Wicked Love

Book 2 in The Villains Series

Aug 22, 2024

Lucien

One second I’m rolling my eyes behind the night goggles Ondine’s boy-wonder put on me for yet another round of virtual shoot-'em-up. The next, I’m in the shadows of some unknown hallway, wondering what the hell happened. There’s no time to riddle that one out, though, before steps sound on the floor right behind me. I flash against the wall, surprised to no end that I’m able to do so. How long has it been since I last made any actionable move without it being asshole-controlled outside of Realm’s dungeon? Realm being the video game set up by an elite group of magickals to monitor the activity of the naturals’ world while also imprisoning anyone who got on their bad side. Who got on their bad side three hundred years ago? That would be me, Lucien Von Strauche, Count of Mont Lierre and exceedingly handsome, albeit broody vampire. I’m not alone in this predicament, though. There are others jailed in the dungeon, forced to live and move at the whim of snot-nosed entertainment seekers. They call us "Villains,” but that’s just semantics.

The footsteps grow louder, sharper. More stomping than walking, really. My eyes adjust just as a wave of perfume hits my senses. Lily of the Valley and another scent I can’t place. My sense of smell used to identify every nuanced note on the spot. Being trapped in stasis for over a hundred years and in a video game for twenty more must have dulled even that. The footsteps stop in a swirl of black satin in front of a closed door directly across the hall from where I stand. The movement of the fabric draws my eyes to a pair of long, slender legs and feet ensconced in two of the highest heeled shoes I’d ever seen. My mind hadn’t dredged up the phrase “well-turned ankle” in over two centuries, but it does now. It’s not just the ankles that catch my eye before the wearer’s evening gown settles with a swoosh. I don’t know if it’s the sculpted female calves or their owner’s perfectly executed foot stamp that impresses me more.

Just as my stare starts to wander above her hemline, my eyes jump as my eardrums nearly burst at the sound of her pounding her balled little fist on the door.

“Andrew!!” I wince at her shrill tone. “What have you done?!”

Good god! The lady surely doth protest too much, and very loudly at that. What has her so riled, I wonder? And then I wonder why I’m wondering. I should be trying to figure out where in the blazes I even am.

“Have you been playing that dumb game all day?” More pounding. Finally, the door swings open.

“What is your problem, Marissa? I was sleeping, dammit!” A dark-haired young man props himself up in the doorway, rumpled and yawning.

“Our power just went out… in the middle of father’s meeting, you idiot!” The female says with a shake of her blonde head. “The whole house is down. We assumed it was you up here messing around.”

“That doesn’t even make sense. How would I have anything to do with the power going out?”

She pushes her way into the room. My eyes narrow on her back.

“It’s always you.” She moves further in and I step away from the wall to get a better look. I watch her through the dark as she stops in front of a gaming console.

“Hey, stay away from that. Obviously, the power’s out up here too, genius.”

I really don’t like his tone, that one. My hands clench as I move closer. Both their heads turn in my direction when I do, and I plaster myself to the outside of the doorjamb in another stealthy flash. Damn, that feels good!

The woman gives her head a shake. Rumpled, gamer boy looks back at her.

“Figure out how to fix this.” She hisses at him.

Hmm, her tone isn’t so great either. Just where in the world have the F-d up fates landed me? Glaring, she goes on before the kid can speak.

“I know you did something. Set it right before all hell breaks loose!”

“What are you talking about? I swear, you’re such a drama queen. To think father put you in charge of managing his Council business.” His sneer makes me want to plant my fist in his sniveling face once again, but something he said catches my attention.

Council.

As in the Council of Magickals that locked me up?!

“Whatever, Andrew! I suppose you think you could do the job? Give me a break. Just clean up your mess and be quick about it! We have a whole parlor room full of council members freaking out downstairs.”

“What’s their problem?”

“Realm went haywire an hour ago. No one knows how, but now there’s reason to believe the Villains are on the loose and we’ve lost track of the spell book needed to bring them all back.”

What? Villains on the loose? Is that what this is? Am I on the loose? Hell’s bells, that’s fantastic! No wonder I can move about freely. But what’s this about a book? If the Council is looking for the tome with the original binding curse that imprisoned me and my comrades in Realm, I have to get to it first!

“This has nothing to do with me.”

“Andrew!”

“Fuck me! Geez. I’m going.”

“Going? Going where?” She looks at the male, confusion on her face.

“To the breaker room, dummy. I told you, the power going out has nothing to do with my room.” He walks out into the hall, muttering as he stomps past me. I flatten against the wall in the darkness and he doesn’t even notice. As soon as he’s gone, I steal into the room where the blonde still stands, a perplexed look marring her perfect features. Arms crossed under her breasts, she turns to frown at the console, lets out a sigh. And that’s when I pounce.

Flashing up behind her, I wrap my arms around her waist and shoulders. Before she can scream, I cover her mouth with my hand, then flash us both out of the room and out of the house, but not before her scent engulfs me. Lily of the Valley fills my nostrils in a wave. That and the other elusive perfume I can’t name. Heady and haunting, it draws me wholly into the darkness.

Thanks for reading! I’m absolutely not done with these two yet. I’ll be working on Lucien and Marissa’s tale, which coincides with Grim and Angel’s story from Wolf’s Captive. Both can be read as they are written now over on my Ream Stories account in the Lairling tier.

What do you think of the cover?