Tangled Redemption (15 page)

She curled her hand as if to hold his touch, his caress.

“Sydney?” Jayden put his hands on her shoulders and rubbed
her nape.

“What?”

Miguel smiled. “You were about to tell us what was on your
mind.”

She was?

Miguel took her chin and forced her to meet his gaze. “What
went through your mind? Whatever it was it increased your excitement.”

Jayden curled around her back and rested his chin on her
shoulder. “You can tell us, love. It’s just the three of us here. Nothing’s
forbidden or wrong.”

She shook her head and rubbed her cheek against his chest.
“It’s not that. It is just something I’ve been conditioned not to do since I
was old enough to count.”

“Now I am really curious. Tell us.”

She wanted to. She loved them. Even if she couldn’t share
her feelings with words, she could express them with her body. She just didn’t
know what she would do if they rejected what she was about to offer them. They
were an intimate part of her. They might not be visible, but she’d always
thought of them as her best feature.

Miguel gripped her chin a little tighter. “Show them to us.
They are part of you, so they can only be breathtakingly beautiful.”

How had he known what she’d been thinking about? She nodded
and moved to the center of her bed. Jayden smiled, his eyes filled with
encouragement and desire. She took a deep breath and allowed her wings to
become visible.

Miguel balled his hands into fists to control the immediate
need to touch the beauty before him. He’d caught sight of her wings that first instance
on the ship when she used them as a distraction against the Ferals attacking
her. But at that point there had been no time to take in the stunning beauty of
them.

They were a deep burgundy red, one could say blood-red,
which at the tips transitioned into silver white. They framed her slender body,
drawing the eye and focus onto her, her allure, her exquisiteness.

She didn’t look at either of them. It was as if she feared
judgment. “Sydney.” He wouldn’t allow her to hide from them.

She slowly raised her lids and met his gaze.

“I have never seen anything this beautiful. May we touch?”

Sydney dropped her gaze again. He thought he’d caught a
blurring of her eyes. Miguel looked at Jayden with a frown. The other man
shrugged and stretched out his arm to stroke her leg.

“What is it, love?”

She pressed her lips together and shook her head. “Nothing
important, just some old baggage I should have left behind long ago.”

Miguel gritted his teeth. He might not be able to claim his
lifemate, but he still wanted her to be happy. “Who do I have to kill?”

Her eyes widened, but then humor sparked in her sea-blue
eyes. “Only my whole seventh grade.”

He kept his expression impassive but allowed humor to color
his expression. “That can be done.”

She smiled at him, the hint of tears pushed away, making him
feel like a hero. “I appreciate the offer, but they’re really not worth it.”

Jayden took her hand. “Share with us.”

She rolled her eyes but clasped his fingers between both her
hands. “If you really have to know, my wings are a very unusual color. There
wasn’t another Naema at my school with my color or even close.” She shook her
wings. “They are just so…bright.” Sydney shrugged. “We’re not supposed to show
our wings, but at that age we just start to develop the dimensional portal to
hide them, so we kids had them visible more often than not. I made an easy
target.”

Miguel raised his hand and stroked the back of his finger
along the outline of the wing closest to him. “They are incredible.”

A flush spread across her chest and face.

He gently tugged on one of the big outer feathers.

She bit her lower lip.

Jayden looked at him with surprise in his eyes.

“How quickly did you learn to hold the dimensional portal?”

It took her a moment to focus on him. Then she grinned. “I
was the first one in my age group.”

Miguel continued to caress the outer feathers and Jayden
stroked her inner thigh.

“Anyway, I’ve always wanted to find out if all the stories
are true and after everything we’ve done you are obviously the perfect
opportunity.”

Miguel dug his nails into his upper thigh outside Sydney and
Jayden’s line of sight. It hurt not to be able to speak freely. Lifemates
should not have secrets. The three of them had taken that first step into
trust, but all three of them had been through too much to share their inner
feelings easily.

He had barricaded himself behind the thickest and strongest
wall he could imagine against their connection. Every time he felt her, every
time he saw their link, every time he wanted to reach out to her mentally he
tempted fate. More importantly, he tempted her safety. Nothing was more
important than Sydney’s survival. Hence the barrier.

But the drive to accept their link, to tear down all
barriers and share himself fully was there every single minute of every single
hour.

