Crimson Covenant (Onyx Assassins 1)

“Uh-huh.” I slit the first piece of tape, then the other. “Those borders are all that hold the Covenant together, and as the heir to the Witches, you should know better.”

“Please, do mansplain a little louder.” She smiled sweetly at me.

“Jocelyn,” I snapped, coming to my feet. “When your mother hears—”

“Then don’t tell her.” She rose from the chair, rubbing the red patches on her wrists. “I was here to help…a…” She fumbled with her words, no doubt seeking for the word closest to the truth without actually being the truth. “An acquaintance.” She nodded, pleased with herself.

“Right. Let’s get you the fuck out of here before Luka decides to make a point out of you.” I pointed toward the door.

“Pity they didn’t send Benedict. It’s so much more fun to lie around that one,” she said over her shoulder as she walked to the door. I closed it behind us, and Jocelyn leaped over the balcony railing, lowering herself slowly as her hair fluttered around her.

“No need to show off,” I muttered. Fucking witches and their flying.

I passed the next door, again feeling that subtle pull, and paused, taking a deep breath and breaking apart the scents one by one. Smoke. Sweat. Sex. Apple cider vinegar…. My fucking heart stopped. Bergamot and lime.

An acquaintance.

No fucking way. Right? The idea of it was absurd.

Or was it?

“Are we going or what?” Jocelyn called up, her voice pitching higher at the end in a nervous tell.

I kicked open the door, splintering the wood and sending what remained crashing into the wall beside it as it swung wildly on its hinges.

A set of pale green eyes flew wide from where the human sat on the queen-sized bed, her hair a glorious cloud of auburn around her and her bare legs tucked up under shorts too short to call decent.

“Valor,” I growled.

The human had the nerve to switch off whatever program was droning on in the background, then put the remote down slowly. But there was a fine tremble to those elegant fingers.

“You used apple cider vinegar to hide your scent from me?” I stalked toward her, noting that her eyes didn’t dart for an escape route. She was well and caught and the lass knew it.

“It worked for six months,” she said with a shrug. “You’re going to shit bricks when you realize just how many times you almost had me.”

“I should—” Fury took off like wildfire through my veins, which was second only to the punch of my cock at the zipper of my pants and the lengthening of my fangs as her scent hit me full on, burning my throat, filling my lungs, and jolting my heart.

“You should what?” she spat back, scrambling to her feet. “We both know you’re not going to hurt me. Just let me go now so no one else does.”

“Oh, we both know that, do we?” So the fuck what if she was right? I was the general of the vampire army. The second to the king himself. “Would you like to test that theory out? I’ve been chasing your ass for six fucking months at the request of my queen, and now you think you have what? Immunity from your crimes?”

She tilted her chin. “I know what you do. You’re an assassin. Once judgement has been given, you carry it out. You kill the criminals.”

“Aye, I do.” I stalked her like the predator I was, my mouth watering at the thought of tasting her. Did that citrus scent carry into her blood, too?

“So if you’re here, it means I’ve been judged.” She backed away slowly, but my predatory nature was still triggered, ready to pounce.

“You don’t know anything about our world, lass. Just the lies those bigoted, murderous assholes you call family filled your head with.” The ones who had kidnapped my queen and tortured her. The ones who had put out hits on every royal lineage among the immortals. Her. Fucking. Family.

“I know that you can’t hurt me.” Her breaths came quicker and her scent altered, tingling with fear that I both appreciated and loathed. I wanted her to suffer for making me chase her for six months. I just wasn’t sure how I felt about her fearing me. Odd. Usually I didn’t give a fuck what women thought as long as they got out of my bed after they’d come a few times.

“If I’d been sent to find you after a judgement, I wouldn’t be here to fetch you or hurt you, Valor.” I backed her into the wall, then caged her in with my arms.