Royal Temptation

Zarek POVThe first thing they packed was my brother’s signet ring, the one meant for the future king. Me.A title I had always known wouldn’t be mine… until two months ago.“Please, you have to talk to him.”“This is inevitable, son. I’m sorry,” my mother whispered, her voice cracking.There was no way my father would listen to me now. Running away hadn’t worked either. He’d track me down in seconds.My eyes caught Zakar’s favourite watch on the dresser, a cruel reminder that rules mattered more than blood.I watched as the maids packed my clothes into suitcases while others emptied the closets and drawers.“You have twenty minutes, young prince,” the butler’s voice came from the doorway.Twenty minutes. That’s how long I had before the council stripped me of my freedom and dressed it up as duty, before I stopped being a prince and became a prisoner.My gaze dropped to the clothes laid out for me. I could feel my mother’s stare lingering, heavy even as she continued giving instructio

Zarek POVI jolted awake, a sharp pain splitting my skull. My body trembled as my eyes darted around, trying to make sense of the shadows. The room was bare, walls pressing in, no windows, no doors I could see.A cold wave of panic hit me. My chest tightened, and I struggled for air.I tried to move, and something clung to me tightly, making me wince in pain.I was tied to a chair, my hands secured tightly behind my back.A swift click echoed across the room, and someone walked in. His steps grew heavier with each second as he closed the distance between us.“Good to see you’re awake, Prince,” he dragged the last word, and I was sure he was mocking me.“Who are you, and what do you want from me?” I demanded.He chuckled slowly, his hands rubbing over the gun.He tilted my chin up so my eyes met his gaze. “Your karma,” he whispered, sending chills through me.Those were the same words he had said in the car, and the last thing I remembered was being choked with a handkerchief before I

Zarek POV“Stay still,” the doctor instructed, holding my arm in place.I stared closely as he took out his medical instruments; the smell of spirit and bleach made my stomach churn.I took a deep breath, glad this hadn’t been a bullet wound, or I’d be in much worse pain.This place was different from the castle, more like a gothic sanctuary. You’d think vampires resided here. Men walked everywhere with heavily loaded guns.It was simply a military base, just without the barracks.Yet I had to leave. Each second with Aziel turned me into a ticking time bomb, and I wanted nothing more than to hang him upside down and wipe that dirty smirk off his stupid face.“Done,” the doctor finally announced, jolting me from my thoughts.A clean bandage now wrapped around my arm. With a single nod at me, I forced a smile, and he excused himself before leaving.“I’ll get someone to take you to your room, and you can let her know what you’d like to eat,” Luciano informed me, turning down the corridor

Zarek POVIf someone had told me a week ago that I’d be running through a forest like hunted prey, I would have laughed it off. What a stupid joke.The more I ran, the hotter my body felt, my heart pounding, breaths coming faster. I wasn’t the athletic type. The only thing I’d ever trained for was looking presentable at court, aside from fashion, which didn’t even count, because anything that wasn’t a royal obligation was shunned.Something cracked beneath my shoes, making me halt. A twig, but it froze me anyway. I lowered my head, hands on my legs as my heart raced.I glanced at my watch and, to my shock, it had only been fifteen minutes.“Bloody hell,” I cursed through gritted teeth.I looked to the side. Two narrow paths stretched ahead. I flipped the map open carefully, trying not to tear it with my trembling hands.My eyes scanned it, but I didn’t understand a thing. It was just a map boldly labeled Canari Forest, yet I couldn’t tell where I was or which way to go with all the tr

Aziel's POV"Does my dad know about this?" I asked, striding beside Luciano down to the dungeons."Yes, but he added you should handle it personally and report back to him."Of course he did. That man would laugh if a gun was aimed at his head. He’d know I’d take the bastard down before the trigger even clicked.We reached the dungeon. The air was thick with damp stone and the faint tang of iron. Ricci sat slumped in the corner, blindfolded, hands bound. Two years working under me, thinking he could climb faster by selling me out, and now he was nothing but a trembling fool.I stopped a few feet away, letting the silence stretch. "Ricci," I said slowly, savoring the weight of his name. "Two years, and for what? A promise of a better position? Did it feel worth it when you left me hanging?"Ricci swallowed hard. His throat bobbed, but he said nothing.Luciano leaned casually against the wall behind me, grinning. "You know, I didn’t think Ricci had that much imagination. Pretty ambitiou