Bewildered, I stared into Sariel's eyes, hoping that those three words weren't something I had imagined. I felt real, but the confusion that had taken over my mind before wasn't something I could easily chase away. He kept his eyes on me without even blinking. He seemed confident and strong-willed. No. My mind sent me a warning that I couldn't get fooled again. I couldn't be swayed so easily. I looked away, but he instantly grabbed my chin and turned my head to face him.
"I love you," he repeated calmly.
The warm tone of his voice was like a balm put on my wounded heart. The sound felt like a blanket he wrapped over my shivering body. He placed his strong arms around my waist and pulled me close to him. I didn't want to resist him. My mind was perfectly ready to buy any story he wanted to sell. I just needed one semi-reasonable argument to stay with him.
"A-are you married now?" I asked, almost choking on my words.
"Yes." His reply felt like a kick in the
I froze, looking into his eyes. He pulled me close and stroked my hair, trying to coax me, but it hardly had any effect. My heart was pounding erratically from the moment I heard him say my father's name. I could ignore the presence of any other Alpha but him. Even though I was no longer defenseless, and I had someone equally powerful to protect me, I was horrified at the mere thought of looking Randall D'Apolito in the eye. Did it make me a coward? Perhaps. But I couldn't deny the fact that the mental advantage he had over me was turning me into the most fragile person I knew when facing him."W-why does he have to be there? He killed your mother, didn't he?" I shivered, trying to comprehend the reason for inviting someone like him."This is exactly why I want him to be there." Sariel painted a cold smirk on his face, "I want to look into his eyes and place fear in him. I want him to know that the day when he will pay for his sins will come soon."I could under
I was standing on the threshold of my chamber, motionless. I could hear Sophia's screams as she was being dragged by the guards through the corridor. When they were further away, I looked at my hand. My fist was clenched to the point where my nails were stabbed into the flesh of my palm. My whole body trembled. Was it because of the rush of adrenalin I felt? Or was it because I had done something ruthless for the first time in my life?The pondering over my state of mind was interrupted by the clapping sound of someone's hands. I turned, searching for the source of the sound, and saw a man coming my way. As he was closer, I realized I had seen him before. He was at the coronation, standing near the podium. I remembered him because he was the only one glaring at Elora. Now, he was coming my way, grinning beamingly and clapping his hands. His blue eyes were glowing and locked on me. I gazed at him, puzzled."Bravo!" he exclaimed, "you've only been at the palace for a day
Kanan seemed pleased that I agreed to join hands with him. I wasn't certain what he was truly able to do, but I felt hopeful and definitely not as depressed as I was when I woke up. He was right about one thing; I couldn't sit and do nothing. I had to strengthen my position in the vampire world, not only for the sake of being with Sariel but for my survival. For the last few weeks, I had grown completely dependent on Sariel's power, and I didn't like that at all. It wasn't because I didn't trust him, but I needed to feel that I was the one in control of my life.I didn't want to keep my alliance a secret from Sariel. I felt I should tell him about meeting Kanan and thought he should also be aware of everything that had happened between Sophia and me. I felt my chamber and decided to take a little stroll around the main castle building to look for Sariel. I went outside the east wing and walked to the main entrance. I passed the two guards standing on both sides of the door an
Soldiers surrounded me, glaring at me as if I was some kind of villain. They all decided to support Kylo, no questions asked. Only Patrick stood beside me, shielding me from whoever thought of attacking me, physically or verbally. I started to be seriously sick and tired of everyone purposely disregarding my authority and stripping me of a single ounce of respect."Your sister deserved what she got. She insulted me, she brought me rotten food intentionally, and in the end, she tried to attack me. She is the only one she can blame, as a maid who tried to step on the King's concubine," I said calmly, surprising myself that I was able to keep my composure."She did what?" Patrick gritted his teeth, his eyes widening at my words."She insulted me and attacked me. Now, her brother is trying to do the same," I stated, catching the gazes of those who surrounded me.Kylo stepped towards me, his teeth clenched angrily while his enraged eyes looked me up and down.
