24. Chapter Twenty-four

Chapter Twenty-four

Jenna pushed herself up from the floor before swiping at her bloody nose and busted lip. She thought her nose broke. The hard crunch of cartilage was loud in her ears and the blazing pain shouted, broken. When she swiped at it, she found it bloody but not broken and the pain was lessening, not the rip-roaring pain of something that was broken.

They were upstairs in a room that must have been for drugs, sleeping, and sex inside this flop house. There was a soiled-looking mattress on the floor. If her nose was correct, there was the faded scent of sex and come, along with discarded needles and other paraphernalia that she didn't want to name. At one point, the walls were a bright rose, now they were dirty and dingy. There was graffiti on the wall. The tribal tattoo was inspired, and she enjoyed looking at it. The ‘for a good time call whoever' was old and overdone. Mostly the walls were tagged with names as if it was a mark of excellence to find yourself in this hellhole of a room. Her eyes went back to Jeffrey to ensure he wasn't getting any closer to her.

"You like to hit women. I bet you like to rape them too, and to see them broken and helpless at your feet. Does that make you feel like a man?" She hated Jeffrey, maybe from the first time she laid eyes on him. He was the type who liked to use his size for intimidation. "Helpless teenagers no longer do it for you?"

The color of his cheeks was getting darker. It started at his chin and rose to his cheeks. She'd never paid attention to how a flush covered the face in the past. The mystery man who still didn't have a name had driven her out here to this row of abandoned houses. There would be no help from neighbors. He'd given her the choice to walk, or he'd break her legs and carry her. Well, that wasn't an option.

When the mystery man said, "Tell her that the package has been delivered and we're even," it caught her attention. Was there a third party who was working behind the scenes and was she the package?

"Get undressed." This man has lost his ever-loving mind if he thought she was going to undress for him.

"I don't think so." The hit came fast as night. She took the blow in her belly, crumpling over from the force of it. A red-tinged cough came from her. It felt like she had busted something internally. "You're so strong." The sarcastic tone of her voice should have stopped him. He kicked her in the same place.

She coughed up more blood while she kept her eyes on his face. When his eyes darkened, unlike a human, that's when his extra strength made sense. He wasn't Tan-ge, but he wasn't one hundred percent human anymore. Had he mated with a different species, or had a close encounter with one that changed him?

"How does it feel to be part monster?" She didn't know how it happened, but whatever it was that changed him, it was a monster. Not a monster like the Dizas, the lovable purple jerks. No, this monster craved blood. "Bitch, you're one to talk. You gave away what was mine. To a fuckin' purple abomination out to conquer our world. Do you think you have room to talk?"

That refrain was becoming a broken record. Newscasters were saying the same things. Then there was the rally. Also, the murmurs on the streets and the ones in her dreams that the voices in her head shared with her. Mind washing on a scale this big was impossible, yet she was sure that's what was happening.None of it made sense.

"Jeffrey." She called his name, hoping that hearing his name come from her would bypass whatever dark mantra that was rolling around in his mind. It worked… a little. She could see his blue eyes lighten some.

"If I met you first, things would be different." A shudder of pure revulsion ripped down her back. She did all she could to keep him from seeing it. "Don't you understand? It's too late for me."

She could see the internal fight. Some small part of him was still human, clinging to … she had no idea what he was clinging to. Maybe a better future or a past not filled with blood and death.

"You don't have to do this. You can get help and become the man you always wanted to be." Jenna pushed herself back with one hand while the other explored her ribs and her belly. She was sure there were several cracked ribs and maybe her stomach was punctured. She was sore. Beat the hell up would be the better phrase. There was nothing cracked or broken, and her stomach felt better than when she was first attacked. She wasn't complaining. The saying ‘Don't look a gift horse in the mouth' was quickly becoming her motto to live by.

The laughter that came from Jeffrey was chilling and deep. He could scare small kids during Halloween. That's what he was doing to her. He sounded possessed.

"You fucking bitch! It was too late for me the moment I met her. I crave blood, sex, and death. You're next on the menu."

Jenna kept slowly pushing herself back. She wasn't far enough away from him to run, yet. At the same time, she was furiously wondering who she was. Who was this mysterious third person? There was a sting on her hand that was an uncapped needle she bumped into. Shit, great. Thoughts of diseases ran through her head. Things like syphilis, COVID, and whatever transmittable diseases were out there. Had they eradicated AIDS yet? That's when the memory flooded her mind. Marilyn, Jeffrey's wife, was a tall woman maybe an inch or two shorter than her husband who stood about 6'1. Her skin was palish like she never saw sunshine. There was also an undercast to it. That always confused Jenna. There were times she thought Marilyn was exposed to toxic chemicals. What she was seeing repeatedly was her hand flicking her long jet-black hair back, revealing an ear where the bottom part of her lobe attached to her head and there was a small tail hanging out like an abnormality. She'd only seen it once or twice. Now that SaKura pointed it out, Jenna knew Marilyn was a tan-ge disguised as a human. Yes, like Rakha, they could take human form, but it seemed they could hold that form longer than the Diza.

"Marilyn." It popped out of her mouth before she could stop it.

"You're smart. I always knew you were." He took two giant steps, putting himself in front of her again. "It should have been you." He picked her up by the front of her shirt and tossed her against the farthest wall.

This time, she didn't wonder if her back broke. She felt the spine sever. The moan of pain that came from her, along with not being able to move her toes, told its own story. She was never going to walk again.

Jeffrey started tearing her clothes from her body even as she tried to fight. He shredded her shirt, leaving her in a black lacy bra. "Beautiful." His hand squeezed one breast so hard she was seeing black wiggling lines. She was gasping for air, trying not to pass out.