He looked at Jayden. Maybe together they would be able to
fulfill their goal, but with the shortened timeline their chances were pretty
slim.

“What stories?” Jayden’s sensual voice stroked over him.

He refocused on the two people who in just a few days had
become dangerously important to him.

Sydney shook her wings and spread them to their full
expanse. “In a situation like the one we currently find ourselves in my wings
can heighten our pleasure.”

Miguel rose and moved, making sure to touch wherever he
could. The texture of the wings against his naked skin was incredible. He knelt
behind her, his knees bracketing her. He stroked across her wings, from the top
to the ends, from the outer line to where they came out of her back.

When he caressed her down her spine she arched her back and
groaned. He noted the response for later and indulged some more. The texture of
her feathers was strong and soft at the same time. In all his years he had
never touched anything like it. With every caress his cock grew harder and his
need more powerful.

Sydney shivered and clung to Jayden, who knelt before her
stroking her front. He met the other man’s gaze over her shoulder and nearly
combusted into flames at the passion blazing on his face.

Miguel leaned forward, thrust one hand into Jayden’s soft
hair and kissed him. Their lips and tongues fought and struggled, both seeking
supremacy while at the same time giving in.

She slipped out from between them, leaving him facing
Jayden, knelt perpendicular to them and wrapped her wings around them. Her
heavy outer feathers stroked up and down Miguel’s back, catapulting his need
onto a whole new plateau. He softened his kiss and pulled back, his hand still
clenched around the silky strands of hair. “Time to get this show moving.”

Sydney leaned forward and wrapped her hands around each of
their cocks. “I couldn’t agree more.” She stroked up and down his hard member,
pushing him too close to the edge.

He had always enjoyed sex, but he’d never been this close to
out of control. After a handful more strokes he grasped her hand and lifted it
to his lips. Jayden mirrored his move and then released her, allowing Miguel to
tug her close until she straddled him. One quick touch confirmed that her
desire was as strong as his. He lined up his cock with her pussy and thrust
deep. Her nails dug into his shoulders. Her head dropped back, her sheath
fluttering around him as she grew used to his possession.

Miguel vaguely realized that Jayden had moved away, but was too
focused on the next lunge to pay close attention. He knew what would happen
next. He couldn’t wait.

Sydney was in another dimension. Her whole body tingled and
shivered, each inch of her skin too sensitive but at the same time in need of
more. Her wings amplified every touch, every caress, every thrust.

Jayden settled behind her, his flattened palm stroking down
her spine. Before she could prepare herself, another orgasm ripped through her.
He kissed her neck and nipped at her earlobe. “I like this.”

If she’d any breath left she would have laughed at his sly
comment, but all she could do was cling to Miguel while he continued to push
inside her with long, deep thrusts.

Jayden gently nudged her forward until she rested her weight
against Miguel, giving Jayden the access he required to prepare her for his
consummation. He gently teased her spine feathers, his hand moving outward, his
touch barely strong enough to feel, but enough to counterbalance the sharp
pinch as he thrust his lubed finger into her, followed by streams of lubricant.

Miguel raised his hands to her chest and cupped her breasts.

Sydney was so ready to go, but the men knew and kept their
touches just light enough to enflame but not enough to propel her over the
edge.

Their heavy breathing filled the room. The scent of sex and
passion hung in the air.

Miguel paused and held her tight against his chest. Slowly
but inevitably Jayden penetrated her ass. As before she felt overwhelmed and
unable to process the sensations. When he was finally all the way inside her he
rubbed his chin against her neck and his chest against her wings.

“Jade.” What she expected to be a scream was barely a
whimper.

“Jade, indeed,” Jayden whispered before he pulled back.

What came next was too much, too deep and intimate for
Sydney to ever be able to put into words.

She wrapped her arms and wings around Miguel and just hung
on. The men quickly found their rhythm, each plunge pushing her higher and
higher onto a level of sensation and passion unknown to her.

Miguel kissed her and tightened his grip, his black eyes
blazing with everything he felt. She wanted to stop, to study what was in his
eyes, to identify where they stood with each other, but there was no stopping
this cataclysmic wave of pleasure.

It began in her toes and streamed all the way to her tips of
her hair. Every single cell in her body screamed, first with tension and then
with a relief so deep she wasn’t sure if she would ever be able to put herself
together after this.

