~Zaire~

The mortal was unlocking her door, when a cat sensed the Fae bodyguard's presence, and scuttled inside the garbage bin. She whipped around, letting out a frightened scream. That sound instantly made him hard, to Zaire's chagrin. He had not heard a sound that delicious in a long time, and a chase suddenly didn't sound so out of the question. His body reacted to it all-too-vehemently. But he shifted even further back, as she scowled at the cat that leapt out and scampered away.

"You scared me, evil thing!"

Her voice was breathless and shaky, and he liked that sound also. Even from a good distance away, he could hear the Fae chuckling at her reaction to the feline. Zaire wondered if the bodyguard had found it as pleasing as he did, and he was annoyed all over again that Talon had sent him. He could easily kill the male and do away with him, but that would only give Talon more reason to chuckle at him. It would piss him off to lose one of his crewmen, but it would also be entertaining for him to know that he had effectively gotten under Zaire's skin. That thought suddenly made Zaire aware that something about this girl was what that meeting had been about. She was a part of Talon's schemes in some way. His annoyance doubled at the realization.

After the mortal went inside, the Fae bodyguard lingered for almost another hour, standing on her front lawn and waiting to make sure that no one else had trailed her. Zaire's frustration grew with every minute that he did so. Fucking hell, no one wants the little thing - not even me. Just thinking that, he knew it tasted like a lie. He may not have wanted to chase her before, but now the idea was not completely off the table. When the Fae finally left, skulking down the street toward a seam Zaire sensed nearby, he immediately went to stand where the male had been a moment before.

Much like he could sense the seam, he could somehow sense that the girl was still awake, moving about inside. He wasn't close enough to be able to do that, especially being vaulted, and that was peculiar. But he knew that she was. Why did she have no lights flicking on, as she moved from room to room? That was considerably abnormal for a mortal. To his knowledge, mortals used the lights wherever they went, so why not this one? All of this was too strange. Even stranger, he felt a pull that made him want to venture inside her home. It would be easy to enter, but it would be foolish also. Once he had intruded, there would be no holding back. He would snatch her up, without a thought. He was tired, hungry, and his shadows wanted this girl. He was hanging on to every last bit of self-control after that delightful scream.

It made him detest her even more, for being any sort of temptation for him to break his abstinence. She was nothing - less than nothing. He wasn't having fun, despite his reasoning for doing this. He should kill her with his gloved hands, just to be done with this nonsense. It wouldn't break his oath to himself as long as he didn't chase her down for blood or sex. Talon would likely forgive him after a few weeks of sulking. The man surely knew that Zaire only had so much patience, which is why he loved testing it on a regular basis.

Zaire sighed raggedly. He knew he wouldn't though. He could kill her without drawing a single drop of blood from her, but it would only make him more frustrated - leave him wanting more. He would have to find a Solitary female and fuck her senseless, and it still wouldn't put a dent in his needs. And then, there would only be the shame of allowing a mortal to coax the reaction out of him, of settling for a Solitary once again. That magnetic pull tugged him a step closer, but he steeled himself. He would not go inside. He would not chase - it wouldn't even be much of a chase, with her trapped between the walls of the house. It would not be gratifying.

The front door creaked open, and the girl stepped outside onto her porch, wearing only a flimsy shirt that clung to her petite frame. Zaire's entire body rippled with tension. She looked confused as to why she was coming out. That unholy pull that seemed to draw her to him must have done it. He cursed under his breath as his shadows trembled with anticipation.

"I swear I will never let you out again if you reach for her without my permission," Zaire growled at them viciously.

Zaire could see her nipples through the thin material, pebbling in the cold air, and his traitorous body ignited at the sight. The shirt she wore barely reached her thighs, and he could see almost every inch of her legs. She shivered slightly, and he fucking shuddered  in response.

"Damn it all to hell," Zaire cursed again, hating himself for reacting so strongly to her, as if she was some extra special treat being waved in front of his face - even more so than the fresh blood Talon taunted him with earlier.

He knew she couldn't see him, couldn't hear him. She was looking right through Zaire, but she walked towards him, as if she could feel  him standing in her yard. Zaire almost took a step back, when she made it to arm's length. She peered up at the moon, and it reflected in her big, citrine-colored eyes. With her this close, he could see tiny flecks of darkness in her amber irises, teasing him. He could reach out and trace the goosebumps on her skin, if he wanted to. Who was he fucking kidding? He did want to, but he wouldn't dare. Then her gaze shifted downward, until she was practically looking right into his eyes, and his shadows surged as if he had been electrocuted, but they seemed to heed his threat, and didn't reach for her.

