The Summit Read online

  “What did you have in mind?” I question, with a quirk of my lips.

  He grabs my hand and tugs me around the car. I spot the building next to us as he pulls me towards it. I grin as he kicks open the door, the dust and age bursting out into the air.

  I follow him inside the building, covering my nose at the stale odour that hits me. Light streams in between the boards on the building, and I’m guessing this used to be a shop of some kind. Clothes half torn up or covered in dirt are scattered everywhere, railings overturned, a cash machine laying on the floor open with the money still inside. It’s depressing to say the least.

  I don’t get to look around for long before Jax is spinning me and smashing his mouth to mine. I groan as he nips my bottom lip, before plundering my mouth with his tongue. Reaching up, I grab on to his hair as his hands drop to my ass and yank me until I am against him. The door opening has me pulling back from the kiss, slightly out of breath, to see Drax at the doorway; Jax ignores him and starts kissing down my neck.

  “Well, were you going to have some fun without me?” Drax grins as he takes us both in. Without waiting for a reply, he lets the door shut behind him and strolls towards me, his eyes locked on where his twin’s hands cup my ass. Coming up behind me, he drops his face to the other side of my neck and whispers against my ear. “I’m all better now, so how about I show you…” I groan as Jax lifts his head.

  He arches his eyebrow at his brother, his lips slightly puffy and his eyes alight. They have some sort of silent conversation before Jax looks back at me, that smile he saves just for me on his face. “What do you say, think you're strong enough?” he taunts, making me narrow my eyes before I spin and yank on his twin’s head to slam my lips to his.

  Drax’s kiss is more refined than Jax’s needy one, he takes his time and builds me up to a fever pitch with strong sure strokes of his tongue. My hands drop to his shirt and bury underneath, tracing his muscles, as Jax pushes up against my back.

  Drax pulls away and I twist to kiss Jax. I groan into Jax’s mouth when his brother bites my earlobe. “Are you sure you can handle us both?” he whispers before licking up my ear. “Not that we would let you walk away. I want inside that pussy and you can teach my brother exactly how amazing that mouth of yours is.”

  The dirty words only make me crazier and I bite down on Jax’s bottom lip, he growls and thrusts against me.

  I move away to look at Drax. “On the floor,” I demand. His eyes darken, and he winds his hand through my hair and yanks my head back, the pain mixing with pleasure.

  “That’s not how it’s going to work babe, my brother here might let you order him around, but you are going to be a good girl and suck his dick as I fuck you from behind.” He grins as I narrow my eyes at him chafing the control, but I can see the seriousness. He won’t let me be in charge and unless I want someone walking in on us, we don’t have time to argue.

  “On all fours,” he demands.

  Gritting my teeth, I do as I am told, stripping in the process until I am naked and needy, waiting for whatever he will do.

  On my hands and knees, I almost get back up, but Drax’s wet warm mouth lands on my pussy, making me groan and hang my head as Jax steps in front of me, his cock proud and erect as he starts to rub his hand up and down it.

  I push back against Drax’s face and he rewards me by slipping not one, but two fingers into my needy pussy. I explode so fast I see stars. Before I know it, Jax’s cock is nudging my lips, and I open happily and suck him down. I hollow out my cheeks before pulling back and licking the pre-cum from the top. He groans as I hum around him, which quickly turns to a moan as Drax thrusts into me with no warning, stretching me. His hands grip my hips as he sets the pace, every time he thrusts I suck and he drives us all.

  Pants and the sound of flesh hitting flesh fills the abandoned shop as we twist against each other until I scream around Jax’s cock, and Drax groans and stills behind me. Jax yells and thrusts deeper than ever into my throat as he explodes.

  Jax gently pulls out and I collapse into him as Drax mirrors his brother. They both slump to the floor, me propped between them.

  “Well, fuck,” I say breathlessly.

  Memory Lane

  “We better get moving, we don’t want to be hanging around in the dark. Not with this many people,” I say gently.

