Page 24 of Night’s Fall (The Four Realms #1)
“I would take heed and settle quickly,” he advised. “ The prince is not the kind of male to allow this intensity to falter. You two will be facing your final days decades from now, and the heat of his possession would burn through legions.”
I felt my heart roll over at his words but admitted, “ I didn’t even realize we were mates. He had to tell me.”
He patted my hand on his arm. “ Well done, Ms . Makepeace . Fate may have decided you belong to each other, but he’s a male who doesn’t respect something unless he earns it…
or wins it. If you were to fall at his feet, he would accept you as his fate, it would make him happy, but it wouldn’t fulfill his needs. ”
This was not good news.
“It didn’t take me long to fall at his feet,” I shared.
“Nor did it take you long to snatch me and leave his presence. I’d say that’s happened to him very few times in his life. Perhaps … none ,” he returned.
“I wasn’t?—”
He patted my hand again. “ Your heart is kind. He won’t have missed that either.
You still left him. Turned your back and walked away.
” He smiled, exposing very big, very healthy, very white teeth in his tanned, leathered face.
“ I would suggest you keep him on his toes, but I believe you’ll do that anyway.
” He tipped his head to the cigarette piece.
“ Now , is there a reason you brought me to this one?”
I looked at it, seeing the small digi-sign at the bottom left side named it Cancer , it cost one point three million, and it was sold.
“It’s hideous,” I stated bluntly.
He chortled.
I turned back to him. “ And I love it.”
“Before my time, definitely yours, this world was practically covered in what they referred to as ‘butts.’ Butts that killed beings. Demons and shifters couldn’t get cancer, but fae could, though their superior immune systems could beat it.
Before the vaccine was created, it was an epidemic for humans. A killer in a butt .”
He chortled again and I couldn’t stop myself from doing it with him, but I had a mind to the fact we could only do that because that epidemic, and its long-lived, tragic results, had long since been eradicated from our planet.
He leaned toward me and rolled up on his toes to confide, “ I’m told I have an odd sense of humor.”
“Doesn’t seem odd to me.”
“Wanna know what’s even more hilarious?” he asked.
“Absolutely,” I answered.
“It took me all of an hour to smash those butts into a frame. An hour!” he crowed. “ And some poor chump shelled one point three mil for it. Now that’s hilarious.”
We both busted out laughing.
I swallowed mine and gasped, “ Gods , I hope the prince didn’t buy it.”
“No. I can tell he has excellent taste. I noted he had a particular interest in Marie . That , I labored over for months. She was my muse, 2072 through 2078. She passed last year.”
My head listed to the side at this news.
“I’m so sorry,” I whispered.
He nodded curtly. “ She was beautiful. The painting I honored her with is beautiful. And she had the most delicious cunt I’ve ever tasted.”
I huffed out a shocked breath, caught his cheeky, reminiscing grin, and started laughing again.
While I was doing it, something snagged my attention at the corner of my eye.
Or perhaps I felt it because I knew the feel.
I knew it down to my bones.
I peered over Terrinton’s head.
And froze solid.
No.
It couldn’t be.
But it was.
The male from the alley.
The male who shot my beast.
The male who murdered half of me.
“My dear?” Terrinton called.
“Danger,” I forced through stiff lips.
“I’m sorry?” he asked.
“Danger,” I said.
He was dressed as a caterer.
His eyes were locked on Aleksei .
He began to set his tray aside at the same time reach inside his jacket.
“ Danger! ” I shrieked, garnering the attention of those around us, pulling my hand from Terrinton , dropping my champagne to the floor where the sound of it shattering barely pierced the din of conversation, and planting my foot to race toward Aleksei .
But I didn’t have to.
Set and some female were on the threat. Set flying from out of nowhere, tackling him at his back.
The tray he was still carrying went flying, some cheese puff type things strewed, the female was right there, at the ready, legs planted, her weapon trained on him. Set popped to his feet, and she zapped him. The villain’s body jumped then went inert with the stun.
They both moved in unison to put restraints on him.
The hum around us rose sharply as people made their alarm vocal, shifting away from the ruckus, a few shrill noises of shock sounded, and I felt Terrinton’s surprisingly strong fingers circle my wrist.
“I think I should take you to—” he began.
Sacrifice , I thought.
Diversion.
Back in that alley, there had been one.
And he was easily neutralized.
Giving the other time to?—
I whirled, distractedly noting Aleksei was fighting the press of what was clearly his security detail—and I didn’t pause to count, but there were at least six of them—trying to push him to a door at the rear of the space…and safety.
But he was struggling against them in his effort to get to me.
His eyes were blazing purple.
But I didn’t have time for that.
I kept searching and I didn’t see him.
I felt him.
“ Weapon! Weapon ! Weapon ! ” I screeched before I even saw one.
I had to warn them all because I knew it was there.
At my words, panic ensued, shouts, screams, running feet.
The assassin didn’t panic or run.
He stood true.
His gaze, too, was locked on Aleksei .
I raced toward the space between him and my mate, my gaze never leaving the traitor.
He whipped out his firearm.
I stopped between the two males, throwing my arms out and screaming, “ No ! ”
As my scream echoed, the assassin lurched (and I did too) because the earth under our feet shook. The walls trembled. Cancer dropped, its glass shattered and butts littered the floor.
And my blood turned cold as the air split with the sound of an enraged dragon’s roar.