Her men sped up their thrusts, grew more vocal and came only
seconds after her.

She knew her physical body clung to Miguel, but what she had
just experienced was so big, so deep, her mind could not process it. Instead it
drifted in ecstasy.

But she wasn’t alone. Miguel and Jayden were right there
with her.

They slumped to the bed, a tangle of limbs and bodies, no
one capable of doing more than breathing.

Sydney wasn’t sure if she fell asleep or passed out, but she
came back to when Jayden wiped her down with a warm cloth. She murmured her
thanks under her breath but didn’t open her eyes. He disappeared and then was
back, curling around her back, kissing her nape.

This is it. This is what I want the rest of my life to be
like.

That was her last thought before Sydney fell asleep.

Miguel shot awake in an instant. The alarm flashing in his
internal comp was mirrored by the wailing of his portable comp. He leaned over
and grabbed it, Sydney’s wings stroking across his body.

“What’s the matter?” Her husky question tightened his groin.
He wanted to lean over and kiss her, but he couldn’t ignore the alarm. A few
quick taps turned off the wail and brought the details on screen.

He frowned and studied the scanner.

Jayden had jumped out of bed, pulled on his trousers and
peered over his shoulder. “Intruders? Seriously? Who is stupid enough to try
anything in a Feral compound?”

“Other Ferals?” Miguel’s fingers flew across the screen.
“Three of them and they are headed to Nasir.”

“Let them.”

Miguel stilled. He and Jayden both turned to Sydney. She
rose on one elbow. “I am guessing they’re not here to wish him happy birthday.
Let them try,” she said.

For a second he ran through the odds of the intruders
succeeding as well as the repercussions and then shook his head. “The same
alarm that went off for me will go off for him.” He followed Jayden’s example
and threw on clothes. “They won’t take him by surprise and he would question
why I didn’t show up.”

Sydney climbed out of bed, vanished her wings and also got
dressed.

He wanted to pull her close and savor her gift. Instead he
waited for her to be completely covered and instructed the comp to call Nasir.

“Miguel, what’s happening?” His holo image hovered in
midair. He didn’t appear to have gone to bed yet as he wore the same clothes.

“Three intruders heading straight to you. I will meet the
men at the bottom of the lift and take them out.” He was about to sign off when
Nasir called him back.

“Don’t worry. I haven’t had a good slaughter in a little
while. This way I won’t have to use our own merchandise.”

“Do you have guards close?” Jayden asked.

Nasir laughed. “I don’t need guards.” He signed off.

Miguel cursed under his breath, shoved more weapons into his
belt and ran out of the room. Jayden and Sydney were only a step behind him. On
his way he called backup. It took them only a few minutes to reach the bottom
of the lift. A quick swipe of his wrist over the scanner had them inside and
shooting to the top floor.

He and Jayden pulled their weapons. Sydney stepped into the
corner of the lift without having to be told to take cover. He handed her a
knife. She gripped it with confidence, putting him a little at ease.

The doors slid open and they stepped into a nightmare.

A slight whimper escaped Sydney.

Blood and gore covered the wide-open entrance hall, coming
from one of the attackers. It appeared he had been torn limb from limb. Nasir
was in the process of doing the same to a second attacker while a third fired
at him nonstop.

With absolutely no effect.

Miguel lowered his weapon and just stared. Behind him the
door slid open allowing the backup to join them. He waved at them to stand down.
He took Sydney by her elbow and guided her to a corner out of the way. Jayden
followed.

“What the fuck is going on here?” Jayden asked under his
breath.

“It appears that our leader cannot be killed by conventional
methods.”

Sydney moved a little closer, her hand grasping the back of Miguel’s
shirt. He wanted to pull her close but didn’t dare to do so with everyone
watching. Jayden stepped over until he stood on her other side, keeping her
mostly hidden behind his big body.

“Did he fall into a vat of superjuice?” Sydney’s voice
trembled a little, but he appreciated her bite.

Jayden snorted. “Looks like, doesn’t it? I always thought
that only happened in comics.”

Miguel only watched as Nasir ripped his attackers apart.
Nothing they did had any impact on him.
No wonder none of your attempts even
made a dent.
He watched an impossibility. An impossibility he was supposed
to kill.

