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Chapter 77
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The King of Beasts Chapter 78
ARIA(TRIGGER WARNING: The content below contains self-harm, mentions of sex trafficking, severe sexual abuse, death of an infant.)Three.Three.One. Two. Three.Three red vertical lines.Three.Three times I was assaulted.Three times I was broken.Three times parts of me were stolen.Three times I was left alone, a wrecked mess.Drip. Drip. Drip.Three drops.I dragged my gaze from the crimson lines and looked at the dark drops contrasting sharply against the white marble basin.I turned the tap on, watching as water streamed over the drops, fading the dark color into a light pink before it was washed away completely.More drops dripped into the running water, only to be carried away into the drain.Pain spiraled all the way over my arm, but it didn’t hurt me like it should’ve. It was…addicting. It was something I knew I could get used to. The high, the rush, the feeling.I looked down at the scissors covered in blood sitting on the cupboard before running my forefinger over the cu
The King of Beasts Chapter 79
ARIA(TRIGGER WARNING: The content below contains self-harm, mentions of sex trafficking, severe sexual abuse, death of an infant.)She shook her head, as if trying to remove something unwanted from her head.“He came back with bags full of food, clothes, medicines. Everything I needed and didn’t have.”Was she talking about the man who was my husband?“He told me to take a shower because I was stinking.” Her lips quirked up, “I did as he asked and, in the bathroom, my water broke. I was so panicked, so terrorized because I had no idea what to do. He helped me. Fabiano. He helped me through the labor. He was the first one to hold my daughter.”My heart twisted inside me, watching the sprinkles of happiness in her eyes as she mentioned her daughter. I couldn’t bear it. I couldn’t control the pain that never went away. I averted my gaze and stared at my lap.“She was small, so small I thought I’d break her if I touched it. She was a survivor though. I had no help, no guidance, no medici
The King of Beasts Chapter 80
ARIAShe took her hand off my chest, sighing out loud before offering me a smile.“I know it hurts. I know you’re confused. I know it feels like hell. I know the self-hatred you feel. I know your pain, Aria.”Aria. It felt so weird to hear my name after so long. Aria. Aria Whitlock.“You’re special, you know that.” She jerked her chin at me, “You’re a fighter. Even though a part of me believes you’re foolish. You’re meant for more. You’re not meant for this captivity. He doesn’t realize it now. He doesn’t realize your worth but one day, he will.”She stood up, holding the kit in her trembling hands,“One day, Aria,” She held my hand and caressed it, “One day, you’ll meet your daughter.”A choked sound escaped me. She looked up at me and smiled;“You’ll meet your beautiful girl. It might be a little late but trust me, she’ll be proud to have you as her mother. She’ll love you instantly.”My vision blurred, eyes filled with water, face wet with tears, scrambled noises escaping my lips.
The King of Beasts Chapter 81
FABIANOFive months later:Aria had gone in labor.Back rigid, shoulders tense, Fabiano paced outside the room; his ears picking up the cries and screams of pain that escaped the room.He frowned, telling himself to sit down but something inside him didn't let him rest.Few minutes later, something made Fabiano tense even more.A sound, to be exact.He froze as the sound went up again.A cry.His ears picked up a cry.A baby's cry.He eyed the door, watching it blankly for a moment before pushing it open and barging inside. Every person inside the room tensed and looked back at him, pausing before they resumed their work.No one wanted to face the infamous beastly king.His eyes fell on his wife; her tired, deathly pale figure that eyed him.He walked towards her, and stopped beside her. Pressing a hand to her sweaty forehead, Fabiano forced himself to smile his infamous grin."Hello, lioness."But her lioness' eyes rolled back into her head as she slumped unconscious. Fabiano tensed
The King of Beasts Chapter 82
ARIA Magic. The magic Lina had told me about. I could feel it. I could feel it rushing through my veins, wiggling under my skin and sparkling all over me. It was beautiful. The light around me. My son was beautiful. I held him in my arms until they ached. I stared at him but couldn’t get my eyes still wanted more of him. One glimpse, all it took was one glimpse and he made himself home in my cracked heart. I couldn’t believe this. It felt like a dream to me. So, I held on to him so no one could take him away from me. I brushed my finger over his fluffy cheek, enchanted by the soft, silk skin he had. His eyes were closed, he was sleeping but I wanted to see his eyes. I wanted him to look at me, his mother. The person who loved him the most. But I didn’t want to disturb him. I reached out and held his tiny hand in my own, marveled at the difference. His hand was so tiny, his fingers even smaller, and his minute nails. I bent down and kissed the tips of his fingers. My f
