Chapter 22

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

AZIEL

I hated coming here. Hated seeing her like this. I was young when they tried to leave, but I still remembered her. She was a kind and gentle woman. She used to sing us songs to help us fall asleep and if I woke up with a nightmare, she'd lie down with me until I could fall back asleep. She didn't deserve to be hurt like this. They broke her, body and spirit. The only reason she was still alive was because a maid snuck her out when my uncle came looking for me and my sister.

I didn't see her again for ten years. That same maid found me while I was reporting to my uncle and asked me to meet her. She told me she didn't say anything before because she was worried I'd be like my uncle. My sister went down that path, resenting our parents for putting her at the bottom of the totem pole with our family. She still wasn't respected, but she was feared enough that they accepted her. But not me. I remembered enough of my parents' lessons to not let them change me. Once I was old enough, the maid led me to my mother. I hid her out here and visited her enough to let her know I was there, but not enough to draw attention. She didn't remember me often anyway, so I tried not to feel guilty about that.

The only other person who knew about this place was Athena. She was the one who helped hide her. The healer who took care of my mother was Athena's sister. It didn't surprise me that she told them where I was. It wouldn't change anything anyway. I wasn't going back. I was going to take the attention off of Declan and Ollie by doing what I should've done years ago. When I ran, they would come after me instead.

Kissing the back of my mother's hand one last time, I laid it gently beside her and stood. I stepped past Declan and Callum, stopping to thank Celeste for watching my mother before I left. She offered me a sad smile, squeezing my hands gently, but she didn't argue with me about leaving. She knew this was for the best.

When I stepped outside, Callum and Declan followed me. I couldn't teleport here, not without drawing attention to this place. I had no choice but to walk, knowing they'd follow me.

"Aziel, stop!" Declan demanded.

I ignored him. Nothing he could say would change my mind. They were targeting him. I had to get my uncle's attention away from him. I headed down the path, out of sight of the cottage and away from everything important to me.

With a frustrated growl, Declan tackled me. I hadn't seen that coming, so we both hit the ground hard. He had my arm wrenched up behind my back before I could get my bearings and the pain froze me in place.

"If you think for a second that I'm going to let you get yourself killed, you are delusional."

I struggled, a low growl in my throat, but every time I tried to move, he pulled harder on my arm until I felt like it'd pull from the socket. I experienced that once. It was excruciating.

Fisting the back of my hair, Declan forced my head back, hissing in my ear. "You came to me, Aziel. You drew me into this. You don't get to fucking walk away now. Not until I say so."

Despite the pain, goosebumps swept down my neck, and my cock swelled. He made me feel owned, but not like my family did. Like I was something worth fighting for.

"Callum, right?"

I heard Callum grunt in response.

"Can you give us a minute?"

He hesitated, but Declan didn't back down. He kept me pinned even after Callum walked away, his body weight heavy on my back. I groaned when he ran his tongue along the column of my neck, tipping to give him more room despite the tight grip he had on my hair.

"I'm so fucking pissed at you right now, baby. If you would've been honest with me from the start, I would've helped you. I would've kept my brother out of it, but I would've given you any information I had."

"I didn't–"

"Shut up," he snarled. "I'm not done talking yet. I get it now. Why you did it. You were trying to protect Dante from ending up like your mom. You were trying to protect yourself. I don't hate you for that. But you should've talked to me."

I wasn't sure what to say. Never in a million years would I ever have considered asking for help. It never even crossed my mind. I wanted to fulfill the vision as quickly as possible and get out of there before anyone saw me with him and realized what I'd done. I didn't want him or any other human to get hurt because of me.

" Fuck , I'm pissed. You fucking ran! Before I could even figure all this shit out! What the fuck!" He bit down on my earlobe hard enough to make it sting. It made me shudder and when he soothed it by sucking it into his mouth, my breath caught in my throat.

I could probably overpower him. Even if it hurt me to do it, I was bigger than he was. But something kept me in place. Some deep need to be near him. To give in to him. To make up for what I did.

"Fuck it," Declan murmured. Without warning, he released me. I thought he'd walk away, realizing he was better off without me. Instead, he gripped my hips, yanking me up onto my hands and knees.

"Declan, what–"

His hands came around my waist, wrestling open my jeans while he growled at me. "No. I'm still fucking pissed at you. But I'm in this, and I'm gonna prove it to you." He yanked my jeans down over my ass and I was reeling so hard I didn't do anything to stop him. "You better brace yourself, baby. I'm too angry to be gentle right now. I want you to feel me for days."

DECLAN

I dove in before he could protest, attacking his hole with my mouth. He choked on a shout, his hips jerking forward, but I yanked him back before he could escape. I was relentless, loosening the muscles under my demanding tongue. I was still pissed. This whole situation was messed up. I understood better, now that I saw what he was afraid of, but I was still mad that he dragged my little brother into it. I wanted to punish him, but I also wanted him to know he wasn't alone in this. It was complicated, and frustrating, and this was the only way I could think to deal with the anger without saying or doing something I'd regret later.

Pulling back, I sucked two fingers into my mouth, coating them in my saliva, before pushing them inside Aziel's hole. He groaned, his back arching in surprise. He hadn't seen this coming, and he was scrambling to keep up, but I never gave him the chance. I was too riled up to go slow.

I ripped open my jeans while I stretched him, pulling out my erection. Spitting in my palm, I coated my cock in it. I didn't have lube with me, so we'd make do, but I didn't want to hurt him. I made sure I was slicked up as much as possible before replacing my fingers with my cock. Aziel groaned, rocking back, and I slid in to the hilt in one smooth motion.

"Fuck," I gritted out, my teeth clenched tightly together. I'd never fucked without a condom before, and the tight heat wrapped around my dick almost did me in. There was no resistance this time, no fight from Aziel. His body yielded to mine, and when I gave that first test stroke, he practically contorted with pleasure.

"Declan… Fuck…"

I snapped my hips roughly, throwing him off balance, his face almost in the dirt before I yanked him back. "Is this what you want?"

"Yes!"

Normally, I'd tease a little, draw things out. But neither one of us was patient enough for that right now. Aziel jerked back, meeting me thrust for thrust. The sound of skin against skin was loud in the dark forest. I had the fleeting thought that we could be drawing in dangerous animals or something, but it fled when Aziel's ass clenched tightly. He cried out, his claws digging into the dirt.

"Found it, didn't I?" I growled, focusing on that spot that he loved so much. He didn't answer me, but I didn't hold that against him. He wasn't able to say much at all. His words came out garbled and choked, none of it making any sense. I'd feel pretty proud of myself for fucking him senseless if I wasn't so close it was painful. My balls were drawn up, the tight squeeze of Aziel's ass trying to milk my release from me. I couldn't breathe, too lost in the pleasure for even that basic function.

It hit me without warning, my back arching in surprise as I slammed as deep as I could inside of him. White flashes sparked in the edges of my vision and it felt like my soul was trying to escape through my dick. I barely heard Aziel's strangled shout, his ass gripping me harder and drawing out my release as he came.

Minutes felt like hours and only once his body relaxed could I breathe again. I sucked in a breath, a final shudder rolling through me before I collapsed forward on top of Aziel.

"I'm sorry," he murmured between panting breaths.

"I'll believe you if you stop running. We'll face this together. Deal?"

He trembled beneath me, resting his head against his forearms. I thought I'd have to pull away and force him to say it, but he caught my arm before I could, keeping me pressed against his back.

"Deal."