying out, directly at my face, but I caught it easily with my free hand. I stared down at her in awe. She"d nearly caught me off guard, a massive feat for anyone, much less her. My mortal had fight in her, that was for sure.

She jerked against my hold, and when I didn"t relent, she swung with her other hand. A shadow materialized and wrapped around her wrist, stopping her mid-punch as she stared at me with a venomous glare.

"Let me go," she demanded, her heart skipping a beat.

I chuckled, the sound quickly morphing into a full laugh that echoed through the room.

"My treasured mortal," I said, bringing my hand up to cup the side of her face. I ran my thumb along her lips, teasing the tender flesh I'd only ever imagined caressing. There was nothing keeping me from her any longer, and I licked my lips at the thought of tasting them. "I"m never letting you go."