Chapter Twenty-Six

Maureen

T here is an eerie chill on my skin. I feel like something is coming. I didn't plan on spending the night with Atlas at Nocturnus House, but I couldn't keep my eyes open. My blood mixes with small traces of poison now. My veins have made room for it. It's like a drug. I crave more of it.

When I wake, I find myself draped across Atlas's naked body. Riot and Valentin sit across the room by the window. I wonder how long they've been watching us sleep.

I lift my heavy head and lock eyes with Riot. He glares possessively at the way Atlas's arm rests on my lower back. "You've unsettled this house," Riot seethes. "Ever since you got to Raven's Gate… it's been chaos."

Still sound asleep, Atlas rolls over and mumbles something incoherent. I sit up and pull the sheet up around my breasts. "I never asked for any of this," I murmur back.

"I know," Riot replies softly.

Valentin leans against the floor-to-ceiling window and looks down at the hallowed grounds below. "We've all been played. By the Blackwells, the ravens, our own initiates, and even the Graves. We can only trust each other now."

My voice cracks, and I almost cry. "So, you believe me now? That I had nothing to do with your curse. Or do you still hate me?"

Riot stalks toward me. His hand feels like ice as he caresses my hot cheek. "I think a part of me will always hate you. But I will not allow anyone to touch you but us."

My breath catches at his sudden gentleness. His power over me grows, and I practically crumble at the slightest praise. "So, you didn't brag about fucking me to anyone?"

His eyes darken. "Fuck, no. You're ours."

I'm more confused than ever. I don't understand the way they are. "But you let them watch…"

Valentin sighs and walks over to the bed. "That was a sacred ritual. It's different. But someone betrayed us. Someone else was in the room that wasn't supposed to be."

Atlas yawns and stretches out, then freezes when he sees his friends. "Good morning to you too, fuckers. You just couldn't wait to get in here, could you?" He laughs.

A sick feeling churns in my gut. "I think I know who," I whisper.

Riot's fingers tighten around my neck. "Tell me right now."

"Go on, pretty girl. Let us know so we can take care of it," Atlas urges.

Fuck. The second I say his name, he's dead. But would that be so bad? He's tried to assault me twice now. I might not get so lucky if there's a third time. I blow out a deep breath. "It was Zeke. He cornered me in the elevator the other day after Val dropped me off. He knew things about the ritual. About what you did to me…"

"Mother fucker," Riot roars. He pulls me from the bed and pins me up against the wall. As the sheet falls to the floor, he gazes over every inch of me. "Did he fucking touch you?"

I shake my head. "No. But he wouldn't let me out unless I touched myself in front of him. I—"

Valentin reaches for the blade inside his pocket. He pulls it out and brandishes it. "Atlas, find him. Right now."

Atlas leaps from the bed and throws on his pants before downing a vial of poison.

"Hold on," I cry. "I didn't have to do it because somehow the elevator got up to my floor and Libra busted in with a baseball bat. I think Jessamine must have intervened or something because Zeke had his finger on the button that keeps the doors closed."

Riot clenches his jaw and throws Valentin a dangerous look. "We get him tonight. At the Winter Solstice. And we let everyone know what happens when someone fucks with what's ours."

Oh, fuck. More murder. Great.

I'm starting to think that this is just my life now. "Isn't there another way to handle this?" I ask.

Atlas laughs. "Sure. We'll invite him over for dinner and ask him nicely to stop harassing our girl. I'm sure he'll be super agreeable."

I roll my eyes. "Very funny. I just thought it would be nice to not murder the problem away for once." They look at me like I have two heads.

"Zeke is more than a problem, Maur," Valentin snaps. "He's an initiate who's betrayed the oath. He knows our secrets. Your secrets."

"We have to make an example out of him or there will be anarchy," Riot commands.

I know they're right. I think back to the promises I made and kept to Bailey. The blood I spilled for her. For myself. I nod. "Okay. Fine. But I want to have fun first. The last party I went to wasn't exactly my idea of a good time.

Riot throws me a knowing look. I will tell Valentin and Atlas eventually but right now one of them knowing is enough.

