Page 19 of Resurrection (Daemons & Lumens #2)

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Seraphina

T he scalding water in the shower heated my skin in the best way while I mulled over everything that happened in the last twenty-four hours.

Andras and Ty managed to turn my body and mind into mush for the better part of an hour.

And fuck, had I needed that. We all did.

Being here in this horrible fucking place with the wannabe kings controlling every fucking thing was driving us all insane.

Tibby’s escape had them rattled, and I smiled thinking about it.

The electric chair I endured because of it sucked, but it was worth it.

I would take any amount of torture if it meant the people I cared about were safe.

Speaking of safety. My sister was tangled up with an honest-to-shit daemon.

The guys told me all this shit was real, but seeing a full-on daemon was weird as hell.

And I hated seeing him wearing the face of Darren Radnor and pawing at my sister with his sticky fucking fingers.

I knew it wasn’t him and the prick was dead, but it was seriously difficult not to keep throwing knives at him.

I also did not believe for a second that Laszlo Blackbyrn let me go off for a chat with my sister out of the goodness of his evil heart.

That fucker was always up to something. He was always a step ahead of us, and I would not underestimate him.

Having us all seated together at the world’s most uncomfortable dinner table was purposeful.

Dev was tortured with his sister while I was taunted with mine.

Levi was forced to sit next to his father, Andras beside his.

And poor Audrey and her father. They were pawns in a game of Kings with no hope of coming out of this unscathed.

I would do whatever I could to help her.

And yet, I knew I would choose Kaela first, if I had to.

But that was the whole point, wasn’t it?

Laszlo liked giving us impossible choices.

He wanted us to feel the pain of those choices.

Fuck that fucking guy. Samuel Delano too.

He wasn’t outwardly awful the way Laszlo or Darren were.

He was sleazy and gross in a whole different way.

Recalling his slimy presence inside my mind made my skin crawl.

I wished for my mother. The need to rage at her for not telling me about all this was overpowering.

If only she had, maybe I could’ve protected myself. Protected Kaela.

I realized once again how little I thought of my father.

He’d been absent since that day in the Great Hall.

He gave up on us. He got Kaela kidnapped.

Joseph Bronwen was supposed to be the parent, the protector.

His inaction was like a punch in the gut over and over again. He was just as bad as the Kings.

Alright, fine. He wasn’t just as bad. But I did seriously want to punch him and ask why he did nothing when he could have done anything else.

I shook off the anxiety building inside me with all the negative thoughts bubbling in my mind.

How was I supposed to sleep in this fucking place?

The room was too quiet without my Princes.

The moon shone high in the cloudless sky, casting shadows across the bed.

I climbed into it and stared at that moon.

It would be full soon enough, and when it was, the ritual would finally take place.

Would it hurt? Did Lailah feel pain when they killed her for power?

Morax said I wouldn’t die. And I would be helping bring his brother here.

Phenex, he called him. Strange name, but I kind of liked it.

Would he be monstrous? The daemon form Morax had was badass.

I bet the Princes would look tasty as hell if they had daemon forms. My mother was a lumen, though.

Were their forms so different? Would I be like her?

I lifted my hand into the moonlight, gazing at the slim fingers, wondering.

So far, I only had the ability to heal, but what else could I do?

Something inside me pulsed, and I begged the feeling to come forward.

My skin tingled, and I could’ve sworn my flesh was glowing.

The feeling left as quickly as it came. Whatever power surged in my veins, I couldn’t access it.

Not yet. But I would. Soon enough, I would have the power to fight back.

The Kings weren’t afraid of men or weapons. They weren’t afraid of the Princes. But I would make them fear me.

The next few days leading up to the ritual passed in a blur.

The Kings were oddly absent. Andras said his father remained distant and dismissive.

Extra guards were posted at every door, and my men and I rarely had a moment alone together.

I needed them badly. Not just for orgasms. But also definitely for orgasms.

Typhon was able to get me access to the gym, and working out was one of the only pleasures of this stupid haunted prison. Of course, there were guards watching us the entire time. I smiled, remembering how my monster man knocked out two of the guards for staring a little too closely.

My sister was kept away from me, even more thoroughly guarded than my princes.

Morax, aka Fake Darren, kept her locked away in their room.

The illusions he kept up were exhausting his strength, and he was almost out of Darren’s blood.

The other daemon, Gremory, had access to a witch, apparently, and that was how he had the power to create the illusions.

Witches. Who knew? It made sense, though, their existence.

