Darkest Sinner (The Dark Ones Saga 5)

Rage filled me as I snapped. “You took her chances with demons? Are you insane!” Blood surged through my system as I tried to regain control of my emotions. “Do you have any idea the danger you put her in! Someone has marked her as fresh meat! Had I not been there, demons would have fed on her innocent soul!”

“Timber,” Cassius warned.

“No!” I roared. “Don’t reprimand me. What they did was wrong! She could have died and I will not live another century this way!”

All eyes turned to me as my chest heaved. Kyra looked up at me in confusion, something flickered in her gaze, maybe I imagined it, maybe not, but I could have sworn I saw gold.

“Centuries?” Her father’s voice interrupted. “Who said that?”

“We’ll take it from here.” Cassius said in a gruff voice, hanging up the phone and sliding it into his pocket, giving me a curious look that said everything and nothing all at once. Perfect. “It’s been a long night, get some rest.”

Seriously? That was it?

I opened my mouth to say something then felt Kyra again, the heat of her touch as it nearly singed my clothing, my skin, and suddenly all I wanted was sleep.

“Sure.” I found myself saying, “Right.” Sleep. Sleep was good.

“We’ll just be going.” Cassius said cryptically as he ushered everyone out of my house, everyone but Tarek.

I frowned when Tarek gave me a smug look then pointed at the door everyone had just walked out, “I’m gonna go for a drive, be back in a few. Oh, and some pointers, not that you need any, but… be nice.”

“I am nice,” I snapped.

He nodded. “Sure… like a grumpy piranha. Don’t bite, that won’t help anything. Oh, and just… go with it.”

“With what?” I was exhausted, confused, but she was so warm.

“Mine,” a voice hissed.

Tarek shut the door, and we were alone.

Me and the girl who feared me, great what could possibly go wrong?

“Um.” Five. The amount of times I’d uttered that word in my entire existence, what the hell was happening to me? “Do you need to shower or…” My throat went dry. I was still holding her, she wasn’t pulling away.

“No.” She shook her head. “Just point me to a bed, and I’ll be okay.”

I didn’t like that. Her alone in a room even though my house was safe, I just didn’t like it, because it physically hurt.

Actually, everything hurt.

Worse than usual.

Wasn’t the soul supposed to help the burning pain in my stomach as it sizzled and snapped.

I clenched my free hand and winced.

“What’s wrong?” She grabbed my hand before I could pull it away, more branches swirled around my arms. It felt like I was being buried alive.

I didn’t panic but something or someone inside me did.

I had the urge to yell no.

To fight it.

But I had no idea what it was.

So I lied. “I’m fine, just tired.”