"Firm and smooth, I love it." His hands went to her jeans, shredding and pulling them down. She was wearing the matching black lacy thong. Why? Because she was thinking of SaKura when she dressed this morning. "Beautiful." He rubbed his cock, and she threw up a little in her mouth. There was no way she was going to allow him to rape her. She'd rather die.

She concentrated on her lower body, trying to get herself to roll even if all she had to use was her arms. Her legs jerked up involuntarily. She felt her severed spine slip into place and there was a warm balm where the pain used to be. What the heck? She moved cautiously, not wanting Jeffrey to know she might not be as broken as he thought. He unbuttoned and unzipped his pants. She waited until they were around his thighs before she lifted her legs and pushed him by planting both feet firmly on his stomach. He shot across the room, his back denting the wall.

Jenna scrambled to her feet, making a beeline for the door.

"Run little bunny, I'm coming for you." She didn't want to see how close he was, but had to. Jeffrey was fast walking with long strides. Longer than hers and he was keeping time with her. She tried to increase her pace. She might not have any broken bones, but her body was suffering from what she went through.

"When I get my hands on you." She could hear the palms of his hands rubbing together.

"You'll be sorry." She stumbled down the stairs, holding onto the banister. Thank God there was still one there.

"I don't think so."

"You don't understand," Jenna's pain-filled voice said. "I'm going to kill you." Those words were like a fiery arrow that came from her soul. She had every intention of killing Jeffrey. Shy, and scared, Jenna was still a part of her, but abused Jenna had all she could take.

"The first time I saw you, you were fifteen. Your father posted your picture on a dark website. I knew then I had to have you. Imagine my surprise when you moved next door. I knew it was meant to be." He leaped and took her down the way a lion takes down a deer.

She yelled, not in fear, but in frustration. There was a way to kill him. She needed to figure it out now.

"Listen to me." What? Her mind was tripping at the voice in her head. " SaKura?"

"Yes. Jenna, you're a frya. There's a reason you're called that."

Fire, but she couldn't make it. Although watching him burn would give her primal satisfaction. She was fighting with Jeffrey while talking to the mate she never thought she'd speak to again. She listened to her mate, trying to understand what he was telling her.

Jeffrey was trying to do a 360 with her neck, but he was finding it hard to turn her head past her shoulder. She brought her arms, hands, and wrists up on the outside of his arms. She leaned up and clapped her hands against his ears. He cursed and moved back, letting go of her neck.

"You're a worthy opponent." He was the dead one and she wouldn't waste another word on him. She brought her feet up like she was going to push him back, instead, she used his chest to slide backward giving her the space she needed to get up. She might have been amazed at the agility of her moves if she wasn't trying to stay alive.

"That fucker gave you some enhanced gifts. That makes this much more fun." Jenna turned and ran trying to do what SaKura told her to do.

She needed to even her breathing. It didn't need to be slow, just even. She was breathing fast, but it came out in a rhythmic ostinato. The beat is repeated over a certain amount of time. Now she had to concentrate on her core. According to her mate, that's where her fire lived. He felt it when they met in her dreams. Now that they were mated, the closer they came to each other, the hotter it burned. She would flush, knowing he was talking about sex if she had the time.

She felt something burning in her belly. It could have been indigestion, but she was going to have to try and hope SaKura knew what he was talking about. The next step tell her fingers to prepare to handle fire. If he was right and she had some mythical fire, it would kill her when she channeled it through her body, through her arms, and out of her fingers.

Jenna screamed, losing track of her breathing when she felt the tips of her fingers open. A quick look down showed the gems from her crown sliding out of her fingers, reminding her of SaKura's retractable claws. She stumbled, thinking she was going to fall on her ass. There was pressure against her legs, balancing her. She looked around, not seeing anything before Kala popped into view.

Kala's presence steadied her, allowing her to concentrate on her breathing.

"You're dead, bitch." Jeffrey's form changed. His sallow skin overshadowed his handsome looks. It turned the color of concrete and his face changed shapes, looking like a nightmare.

"I'm sorry, Jeffrey, I can't allow you to walk the streets any longer." She felt for the innocent man (if he were ever innocent) who got caught up in this world of hatred and rage.

He ran at her, death in his eyes. Jenna lifted her arms, fingers spread, and commanded her fire to blaze. There was a red spark along her fingers before Jeffrey collided with her, taking her to the floor.

He was screaming at her, but his words were slurred due to the changing shape of his face. She felt a hot throbbing pain in her side. It took several seconds for her to realize he stabbed her. He took the knife out, the blood flowing freely. She closed her eyes, the sight of the blood making her queasy. It took the last of the reserves she had to slow her body and slump under him. She slowed her breathing and concentrated on the fire burning hot in her belly. Funneling that fire through her body scared her as she felt Jeffrey's hands on her. His mouth was sucking on her nipples, leaving cuts and bruises from his jagged teeth.

The fire needed to be coaxed through her like it was a child learning to walk. When she felt heat travel down her arms, she focused harder until her palms burned. Jenna hugged Jeffrey like he was her long-lost lover. Her fingertips were digging into his back.

She met his eyes. For a minute, she fancied she saw the man being caged by the monster. Then she was on fire. Jeffrey howled, trying to get away from the steel band of her arms holding him close.

His clothes caught on fire, quickly consuming his skin. He raged and fought as Jenna accepted her death. It was worth it. He went up with the nauseous scent of burning flesh. A smile crept over her mouth as she watched him burn. There would be one less monster in the world. Jenna closed her eyes, hoping to see her mother again.

"I love you," she whispered to SaKura.