Sweet Temptation (The Sweet Trilogy #4)(81)

She gives me a firm nod that she’ll be okay. I know she’s a fighter. We quietly swim to the posts underneath the dock where Kope and Zania have grabbed hold. The damn things are slick with sea life, making them difficult to grip. The five of us look around at each other, ready to weather what’s to come. I stare at Anna and she gives me one last brave nod.

Please, please, let this be over quickly. I hope the Dukes will get their f*cking kicks and get the hell out of here. Surely they don’t plan to stay all night?

I hunker down with the others and wait as the sea temperature drops. Zania seems worlds stronger after only a day under Anna’s nurturing. She got her to shower and eat a bit. I’m glad, because Z’d never be able to survive this if she was in the same shape now as two days ago. Her quick Nephilim healing probably helped, as well.

It doesn’t take long for the Dukes to arrive. They’ve even brought Flynn, which surprises me. His father must have called him to Vegas soon after we parted in Europe.

Father, Melchom, Mammon, and Astaroth came to the island to work, bringing married and engaged women, who they plan to ruin, to soil with adultery, guilt, and regret.

Hours pass, and it’s bloody cold. Nearly unbearable. I can’t stand to see Anna’s lips turning blue and her body trembling uncontrollably.

At some point during the Dukes’ exploits, Anna begins to lose it. She’s shivering like mad. She lets out a squeak of fear, and jumps as if something’s rubbed up against her underwater. Then she nearly laughs, delirious. I rush from my post, stiff and numb, wrapping my arms around her frozen body. I press a hand over her lips to remind her to be quiet and she slowly nods. I keep one hand firmly around her waist and hold the pole with the other.

We cling underneath the dock for hours, pushed and pulled by the Pacific tides, waiting for the Dukes to finish their bloody business so I can get Anna to warmth, but the night only turns worse. I thought perhaps the Dukes had brought Flynn along to be their bodyguard and lackey—to drop the anchor and fetch them wine—but their reason was more sinister than that. Much more.

They know Flynn was in Syria, and that Zania was bought by two “mystery men.” They know there are traitors among them.

“What you don’t know, son,” Duke Mammon whispers with malice, “is that Duke Sonellion borrowed one of Duke Thamuz’s sons to keep watch over the transaction of the girl while he was away.”

Kope and I share a shocked glance. Another Neph had been there in Syria with us. He’d seen Flynn get into the fight on that hill, seen his red hair when his head covering fell back. But it sounds as if he hadn’t seen me or Kope.

“Tell me who you’re working with!” Mammon shouts above us.

Don’t tell them, I silently beg. Stay strong, mate.

Anna is shivering violently, and my worry has turned to panic. In the moonlight her lips are lavender, and I’m not sure how she’s able to keep herself afloat. The only part of her that looks alive is her eyes as she watches the action on the dock through a chink in the wood.

“I will tell you nothing, old man,” Flynn says.

Bloody right on him. He’s ready to die for this cause. His father, Mammon, holds a gun to his head, but Flynn is unflinching.

“Last chance,” Mammon says.

“I’ll see you in hell,” Flynn responds, and he sounds almost liberated . . . free.

I touch my fingers to Anna’s cold lips and hold her tight as a gunshot splits the air. Her body jolts in my arms. I press my cheek to the side of her head.

For the second time in my life, I witness a fellow Neph murdered by a Duke. Unlike the first time, I am not numb. I feel the brutality of Flynn’s death, and it hurts. It’s personal.

I watch helplessly as our worthy ally’s soul is pulled away to hell by demon spirits, and my rage threatens to make us known. I watch as Z’s teeth chatter and Anna goes limp with grief in my arms. I watch as Blake has lost all remnants of humor, and even Kope’s face is desolate. I hate that we must sit here in silence, vulnerable and defenseless.

How much more can we take of this? How many more of us must die before we can act?

I’ve never been more relieved than when the Dukes leave the island. Anna’s frozen stiff as I hoist her onto the dock with my weakened arms. My sore muscles ache as I pull her into my lap and bring Zania closer to Anna. Kope and Blake quickly leave us for the other side of the island, with the hope of retrieving Blake’s boat as fast as possible. Anna and Zania’s shaking has become violent, and they can hardly open their eyes.

“Shit—I think you have hypothermia.” I rub Anna’s arms, but she’s soaked through. I know the wet clothes are supposed to come off, but I need to wait until she’s in the boat. I surround her with my arms and she encircles Zania weakly. “It’s okay,” I say. “You’ll be all right now. The boat is nearly here.”

Hurry, hurry, hurry.

The boat finally docks and Kope jumps off. Together we rush the girls down into the cabin. My first instinct is to put them on the bed, but they’re soaked. I set Anna in a chair, and Kope follows my lead.

“Can we get the heat on down here?” I call up to Blake. “We need to get them out of these wet clothes.”

“I’m trying to figure it out!” he yells back. “I might need some help up here. Can one of you guys find the extra blankets?”