Atlas chuckles. "I don't think these two know what fun is, pretty girl. We're going to have to show them."

Valentin snickers. "Oh, is that how you convinced her to let Zeus take a chunk out of her leg? You tell her it'd be fun?"

My cheeks burn. Of course, they know everything. There are probably fucking cameras in here.

As if reading my mind, Riot snaps his fingers and a swirl of light trickles out. "We have gifts, Firecracker. Power that we share. It connects us."

Valentin clears his throat as he glances down my naked body. "You also have a very visible snake bite on your thigh. So there's that."

It was my turn to chuckle. "Right. Forgot about that."

"You want to go to this ball and drink and dance under the stars, Firecracker?" Riot asks as he throws Atlas's furry blue robe around me.

I nod. "Yeah. I want one magical night where I can feel like a fucking fairy princess. Is that okay?"

His eyes soften and a smirk plays at the corners of his mouth. "All right. Done. But then we kill that fucking bastard."

The mud underneath my boots is as thick as the fog surrounding me. The ravens circle overhead as I try to make my way back to The Nest. Apparently, there was a storm last night and it did a pretty good job of fucking up the path. Between Atlas sucking poison from a snake bite out of my thigh and him fucking me from behind on his apothecary table, it was hard to notice the lightning and thunder going on outside.

The Winter Solstice ball isn't till later tonight, but I have to get back to the dorms before Libra and Villette send out a search party for me. With my phone dead, I can't even text them to let them know I'm okay. Although, they're not stupid. I'm sure they figured I went to Nocturnus House. Still, I want to get back to shower, change, and drink mimosas with them before the ball tonight. It was something Bailey and I used to always do before a big dance or event.

I don't know exactly how close I am to the dorms at this point. I'm not lost, just a little disoriented. I pick up the pace but walk carefully enough, so I don't fall or trip over all of the wet foliage.

I'm deep in the woods when I hear the roar of a motorcycle. Its headlights illuminate the ground in front of me. I freeze just as the rider whizzes past, slams on the brakes, and then circles back.

A knot grows in my chest as the driver skids to a stop mere inches away from me. The force of the wind blows my hair back and sends chills up my spine. My heart races as I strain to see who the mystery rider is through the mist and fog.

He snaps open the face of his helmet and my heart skips a beat when we lock eyes. Ice-cold, neon-blue eyes that pierce me and always send a sea of butterflies to the pit of my stomach. I exhale a deep breath. "Riot…"

"You shouldn't be out here alone," he shouts over the engine. He offers me a helmet. "Get on."

I take it without hesitating and climb on the bike. These woods are getting darker by the second, and I don't know what the fuck is lurking out here. At least Riot is the devil I know.

"Hold on tight, firecracker."

I wrap my arms around his waist and press my chest against his back. Fuck, his body is as hard as a rock. It dawns on me that I've never touched him like this before. In the car, he fucked me from behind, and in the library, he had me pinned against the stacks, but there was still space between us. Even when I woke up in his bed that night, we kept our distance.

My heart swells with an ache I didn't know was there as I hug him from behind. I breathe in his familiar scent of tobacco and coffee like it's my favorite drug. I wish I could bottle it up or make a candle out of it.

Riot hits the throttle, and I almost lose my breath. He takes the turns at full speed, knowing exactly where he's going. I should be terrified of being wrapped around a tree or crashing into a ditch. But I feel safe with him. He knows these woods like the back of his hand. And something tells me that the headlights are only for my benefit. This man's eyes fucking glow in the dark.

When we fly past The Nest without stopping, I squeeze his arm. "Hey, where are we going? You just passed the dorms."

He shakes his head but says nothing as he accelerates, and the world becomes a blur around us. I pinch my eyes shut to stave off the nausea.

I try to focus on the roar of the engine, the feel of his pulse beating against mine, and the scent of the rain-soaked soil that we race across. A warmth spreads through me, caressing my thighs and tickling my lips. It makes my ears buzz and my head spin. I feel our momentum slowing, steadying to a calmer pace.

"Open your eyes, firecracker," Riot calls out. His silky voice penetrates the noise of the bike, carrying over it as if it were a distant rumble.

