Embracing Destiny Read online

  “Unless it is, such as what I saw, Zahruk.” I pulled my arm back, shaking him off.

  “Your face isn’t healing,” he pointed out.

  “It will, and if not, oh well. I’m not entering a beauty contest, and being pretty didn’t stop my husband from cheating on me,” I snorted. “Are you here to ensure I don’t cause a scene?”

  “Something like that, yes,” he admitted, holding out his arm.

  I let him lead me through the crowd to the table until Ryder came into view with the female he’d been feeding from on his arm. He was whispering something in her ear. I stopped dead in my tracks as wind howled through the room.

  “Fuck,” Zahruk said.

  “Is this a fucking joke?” I demanded, tearing my arm away from his, intending to leave.

  “I wouldn’t do that, Goddess,” Lucian murmured, smiling down at me, his midnight eyes sparkling with something dark in their endless depths. “I have it on good authority you’re free for dinner. Would you do me the honor of joining me?”

  “Lena isn’t here?” I asked, tightening my chest as I fought to control the emotions pulsing through me.

  “She’s made it her mission to eradicate every demon in the Inland Northwest, which she seems to be doing tonight.” Lucian held out his arm, and I accepted it, knowing that if I left the room, everyone would see it as a weakness, and I wasn’t weak. “You think he would choose her over you?” he asked, staring at the female who held Ryder’s attention.

  “He did,” I admitted softly. I fought against the urge to scream or cry as the wind picked up in the room, sending dresses flying into the air and extinguishing torches throughout the room. In the darkness, I began to glow while Lucian held my arm.

  “So, anger ignites the wind, does it?” he chuckled darkly, moving us toward the head of the table where Ryder stood with the girl. “And what makes you glow, I wonder?” he murmured before lifting my hand and placing a gentle kiss on the back of it.

  “No idea, definitely not happiness,” I muttered as we reached Ryder and his whore, who glared at me, slowly moving her eyes to Lucian with a darkening expression. I stepped aside, letting Lucian pull my chair out as someone else joined us.

  “Synthia, look at you all lit up tonight,” Spyder said, taking his seat beside me, forcing Zahruk to step back yet again. “Dayum, girl,” he whistled. “You’re fucking beautiful. You light me up, woman,” he uttered, lifting my hand and placing a kiss on my knuckles. “You ever get tired of Ryder, I’m willing to let you jump on and test out my Spyder ride,” He offered while wiggling his brows before sliding his gaze back to Ryder. “My bad, I forgot you were married. Who’s the whore, Ryder?” Turning to me, Spyder smiled. “Appears you may want that ride sooner rather than later, little lady.”

  “This is Carina, the Mistress of the Marshes.”

  “Like soggy ass swamps?” Spyder asked, staring at Ryder while waiting for his answer.

  “As in, the royal line to the Heavenly Marshes,” Ryder corrected.

  “Hmm, you have a beautiful queen, and yet your mistress is seated beside you?”

  “Enough, Spyder,” Lucian said, putting his arm around me, with Spyder following suit. “I’m sure Ryder knows what he is doing. This place reeks of goddess and false gods. How many have been here lately?” he asked, tilting his head to look at me. “Present company excluded, that is. You smell like Aphrodite before she tripped and landed on too many dicks.”

  “Oh,” I snorted, covering my mouth with my hand to smother the laugh. “If a goddess were to slip and land on a dick,” I teased, turning to look at Spyder before pulling my gaze back to Lucian, “would she smell differently?”

  “Considering in this body, you’ve known only one man, probably not. If you landed on too many, it would change your essence, since you are now eternal.” Lucian turned, watching as a new arrival entered the room. “I guess Lena finished early, excuse me.”

  “Is she finally done being pissed at you?” I asked.

  “No, but we have a truce for now,” he chuckled.

  “Guess that leaves you and me.” Spyder grabbed a goblet of wine from the server and handed it to me before grabbing one for him as well. “To sinning, Goddess,” he said, touching his glass against mine. “I pray we fucking do it together!” He held up his glass, and I clinked mine against his.

