The Radical (Unity Vol.1) (29 page)

I
saw the proud but loving grin looking down on me, awaiting my next instruction with baited breath. I put a hand behind one of his stocky thighs and pulled him toward me, the huge bulk of meat and man that was my faithful lover shifting toward me with more grace than his form should have allowed. I licked some pre-cum away and kissed his tip tenderly. He clenched his fists and more moisture slaked his cock. His sac was enormous too and I was enthralled. I licked the line of hair from his belly button down to his shaft and planted butterfly kisses along the main vein of his cock. If one night with this man was all I had left, I would take it. I think we both knew how precious these moments were, otherwise we would have been already fucking up against a wall. As it were, I wanted every inch of him seared into my heart and mind.

I
stood and he grasped my flank, pulling me toward him in a warm, easy embrace. He tugged the band out of my hair and spread the locks out behind me, kissing and smelling them. His chest rose and fell sharply and the enormous member between his legs twitched with every caress of my body.

‘Seraph, I love you.
I need to be inside you.’

Fresh desire swirled in my belly and
I smiled at hearing the tremor in his voice, spreading my hands and mouth across his chest.

‘
Take me to bed,’ I whispered.

His hands caught me underneath my thighs and easily lifted me into his arms. He carried me
toward the bedroom, my legs wrapped around his waist. On the way I mapped his face with my fingertips and stroked my nose against his.

‘I love you, Ryken.’

‘I’ll never love another woman.’

I absolutely believed him.

He reached the bed and our bodies cascaded across the mattress. He kissed me extremely tenderly, so gently I wanted to die right then. I watched as he winced on his arms, his shoulder still painful.

‘You’
re still hurting.’

‘Only for wanting you,’ he assured me.

I guided his cock to my slick cleft, shifting my hips around his to settle us comfortably. I took a deep breath and prepared myself for him.

He stroked my cheek and kissed
me, as if reading my thoughts. He drove into me until I was full and, everything stopped. I felt as though we were standing on a precipice, ready to throw ourselves into complete and tranquil oblivion.

‘I love you,’ I told him, holding his gaze, wrapping my arms tighter around his neck.
Admitting it made me so much freer to love him. He captured my lips and relaxed me with his kisses.

I
let him make love to me. I closed my legs around him, held him, my lips always ready for his. He was so tender that I savored every movement, heard every breath, relished every kiss he gave me.

I kissed his wounds and held my
arm around his shoulder to ease his burden. His mouth rampantly pressed itself against my throat and I could hear the pain in his voice when he said, ‘Seraph, I love you.’

I knew his shoulder t
roubled him and I wanted to switch positions to take it away but he was intent on having me.

‘Faster,’ I begged. I was
agonized, watching his face contort with a mixture of agony and ecstasy.

He growled and I wrapped my hands around the headboard to keep myself steady while he held himself up on his arms and increased his pace. He
groaned loudly as his thrusts became more rapid and determined. He shivered and trembled, sweat dripping down his back as he gripped on to me for dear life, no longer in control of his impulses. I pressed a hand against his buttock, encouraging him to forget consideration and make use of me.

‘I’m coming Ryken!’
I knew it for a certainty. I was coming apart around him, his drives swirling heat inside me, his cock growing excruciatingly thick. I wanted so much more from him but I couldn’t stand his hurt; his shoulder almost in spasm as he held his massive body weight up over me.

We
maintained it for several moments until I climaxed, shaking and rippling against him, us crying out together. He roared in my ear while my neck twisted to and fro with the pressure of such violent tenderness.

In the aftermath, p
ain and pleasure gripped him too and I grasped his forearms, helping him move.

‘Here, rest he
re,’ I urged him, and he slid to my side so he could rest on my chest. His breathing leveled out and he nuzzled my breasts while I stroked my hands through his hair.

‘
Ryken, that was wonderful.’

H
is level of exertion was incredible considering everything he had been through. We held each other in a sweaty embrace, breathing heavily in each other’s ears. I needed to bury myself in his neck, refusing to believe it was all over. He rolled on his back and the emptiness inside me made me feel sick as he slipped out, the painful abandonment unbearable.

