GLUTTONY
THE DAMNING
KATIE MAY
EXPRESSO PUBLISHING, LLC
Copyright © 2020 by Katie May
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means,
including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except
for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover Design by Melody Simmons
Edited by Expresso Publishing, LLC
Writing these, I realize I don’t have that many friends. So…I suppose I’ll
dedicate this one to my cat, Carol. Love you, sweet girl.
CONTENTS
Recap of Previous Books
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Also by Katie May
Blindly Indicted
Monsters (Prodigium Academy Book One)
RECAP OF PREVIOUS BOOKS
When Z wins The Damning—a competition that pits the best assassins
against each other—her world is overturned. Suddenly, she’s forced to be the
champion for the exact Kings she wishes to kill.
Fortunately, she has the seven princes to help her with the tasks ahead.
Seven supernatural species descended from the Seven Deadly Sins...and her
fated mates. There’s a prophecy surrounding the seven princes that they’ll
either save the world or destroy it. They despise their parents and their
inhumane treatment of humans.
At the end of the first book, Z had been poisoned by a competitor of The
Damning named Zack at the order of Aaliyah. Her mates are completely
unaware that she was poisoned...and that the poison is slowly killing her.
The Kings assign seven tasks—seven games—Z has to partake to prove
her loyalty. Despite her hatred for them, a spell administered by the Mage
King places prohibits her from harming any of the royal family.
She completes the first task the Mermaid King assigns. In the process,
Dair kills his evil older brother Tavvy who had attempted to rape and kill Z.
Just before he dies, Tavvy tells Dair that he and the rest of the Z’s mates
weren’t born; they appeared out of thin air.
Meanwhile, a mysterious female named Aaliyah is sending extinct
supernatural creatures after Z, including a Gorgon, Kraken, and Fae. She
instructs her monsters not to kill Z, but to bring her to Aaliyah alive.
At the end of book two, Z discovers that Jax—her Vampire mate—has
gone missing.
CHARACTERS:
Z — Member of the Alphabet Resistance that advocates for human rights;
assassin; mate to the seven princes; winner of The Damning; poisoned at the
end of book one
Dair — Mermaid; descended from Envy; forced to live as a Mermaid
twelve hours a day and a human the other twelve; his father consistently cuts
his legs off, grows them back, and then cuts them off again; Z’s mate
Devlin — Genie; descended from Greed; has a soul trapped in his lamp
that he accidentally lost; Z’s childhood sweetheart; Z’s mate
Killian — Incubus; descended from Lust; was forced to watch his father
rape and kill his nanny; virgin; Z’s mate
Lupe — Shifter; descended from Wrath; his father implemented the first
human concentration camps; prefers to fights with words rather than
violence; Z’s mate
Ryland — Shadow; descended from Pride; hides his face in the shadow to
hide his hideous facial scarring; the first to know all of the princes were
mates with Z; Z’s mate
Jax — Vampire; descended from Gluttony; facing madness because he
refuses to drink human blood; only coherent around Z; engaged to Atta;
kidnapped by Aaliyah at the end of book two; Z’s mate
Bash — Mage; descended from Sloth; distrusts the mate bond and the
lack of free will; struggles with his affections for Z; Z’s mate
Atta — Shifter; descended from Wrath; Lupe’s younger sister and the
mate to Mali; engaged to Jax
Mali — Vampire, descended from Gluttony; Z’s best friend who
unwittingly betrayed her, leading to the death of the Mage Diego; mate to
Zack (now dead) and Atta
Diego — Mage; Z’s best friend and mate to HH; murdered by Zack
protecting Z after Mali betrayed them
T — Z’s friend from the Alphabet Resistance; brother of S
S — Z’s deceased ex boyfriend who was killed by Shifters; T’s brother
B — Leader of the Alphabet Resistance
A — Z’s former mentor before he died
Aaliyah — main antagonist; wants to capture Z for reasons unknown
Zack — Mage; Evil assassin who killed Diego and poisoned Z; mate to
Mali; now dead
Axel — Shadow; ex-assassin of the Kingdoms
PROLOGUE
JAX
I knew pain intimately—greeted it like an old friend or lover. The
pain broke through the dissonance. Steady and reliable, the only
constant in my chaotic life.
For that brief moment, as fire ran through my veins and set me aflame,
my mind was coherent. I had been staring at my life through a distorted
mirror, but now, the vision was clear. My mind flashed to Z and her golden
hair and willowy frame. The fire in her eyes. The way she felt in my arms as I
held her through the night.
