BloodLust (Rise of the Iliri Book 1) (22 page)

Chapter 27

She made a sight when they rode into camp: a bloody and crumpled mess held against the chest of a Black Blade, the reins of her gelding still twined in her hand and trailing across Zep's leg.  She didn't care.  Her mind kept returning to the soft feeling of the man's flesh under the knife.  Thinking about it, she licked her lips, clutching harder at Zep's leathers.  Sal had never used metal weapons before.  Their edges were sharp, but jagged in a way the resin swords of the Conglomerate weren't.  The feeling seemed trapped in her arm and the smell of blood clung to her, making her heart beat faster.

"You!" Zep called to the first soldier he came across.  "Grab this horse, walk him out until he's cool, then bring him to the Black Blades.  Tell them it's the bay, and there'll be a reward in it for ya."

"Yes sir!" the man replied, reaching up for the horse's reins.

"Sal," Zep whispered into her hair, "let him have the horse."

She forced her hand to open, and the solider turned the gelding away.  Walking him toward the edge of camp, his gentle hand patted the tired horse's damp neck.  She could hear Zep thinking and knew he was sending to one of the Blades.  Glancing up at his face, she caught him watching her.

"Arctic's going to meet us," he said.  "Unless you want me to drop you in the grass, I figured he'd be ok to help you down?"

"I'm sorry, Zep.  Thank you," she breathed, and he nodded, knowingly.

Cessa stopped and Zep shifted Sal's weight.  Arctic's voice touched her mind. 
Sal, slide on down here.  I got you.

His strong hands reached up to grab her waist, the feel brotherly and nothing more.  She couldn't help but notice the smell of him, warm and pungent, so different from Zep's sweetness.  He lifted her from the saddle easily, letting her lean on him until she could get her legs under her properly.  He glanced at Zep meaningfully, but before she could ask, Arctic turned and walked away. 

She stood alone with Zep before the Lieutenant's pavilion, able to smell the sweet scent inside.  She knew it was Blaec, but couldn't stop thinking about her teeth piercing his body.  Her heart pounded in her chest.  Over and over, she sucked clear air into her lungs, convincing herself she could do this.  She wasn't an animal!  After a polite scratch at the tent flap, she ducked inside.  Zep followed on her heels.

Blaec sat at a desk in the center of the room, a large map spread across it.  At the sound of their entry, he looked up, a pained expression on his face.  His eyes met hers and he rose halfway from the chair, but halted when Zep shook his head.  Blaec sighed deeply and nodded at Zep as he straightened his shoulders and turned to her.

"Corporal Luxx, can you report?" he asked professionally.

"Sir, the Chancellor has been eliminated," she replied in the same tone.  "He claimed the Emperor has been supplying him with metal weapons."  She handed him the items she had, then gestured to Zep, who passed the curved blade to LT. "And his room was entirely filled with various ancient metal items.  I was only able to secure these."

"Well done, Corporal." he said, his eyes darting to Zep, but Zep refused to look at anything but her.  Nodding, Blaec continued, "All four targets have been eliminated tonight.  We have four days before we begin the next attack, so find yourself a bath, soldier, and take the rest of the night off."

Together, Sal and Zep saluted and turned to the exit, but before she could leave, she heard LT's voice behind her.  "You're a good soldier, Sal.  I'm glad you took the bay."

In the fresh air outside the pavilion, a hush covered their camp.  The occasional crescendo of voices could be heard from the main army as soldiers distracted themselves, but the Black Blades were reserved, most of their conversations being in their minds.  Sal kept hers locked tight, scared of what might leak.  She took a deep breath of night air and licked at the blood on her lips, then turned to look for Zep. 

He stood only feet from her, holding Cessa's reins, waiting.  She started to walk to him, then saw the lean form of Cyno squatting against the side of the pavilion.  His cold eyes stalked her.

"Sal," he said, his rough voice gentle. "C'mon.  Ya need a bath, and Zep can na help ya."  He stood, slowly, allowing her to predict his movement.  With a tilt of his head he urged her to follow him, and smiled when she nodded.  "Go on, Zep, I got her."

"Thanks, little brother," Zep replied, his brown eyes soft when he looked at Sal.

They walked in silence, Cyno staying at her side.  His movements were calculated, but he made no attempt to meet her eyes.  He just led her to a brilliant blue tent, borrowed from the army, set up at the edge of their camp.

"I can either come in with ya or guard the door out here," he said.  "Yer choice, but there's a nice hot bath waiting and a pair of blacks in yer size."

She struggled to find her voice.  "I – I'm not quite ready to be alone yet, Cyno."

"I know, kitten.  Trust me, of all the men here, I know."  He guided her into the tent, tying the door securely behind them.  "Sal, ya gotta let the form go.  That's first.  Come back to yerself, and ya'll feel better for it."

She relaxed.  As she peeled the soiled clothes over her head, she felt her skin tingle.  Pushing the trousers to her ankles, she refused to look at Cyno, not caring if he saw her undressed.  A part of her hoped he enjoyed it.  By the time she stepped into the tub, her skin had bleached back to white, the blood stains a dried brown smear against her flesh.  Her hair, now straight and nearly silver, hung to her waist without the curls.  Stepping into the tub, the water swirled around her, turning red from the blood dissolving off her body.  Sal closed her eyes, forcing herself to breathe deeply before slipping her head below the water to rinse her face.  Her cuts burned and she gasped at the sharply erotic feel of them.

Cyno pulled a stool behind her and sat, his back against hers, the wall of the tub separating them.  "Tell me about it," he whispered.

