Its not until we are in the car, driving away from the conference room, that Darius finally speaks. His eyes are on the passing images blurred by the vehicle’s speed when he speaks. “You’re either incredibly stupid or incredibly clever,” he scoffs.
“I’d like to think it’s the latter.”
“I bet you would,” he huffs, “but if you keep this up Giselle, you’ll force my father’s hand. You’re life has meaning because he wills it. Force his hand and he will bury you. Literally or figuratively, but equally as damning.”
“There’s nothing wrong with what I did. I stood up for us. You and I both…our family.”
Darius finally brings his eyes to mine and my heart skips a beat. “There’s so much you must learn about our culture. For starters, women are to be seen and not heard. While you scored points outsmarting one of the most powerful men in the world, the world was watching. A girl outfoxed one of our most infamous leaders. A human girl. That tiny disrespect will not go unanswered,” he explained, “If you want to exist in my world, then you need to know your place Giselle. You are the human emissary, yes, but I am the voice that commands your tongue. When you undermine my father and me, you send a message to all women that our traditions can be tossed aside for the sake of the female ego. You incite action that will not be tolerated by the men in our culture who’ll seek to silence your voice. And if you want to gain the support of my people, showing some respect for our customs is the best place to start.”
I hadn’t taken into account that my actions might be seen as disrespectful. I didn’t know that by exerting my independence I would be spitting in the face of their way of life, therefore, alienating them.
“You wouldn’t hear me out, and your father tries to sabotage me at every turn,” I sulk, “what else was I supposed to do?”
“You do nothing,” he sighs, “now I know that’s hard for you, but Giselle, there is no way in this situation that you win. The humans doomed themselves long ago. You’re all just too proud a species to accept defeat.”
“It’s not pride Darius…its hope. You’re punishing our entire species for the actions of a few bad apples.”
“It was more than a few.”
“I’m not one of them and neither is Eliza, my father or my brother. They do your bidding no questions asked. With the very reasoning you use you would sentence them to death and they’ve been nothing but good to you and your family. I’ve been nothing but good to you. You’re my first everything…my first kiss…my first sexual experience…my first boyfriend…my first husband. If your father ordered the deaths of all humans today, would you kill me?”
To my dismay, he looks away. He would. Knowing how much I love him, he’d kill me in a heartbeat if his father asked him to. The blow to my heart renders me silent. I’d do anything for him. I’d kill for him if I had to, but to him I’m expendable. “Wow,” was all I could say in response.
“Its not personal. It’s business,” he had the nerve to say to me.
“So killing me would just be another day at the office for you? That’s how little I mean to you?”
Darius stopped talking and for once I didn’t mind. He’s never going to see me as his equal. I’m nothing more than a burden dropped into his lap by our fathers. A burden he feels no emotional attachment to. And I’m supposed to have children with him.
Now I’m watching the blurred images outside my window. I’m trying to work up the nerve to tell him just how much he’s hurt me when our car suddenly stops. I look outside the back window and realize the cars carrying the others have stopped to. Some have even gotten out of their cars. Jackson and William are behind us and they’re shouting at us.
Suddenly bursts of light erupt from all directions. It takes me a moment to realize it’s the flashes of guns going off, and then I hear the sound of metal ricocheting off our car.
Darius tackles me to the floor of the car before I can investigate and then a bright light invades the car. Shortly after, the sound of a loud horn blazes in close distance. A train. Darius lifts himself off of me and looks out the windows. In a split second I’m laying on the floor and the next, he’s got me pinned against the privacy window of the car.
Loud, shrill sounds of metal scraping metal, a crashing sound, and a strong impact leaves me shaken. Clenching my eyes shut I wait for the chaos to end. When the sounds stop I open my eyes and realize the entire back half of the car where we were sitting has been ripped off by a train and we’ve been thrown to the other side of the tracks, separated from the rest of our group.
Darius bolts from the car, now split in half, leaving me to fend for myself. I can hear screaming in the distance and then nothing. Then the sound of footsteps nearby began to close in on me. I’m praying its Darius, but the hand that reaches in and snatches me out of the car is not Darius. It’s a young night-dweller I’ve never seen before and his eyes sparkle right before he sinks his teeth into my neck. Thanks to Darius’ savagery, I’m used to the blinding pain and strength the young night-dweller uses to subdue me.
I remember the blades Darius had sewn into all my clothing and press the button at the cuff of my jacket to release the blade before plunging it into his side. He swats me away and I collide into a tree, cracking my skull against the bark. My eyes flutter and then everything goes dark. For how long, I’m not sure, but when I open my eyes the young night-dweller is standing over me. Using his nails he slaps me across the face, slicing into my skin.
“Next time aim for the heart bitch. But I think we both know there won’t be a next time, will there?” He smiles. He stalks over to me as I attempt to crawl away, laughing at me, telling me how pathetic and weak I am.
I look around for anything I can use as a weapon, but there’s nothing but grass, another tree, and concrete. Nothing I can wield as a weapon and the blade from my coat is still lodged in his side.