After what felt like hours but probably was no more than ten
minutes Nasir was done. Blood, brain matter and guts covered him as he dropped
the last body and addressed his watchers. “This was just what I needed.” He
looked around him. “Made a bit of a mess, but I feel much better.” He nudged an
arm with his foot. “Who are they?”

Miguel pulled out his comp and scanned the closest body part
for ID. Seconds later a holo image appeared in midair. “Sebastian Tam.” He
scrolled through the data. “Looks like he used to work for Silas.”

Nasir crossed his arms over his chest. “Silas is dead. The
Vampire Council’s minions took him out.”

“It appears that his successor is making a power play.
Instead of working with us he wants your share of the pie too.”

“He can’t have it.” Nasir nodded at Jayden. “Take care of it
after Kajaani.”

Jayden gave a quick bow.

Nasir studied his hands and pulled his blood-drenched shirt
away from his body. “I better clean up.” He caught Miguel’s gaze. “Are we ready
to go for tomorrow?”

“The gas is in production and the troops have been advised.”

Nasir nodded and turned to the backup group. “Thank you for
coming to my rescue. Clean this up and grab a snack from the pen.”

Sydney’s nails dug into Miguel’s back, but her expression
gave nothing away. He didn’t like the fevered glint in the men’s eyes. They looked
at Nasir as if he were a god. Maybe he was, but Miguel had to find a way to
take him out. Normal weapons didn’t work. He had a few unusual options up his
sleeve.

And it was time to pull in backup. That way when Nasir took
him out someone else could take over.

He wrapped his hand around Sydney’s nape and guided her to
the lift. She stared straight ahead, the blood beneath her feet squelching. She
was incredible. Nothing in her manner or face gave away the horror that raged
through her.

The three of them entered the lift. He nodded to Nasir as
the doors closed.

A monstrous god who had to be destroyed.

He just didn’t know how.

Jayden walked behind Miguel and Sydney. Despite the distance
between them he could still see their link. It had faded a little, the reds no
longer as bright as they had been the day before. The ache at seeing them
together had mostly receded. Sydney had been very clear that she felt
emotionally linked to both of them, so he no longer felt like the outsider.
There were moments where he wished he was her lifemate, but the shadow was
mostly gone.

They needed to come up with a solution to the Nasir problem.
Jayden had been a warrior for centuries, but in all his time fighting he had
never seen anything like Nasir. Vampires were faster, stronger and harder to
kill. Nearly every one of them had an extra ability, telekinesis, precog, sometimes
languages or music. His ability to wield any weapon like a master within
minutes of picking it up had helped him more than once over the years.

He studied the back of Miguel’s head. There were no records
on his gift. Jayden prayed that Miguel—no that was too formal. Miguel was a
little stuffy already. He liked Mik better. It suited him.

Jayden hoped Mik had some kind of superpower up his sleeve,
otherwise he saw no way to take out Nasir. How the fuck had he gotten that way?
The shots fired at him hadn’t even scratched him. It had been a high-powered
laser gun with built in targeting system that searched for the most vulnerable
spots. And none of them had penetrated Nasir’s skin.

He ran through his list of more powerful weapons. One
problem was that a high impact weapon made it impossible to be close by. After
what he had seen, Jayden didn’t trust that a conventional weapon would make it,
no matter how big. He needed to see Nasir die with his own eyes. No coming back
alive after.

A second problem with taking out the compound meant the
death of all the humans held. He was single minded, but up until now he had
always said no if it cost innocent lives and he could save them.

His gaze wandered to the slender figure beside Miguel.

That attitude may have changed. If it came down to them and
her she would win every time. He hoped it wouldn’t come to it. And that meant
one thing.

He flicked a hidden switch in his internal comp. The chip in
his eye had recorded Nasir’s massacre. Jayden encrypted the short file and
added the intel for tomorrow’s attack, how they planned to sabotage it, as well
as Sydney’s presence. Sending this data could be a death sentence for him. If
he were found out, Nasir would kill him and his death would not be easy.

Sydney appeared to feel his heavy thoughts and turned her
head slightly so her eyes met his.

He smiled at her, glad he’d established a cover as an
easygoing and friendly guy. Should Nasir watch the feed, smiling at Sydney
would not be identified as something special.
She is worth it.
He
remembered the numbers of innocents that would die tomorrow if he failed.

