The Princess & Her Alphaholes by Renee O’Roark
Chapter Four
Double cross
Krinessa
The elevator doors open with a swish of frigid air, the underground carpark is full of shadows and cars… so many cars. Gadriel leads me to a black SUV with windows so darkly tinted I can’t see inside. He just stands beside it though so I command him to “Give me the keys.” When he doesn’t respond, I start to second guess myself, but with a bit of rewording I finally figure it out. “Get in and start the engine.” He fishes in his pocket, producing a single fob, no actual key attached. Bloody modern cars! The bastard is sitting in the driver’s seat, but I have no idea what security is like so I tell him to act normally and drive us out of the parking garage, get us through security and then out onto the main road heading west.
With my fingers crossed, I slam his door, round the car and climb into the passenger seat. I start fiddling with the radio, searching for the perfect get away song before realising we’re not moving. “Go, now!” His movements are still robotic and I pray he doesn’t give us away.
The parking garage lets out onto a driveway with gates at the end, security comes out from the little booth but not all the way to the car. Gad rolls down his window, nodding to the guy in the black uniform before continuing past. I breathe a sigh of relief as we pass through the open gates. The buildings flash by as the car picks up speed, I'm not sure where to go now so I just give him a direction to head in, "Follow this road until we reach the forest on the outskirts of town and then stop the car."
My robotic partner in crime does exactly as I say, right down to stopping, dead centre of the road when we reach the edge of the forest surrounding Haven, my hometown. I roll my eyes at how literal Gad took my command. "Pull the car off the road, you big goof-ball." To my utter shock, he gets out and grabs the bottom of the car, physically pulling the vehicle sideways onto the short grass edging the road.
Whoa, talk about muscles, this things gotta weigh at least 3 tons including my added weight inside.
He just stands there staring into space so I jump out and start walking through the trees until I’m far enough away from the road. I glance back a few times but he doesn’t follow. Counting my lucky stars, I start running, but then I hear sticks breaking somewhere to my left. I veer right, going until I’m too tired to take another step. I must have run for hours, the sun just starting to sink passed the tops of the trees when I hear a noise behind me. My entire body is shaking by the time I get behind the nearest tree and crouch down.
“Where the fuck did she go? I thought you were going to stay close to her.” I hear Boss-man’s voice coming from my left.
“I did exactly as you said, even pretended to be her little puppet, but she just took off. Once she was in the trees it was as though she vanished. There must be some kind of magic blocking my tracking spell.”
I knew Gad had to be faking, there’s no way he’d allow me to leave that easily. Dammit, I should have gone with my first instinct and punched him in the dick instead of grabbing his ass. Thank goodness I had no intention of leading them to my mother. Now I just have to get out of this fucking forest and away from these creeps.
“Well, she didn’t lead us to Gabriella, but she did lead us to something. Check this out.” Kane’s voice comes from really close and I practically hug the tree trying to remain hidden. I want to know what they’re looking at but the risk of discovery is too great.
“Is that what I think it is?” Gad asks in an awed tone.
“Fucking hell, dude this could change everything.” Rafe’s words have me slinking slowly out from behind the tree. Curiosity should be a crime.
I groan as the assholes all smirk at me, I take a resigned step away from the tree, then another.
Rafe’s smirk practically takes over his entire face. “Found you beautiful but play time’s over.” He laughs as though we were just playing a fun game of hide and seek. “Tell us where to find Gabriella.”
“You know, I don’t think I will. What’s the worst you could do? Kill me?” I smirk at the way the four of them roll their eyes to the stars above us.
“We could do a lot worse than kill you, but I think you’ll find our methods more pleasurable than that.” Kane steps out from their semi-circle, getting right into my personal space. I crick my neck looking up into his face and almost sigh at how beautiful he is. The green in his eyes almost seems to glow in the dark, making his whole face appear otherworldly. I guess he kind of is otherworldly, considering he’s not human. I cock my head to the side, curiosity once again getting my ass in deep shit.
