Page 13 of Wicked (Dark Delights #5)

“In a dream that I didn’t know was real?” Isaac snapped.

“You figured it out, didn’t you?”

Wrenching hard at the rope binding his wrists, he shouted, “How can I trust the people who are the ones holding me here?”

Shadrach lowered his gaze. He was right, but that didn’t change the wretched feeling gnawing at his insides. He wanted things to be different, but he didn’t know how to make it so.

The door behind him opened, and Talon loomed in the doorway. “I’m ready to get started, Shadrach. Are you staying or going?”

Isaac’s eyes flickered between them, trepidation lining his face. He hid it well, but somehow Shadrach saw right through the veneer of bravado to what lay underneath. Isaac was in danger, and he knew it.

Could Shadrach stand to be in the room and watch while Talon hurt him? To his own confusion, he didn’t think so.

“No.” He couldn’t meet Isaac’s eyes as he spoke. “I think I’ll go have a drink.”

“Perfect,” Talon purred, stepping into the room. “I’d like a little time alone with our new friend here. Pay him back for this.” His fingers trailed across the shallow, clotted cut on his chest.

Feeling strangely shaky, Shadrach strode from the room, yanking on the door as he went so it would slam shut behind him.

Everyone was still there. Nathan had moved to the training area, his wooden sword clacking against one of the dummies.

Alex was on the sofa, looking despondent.

Ira and Wolf were at the snack bar with Storm and Malachi.

Most of them looked over at him as he strode into the room, but no one spoke, which was for the best. He thought he might rip the head off the first person to address him.

The front door opened, and Luke stepped inside. “Okay, they’re going home.”

Shadrach latched onto it, needing something else to occupy his mind. “Who?”

“Zach and Angie. They came by for training, but we didn’t think it was a good idea for them to stay while…” He trailed off, gesturing to the storage door over Shadrach’s shoulder .

“While we torture someone?” he said glibly.

Ira and Wolf’s eyes burned into his profile. He didn’t care, didn’t care, didn’t fucking care .

“If they’re gone, I think I’ll have a smoke.”

“It’s the middle of the day,” Luke warned. “Sun’s out.”

Ignoring both that and the fact that he’d smoked inside the building on plenty of occasions despite their repeated protests, he marched past Luke and out into the sunlight.

He was certain it wasn’t so bright to humans, but he was momentarily blinded by the white glare on his eyes.

Squinting, he followed the wall to a narrow strip of shade where they kept a standing ashtray and leaned against the metal siding as he dug a cigarette from the pack in his shirt pocket.

The first smoky inhale settled the shake in his hands but not the anxiety in his head.

What was it about that human?

Inside the Rink once more, Shadrach paced.

The humans couldn’t hear what was going on inside the makeshift cell, and the other demons didn’t seem to care.

His only reprieve was outside, but now, he couldn’t bring himself to go.

His imagination would be worse than hearing what was actually happening.

“Tell me what I want to know,” Talon growled, low and vicious. His voice was muffled through the door, but Shadrach heard him clearly.

Isaac’s quiet groan sent equal parts heat and ice down Shadrach’s spine. He sounded beautiful when he was in pain, and Shadrach wanted to scream and snarl and rip the door off its hinges in frustration that Talon was pulling those sounds from him for the wrong reasons .

And then Isaac laughed, hysterical and mocking. “You think Sloan tells me his plans? Please. Tell me another joke.”

The sound of bone on bone made Shadrach flinch, and Isaac grunted. His loud breaths filled the air for a moment, followed by a sigh.

“You know,” Isaac said lightly, “it seems strange to me that you’re even sticking around.”

“What?” Talon bit out.

“Yeah. You can do that teleporting thing, right? It’s how you got me here. You could go anywhere in the world, couldn’t you? You could take Alex and go anywhere. The paladins could be someone else’s problem.”

Talon’s cold chuckle rolled through the door. “I’m not going anywhere, holy man. This is my town. I was here long before the guild even existed.”

Isaac hummed a doubtful note. “Eh, I don’t know. The guild was founded by the Catholic Church. Are you older than Catholicism— ah !” His breathing was hard and fast, pained little whimpers escaping with every exhale.

Shadrach stopped pacing and closed his eyes.

“No, no, no, please .” It wasn’t loud, but it was enough.

Shadrach moved without thinking, rushing for the door and shoving it open.

It banged hard against the wall as Shadrach’s eyes found Talon and Isaac.

Isaac was bruised and bloody, his shirt ripped down the middle.