  “I bet you’d be a wild one in bed,” I smirked as he wiggled his eyebrows in reply.

  “That’s my wife and the Queen of the Horde, bug boy,” Ryder snapped.

  “Mmm.” Chuckling, Spyder downed the contents of his glass and smiled wickedly at Ryder. “Along came a Spyder that crawled up inside her, eliciting passionate screams. Her moans became louder, he couldn’t be prouder; she shattered when that pussy came and screamed out that she was a motherfucking queen. The sounds were so sweet, and her succulent heat was something he couldn’t resist. So, he ate her with vigor, one last lick and flitter, his tongue made her a quivering mess.”

  Laughing, I spit my drink out, spewing it across the table and hit Ryder’s hussy with the red wine. She opened her mouth, and an ear-piercing wail escaped her lips.

  “You did that on purpose!” Carina snapped.

  “Oops,” I laughed, covering my face in my hands. “My bad,” I laughed louder, bordering on hysterics.

  “Go change, Carina,” Ryder offered, watching me through narrowed eyes. “Stop acting like a child, Synthia, and remember who you are while entertaining our guests.”

  “Hey,” I said, hiking a thumb in Spyder’s direction. “He’s funny, and if you can play, so can I, right?”

  “Fucking try me, little girl. Excuse me. I should see if Carina needs help,” he growled, nodding at Zahruk and the others, who followed behind him as he left the room.

  I waited until Ryder left before leaning over and kissing Spyder on the cheek. “Thank you,” I muttered, standing up and tossing down the napkin. “I’ll be right back, excuse me.”

  He caught my arm, staring up at me with a knowing gaze. “I don’t know if you want to see that shit happening.”

  “I’ve already walked in on them once. Ryder doesn’t get to demand I show up for his little fucking dinner party and then make me look like an idiot during the meal. I’m the Queen of the fucking Horde,” I snapped, offering him a saccharine smile.

  “Gods, remind me not to piss you off. But hey, I guess if I did, I wouldn’t get lost in the dark with the way you’re glowing,” he smirked. “Get your shine on, Goddess.”

  I moved down the hallway, listening with inhuman hearing. I heard Ryder speaking and stopped, opening the door. Entering the room, I gasped as something wet and hot hit my face. Wiping the substance from my eyes, I stared down at the blood covering my hands. Peering up, I found Ryder holding Carina’s severed head by the hair while the entire room gaped at me, covered in her blood.

  What the freaking hell just happened? These assholes were seriously messed up!

  “What the fuck is wrong with you? You fuck her and then take her head? You’re a nasty asshole!”

  What the hell was even going on?

  “I fucked her, not Ryder,” Zahruk muttered as he smirked roguishly.

  “How could you think I would fuck another woman? I ought to spank your ass,” Ryder snapped, lowering the hand that held the head. “You’re mine, which means I promised never fuck anyone else, which you should have damn well known. I promised you forever, and I meant it.”

  “I saw your face!” Who did he think he was, lying to me?

  Magic rippled through the room, and I turned, staring at where Zahruk stood. Only now he was Ryder. I did the only thing I could do: I punched him, hard.

  “You son of a bitch!” I screamed wildly, turning to Ryder. “I… I…” I sobbed as my arms wrapped around my stomach. He stepped closer, tossing t
he head to Zahruk, who caught it quickly by the hair. His hands captured my face, placing his forehead against mine as blood covered my cheeks.

  “You’re my fucking world, Synthia. I would never hurt you like that. We knew there was a spy in our stronghold, and if the walls didn’t have ears, I’d tell you everything right now. Trust me. The chaos here is not natural. Something is turning us against each other. Something bigger than we have time to deal with,” he whispered barely above a breath, kissing my forehead gently. “Now, about Spyder,” he growled.

  “He’ll make some girl scream, but it won’t be me, Fairy.” I turned, staring at Zahruk. “You’ve never taken his shape before, right?”

  Zahruk smirked and wiggled his brows in reply. “Mmm, would I do that?” he asked mischievously.