As I open my lids, I see a precipice in the distance. A sign saying Welcome to Raven's Gate perches between two wooden posts. He slows the bike to a stop in front of it and kills the engine.

He takes off his helmet, then mine, before I hop off, confused and over-stimulated. "What's going on, Riot?"

"This is the end of the road. The border that separates Raven's Gate from the rest of Melancholia." He slides off the bike and faces me. Fuck, he's gorgeous .

"But why are we here? Neither of us can leave, right?" I ask. There's a part of me that's tempted to try. That rebellious streak in me that wants to see how far he'd go to hunt me down. The sick part of me that relishes in the chase. In the thought of being caught.

His eyes harden as he looks out across the threshold. "I can leave. But the second I do, my body starts to slowly decay. My powers weaken. The curse keeps me this way. After I left you in Wickford Hollow, I was sick for days. It almost killed me. I lingered too long."

There's a longing in his eyes. A longing I feel too. Deep in my gut. "Because of me?"

He nods. "I didn't want to leave you. You have no idea how close I came to stealing you away that night."

He has a nervous tick I've never noticed before. He looks at me, then the ground, and then back, each time flexing the muscle in his jaw like he's grinding his teeth.

"It hurts to look at you," he says softly as if reading my mind.

I take a cautious step toward him. "Why?"

He leans against his bike and looks me up and down. "Because you're beautiful and I'm… damaged. Because I want to own you, destroy you, and protect you all at the same time. Because you're the only woman I've ever wanted to hate and love with every ounce of light and darkness that I possess. You ruined me, firecracker. You fucking ruined everything."

In this moment, I feel the same way. I know exactly what he means even though it's fucked up and doesn't make any sense.

I take a few more steps toward him until I bridge the gap between us. The air seems to sizzle with electricity. His muscles twitch as I press my palms to his chest. "It's not your fault, Riot. Any more than it is mine."

He draws in a quick breath as I slide my hands down to his belly and lift up his shirt. His skin feels smooth and soft against my fingertips. "I'm damaged too. Our scars make us beautiful."

"No one has ever looked at me the way you do. Why?" he asks.

I unbutton his jeans and slide the zipper down. My heart races as I take control of his cock, relishing in the way it throbs in my hand. "Because I see you, Riot. The real you. And you see the real me. But I won't let you claim me unless you're willing to be claimed too."

His eyelids flutter, and he lets out a soft moan as I caress him gently. "Fuck… you've owned me since the moment I laid eyes on you, firecracker. Every depraved fucking piece of me."

I press my lips to his, urging him to kiss me. "Hate them for what they did to you. For what they did to me. But hating me is pointless, Riot. You and I are end game. So let's get revenge together."

"Fuck, I can't keep my hands off you any longer." He grabs my face and kisses me hard. We both gasp as our tongues lock and swirl together in a frantic state of lust and need. The desperation to consume him overwhelms me. He's my elusive monster. My demon who can't be slayed, only tamed.

I stroke his cock faster as he pulls my hair, forcing my head back, so he can devour my neck. He nips at my flesh with his teeth in between kisses and licks. "I wanna mark every inch of you. I want everyone to know you're mine." He bites down hard on my shoulder, and it sends waves of euphoria through my whole body.

The sensations of pain and pleasure are inseparable. I crave them both. I need every vile and depraved act he wants to thrust upon me. "I want you inside me," I murmur.

"Fuck," he whines and pulls me down to the ground. "Do you want me to fuck you in the dirt, firecracker? Hmm?" He pins my arms over my head. "Like a fucking animal?"

My clit spasms as moisture drips out of my aching pussy. I thrust my hips toward his. " Yes ," I roar. "I need you to fuck me. Right. Fucking. Now. Or else kill me and be done with it."

He gazes down at me, fixated on my lips. "So, you have a death wish, is that it?"

The weight of him threatens to crush me, and I welcome it. My adrenaline spikes, sending shivers over every inch of me. The pounding in my chest is so loud it's almost deafening. "There's no fucking torture you can inflict that is worse than the kind I've been inflicting on myself. Except the torture of not having you inside me. I need it, Riot. But if you don't want me like that, then let death take me."