Leo wasn't lying about putting me through hell. After my first practice that lasted six hours straight, I felt as if I was going to vomit my guts out. Nonetheless, I was ecstatic! This strange change within me made me stronger than I could ever imagine. I also found super-Lilith faster and with sharper senses than ever before. Patrick stayed with me throughout my workout, watching me fight Leo with his mouth wide open. Well, he wasn't the only one surprised by my abilities. I surprised myself over and over again when I responded to whatever Leo threw at me, dodging, blocking, or counter-attacking. Finally, I was able to use every single combat technique that Ezra had taught me, which I could never execute perfectly. At that moment, I could do whatever I wanted, and it all came almost effortlessly."Lady Lilith… You could actually keep up with Master Gotha! You are incredible!" Patrick applauded my abilities, even though I was still miles away from being able to match L
During those three days until my duel with Kylo, I had been trying to avoid Palace maids and servants. The last thing I wanted was to get involved in another difficult situation that could end in me engaging myself in a fight with someone.The most absurd part of "avoiding trouble" was eating. Apparently, the servants in the Palace decided to starve me to death since I stopped getting any meals from the moment I rudely rejected my rotten breakfast. I bet this was also Elora's doing. She used Sariel's absence more and more boldly, but I guess that not getting food was still better than getting meals that were poisoned. The kitchen was in the main building, where I had zero access, which was even worse.With the King gone and the Queen who hated my guts, no one could change my situation, not even Leo, but he and Patrick found an easier way: I started eating meals with the Royal Army. It was the safest way. No one would dare poison the army's meals.Leo was about t
Kylo's eyes were blazing in anger as he stormed straight at me. I ducked in a flash and made a long slide, bending my body down to avoid the range of his claws. I jumped up on my feet before he could turn around and roundhouse-kicked him. I used as much muscle strength in that kick as I could, but it barely made him move a few inches back.He grinned at me, his eyes widening with excitement. I clenched my teeth. I had to attack him first while trying to avoid his claws. It was safer to use a series of kicks that provided distance. He scratched my legs more than a few times, ripping the fabric of my leggings and soaking them in my blood. It hurt. It made me roar in pain, but it also increased my adrenalin to the maximum. I couldn't be more thankful that my wounds were regenerating at the speed of light. Nonetheless, the pain of my flesh being torn by his claws remained excruciating.I was more than determined to win. Not only because I didn't want to die, but to prove t
I stared at Sariel, processing his words and watching his pupils burn, proving he meant what he said."You cannot simply murder her…" I muttered quite nervously."Elora has many skeletons in her closet. I just need to find them and accuse her of doing something requiring the death penalty." He shrugged as if it was something obvious and would happen sooner or later.I stated, with a wry smile, "I don't think she would expose herself if she worked for many years to become the queen.""That is why I will have to make her reveal all of her secrets," he smirked.I didn't like the sound of it already, but I asked, "How are you going to do that?""I will have to… play nice around her for a while," he chuckled,as if it didn't mean that he would have to seduce her.I sighed heavily, "What if I don't want you to?""Are you already jealous, my love?" He pulled me closer and started kissing his way down my neck.
Fucking Adragna! I could barely stand sitting in front of the Marquess or his sons, knowing that they were the ones who planned the attack on my parents. I should have squeezed my fingers around their necks and watched smug smiles disappear from their faces in agony, and yet, I was forced to keep calm, pretending I didn't know because I had no way to prove it. Those fuckers were good at killing witnesses. I hated them just as much as I hated those mongrels from the Southern Woods Pack. I was the Duke and a future king. I had the strength to crush those bastards to dust, but I had to sit there doing nothing. Why? Because King Mael said so! This old vampire thought that it would be refreshing if our annual meeting were held in his mansion in the Blue Valley, completely ignoring the fact that it was in the middle of fucking nowhere. I couldn't stay there a minute longer. I didn't care if King Mael would be pissed. I wouldn't lose his favor anyway. I was the strongest of all the
"My friend will finally wear the crown!" Martha's enthusiasm nearly made my eardrums explode. Truthfully, I couldn't care less about the crown. It was the wedding dress that was freaking me out. Who would have thought that the vows "till death do us part" would actually mean being together for at least a few centuries? I didn't doubt Sariel's love or mine for him, but still… I still hadn't sorted out the whole "vampire issue". After a month of living as a super-duper-commoner, I knew that I didn't need human blood; drinking Sariel's blood was enough for me. I was ecstatic to find out that he didn't need to drink any other blood than mine either. Will told us that it was a "mates' thing", and that this dependence would bind us forever as well as make us stronger. Yet, it didn't solve all the issues that made me anxious. Commoners lived forever, literally, and nobles had extended but limited lifespans. Would I be forced to live without Sariel? The thought of that formed a knot
"Good morning, my Queen."I would never get enough of hearing it. Sariel made it sound amazingly enticing. His smiling eyes were eating every piece of me. The intensity of his gaze made me flush. We were both naked, although I couldn't recall the moment I lost my silk nightgown. Sariel's arms were wrapping me tightly, and our legs were tangled. The air around us was saturated with arousal, so electrifying that the mere spark could cause an explosion. As my eyes roamed down from Sariel's eyes to his lips, I saw a smug grin. One breath later, his hands cupped my buttocks, lifting me slightly so I could feel his erection against my sex. I gasped."I see you're all healed," I chuckled nervously."Almost…" he smirked. "Now I need a different kind of therapy."His lips blocked mine before I could say anything else. He pinned my hands down on both sides of my head and deepened the kiss with passionate, lush licks. As I surrendered to his caresses, his han