I rested my arms either side of his head and looked down
on him. His eyes flickered open and shut and I nipped his open mouth as he continued to pant away his exertion. I kissed him deeply and he held my body reverently. My insides still throbbed and I wanted him again but when he covered our entwined bodies with the duvet, I felt content just being laid in his arms. I counted his heartbeats and teased my fingers through his chest hair, staring at the shut blinds. I wished that the whole world would just leave us be. In his embrace, I felt the most incredible peace.

What we shared was a miracle and I couldn’t get close enough to him. Our hands and mouths sought each other out, kissing palms and cheeks, noses burrowing and eyes wide in our exploration of the physical differences between us.

I felt our journey and everything we had been through together beginning to overwhelm me. I had never known a love like it and knew I never would again. I gripped his torso and he kissed the back of my hands as he felt my tears start to run over his chest.

‘Was I that bad?’

‘I need you. I was so ignorant, so blind. I never thought I could feel this happy.’

‘Me either, my angel.’

I lifted myself to look down on him, smiling through tears.

‘I’m so in love with you
.’

He brought
me into his arms tightly and I could hear his heart pounding in his chest as he declared, ‘Seraph, I am never, ever going to let you go. I promise.’

He knew that meant more to us
than the obligatory three words of old.

We slept a while and then made love through the night, exploring every inch of one another, desperate to make the most of whatever time we had left. For who knew what tomorrow might bring.

D
awn the next morning and Ryken cradled me against his naked body, under the covers. We hadn’t really slept much at all, between feeding each other snacks from the kitchen and falling on top of one another whenever the mood carried us.

The stark light of day breaking
through the cracks in the Venetian blinds, I felt bitter, like we hadn’t been given enough time. Not even his lingering kisses against my shoulders and throat could stop me feeling apprehensive – and seriously considering his idea of disappearing off the face of the Earth. I found myself needing to talk to set my mind at rest, to let him in on my secrets before it was too late.

‘My mother an
d father met in the wake of 2023. They never used to speak about what they went through, but I knew there were issues, things that they never dared bring to the fore. I knew they loved each other, but there was some kind of doom looming over their marriage.

‘
When I was a kid, Vivienne drove me to school in a blacked-out vehicle, everyday. I thought it was normal. Maybe I thought it was because Mom and Dad had important jobs and were important people. A lot of other kids were dropped off in similar cars. Only years later did I realize that the schools I attended were those monopolised by Officium. Most kids whose parents had money were sent there. Other schools were run by voluntary teachers with no resources except their own brains, so if you didn’t have money you were fucked.’

‘Same back home,’ he told me, ‘Dad hated it, I knew, so did Mum. They had to pay. Worse than that, Officium were the enemy, but what could anyone do? Rebel and stand alone? Face life without civility?’

‘Exactly. I was pissed to learn the truth but who else was gonna educate me, huh? Mom and Dad worked like bees and had no friends. I had no friends. Nobody made friends. Not unless you wanted to get caught out saying somethin’ against the almighty powers that be. Everyone kept their distance.’

His large arms tightened and he pulled me closer with a long leg wrapped over mine.
‘I was lucky in the Army. We had some freedom of speech.’

‘
We have had none, not in New York, not where they have their HQ. I rose every day, went to school, read and listened, then came home to do the same. Until I met Eve… and then realized I wasn’t alone in my thinking. Whether she realized or not, she gave me ideas. To talk out, stand up… so I got thrown out of High School when I was 15 and my parents had to pay for home schooling. The teacher they employed, he was odd, and with hindsight I realize he was more than just a teacher. I have no doubt he was indeed another bodyguard like Camille, sent to keep me safe. So, when I graduated and went to college, that was when I really got a taste for journalism and threw myself into it, learning how to keep my head down. I had learned that lesson after getting thrown out of school.’

‘
What exactly did you get thrown out for?’ he asked, amusement edging his voice.

I turned and saw his smile and I rolled toward him. I held myself over him and stroked his face
. ‘You like bad girls?’

‘What gives you that idea?’ he begged.

