The Darkest Pleasure (Lords of the Underworld #3)(77)
Author: Gena Showalter

The form he’d glimpsed had been too big to be a woman.

He’d thought that if the women were still alive, they were merely in hiding. He had not considered the fact that they might have been captured by Hunters. He’d assumed the Hunters would have contacted him and the other Lords if that had been the case, suggesting a trade. So foolish.

"Danika," he said, gaze searching the surrounding area with new intent. He had to hide her, had to keep her safe.

Too late.

The door swung open, revealing three men. Each had a weapon, and all three were pointed at Danika, as if they knew training a gun on Reyes would not have mattered.

Fury surged inside him, intensifying when Danika gasped in horror. "Oh, my God."

"Hands at your sides, demon," one of the men told him, "and step inside. Try anything, and I’ll hurt the girl."

Hurt Danika? He chewed on the inside of his cheek, purposefully shredding his flesh. The demon stalked and prowled, growling. Ready, Pain?

Oh, yes. Evil laugh.

"Danika," Reyes said. "Close your eyes."

He didn’t look to see if she had obeyed. He simply unleashed his demon.

THE BLOOD, the carnage, the screams.

At one point, Danika had to cover her ears with her hands. She couldn’t stop trembling. Stupid girl that she was, she hadn’t closed her eyes as Reyes had demanded; she’d wanted to help. War was something she’d prepared for – or thought she had.

Then Reyes had seemed to change from warrior to crazed skeleton in a blink. She’d no longer seen the skin she so loved to touch. She’d seen gnarled bones and teeth so long, sharp and thick they could have belonged to a shark.

The Hunters had fired their guns at Reyes, but he hadn’t seemed to notice. He certainly hadn’t slowed. He’d simply devoured them. Even now, he propelled from one Hunter to the other, claws ripping into flesh. Snarls and snaps sounded, eerie, like something out of a horror movie.

Wide-eyed, she continued to watch, afraid to get in his way. Afraid he wouldn’t care who she was and would attack her, too. So badly she wanted to run and hide. Blood already splattered Reyes from head to boot, slicking his hair to his scalp and his clothes to his body. So badly – but she didn’t. Her family was inside this building. Were they okay?

I should have come for them sooner.

Amid the terrible chaos, she grabbed a fallen gun and rushed past Reyes and through the building. Where were they? She checked the nearest room – empty. The next room – four Hunters were inside, cursing, loading bullets into weapons.

One of them saw her and aimed his gun at her, shouting, "Filthy demon whore! I don’t care what they say you are." She raised hers, too. They fired at the same time. But the next thing she knew, she was being shoved to the ground, eating dirt, and Reyes was racing past her, a mere blur. A second later, the men were screaming.

Oh, God. Danika lumbered to her feet, legs nearly giving out. She stumbled forward, determined to continue her search. Reyes hadn’t hurt her, had still managed to protect her. She rounded a corner, saw a flight of stairs. Weapon trained ahead, arm shaking, she climbed them two at a time. Another corner.

Three Hunters, all of them trembling and pale, waited at the end of the hall. They saw her and fired. Just like before, Reyes was there, shoving her down and taking the blows himself. Was he hurt? Oh, God, oh, God.

He likes pain, remember? He’s fine. Her ears rang and her heart raced.

When she looked up, the men were already on the floor, unmoving. Reyes was nowhere to be seen. Danika scrambled up yet again, racing forward, tripping and falling twice. She knew she scraped her knees, but her adrenaline was so high she didn’t feel a thing.

Down the hall, a woman screamed.

"Mom!" she shouted, recognizing the voice. "I’m here."

"Danika?"

Another scream.

"Danika, baby, run. Get out of here!"

She ran, not away but forward. A moment later she was standing inside a bedroom, panting, sweating. Her mother and sister were chained to the heating unit. Her grandmother was chained to a bed, both of her legs in a cast.

Reyes was in the process of breaking those chains, his face still skeletal. He was shaking, bleeding. She should not have doubted him and would not again. Even in this form, he wanted her happy. The women were trembling and kicking at him, but still he persisted. Finally, all three were free.

Danika rushed to them and fell to her knees, gathering her mother and sister in her arms. Hot tears were flowing down her cheeks, blending with theirs.

"Danika, he’s – he’s – " her sister stuttered.

"I know, I know. Don’t worry. He’s not going to hurt you. He’s a good guy." Her family was alive. She was with them again, holding them. Shock and pleasure and relief all tumbled through her.

"I thought you were dead," her mother said through her sobs. "They told me you were dead."

"I’m here now. I’m here." Wiping her face, she let go of them and pushed to her feet. "We will not be parted again. I swear it. I’m just sorry it took me so long to get here."

They stood weakly, and together they walked to the bed where her grandmother lay. Tears were falling down her weathered cheeks, as well. Danika clutched the woman’s trembling hand in her own.

"What happened to you?" she whispered, using her free hand to run her fingers over one of the casts.

"The monster with wings." Grandma Mallory sniffled. "He found me, threw me down and…and…" Her chin quaked.

Danika almost made her granny stop, but she had to know. She covered her mouth, cutting off any words that might try and escape. She nodded to prove she was listening.

"He could have killed me after I fell, but he didn’t. He picked me up and carried me to this building. I think I used to dream of him. I’ve tried to block those dreams so long they’re only mist in a storm now, but I think maybe he saw me during those dark terrors, because he looked at me as if he knew me. I don’t know why, but I told him not to relive his past mistakes. He backed away and then he left me."

Tears splashed down her face. Dear God. They’d always dreamed for a reason. What could she have avoided if she’d studied her dreams rather than feared them? Didn’t matter, she supposed. In the end, Grandma Mallory’s dreams had saved her. And there was still time for Danika’s to save Reyes, once and for all.

"I’m sorry, I’m sorry," her grandmother said. "Now isn’t the time for that. You want to know how I got here. I couldn’t move, was stuck in this building. The bastards with guns had been following me, I guess, because they found me later that day. They already had your mother and sister."

Her hand fell, her gaze circling the still crying group. They were pale, with bruises under their eyes. "Were any of you – "