lightning witch 02 - lightning legacy (4 page)

"Oh, Mitch, I love how you come here and try to convince me you have been with her. All you have done is proven to me that she is indeed alive and she's been fighting you at every turn. Looks like she got you pretty good on your arm. Thanks for the visit and chit-chat. Really, Mitch, it has been illuminating."

It was he who charged the bars this time. And, at that moment, I knew I was right. She was alive and she had fought him.
Oh, thank goodness my girl is fighting him
. Both thoughts eased the out-of-control storm that was sitting beneath my skin. It soothed the beast. He seemed to catch himself at that moment and stop himself from rattling my cage even more. His upper hand was slipping and my beast, not to mention his, knew it.
Now, if these bars were not standing between us, this conversation would have had a different ending
.

He smoothed a hand over his hair, fixing the bits that had fallen out of place. He had on a navy-blue fitted suit, a skinny silver tie with a white button-down shirt, and black shoes. He was dressed to impress, though it did little to affect me. I looked down at myself. I was covered in dirt, caked-on sweat and grime. I hadn’t a stitch of clothing on. My hair was a matted mess, as was my growing beard.

"Why, Mitch, are we going on a date? You're so dressed up. God, and I didn't bring anything to wear," I quipped in my best needling tone, but it just came out as me being a prick. I shrugged.

“Reid, you forget I have her. And it’s a matter of time. She will become my mate and there will be little you can do about that,” he responded while fiddling with the French cuffs on his shirt sleeves.

“Why do you want her? I mean yes, you have proven this prophecy to be true. Why is possessing her so important?”

"You have not been given the whole prophecy, Reid. I need her to take down the witches. And then we will have control over the supernatural world. Then, we will force the weres out in public and it will only be a matter of time before we gain control of everything.”

“Really, that seems like a lofty goal,” I scoffed. Frankly, it seemed a bit out there.

“Not when we have spent the last few years getting weres into high-level government positions.” He was so sure of himself and his tone only mirrored his self-confidence.

Then the full impact of what he was saying hit me. From moment one, he was planning this takeover. If he truly had wolves in these positions, he could very well do as he was saying. It just seemed off for what I knew of him, or what I thought I knew. He was selfish; he couldn’t give a single fuck about other weres.

"Why are you keeping me alive?" The meaning of the word alive was living, and this was not living. But, I had to call this existence something.

“Delaney refuses to change without an updated picture of you. And I use you to control her. It’s that simple.” He walked over to the stairs that led to the exit. He turned to me and smiled.

"She is soft, you know? Her curves are supple, and her warm little mouth is so hungry. I think I'll get back to my little white wolf."

I charged the bars snarling at him, but he was gone.

I paced around the cell for hours after Mitch left. I had no real plan or even thoughts, other than of her. Just knowing she was fighting him sent a surge of hope through me. I wasn't sure why it was making me feel hopeful, but for the first time in months, I felt something other than pain and depression.

I had no windows in this small dank cell, but the light that illuminated under the door at the top of the cell went from natural to fluorescent, so I could tell that it was night. Being in this cell day in and day out played tricks on my mind. So, when I felt as though I had no recollection of the time of day, I would focus on the only source of light to help keep myself grounded.

I walked over to the small cot and fell on it. Maybe my dreams would be of her. Maybe now that I knew my love was alive and fighting, it would help strengthen my resolve and I would find the will to get the hell out of here and find her. I raised my arms, tucked them under my head, and drifted for a while in memories of Delaney, before succumbing to mental exhaustion.

HER SKIN FELT
like heated satin. I slipped my hands from her hair, down her shoulders to her plump breasts. She liked when I did this. I cupped both of the soft mounds and began to knead them with the same wicked rhythm she was grinding on me. Oh, gods, she was rubbing her drenched sex along the length of my cock, but she refused to put me fully inside of her. This was her game and it was maddening.

I leaned up and licked the tight little bud of her nipple. She moaned with each lap of my tongue. I licked, but never sucked her into my mouth. It was driving her crazy each time my tongue touched her, and she arched to me, seeking more. With my other hand, I rolled her pink little-pebbled flesh between my finger and thumb. She never eased her maddening grind on my now pulsing cock. And at that point, she was so wet I could slip so easily inside of her. I was being driven to the brink. If this went on much longer, I would spill without even burying myself inside of her.

I finally sucked her nipple inside my mouth and she cried out in pleasure. Oh, now I was going to explode.

"Delaney, I need to be inside of you. Now." It was a snarl, but I didn't care. She shifted and I could feel myself at her entrance. I stilled, letting her take me into her body. It took every bit of strength I had not to impale her on my throbbing cock. It was so slow. She eased down on top of me so tenderly it was driving me mad.

I could see her pulse pounding in her throat and a bead of sweat rolled down over the fluttering skin. I wanted to lick the trail it made. I leaned up and ran my tongue down its path and suckled at the frantically beating skin. I was fully in her and she was so tight and wet I nearly came at the first connection of feeling her like that.