“Don’t worry babe, I’m not going to hurt you. I just want to see something.” Kane leans in closer, his glowing eyes almost hypnotising as they take on all my focus. I feel like I’m swaying, my body wanting to get closer to his, but my mind is screaming at me to run.
I want to run.
I want to kiss him.
Wait! No, I want to run.
His lips are barely a breath away from mine when my mind clears. I slam my palms into his chest, feeling every single muscle as he starts to laugh. Pulling my head back, I knock into the tree behind me, confused for a moment as to how I’m now leaning against a tree when not two seconds ago I was standing a good four feet away from it.
“Interesting.” Kane walks back to the others, shaking his head. “Well, we don’t really need her anymore. What shall we do with her?”
“I don’t understand. I thought you were keeping me around to find my mother.” Why am I arguing about this right now? Geez Krizzy get it together. If they’re done playing games, just walk away.
“You just told us where to find her babe. We have no need for you anymore.”
“But I didn’t tell you anything.” I couldn’t have, I don’t know where my mother is. Haven’t seen her in weeks, not since she… Oh shit!
Not since she sent me the weird ass text message saying she was going out of town and that I had to stay around other people until she got back.
“She knew you all were here, that’s why she left town.” The words come pouring out of my mouth before I can stop them. “She tried to warn me, which means….” I shake my head. No, she wouldn’t lie to me like that. Surely if this is all true, then she had to have had a plan. A way to break the deal that didn’t involve me. Maybe it was an accident. Yeah, something went wrong when she tried to break the deal and her mark transferred to me by mistake. That’s it, has to be.
“Aw shit. No, come here babe. Don’t cry.” Kane wraps his arms around me, gently patting me on the back. I’m not sure when I started crying but this feels wrong and yet so right. I sink into his arms, my cheek resting on his solid chest. “She left me alone knowing she was being hunted.” I sob into his shirt.
“Well, I guess we need to find another way to locate Gabriella.” Rafe’s voice is right behind me, if I weren’t such a mess, I’d be worried about him being so close to me. That guy seriously makes me feel weak, like in the knees weak. He seems to grow on you like a deceivingly pretty thistle flower; his attitude prickles at you until you can’t stand it anymore, but his looks draw you in. Confuses the fuck out of you and leaves you wondering if you should kill him or keep him.
My mind is such a jumbled mess that more words pour from my lips, “What are you going to do with me?”
“Nothing. You’re useless to us now.” Gad’s growl leaves me shaking in both fear and weirdly enough, lust. I don’t want to be attracted to him or feel anything right now, but with Kane’s arms wrapped around me, Rafe’s warmth still far too close and Gad’s glaring gold eyes staring into my soul, I’m feeling far too much and not enough at the same time.
I want more from them.
No, I want nothing from them.
“Can I go now?” I groan, trying to remember that my goal should be running away, not getting closer.
“Nope, still have to get that mark off you and back onto Gabriella.” Boss-demon stares at the tree behind my head, lost in thought for a few moments then smiles. It’s the kind of smile that shows his eye-teeth, practically splitting his face with how wide it is. I want to back away but Kane’s arms sinch tighter, keeping me trapped where I am. “Take her downstairs, put her in one of the holding cells until we locate Gabriella.”
I really don’t like the sound of that. A demon threatening to… I look at him more closely and am shocked to say the least. He doesn’t have horns or glowing beady chocolate eyes right now; he looks almost human. Although weirdly, he isn’t as good looking as the three behind me. He’s a demon Krizzy and just threatened to send you “downstairs” which I can only assume means Hell. Afterall if Demons exist, I then have to assume that hell does too.
Fuck this is getting weirder by the second.
“No. If you’re going to keep looking for my mother, I want in.” Maybe if I’m part of the search I can find her and lead them in the wrong direction at the same time. I need to know what the hell is going on. I want answers and the only way I’m going to get them is if I’m free to go looking.