There’s no way I can outrun him, and I’m pretty sure negotiation is out of the question. There’s movement behind him and I sigh with relief as that figure comes into focus. The young night-dweller follows my gaze, turning to face Darius. He cowers before his Eastern high Lord and Darius waves a hand at him, reducing him to red mist.
“Are you hurt?” Darius asks, scooping me up in his arms, “Your head is bleeding.”
He dashes to a nearby industrial building that looks empty and sets me down on my feet. After pulling out his phone and making a few phone calls, Darius and I look for a bathroom. We find one on the second floor of the building and he hoists me up onto its counter.
Thankfully there was a first aid kit in one of the cabinets. He uses it to patch me up while we wait. For what, I have no idea. “You should have let him kill me to spare yourself from having to do it later,” I scoff.
“He wouldn’t be as gentle,” is all he says in response. It isn’t really a comfort if that’s what he’s going for. Darius wets a cloth he found and uses it to clean the cuts on my head and face before smearing his blood over my wounds.
“Do I mean anything to you?” I asked, “anything at all?”
Darius clenches his eyes shut and exhales. When he opens them, his eyes are softer, more compassionate. “Of course you do,” he sighs, “Don’t go reading too much into it though, because at the end of the day, it means nothing.”
“Then why am I so expendable to you?”
Taking a deep breath, Darius utters the words I’ve been dying to hear since this dysfunctional marriage began, “I love you Giselle…more than I should…more than is allowed. You may think it’s a good thing, but it’s not. It puts a target on your back and there’s nothing I can do to protect you if my father finds out. Nothing. So for the sake of appearances, you must be expendable to me.”
“Why does that have to be a bad thing?”
“It just is.”
I convince myself that knowing the truth is enough for me. It has to be. He won’t show it, I know him. He’ll still treat me like everyone expects him to…like I’m nothing.
Hearing faint footsteps and the sound of voices, my heart begins to pound in my chest. “Relax, it’s just the others. I let them know where we were,” he calms me down. I sigh with relief, looking down at his chest and gasp. There are several bullet holes in his suit and blood.
Frantically I unbutton his suit jacket and his shirt underneath, taking them off. His t-shirt underneath has holes in it too, only now I can see that he’s been hit, more than once.
“Darius-”
Closing his hands around mine he assures me, “I’m fine.”
“You’ve been shot!”
Darius places a finger against my lips to shush me, takes off his shirt, and I watch in astonishment as the bullets began to retract from his skin. They fall to the floor one by one and then his skin heals itself. “I told you, it would take more than that to harm someone like me.”
I trace my fingers over his pecks and down the ridges of his abs where the bullet wounds used to be. They’re all gone. He’s safe…unharmed.
“You’re pale.”
“I just need blood.”
Removing my hair from my left shoulder and pulling it over my right, I exposed my neck to him. I didn’t even have to ask. He knew what I was offering and his fangs pierce my flesh moments later. At least he’s gentle this time.
While he drinks from my neck, I wrap my arms around him, holding on in case he takes too much and I become weak. Movement behind him catches my attention. The door to the room is slightly cracked and Asher stands there, watching us.
Pressing against my chin with his index finger, Darius brings my eyes to his. The raw sexual intensity in his eyes catches me by surprise. This is a bad time to be caught with our pants down. And yet I do nothing as Darius’ hands slide up my skirt, removing my underwear. I want him just as badly as he wants me right now. His lips trace their way in tiny kisses from my neck to my mouth. I part my lips and he sweeps his tongue through my mouth, setting my nerve endings on fire. It’s been a while for the both of us and I can’t tell which one of us is more aroused.
Gripping my waist he pulls me to the edge of the counter and I grip the edge to hold myself up. Darius unbuttons my jacket, my shirt and unhooks the front of my bra at lightening speed, closing his mouth around each of my nipples, forcing me to draw in a breath each time. The sensation is overwhelming.
Each whimper that escapes my lips arouses him even more. He places my legs over his arms, maneuvering them higher and wider, burying himself deep inside me. I’d almost forgotten about Asher until I glanced over at the door and realized he was still standing there, watching. My brows purse together in confusion when our eyes meet. Why was he still watching? The polite thing to do would be to give us our privacy.
I couldn’t focus on that now though. Darius’ onslaught inside me has me on the brink of exploding. I bring my attention back to him, kissing him, and biting his lip until we both erupt with pleasure. He cups my mouth with his hand to stifle my moans of pleasure and smiles when my breathing returns to normal.
“Let’s not ever wait that long again,” he whispers against my skin, kissing my collarbone. I laughed and agree. “I meant what I said to you earlier. I love you,” his eyes burn into mine.
Flushing red, I return his affections and say, “I love you too.”
“I’m gonna go catch up to the others. Get cleaned up and meet me downstairs near the entrance.”
I look towards the door but there’s no one there. Darius leaves the room so I can freshen up. A few minutes after he leaves I hear movement behind me. I don’t have to turn around to know who it is. “You betrayed me Giselle,” Asher keeps his voice low.
