Virtues of Syn: A Phoenix Project Novel (The Phoenix Project Duet) Read online

  Virtues of Syn

  A Phoenix Project Novel

  Candice Wright

  THE VIRTUES OF SYN

  BY CANDICE WRIGHT

  Virtues of Syn by Candice Wright Copyright © 2021 . All Rights Reserved.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any manner without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This eBook is licenced for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient.

  Cover Design by ©RAINY DAY ARTWORK

  Editing by: Tanya Oemig

  Proofreading by: Chantal Fleming

  Contents

  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

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Epilogue

  Want more?

  Also by Candice Wright

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  To all the members of my reader group - The Candi Shop.

  Thank you for all your unwavering support. I couldn’t do this without you.

  One

  THE BUZZING CHATTER OF VOICES PULLS ME FROM MY SLEEP, BUT WHEN I OPEN MY EYES AND FIND MYSELF INSIDE A METAL CAGE, I SNAP THEM SHUT AGAIN.

  You’d think after spending my entire life in captivity, I’d be used to the sight, but nothing softens the blow of seeing bars and knowing that my only means of escape is in my dreams.

  I was just a little girl when I was taken, barely five years old. The world was very different than the one we live in right now. I’ve been here so long, I can’t remember what the wind feels like in my hair or what rain feels like on my skin. I can’t remember much of anything beyond the distorted image in my head of my mother, the sense of pure love she invoked, or the fear I taste on my tongue when I remember our last moments together.

  They slaughtered my village, burned my mother and all the other women in our tribe as witches, and stole us children away in the dead of night as the spoils of war.

  Half a century passed in a blur of pain and humiliation as I was passed from one master to the next until finally, I landed in Dr. Callahan’s hands.

  There was something different about this man. I couldn’t sense the dark evil in him I had been exposed to by others. He never made any advances on me sexually, at least not while I was awake. When he tested me and the pain made me scream, I would seek out his eyes, knowing I would find guilt and remorse inside them. Somehow it humanized him to me and his remorse brought me comfort.

  It wasn’t until I met Phoenix Callahan for the first time that I understood why the doctor did what he did.

  She was sick, really sick. I could see it in her glassy eyes and smell the stench of death on her skin, but that pretty little girl with the wild red hair became the one bright spot in my life.

  She saw beyond my cage, and instead of treating me like the animal everyone else saw, she treated me like a human.

  But I was so much more than that.

  I awake with a start, struggling to free myself from the flashback and rub my neck to ease the stiffness.

  “We’re here, Syn.” Victor’s voice rumbles beside me. Looking out the window at the last of the people leaving the stadium, I find myself swallowing hard as I battle to get my nerves under control. I climb out of the car and take a deep breath, inhaling the scents of stale beer, fried food, and cigarette smoke.

  It might not be appealing to some, but to me it smells like freedom.

  “Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Victor asks after he climbs out of the car and slams the door, coming to stand beside me. I grin at how apprehensive he looks on my behalf. Victor towers over me, his huge six-foot-six, 280-pound frame easily dwarfing mine. The lights from the stadium bounce off his newly shaved head as he dips to look into my eyes. To the outside world, he probably looks intimidating, but I know this man would put himself in front of a bullet for me.

  Even though the concert is over, the venue is bustling with people. Roadies pack the equipment while security tries to stop crazy people from crossing the line from annoying to dangerous. I see two women try to convince one of the band’s bodyguards to let them pass, hiking up their already impossibly short dresses and arching their backs to make their boobs pop out, all in a bid to make it to the tour bus housing the world’s hottest band.

  Remi, Cree, Trace, Theo, Finn, Nero, and Vance, otherwise known as The Death Virtues, took the world by storm over a decade ago. Their rise to stardom happened almost overnight, and now, despite the headline’s suggestion that the band is on the verge of self-destruction, they’ve stayed on top of the charts and still sell out concerts worldwide.

  I blow out a breath before looking up at Victor and answering. “No, I’m likely to puke all over them the second I open my mouth,” I admit, wiping my sweaty hands over my black denim-clad thighs.

  His face twists in disgust. “Thanks for that visual. Well, let’s get this show on the road. Remember, if any of them lays a hand on you I’ll squeeze them so hard their heads will pop off.”

  I lift up on my tiptoes and, anticipating my needs like always, he dips farther so I can place a kiss on his scruff-covered cheek.

  “Thanks, Vic,” I whisper.

  He gives me a quick squeeze before stepping back.

  “Come on, Syn, you’ve waited a lifetime for this. Don’t punk out on me now.”