"It was easy, Cyno.  Too easy," she said.  "He wanted to rape me.  He paid that girl for the night, and then did his best to scare me enough to make it rape."  She fell silent, her thoughts crashing into her head too quickly.

"And?" he pushed.

"And I got mad.  I didn't just do it because it was an order.  I wanted to."  She swallowed hard when her throat threatened to close.  "Damn it, Cyno, I wanted to make him suffer for what he tried to do.  I couldn't control it.  I acted like a damned beast."

"It feels good, though," he said, the honesty in his voice shocking her.

"It shouldn't."

"Maybe na, but it still does."

Sal nodded, knowing he couldn't see, then leaned her head back, finding his shoulder there, waiting.  "I know Blaec's been terrified, but I can't see him right now."

"Why na?"  Cyno kept his questions simple, making her sort through her own feelings.

"I don't want him to see me like this."  She tried to act like that was an answer.

"Like what, Sal?"

"Dirty."

"Ya've been covered in worse and he's still wanted ya."

"Like a damned animal then," she snapped.

"Ya've always been iliri."

She sighed while the water lapped against her skin.  "You won't let me out of this, will you?"

"No."  He turned to look at her, his eyes never leaving hers, but not challenging.  "I will na.  I've been there, Sal.  I know what yer thinkin' right now.  I am thinkin' it myself, and no one ever understood 'nough ta make me face it."

She looked into his blue eyes, realizing they were the color of twilight.  He waited, his gaze frozen, for her to answer the question that still hung between them.

"It excited me," she whispered, breaking the stalemate. 

She grabbed a cloth and began to scrub the stains from her skin, embarrassed that she felt so aroused by killing a man.  The feelings were too intense.  She knew Cyno was behind her, watching her.  Even as she tried to ignore it, the last hint of his breath caught her damp skin.

"Tell me, kitten," he whispered.

She nodded without looking at him, thinking where to begin.  After a deep breath, she started where it made the most sense.  "He pinned me down, my face in the bed, and cut me."  She gestured to the gash across her lips, still staring at the swirls of blood in the water.  "I knew I could break free any time I wanted.  I toyed with him, waiting to get more information, playing the weak woman he wanted me to be."

He reached out and tucked a damp wisp of her hair behind her ear.  His gentle touch contrasted with the memory she sorted through.

"When he said the Emperor had given him the metal, I knew I had what I needed, so I turned on him."  She was all too aware of Cyno's fingers lingering on the back of her neck.  "Like you taught me, I used his mass to pin him.  I was completely naked, straddling him..." she trailed off as her breathing began to quicken. 

"How did ya feel, knowing ya had control like that?" he asked, pushing her hair back again, unable to prevent his fingers from tracing a line down her neck.

"It made me aroused," she whispered.

"Is that all?"

She let her eyes close.  "Metal tastes sweet, did you know that?  It tastes like they smell.  I held him there, and I cut his throat, and I watched the life drain from his neck.  I wanted to lick it.  I watched his eyes fade.  Cyno, I was covered in his blood, and all I could think about was how much I wanted it."

"Wanted what, Sal?" he pressed.  "Tell me."

She looked up at him, finally.  His serene face was so close to hers.  She could smell him.  So close, so perfect. 

Sal surged from the tub, turning to press her mouth to his in answer. The feel of his lips ignited a passion that she couldn't contain. Water spilled down her skin, soaking his black shirt, but neither noticed.  His hands clung to her, one reaching for her ass, the other tight against her back, drawing her closer.  She could taste her own blood when the cut across her lips broke open, enticing them both.  He growled softly, but she heard it.  She felt it.

Her teeth bit into his lip, fueling his excitement, and she made her way down his neck as her hands fumbled at his shirt.  She struggled to reach his skin but he buried his fingers in her hair, pulling her back, exposing her throat.  His teeth pierced her neck, intense pleasure coursing through her body, then he teased the line of her jaw and kissed the corner of her mouth, lingering on her salty blood.  She opened her eyes to find him staring at her like a predator.  His cold gaze burned with raw desire. 

Cyno took a deep, shuddering breath and slid his hands up her wet body, to her arms, before leaning away from her.

"This, Sal.  This is what it's like ever' time."  He was panting. 

With the water cooling around her, she watched him stand and slip his now wet shirt over his head.  His tattoos seemed to swirl in the flickering light, drawing her eyes across his chest.  She made to stand, but he took a step away from her.

"I jus' killed a man, Sal.  I waited under his bed while he fought with his son, then slipped out and shoved my knife through his back, into his heart."  He looked at her intently.  "It felt like sliding into a willing woman.  I can na refuse ya right now, kitten, even though I know I should.  LT knows, too.  Why do ya think he let ya leave without an answer?"

"I don't know," she whispered.

"He knows.  He knows 'bout the beast within us.  He's just so happy to have ya back, he's willing ta let ya do what ya need."

Sal felt the guilt returning and pulled herself from the tub, stepping out on the opposite side from Cyno.  He smiled at her weakly, his shirt still clutched in his hands, held before him like a talisman. 

As she wrapped herself in a towel, she thought about her feelings.  She thought of Blaec like a rock, the stability she could turn to when she needed it.  He was patient, kind, and always supportive.  Cyno burned like a flame, too hot for the eye to see.  His feral nature pulled at her, calling her with some power that she couldn't refuse.  He smelled like a drug she needed more of.

"Is it always like this?" she asked.

"Yeh, it is."

"Is it the same for everyone?"

"Nah."  He shook his head.  "Some of us get the bloodlust, others do na."