The King of Beasts Chapter 83
ARIA“Massimo Saint Lombardi.”I looked up when I heard him, swallowing when I saw the finality etched in his features and tone.Massimo Saint Lombardi.Massimo was a great name, but for some reason, my heart was stuck on Saint. I didn’t know why. But it just was.“Massimo Saint Lombardi.” I whispered, testing the words on my tongue.I nodded silently to show my husband that I agreed with him and was glad to see when he turned around and left us alone. I wanted some time alone with my son. I needed it to make myself believe that it wasn’t a dream.Finally, I had someone with me. Someone I loved with all my might.When I dragged my gaze back to my son, my heart nearly jumped to my throat.Saint was awake, watching me with big, round eyes.Big, blue, round eyes.A cry of pure glee reverberated in the air and I teared up at the sight in front of me.My son had my eyes.“My beautiful son.” I kissed his tiny hand, keeping it pressed to my lips, “My savior. My light. My prince.”He kept sta
The King of Beasts Chapter 84
ARIA “No woman should go through this. I am sorry for your loss. The responsible man should be punished.” My eyes snapped open, my ears ringing with the deadly whisper. Sleep disappeared from me in a second when I realized that there was someone behind me. I was about to scream when I realized that my son was in this room. My eyes flicked to his crib beside the bed, before they flicked to him in the dark. I swallowed the scream, not wanting to wake Saint up. It wasn’t Fabiano. It was someone else. It was her. Rosa. A shiver creped up my spine, my hair stood erect on the back of my neck when I heard her whisper again. “No woman should go through this. I am sorry for your loss. The responsible man should be punished.” I went rigid when I heard her words. Those were the words she had said to me, nine months ago. I had thought she was threatening my sister but she was threatening me. She knew exactly what was going to happen to me. I closed my eyes, forcing myself to relax. W
The King of Beasts Chapter 85
ARIA “Fabiano.” A purr resonated in the air. I saw Fabiano’s face hardening, his eyes darkening with the message of incoming storm before he blinked and smiled, slowly and viciously. “Mother.” He crooned, a mocking note in his voice. My head snapped, shock penetrating through me at his word. Mother. My gaze danced between the two, my mind registered the similarities between them that I had failed to notice before. Those eyes. They both had the same eyes. Grey like dark clouds filling the sky before a storm. “How nice of you to come here.” Fabiano widened his smile, “It must have been difficult, huh, mother? To come back from the Land of the Dead to haunt my ass?” “Fabiano!” It was a hiss this time, speaking of the anger that was growing in this room. Shivering at the tense atmosphere in the room, I backed myself away from the sick woman. As soon as my feet touched the floor, I went for my son. I bent over the crib, holding Saint in my arms, careful not to wake him up. I pr
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The King of Beasts EPILOGUE
THE LETTER FROM FABIANO;This is where I first met you; in this very room and this is where it will all end.I couldn’t say it to your face so I wrote it down to give it to you.There is a question that we both asked ourselves many times but only I knew the answer to it.‘Why you? Why this woman?’Because you were the lone rose standing fall in the field full of wilted flowers.Injured yet strong, broken yet standing, failing yet surviving.Beautiful and different.Maybe that was your curse.I saw you. I saw your photo in Adriano’s office and I was obsessed with you from the very first moment. You were like a lioness, protecting your sister when you could have lost your life. Like a Queen.I knew that I’d go mad without you so I did what I wanted to.Stole you. Broke you. Tainted you.I gave you pain but you gave me something else.A home. A family.Venus. Massimo. You.You gave me something the little boy in me desired to have. The little boy whose dreams were shattered long ago, bef
The King of Beasts Chapter 103