  They both groan but start moving to get dressed, grabbing clothes from the pile we are laying on. I watch them for a minute, just appreciating their beauty. When Drax catches me looking he winks, and I roll my eyes before slipping into my clothes and weapons.

  Dressed once again, we go to make our way out of the shop when Jax stops at a small glass stand near the counter. Bending over I hear him rummaging about, Drax rolls his eyes and slips out the door, the sunlight streams through lighting up the dark space. Hesitating, I let the door shut and make my way over to Jax.

  “What have you found?” I ask, standing next to him, trying to peer over his shoulder. Silently he extracts something from the broken glass and turns to me. His face is expressionless like always, but his eyes are nervous. Something I am not used to seeing in him.

  “Jax?” I hesitate.

  He stretches out his hand which is curled into a fist, slowly he opens it to reveal one of the most beautiful necklaces I have ever seen. A tree, with leaves and branches twisting into a silver circle, hangs from a long silver chain that sparkles even among the rabble and destruction.

  “It’s the tree of life, it seems fitting for you baby,” he whispers, waiting for my reaction.

  Blinking, I look from him to the necklace, stunned. “You want me to have it?” I ask slowly.

  Now, some might not find this romantic. After all, he did just find it. But to find that beauty amongst everything else, to think about me enough to give me such a beautiful present, is something I have never experienced. Hell, Dray was the first person to give me something and that was a bloody sword. It makes sense that my deep, emotional twin would find a diamond amongst rocks for me.

  Slowly, I turn around, baring my neck to him and with it, showing him my trust. The feel of him at my back should have me wound tight and have me ready to pounce, but I trust him. So, I relax my shoulders as his breath hits my sensitive nape.

  “I could kill a thousand Berserkers for you, I could lay their heads at your feet for what they did to you, but it will never be enough to remind you of how deep you are buried in my soul. You are not my light in the darkness Taz, you are the fire in the dark that keeps me warm and reminds me of why I fight. I hope that even at the darkest of times, even when you can’t feel me behind you, this necklace will remind you of why you fight.”

  Swallowing hard, I close my eyes as he kisses the back of my neck before laying the cold metal around it and closing the clasp. Turning to face him, I let my eyes do the talking for me. He smiles at me before I reach up and drag his head down, so I can kiss him with everything I have.

  We break away slowly, our breath mixing together. The door smashes open, popping our little bubble.

  “Time to go, Mi Alma,” Maxen says from the doorway, I nod but kiss Jax one more time.

  I let him watch as I rebuild my defences to face the others, he takes it all in before whispering, “Thank you.”

  Turning away before I do something stupid, I step to where Maxen waits at the door.

  “Nice necklace.” Maxen picks up the metal, his fingers stroking my skin. “Suits you.” He grins at me and I smile back.

  “Time to lead your people.” He drops the necklace and holds the door open for me. Striding through I pull down my shades to face the waiting crowd.

  We get back on the road, the assassin slumping back into his seat again. I keep my eyes peeled and look out of the window. An uneasy feeling is settling in the pit of my stomach, and I don’t know why. Maybe because we are going into the fucking lion’s den with only the word of peace to protect us. The men that are gathered there are hard and fucking killers. I have killed their men
in The Ring, slaughtered them in the Wastes, and now I have to face them with that blood on my hands. But we have no other choice, like the assassin said. War is coming. I can almost feel it vibrate the sands with the need for blood. Ivar has been hanging over my head for a long time and I knew one day he would try and snatch not only me, but power from the other clans. It’s in his bones, destruction is all he knows.

  The Summit seemed like a nice idea at first, but if what Vasilisy says is true, if the Berserkers are turning on their king, then we might just stand a chance. If we don’t kill each other first.

  This journey feels like the last time I rode to the pit as a slave, but nope, I have something much worse to lose than my life. Hope. That’s what my men are, plus the possibility that I might finally get my revenge.

  I meet the assassin’s eyes in the rearview mirror, I don’t know what he sees but he offers me a feral smile, which throws me back into another memory.