Half-healed cuts littered his chest and stomach, the demon blood working overtime to heal them all.

Talon was gripping his face, forcing his head back, and held a knife poised over one of his pretty, green-gold eyes.

He grabbed Talon and flung him away. Talon’s grip on Isaac sent the chair toppling over, and Isaac cried out in pain just as Talon’s back collided with the wall.

Isaac. Shit, Isaac . It was the only thought blaring through his mind. He hauled his chair upright, and Isaac whimpered. His arm was bent at an unnatural angle. The weight of the chair had broken it when he fell.

“Oh, shit.” His stomach lurched with worry, and he rounded Isaac to untie him. His fingers scrambled at the knot until a hand landed on his shoulder and jerked him around.

“What the fuck do you think you’re—” Talon started.

Shadrach reacted, slamming his fist into Talon’s face and grabbing him, shoving him up against the wall.

There, they both froze, their hands tangled in each other’s shirts and their teeth bared at one another—because this was foretold months ago.

‘When you and Talon finally come to blows, it’ll be over your human.’

Shadrach’s eyes widened, and Talon’s narrowed.

“No,” Talon snarled. “Hell no. This one? Seriously?”

Shadrach pushed off of him, turning away. The others were crowding in the doorway, watching the whole thing. Ira was the only one who looked unsurprised.

“What the fuck is going on?” Storm asked.

Malachi looked downright gleeful. He waved a finger between Shadrach and Isaac. “That’s?—”

“Shut the fuck up,” Shadrach ordered, returning to Isaac’s bonds and untying them. The last thing he wanted was for all of them to start fucking gossiping in front of them while Isaac had a broken arm.

“Talon, come here,” Alex said, reaching for him. Shadrach kept one eye on Talon as he passed them, but he made no move toward either of them.

Isaac hissed as the rope loosened and fell away, leaving his arm to dangle. Shadrach cradled it, touching the break gently.

“My blood will heal it,” he said softly, kneeling beside him, “but the bone has to be lined up. Just hold on.”

Isaac threw his head back, his body tightening like a wire as Shadrach moved the bone, sliding it into place and holding firmly until the discoloration began to fade away. Little by little, as the pain dimmed, the tension drained from Isaac’s body, leaving him slumped and exhausted in the chair.

“Your blood?” Malachi repeated. “You already fed him your blood? Was he willing, or was that when he was unconscious?”

“I will tear your arm off and beat you with it,” Shadrach growled over his shoulder.

“Hey,” Luke protested.

“We’ve got an extra sandwich left over from lunch,” Ira said. “Why don’t we give Isaac some food and water? Healing takes a lot of energy.” He shot Talon a narrow-eyed look, and Talon shrugged unapologetically.

“Did you learn anything?” Storm asked.

“Didn’t sound like it,” Wolf said.

“No, nothing worth knowing, besides this one’s pain tolerance,” Talon said, jerking his head toward Isaac, who was watching them all with hooded eyes.

Shadrach was equal parts proud and frustrated that Isaac still hadn’t given them anything that would satisfy Talon’s curiosity .

“Yes,” Shadrach said, getting them back on track. “Food and water. I’ll get it.”

Isaac’s head rolled wearily toward him, and he was ensnared by the depths in Isaac’s gaze. One of the others spoke, but he didn’t hear them. All that mattered was the human in front of him.

His human. Isaac was the one Ira told him about. The rope in his chest pulled harder than ever, and now he finally knew what it meant. Isaac belonged to him.

Talon made a noise of disgust and strode away, pulling Alex after him, and one by one the rest of them trickled away.

“Why did you stop him?” Isaac asked, his eyes roaming Shadrach’s face.

It took him a moment to find his voice. “I like your eyes right where they are.”

Isaac’s brow furrowed in confusion, and Shadrach took the opportunity to escape. “I’ll get you something to eat and drink. How’s your arm?”

“Sore, but better.” Isaac’s expression was guarded once again, and he pushed himself up to sit straighter in the chair.

“We’ll leave the ropes off for now. You’ll need your hands to eat.”

“You could just leave them off for good,” Isaac rasped. “That’d be a step toward earning my trust.”

“Oh, really?” Shadrach asked archly. “How do I know your feral ass wouldn’t chew through the drywall to escape?”

Isaac snorted. “At this point I’m too tired for that. Food and water is also a good start,” Isaac said. “Staying out of my dreams would be another. ”

Shadrach pouted. “Are you sure you really want me to? You didn’t seem to mind having me there last time.”

“I didn’t know you were real last time.”