  I snort at his idea of a pep talk, but he’s not wrong. I spent most of my life in a cage, hoping and praying to be right where I am now. But now that I’m here, I’m terrified they won’t want me.

  The girls turned away by the bodyguard pass us, cursing that they didn’t get in but vowing success next time. I block them out, straighten my shoulders, and walk toward the same guard.

  Victor blends into the shadows, knowing I’ll call him if I need to, but I have to do this alone.

  “Don’t bother. I’ll tell you the same thing I just told the others. The band is not interested.” The bodyguard starts but stops when he looks up and sees me.

  His mouth drops open as I let just a tiny bit of my power
touch him. It took me a long time to get a handle on it. As a young girl, when the power was stronger than I was, the ability to draw men to me almost destroyed me. Now I’m stronger, and thanks to Victor and my friends, I know how to fight back when I need to.

  “Hi, I’m Syn, and you are really going to want to let me through.”

  “I really want to let you through,” he murmurs.

  “Thanks, I won’t cause any trouble, I promise,” I tell him with a sweet smile as he steps aside to let me pass.

  It’s a lie, of course. I’m about to cause a whole lot of trouble and there is nothing I can do to stop it. Not if I plan to save them. See, the band doesn’t know they aren’t entirely human. They have demon blood in them, making them Vices, each of them exhibiting one transgression stronger than the rest. The seven of them together? Well, they make a set.

  Lust, Greed, Gluttony, Sloth, Wrath, Envy, and Pride.

  As a descendant of the Pandora Clan and possibly one of the last remaining Primes, it is my job to keep my mates from crossing the line and giving in to their demon sides. I alone have the ability to siphon off their excess power and prevent them from going mad.

  The problem is, I’m ten years late.

  I stand still and squeeze my hands into fists when their trailer comes into view. It’s bigger than some people’s houses, and clearly no expense was spared, but that’s not what stops me. It’s the cramping in my gut that tells me how close they are and the pain in my chest that echoes theirs as the missing puzzle pieces that make me whole slowly start to shift.

  The world spins for a moment, everything feeling off-balance as the door swings open and slams against the side of the bus.

  Dark power rushes into me as my body instinctively draws from him. Pain, suffering, anger, and confusion all knot together as I pull, leaving me suffocating under a black cloud so thick I can’t do anything but gasp.

  “Who the fuck are you?” a gravelly voice snaps out. I hear footsteps heading my way, but my vision has gone white as the world seems to melt around me. I feel my heart beat wildly out of control as I open my mouth and no sound comes out.

  My senses are overloaded. When I feel a hand grab my arm roughly, I scream, my back arching before I feel myself falling into welcome oblivion.

  When I come to, I’m lying on a sofa, surrounded by the most handsome men I’ve ever seen in my life.

  “She’s awake.” I follow the voice to the face. Dirty-blond hair, long on top, short at the sides. Below are green eyes, the color of grass, and a scowl set upon soft-looking lips. Cree Lewis

  Another face leans down close to mine, studying me as I am them. This guy is blond too, although a shade lighter than Cree’s and shaved close to his head, making his deep blue eyes stand out. Finn Green

  “Who are you?” he asks quietly.

  “Who the fuck cares? Get rid of her. I can’t believe you brought a fucking junkie onto our bus,” a deep voice growls.

  “I’m not a junkie.” I groan, trying to sit up. Finn moves back so they all can take me in.

  “I don’t care who the fuck you are. We don’t want you here.” This comes from the dark-haired hazel-eyed man staring daggers at me. Trace Clarke.

  “You need me. You just don’t realize it yet,” I whisper, feeling their animosity beating against my skin, making me whimper.

  “Lady, there is nothing you can offer us—” Nero Adams chimes in, the red hues of his brown hair catching the light while his copper eyes flash with annoyance.

  “You sure about that?” I ask, pushing out a wave of my power.

  Curses ring out a second before my hair is grabbed and my head is tilted back, my wide eyes connecting with stormy gray ones. Vance Campbell in all his glory, with his bright blue hair and livid scowl, glares down at me.

  “Holy fuck, I’m as hard as a rock!” I hear murmured agreements, but with my hair wrapped tightly in Vance’s fist, I can’t turn to see who’s talking.

  “My, my. It seems we caught ourselves a witch, boys.” He addresses the room without taking his eyes from mine. I wince at the term witch and the dark memories it evokes.