Suddenly, she began screaming as though she were on fire. I drew my head back in a daze to see what happened. Her throat was a mangled mess of blood and gnarled meat. My eyes went wide in panic. She fell off of me, holding her neck, and the look in her eyes grew distant. They went white, the way a witch’s did in death. I reached up to my mouth. It was wet. I brought up my damp hand to see her blood coating my mouth. Me. I’d done this to her.

I flew awake. My hands went immediately to my face. It was damp with sweat, nothing more. My heart was pounding in my chest. I closed my eyes trying to calm down, but all I saw was her on top of me with blood coating the front of her and her look of shock and betrayal. I opened my eyes to stare at the ceiling.

It was the same goddamn dream every fucking night. This confinement wouldn’t drive me crazy, but these dreams sure would be the death of me. I lifted my head to peer over my body to see what time of day it was. The stairwell was dark.
Great, still night. More time for me to dream
. I did not want to dream so I got up off the cot and started doing pushups. When my arms began to burn, I switched to burpees. When my muscles began to quiver, I returned to the cot. Over the months, I’d learned if I was active I didn't dream of Delaney as much. Some sick part of me wanted to keep dreaming this dream. Even though it ended the same way every time, it was the only time I got to see her.

I felt myself drifting back to sleep and I would at least get to be with her there.

I TURNED AROUND.
I was in Delaney’s apartment? I made a circle, trying to figure out how I got there. Everything looked the same from the last time I was there. Even her beloved French press sat out on the counter with what looked to be coffee brewing in it. My heart raced at the thought. Could she be here? I ran through the small apartment and found it empty.

“Hello?” I called to the empty apartment.

“Hello, Reid,” a voice with a slightly eastern European accent came from behind me. I didn’t turn to face it, because I knew the voice all too well. A chill ran up my spine. Slowly, after I took a moment to dial down my aggression, I faced him.

“What are you doing here?” I questioned between gritted teeth.

"Oh, Reid, is that any way to greet your maker?" His tone was scolding.

“How did we get here?” I asked, eyeing the apartment.

“You picked this place, wolf. I am not surprised, because it was hers,” he said, walking over to the French press. He got two coffee cups out and poured the hot liquid into them. The room was filled with the rich scent of the steaming brew. My heart ached because it reminded me of her.

“Who are you? I mean you changed me and I have a feeling you aren’t just some prick werewolf going around changing people,” I commented, eyeing him as he walked over to the table. He offered me a cup before he sat down. Was any of this real? I sipped the coffee and the heated liquid coated my tongue and slid down my throat, causing me to shudder in pleasure at the rich taste. It sure as hell tasted real.

He smiled at me. “I have many names. Taranucno, Taranuo, Taraino, and others." He drank deeply from his mug and eyed the liquid as though he was surprised at something. He met my eyes and continued, "Through history my name has changed, but Delaney's people and yours knew me as Taranis.”

His name seemed to echo through the empty apartment. I eyed him warily.

“I’m not sure what those names mean. I still have no idea who you are other than the asshole who changed me.”

Then something happened that sent fear, unlike anything I had ever felt before, through all of me. His image flickered, much like a hologram would. The being underneath his human image was a creature that looked to be made of nothing but lightning. That was when it clicked. This man. This being. This thing was a god. And I just called him an asshole
. Great job, Reid.
Now, he would strike me down for sure.

“Reid, this
asshole
is the whole reason you have her.”

My eyes widened not just at his tone of such self-assurance, but at what he said.

“Why did you turn me?” This is a question I have held for many years and I made a vow that if I were to ever face the animal who did this to me, I would ask him. This would surely be one of the only chances I would ever get.

“Because my daughter needs you.” His face softened marginally at the thought of Delaney.

Wait, his daughter? Delaney was the daughter of a god? The weight of that fact nearly sent me staggering back.

"Does she know? That you’re parent to her?" It came out as more breath than words, but I was still reeling that the woman I loved was part god.

"No, but she will. She needs you, Reid. She needs you to be whole. She needs you to not let this break you, because, Reid, she is breaking.”

“What do you mean she’s breaking?” I asked, setting my cup down on the table. My voice was trembling. The thought of anything more happening to her, something that I couldn’t be there to prevent, made me quake with madness and hurt.

“A person, even if they are of me, cannot go through so much loss and pain and still come out the other side unchanged,” he explained, eyeing me. He seemed so unaffected by his words. I could imagine this would be the same tone he would order his dinner with.

“Then help her! Or get me out of here and I’ll go get her!” I was losing my cool and I knew it. I grabbed the edge of the table, trying to steady myself and not lash out at a being that could surely kill me.

“I cannot. There is only so much I can do. You know, free will and all that you humans so love.” There was an audible snap. I looked down to find the edge of the table broken and in pieces.

“So, why come here? Why tell me any of this if there is nothing I can do to help her?" I was speaking through clenched teeth. Damn it, if there was nothing I could do, why come at all?

He rubbed his chin in thought. The light that danced in his dark eyes dulled. He seemed to genuinely think about the question, almost as though he forgot why he was here. He snapped his fingers and life seemed to return to his eyes.

“I have something for you! And I have a word of advice,” he nearly yelled as he stood up. I backed away from the table, not really wanting to get too close to him. I saw him shove his hand into his pocket and pull out a small gold coin. He handed it to me and I took it.