Free Darkyn's Mate (#3, Rhyn Eternal) by Lizzy Ford Page A

relentless in pursuing
me.”
    “There’s another reason for that,” Rhyn said
slowly. “Deidre, you can’t be around normal mortals or Immortals
for long or even really demons outside of Hell.”
    “Why?” she asked, fear spiraling through
her. “Does something happen to me?”
    “How do I say this…” he sighed. “My mother
was a sex-demon. It’s a sub-class of demons. You are, too.”
    “Meaning …”
    “Meaning you might be one of them. Every man
you cross will do what it takes to try to fuck you.”
    She gasped. “What? Why?”
    “Why?” he echoed. “Because you’re a
sex-demon.”
    She stared at him. Rhyn rose and motioned
her up. He crossed to a mirror and pulled her in front of him. She
saw the same woman here as she did in Hell: sultry and sweet,
beautiful of face with a body enhanced by the dark dress.
    “You don’t see it?” he asked.
    “No.”
    “I’m dealing with enough shit,” he muttered.
“Trust me. You’ve got that vibe. Darkyn is relentless because of
the fucked up double bond and whatever subclass of demon he decided
to turn you into, which I’m guessing was a sex-demon. It’s good for
you. Might give you an advantage with him if you’re willing to play
the seduction game.”
    Deidre shook her head, not seeing this
either. There were no advantages with Darkyn and she was the last
person on the planet who would try to seduce anyone, especially a
demon. Darkyn had to know this. Was this some sort of twisted sense
of humor on his part?
    They returned to the seating area. Rhyn
grabbed an iPad off the desk. He considered her.
    “I have to show you something,” he started.
“It’s bad. But since he sent you, I want you to see it.” He paused
to pull up photographs on the screen. “Before a few months ago, the
Immortals and demons had an understanding that the normal humans
are off limits. Things have gone to shit fast, partly because I
can’t get the fucking Council to agree on anything.” Rhyn snorted.
“Darkyn recently decided to send his demons after human kids.
They’ve been attacking schools all over the world. We’re getting
better at tracking them, but haven’t been able to stop them.” He
handed the device to her.
    Deidre almost dropped it at the pictures
displayed. Horrified, she wasn’t able to look away. The children
were all elementary age, their dismembered bodies nothing but
carnage. There were dozens of them.
    This was what she was bound to for eternity, the monster behind
all the evil in the world. Rhyn snatched the iPad as it slid from
her fingers. She stared at the floor. Fate said she was a balance
for the out-of-control demon, but how could she live with something
like him?
    “If you have any influence over him …” Rhyn
prodded. “I’ll make you a deal to stop this. Just let me know your
terms.”
    “I can’t make deals,” she whispered. “Rhyn,
I …” The images in her head were brutal. “I was terrified of
Gabriel, knowing he was Death. This is something so far beyond what
he was.” She stood and paced anxiously, hugging herself.
    “You’re his mate, his representative. As
much as I hate to do this, I need for you to help me fix this,”
Rhyn said. “It’s been going on for two weeks, and it’s getting
worse. Redirect the violence at the Immortals. Human children are
off-limits.”
    Deidre was silent, grappling with the issue
and her emotions. Her chest was too tight for her to breathe
deeply. What power did she have to do what Rhyn wanted?
    She caught sight of her gaze in the mirror
again and stared. Distraught, she was also clearly the mate of the
Dark One. The only person who might influence him, based on what
Fate and Rhyn believed.
    She was beyond terrified of the power Darkyn
held. What he was in their insulated world in the bedchamber was
far removed from what he was outside. She’d accepted her place in
his bed. How did she accept her destiny as his mate?
    What part of her was able to live with not
trying to help spare