  “Fun fact, we haven’t been able to get hard for a woman in ten long lonely years, and now you turn up out of the blue, looking like all our wet dreams combined, and suddenly my cock is standing up loud and fucking proud. I don’t know what you did, and honestly, I don’t give a fuck. But if you’re here as an offering from the pussy gods, then you better believe I will take it.”

  What? They haven’t been able to get hard for a woman in ten years? But—

  My thoughts are cut off when his hard unforgiving lips force themselves on mine and everything else disappears.

  Two

  “Thank you, Syn. Because of you, Phoenix will live.”

  As angry as I am, I can’t begrudge him his daughter’s health.

  “Because of me, thousands have died. The scales don’t exactly tip in my favor now, do they? But then why would you care? It’s my soul being ripped apart.”

  I turn away so he can’t see my tears.

  “You’ll change the world, Syn,” he whispers, but all I can do is shake my head.

  “What good is changing the world when I’ll never step foot outside this cage to see it?”

  One minute I’m being kissed hard enough for it to be considered a punishment, and the next, nothing.

  It isn’t until angry voices filter into my pounding head that I realize I must have blacked out again.

  “Vance!”

  I squint my eyes open when I hear Vance’s name being called and yelp when I become aware that my T-shirt has been pushed up and one of his hands is cupping my breast.

  I shove him hard, making him stumble back as Trace reaches over, grabs him by the neck, and pulls him away.

  Scrambling up, I shove my T-shirt back down and cross my arms over my chest as I try to calm my racing heart.

  I try to remind myself that these are my mates, they won’t harm me. But looking at their faces now, I’m wondering if that’s bullshit and if these guys will be the latest in a long line of men who hurt me.

  “What just happened?” Finn asks, looking at me curiously. Out of the seven, he seems the least hostile but I’m not taking any chances. “One minute you were here, and the next, it was like the lights were on, but no one was home.”

  “System overload, I guess. It was just too much, too soon,” I answer quietly, aware of all their eyes on me. I make sure my power is locked down tight, not ready for another encounter like that. Being this close to them means I can’t shut it off like I usually can. Instead, it hums just under my skin, making me feel electrified.

  “You wanna explain what the fuck is happening and just who the fuck you are, sweetheart, before I have Nero throw you off this bus.”

  I lift my head, my eyes clashing with Cree’s stormy ones.

  “It’s a long story. I…I can arrange to come back at a better time?” I offer, needing to get away from them even though the thought makes me feel sick.

  “I don’t know what kind of scam you’re trying to pull, but this is the one shot you’re going to get to say your piece. Now, answer the fucking questions!” Trace snaps while the others stand by and watch. I notice the only one missing is Remi Taylor, the lead singer of The Death Virtues and the one most people assume is the leader. In his absence, Trace seems to have zero issues stepping up to the plate.

  “Do you know what you are? Where you all came from and how you came to be?” I ask, then wince, gripping my head when their collective wave of anger beats away at me, leaving me shaking.

  “You a reporter, little girl? You come here to dig up dirt on the mighty Virtues? Maybe you want to expose Remi and you thought you could bounce on a couple of our cocks before your story runs? How about we skip the get-to-know-each-other bullshit and get right to the dick bouncing instead?” Nero chimes in, walking toward me and tugging a strand of my hair. He purrs as he dips his head and runs his nose over my cheek before whispering
in my ear, “Fuck, I can smell you. You going to let me in that pussy, sweetheart, huh?”

  My stomach tightens as I feel myself get wet. Fuck. Nero is Lust. Okay. I suck in a sharp breath to center myself, but that’s a huge mistake because I inhale his scent, sending my hormones into overdrive.

  Reaching up, I grab his T-shirt, yanking him down until his lips crash into mine.

  I moan into his mouth and feel myself being lifted. I wrap my legs around his hips, ignoring the buzzing sounds of voices as Nero walks us somewhere. Then I’m down on my back on something soft and my T-shirt is missing.

  Lips press against my breasts, making my back arch as fingers fumble with the buttons of my jeans. The buzzing in my head gets louder, like white noise, until the sound of splintering wood echoes around the room, snapping the connection between Nero and me as a deafening roar captures my attention.

  “Victor,” I whisper as everything crashes down on me.

  “Who the fuck are you?” Nero snarls at a fuming Victor, but Victor only has eyes for me, eyes that are filled with nothing but concern and anger.

  “Shit. You’ve got a man? Fucking dick tease. Hey man, she came here of her own free will. Either leave or join us, at this point, I don’t care—” Nero doesn’t get anything else out as Victor punches him and knocks him flying.