83. Lyle

Chapter 83

Lyle

G houl interrupting my regina's greedy, pink mouth on my cock is practically asking for death. My lion and I have been waiting for a moment with Ghoul since he'd nipped at our heels at Naga House.

And Savage's discovery, just minutes before, that we can , in fact, grip his shadows like they are corporeal, surprised me enough to pull me out from the jaws of my rabid lion.

I lunge at the band of cursed shadow around Aurelia's waist, just above her garter belt, gripping it in both hands.

Ghoul is strong, but both Scythe and Savage are with me, their strong fists around the shadows, gripping our most sadistic, homicidal brother with our combined power. Aurelia growls with irritation so prettily that it distracts all of us, giving Ghoul a chance to thrash.

It sends our regina careening sideways.

"Stop!" Aurelia commands angrily, finding balance on her knees again.

Everyone indeed stops because we're all lovesick beasts. Calmly, our regina puts her hand around the band of shadows.

"Shift, General, " she commands with great venom.

We all let go and the band of shadows swarm to my right, expanding, filling the night with his ever-void until he takes human shape and solidifies. My lion growls inside of me, wanting to test his mettle. Wanting to sink our teeth into him and see just what the mythical basilisk tastes like.

Ghoul reappears in human form, his shadows receding to show us his real self. He wears the skull mask like he always does, as well as the black military uniform and boots that the seven serpent generals always wear to cover their identities. The red laser beams that hurt my eyes pierce through the dark eye sockets of the mask, fixed on our regina.

Aurelia gets to her feet, anger coiled around every limb of her most perfect being. It excites me to see it, and my brothers and I immediately fall in line to flank her. Always her protectors.

"I believe," she says, her voice low and dangerous, "I said shift."

Ghoul cocks his head, taking a deep breath in, his eyes raking down her body so hungrily that I know he's finding it hard to resist her, especially in this new lingerie. But he says in a voice just as deep and dangerous, "You think you can tell me what to do, snakelet?"

She stalks right up to him and I want to warn her away, but I refrain, seeing what becomes of this moment that she finally confronts her fifth mate. Aurelia steps, toe to toe, chest to chest with Ghoul. The rest of us brothers stop two steps away from them, giving her space…but not too much.

Ghoul looks down at Aurelia, who is short enough at five foot seven to only come up to his chest. Her head is tipped back all the way as she presses her lacey breasts against him. Her hand comes up his chest, no doubt feeling the athletic body beneath. Her fingers reach further up to skim the brown skin that shows just above the open collar of his shirt. Then, to my delight, her fingers curl around his throat.

Ghoul goes still.

"You think there are no consequences for your actions?" Aurelia murmurs.

Ghoul lowers his head down even lower. "I believe you gave me consequences with your fist not long ago," Ghoul mutters.

"Look me in the eye and tell me that all this time, you did not know about my mother." Aurelia grits it out like she hates that she has to ask.

The basilisk takes a visible inhale, clearly knowing the importance of this question. Of this moment where Aurelia could draw an invisible line.

I hold my breath, my every instinct poised on this monster, who is powerful enough to deceive Mace Naga about his whereabouts.

Ghoul tugs his right glove off and raises it to pull his mask up to uncover his fanged mouth. Aurelia goes still, listening. Waiting to see if her heart will suffer an execution tonight.

With a quiet voice that is not gentle, but as close to it as this beast is capable of, he says, "I did not know. Mace hid it from everyone until two months before you came for her."

Aurelia's lashes flutter shut, and I know she's taking a moment to find relief in his words. That she will not have to kill him.

I can see in the stiffness of his posture that Ghoul understands this. He licks his lips as he looks down at her, those bone-white fangs moving dangerously.

Then Aurelia does something I do not expect. She opens her eyes and her mouth at the same time. Her incisors shift, elongating, narrowing until they are needle sharp.

Savage gasps.

Shifting only parts of your body at a time is a very difficult skill reserved for the most powerful shifters with the most control, and usually a favourite body part at that. I'd known she could do it because she often shifts her eyes into their eagle version and I'd seen her do a claw back under Naga House.

But seeing her teeth now shift into fangs makes my cock harden all over again.

My regina is powerful.

She reaches up her hands around Ghoul's neck, her knees bending and intention clear. Ghoul catches her as she jumps up, bringing her legs around his waist, cupping her ass to him. Aurelia proceeds to move her mouth down the side of Ghoul's neck, and although I can't see it, I hear the brutal scrape of fangs over skin. The basilisk stumbles back a step, as if overwhelmed by sudden arousal or pain. Or both.

When Aurelia raises her head, Ghoul lets her down and his neck is revealed. Two deep, jagged lines, dripping with blood.