26. Scarlett

CHAPTER 26

SCARLETT

"Hold her down!" someone screams as forceful hands try to keep me from arching my back again.

It hurts!

I want to tell them that I'm dying.

They need to know that something is horribly wrong.

But all I can do is scream as the sensation of a thousand knives pierce my stomach, poking me full of holes until there's nothing left of me to bleed out.

I thrash against the bedsheets and fight the hands trying to pin me in place until something inside me breaks.

Snap.

Everything goes quiet.

The pain slips away like a bad dream, leaving me nauseous and disoriented as I try to open my eyes.

I regret it the moment I do, because now there are two new creatures staring at me from the darkness. At first, they seem like terrifying dark shadows, but when they venture closer, I realize they're actually quite beautiful.

When their tongues slither out, I shiver with interest.

I've gone insane, I decide as I adjust to an alternate version of my room, one with blood dripping down the walls and black veins cracking through the wainscoting.

My physical body is still lying on the bed, but whoever had been holding me down has disappeared.

Or I'm not in the real world anymore.

I've spent enough time in an alternate plane of existence to understand that there's another place that rests beneath my own. One where I have been spying on the comings and goings of the Elites and searching for Cain, to no avail.

But it seems I've found two new figments in my dreams.

"Where's Cain?" I ask them.

The creatures watch me with glowing red eyes, and their long tongues flick out again as if to taste the air.

A shiver runs up my spine as I realize they probably don't know where Cain is, or don't care.

They likely aren't even real. I've gone so far off the deep end that Figment-Cain has abandoned me and now I have two new creatures here to torment me. Although, I quite enjoyed Cain's version of torment.

They both look as if they want to eat me. My stomach flips when the larger one stalks me in a wide circle. The other has massive fangs that should frighten me.

Strangely, my heart flutters with morbid excitement.

I need help.

"Cain's not here," Large Fangs says, venturing closer. He seems to have to concentrate to form words, given the nature of his tongue. It's not oversized like Cain's, but the length of it is certainly inhuman.

He's gorgeous, and my eyes go wide as he comes close enough for our noses to touch. As unnatural as he looks with shadows for skin and glowing, blood-colored eyes, there's an incredible beauty about him like a marble statue come to life.

And he's naked. My eyes drop, then widen even further as I try to understand the rounded bulbs around his member. There's one at the base and one on his swollen head.

A faint buzzing sound has me biting my lip. Is… that vibrating?

A barrage of inappropriate thoughts tumble through my mind as I try not to picture all the possibilities of a creature with a vibrating cock.

"Cain…" he repeats. "Whoever he is," he says with a smirk. My heart stops as his claws skitter over my hip. "My name is Sabre. My friend is Cage. You called us , Sigil. We came."

I called them? What does he mean?

And what's a Sigil?

Glancing at the other creature, Cage , I find he has chosen to watch from the billowing shadows in the ever-changing structure of this dream version of my room. But from what I had glimpsed, everything about him was primal and large . Not as large as Cain, but larger than any human would be.

The unfathomable urge to drag Cage out of the shadows so I can get a better look at him makes my fingers itch. I wonder how much of this is real and how much is a result of my fractured mind.

This happened when the portals opened.

Perhaps I couldn't handle the fluctuation of power that came with new monsters entering our world. At least, not while I was in some sort of strange dream state caused by Cain's blood.

My eyelashes flutter closed as Sabre's claw drags a line up to my rib cage, managing to cut my nightdress without scratching my skin.

A new urge to slip the sleeves off my shoulders leaves me flustered and confused.

This is just the effect of Cain's blood, I try to assure myself.

When his claw continues its path over my left breast, my lips part on a soft gasp.

Then why does it feel so real?

"You hurt, Sigil," the creature whispers. He's closer now, but I don't dare open my eyes to see his sharp fangs or red eyes. His breath brushes my ear as he makes an offer I can't refuse. "Let me and Cage take the pain away. Do you want us to do that? Do you want our comfort?"

A distant thunder gives me my first real burst of fear.

Figment-Cain might be a fabrication of my mind, but everything feels real in my dreams.

If he finds me like this, what will he do?

Will he hurt me?

Something deep within me knows that my figment would never hurt me, but I'm scared nonetheless.

I don't understand what's happening.

I'm so confused.

My chest flutters with panic. Hands gently cup my face, and my eyes fling open, only for me to stare at Sabre directly in his incredible eyes that glow with raw power.

My mirrorlike irises reflect back at me in his gaze. I have no doubt now why he has fangs. He's a type of vampire. Real or not, he will feed on me if I allow it.

But that doesn't frighten me. For some reason, it feels right, as if I have fractured under the weight of too many souls and he'll take that burden from me.

"Cain will be angry," I warn as Sabre's eyes bore into mine.

"Cain isn't here," Sabre repeats over my lips. His gaze drops to my mouth. "Answer the question, Sigil."

I can feel Cage watching me from the darkness. I somehow find his quiet stalking more unnerving than Sabre's threatening presence.

But I'm not afraid like I should be.

In fact, I feel safe. Safer than I ever have in my life.

Sabre seems to take my hesitation as a rejection, because he releases me and backs away. He blurs for a moment as if he's going to vanish.

Buckling over, I cry out as a slice of pain cuts through my chest. "Wait," I hiss on a pained breath. "Don't… don't go. Please."

Cage is the one who steadies me from behind. He pulls me against his chest as he wraps his hand around my throat. It's not a restraining gesture, but a claiming one. He palms my skin as his hard erection presses against my back, making a new ache throb between my legs.

