Maddening (Cursed Superheroes #2)(9)

“Trained for what?” I ask, my fingers itching to touch him.

“To become a superhero,” he replies with a shrug.

At first I think perhaps I heard him wrong, but when he remains silent, I gape at him. “You think I can become a superhero? Wow, did I take some of your sanity away?”

He struggles not to chuckle. “No. And trust me, becoming a superhero is better than the alternative.”

“Which is?”

“Stealing minds to feed your inner hunger.” He places his hand to the center of my chest, shuts his eyes, and breathes in deeply. “I can smell the hunger all over you right now.”

My heart flutters in my chest, mainly from his touch. “And you’re not afraid of me? That I’ll try to steal your mind?”

A smirk forms on his face as he opens his eyes. “You could try, but you wouldn’t succeed.” His hand slips up the front of me, curves across my neck, before finally residing on my cheek. “I’m way too strong.”

“Oh.” Puzzlement weaves through me. “So what exactly do I have to do to become a superhero? And what was the thing with the red eyes? And who cursed me—how did I get cursed?”

“Leader will explain all of that to you later,” he says, and I have the feeling he’s purposefully avoiding answering my questions. “But he refuses to come in until I take care of you.”

“Take care of me how?”

“By feeding your craving for insanity.”

I’m about to ask him how he’ll do that when he yanks me against him. At first I think he’s going to kiss me, but instead he holds my body tightly against him, until our chests, hips, legs—everything—is fused together. A warmth flickers inside me, a slow burning that works into a scorching fire. The fire keeps spreading, kissing my skin until I can barely breathe. I can almost feel Caspian inside me, or his power anyway. Hot and scorching and powerful. And strangely, sedating.

“Oh my God, that feels so good….” I moan, my head tipping back as my body slumps toward the floor. “Is it always supposed to feel this way?”

He catches me in his arms, his eyes scorching with something I don’t recognize. “Not even close.”

That’s the last thing I hear before my eyelids slip shut.

A memory tickles my mind.

“I’m coming for you,” the thing with red eyes whispers. “Your parents—they promised you to me. And I’m not about to let Caspian have you.”

Fear ravels through my body, but fizzles as Caspian’s power consumes every inch of me. Then I surrender to the wildfire roaring inside me. Still, though, I fear what’s waiting for me when I open my eyes again.





Chapter 10


Leader





“That went better than I expected,” I announce to my colleague as I return to my office. I run my fingers through my white and blue hair then drop down into a chair. “She’s very powerful too... I could see the power flowing off of her from the viewing window.”

He leans back in the chair he’s sitting in, fidgeting restlessly. “I still can’t believe you brought a half Maddening, half jinn in here. I swear, you’re losing your damn mind. No pun intended.”

“There was no other way around it—we need her to be trained.” I slant back in my chair and rest my hands on my lap. “And no one can know about Caspian. I didn’t even want you knowing, but you just had to go snooping through my files.”

“I wasn’t snooping,” he insists. “I was looking for some paperwork on project Mist.”

He’s such a liar. He was snooping to see how I planned on training the Maddening. When he found out about Caspian, he reacted just like I expected—he freaked out. Honestly, I don’t blame him. Caspian is a very powerful Maddening with jinn bloodlines, but he’s a friend of mine and I trust him… sort of.

“Sure you were.” I swivel in my chair, replaying how the Maddening looked through the window… the vines on her skin, the darkness swirling in her eyes, her blood red lips.

She’s not only beautiful, but powerful—a perfect combination. I just need to make sure she understands who’s in charge of her now. Not Caspian, but me. But until her power is under control, I don’t even dare go near her. I just hope Caspian will keep himself in check, that the hint of desire mixed with empathy I saw in his eyes won’t turn into anything more. I wouldn’t think too much of it except I’ve known him for years and never once have I seen him convey any sort of emotion besides irritation and arrogance.

I’ll need to keep an eye on him.

“So who’s next?” my colleague asks, pulling me out my thoughts.

I lean forward and open up my file. “Ava Mikiley. She’ll be turning eighteen in a few days. Her godmother was actually the person who put the curse on her.” Painful memories pierce at my heart as I read the file, but I refuse to feel the pain—feel the past. “She traded her godchild’s life so she could get a boyfriend.”

My colleague doesn’t seem as bothered as I am. “Sucks for the kid, but it’s good for us, right?”

I don’t agree with him at all. While I need my superheroes, I hate reading about who cursed these girls. And all for what? Money? A high social status? Temporary love? I’ve been in their shoes before and it hurts like a bitch, which is why I’ve avoided telling them the entire truth, about their curses, who collects the curses, and what lies ahead for them. Because while they will become superheroes, nothing will ever be the same for them again.