“Not happening. Take her away.” Boss-demon’s command is followed through by Gad, who grabs me much the same as he did before, except this time he doesn’t throw me over his shoulder, he simply lifts me up so my chest is hard against his, his lips breathing distance from my own making mine tingle in anticipation. It takes everything in me to resist the temptation to lean that little bit closer and see if he’d taste as good as he looks and smells.
“I can help you find her!” I yell desperately as Gad begins turning around.
“You said yourself, you have no idea where she is.” Gad growls into my ear. “Why should we trust you when you led us on a wild goose chase, just so you could try to run away.”
“I’ll do whatever you say, just please don’t send me to some cell to rot.”
“Whatever we say?” Kane motions for Gad to put me down. Shaking, I nod my head accepting the fact that I really have no choice here, if I’m trapped somewhere with no way out, I’m useless.
“Within reason.” I add in a small voice.
“No, you said Whatever we say.” His smoky voice takes on a sultrier edge as he takes a step in my direction. I feel like I’ve just agreed to something far more dangerous than searching for my mother. The way Kane’s eyes roam over me from head to toe has me shaking like a gazelle thrown into a Tiger’s path. I swallow roughly as I try to step back. My back hits Gad’s chest, leaving me with nowhere to run.
“Boss, if she agrees to do whatever we say, can we keep her?”
No! Say no! I want to scream but the words lodge in my throat, making it hard to breathe as Boss-demon smirks at me and replies, “I see no harm in that, but she’ll be your responsibility Kane.” For a second, I think he means only Kane, but he looks at Rafe and Gad and adds, “Yours too Rafe, Gad. If you keep her, it’s for good, not just a temporary thing. She’ll be yours to take care of, yours to punish,” Boss-demon’s chocolate eyes meet mine as he says the word punish. “Yours to dispose of when she is no longer useful.”
My gulp is audible, but none of them seem to notice. Every muscle in my body is frozen. My heartbeat, loud in my ears letting me know that despite my body being useless, I’m not dead.
Yet.
That asshole literally just gave them permission to kill me. Kill me! As though I’m some kind of pet, not a person.
“Agreed, but I have two conditions of my own.” Gad says wrapping his arms around my waist as though he’s expecting me to run or maybe he’s expecting me to pass out. I’m sure that’s what I’m going to do, pass out and make myself look like a fool.
“She’s ours, Rafe’s, mine and Kane’s; no one else’s.”
Wait what? Why does he sound jealous of the idea of me with someone else? Why is he glaring at Boss-demon as though he’s going to steal me away?
Why the fuck am I questioning any of this. I fucked up, I should have taken the imprisoning, there’s no way I can survive the three of these guys.
“Agreed, what else?” Boss-demon cocks his head, his dark brows raised.
“After you take the soul mark off, she remains ours.” Gad’s words send a shiver down my spine.
I both like and hate that idea. Hate it more than like though. “What? No. After you get this stupid mark off, I’m free. You all let me go.”
“Trust me babe, you won’t want to leave by then.” Kane’s wink makes my knees give out. For some reason I have an easier time believing Kane’s words than I should.
“I have one more thing to add,” Rafe steps forward, his eyes a blue so light they look like ice in the middle of the ocean. I feel like those eyes are boring into my soul, “You can’t say no to anything we ask without giving us a valid reason.”
“What?” What the hell does he mean, I can’t say no? That’s ridiculous, everyone has the right to say no to something they don’t want. Hell, they have the right to say no to things they do like. Why the hell would he add that as a stipulation?
Gad’s the one who clarifies, “What Rafe is trying to say is that your choice is a simple one, be our slave or we dump you into a cell in hell and leave your ass there.”
Hmm decisions, decisions... rot away in a cell or be the slave of three sexy demons who look at you like they want to devour you in the most delicious of ways....
Pretty sure my lack of sex life is what’s ruling my head right now.