CHAPTER FORTY NINE

Bastion's POV

I gripped the leather wheel of my Tacoma firmly as I flew down the interstate.

That asshole.

I rarely ever thought anything bad about my fellow King, but I was pissed. He had one job. All he had to do was set aside an hour of one fucking day to be there for our Queen.

But no. He's suddenly the Sire's bitch.

She looked so depressed without him there. I could see her trying to hide it, but that just made me more angry.

When I see him... Fuck.

I whipped my truck up to the valet. He recognized me as VIP, even though I hardly ever came to visit the hotel. They must have had pictures posted somewhere.

He rushed to get my keys, but I held out my hand.

"I'm coming right back down. Leave it," I commanded.

He eyed my truck but nodded. Rory owned the damn place. It was his fault I was here. I could park where I damn well pleased.

I walked up to the front desk where a young woman with brown hair and eyes greeted me. She was blushing, pulling her bottom lip in and batting her lashes.

I sniffed. Human.

"Hello, sir. How can I help you today?"

"I need the key for the executive elevator," I said coldly.

She eyed me up and down, taking in my casual attire with confusion.

"I'm sorry, sir, but I'm not allowed to give that out without an order from an executive."

You've got to be kidding me. I rolled my eyes, trying to keep them from going black and scaring the shit out of this human.

"Okay, call Rory Bennet. He'll clear me for the key." She hesitated, making me growl. "Now!"

She jumped before scurrying to the staff room to make the call. I checked my watch, cringing when I saw it hit 10:00.

The doctor would be arriving any second. I hoped she would wait for us. I wanted to see my sons.

The sound of heels hitting the marble seemed to echo in my mind, pulling all of my attention from my babies to the source of the entrancing sound.

A woman, about thirty, with platinum blonde hair and stormy blue eyes sauntered up to me slowly. She was wearing too much makeup and too little clothing, but that wasn't what kept my attention.

It was her sinister smile and the aura of absolute power that surrounded her. That was when I knew I was in trouble.

My eyes trailed down from her ruby lips, past her diamond necklace, settling on what appeared to be a tattoo on the swell of her left breast. At least, to humans, it looked like a tattoo.

It was scarlet red, as if tainted with blood, and showed a viper with dripping fangs. At the top, 'Red Queen'.

I took an involuntary step towards her, tensing as my body moved.

"King Bastion." My name on her lips made me sick, and a deep growl formed in my chest.

"Who the hell are you?" She cocked a brow, her grin widening.

"Can't you read, dear?" Her pointy red fingernail trailed over her seal. "Or were you wanting a name? Call me Annalise."

There was something off about her. Very off.

"I have to go." I tried my damndest to step away from the vixen, but my feet wouldn't obey me.

"I've really been looking forward to meeting you," She purred, the echo of her heels moving to her voice.

With two more torturous steps, she was in front of me, her hand snaking up my torso in a chillingly disturbing way.

"Don't touch me," I threatened through clenched teeth, still unable to flinch away.

Then, her eyes met mine, and I could swear I saw the color in them swirling around her pupils. It was hypnotic, as if nothing in my life had ever been more intriguing than this woman's eyes.

"I want you to come with me, darling." She cooed seductively, her breath fanning my collarbone.

She had me snared. She had me beguiled. I shouldn't have come.

I fought for control of my body, but her hand gripped mine, and I followed her like a lost child. Where was she taking me? And why? Did they plan all of this from the beginning?

We exited back through the front doors where a valet was waiting with a deep red sports car.

I wasn't able to concentrate on it enough to determine the make and model. I was just trying not to get in it.

I managed to sneak a look at the valet, who was eyeing me curiously. I said I would be right back for my truck, and now I was climbing into a car with this random woman whom I was sure they all knew.

My heart was racing, and I felt the sweat collecting on my forehead.

I waited and waited for a slight weakening of her ability so I could break it, but it never came. She was powerful. More powerful than any vamp I had ever come in contact with.

Which explained how she was able to trap me. I was a king, damn it! I shouldn't have been so powerless against her.

She drove throughout the city, but my vision was becoming jaded.

I had no idea where we were anymore. All I could focus on was the way her nails drummed against the gearshift.

A simple melody, but it rocked me to my core.

I obsessed over it, replaying it in my head long after she stopped.

The opening of my door startled me from my internal concert.

"Come." She said simply. I stood to my feet, my gaze falling on the sensual way the fabric of her white dress hugged her curves.