A lump formed in my throat.
My mate.
My love.
My life.
And I would die before she realized it.
My eyes flickered down to the stake protruding from my chest. It had
fortunately missed my heart, but I had no doubt that this wound was fatal.
Already, the ground was covered in a slick sheen of blood.
A beautiful face peered down at me, alive with glacial fury. Auburn locks
framed her rosy cheeks. But while she was beautiful, she was nothing
compared to Z. It was a beauty earned through hours in front of a mirror. A
predatory type of beauty, cold and empty.
My mate, on the other hand, rolled out of bed the epitome of perfection
and beauty. It was effortless.
“You’re going to die, Jax Vampire,” Aaliyah whispere
d in a singsong
voice.
I tried to speak, tried to protest, but only blood managed to gurgle through
my parted, chapped lips.
She stood, the hem of her gown catching in the thick puddle. Seemingly
unconcerned, she moved to stand directly behind me, a manicured hand
stroking my hair. I flinched at her unwanted touch, a ferocious roar somehow
able to escape despite my fatigue. The crazy bitch chuckled.
“There’s a way you can live.” She allowed her words to settle between us like
thickening syrup. They were just as sickly sweet. “Denounce the human girl
and become my lover.”
I narrowed my eyes and attempted to glare up at her menacingly. A
surprisingly difficult feat, considering I was weak from blood loss and
rapidly losing consciousness.
“I would rather die,” I managed to stutter out.
Pain. Pain everywhere. It set my skin on fire.
Aaliyah’s face twisted with disgust, and she huffed as she turned away.
“Then you die,” she announced snidely, stalking out of the cell. She
didn’t bother shutting the door behind her. Why would she? I was too weak
to even lift my hand.
At that moment, I knew with an unwavering certainty that I was going to
die. I only wished I could see Z one last time.
I’m sorry, I whispered in my head weakly. Darkness pressed in on all
sides of me as my hold on life rapidly waned. I love…
And then, darkness.
ONE
Z
T he punching bag rattled under the force of my assault. Each
punch did little to calm my frayed nerves.
Punch.
Jax.
Punch.
Dair.
Punch. Punch. Punch.
A fine sheen of sweat coated my skin, and I angrily brushed at a strand of
curly hair that’d escaped its binding.
It had been a week since I’d returned home from the Mermaid Kingdom.
A week since I discovered my Vampire mate, Jax, had gone missing.
Punch.
My knuckles were cracked and bloody, but I barely noticed the pain. How
could I? All I could focus on was Jax and Dair.
The golden-haired Mermaid prince hadn’t made an appearance since
we’d arrived back at the Capital. According to the others, he was with his
father, but that only made my worry ratchet up another dozen notches.
I didn’t know his father well, but what I did know was that the King of
Mermaids was sadistic and evil. His son, Tavvy, had attempted to rape and
kill me before Dair had killed him. Still, Tavvy’s ominous revelation
reverberated in my head.
“...you and those men you call your brothers magically appeared. Out of
thin air.”
The words had been spoken at Dair, meant to hurt my kind prince. But
what did they mean? Was it true, or were they the false words of a dying
man?
Punch. Punch. Punch.
When I won The Damning and became the kingdom’s official assassin, I
thought the games would be over. I didn’t realize how fucking wrong I was.
The games had only just begun.
The Kings used me, twisted me, to befit their malevolent schemes. I was
nothing but a human female, a bug meant to be squashed beneath their feet.
Hundreds of years ago, humans ruled this world. That all changed when
the Seven Deadly Sins descended on this earth and gave birth to the original
Nightmares.
Shifters, descended from Wrath.
Incubi, descended from Lust.
Vampires, descended from Gluttony.
Mages, descended from Sloth.
Genies, descended from Greed.
Mermaids, descended from Envy.
And Shadows, descended from Pride.
Each of these supernatural factions embodied the characteristics of their
sins. Take Shifters, for example, the most volatile beasts of all the
Nightmares. When they became angry or emotional, they shifted into their
animal form with no cognizant thought. They were entirely focused on the
hunt, the kill.
Punch. Punch. Punch.
The final punch caused the bag to fall off its chains, hitting the ground
with a thump. I remained standing over it, breathing heavy, as my hands
clenched and unclenched into and out of fists.
“Z?” a soft voice questioned. A moment later, the door to the workout
room opened the rest of the way, and Killian stuck his head in. “You feeling
punchy?”