Jayden sent the file.

Duncan and Malachy would be close by in the system waiting
for the right moment. They had reached the endgame. Nasir could not be allowed
to take this war public and Jayden needed help. No matter what happened, Sydney
would stand a chance.

They finally reached Miguel’s room. Funny how after such a
short time his bare room had turned into a haven. He closed the door and leaned
back against it as if his body could keep out the danger and horror of the last
moments.

The three of them stood in a circle, not touching, looking
at each other. The lines around Miguel’s eyes had deepened and Sydney had deep
rings under hers. This won’t do. Jayden made a production of checking the time.
“We only have a few hours before Miguel and I have to leave.” He stretched out
his arms. “We can either attempt to come to grips with what happened or we can
focus on something completely different.”

Sydney closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. “I have
never seen anything like it. He didn’t seem to even use the slightest bit of
effort. He just pulled and had an arm in his hand.” She exhaled and opened her
eyes. “We all know what needs to happen.” She shrugged. “I have no idea how we
are going to make it happen—”

“It will happen.” Miguel’s words dropped like stones into a
pond.

Sydney’s eyes widened. “How can you be certain?”

“I am.”

Jayden studied the other man. Miguel met his gaze. Jayden
understood. Whatever Miguel had set in motion would either succeed or end in
his death. Once again they appeared to have the same approach.

He took Sydney’s hand and kissed her palm. “It will happen.”

She looked between the two of them. For a moment she
appeared as if she wanted to ask more questions, but she seemed to understand
the futility. Miguel and he would not elaborate.

“Very well. If it’s to be like that I would very much like
you to help me forget what I saw tonight.”

They turned to Miguel.

The Spaniard stood very straight, his face impassive. For a
minute or two silence hung across the room and no one moved. Finally the mask
slipped and pure power radiated from him.

Jayden’s cock hardened. He wanted nothing more than to
thrust a hand into his thick black hair and kiss him with everything inside
him, but Miguel’s eyes, blazing with hunger and power, made it very clear that
he was in charge.

Sydney gripped Jayden’s hand. A quick glance showed him the
flush spreading across her cheeks.

Miguel crossed his arms over his chest, highlighting the
deep muscles in them and the bulging package between his legs growing bigger.
“Undress.”

The sharp order shot through Jayden like lightning. He
lifted Sydney’s hand to his lips, never releasing Miguel from his gaze, and
kissed her pulse before sucking two fingers into his mouth. She hummed under
her breath.

Miguel smirked, understanding Jayden’s delayed response
completely. A dark glint appeared in his eyes and the arrogant tilt to his chin
made Jayden groan.

“That was a mistake. I was going to go easy tonight, but
your rebellion has made that impossible.”

A shiver ran down Jayden’s spine. He pressed Sydney’s palm
against his racing heart. After everything that had happened and with
everything that could still happen he wanted all Miguel could give him.

Jayden smiled. “Do your worst.”

Miguel’s cock throbbed at Jayden’s challenge. He raised his
brow and just looked at the other man.

Jayden smiled, humor and excitement sparkling in his eyes.

Sydney tugged and removed the hand Jayden held pressed
against his chest. “All this testosterone is making me wet. What is the plan,
oh mighty master?”

He knew she had meant it as a joke, but when the word came
over her lips he wanted nothing more than for her to mean it. But that would
not be tonight. He tapped his balled fist against his upper thigh.

Her gaze narrowed and she opened herself to their link. He
pushed up his barriers. Feeling her in his mind would weaken his control
dangerously and after what they’d seen tonight his chances of survival had
dropped to impossible. He would not take her into death with him.

“I believe I already gave you an order.”

Sydney continued her efforts and bumped against his mental
barricade. He clenched his teeth against the hunger to let her in and held
strong. She pressed her lips together and took a step back.

Pain sliced through his heart. He wanted nothing less than
to hurt her, but her survival was imperative. That was the only reason he had
sent the short message in an old Earth dialect used by an indigenous species
centuries before Nasir was even alive. He had taught Nikolai Navajo and knew
the other man would recognize the language and the sender. Chances were good he
was not too far away and was available for backup.

He would do anything for the woman before him. Anything but
endanger her by accepting their connection knowing he would die.