He held my arms behind me, pulling at the wound on my back, reminding me of Cal’s betrayal, my ribs screaming as my body tried to knit the bones back together. Lazarus’s punishment. My wrists were clasped in one of his massive hands while the other tenderly stroked my cheek. His golden eyes pierced me with the intensity of his longing.
“You are the loveliest of all the brides who have come over the years. I feel very lucky to have found you.” He brushed his lips to mine again, this time lingering only for a moment before pulling away again to stare down at me. “So young. So vibrant. Your body is ready for my seed. You will grow my son in your belly, and you will be honored as my queen.”
I felt the pull toward him. I was shocked once again by the intensity. His words were like the sweetest music, telling me everything that I suddenly wanted to hear. I knew the touch of magic—it flooded through my veins thanks to Cal—so I knew that it was magic compelling me to love everything about him. His smell played over my tongue as I inhaled breath after breath of him, tantalizing and exotic. His face, his body, so hard, packed with muscle, his erection straining against his pants. But it was his eyes that held me rapt. I couldn’t tear mine away, not when he was staring at me with such want, such desire.
All sound evaporated around me. All feeling, gone. He slanted his lips over mine, their fullness encasing my mouth as he darted his tongue between my lips.
He released my bound wrists, moving his hand to cup my butt as his other stroked the curve of my breast, his tongue plunging into my mouth, tasting me.
The wound to my ribs pulsed, matching the throb of my sex as Lazarus continued to kiss and stroke me. But the pain from my back brought stabbing reality to my mind, slicing through the haze of Lazarus’s magic. Tugging at the cloud of desire. And then I remembered.
Cal. My Hunter. My lover.
I realized what I must do. I reached up to stroke the nape of Lazarus’s neck, my fingers dancing a familiar pattern over his flesh. He moaned against my lips, tasting me even as his body began to slump.
His lips broke free from mine, his eyes wide, fighting against the impossible, before sliding closed. His body grew totally void of strength and I cradled him as he fell, letting the momentum carry me down to the ground with him landing in my lap.
I let my shoulders slump, feeling suddenly exhausted and as I lifted my gaze I found Cal staring at me, his mouth open as if to speak. He held a wolf down, pinning the giant beast in a submission hold that I recognized. The beast thumped and growled, struggling to get free as Cal continued to gawk at me, seemingly lost in my gaze.
With a curt shake of my head, I reached along the graveled ground, my fingers splayed and stretched to grab my dagger. As my fingers brushed its hilt, I sucked in a deep breath. Despite the aching of my broken ribs, I pushed my hand farther out and finally grasped it. I rested for a moment, knowing my body was busy healing my wounds, quickly knitting me up with the help of Cal’s Hunter bond, but the pain still took my breath away.
As I turned my eyes to Lazarus, I felt the strange sensation of sorrow cloud over my pain. Staring down at such a beautiful, sleeping man, I found it hard to believe how evil he was. But he was evil. And I had to put an end to it all. Without another moment’s hesitation, I plunged the blade home, slicing through the expensive suit that Lazarus wore, offering no protection to the bite of silver that entered his chest and went straight to his heart.
Lazarus’s eyes flew open, a silent scream on his lips as his body died. He could do nothing. It was already too late.
The fighting suddenly stopped. His pack, sensing their leader’s demise, looked from one to the other, seemingly confused, disoriented. One let loose a mournful howl that sent a chill rushing down my spine. The rest followed suit, and then all gathered themselves and took off, leaving the Hunters looking around in bewilderment. That is until their individual gazes fell on me and Lazarus, my hand still clenched on the handle of the blade.
Cal ran to me, easily lifting Lazarus off my lap so that he could haul me to my feet. He wrapped his strong arms around me, careful not to squeeze my injured ribs.
“You did it. Morgan, you did it.” He was happy—I heard the hope, the love. When he pulled away to look down at me, he was smiling. “I thought he had you. I thought you were enthralled.”
I didn’t smile back. The pain from my wound hurt again, now that the adrenaline was gone, a scathing cut across my back from Cal’s sai. “I put him to sleep.”
Cal stared down at me, looking dumbfounded and clearly speechless for a moment, the strangest expression on his face. “That…well, that was brilliant! Of course. But why didn’t you tell me? Why didn’t you let me know that’s what you had planned?”