I raised my eyebrows before falling down on his chest, burying myself in his muscle and warmth. ‘I told a fellow student that they were dumb for thinking the Dam was only for flood prevention.’

‘As simple as that? It got you thrown out?’

‘Uh-huh, Dad had to write a letter of apology so it didn’t go any farther.’

‘Shit.’

‘That is the world I faced. No man is an island but Officium wanted to make their own, and they chose New York to do it. It is totally unnatural.’

‘The worst thing I ever did was smoke a cigarette in front of the school gates. That got me detention for a week.’

We laughed it off but then memories flooded back to me.

‘Hold me tight, Ryken.’

I wanted to tell him so much more.

‘I’m here, angel.’ 

I felt so small in his embrace and I lifted myself onto his body so I was curled up against him, his arms and legs cuddling every inch of me.            

‘
I learned to cope by throwing myself into everything at college. I ceaselessly aimed higher and higher and could have made a career for myself in any field, but I realized long ago I had an innate predilection to become a reporter. It is almost as if it’s in my DNA to chase stories, get to the bottom of cases and find the truth.

‘When my folks died, I guess I no longer cared for their strictures and so I reverted back to my true self. I went wild. Got into some shitty situations but got myself out of them too. The
Rascal
has always been there behind the scenes, taking care of me. But I’ve taken my profession to the extreme Ryken, such that I can’t escape it now. People stop me in the street and offer me a knowing wink, thanking me for the work I do, knowing the constant battle I’m up against to get to the bottom of all this. That keeps me going, knowing there are citizens out there who want the truth as much as I do… and I keep going for them. I’m their representative, their soldier. I’m not proud of the way I’ve had to work but I’ll do whatever it takes. I’ve been fighting this for so long, it’s time to act now. It’s time to really take action. I can’t get anywhere else without proof. I need you to get me in. We have to do this for so many people, but mostly, for ourselves. There’s so much at stake here.’

I lifted my eyes to his
with all seriousness, pleading with him to help me finally get to the bottom of my life’s work. ‘I have a pile of cases on my desk… all wrongly convicted inmates asking me to help them tell their stories. I have a list of dozens of women brought to hospital, raped to within an inch of their lives, unwilling to press charges because they fear it might be more than their lives are worth.’

His face contorted and he chewed his lip.
‘Seraph, I don’t want this life for you. I love you… I love that you want to help people. I will never approve, however. I want you safe and protected, I want you with me. Can’t we just leave, go somewhere safe and stay there, the two of us? I only want you now, nothing else. Just you and a peaceful place to live out our days.’

I kissed him and stroked the purple bruises that were spoiling his beautiful face. ‘I want that too, Ryken.
I only want you and a place far away from all this. I feel sick thinking about losing you and that is why we have to do this. They will never leave us alone, not us two. You know that. But, this is not just about us. We can’t find a peaceful place until we finish this. You and I were destined to bring Officium to justice.’  

He
held a huge bear paw against my cheek and eyed me with what I knew was a look of pure love. Deep down, I sensed he was terrified – knowing what needed to happen next.

‘I’ve seen what these people are really capable of. They killed people I cared about too. They will not stop until we are both dead. I’ve seen and done things I hope you never have to know about. I don’t know if I’ve got any strength left to fight them.’

‘Then take my strength, I’ve got enough for both us,’ I enthused. I wrapped him in a fierce embrace, my heart and lungs pounding against him.

H
e somehow seemed past consolation, releasing himself from my arms and getting up out of bed to put his boxer shorts back on. He paced the room and looked behind the blinds at the city outside.

‘We have to go to
Brooklyn then? I’m not even sure the labs will still be up and running. I haven’t been there in years, since I began working at the Manhattan branch.’

‘We have to give it a shot. Eve wouldn’t lead us into danger on a fool’s ho
pe. She must have felt sure that is the location of the phials.’

He sat on the edge of the bed
with his head in his hands. I moved up behind him to put my arms around his torso, running my hands through his long, silken chest hair.

‘Look at the state of me Seraph, how am I meant to face them again?’

His body was badly bruised still, his perfect face was messed up, and he would appear suspicious as soon as he stepped out on the street.

