Chapter 15

It was his eyes. The beautiful amber orbs that shone for me were gone, as was the face I loved. In its place was a mask of cold rage that showed nothing, revealed nothing of who he was or how he felt. It was the face of a man who would do anything and not care, no matter how much carnage he left in his wake.

But his eyes were so much worse.

Black but for the smallest slit of red down the middle that I could scarcely make out only because they were focused on me. Eyes gone dead, without the slightest hint of recognition. But still, they were beautiful.

"Talon?" I breathed hesitantly, hoping that his name or my voice would bring a response. But nothing happened; he just hovered a scant inch from the spell keeping him imprisoned and let his gaze bore into mine. Trying the link we shared, I found the presence on behind the barrier different, changed. I could tell that the being on the other side was technically the same, but the mind was vastly different. It was as if someone had forced upon him the mindset of a storyline denizen of evil. It wasn't insanity, exactly, but very close. Almost chaotic.

Chaotic?

I gasped. Talon wasn't his only name - it was given to him later. His brother Zaire had been known as Carnage, making the being that stood before me -

"Chaos."

His lips twisted into what should have been my favorite half-smile, but was warped by malice and the promise of pain.

It made me shiver, though I couldn't tell if it was in fear or anticipation.

"About time, Little Cat." His voice contained the double timbre I'd only heard when he was in full Demon form. "I was beginning to think you'd never figure it out."

"Where's Talon?" I asked, my voice shaking slightly.

He tapped his head with a long finger. "He's in here somewhere. Rather stupid of him to relinquish control so late in the game, but -" he shrugged and stepped through the spell and into the hall, backing me up until I bumped against the far wall. "He tried to keep you from me." His hand rose to hover over my cheek and I could feel his heat. It was all I could do not to press my face into him. The fear was still there, but buried beneath this overwhelming craving I had for him, this urge I could not explain or control and had me wanting him as I have never wanted or needed before.

"But you knew, didn't you? You just didn't understand. You are not at fault; you tried to learn but were kept ignorant." His voice wrapped around my mind, an impossible to resist force that was erotic even as it was deadly. It called out to my inner predator, bringing her to the forefront, his presence an enticement to her, a promise of pain and pleasure she didn't want to resist.