Page 25 of Last Minion Standing
I really hoped Drake won the competition because I really couldn’t see myself working with the demon. Not to mention, I knew I wouldn’t last much longer under Drake’s torturous method of getting me to confess my feelings. But damn was I enjoying myself while he tried.
The commercial break ended, and the emcee came back on, along with video footage of Dretnor opening a portal and stepping out into a mountain range.
“What is our villainous competitor doing outside his only opponent, Drake’s, home? Is he planning to kill the only other contestant, or does he have more sinister plans?”
Outside Drake’s home? Surely, I’d misunderstood. I continued to watch the television and saw Dretnor blast a hole in the rock, and unless Drake had a really wicked television set, I actually felt the tremor in the bed.
The ominous music playing on the television kind of matched the oh-shit feeling creeping through my limbs. The camera switched, and I caught a brief glimpse of my naked flesh on the television screen, as suddenly my spread-eagle predicament was broadcast to the world.
Great. Just great. They were shooting this live, which meant I didn’t have time to admire my curvy body. I needed to get free. Drawing on my demon side, I pulled at my restraints, my muscles screaming in protest. With a clang and sudden jingling, I freed one arm, albeit with a new heavy bracelet. With one arm free, I was able to use both hands to pull free my other bound arm.
I’d managed to snap one of the chains holding my legs when Dretnor appeared in the bedroom doorway.
“You weren’t invited to this party,” I told him, doing my best to shield my body with my hair. Some men I liked to pose for; others, I preferred to gouge their eyes than let them feast on the awesomeness known as Sally.
He didn’t leave. Rather, he grinned at me, a nasty look full of sharp teeth that went quite well with his evil, glowing eyes. “If it isn’t the slut herself,” he said, approaching with heavy feet, just as I broke the last chain.
Slut? I totally resented that claim. There was nothing wrong with being sexually liberated—unless you were liberating with someone else’s man.
Freed, I bound up on the bed, heavy chains flying. “What are you doing here?”
“Isn’t it obvious? I’m here to kill you.”
“Why?” I know, stupid question to ask when I should have been looking for ways to kick his ass, but I truly wanted to know. I mean, come on, I was standing buck naked in front of the guy, um, demon, and while every other male in the known planes would have been sporting a hard-on, he wanted to snuff me. Something was seriously wrong with this picture.
“Once you die, my beautiful Meddie will be mine.”
“Who the fuck is Meddie?” Seriously, I had no idea, and why did he need to kill me to be with her?
Dretnor snarled and lunged at me. “You will speak of her with respect. Medusa has abided your cruelty long enough. I will free her from your vile presence, and once I do, she will love me as she promised.”
His words startled me enough that I stumbled, and he raked a poisonous claw across the skin of my arm. Ouch, talk about stinging.
Pain didn’t stop me from replying, though. “You mean she put you up to this?”
“I tried to discredit you first,” said the demon as he stalked me around the bed. “But no one noticed or cared because of your stupid reality show. Then that idiot dragon fell under your spell and helped foil the attack by the assassins.”
“And let me guess, you joined the competition to get close to me.”
“Yes, but anyone can see the game will be fixed so Drake, your lover, can win. I must make my move now while he is distracted.”
“Wait a second,” I said, panting as I tried to dodge and still got sliced. The damn chains kept throwing my balance off, and now the poison also made my movement sluggish. “You’re the one who called Drake away?”
“I used a cloaked phone and called to tell him we were interested in hiring him to kill you. Loverboy immediately took off to try and save your sorry ass.”
My heart melted to know he’d left in an attempt to be my hero. Turned out he should have stayed for more than one reason. “You won’t get away with this. All of Hell is watching you right now. Drake will come back any second and eat you. I’m his mate, you know.”
“Drake should be dead by now,” said Dretnor with a sneer. “His meeting was with a coven of lamia in need of some dragon skin. And you will join him shortly.”
“Fucking bastard!” Tears blurred my vision at the thought of Drake dying, and I dove at the demon, uncaring suddenly that I had no weapons to aid me. I just wanted to wrap my hands around his villainous throat and squeeze. But an unarmed, injured half-demon was no match for a full demon running on madness.
He flung me about like a rag doll. I’ll admit things weren’t looking too good, and I’d run out of options.
Lying on the floor, gasping in pain, my body sporting a multitude of cuts and bruises, I watched Dretnor approach, my impending death in his eyes. I could heal from many things, but the blade he suddenly pulled out made me curse. Even I couldn’t recover from a decapitation.
A roar suddenly shook the room, vibrated my skin, and bitch slapped hope back into me.
Could it be?