LOGINVANESSAThe next time I opened my eyes, I was surrounded by dim golden lights, soft fur beneath my fingers and complete silence. My fingers went up to touch the side of my neck to feel for blood but came up empty. What did he do to me? I realized to my horror that my movements had been restricted and I was truly trapped in this place. He meant every word. “Fuck!” The word burst out of me. “Fuck me! Fuck this!” No matter how hard I pulled, the chains wouldn’t budge.I was well and truly fucked. Not only would the Serpent Sisters be disappointed, they’d find my head if the seven night ultimatum elapsed and I still hadn’t completed my assigned task. And Nyra…oh, I didn’t want to think about the look in her eyes before she’d take my head off. What the fuck was wrong with that deranged man? Why couldn’t his death be as easy as the past ones? “Because you underestimated him, you whore,” I swore aloud to the empty room, bemoaning my ill-luck.Forcing a calmness I didn’t feel, I studi
VANESSA Heat bloomed on the spot where he touched, sending my pulse hammering too hard. What did ‘Mine’ mean? What was he doing to me? The pull I’d felt at the ball last night was nothing compared to the intense electricity crackling between us right now. What manner of creature was he? Dark red liquid seeped through his shirt, drenching the cream colored material and pooling by our feet. Right between us. He ignored it. The knife was stained alright, but he didn’t look affected in the least bit. He still gazed at my face with so much devotion it scared me. I flatted myself against the wall, afraid that moving might awaken whatever beast had settled within him. Fuck! How did I even get myself into this mess without proper research? They only said he was a dangerous man. Nobody talked about what degree of danger he posed to my life if he survived the kill. “Mine,” he said again, louder this time, flinging my dagger to the side like the useless piece of meta
VANESSANyra’s ultimatum still echoed in my head the next day; seven nights to kill the King. My belongings weren’t much. Just a few dresses and shoes I’d snagged from a store on my way. By the time evening came, I found myself walking alongside several noble guests invited for a festival in the palace. I had Noel to thank for that. A few of us were granted a private tour of the palace. “And now over here, we can see different artifacts, ranging from the Ceremonial Crown of King Alaric III,” the guide said, making us stop in front of a tempered glass with a label. Boredom was eating me to shreds from within and here I was, forced to nod like an idiot and play along, stuck with mediocre thinking people who had the notion that everything which collected dust on a shelf in a palace as old as this was an artifact. It took practiced discipline to not yawn in disinterest.The guide moved again. “Come along. Here are the Royal Decree Scrolls. These documents helped to formalize alliance
VANESSAPatting the small dagger still pressed into the nook of my inner thighs, I watched him dash out the door. There was nothing more frustrating than watching an unfinished business still breathe. “Wait for me,” I mimicked Leonidas, scoffing. “In your dreams.”What if the fire alarm was a ruse to capture me? What if he had indeed learned of my true identity? That meant my position was already compromised and waiting meant brutal death. I stole a shirt and tossed my ruined dress aside. Pulling it over my head, my gaze drifted to the window. The drop wasn’t so bad, especially as it was the only exit available.One minute, I was still in the King’s bedroom. The next, I swung both legs over the ledge and let go of the window sill. The ground rushed to meet me and I folded my body the moment I landed, rolling over as pain flashed through my legs. Thankfully, nothing gave. Before the shock could settle in my bones, I pushed on my feet and fled into the night, expertly managing to a
LEONIDASIt was the way she floated with grace, setting her chin haughtily like everyone else was below her. Including me. It was the way she set herself so distinct in the crowd, she became impossible to miss. A beauty mark to her top lip, she had a face that was hard to stop looking at. One that was hard to leave your mind once you’d memorized every detail.It seemed she sought me out before I did, because after the first time we laid eyes on each other, I found her everywhere I looked. “This must be your father.” I stopped walking, long enough to turn around and see she had stopped in front of a large portrait. And yes, the man was my father. The man I hated very much. “Come along, you have a long night ahead.” Clearing my throat, I continued on my way. She did, those long legs catching up with me and leading her ahead so that I had to stare at the column of her neck and her ass jiggling underneath that dress. Gods, she wasn’t going to make it any easier for me, was she?I t
VANESSAAnd so, I failed my mission before it even began. I was right back to square zero. When the music stopped, we each courtesied and he walked off to deal with some more important function. To him, it was probably better than having to deal with me, the woman who still had a dagger strapped to her thighs. Unstained too. Good for him, I guess. “That’s the one reason why I hate and love him.” Someone had slithered their hand around my waist. Only one person had the audacity to say a thing like that. In fact, it was the scent of his cologne that gave him away. I bristled at his touch.To indulge him, I quizzed, “They are?”“He knows when to back off from something that belongs to me.”Although being referred to as a thing irked me, I was curious. “And the other?”He came round to stand in front of me. “He can be very stubborn, holding on to what is rightfully mine.” After a pause. “Did you look into his eyes?”I let out an exasperated sigh. “What do you want?”His chest puffed







