Until he forgot his place and challenged a direct order.
My order.
And for that, he Fell.
Not by my choice, or even by my sentence.
That wasn’t how our world worked.
Sin painted our wings black.
He folded his arms and just watched me, his upper body a wall of carved muscle. I waited for him to speak or to acknowledge me as his superior, but he held my gaze instead—an alpha challenging a fellow alpha.
I knew how to make him kneel, and I reminded him of that by stroking the hilt of my dagger. His gaze followed the movement, his lips quirking up at one side into a dark smirk.
Then he returned to boldly holding my stare.
I see, I thought, narrowing my gaze. Someone thinks this is the land where he’s king.
Well, I’d have to set the record straight.
I pushed off the door just as it opened behind me. “I’m hungry,” Layla said, her blue eyes hard. She’d tied her thick fuchsia hair up into a knot on top of her head. “Can we eat something?”
“I’ll give you something to eat, baby,” a male voice said from across the hall.
“Fuck off,” I snapped at the random Noir, then glanced to where Novak stood, his icy eyes on Layla.
She didn’t seem to notice, her arms wrapping around her exposed midriff.
That damn outfit was going to get her hurt. It hid absolutely nothing and showcased every fucking curve. I hadn’t thought to make her change, too caught up in the moment of witnessing her Fall from grace.
Damn black wings.
I hated them.
I hated her.
“Get your ass back inside,” I demanded. “Now.”
She huffed and took a step back.
“Ah, come on, man. Let the girl eat. I’d love to watch those pretty lips—”
I turned toward the voice and sent my fist into the Noir’s jaw. He fell backward on a whoosh of air, out cold from a single punch. “Anyone else want to play?” I asked. “Because I’m dying to draw some Noir blood.”
Novak grunted from down the hall, his expression amused. But rather than try my patience, he just slipped back into his room to shut the door behind him.
Normally, I’d call his action cowardly.
Except I knew him.
He wasn’t walking away from a fight. He was dismissing it—and me—before we could begin. The closing of that door served as a proverbial Fuck you, you’re not even worth the effort. And damn if that didn’t make me want to charge down the corridor to wring his damn neck.
But the tapping of a foot behind me forced my attention to the impatient princess, who apparently wanted some food.
All right.
I’d find Her Highness something to eat.
Watching her forcibly swallow the shit they fed inmates here would be a beautiful punishment. Cathartic, even.
“One prison meal, coming right up, Princess,” I said, unable to hide my cruel grin. “I’m going to thoroughly enjoy watching you choke on it.”
4
Novak
“I hear that Layla convinced Auric to allow her outside today,” my cousin said with a sense of amusement. He nudged me, as to ensure I heard him.
Zian was my flesh and blood. Of course I fucking heard him. I always fucking heard him. Just because I chose not to speak didn’t mean I was deaf.
“What do you say, Novak?” he pressed. “Curious to meet the princess?”
I yawned. Even if I were curious, I wouldn’t admit that out loud.
“Poor Auric,” Sorin said with a laugh. “I hear she’s been giving him a hard time. You’d think he could handle such a little thing.”
I nearly grunted. It’d been the highlight of my week seeing the famous Nora Warrior downgraded to a royal lapdog. The princess sent him out to fetch meals frequently, something I suspected he only agreed to because he wanted to avoid her delicious scent.
Cherry blossoms.
Fuck, she smelled so sweet. I wanted to sink my teeth into her flesh just to see if her blood rivaled her perfume.
“You have a penchant for underestimating females,” the angel beside me mused, her voice low and sultry and oozing sex. Probably because she’d just spent the morning fucking Sorin and Zian.
Imagine my surprise when I’d returned from my stint in solitary to find out my cousin had taken a little raven-haired mate. I’d damn near killed the poor thing, as I’d scented Zian all over her and thought the worst. Then he’d charged into the cell with Sorin at his side and had nearly taken my head off.
“The last bitch Sayir sent here tried to kill me. I learned my lesson the first time,” Raven added, her black eyes glinting in the sunlight. She was a feisty little thing. Then again, she would need to be to handle two former Nora Warriors.
Zian and Sorin enjoyed fucking. Hard. And fortunately for them, their little minx didn’t mind being in the center of all that male aggression.
I closed my eyes as they lost themselves to frivolous conversation of the princess. Something about jealousy. Then Raven added, “I’m pissed that the Reformer thinks he can just do whatever he wants. He brought his own niece to this hellhole, and she’s spent the last week pretending like she doesn’t belong here.”
I nearly pointed out that they were cousins, since Raven was the Reformer’s daughter, but I didn’t feel like stating the obvious.
“And you think it’s all for show?” Sorin asked. “She’s the Princess of the Nora. I don’t see what she could gain by intentionally Falling and getting herself locked up.”
I’d spent the last century bouncing around prisons with Sorin and Zian, so it stood to reason that they often spoke my thoughts for me. Which was why I continued to remain quiet, as I mostly agreed with Sorin’s commentary.
“Maybe. But she still did something bad enough to Fall, so if you want to underestimate her, fine. However, I’m not going to be fooled by a pretty face.”
Neither are they, sweetheart, I thought at her, aware that my warrior brothers never judged anyone by their looks. We all knew that sometimes the deadliest of beings hid in the smallest of packages.
Sorin and Zian fell silent, putting me at ease. I thrived in the quiet, where I could listen to everyone and everything around me and monitor my surroundings with my instincts more than my senses.
There you are, I thought, picking up on the subtle hint of cherry blossoms. Mmm, it seems Zian was right. You managed to convince Auric to let you out for some fresh air. Well, welcome to the yard, little blossom.
I didn’t look at her, not right away. Instead, I allowed my senses to roam over every alluring inch of her body, my mind functioning as my hands.
I’d caught her scent the moment she’d stepped into the hallway last week. Ideal mate practically wafted off her in waves. That she stood beside Auric only added to her allure.
Because I sure as fuck wanted a piece of him. Preferably a bloody one, or ten, that I could feast upon while his soul slowly withered away to nothing.
I’d wait until he made the first move.
Then I’d show him what a century of prison life had taught me. Because unlike the Nora Warriors, Noir fought dirty. There was no sense of duty or honor here. Just death and survival of the fittest.
“You finally came out to play, Princess,” a voice cooed from across the yard.