I was left shaken and horrified. Staring at the burning, swelling dragon, I was torn between bursting into tears and raging after Shya in a fit of wolf’s fury. Neither would bring me satisfaction, and the latter would leave me next to the dead woman by the fire.
Kale was gone. He was little more than a shadow moving through the graveyard.
Arys examined my arm, careful not to touch Shya’s mark. With a frustrated sigh, he pulled me close and pressed his lips to my forehead. “Oh, my reckless wolf. And, you say you don’t have a death wish.”
Chapter Fourteen
I stared up at the sign above the front door of The Wicked Kiss and sighed. Every night, every new twist in the chaotic tale of my life led me back here. Fuck it. It had whiskey.
It was late. The club was closed to the public for the coming day – sunrise was just a few hours away – but the building was by no means empty. The party never really stopped; it just changed.
I could feel the energy pulsing inside. I knew Kale would come here. He wasn’t going to be content with what he’d taken from me. Before he was lost in a blood-drunk haze, I needed to see him, if only to make sure he wasn’t going to do anything stupid.
Arys was furious with me in that severe, quiet manner that reveals a far deeper anger than if he’d just yelled. His refusal to accompany me inside served to emphasize further his seething rage. Despite my attempt to assure him I would be fast, he had muttered obscenities beneath his breath and slipped off into the dark to prowl for a victim to take the edge off.
I understood that need now. It was the only time I found peace anymore. Every time my world started to come apart, the promise of freedom in the kill taunted me. The pull was getting harder and harder to resist, and I was starting to ask myself why I bothered when madness held the promise of liberation.
The crowd had thinned down to a dozen or so. Those who would pass the day screwing and bleeding were already in the den of debauchery in the back. I did not intend to go back there.
The darkened atmosphere was welcoming, inviting me to slip through the shadows like so many others had tonight. We all sought something here. Escape from pain, hunger, loneliness. What we would never find was solace. Mine stood across the room, nuzzling the throat of a convenient redhead he had pressed against the wall.
Kale’s head snapped up as he sensed me. I turned away quickly, cowardice quickening my pace. Sliding in behind the unmanned bar, I helped myself to a bottle of whiskey. Sure. Why not? Who needs a stinkin’ glass anyway?
As the first swallow of whiskey burned its way down my throat, I risked a glance around. Kale’s lady friend rubbed herself against him provocatively. I didn’t want to watch, didn’t want to feel the bitter bite of jealousy. He wasn’t mine. I knew that on a conscious level, but deep within me, I didn’t believe it. Wrong. So wrong.
Feeling my gaze upon him, Kale turned in time to catch me staring. Shit. With a stony expression, he grabbed the redhead’s hand and led her through the club to the back hall. They disappeared beyond, and I burned with misplaced envy.
A few scorching shots of liquor hit me with a pleasant buzz. With the heat of the booze warming my insides, I embraced the false comfort it offered. Maybe it had been a mistake to come after Kale.
I was about to leave when he returned. He stormed up to me with anger burning in his brown and blue eyes. I greeted him with a raised bottle and a cynical grin.
“That didn’t take long. Don’t tell me you killed her. I don’t even want to know.”
He glared at me with darkness in his gaze. “You walk in here like my favorite blonde nightmare and expect me to even be able to think about someone else? What are you doing here, Alexa?”
The power sparked between us, lively and hot. I felt Kale’s anger burning through me, and it brought a naughty smile to my lips.
“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m having a drink.” I followed that with another swig of golden liquor. “If you’re expecting me to apologize for saving your ass, then I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed.”
I fixed him with a steady stare, daring him to let me have it. This had been building for weeks now, since our night together. What happened tonight had pushed it too far, and now came the inevitable backlash. I was ready for it.
“You didn’t save my ass,” Kale fumed, his tone low and deadly. “You made an arrogant decision based on Shya stroking your ego. He’s trying to appoint you as some kind of vampire queen, and you’re letting it happen. You’ve gotten too power-crazed for your own good.”
“That’s bullshit.” I was stunned by his allegation. “I couldn’t stand there and watch him tear your head off, Kale. He put the choice in my hands, and I chose not to watch you die.”
“Selfish.” He spat the word in my face. Wild emotion fed his energy until it reached out to me with a stinging slap. “You don’t want me, yet you think you have a right to decide my fate. It doesn’t work that way.”