Page 38 of Claiming Demons
Fuck. He knew about Ana.
That was very bad. I hadn’t expected to keep her a secret forever, but still…
“Stay away from her, or I swear I’ll—”
“She’s a goddess, I wouldn’t dream of touching her,” he said, his high-pitched laugh cut me off as his frozen eyes twinkled. “Though, I wonder if she’d notice if I visited her looking like you? Is she as sweet as they say? I might like to taste her.” He laughed again as I fumed. “But no, I’m not here to play with your little goddess. No, I’m here to play withyou, my puppy.”
Oh, fuck, that was definitely not good. Loki’s “playing” had caused The Black Plague and the Bermuda Triangle.
I backed away, though I knew I’d never escape him. He was supernaturally fast, blinking from place to place with ease.
Suddenly that piercing laugh of his was freezing my very bones.
“I think it’s time you remembered your roots, little puppy,” my father said with a wide grin. “Time to take your wolf for a walk.Consume! Destroy!” There was power infused into those last words, which thrummed through me.
“No!” I gasped.
Except even as I turned to run, Loki was there on the other side of me, having moved faster than I could see. He reached out one gracefully long finger, touching my forehead, and I was instantly unable to move. That touch held me, boring into my mind, suppressing me while calling my wolf.
No!
The word died on my lips, unspoken. I was no longer in control. That was the power of Loki. One touch and I was helpless before him. He’d easily pushed me down into my own subconscious and summoned my beast, ready to explode forth with ravenous fury.
Yet… I only partially shifted. My wolf didn’t fully emerge, and confused dismay clouded my father’s expression.
“What…?”
I was just as shocked as he was. Except before he could tear apart my mind to find out how I had resisted him, my beast tore itself away from him. He may have been able to overpower me, but my beast far exceeded even Loki’s abilities.
And with the sliver of control I still had, I ran, bolting for an elevator — just as one opened and an unsuspecting daemon walked out. I slammed myself inside, my pulse pounding, relieved to see the door close on Loki’s still confused face.
When the elevator door opened, I staggered away, out of the lobby. People ran and screamed when they saw me. My wolf was straining to be fully free and take control, but it couldn’t. Still, I was half shifted, my hybrid form terrifying to any normal person.
I stumbled through the streets of Manhattan, trying to regain control, but I couldn’t. Throwing myself into an alley, I raked my claws across my chest. The pain helped to clear my mind for a moment, so I could hopefully figure out what was happening.
Why hadn’t I fully shifted? How had I been able to resist my father?
If I could figure that out, perhaps I’d be able to regain full control.
I saw Ana’s divine face in my mind, and she reached out and ran a hand through my hair.
I love you, Fen,she whispered,you can do this!
It wasn’t actually her, just a vision, but still… it gave me the enlightenment I needed. My soul, including my beast, belonged to Ana now. Her love sustained me, strengthened me, to the point that I’d been able to resist my father’s compulsion.
Except Loki had still called Fenris forth and without more help from Ana, my wolf would emerge soon.
And while my beast may love Ana as much as I did, it also still loved to destroy and consume and it was straining to do just that.
I pushed myself out of the alley, staggering and stumbling like a drunkard. Luckily, people got out of my way, because I still looked like a fucking werewolf. I couldn’t help that. It took everything I had to simply put one foot in front of the other.
I had to get to Horus’ party. I knew I’d find Ana there.
Because if I didn’t find her, a lot of people were going to die tonight.
GREY
Erini was drooling over Fen,her wild eyes fixated on the man as he fled to his father, then she used a finger to wipe up her saliva, sticking it in her mouth and licking it off.