Forsaken (Broken City 2)

God, she tastes so fucking good, better than I even expected. I want to devour every single part of her, own her completely. Maybe I will. Maybe I'll take her as my own and never let her go. But not right now. If I'm going to break that law, I need a plan, one where I won't get caught. Otherwise, I'll be executed.

"They were right about you," I moan as I drink more of her.

She screams again, and then her eyes roll into the back of her head.

I could keep going, but I'd drain her dry, and she'd probably end up dying. If I stop and give her time to heal, she might be strong enough for at least a hundred more feedings, if not more.

I can't pry my hand off her, though, so I continue feeding greedily. Her strength drowns me to the point that I feel so damn high. Pure ecstasy--that's what she is. I want more. Now. All of it!

I force my hand against her chest. More. More. More! I need more ...

The room suddenly starts to spin. Round and round and round. I've never felt anything like it before. My mind is buzzing. I feel so alive. Too alive. I think I might be taking too much, more than even my body can take.

Sucking in a breath, I yank my hand away from her and gasp for air. Then I stare down at her slackened body. She looks so helpless it makes me want to touch her again, but I fear my heart might give out from an overdose.

"I'm coming back for you," I whisper as I get to my feet. "Just you wait. One day, you'll belong to me and me only."

And I mean it. I always get what I want, no matter what.

Chapter Five

Kisses and Snowflakes

I gasp for air, struggling to get my bearings. Darkness smothers me, along with the stench of sulfur and death. The hard surface underneath my back is very familiar, and it clicks where I must be.

In my cell.

Ryder, Reece, Blaise--they were all a dream. The rescue, the East City Post, the fault line, the caves--it never happened.

Tears spill from my eyes and stream down my cheeks. I can't believe I'm still here. I can't believe the guys don't really exist. I can't believe everything I was feeling, the good and the bad, was a lie.

My heart thrashes as I lie in the darkness. What did Lex do to me to make me see through his eyes? Did he do something when he fed from me? He seemed so obsessed, so crazed, so hungry.

I shiver, replaying his thoughts.

He said I was powerful. How can that be possible when I feel so weak and broken?

"Sweetheart, are you cold?" The sound of Ryder's voice cascades over me like warm water.

Oh, my God! He's here.

I squint through the darkness to the opening of the cave. Just outside is the night-kissed sky. Relief pours over me. I did escape. The post, the fault line, the caves--I did go to those places. The best part is that the guys are real. I didn't dream them up.

But if I'm in the cave, then what just happened with Lex? Was I dreaming? No. It was more than that. I remember the cold rush I felt before ... before I what? What happened after that? I'm not sure, but for some reason, I have a feeling it had to do with the legend of the spirits.

"Allura?" Concern laces Ryder's voice. "Are you ...? Are you crying?"

I dry the tears from my cheeks, but more continue to drip from my eyes. "Yeah, but it's okay. I just had a nightmare."

Ryder scoots closer, wraps an arm around me, and pulls me against his chest. "Do you want to talk about it?"

I sniffle. "It was about L-Lex."

"The warden's voice you heard in the East City Post?"

"Yes. I was dreaming about when he came into my cell and fed off me, only I wasn't seeing it happening from his point of view. I could hear his thoughts and see how much he wanted to feed off me--no, I didn't just see it." I press my hand against my chest. "I could feel it ... He didn't just want to feed off me. He wanted to devour me until I was dead. But he stopped himself because he was worried he'd overdose. And because"--my voice cracks--"he wanted to try to steal me and keep me for himself." The only good thing about that dream is that, while Lex knew I was different, he didn't suspect I was a hybrid. I get a drop of comfort from knowing that.

Ryder falls silent for so long I start to grow worried.

"What's wrong?" I ask, wiping my eyes with the back of my hand.

"It's nothing," he mutters. "I just think ..." He shifts, sitting up and lifting his arm off me.

An icy chill seeps through my skin all the way to my bones. Is Ryder afraid of me? Has he figured out what I am?

"I don't think you just had a dream," he mutters. "It sounded like you had ..." He doesn't finish, just shakes his head.

"Ryder, please tell me what you're thinking." I choke back the tears. "I'm scared ... that what happened"--I suck in a breath, steadying my shaky voice--"had something to do with the spirits."

"Don't be scared." He rocks me back and forth, something he has done a couple of times. "Everything's going to be okay." He finds my cheeks with his fingers and wipes away my tears. "We need to go and tell Reece what happened. He'll know what to do."

I'm starting to get up when his lips brush my cheek. I freeze, my breath faltering from my lips. The kiss is so feather light, so brief I wonder if I imagined it. But then he kisses my cheek again, and this time, his lips linger on my skin.

My eyelids slip closed, and I feel myself drifting ...

Snowflakes fall from the sky and dance around me. Music drifts from somewhere as I spin in a circle with my head tipped toward the cloudy sky. Silence fills the air except for the beating of my heart and the whisper of the snow kissing the world. I feel so at peace that I don't ever want to move. Maybe I won't. Maybe I'll live here, make this place my own snow globe where I can feel the snow whenever I want, where nothing bad can ever touch me again.

"I could watch you do this all day," a guy says, sounding close.

I smile to myself. I know that voice so well. It's a voice that has made me happy at least a thousand times. I just wish I could remember his name.

Footsteps crunch against the snow, growing closer, and my stomach flips in anticipation.

"So beautiful," he whispers, his hand finding my hips.

I stop spinning, but I don't open my eyes.

Snowflakes melt against my cheeks as I trap my breath in my chest. I wait, wait, wait, knowing, knowing, knowing something amazing is about to happen. Then I feel his lips against mine, and a warm sensation spills across my tongue and down my throat. I breathe the taste in, needing more.

"I've wanted to do that forever," he says breathlessly. "I can't stop thinking about you. God, I want you so much."

God, I want you so much, too.

But then I feel a spark of hunger ignite inside my chest, and just like that, the moment dissipates.

No. Not again!

I stumble away from him and turn to run, keeping my eyes closed and never looking back, even when he shouts my name ...

I blink, an exhale rushing from my lips.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you," Ryder says in a panic, leaning away from me. "I just thought ..." He shakes his head. "I don't know what I thought. I just wanted to kiss you. That's all. But I'm sorry if it scared you. I should know better. You just got out of the channels less than a week ago. I'm sure you're already overwhelmed without me adding to it."

"You didn't scare me," I say softly, which is the partial truth. He did startle me in a surprising way. But the memory that tickled the back of my mind is what sent the jolt of fear through me.

"So ... if I did it again sometime--kissed you--maybe after we get to the station and you get settled in and you start to feel more comfortable with everything, you wouldn't mind?" His light tone doesn't match the tension in his body.

Would I mind Ryder kissing me? I'm not sure. I do like him, just like I like Blaise and Reece.

"You know what? Don't answer that right now," he says quickly. "I want you to think about it and answer when you're ready."

"Okay," I agree, although I'm not entirely sure what I'm agree

ing to. Another kiss? Or just that I'll think about it?

Ryder gets to his feet, pulling me up with him. "Let's go and talk to Reece. It's probably time to pack up and leave, anyway. And with what you just told me, it's probably a good thing we're leaving. I know I said I don't believe in these curses, but ... This place really fucking creeps me out."

I let him lead me to the entrance of the cave where Reece is perched on a rock, watching down below for any sign of the Forsaken. Before we step out into the cool night air, I dare a glance over my shoulder. For a heart faltering moment, I swear I see the outline of a tall figure with red eyes watching me from inside the cave, but when I blink, it's gone.