"I don't want to be afraid of you."

Zaire flinched at those words. What? Who did she think she was speaking to? She clearly wasn't given the Sight. Did she know about the Fae somehow? Did she know she was being stalked by more than one tonight? She sounded so calm as she said it, and that - combined with her words - was like a sensual challenge to him. Don't want to be afraid of me?  He knew the words weren't meant for him, but it made him crave her even more.

 I'll fucking give you a chase, and you will love being afraid of me. You'll wish for me to hunt you, take you, make you mine.

He ground his teeth hard enough to turn them to dust - if he was mortal like her. With one gloved finger, he tapped the hollow at the base of her throat, allowing his shadows a small lick. Just enough to give her a trickle of terror and send her back inside. The girl gasped softly, her pupils dilating as his shadows pulled back under his skin, vibrating harder than they did when they turned that Solitary Fae into ash yesterday night. They fucking loved  the taste of her. If Zaire was as stupid as he felt for following her, he would open the vault, and taste the fear they had instilled in her - relish in it. But he didn't. He watched her turn and walk toward the door, at a maddeningly slow pace. He knew that the tiny lick should have made her run. He hated that he wanted  it to, even if he would refuse to chase her to her door and get his fill of her. But she walked with measured steps, as if she knew just what he would do to her if she ran at that moment. As if she knew that a starving Dark Fae was manipulating her emotions. She went inside after one final glance back in his direction, and the door closed and locked behind her.

Zaire growled again from deep in his chest, like the sound of the lock was another challenge. That fucking lock had no chance against him. If he was going after her, it would serve no purpose. It took everything he had to move away from that unspoken challenge. That detestable little girl! He took off toward the nearby seam that the other Fae had used, furious that he  was the one fucking running. Running away  from the urge to hunt someone so fragile and pathetic. His speed carried him to a park down the street in only a minute. Between two trees, he found the seam, and hurled himself through it.

The seam spat him out on the other side of the Veil, and he was standing in the middle of the forest in the Outskirts of the Dark. He released his vault finally, released his iron-grip on his shadows, and roared. The sound echoed through the woods, sending his own frustrations back at him. A few nearby Hounds scurried away, whining like the sound of his fury alone was a cut on their flesh. He was deep into the forest, but at least he was in the Outskirts. He would make it home in no time, but it pissed him off to no end that he had to go on foot. As if he hadn't walked enough today because of that hungry little girl. When he finally made it to his place, the Pestilence swarmed him, because of course they would - with him walking home like an idiot after using the wrong seam.

"Crimson sky - Oh my, my!" One of the Pests chirped as he swung at it.

"Fuck off!"  Zaire groaned, flicking another off his shoulder.

They never listened to him. It seemed that annoying him was something that made them happy. It showed he cared for them in some way since he never killed them for it. He blew one off of his doorknob and stomped inside. He was going to knock Talon the fuck out tomorrow, demand to know what the hell this was all about. He knew the man wanted to test him, wanted to push him to cave into his desires. But Zaire also knew that it wasn't right to refuse the cravings day after day, that it made him weak to do so. Talon wanted him to reach his fullest potential, believed him to be one of the strongest Dark Fae in existence, and so he was prodding him like cattle to make him give in to his needs - so Zaire would be stronger for it. Talon's damn interference was obviously doled out to appease some form of his own  selfish need to rejoin the Dark Court, some form of misguided kindness and flattery for his oldest friend, and some form of voracious assholery.

"Bastard," Zaire scoffed, pacing in his living room, while the Pests tapped on his windows with their tiny claws.

That conniving fucker knew  that he would want that girl, but how? She was so insubstantial, so insignificant! How could Talon possibly know - without a doubt - that she would tempt him? The whole situation was beyond infuriating. Zaire respected him for keeping his lies close, and his secrets closer, but not when they involved meddling in his  fucking life! Messing around with him was one thing, but this shit was crossing a line. He was going to squeeze those secrets out of Talon, even if he had to crush them out of his windpipe to get them. Friend or not.