According to the legendWill found, the mate's blood had the greatest effect on the full moon. Well… no surprise there. Conveniently for us, the full moon was tomorrow. The problem was that the whole ritual was quite risky since it required unplugging Sariel from any monitoring equipment in order to grant us an intimate environment. The healing ritual should have been performed between the two mates alone, without any disturbances. I could actually agree with that last one. The moment when we exchanged blood last time, well... I wouldn't want anyone to be around when it happened. Still, I was restless. What if we unplugged Sariel because we believed the legend, and he would die because of this choice?I asked Will if I could read everything he found about that legend, and he agreed to bring me all the centuries-old books that had mentioned something like "mates" among vampires. The moment I began to read it, my heart started to pound. The words describing the bond
After coming back to the Palace, I was dragged away from Sariel. The King was unconscious, and the reign of the kingdom had to be settled immediately. I was led to the study, where I met Gabriel, a group of lawyers, and Leo. I had no idea what my role was in all of this, and I didn't care. I would rather sit by Sariel's bed until he woke up, yet Leo firmly held my hand, convincing me to stay. He told me that there was a certain protocol I, as the queen-to-be, should follow. Reluctantly, I gave up and decided to listen.One of the lawyers stepped forward. He held a sealed envelope. He showed everyone the unbroken seal, and then he opened the content. It was an emergency protocol. It was only supposed to be open if something happened to the King. Acknowledging the reason we were gathered in that room made my head spin. I was suffocating. I stumbled, taking a step back. It was too much. Sariel wasn't dead! I couldn't bear to do anything as if he had already died!"It's on
When I saw Jarred standing over Sariel, who was lying on the ground, my heart stopped beating. My King was bleeding heavily from multiple cuts on his chest, his shoulders, his arms… When I ran into the arena and stopped in the middle, everyone's eyes shifted to me. I struggled to take a breath as the tears flooded my cheeks. Jarred growled and gestured at two standing-by guards so they could take me out of there. Jarred should have known better than to send two rogue werewolves against me. As I roared warningly and pulled out my claws, the wolves stepped back, recognizing my strength.I knew that I couldn't interfere in Sariel's fight. I was no match for Jarred, nor did I want to take away Sariel's pride. The only thing I could do was to bring back his will and courage. I couldn't lose him when we had just gotten each other back. As he turned his head towards me, I met his eyes. Their fire was slowly dying. The view devastated me, but I was not allowed to give up.
I ran towards the screen, processing the situation. The arena was surrounded by a rising ring of metal constructions with wooden boards lying on them, creating a provisional place to stand or walk. A few seconds later, Sariel and Jarred were joined by the audience. They stood on each floor of the construction. They were Jarred's men: rogue wolves and commoner vampires, hiding their flesh under the thick hoods and robes. The outcasts. They were all chanting Jarred's name and spitting underneath Sariel's feet. I could hear their spiteful voices coming through the speakers. Hearing their hatred tore my heart apart, but Sariel seemed unmoved. My King stood proudly, glaring at his enemy while he enticed the crowd, fueling their furious shouts. "Where's Lilith?" Sariel clenched his fist, seeking my presence in the audience. Jarred raised his hand, silencing the crowd, before speaking, "My Sister is safe. She is resting in her room." He curved his lips into a smile, but his
I turned towards the door and observed the overly tall shape of a man emerging from the shadows of the corridor. As he passed the threshold of my cell, I stepped back, soaking my bare feet in the puddle of Ian's blood. My instincts forced me to keep the right distance despite the circumstances. His dangerous aura filled every corner of the room, making every breath more and more uncomfortable.A second later, I saw a man with wavy, naturally ruffled black hair. The irises of his eyes were green with light shades of gold, captivatingly glowing in his olive complexion. He had strongly underlined cheekbones and a sharp jawline, giving him a highly intimidating look. As he entered, his eyes were locked on me. He never spared a glance at Ian's bloodied corpse. He stepped forward, and I instantly stepped back. Once I did, his full faint-pink lips formed a wicked smirk. He walked my way until my steps back brought me against the wall.He easily towered over me, shutting me in
"Lilith." Someone cautiously called my name, pulling me back to awareness.Waking up was hard. It instantly brought me pain before I could even open my eyes. My mouth twisted in a silent scream as I felt my body burning from the inside. My senses were dull, and I could barely feel anything except the pain."Silver is still in your blood. Try not to move; it will be less painful that way," the low voice advised.As more of my consciousness came back, I found myself lying on the bed. I opened my eyes and saw my hands in shackles, restrained by chains on both sides of the bed. There was also a cold metallic collar on my neck. The advice I heard was accurate: the pain lessened as soon as I stooped to move, yet I needed to find out more to evaluate my situation. I slowly turned my head to the source of the voice and saw Ian standing beside my bed.I instantly frowned. "Traitor," I mumbled.He smiled wryly. "I merely chose to be someone better than a dri