  I watch in horror as Petal’s limp body is thrown to the ferals. They tear it apart as the men laugh and drink, the noise they make… the noise of the blood spurting and the bone and skin tearing has bile rising up my throat as tears fill my eyes.

  That poor girl, even in death she doesn’t get any dignity, no peace, just pain and suffering. At least she isn’t here to feel it or see it, but there is something so wrong about her body being defiled like that, even if her soul isn’t present. She should be laid to rest, finally getting closure, but instead, Ivar has one last torture to impede, and it isn’t for her. No, it’s for me. Showing me what will become of me even if I escape him in this life and into the next. Death will not bring me peace or lack of pain, I will die like I lived. Bloody, raw, and entertainment for his men.

  With the sounds of them defiling her body, a fire like never before starts to burn in the deepest section of my heart, the agony and hate of it starts to crawl slowly through my blood so that eventually I am like the flames I always escaped into. I raise my head slowly, the tears drying in tracks down my dirty, blood covered face. I let everything else float away, leaving that fire. Ivar meets my eyes with a feral smile, but falters at whatever he sees there. Because I am going to use this fire, I am going to burn him and his sick fucking men up until all that they can hear is the sounds of dying men and agony, as they beg for forgiveness that I will never grant them.

  I let him know with my eyes, with the defiance etched into every bone in my body that he will pay for what he has done. With Petal’s death, I lose my innocence, and in my young body, a true Berserker is born. A monster that I plan on using.

  Gritting my teeth, I pull myself back, but it reminds me of who I have become. Of why I fight, my memories are horrors that no one should have to witness but they are the reason I am this way. They tug and scream at me, an ever-present reminder. No, they will never be anything but horrors, but what do monsters thrive off of after all?

  The Berserker’s War Song

  The day passes in a blur, each mile making me more and more restless. I am not one to be cooped up with other people, not even my men for this long. Maybe it’s because I know with each mile, we are coming closer to The Ring and The Summit. It feels like all of my life has been leading up to this. I just hope I can make the leaders of the other clans listen.

  Vasilisy starts to hum from the seat next to me. His head is tipped back, and his eyes closed, his legs kicked up against the seat in front of him, much to Doc’s chagrin. Frowning, I try to think of why the tune seems familiar even as he gets louder.

  Watching him, I see his mouth part before a powerful, heart wrenching voice flows out. I can’t help but stare, entranced by his words and expression, his face changes with every word like he is living the tale he is weaving.

  “The winds may rage, and the sands may burn. Danger surrounds us at every turn. My land I fight, my men they scream. For the world, I will bleed.”

  “Bleed, bleed for the cause. This dusty land will be my fall, with swords which clash and mouths that scream. For the world, I will bleed,” I whisper. It isn’t until my eyes meet his that I notice he has stopped singing and is humming along to my voice.

  “Yes, my little queen, for the world, you will bleed.”

  We stare at each other, and movement in the front seat interrupts the silence.

  “There is something in the road,” Doc says softly. Turning away I look at what he is talking about, and there in the middle of the road with a flamethrower aimed our way, stands a stranger.

  “Stop, let’s see what they do,” I command, Doc grunts but breaks until we stop just before the person… who I can now see is a woman. By the looks of it, a fucking angry one.

  Short spikey brown hair points up from her head in all directions, while mud covers her face and baggy clothing fits loosely on her frame, all meant to make her look like a man, but she is definitely a woman, even if her muscles bulge and her stance is strong. Her lips are plump and long brown lashes surround deep intense brown eyes. Her cheekbones are high and sharp, and her jaw is pointed. She is pretty, in a masculine way.

  Taking a shot, I slide out of the car and round the side of the vehicle, using the bonnet as protection so I can easily jump away if her itchy trigger finger slips. I don’t want to be burnt alive, no thank you.

  “Nice thrower. Homemade?” I ask casually, leaning against the war car.

  Her eyes shift from the car to me before tightening slightly on the device. I arch my eyebrow at her and tut.

  “Well, that’s not very nice, here I am trying to make polite conversation even as you rudely hold a weapon at us,” I point out.

