Dark Souls

Take A Bite

Ilaria

The grey skies were starting to drizzle, setting an already gloomy scene as Sienna parked up on the side of the road that ran through dense woodland. I opened the door, pulling my leather jacket slightly tighter over my chest as I stepped around the car and towards the commotion ahead. A number of unmarked SIA cars were obstructing the narrow road and police tape blew in the breeze. Two ambulances were stationed near the ditch where the police custody van had clearly run off the road and crashed head-on into a thick tree trunk.

So it was a car crash. Why would the SIA be involved in that? Sienna fell into step next to me and gripped my elbow, halting me from getting any closer.

“Wait here a minute while I speak to Raiden,” she ordered, before storming towards a group of agents, one being the very large and muscular back of my uncle. The moment she caught up to them, he slung his arm over her shoulders, kissed her lips, but then peered over his shoulder directly at me. And f*ck did he look annoyed.

Lifting my chin a little higher, I gave him my most innocent smile as he stormed towards me, Sienna jogging to keep up with his dominant strides.

“Why am I not surprised to see you here? Until you’ve had the training, you should not be getting yourself involved, Ilaria. This sh*t is not nice and you shouldn’t have to see it.”

“This was my arrest so it already involves me, Raid,” I answered calmly, causing his silver eyes to shine with irritation. “And please, I’m hardly squeamish. I won’t embarrass you in front of your agent buddies. So, what happened? Where’s Eddie?”

He rubbed his stubbled jaw as he placed his other hand on his hip. He knew I wasn’t below causing an embarrassing scene if he refused to let me know what was happening and my uncle hated to be the centre of attention. He grumbled something under his breath before he started walking towards the edge of the forest, beckoning me and Sienna to follow.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you. The police who were escorting him said a male figure appeared in the middle of the road and they had to swerve to avoid hitting him. They crashed into the tree and were knocked unconscious, so they didn’t see a thing. When they came around, they found this.”

The rain fell heavier and it was harder to see clearly as we walked deeper into the forest, but soon enough, there was a group of people around a taped off crime scene. Sienna let out a gasp, before she turned her head away in revulsion and I froze next to her.

Holy mother of Moses. There, with his arms tied around the back of a tree trunk, was a naked Eddie Hughes covered in blood with a gruesome hole in his chest where his heart once was. But that wasn’t the worst of it. The killer had cut off his d**k and shoved it in his mouth. The man had died with his own rapist d**k shoved down his throat. Oh, the irony.

Unable to help myself, my shoulders shook and I slammed my hand over my mouth to muffle my laughter. Raiden and Sienna both glared at me with complete bewilderment, which only made me laugh harder.

Sienna’s eyes widened in horror as she hissed, “Don't laugh! This is a crime scene!”

I flapped my hand at her as I tried to contain the giggling fit that was brewing by drawing my lips into a thin line and holding my breath.

“Care to share with the class?” Raiden asked, folding his beefy arms over his t-shirt and staring at me with slight amusement.

“Oh come on!” I chuckled, pointing at the castrated corpse. “Can’t you see the symbolism? You have to admit that he got what he deserved.”

Raiden exhaled a deep breath, his jaw ticking as he glanced back at Eddie. His shoulders shuddered in disgust as he muttered, “Still a horrific way to go. Whoever did this has one too many screws loose.”

“You think this is the same person who killed Slyvester?” I turned my attention to Sienna. “It has to be, right? It's almost like they are sending us a message.”

“It is definitely not a coincidence,” Sienna sighed. “But why target Eddie? This was definitely planned. The killer went out of their way to get to him, which makes me think…”

Her eyes locked with mine and filled with concern. I already knew what she was going to say because it was exactly what I was thinking.

“That the killer was still there that night. That they saw what happened between Eddie and me.” A shiver rippled down my spine. I knew I was being watched. I could sense someone in the shadows, but I thought I was just being paranoid. That the adrenaline was causing me to overthink things. I should have trusted my gut.

‘What did I tell you? Always trust your gut!’ Rue scolded me in my mind.

“So we have a psychotic wannabe hero on our hands?” Raiden ran his hand through his wet black curls as he glanced back at the body that was now being carefully untied from the tree.

“Where is the heart? Was it bitten?” I couldn’t hide the excitement in my voice. This was the thrill I was chasing. Being a predator by nature, the hunt to catch this killer unlocked a dark, twisted obsession in me and I knew it was too late. I was sucked in. I wouldn’t let this go until I knew who they were.

Raiden shook his head. “Can’t find it. Perhaps our Hannibal Lecter ate it.”

I frowned, disappointed, but Sienna’s curse under her breath drew my attention away. I glanced over my shoulder to see who she was staring at and noticed Archer’s car arriving.

“You better go, Ilaria. And don’t you dare breathe a word of this to anyone,” Sienna ordered. For a split second, I wondered if I had time to snap a quick picture but I knew that would go down like a lead balloon, so I kept my mouth shut and nodded before dematerialising behind a puff of smoke once more.

Appearing inside my family home in Oregon, which could be referred to as a palace from its sheer size alone, I ripped off my soaked jacket and hung it on the coat rack before heading through the large, white foyer. My black jeans and Metallica t-shirt were also drenched and sticking to me like a second skin as I headed upstairs to run myself a warm bath. My mind was still swirling with thoughts about why the killer would have gone to such extreme measures when Eddie was already in custody that I didn’t hear my mum’s voice from the bottom of the staircase until she’d called my name at least twice. I spun around, my hand on the bannister as I blinked down at her in a daze.

