Tempting Darkness(Darkness Series)

Chapter 3

Darius Wraith

I stare out the window overlooking the castle grounds. This place is older than dirt and has been passed down through the generations; though we have renovated the castle to our taste, it still has the same feeling it’s always had. My father was old-fashioned, and I would not miss the gaudy drapes and the ugly furnishings he had throughout this place. We have made it more functional for our needs and that of the army we are building here. An army that was for her… to keep her safe.

I just can’t believe she’d called on us after all this time. After everything we have done for her. She threw it all in our faces and then demanded our help! I killed my f*****g father for her, Tobias lost his brother because of her, and we nearly lost Kalen. Aleera is lucky we didn’t because I would have killed her when I’d laid my eyes on her if we had. Aleera ruined him; she ruined all of us.

However, luckily, Tobias will handle Aleera until I can get over the shock and anger for calling on us after all this time. All this f*****g time, and then she suddenly wants us to save her. No calls, no letters, nothing for six bloody years. To say I am angry is the understatement of the century. I want to hurt the girl, strangle the life out of her. She needs to feel the agony she’s caused us. She will regret running away from me, from us. I’d make sure of it.

Kalen and Lycus don’t say a word as we enter our room, yet I can feel their eyes on me, watching me and waiting for the explosion that is sure to come. Yet despite hating her—every goddamn thing about her—I have never felt so relieved at the same time. She will pay for betraying us, for nearly destroying us. Hearing the door open, I look over at it to see Tobias walk in. His anger is as hot as mine.

He hates her just as much, and with good reason. What she took from him, what it had cost him, pains me still. His twin brother was also like a brother to me—another life lost while trying to find her. Not only did he lose his title as the next Vampiric Fae King, but she also took the only person who stood by him when everything fell apart. She took so much from us, more than she could or would ever realize, but she would pay.

We would have loved her; we already do, despite our anger. I would have looked after her, but she threw it in our faces.

“Well?” I ask him as he drops into the armchair next to the fireplace, his shirt all creased. Usually well put together, he looks unkempt for the first time in ages.

“Hopefully, she freezes to death,” he mutters, glaring at the flames licking at the wood as he tosses in more kindling. I hate that look on his face, the look he has when he re-lives that night. That night will forever haunt him. I look away, unable to handle seeing his torment.

“Where is she?” Kalen dares to ask, and I shoot him a deadly glare. His blue eyes instantly drop to the floor as if embarrassed that he even asked. No, he is embarrassed because he still cares for her, and he should be after the damage she’d caused. Lycus watches him with a worried expression, and I know why he is concerned.

Kalen’s obsession with her almost killed him last time when she never answered our call, and by the time we got to her school, she was gone. We thought she needed time to get her head around the idea of us, but after a few hours, we realized we had misjudged her.

“She is in the cells,” Tobias sighs before rubbing a hand down his face like he is tired, which he is. The anniversary is coming up, and he never sleeps much this time of the year. I usually have to exhaust him or put him under when he goes too long without sleep. Without sleep, Tobias becomes even more unstable, driven by his instincts. We have lost a few men to his grief. Having her here was going to make him worse.

I watch Kalen as his head snaps up before he notices my gaze. His face shuts down, instantly recognizing his mistake. His temper is our weakness, and we couldn’t drop our guard around her. I nod to Lycus, and he pats Kalen on the shoulder and nods toward the door. Kalen reluctantly gets up and follows him. I would have to pull him in line later. We wouldn’t lose him to her again. She has taken enough from us, and I wouldn’t allow her to do it again. She either fell in line, or she would rot in that cell for the rest of her life.

“We should have let them kill her,” Tobias mutters. He reaches for the bottle on the coffee table in front of the fire. Moving toward him, I watch as he twists the cap off the bottle before bringing it to his lips, swallowing down the amber liquid. My hands fall on his shoulders, and Tobias flinches, only relaxing when I squeeze gently. He knows I would never hurt him. We’d been friends long before we became mates. I trust this man with my life, and he trusts me with his.

“She will pay for what she has done,” I say, and he drops his head back to look up at me standing behind him.

“I want her to hurt, and I want her to bleed like we have all done for her.”

“Then make her,” I say.

Tobias turns his stare back at the fire burning for a second, his green eyes reflecting oddly from the flickering light of the flames. His expression darkens as his mask slips back in place. The same icy demeanor that has made people run just at the sight of him. He can be cruel; he is nearly as sadistic as me, and he knows it. Aleera should fear him just as much if she knows what’s good for her. Tobias could be cold; family meant the world to him before she destroyed him. Now, he will return the favor and destroy her as she did us.

“Aleera will wish for death long before we grant it to her,” he chuckles softly, shaking his head before tipping the bottle to his lips. I take it from him, making him growl at me. His drinking has worsened, making me worry he is developing a drinking problem. My jaw clenches at the angry look on his face as he glares up at me.

“You want revenge, fine. But do it sober,” I tell him.

“And after?” he asks, and I stand upright. As I stare at the flames, my mood plummets further, and my lips press in a line. Sometimes I hate the mate bond; I hate it with a passion. It can be the worst feeling, craving someone but hating them simultaneously.

She nearly ruined all of us; Aleera almost killed Kalen. We almost lost him because of her selfishness. We just need to remember everything she took from us.

“Then we kill her. We don’t need her.”

“Are you sure that is a wise decision? We need her. I f*****g hate her and wish nothing but death on her, but she is our power keeper. She would strengthen us, complete us.”

“We have survived this long without her, and I don’t want her touching my magic. She doesn’t deserve to after what she has done.” He nods in agreement, bending forward and leaning his elbows on his knees. The tension in his body is clear as his back muscles tense under his shirt, his arms flexing and straining against the fabric.

“She has no magic. I couldn’t feel it. Could you?” Tobias asks while looking over his shoulder at me.

“She must have burned herself out. I couldn’t sense it either, but she’d manifested. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to call on us.”

“What was she doing there in the first place? That was bloody stupid of her. Not even we would take on a Lycan City on a full moon.”

“Well, maybe you wouldn’t,” I tell him, and his lips tug at the corners.

“Yeah, but you are crazy enough to,” he says, and he is right. I fear nothing, and I have no reason to. Nobody in the world fears anything more than my name.

“Would be an enjoyable challenge,” I tell him, making him look over and smirk.

“I think Lycus should deal with her for a few days. I don’t want Kalen near her. Not until he has control of his emotions. Probably best I steer clear of her, too. I may just kill her,” Tobias says, snatching the bottle back, and I have to agree. These would be testing times, especially with her under our roof. We are not the only ones that will be tested. She will be too.