‘You’ve got me Ryken
… and a woman in love is more dangerous than anything else on this planet.’

He turned toward me
with a helpless look in his eye and lifted me to sit on his lap, pulling me into his body so I felt once more eclipsed.

His hands stroked along my back, focusing
on the curves of my spine and hips. He buried his face in my wavy red locks and breathed in my scent deeply. I gazed into his eyes to reassure him and when he smiled, I smoothed the creases around his eyes. He blushed when I caught him taking a look at my bare breasts and I reached forward to kiss his bad shoulder, licking and caressing him back to order.

‘Seraph, I can’t go again,’ he growled and complained.

I chuckled. I had worn him out.

‘Okay…’ I mock whined, ‘…
but we need coffee before we even think about figuring this out.’

He kissed me before
heading towards the kitchen to do the honors.

We gathered in the sitting area, opposite each other on the two identical white leather sofas. I wore my dressing gown and he his underwear. We each grasped our coffee mugs, drinking the life-giving liquid eagerly.

‘It’s a great place you’ve got here. Must have cost a bomb.’

‘Mom and Dad bought this for me when I started out on my career because of the security of this building.’

‘Are you one of those insanely tidy people? Everything is so white.’

I laughed. ‘You and I both know I don’t really live here. I don’t have time to make a mess or choose color schemes while I’m out prowling the streets down there.’

‘Where did you get those pieces in the kitchen? The wooden ones. They look slightly out of place.’

He gestured generally at a teak fruit bowl, a wooden drainer resembling the bare bones of a pirate ship, a mug holder carved in the shape of an acorn tree and a huge wine rack affixed to the wall that had miniature bottles of wine carved into the edges all the way around.

‘I made them.’

He looked astonished. ‘Really? I mean…’

‘They are probably the only things in this apartment that are really me. I took one of those virtual carpentry courses and found I have a flair for it. I really love wood, always have. The smell, the texture, the way it can be manipulated and yet still have its own personality, its own kinks and imperfections. Craftsmanship is in my genes. A lot of my ancestors were designers, weavers, builders and so forth. They make me f
eel sort of insignificant, they were all so talented. None more so than Eve, but this is my own little way of carrying on the tradition. I’m never happier than when I’m in a workshop molding something, but the materials are so difficult to get hold of. It’s a creative outlet for me.’

‘I’m really surprised you’re into this kind of thing, those are really remarkable pieces. You could do this for a living instead, if you ever decided to give up reporting.’

‘Thanks,’ I replied, hating my embarrassment. It had always been a personal, secretive outlet of mine.

‘I bet there are plenty of other surprises you have yet to reveal to me, aren’t there?’
He smiled a smile that made my heart leap. ‘I like that about you.’

‘Ryken, you have no idea.’

We grinned like Cheshire cats just trying to ignore the impending fight that waited. I was the first to put my thoughts out there on how we should tackle the task ahead.

‘We need to get out of this building before we do anything else, don’t we? We’ve got to figure that out before even contemplating how we are going to make it to the lab in
Brooklyn.’

‘Have you got a vehicle?’

‘Yeah… a VW Isis in the garage downstairs. It was Dad’s. But I never drive it.’

‘Is it still in working order?’

‘I guess we’ll just have to give it a shot.’

‘Great, so all we need to figure out now is how we’re going to get downstairs.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Look outside the front door,
’ he motioned, and I didn’t like the look in his eye. I peered through the peephole and saw what he was getting at.

‘There are four of them out in the corridor, waiting patiently for us. Guns, full
armor, weaponry galore. How did they get in?’

‘Same way I did. We’ve had the training of all training remember.’

‘Shit.’

‘There’s only one thing for it, Seraph. You are going to have to conquer your fear of heights.’

‘For some reason I knew you were gonna say that. Fuck.’

I
went to the kitchen to pour more coffee, while he moved up behind me to wrap his arms around my torso. He watched me spread cream cheese across four bagel halves and took a couple, devouring them within seconds.

We
guzzled the rest of our coffee down and headed to the shower together. We stood under the water, cleansing the filth of the past few days off our skin. We washed and talked quickly, making a plan, drying off afterwards with the fan system turned up.