Darkblood Prison - G.K. DeRosa Page 0,16
time to skim the wall and stay upright. Jerk.
“There you are, Actaeon.” Talon was eye to eye with the C.O., his reptilian irises shifting into thin slits.
Note to self, all the guards seemed to be dragons, which made sense since the prison was nestled within the soaring peaks of Draeko. I also noticed a silver bracelet across this correction officer’s wrist which I hadn’t seen on the others. Interesting…
“What do you want now, Talon?”
My dragon bunkie ticked his head at me, a scowl marring his stupidly gorgeous face. “There’s been a mistake. This demon doesn’t belong in here with us.”
Actaeon’s bushy brows scrunched together as he eyed me. “She’s the new one, right? The one that came in the other day?”
“Yup.” I marched toward the two men hoping to finally get some answers. “And she has a name and can speak just fine for herself.”
Talon rolled his eyes so hard I thought they’d disappear into the back of his head forever. “I can’t be in the same cell as her, Actaeon. Tell the new warden, do something. Anything.”
The crease between the dragon C.O.’s eyes deepened as he glanced from me to Talon and back. “What’s got your panties in a wad, Talon? She doesn’t seem like the worst cellmate to me. She’s prettier to look at than the angel.”
Hayden shot him the finger before continuing with his push-ups one handed now.
“It’s personal. Can you just see what you can do?”
The big dragon nodded. “The new warden’s settling in. I’ll let him know when I get a chance. Now let’s get moving. You’re going to be late for your shift.”
“What shift?” I asked.
He revealed a tablet from under his arm and stared at a long list. “Well, since I don’t have an assignment for you, inmate, I guess you can go with these two.”
“No!” Talon practically shouted.
Hayden appeared at my side and stretched his long arm around my shoulders. “We’ll take her. Don’t worry, pumpkin, I’ll show you the ropes.”
“Perfect. Let’s get a move-on.” The guard motioned to the hallway, and I nearly sprinted out of our cell.
“Come on, Actaeon…” Talon grumbled as he lumbered behind me.
“Whatever your beef with the girl is, let it go. I’ve got enough problems in this place without having to deal with you. I gotta train the new warden and Delacroix is acting up as usual.”
My ears perked up at the sound of the hellus demon’s name. If I did end up staying in here, I had to figure out the lay of the land.
“What did he do now?” my reluctant roomie asked.
Actaeon lowered his voice so I slowed my pace to eavesdrop on their conversation. “Massacred one of the new detainees when he refused to bend the knee. Where was the Triad then?”
Talon muttered a curse through his clenched teeth.
My heart staggered on a beat as I remembered the Triad standing up for me in the mess hall. Would Delacroix have asked me to join him if they hadn’t? Would I still be alive right now?
The rest of their conversation blurred behind my racing thoughts. If I was a demon and I was supposed to stick to my own kind, I’d have to eventually fall in line with Delacroix. My stay with the brothers couldn’t last forever. Not with the amount of animosity spewing from my dragon bunkie. The big ugly demon hadn’t seemed that bad, but then again I hadn’t crossed him. I wasn’t exactly a rule follower and kowtowing to a murderous gang leader left a bad taste in my mouth.
Chasing the depressing thoughts away, I refocused on the present. The guys had stopped talking, Hayden had fallen back to walk beside Talon and the C.O. had taken the lead. It was my chance to get some information.
I took a few long strides and caught up with the big dragon guard. “Hey, C.O., do you know exactly what I did to get in here?”
He cocked his head at me, the silver strands in his short hair catching the halogen lights from above. “I think everyone at this prison knows what you did, girl.”
“Not everyone.” The pit of dread that had taken permanent residence in my gut doubled in size. “That night is kind of a blur.”
He threw me a you-must-be-kidding-me look and picked up his pace.
I reached for his arm but pulled it back at the last minute, thinking better of it. “Please,” I muttered. “No one will give me a straight answer.”
“The warden will speak to you when he’s ready.” He