very thankful for my self-defense training with Mezlor and stepped back until I got swallowed up in the crowd. Weaving between writhing bodies, I glanced back every so often to make sure the demon wasn’t following. After a few minutes, my racing heart calmed, and I broke free of the oppressive dancing mob.
Standing on the outskirts of the dancefloor, I sipped the faery wine while keeping one eye open for good-looking demons. So much for my relaxing night out.
No, screw him. I wasn’t letting that guy ruin my evening. I was having fun tonight even if it killed me.
I tossed my head back and gulped down the rest of the faery wine and left my glass on a high-top. Throwing my shoulders back and adjusting the ladies in my tight halter, I sauntered right into the sea of wriggling bodies. Warmth coursed through my insides, a heady combination of alcohol and the seductive beats. I swung my hips to the music, tossing my long, raven locks behind my shoulders. Within a few seconds, a ring of Fae males surrounded me.
The wine loosened my limbs and my inhibitions. Before long, my fingers were digging into the short hair on a handsome Fae’s nape while another grinded up behind me.
Swinging my head and hips to the thundering base, the garden scenery began to blur. I slowed and squeezed my eyes shut to focus.
“Don’t stop, baby,” the male behind me whisper-shouted in my ear.
I leaned my head back to rest on his shoulder, and the mystical blue sky above began to spin. Shitzu. I may have greatly miscalculated my tolerance for that freakin’ faery wine.
The other guy snaked his arms around my waist, tugging me away from his friend. His thumb and index finger locked on my chin, and his lips inched closer. His face was nothing more than a beautiful blur. His mouth pressed against mine, and a surge of fiery heat exploded in my core. I lurched back but with the other Fae behind me, I didn’t get far.
Something crackled inside me like live wire. My heart smacked against my ribcage, the rhythmic pounding drowning out the DJ’s raging beats. I sucked in a breath, but I couldn’t tamp down the brewing storm. More than that, I didn’t want to. My world spun as darkness crept into the edges. The inky invader coiled around my insides, seeping into every crevice and I let it. I welcomed it.
I could barely make out the Fae’s face as his lips pressed against mine once more. His tongue snuck between my clenched teeth and as my jaw unlocked, the darkness was set free. A whisper of blue essence swirled between us, and I gulped it in.
It was like nothing I’d ever tasted before, like devouring a heady concoction of ecstasy, pain, lust, and fury. I inhaled deeper, and a jolt of pleasure wracked my insides.
And then I was swallowed by the black.
Chapter Four
Present Time
My lids fluttered open, and I jolted upright, my heart leaping up my throat. Screams echoed across my eardrums as nameless faces shot across my mind. I clapped my hands over my ears and groaned. The small twin bed creaked beneath me as I scooted to the edge of a thin mattress, and my feet hit the floor. Where am I? My head spun and a massive headache jackhammered into my temples, forcing my eyes shut once more.
“Welcome to Darkblood Prison, pumpkin.”
My heartrate spiked at the unexpected raspy male voice. Opening my eyes, I spun around to find a metal bunkbed at the back corner of the small enclosure and two large males perched on each mattress. A pair of steely silver irises bored into mine from the top bunk, sending a spine-tingling chill up my back. I wrapped my arms around myself to chase out the icy greeting, and my fingers grazed the stiff polyester fabric that had replaced my worn leather jacket. Eew.
Memories of my recent arrival to the prison flitted across my mind, and that pit of dread intensified a hundred-fold. I slapped my hand over my neck and my fingertips brushed a sensitive bump. Those a-hole guards drugged me.
On the plus side, those jagged metal handcuffs had been removed. Only a sleek black cuff adorned my wrist. I searched my core for any hint of power but only a vacant hole remained. Whatever this thing was, it was just as potent as the magic-sucking manacles.
Shaking my neck out, I refocused on the two men silently boring a hole