  Lucian and his men entered the room, and I opened my mouth to speak, but Ryder’s lips pushed against mine, sealing the words on the tip of my tongue. I nipped his lip, enjoying the growl that rose from deep within him. My hands touched his chest, turning my head to watch as Lucian and his men formed a circle around us. I wanted to ask what was happening but guessed they needed silence, or Ryder wouldn’t have tried to quiet me.

  I observed Lucian. His midnight-blue eyes sparkled with flecks of sapphires mixed into the glowing onyx irises. Lucian and his men reached their arms out, linking themselves together by the touch of their fingertips. Instantly, the room erupted in a raw, electrifying current that made my hair float around my head.

  I gasped at the power oozing from them. Sparks leapt from their fingers, lightning igniting in their eyes as if they’d somehow captured it within them. Spyder smirked the moment my gaze moved to his, and I observed the shadows that swirled around the men, forming a barrier between them and the walls to shield us from anyone who could be spying.

  “We need to talk, Synthia,” Lucian announced darkly, his voice echoing in my head. “You’ve got a problem, one sent here to destroy the horde, and meant to keep them chasing their tails while your enemies slaughter your armies without you ever knowing.”

  “I know, Lucian. Why do you think I called for you? I am fully aware of the problem.” I materialized the nasty golden apple I had recently found and tossed it to him. “I need you to handle that, and the rest of you, I need you to listen closely to what I’m about to tell you.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Three days had passed since the dinner party, and every day more chaos and fighting started within the stronghold than outside of it. Learning Ryder hadn’t betrayed me after all had eased my mind, but we each had parts to play in the game unfolding within the fortress walls. Each day Ryder and Zahruk left to plan for the war, knowing someone in the castle had eyes and ears on us, monitoring everything we said and did—it unnerved me.

  This morning I’d broken up a fight between the chef and a couple of servers. It had been a bloody mess. Then the cook served up two of their heads on silver trays, bringing the supper in himself and unveiling his masterpiece before trying to add Ristan to it for dessert when he had the audacity to laugh at the meal.

  The entire kitchen, along with the staff, was covered in blood and gore. Three servers had fought to survive the cook and his butchering block. It turned out that a server had mentioned the steaks were overcooked and were medium rare instead of rare. It led to her head placed on a tray, presented to Ryder like a delicacy.

  Smaller fights had broken out between couples, but they were less frequent since I’d discovered the golden apple and asked Lucian to hold on to it. Not that he’d been pleased with the idea. I’d done what I could to separate couples, locking the women in the tower with the men elsewhere, but that meant that the men had been at each other’s throats all day. The fighting had reached the point where I’d moved up the meeting with the goddess to the morning. I had to put my plan into motion now.

  I’d extinguished most of the light in the bedroom before pouring the potion into the ambrosia and placing it on the table before the large chesterfield sofa. Once I’d finished, I almost chewed my lip raw from nervousness at what I was about to do. Power ignited inside the room, kissing my flesh, causing goosebumps to rise with the awareness of Ryder’s presence.

  Turning, I studied him where he stood in the shadows, golden stars lighting his inky depths. If I hadn’t felt his power caressing my skin, I’d have missed him in the darkness of the room. The candles ignited, bathing me in their glow as his hungry stare feasted on me.

  I’d dressed in a soft pink baby-doll bathrobe that left little to the imagination. It had lace edges and a dark pink ribbon of silk holding it closed. Beneath the robe, I wore a simple pair of panties that tied on each side, which Ryder had always found sexy. His arms crossed over his massive chest, his wings unfurling and creating a subtle breeze with the simple movement.

  “What’s this?” he asked carefully, slowly leaving the shadows that were hiding his features from me.

  I opened my mouth and closed it as his head tilted to the right, staring at me with a ravenous gaze that threatened to consume me. Ryder was taller since I’d combined him with his beast. His hair was longer, dusting the tops of each shoulder, and I itched to run my fingers through the silken midnight strands. The golden brands matching his eyes pulsed, slithering over his skin and intertwining with the dark onyx brands.