His eyes widen and his throat bobs as he swallows hard. "Maur…" He releases my wrists and angles up, straddling me on the dirty ground. He slides his palms under my blouse and rests them on my belly.

I arch my back, urging him to keep going. His touch feels like fire despite his icy flesh. "Don't make me beg, Riot."

"Fuck. You have no idea how bad I've been wanting you." He yanks my jeans down and off in one quick motion. "No fucking clue how every second I'm away from you is like starvation."

I shiver as the wind dances between my thighs. He fingers the edge of my panties, gazing hungrily at them. "You don't have to beg, firecracker. I need your pussy like I need air."

A whimper escapes me as he jerks my panties off and lines up his cock. I arch my back against the dirt and spread my legs wide for him. "Use me."

His lips quiver as he pushes the tip of his cock inside my pussy. "Fuck, you're so tight. Oh, my—" He loses his words in a moan as I stretch around his shaft. I can feel every inch of him throbbing against my walls as he pushes in slowly, savoring every second.

"Fuck, don't stop, please," I beg.

His movements are firm but slow and agonizing as he draws it out, forcing me to feel every ridge as he slides in deeper. Forcing me to feel his girth and how my pussy has to expand to accommodate it. It fills me up, sending pressure all the way up my spine. Like I might explode.

I cry out as he burrows all the way in and presses against my G-spot. We don't break eye contact. There's something more feral about the quiet way he penetrates me while never taking his neon-blue eyes off me. This feels different from the day in the car when he fucked me from behind. That day was about anger and hate and ownership. This right here is all of those things and none of them. Because now… he's fucking me like I own him .

He rolls his hips, and I almost cum. "Do you want to be our queen, baby girl?"

The angle of his cock, the torturous rhythm of it, elicits a deep guttural moan from my throat. "Yes," I cry.

He slows his pace, fucking me so softly that I'm shaking all over. "Will you let me brand you with my sigil? Will you wear it proudly?"

A flutter of spasms ripples through my clit at the thought of him marking me. I arch my hips, desperate for his brutality. The gentleness hurts more. The ache is festering. I want him to suffocate me. To break me. And he knows it. He's fucking edging me into insanity.

I lick my lips and nod. "Yes. I want to wear your marks like scars. Like tattoos. Ruin me, Riot. Ruin my flesh and remake it in your likeness."

His pupils dilate, and a ring of light swirls around them. He stills his cock inside me and I almost panic. I can feel him throbbing, pulsing against my walls and it's fucking torture. I take quick shallow breaths as I rock my hips back and forth, urging him to keep going.

"Relax, firecracker. Don't worry. I'm going to let you cum. But I want to relish being inside you for a while. If I unleash everything I have, I'll explode too quickly." He begins his slow agonizing rhythm again.

The tingling builds back up, and I feel like I'm on the edge of having a nervous breakdown. I can't fucking take it anymore. "Please, Riot," I beg.

He smirks and leans over me. He wraps a hand around my throat, applying light pressure. "I told you not to beg, firecracker." He pulls back, teasing my entrance with just the tip. "But I love it when you do." I scream as he slams back into me.

Oh, fuck. I am fucking rabid. Our hips bang together as he pounds my pussy harder and faster. He rubs my clit raw, violently, crushing it under his thumb until it swells. A fire burns in my veins as the deepest pleasure I've ever felt erupts in my core.

I scream out his name as I cum. I scream it over and over again until my throat hurts and my voice breaks. He squeezes my throat, stealing the air from my lungs as my body spasms.

"That's my girl. Mine ," he growls as he rides me. "This is your salvation, firecracker. Your reckoning. And your rebirth." He grunts as the ridges in his shaft flex and constrict. He buries himself all the way in and unleashes an unearthly cry as his hot cum fills me up.

We grind against each other, riding out our orgasms until his cum and mine become one. With his hand still around my throat, he yanks me halfway up and presses his sweaty forehead against mine. His blue eyes blaze with lust. " And I'm yours ."