"Queen." I mumbled. She gave me a triumphant grin.

Fuck! No!

Dorian thrashed around in my head, trying to shake her spell, before coming to the forefront of my mind and spitting out, "You are no Queen."

She stepped back as if she'd been struck, before her features morphed. Her fangs extended, her eyes burned into me, and her smile was replaced with a hiss.

Before I could even process what was happening, I felt the sting on my cheek, followed by the warmth of my blood flowing down it. Her nails gripped my face, and she lowered my gaze to hers.

"Listen, pup. I may have to keep you alive for now, but don't think I won't put you in your place. Now come, before I have to damage your pretty face any more."

Just like that, her powerful aura increased, leaving Dorian whimpering in the recesses of my mind.

Why would she need to keep me alive? What was she planning?

My tunnel vision barely managed to make out the interior of a ritzy apartment complex. Everything was red and black, making it seem much more intimidating than the whites and golds of our home.

We entered an elevator, but instead of going to the top floor, she unlocked a hidden panel, displaying six more buttons. She pressed the one labeled 'C', and we descended beneath the building.

Once the doors opened, I was horrified.

Dozens of howls could be heard from the hallways of the apparent concrete prison surrounding us. Cell after cell of windowless doors littered the area, and the scent of blood was overwhelming.

I gagged, still obediently following Annalise.

"Don't worry, pup. Where you're going, you won't be able to hear or smell them."

Where the hell was she taking me? The sickening sound of her stilettos on the barren floor guided me all the way to the end of a corridor. This room had a much heavier silver-plated door with a biometric scanner on it.

She held her manicured hand against it, and it flashed green before clicking open.

"Your new castle, King Bastion." She sneered, stepping aside so I could enter my cell.

The whole room was black and dark. So dark, that if I didn't have a supernatural's sight, I probably would've been blind. A large bed sat on a wrought iron frame in the center, but other than that, there was nothing. No furniture, no decor. There was a small door near the back corner which I assumed led to a toilet and sink, but the room itself was empty.

I mindlessly walked over to the bed, sitting down with my eyes locked on my seductress.

She smirked, crossing her arms and waiting by the open door for someone. But who?

Within seconds, a man appeared.

"Good girl." The man spoke, instantly making me tremble.

Any evil I thought Annalise possessed was nothing compared to him.

He was dressed in a full suit, his icy cold eyes flitting to me momentarily before landing back on his Queen.

He captured her lips in an overly sensual display, and I managed to turn my head, focusing instead on the reinforced concrete before me.

"King Bastion. It looks like my Queen may have lost her temper with you."

I flinched, making him chuckle. I would have rather died than hear that noise again.

"Dear, why don't you take care of that for him?" He prodded.

The clicking sound approached me slowly. "Of course, my love."

I moaned at the contact of her tongue on my face, allowing tears to pool in my eyes simultaneously. Why was my body betraying me? I needed to fight. I needed to get out.

"Be a dear, Bastion, and lay back for me. We can't have you losing control while we're here." Annalise almost sang.

I immediately complied, yelling every swear word I knew in my head.

She climbed up after me, systematically clicking large silver cuffs around my wrists and ankles until I could no longer move. Fuck. I couldn't even transform like this.

Much to my relief, she moved to climb off the bed, but then a tune filled the air.

The Sire clicked a wireless device on his ear, cocking it as he eyed me.

"Such a shame." He smiled, showing all of his teeth. "It appears King Rory has already inquired about your whereabouts. What do you say we make sure he stays beside the Queen? They can come to rescue you together."

Shit. I was bait.

He wanted to use me to draw Aria here. She wouldn't. Rory wouldn't let her do that.

"She won't come." I growled, seeming to find my voice through the heavy fog of influence.

"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure about that. Annalise, care for a drink?" He nodded to her and she responded by giving me a devilish smile.

No. I didn't want her venom.

She knelt on the bed, unzipping the back of her dress as her half-lidded eyes drank me in.

Stop. I didn't want to look, but I couldn't take my eyes off her.

In a second, she was undressed, tugging at my clothes.

My eyes shot to the door for a fleeting second, but the Sire was gone.

Don't touch me.

She climbed me hungrily, baring her fangs as she straddled my naked torso, her fingernails scraping against my bare flesh.

"She'll come, darling. Because if she doesn't, she'll die." She breathed before devouring me.