Killian was sexy. There was no getting around that. His red hair was
stylishly tousled, longer on the top than the sides. His face was perfectly
proportioned, not a blemish in sight. With a strong jawline, high cheekbones,
boy Incubus. Only certain people knew the truth: Killian was an awkward,
adorable nerd wrapped up in a sinfully delicious package.
“I’m feeling very punchy,” I replied, shaking out my sore hands. Killian’s
red brows furrowed in concern as he rushed towards me, tenderly grabbing
both my hands in his own.
“You need to be careful,” he said.
“I’m fine.” I pulled them away, bending down to grab the fallen punching
bag and propping it against the wall. Killian’s palm on my shoulder stopped
me from moving again, my muscles bunching at the menial contact.
“Seriously, Kill, I’m fine. I don’t need you to baby me.”
Almost reluctantly, he dropped his hand from my shoulder and released a
heavy sigh. Snapping at Killian was the same as kicking a puppy. I would
rather sever my own limb than hurt him. Frowning, I turned back towards
him just in time to see the flash of hurt in his gemstone-like eyes. Fuck. I
really sucked at this whole “mate” thing.
“Kill…” I began, trailing off. How could I say, “I’m sorry for being a
shitty mate. I just sometimes don’t know how to human?”
They didn’t make enough cheesy greeting cards for that.
“Don’t apologize.” Flames entered Killian’s cheeks as he sheepishly
ducked his head. “You’re dealing with a lot of stress. The Kings have been
unusually silent, Jax is still missing, and we have no idea what’s happening
with Dair. You have every right to be punchy and angry.” He flashed me a
small smile, revealing twin dimples in both his cheeks, and heat traveled
straight to my core. How could something as innocent as a smile cause such
an instinctive reaction?
Maybe it was because Killian was Killian, and his beauty ensnared me as
effectively as a hunter trapping his prey. It wasn’t just his Incubus allure,
though that was certainly a part of it, but the kindness that seemed to emanate
from his eyes.
Before I could stop myself, I pushed up onto my tiptoes and pressed my
lips to his. He had a sweet taste, one I associated distinctly with Killian, and
it caused an inferno to blaze in my stomach.
At first, his kiss was hesitant and unsure, but soon his lips were feverish
against my own. He tangled his hands in my golden hair, pulling just enough
to sting. Killian was sweet, almost shy, but when we were intimate, he turned
into a completely different person. I wasn’t even sure he realized he was
doing it. He was just...Killian.
“You’re so fucking sexy,” Killian murmured, trailing kisses down my
arched neck. His hands traveled down my sides to my ass, cupping both
cheeks and giving them a squeeze. “Do you want me to make you feel good,
Baby?”
Does a dog shit?
And…
I shouldn’t be thinking of shit when I’m about to get naked with my mate.
Instead of answering, I managed to release a strangled squeak. Very sexy,
if I did say so myself.
“Kill…” I whispered breathlessly, eager for his lips. His taste. A small
smile blossomed on his face—somehow, it was able to embody both sin and
innocence. It was something only Killian would be able to pull off.
“Get on the ground,” he said, still flashing that disarming smile.
Seriously. It should be illegal to look as sexy as him. Everywhere he went he
killed brain cells. Well, at least mine. I didn’t know how to function around
him.
Eagerly, I dropped to the ground, uncaring that I was sweaty and gross. It
probably wasn’t an ideal time for sex—or whatever Killian had in mind—but
I wasn’t about to complain. Orgasms were a must for survival.
Killian’s hands traveled from my ankles to my inner thighs, the path he
took causing heat to migrate straight towards my core. I was burning for him,
for my mate, and only his touch could alleviate the ache.
Helplessly, I clenched my thighs together, but that only made Killian
smile wider. Placing one hand on either leg, he shifted them until he could
comfortably place his head directly above my pussy.
Fuck, I needed him. His lips. His tongue. His—
“Kill! Z!”
Fuck me in the vagina with a barbed wire dildo.
Killian jumped to his feet as if his ass was on fire, cheeks burning and
head ducked sheepishly. Normally, I would’ve laughed at his flustered
reaction. However, I was too pissed off at the lack of orgasms to muster even
a smile.
For a moment—for a brief fucking moment—I had forgotten about all the
shit currently piling up on me. It was burying me in a steel coffin that none of
my mates had a chance of accessing.
“Errrr… Coming!” Killian stuttered, arranging his cock in his pants. He
helped me to my feet, diligently wiping dirt and grit off of my clothes. I