Page 104 of Degradation (The Brethren Lords #3)

Pailtyn

Two Months Later

I can smell the salt of the ocean. I can feel the spray as the wind carries it up over the rocks and peppers my skin.

This place feels like a dream. A figment of my imagination almost. It feels so far from the life I’ve lived up until now.

We moved here not long after Magnus started the cull.

Our house is big, luxurious, but it also lacks the stuffiness of all those old blue-blooded monstrosities I knew so well.

Devin got an interior designer to make sure everything was minimalist and laid out in a way that was as accessible as possible for me.

I’ve never felt so at peace. So at home.

The pathway down to the cliffs is a gravel one. It’s easy for me to walk, easy for me to know where I am, and most days I stand here, metaphorically staring out, revelling in the fact that no one is watching me, no one is hunting me.

I’m free. Finally, I’m fucking free.

Devin works for our Grand Master now. I don’t ask what he does.

In truth, I don’t want to know. Some weeks he comes home stinking of blood and dirt and God knows what else, and some weeks, he doesn’t come home at all, though he always lets me know when that’s the case.

I know this is part of what grants us our safety, what provides our new path in the Brethren, so I do better than to complain.

Besides, I now have Calix, my Spanish mastiff. He’s by my side like an almost permanent feature, giving me company but providing me with protection. He’s big enough that he comes up past my waist and his fur is so ridiculously soft it’s hard not to be constantly stroking him.

I lower my hand, scrunching his ears and he leans into me, playing the big softy.

But we both know what he’s here for. He’s trained as a guard dog.

And the fact that he’s capable of ripping out a man’s throat with very little effort definitely gives me comfort when I’m alone.

It’s like having a mini Devin, a mini monster, our very own hell-hound, if you will.

Not long after we arrived here, Devin sought out a doctor to ‘fix me’. It took me a good while to recover but now, I’m so much better for it. He couldn’t reverse what Guthrie had done to me, but he could repair some of the damage and I at least have feeling now.

Antonio still has my mother. My uncle, Pearce, is still MIA and I know there are enough men hunting him to ensure he’ll be looking over his shoulder for the rest of his life.

Devin has turned the perimeter of this place into a fortress. No one gets in or out without his knowledge.

I’m safe here. I know my uncle won’t come for me, but it still scares me to think about the fact that he is out there. He has nothing to lose now, surely, that makes him even more dangerous than ever?

I shudder, wrapping the shawl around my body at the thought. It’s getting late, the heat of the sun is ebbing away, and I turn, slowly making my way back up. Calix walks silently beside me like he’s on patrol, his footsteps barely audible as he moves his massive weight.

As I get halfway, I hear the crunch of gravel telling me someone else is here. I pause, listening, wondering if it’s one of the few servants we have. Only, I know that stride. I know that arrogant swagger.

“Devin,” I breathe while Calix wags his tail in excitement.

His arms grab me before I can say anything more. His tongue delves into my mouth and he’s devouring me like he needs to taste my very soul.

He’s been gone a few days this time, not long, and yet, it feels like forever.

As I break away, I can smell something, something that makes me nose wrinkle, that makes me pause. But before I can say anything he’s pulling me down and he manhandles me until I’m on top of him, until I’m straddling his face.

“Devin,” I gasp as he pulls my underwear aside and starts tongue up and along me.

I throw my head back, grinding against him, feeling as brings me closer and closer to climax.

My knees dig into the gravel, my thighs scream in protest as I ride his face like the filthy whore I am.

He groans, sliding his hand around under my thigh before he slips a long finger into my arsehole.

“Oh fuck.” I scream, half in shock, half in pleasure.

He growls out, starting to thrust into me as I continue to grind my pussy against his mouth. No matter how many times he tongue fucks me, it’s not enough. It will never be enough.

And then suddenly, I’m tipped over the edge, I’m climaxing so hard I’m certain I’m practically drowning him.

He grips my thighs, holding me in place and then slowly, let’s me move to lay beside him.

I curl up into his chest, but instead of feeling his usual calm, he feels tense. He feels like a raging beast about to go off.

“Devin?”

He lets out a low breath, “I just needed a moment.” He says gruffly.

“A moment for what?”

He lets out a deep sigh, one that feels so weighted. “She’s dead. Ines is dead.”

“What?” I gasp in shock. My body trembles as I realise some serious shit must have gone down. And here I was, blissfully unaware, thinking everything was all sunshine and roses. “What happened?”

“They got in while we were away. I don’t know how. We came back to find a massacre.”

I gulp, trying not to imagine how horrific that must have been for her, how scared she must have been. Ines is our Grand Master’s wife – was our Grand Master’s wife. He loved her, adored her. And now she’s dead.

“You don’t think…?”

“It was them.” Devin confirms. “The Esau. I know they were behind it. We caught one of them and they all but confirmed it before we executed him.”

I knew they weren’t all gone. I knew the conspiracy stretched further than just Britain, but still, they got into his home, the Grand Master’s actual villa.

“What does it mean?” I whisper. But I know what it means, what this is, it’s war. More war.

“Antonio is already hunting them.” He replies. “I was granted a few days to come here and ensure your security before I joined him.”

I shudder, looking around, and though I obviously can’t see a damn thing, it’s hard not to imagine the sound of cracking twigs, of people sneaking up, making their way to come and murder us both. But Calix would alert us to that, Calix would already be growling if that was the case.

“I thought we were safe here.” I murmur with a shudder.

“You are safe.” He says. “I cherry-picked every single guard. I’ve done everything imaginable to ensure no one will get anywhere near you.”

“But they got to Ines…” My voice trails off.

He cups my face. “Have I ever let you down? Ever not kept my promises?” He asks.

No, no he hasn’t. If there’s one thing I can say about my husband, it’s he’s true to his word, no matter how fucked up it is.

I plant a soft kiss on his lips. “If you’re leaving soon, then we’d better get back to the house.”

He nods, scooping me up while I lean into his chest, lean into his body and breathe in his delicious, dangerous smell. Only, there’s something else there, lingering – blood. He’s got blood on him.

Did he come straight from a fight? Did he race all the way here to find me?

“Don’t worry, malkta,” He says as we make our way back up. “Nothing is going to happen to you. No one is going to hurt you.”

“And what about you?” I ask. I might be as safe as houses here, but what about him? What do I do if he gets injured, or worse, if he gets killed?

I hear his devilish chuckle. “Nothing’s happening to me either.” He replies. “I’m the devil, remember. And the devil can’t be killed.”

He is the devil. He is a monster. But he’s my monster. Mine .

I grab his shirt collar, pulling him in for a kiss him as desperately as I can. If he has to leave soon then I want every second of him I can get. I want every piece of his body, every delicious moment of his pain too.

Behind us I can hear Calix walking, and I can’t help but laugh at what a sight we must be.

Me and my devil. And our hell-hound just behind.

We’re the perfect family now. And perhaps soon, if we’re lucky, God will grant us with our own baby, a little demon we can raise that is both Heseltine and Blake.

The End