All the creepy ritual shit was very witch-like.

I was a little bummed I wasn’t one. Even before I learned about daemons and lumens and the absolutely bonkers existence of other worlds, I wished for it.

There were moments when I felt it too. That pulsing power in my veins.

The way Lailah’s skin would sometimes glow before our mother would give her a look.

I was beginning to think she forced Lailah to hide her power.

If it was to keep us safe from The Obscuritas, her plan failed spectacularly.

My face scrunched up in frustration. No, there must be more to it. Our mother was anything but stupid. She wouldn’t let this happen without reason. I just needed to fucking figure out what that reason was.

A knock at my bedroom door startled me out of the spiraling thoughts, and I suddenly felt like vomiting.

Tomorrow was the event that would change everything.

But today…today I was going to see my father.

Laszlo casually mentioned the happy reunion at another one of our fucked up family dinners.

We were all being called to the ballroom where the event would take place for some weird-ass rehearsal.

I wore a long black dress with the V-neck going down to my navel. The fabric was silky soft and hugged my curves to perfection. I wore my hair in waves down my back. The door opened, and a guard was about to speak when he was suddenly ripped from the floor and shoved aside.

My monster man grinned like the daemon he was and stalked toward me.

He wore a dark-green suit that complimented his complexion and made his hazel eyes pop.

He licked his lips, and my thighs clenched at the hunger in his wolfy hazel eyes.

Ty’s hand snapped out, and his fingers tightened around my throat as he dragged me close.

Our lips were nearly touching, and I sucked in a ragged breath, enjoying the feel of his rough hands squeezing tight.

My pussy throbbed, and I nearly moaned. I really really needed to get fucked.

Ty’s nostrils flared, his sexy-as-sin face lighting up with wicked desire. “You smell exquisite, pet. I think your sweet cunt misses me.”

Smirking back at him beneath dark lashes, I nodded. “Perhaps. Could’ve been for the guard, though. I did see him first.”

Ty growled and squeezed my throat tighter, cutting off the oxygen. “Don’t taunt me, pet.”

I leaned into his grip, slipping my hand over the massive bulge threatening to break free from his pants, and smiled.

Ty leaned down and crushed his lips to mine, forcing his tongue down my throat.

I kissed him back feverishly, even as little spots began to appear behind my eyelids from the lack of oxygen.

But I wouldn’t stop. My breaths were his to take, and I would give every last one to him and the others if they asked.

The emotional thoughts were still unnerving.

How much I cared for these fuckers still shocked me.

“Stop now!” a guard shouted behind us.

Ty released my throat enough for me to drag in a long breath. He stared at me, our eyes locked in a battle of sexual wills.

“I said—” the guard began, but was cut short by an ominous snarl from Ty.

“Speak to me again and I will rip out your spine,” he snapped at the guard, and his little eyes widened in fear. “And if you so much as look at her, I will pluck out your eyeballs with a spoon. Slowly.”

I squeezed Ty’s cock through his pants, and he turned his attention back to me. “I fucking love when you say sweet things like that.”

Ty grinned and forced me to his side, smacking my ass as he pulled me close. “Anything for you, little vixen.”

We followed the guard out of my room and through the maze of hallways. I desperately needed to get out of this fucking place. Nightmares found me each night, filling my head with the screams of Lailah and our mother.

There was no rest for the wicked, as they say, and I was absolutely in the wicked category. But like, the good wicked. I killed bad people and was basically making the world a better place.

“Where are the others?” I whispered to Ty as we walked.

“They will be arriving soon.” Ty frowned. “Guards took Devon and Levi somewhere, and sent Andras to his father. Only I was allowed to escort you.”

“Those assholes sure do love splitting us up,” I grumbled, so over this shit.

Ty grunted in agreement.

We arrived at the ballroom, and two guards opened the doors for us.

We entered via one of the side entrances, not the grand entrance where guests would arrive tomorrow.

The hall was massive. The ceilings were easily fifty feet high.

It was similar to the ballroom at Vespertine Hall, with the gothic architecture, but twice as big.

Windows decorated the far wall leading out to the courtyards beyond.

There was a stage at the center of the room on the opposite wall, and dozens of staff flitted about the room setting up cocktail tables and decor.

I might actually enjoy attending a masquerade ball if it wasn’t for the Kings hosting it. Speaking of cockroaches, we headed closer to the wall of windows where the Kings stood. My grip on Ty’s arm tightened as I absorbed the scene before us.