  Frowning, the nozzle dips slightly. “Who are you?” She pitches her voice deeper making me grin.

  “You might fool some idiots out there, but I know you are a woman,” I point out, as I shield my eyes and look up at the sun to judge the time. I don’t blame her for trying though, it’s a dangerous world out there for women.

  “I am not playing at being a man or to fool those dick swinging idiots. I was born a female, but I am a male,” she shouts, jerking the thrower at me again as anger etches on to her face, I am betting it’s an old anger too.

  I look at her, taking in her appearance. “Okay. So, what do you want?”

  The weapon is obviously getting heavy and he has to choose to drop it or shoot, wisely he drops it even as the blade I palmed automatically itches in my hand, wanting to be used.

  “Okay, just like that?” he asks incredulously. I am betting he has had to fight his whole life to be seen for who he really is. It must be hard, knowing you are something that no one will accept.

  “Yep. I don’t give a shit if you have a vagina or a dick, all I care about is why you are pointing that at my car. I am not a forgiving person, so I suggest you decide real quick.”

  He scans my face before hoisting the weapon onto his back. “I need the car. They took my girl.” Anger flares in his deep brown eyes, making me grin harder. I like him, I like his flamethrower more though.

  “Well, I would hate to be them right now. ‘Fraid this car is taken though,” I drawl. “So, what do we do now?” I tap my chin with my blade that he obviously didn’t even notice if his startled look and sudden step back are anything to go by. “I could kill you, I could disarm and leave you here, or I could take you with us.” I tilt my head in consideration, eyeing him once again.

  “I don’t want trouble, I just need to get Cherry back,” he says, keeping his hands out to his sides. Cherry? Sands below, sighing I drop the blade.

  “Cherry? Girl from The Rim? Big tits, bigger attitude?” I ask with a disappointed pout. I was really hoping for some action. To stretch my legs, maybe release some tension before I’m forced to talk politics.

  “You know her?” he growls, taking a step forward protectively. Cute.

  “I worked the bounties at The Rim. Don’t worry, I never touched your girl.” His shoulders slump at that before rounding out again, a fresh determination replacing the jealousy in his eyes. “Who took her?�
�� I don’t know why I care, but Cherry was always nice to me, even helped me out once or twice.

  “Scavs, dirty bastards broke into the house we were holed up in while I was out hunting. Dragged her out fighting and left me a message in blood.”

  Whistling, I nod. “Whatcha do to piss them off enough to leave you a message?”

  “Told em’ I had a bigger dick than they ever would.” He grins, and I throw back my head and laugh.

  “Yeah, that would have done it.” I wipe all traces of the smile from my face and his drops quickly. Obviously sensing the predator in me.

  “Name’s Dagny. Either give me a lift or fuck off,” Dagny says, obviously wondering whether to take his bet on the next sorry bastard to journey down this road, which might not be for the next couple of days and by then we both know Cherry will be dead. Fuck. When the hell did I become such a bleeding heart?

  “I like you,” I declare. Sighing at my own stupidity I jerk my head at the cars behind me. “Sands below, pick a car kid and get in.”

  Dagny kicked out the assassin, well tried to. Only when I gave him the nod did he slip out and into the car behind us. Now Dagny sits in the front seat directing Evan to where the scavs who took Cherry are.

  “Are we really going to go looking for a fucking fight all because some chick can’t protect herself,” Evan grumbles, making Dagny tense.

  Leaning back in the middle seat I nod my head. “Yup, gonna fight out some tension before we get to The Ring. Plus, Cherry was cool, so shut your trap pretty boy or I will shut it for you,” I threaten half-heartedly. He scowls even as his hands tighten on the wheel, but he does shut the fuck up.

  “Here I thought I would have to wait until The Summit was over to start regaining my honour,” Vasilisy purrs from beside me as he bounces giddily in the seat next to me.

  We share a grin as I wind the new whip around my arm and lean forward to sling the crossbow on my back, I need to remember to get Drax to teach me to shoot properly.