  His wicked-looking wings hung behind him, the sharp ends of each ending at a talon pointing up, promising death. Ryder had been sex incarnate before the change, but now it oozed from him with every subtle move he made. My eyes dropped to the silk pants he wore, and I wondered what else might have continued to change since we had last been together. He hadn’t touched me since the day after I’d combined him with his beast, and now I was seducing him to finish what I’d started when I made my plans with the shadows.

  “You will leave for war soon, and I’d prefer you to feed from me, rather than the whores you’ve been fucking.” I swallowed hard past the words that dripped from my tongue like vile poison, still playing the part so the spies would be none the wiser. “I’d like you to be well-fed before you leave.”

  “I’ve fed rather well lately.” Regarding me through the eyes of a predator, he latched onto my slow, calculated movements as I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “Turns out, I may need a harem after all. I rather enjoy having variety in my meals.”

  “Is that what you want now? To feed from the whores who never sate your immense hunger? You can feed from them every day and still never satisfy the beast’s appetite. Only I can feed him and soothe his needs. I need him well-fed for the war we face, asshole,” I said, reaching for the silk tie, slowly undoing it before letting the robe slip from my body to pool at my feet on the floor. I swallowed nervously while his gaze took in my body with naked desire.

  Ryder clenched his jaw tightly, yet he made no move to accept my offering. His nostrils flared, scenting the arousal already coating my sex. I stepped toward the table, bending over to grab his glass. Turning to offer it to him, I found him standing directly behind me. No sound had alerted me of his movement, not even the whisper of his wings.

  Ryder’s hand touched my neck, and his thumb traced over my lips, brushing against their fullness as I kissed it. His other hand cupped one breast, pinching the hardened peak as a soft moan escaped my lungs. I didn’t speak or break the spell in which his liquid honey stare held me captive, not wanting to ruin the moment. He stepped back, accepting the goblet of ambrosia as he watched me, and I held my breath as he smiled coldly.

  “Do you want me to fuck you like a whore, wife?” he asked hoarsely. “Do you think you can handle me in this form, after what you did to me? I’d wreck that wet pussy, but then you like it when I destroy that needy flesh, don’t you?” He grinned wickedly, still holding the glass without taking a drink.

  “If that is what you want to do to me, then do it, Ryder.” I moved away from him before sitting on the co
uch, studying the way he held the goblet. I grabbed the matching glass, inhaling the ambrosia before taking a long sip of the blue liquid. It tasted like heaven exploding against my taste buds, and a moan rolled from my lips.

  Ryder lifted the goblet and sniffed the ambrosia, just as I had done. His wings curled in, easily folding until they vanished as magic pulsed through the room. He stretched one arm over the back of the sofa and brought the drink to his lips, downing it in one gulp.

  “Can I refill that for you?” My heart thudded in my ears, deafening his words as I waited for his reply. I reached for the glass, only to have him grab my arm and twist it, forcing me to move closer to him. “Do you want more?” I whispered, my words echoing in the room’s silence.

  “If I wanted more, I’d have asked for it,” he growled, taking the glass from me and setting it aside. Blowing in the direction of the candles, he extinguished all but one, leaving the room dark, with only the soft glow of a single flame and his golden brands. “Lay back and touch that naughty pussy for me. I want to watch you fuck yourself.” Leaning back, he removed his pants and fisted his engorged cock, turning his head to stare at me with a devilish grin.

  Ryder’s cock was huge, much larger than it had been before, and he’d been challenging to take within my body then. I wasn’t sure I could accommodate him without enduring more of the pain I’d had the first time we’d fucked after I’d combined them. His excited gaze burned with the knowledge of my fear. The deep rumble of his masculine laughter filled the room, and I began to obey his instructions without question.

  I hated the game we played, pretending to be at odds over the illusion of his affair, and continued feeding from other women. Those spying on us thought we were at each other’s throats, and we had to maintain the pretense. It was hard enough during the day, but anyone who knew us well would know that I had to feed his beast, and not doing so would have tipped off the spies that we were on to their trickery.