Demon Retribution by Kiersten Fay

His expression went blank.
    Zoey didn’t seem to notice and continued.
“Your people are magic.”
    “ I didn’t say magic,” he
protested.
    Zoey waved his comment away and then started
to recite something that sounded far too much like a fairy tale.
“He’s come to rescue you, take you aboard his ship, and reunite you
with your long lost sister.”
    “ Ach, you’re getting it all
wrong,” Cale groaned.
    “ Alright, alright,” Kyra
interrupted. “We don’t need to go into all the little details now.
First, we need to cover our tracks. Zo? Do you have your
phone?”
    “ It’s in my
purse.”
    “ Toss it. It’s too easy to
trace. No credit cards either. Cash only. How did you pay for the
room?”
    “ Cash,” Zoey
confirmed.
    “ Good. I have enough in my
purse to get us to my cabin. It’s secluded and not under my current
name, so it should be the perfect place for us to hide, for now. I
have money stashed there too. On the way, we’ll stop and get some
clothes for everyone.” She ran her hands through her hair and met
with resistance. “Scratch that. First, a shower. Second, everything
else I just said.”
     
    Cale felt like some child’s dress up toy,
standing in the store while Kyra and Zoey held up outfits against
him. They’d already replaced his old hat with something larger that
had a belt wrapped around it. Zoey said it made him look rugged.
Kyra smiled and nodded, so he allowed it.
    Then came the shirts, pants, and footwear.
He was glad when they finally let him sit while they searched the
store for themselves, only asking on occasion what he thought. He’d
had more than enough experience with females to know that you
always say they look perfect, even if they didn’t. But with Kyra,
he found it was nearly always true. There was, however, an
oversized sweater that he’d “vetoed” as Zoey called it.
    Other than helping Kyra choose clothing, he
tried to keep his eyes off her—a pursuit that was proving
impossible. Everything she did distracted him. Every expression,
every sound she made.
    In the clearing, when he’d kissed her, it
had been like hovering on the Edge, only better. A light breeze
could have pushed him over. All thought had been drained away, and
only she had existed.
    It had been reckless!
    But then, his reaction had been entirely
unexpected. He still couldn’t understand how he could possibly have
let his guard drop. Not only that, but the aftermath of the kiss
had been unforeseeable.
    Velicia’s betrayal had been the most
devastating experience of his life. His father’s death, his
mother’s wretchedness were nothing in comparison. For years, the
Edge had been his home, madness his friend. After Sebastian and
Sonya had painstakingly helped him find his way back to a saner
state of mind, he’d tried to forget his love for Velicia by losing
himself in the arms of as many women as possible.
    Mated demons, like himself, only crave a
mate’s touch. He could attest that touching another felt detestable
and vile, even in the height of ecstasy. The guilt that followed
each liaison—each deceptive kiss—was like his own personal
self-mutilation. The pain was almost physical, though not
quite.
    But with Kyra, it had been.
    Merely kissing her had been far worse than
any female he’d brought to his bed. It made him wonder how terrible
it would be to take her fully. Perhaps it would finally destroy
him.
    He was intrigued.
    But he wouldn’t risk it again. Not with the
Kayadon threat at hand.
    The fact that Kyra had to bail him out with
a gift that cost her so much was embarrassing. Sebastian would have
kicked his ass for it. Then Sonya would have waited for him to heal
and kicked it again.
    He was foolish not to have brought Sonya
along to watch his back, like Sebastian had wanted. Arrogant and
foolish. The idea of having the Kayadon to himself, to destroy them
all for what they’d done to him, had been too tempting. He knew
their weapons were advanced, but he hadn’t