I fell forward and caught myself against the brick wall. I tried to suck in a deep breath, but he was already on me again. The darker part inside of me flared to life and my wings spread, glowing with a hue of teal magic.
His elongated nails dug into my wing and jerked my body around before pinning me to the wall. This time, there wasn’t an ounce of sexual need, and his spell over me was broken.
“I’m going to rip your throat out,” he sneered, and I was suddenly pissed the hell off that I was supposed to keep him alive. It would have been so much easier to just cut his head off with my wingtips.
“Yeah, that’s not going to happen,” I replied right before I used my left elbow to slam into his jaw and my right to blast him with paralyzing magic once again, this time not missing my mark.
My powers seeped into the vampire’s chest and caused him to stagger, but he recovered quicker than expected. His lips lifted as he snarled in my face and wrapped his hands around my neck.
I’d finally had enough and brought my wings forward, holding them right at his throat, ready to slice it open regardless of what Beatrix wanted. “Let go of me and I won’t remove your head.” My eyes narrowed and glowed as my power rose closer to the surface.
He flinched but didn’t back down. One hand pushed my wing just far enough to the side that his head had enough room to slam into mine. Dante seemed uncaring that my wingtips had nearly taken his fingers off.
His impact made my nose crack, causing me to let out several choice words before my fae healing began to kick in, and Dante didn’t give me a moment to recover. He went for my legs next, and my body crashed into the dirty concrete ground.
Damn, that hurt, but I was done playing around. It was time to show him who he was messing with.
“Now this is where you belong. Right on your back.” Dante’s fangs aimed for my neck as he moved in.
My wings were flat against the concrete, but I brought them forward before his mouth could reach my skin and the hardened tops sliced clean through his left ear. He froze in place before I could continue to his neck.
Trying to keep Beatrix in mind since Neva had made a deal, I didn’t immediately kill him. “Let’s have some real fun,” I said before driving my fist into his nose, breaking it like his marble skin did mine.
He might have been strong and given me a challenge, but he couldn’t beat me, and based on the flicker of rage in his eyes, he realized it, too.
“Screw you.” He spat blood and was lucky he missed my face.
“Awe, you’re not going to be that fortunate tonight, vampy.” Wasting no more time, I put my final moves into motion.
My wings pulled back—still attempting to keep him mostly in one piece for Beatrix—and I hooked my left leg around his while I pushed on his chest with both hands, slamming power into his core.
My magic had a visible effect this time, and the darker voice within me sung like a church choir. That was what I’d needed. This sex-on-a-stick deserved to have his ass handed to him, and I was glad to be the one to do it.
A wave of new magic entered the alleyway, so I wasted no time getting one last hit in, this time adding a bit of something special that would keep the vampire down for at least an hour. Enough time for the witch to get him wherever she needed.
“Neva,” I called out just once, and she appeared immediately. “Is that Beatrix I sense?”
The elf nodded at the same time the witch walked out of the shadows, a trail of fog behind her. I was interested in why she hid herself, but not enough to ask. Instead, I was ready to be done with Dante before I accidentally killed him and enraged an entire coven.
“I’d heard you were good, but I must say, I’m a little disappointed.” Beatrix tsked, and I instantly wanted to slice her in two. “You made that look too easy,” she added a second later, saving me the trouble of killing her and the vamp.
“Well, it is what you hired me for,” I replied with bite in my voice, still kneeling over Dante. Even if she hadn’t meant to insult me, she’d still struck a nerve and needed to know. Though, I wasn’t sure if my short temper had more to do with her or the fae that still lingered where he didn’t belong.
“Do you need me to transport him to your coven?” I asked, curious to see what she had behind the walls of the compound she kept so guarded.
She stared down at me and flicked her silver braid behind her shoulder, emerald eyes sparking with plenty of life even though the wrinkles around her face made her seem elderly. “Not a chance in hell, but I do owe you. Would you like payment now or later?”
I considered the fae behind me while Dante still struggled against my spell underneath me. There was a chance I’d need to ditch the newcomer, depending on what he wanted. I couldn’t risk killing a fae and bringing more problems to my doorstep, in case he was someone important to the fae realm. Asking for something so simple wasn’t usually my kind of payment, though it would do this time.
“How about a spell?” I requested.
She raised a brow. “That’s it? What kind?”
Instead of answering her, I sat up to pull my phone from my back pocket and groaned at the cracked screen. I’d need Neva to fix it. Her repair skills far surpassed mine, but regardless of the damage, the apps still worked as I pulled up my notes and typed in my request.
She squinted as I held it up. “You expect me to read that? What’s wrong with talking?”
“Just indulge me, will you?” I sighed, clearly over tonight after dealing first with the annoying werewolf, then a vampire who’d made me sexually frustrated.
I passed her the phone again and waited not-so-patiently until she glanced back at me. “That’s simple enough. Do you want it now or shall I make it to go?”
“To go would be preferable. I have some more business to handle before I go home.” I said the last part a little louder than necessary, so the fae would know I was aware of his presence. When he still didn’t leave, I knew there was no avoiding dealing with him before I could get some sleep.
“Very well.” Beatrix dug into the deep pockets of the loose overcoat she wore and pulled out a vial with clear liquid. Her palms covered the glass, and she murmured into them, causing sparks to flicker around her fingertips.
While she was busy with that, I leaned forward and pulsed an extra dose of magic into Dante just for fun. “Look at you being a good little vampire and staying still.”
His eyes were pure crimson now, and I enjoyed the inner turmoil showcasing in his face. Something told me he’d never been bested by a woman. I stood, leaving my wings on display, and brushed myself off as well as possible while Beatrix finished the spell.
When she was done inspecting her work, I held my hand out until she dropped the vial into my palm. “It’s been a pleasure doing business with you,” she said.
Before I bothered to respond, Beatrix knelt down and placed a hand on Dante whose skin had begun to smoke as he attempted to fight against my power with his own, but it was pointless. He was only going to get himself killed by doing so, and I had no doubt the witches were going to have their fun with the vamp.
We should be enjoying the catch. Not them, my inner voice snarled.
Apparently, our little fight had only scratched the surface of my needs.
Beatrix waved goodbye and disappeared with her prize, making me glad the bloodsucker was no longer my problem. Maybe the loitering fae could help satisfy the inner darkness that was storming inside me.