They're not hiding their intentions. They want to comfort me in a very sexual way.

Sabre comes before me again and passes his thumb over my lower lip. My mouth parts for him out of instinct, making him grin and show off those impressive fangs once more. "We won't leave you, Sigil. But we can't stay here forever, either. Can you tell us where you are?"

I blink at him as the haze of lust makes it hard to breathe.

Where I am?

He means my body. The one still asleep in my bed.

He wants to know where I am outside of this dream world.

If these figments were real, I might imagine they were monsters and I'd found myself in their trap. It's certainly not possible that monsters have targeted me to be their mate on Monsters Night.

Is it?

No, I decide. I'm bound by a blood contract, and I'm nowhere near Monster City. Whatever this is, it's a trick inside my mind.

But I've learned how real it can feel, so if I'm going to be subjected to powerful sensations, they might as well be pleasurable ones.

"It doesn't matter where I am," I say, earning a scowl from Sabre. But I know my next words will cheer him up. "Take the pain away. Show me what you can do. Comfort me , Sabre."

Red flashes in his gaze as his disappointment vanishes, just as I predicted. "Hmm, I like my name on your lips," he teases as his claws glide over my skin again, delicately slicing away fabric as he goes. "I can do so much more than comfort you, my sweet Sigil. My specialty lies in dreams. Would you like to see what I can do?"

I try not to laugh. Does my figment not even know we're already in a dream?

Cage continues to palm my throat as his cock pulses along my spine. He seems content to spectate whatever game Sabre wants to play while holding me in place.

"Show me," I taunt.

The second I utter the command, everything goes dark. Stiffening, I am strangely comforted that I still feel Cage behind me and his hand remains secured around my neck.

Maybe this is why he's holding me—so I don't run into the dark.

An invisible claw tickles over my skin, slicing away the last of my nightdress as cool air makes my nipples harden.

Then a tongue wraps around one of them, making me squeak. I know it's a tongue because the texture and sensation is undeniable, but now I realize that there are wicked things a creature like Sabre can really do.

"Talk to us, Sigil," Cage whispers in my ear. His voice is gruff and husky with need, making me whimper again. Just the rumble of his chest against my back is enough to make my core throb. "Tell us what you like, what you don't like. We want to learn everything about you. Every inch. Every gasp. Every desire. Everything." He enunciates the last word by exposing my neck, then tickles my skin with his tongue.

My breath comes in short gasps as I attempt to come up with words but fail. I'm too overwhelmed. My entire body feels like a string gone taut and ready to snap. I need something, but I'm not sure what it is.

Sabre's tongue moves to my other breast, and he wraps it around my nipple, then tugs.

"Words," Cage encourages.

I have no words, so I claw my fingers over his forearm and dig my nails in. He hisses as I draw blood. The sticky substance is like an aphrodisiac, making me feel drugged.

The light tugging on my nipple disappears, and then a hard body is against mine. I go still when Sabre presses against my front and his cock wedges between us.

That bulb I saw earlier is settled between my legs, and the base of it vibrates on my clit. Sabre palms my face, and his tongue brushes over my lip before dipping into my mouth. I moan as pleasure builds like a swollen knot in my stomach, threatening to burst. His tongue vanishes, but Sabre remains pressed against me, wedging me between him and Cage like their prey caught in a pleasure trap.

"Sensation can be more powerful in the darkness," Sabre says. "But I agree with Cage. We need more than agreement from your body. We need your verbal permission to continue. Tell us what you want, Sigil."

"I-I…" I stammer, fighting for words when my body feels like an instrument only these two creatures know how to make sing. Red eyes glow, eliciting a shiver from me. "I want more," I manage to say in a breathless whisper.

Sabre's long fangs flash as he grins. Then he dips and kisses my stomach. His words flutter over the blood-mark just above my navel as if taunting Cain's magic. "Hold her in place, Cage. I'm going to lick her sweet pussy until she comes in my mouth." He chuckles when I freeze. "Do you want that, Sigil?"

I know I'll regret it, but my eager agreement drips from my traitorous tongue. "Yes. I… I want that."

I nearly black out when he shoves his face between my legs, his tongue thrusting up into me as I scream. Cage does as ordered and holds me in place, but I asked for this.

In my dreams, I'm nothing but a wallowing ball of need.

No one has to know. I remind myself of that as I give in to the pleasure and slump against Cage, enjoying the throb of his cock against my back as he lightly thrusts, seeming to seek friction as I arch my back and let Sabre use his skilled tongue on me.

My dreams are so vivid, even if it is Cain's blood that's responsible for such dreams.

Just as the inevitable orgasm crests over my body like a lightning bolt ripping through the sky, I spot a strange raven in the distance. His black feathers should blend into the background of shadows and darkness, but he stands out to me all the same.

It's as if Cain himself is watching over me. The aftershocks of pleasure make my toes curl, and I breathe out a long sigh, feeling as if I've released a burden I'd been holding on to for too long.

Now that I'm spent, everything begins to dissolve, and I fall into the bad habit of whispering a prayer before my dream ends. The urge overwhelms me, demanding I say at least one benediction to my dark Lord.

"Praise you, Cain. Thank you for your mercy, for this small reprieve, before I have to go back again."

Because I know when I wake up, I'll have to face Edward. After our last parting, and how he has seemed so utterly unconcerned for my well-being, I'm not so sure how I feel about him now.

I only know that I won't ever be able to look at him the same way again.

Because I've already started falling for figments in my dreams.

They aren't even real, Scarlett.

But… what if I'm wrong?

What if… they are real, and it's Edward who is the dream?