“Sorry? What did you say?”

She c****d her head, her long raven hair flowing behind her as she studied me with a frown. Her magenta eyes sparkled, catching the light of the grand crystal chandelier above us. My mother was a stunning woman. Effortlessly beautiful with so much grace and regality that just made you want to sit and stare at her for hours in awe. We were nothing alike. Polar opposites, in fact, with my icy white hair to her jet-black. She had the perfect figure, womanly and curved in all the right places that oozed so much femininity but also undeniable strength, whereas I was extremely petite in size and body shape, making me look fragile and vulnerable when I was anything but. I could be jealous of her big boobs, shapely hips or toned body, but I learned a long time ago that it would be pointless. I should be grateful for the body I had and not to compare myself to others, especially not one of the most beautiful women on the planet. Once I found my style and started blocking out others' opinions of the way I looked, I found I was actually pretty comfortable in my own skin.

“I said, where have you been all day?” She asked again.

“Oh. I was at the castle. And then I…” F*ck. I hated lying. And she would most likely find out eventually, because Archer reported most of the confidential cases involving our people at their weekly briefings, but it was also not my place to say anything about the case.

“Hey Princess!” My dad came hurtling down the stairs, skipping two at a time and causing a distraction for mum. He was shirtless, which is just about standard around here, and made entirely of muscle, being a pure-blooded wolf. He nearly sent me flying when he planted a haste kiss on my forehead before darting past me and towards her. “Sorry, can't stay. I said I’d do a border patrol around the pack. Is it raining out?”

“Oh-uh,” I glanced down at my damp clothes, but my dad was already too wrapped up in my mum to care for my answer.

“Fancy a run with me, my Queen?” He asked, sweeping her off her feet with one arm wrapped tightly around her waist. She giggled like a bloody school girl when his mouth sucked at her neck. I groaned and rolled my eyes, turning to dart back upstairs and leave them to it.

Honestly, I was no prude. But the amount of public displays of affection I’ve had to bear witness to was sickening. Everyone in the family, barr my brothers, has found their mates, which means constant kissing, smooching, caressing, cuddling, eye-f*****g across the room, you name it. And they have zero shame! Zero! I mean my grandparents have a bloody red room of pleasure for Christ sake. It actually makes me want to vomit in my mouth. Don’t get me wrong, I love that they all love each other so much. But when you’ve seen your own parents and grandparents making out at the dinner table far too many times, you start to want to stick pins in your eyes.

“Ilaria! Dinner at 7! Both your grandparents and Calli and Niko are coming so dress appropriately please,” mum shouted up after me between her giggles from my dad’s nuzzling. Oh goodie. More loved-up couples.

“Only if you act appropriately,” I shouted back which only caused them both to laugh louder and my dad to whisper something in my mum’s ear that had her blushing like a beetroot. Lord, give me strength.

Entering my room, which was in the west wing of the palace, I flung my t-shirt off over my head and threw it in the laundry basket before unbuttoning my jeans and peeling them down my legs. Cold air lashed at my exposed skin and I froze. My french doors leading onto my terrace were wide open, the sheer black curtains dancing in the breeze. What the—

I never leave them unlocked, let alone open. Walking forwards, I poked my upper body out onto the terrace to see if anyone was out there, not caring that I was currently standing in my lacy bra and thong. I frowned deeply, before closing the doors and flicking the latch down to lock them from the inside. Leif, my warlock brother, was the only person I would ever find randomly hanging out in my room when he was bored because he had no sense of boundaries, but seeing as he was currently in another realm with my wolf brother Lorcan, I couldn’t hazard a guess as to who would have been in here. Maybe one of the omega maids?

Deciding not to think too much about it, I made my way towards my bathroom to start running a bath. It was only when I walked back into my bedroom to grab a change of clothes that I noticed the pink box with a black ribbon tied neatly in a bow sitting on my bed. Happiness swelled in my chest as I zoomed towards it with a smile. Leif had been portalling letters and small objects to me from the Heroux realm that he knew I would like. So far, I've had a unique collection of crystals and writing quills as well as some exotic flowers that give off intense perfume scents.

Without stopping to read the little note folded under the ribbon, because I’m the kind of person who opens the present first and reads the card after, I untied the silk bow and lifted the lid of the box. A loud gasp left my lips as I jumped back, dropping the lid on the floor. Blood rushed to my ears, causing them to heat as my eyes widened with shock. Settled in the middle of a satin cushion was a human f*cking heart. And from the smell of blood that had my fangs tingling under my gums, it was pretty fresh out of a body.

“What the actual f*ck!” I shouted, lifting my head to look around my room. Was this some kind of prank? A sick joke from Sienna or Raiden because of my interest in the case? Or Ronnie? Leif wouldn’t send me a human heart, would he? I mean, I wouldn’t put anything past my mischievous brother, but this just wasn’t his style.

Bending down, I retrieved the lid I’d dropped and took off the folded note.

Seeing as you enjoyed the last one so much. Here is one just for you, Snow Angel. Take a bite. I dare you. H x

Oh my god. Oh my godddd.

This was Eddie Hughes' heart. And somehow, without meaning to, I had just caught the dangerous attention of a predator.