“You betrayed yourself,” I turn to face him, “or did you really think I wouldn’t catch on to what you were doing? I told you I wouldn’t help you destroy him and I meant it.”
In a flash Asher stands in front of me, his hand around my throat. “You gave all of the credit to Darius and made me look like a fool in my father’s eyes,” he seethes with anger.
I swat his hand away from my neck and he doesn’t put up a fight. Instead he back me up against the counter, pressing his body against mine. I’m not sure if he wants to yell at me or kiss me at this point, but neither can happen.
“Whatever you’re thinking about doing, don’t,” I place my hand against his chest and push him away. “If I don’t come downstairs in the next few minutes Darius will come looking for me and if he finds you here, you’ll have worse problems than being looked at as a fool.”
“Anya is right, you’re in way over your head when it comes to Darius. You think you know him, but you don’t. You only know what he wants you to know. He’s playing games with you Giselle.”
“So what if he is? My loyalty lies with him. It has to.”
“And when he tosses you out like trash, then what?”
“He wouldn’t do that.”
Laughing, Asher eyes me incredulously, “Don’t be blinded by how good he feels between your legs little girl. As soon as he’s done with you and you’ve served your purpose he will toss you out on your privileged ass.”
“He loves me.”
“Of course he does. He needs an heir and it’s a well known fact that Aria is barren.”
There’s a tidbit of information I wasn’t aware of. Aria can’t give Darius any heirs, which means our children would be his only heirs. “If Aria is barren and my children will be his only heirs then it solidifies my position as his primary wife. That’s all I care about.”
“He’s done a number on you,” Asher huffs, “It doesn’t matter what I say. You’ll defend him with your dying breath, won’t you?”
“I love him.”
“With or without your help Darius and his family are going down. There are many who are not satisfied with the way they rule,” Asher confides, “Don’t go down with them. Join me, and not only will I see your agendas through, but I’ll marry you…only you.”
I’m not sure what type of game he’s playing, but there’s one thing I know for sure…Asher and his family had something to do with the attack on us tonight. No one outside of the campaign knew our driving patterns. Whatever comes next, it’s going to be devastating.
“What have you done?”
“What needed to be done,” he replies.
“Move.”
Asher moves aside to let me leave and I hurry downstairs to find Darius. He smiles when he sees me enter the room. He’s still in one piece, thank God. Jackson and William look irritated as he fills them and the few remaining bodyguards we have left quickly surround me.
Darius’ gaze shifts to the person standing behind me, and his smile fades. I look back at Asher then meet Darius’ gaze. He motions for me to join him and takes me by the hand. A united front, that’s what he wants Asher to know we are. Still, some of the things Asher told me bother me.
“Where’s Henry?” I ask, doing a headcount of everyone. Henry is one of the many faces I recognize amongst the guards because he’s always been the one to guard me. Come to think of it, I can’t remember the last time I saw his face. The room grows quiet and everyone avoids looking me in the eyes. “Darius, where’s Henry?”
“He wasn’t amongst the guards assigned to this trip,” Asher spoke first.
There’s something they aren’t telling me…
“Isn’t he high command?”
“Not anymore,” Anya speaks next, “Your husband had him killed the day you and your siblings went running off without telling anyone. Your near death could not go unpunished and since he was assigned to guard you, he paid the ultimate price for that failure.”
I flick my eyes to Darius hoping it isn’t true. “Please tell me that’s not true. Please tell me you didn’t kill him over something I did,” I beg him.
“He had a job to do and he failed,” Darius explains, “You almost died Giselle.”
“That wasn’t his fault, it was mine.”
“And being a leader is my responsibility. When I give an order it must be followed regardless. He let his guard down and I found you with your throat slit, clinging to life. His failure was unacceptable.”
“So you killed him?” I needed to hear him say it.
“Yes…I killed him.”
Shock, anger, and extreme guilt washes over me. Henry is dead because of me. I chose to give him the slip that day, but I didn’t think it would cost him his life. Bile rises in my throat. I need air. I made it outside, just beyond the front door before dropping to my knees and vomiting in the grass.
“It’s not safe out here Giselle,” Darius lifts me to my feet, “Henry knew what he was getting into when he accepted the position. I made my intentions clear.”
“Okay, but that doesn’t make it right Darius. He didn’t deserve that.”
“Let’s not talk about this, I don’t want to upset you any more than you already are.”
Suddenly I’m exhausted. I don’t have the strength to fight him. As a matter of fact, I don’t have the strength to stand either. Did Darius do something to me? Did Asher? Slowly I begin to faint, falling to the ground. Darius is there to catch me before I can hit the ground and he scoops me up in his arms. His eyes are filled with worry and confusion as he carries me back inside, shouting at the top of his lungs. He checks me for wounds a second time and when he finds none he begins to panic. Strange fatigue takes over me. I can barely keep my eyes open. Eventually I give in to the tug of sleep and close my eyes. Everything goes dark and silent.
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