Darkness Comes Read Online Free PDF Page A

slightly, refusing to be swamped by emotion. “Were you sold? Did someone sell and fuck you?”
    Fire blazed in his blue orbs. “No one dared.”
    That had pissed him off. She wanted to prod, to pry, to burrow into his mind and exploit his weaknesses. “Have you ever bought a slave? Is that why we’re here? Are you more fucked up than anyone thought? Is that what you’re trying to tell me?”
    “I’ve never needed to buy a woman to satisfy my needs, and I have many.”
    Mia continued to stare at him, trying to look into the depths of his soul. “You didn’t answer my question.”
    He reached for his drink and took slow, deliberate sips. Tormenting her as she waited for his reply.
    The bidding on stage began for the first woman.
    “What if the answer was yes? What would your cold, clinical mind say if I told you I’d bought one of these women in my past? What if I told you it was the pretty brunette with the slave number on her arms?” He flicked a strand of Mia’s now dry titian hair.
    She flinched and he smiled.
    His tone remained cool, calm. He never raised his voice. “If I told you the whispers made me slice her open. Peel back the outer membrane to reveal what beauty is on the inside of a human being. Have you ever seen blood at night? It’s almost black. Like tar. Sticky. Warm. A slight metallic taste. A sweet smell…”
    “It won’t work.” Fucking with her, goading her. It wouldn’t work. He was nothing but a clever thief trying to throw her off purpose. He wasn’t going to give up his secrets but she refused to let him destroy her. “The mind games. Fucking with me so I’ll run for safety like a frightened girl who shies from the devil.”
    Her heart beat wildly. She removed the mental padlock from her past and let Dylan see who she really was. “I’m no girl. I’ve seen and experienced more things than you can comprehend. The more you try to shock me with these games, the more tenacious I become. You think this shocks me? You try being up on stage.”
    She expected surprise but his expression remained a blank mask. Anger boiled. She stood up, placed her palms of the table and leaned across. “I know what you are. You’re more intelligent than any of us could have predicted. A criminal mastermind. Bravo. But your control will slip, and when it does I’m going to be there.”
    The atmosphere between them became electric, raw and primal. She’d challenged him.
    Dylan stood slowly. His movements graceful. “Why do you chase criminals, Dr. Simon?”
    The question threw her. Of all the things she’d expected to come out of his mouth, this wasn’t one of them. Violence, yes. Smart-ass comments, yes.
    “Because I’m a psychologist. It’s what I do.” Of course it was much more than that. But she wasn’t going to admit it to him.
    He frowned, gritted his teeth. “Wrong answer. I’m asking you again. Tell me why you do this, or the deal is off.”
    Mia looked down at the droplet of candle wax that spilled over onto the table. “It excites me.”
    “What was that? I couldn’t quite hear you.”
    Of course he’d heard her. He was fucking with her again. Her cheeks blazed with embarrassment. She lifted her chin and looked directly at him. “It excites me. Is that what you wanted to hear? I can’t get off the normal way. I can’t get off with a man who is tender and soft. I want hard. I want raw.”
    “Very good, Mia. Finally we get to the truth. You chase us because it excites you, makes you feel alive, wild, feral. You observe because you don’t have the courage to embrace your own dark side. Not just yet. But it’s there, stalking the hallways of your mind. Waiting for release.”
    He grabbed her wrist and dragged her toward the exit. She struggled to keep up with his long, determined strides. His fingers bruised the delicate flesh of her wrist.
    Before he pushed open the exit door, he turned to Mia. His mouth was inches from hers. She could smell the whiskey he’d drunk. The