Night of the Tiger

Epilogue

“Why is she running upstairs? That is not a good defensive position.” Roric reached into the large bowl of popcorn that was resting in Aimee’s lap and popped two fluffy white kernels into his mouth. It melted in his mouth. Over the past two weeks, he had discovered a passion for buttered popcorn and the horror movies Aimee seemed to enjoy so much.

He was surprised she could even watch them after everything she’d been through. When he suggested as much, she’d pointed out that she knew the difference between fact and fiction, and the movies weren’t nearly as bad as her nightmares.

Thankfully, the nightmares seem to have abated, at least for the time being. Neither of them was hopeful they were gone for good. Aimee even wanted one, hoping it might give them some clues to aid their search.

“That’s the whole point.” Aimee snagged a couple of pieces of popcorn and started to munch. “Most of the characters are throwaways, fodder for the serial killer or monster. Otherwise it wouldn’t build suspense when the heroine is under attack.”

It still didn’t make sense to him. “Why would they allow that? Why don’t they fight harder?”

“Because it’s a movie. They’re not really dead, just actors who get paid to act like they’re getting killed.” She pointed to the woman on the screen. “That’s Kellsie Morris. She’s a favorite of mine. She’s in a ton of horror movies. Sometimes she’s the heroine, other times she’s one of the victims.”

He shrugged. He couldn’t imagine not giving everything he had in order to win, but then again, these people were not immortal warriors. They were people doing what they had to in order to earn a living. Which was much harder to do in this modern world than he’d imagined it would be.

It was a point of contention with him that Aimee was paying for everything. It didn’t bother her in the least, but it bothered him. That had to change. He’d figure something out.

He settled back against her new sofa in the freshly painted living room. It had taken them several days of cleaning to get rid of the damage the demons had wrought. Roric had enjoyed working side by side with Aimee, helping with the repairs.

He’d even helped her shop for new furniture. The sofa they were sitting on was large enough for him to lounge on comfortably. It had become their habit to sit there at the end of each day and watch a movie. A date, Aimee had called it the first time. Whatever it was, Roric enjoyed having her snuggled up close to him.

Each day they searched on the computer for information about the carousel. So far, they’d come up empty handed. It was as though the carnival had disappeared into thin air. Roric knew they were lying low, waiting for the magnetic pull to the right town where a woman lived who was capable of freeing the next warrior. Who she was or where she lived was a mystery.

Aimee had tried to talk about Mordecai and the other missing warriors several times, but he always put her off. He wasn’t ready to deal with that yet. His friend’s defection to Hades’ side had shaken him to his very core. He’d always believed that their honor and commitment to one another and the goddess was unshakable. It brought all his other beliefs under question, and that was difficult.

He knew he’d have to talk about it to Aimee and soon. She kept pressing. She’d even managed to slip in that she thought Mordecai had actually let her go at one point instead of killing her. Roric didn’t want to tell her that the warrior had only been toying with her. There was no honor, no kindness left in him now that he was in league with Hades.

“Look.” Aimee brought his attention back to the present as she pointed at the screen. The scene had changed and there was now a different woman, one with dark hair and very large breasts, taking a shower.

“Wait for it.” Aimee grinned and stuffed several more pieces of popcorn into her mouth and munched as they watched the latest victim, a screaming woman, get caught naked in the shower as the villain stabbed her repeatedly. Aimee turned to him and poked him in the chest with her finger.

“See, I told you the woman who stays home alone always gets it.”

He caught her finger, brought it to his mouth and nibbled on it. Much tastier than popcorn. “So you did.”

Aimee was much smarter than the women in these movies. Stronger too. She wouldn’t give in. She’d take on the devil himself. Not only that, she’d win. He thanked the goddess every day that it was Aimee who’d freed him from his prison. She’d even insisted he give her lessons in sword fighting. Just in case, she said. He knew she expected to meet Hades and his demons again someday, and she wanted to be ready.

The search for the carnival and his fellow warriors would continue for however long it took. Neither of them would give up.

But that time was not now. And he had more pressing things to deal with. He shifted, but it did nothing to alleviate the pain in his balls. His swollen cock pressed against the zipper of the new jeans Aimee had purchased for him. He did like his new clothing. They were very comfortable, and better yet, easy to remove.

He drew her finger farther into his mouth, licking his way down to the sensitive skin at the base. Her breathing hitched and became faster. The screams from the movie disappeared into the background as he slowly released her finger, dragging his teeth over it as he did so.

She licked her lips, letting her tongue trace the plump lower one. Roric growled and yanked her to him. The bowl of popcorn went flying to the floor, forgotten, as he rolled Aimee beneath him and began to make love to her. She had claimed both him and his tiger, and Roric knew he would never get enough of his lady of the beast.