Blood on Bourbon

7. Desire and Dust

Blood on Bourbon

Chapter 7: Desire and Dust

Erin Scott

The air hung thick as we approached the crumbling mansion, its silhouette looming like a forgotten specter against the moonlit sky. Duncan stepped in front of me, his broad frame blocking my path. Before I could protest, he thrust out a massive arm, wrapping it around my hips with a possessive grip that sent a jolt through me. “This is as far as you go,” he said, his voice low and commanding, his cool breath grazing my lips. Too close. Too damn close.

“What? No!” I snapped, wrenching myself back. “I came for Mia, and I’m not leaving until I find her!” His hold didn’t budge, only tightening enough to let me squirm—a futile rebellion that stoked my fury. And something else. My insides sparked at his touch, steady and unyielding, a maddening mix of safety and control. What the hell was happening to me? I whipped my head toward Calum, searching his steady gaze for an ally.

“Aw, lass, come now,” Calum said, his Scottish burr softening the edges of his words. “We can’t let ya go and get yourself hurt. Just wait here a bit, and we’ll check it out. If Mia’s in there, we’ll try to help her.” His tone was reasonable, but it did nothing to douse the fire licking at my nerves.

Duncan’s arm burned around my waist, a brand I couldn’t shake. My emotions were spiraling—anger, fear, and a traitorous heat pooling low in my belly. I couldn’t think straight with him this close. “Fine,” I bit out, shoving his arm away more forcefully than necessary. “I’ll wait right here.” My voice was steel, but my resolve felt like glass.

He didn’t retreat. Instead, he took a deliberate step closer, towering over me, his shadow swallowing mine. Leaning down, his lips brushed the shell of my ear as he inhaled deeply, a predator savoring his prey. “You must stay put, little human,” he murmured, his breath tickling my skin, igniting every nerve in its wake. “No running off. No bright ideas. Stay. Put.” A faint smirk curled his voice, and I felt it more than saw it—a taunt, a challenge. Little human? What the hell did that mean? Who did he think he was?

Before I could spit a retort, Duncan and Calum turned their backs to me, ascending the grand staircase to the mansion’s gaping maw. Calum shoved the massive door open with unsettling ease, and they vanished into the dusty abyss. I was left alone in the darkness, pacing the cracked stone steps, the night pressing around me. Mia wouldn’t even know who they were. She might think they were part of whatever nightmare had snatched her away. What if her captor had a gun? A knife? My mind raced, spinning out gruesome possibilities. I hated this—hated being sidelined, hated how useless I felt.

And I hated how Duncan’s voice still echoed in my skull, how his touch lingered like a phantom hand on my waist. He shouldn’t have this power over me, shouldn’t make my pulse hammer with a single whispered command. That made me angrier still. My feet moved before my brain caught up, carrying me up the steps and into the mansion’s shadowed interior.

The air inside was stale, heavy with neglect. Dust motes danced in the slivers of moonlight piercing broken windows. The place looked abandoned—no lights, no signs of life. The water probably didn’t even run anymore. Why would anyone hide here? A creeping unease settled over me, a weight pressing on my chest. How had Duncan and Calum known exactly where to go? Two Scotsmen in this quiet corner of New Orleans, leading me straight to this rotting relic. Were they lying? Was this some twisted game, and I the unwitting pawn? If so, why me?

My doubts nearly drove me back out the door, down the street, away from this mysterious city and its secrets—when a scream shredded the silence. “MIA!” I knew that voice, raw and desperate. My best friend. My legs propelled me forward, up the creaking grand staircase, around a corner toward the sound. Reason abandoned me; instinct took over. I reached a door, its wood warped and splintered, and kicked it open with all my strength.

The hinges groaned as the door swung wide, revealing a room frozen in decay. Peeling wallpaper curled off the walls like dead skin. A shattered window let in a chilling breeze, stirring tattered curtains into ghostly shapes. And there, in the far corner, was Mia—curled into herself, blood seeping from a gash on her arm, tears streaking her dirt-smudged face. She shivered, her eyes wide with terror. Above her stood Duncan and Calum, their silhouettes dark and imposing.

“Mia!” I lunged forward, dropping to my knees beside her. Her gaze flickered to me, recognition breaking through the haze of fear. “Erin?” she rasped, her voice trembling. I pulled her into my arms, ignoring the sticky warmth of her blood soaking into my shirt. She was alive. Hurt but alive.

“What happened?” I demanded, glaring up at Duncan and Calum. Duncan’s eyes met mine, unreadable, a storm brewing behind them. His jaw tightened, but he didn’t answer. Calum shifted, his expression softer, almost apologetic. “We heard her scream just as we got up here,” he said. "Found her like this. No sign of whoever did it.”

I pressed Mia closer, my hands shaking as I brushed her matted hair back. “You’re safe now,” I whispered, though the words felt hollow. Safe? In this rotting tomb, with two men I barely knew? My pulse thudded in my ears, adrenaline warring with the heat. Duncan’s presence still stirred in me. I hated it—hated him for it—but there was no denying the pull, sharp and electric, tugging me toward him even now.

“Erin,” Mia whimpered, clutching my arm. “He… he said he’d come back. He knows you’re here. He did this to me for you. It’s all for YOU!” Her words iced my veins. Her captor wasn’t gone. He was still out there, lurking in the shadows of this cursed place. For Me? There was too much for me to process; she must have been in shock.

Duncan crouched beside us, his bulk filling the space, his scent—woodsmoke and something darker—flooding my senses. “We need to move,” he said, his voice a low growl. “Now.” His hand brushed mine as he reached for Mia, and the contact seared me, a spark I couldn’t ignore. I wanted to scream at him for making me feel this way, but there was no time. Suspense coiled tighter around us, the air thick with the promise of danger—and something more.

I nodded, helping Mia to her feet. Duncan’s gaze lingered on me, intense, possessive, and I felt it down to my bones. Whatever this was—whatever he was—we weren’t done. Not by a long shot.