ARIA My heart ached for us. “You can’t imagine how much I missed you.” I whispered. My sister whose side I had never left after she was born, was seeing me after two years. “There’s someone we want you to meet.” Adriano spoke up from behind, making us pull apart from each other. I turned and looked at him. My brother-in-law was the definition of tall, dark and handsome. He stepped towards me and patted my head, almost affectionately, making my eyebrows shoot up. We didn’t have the best relationship. “I almost missed you.” He smirked, making me crack a smile, “He’s waiting for you.” My lips dipped at his words. I frowned as he gave me a slow, small, smile. He nodded in my direction and then took a step aside. He jerked his head in the direction. I followed his gaze until I saw a tall figure, standing a few feet away from us. I saw color. Green. My lips formed a trembling smile when the figure’s face came into my view. Damon. “Go on. He is waiting for you.” He urged. I
The King of Beasts Chapter 102
FABIANO “Venus is alive.” Why did he say that? To punish her? To hurt her for betraying him? To hurt himself? He didn’t know but he saw the disbelief on her face as he continued to speak, “She was never dead. I took her away from here.” Aria’s lips against someone else’s. He changed what he was going to say and swallowed, his demons rattling their cages, wanting to break free and they did. “This is your punishment, Aria.” He sneered at her shock-striken features, “You wanted freedom? You’ll have it but you’ll never see your children again. You’ll die without seeing their faces. Venus is alive but you’ll never see how she grows up. Saint will know that her mother is a whore you left her son for another man. Enjoy your freedom you always begged for.” “I’ll stay. Please.” He didn’t pay her any attention. “I’ll do anything. Fabiano? Don’t do this.” She was in his feet, holding her legs, begging him, “Don’t…Hit me, whip me, do whatever you want but not this punishment. I’ll do wh
The King of Beasts Chapter 101
ARIA “It’s fine.” He sobered up, “I’ll take you there one day.” I stilled at his words as he smiled at me before I turned my back on him and walked the path that would lead me back to the garden. It took us several minutes to reach the garden. Once we were out, he closed the door and set the hinges before covering it with vines, arranging them in a way that didn’t look suspicious. When we walked a little more, he started to speak. I wanted to cover my ears with my hands. “You are caged here. I never see you with a phone. Do you even have one? When was the last time you talked to your sister?” He paused, staring at the ink on my neck, he glanced up and continued, “Your husband doesn’t love you. He has an unhealthy obsession with you.” My eyes were wild as I stared at him. he was right. I was caged. I didn't know what happened so suddenly but I exploded. The feelings I had bottled up inside me had burst out, overflowed. They trailed over my cheeks in the form of tears and then
The King of Beasts Chapter 100
ARIA I want you beside me. “There.” I stepped back moments later, thrusting the knife towards him with my shaky hands. “We look good side by side, ocean eyes.” He commented, taking in the names we had just carved and winked at me, making me feel all those things inside me again. “Don’t do it.” He paused, his brows dipping, “What?” “Don’t do this to me.” I whispered, my emotions overflowing as I stared into his eyes. “What are you talking about?” He leaned over, gripping my face in his palms. And I knew it, I was leaning to his touch. His eyes were filled with concern and disbelief as he searched my eyes. “This.” I pointed around, my eyes watering, “You’re making me get used to you. To this light you bring with you. To this freedom you introduce me to.” A tear rolled down. I didn’t know why I was feeling so emotional suddenly. “Did I hurt you, ocean eyes?” He asked, eyes brimming with concern. Concern for me. A woman he barely knew about. A woman who was married to another.
The King of Beasts Chapter 99
ARIA “Come on, ocean eyes.” I scoffed, “I am not going inside. God knows where it leads to.” He rolled his eyes, “You said it yourself before. I’ve been using it. There’s nothing wrong.” “How did you even know this thing,” I pointed to the door, “was here?” I arched my brow. He smirked, playfulness swimming in his eyes before he stepped out and came close to me. Really, really close. And he leaned down, his face a few inches away from me. I licked my lips, nervously. Playfulness vanished from his eyes as he glanced down at my lips, his eyes darkened before he glanced into my eyes, his lips brushing against my ears, sending shivers of unknown feelings over my skin. “Nothing will harm you, my goddess.” With that, he pulled my arm and pushed me into the darkness, his laugh following my scream. “I thought you were different than other men.” He let out a laugh behind me. I looked over my shoulder, glaring at him but he only poked out his tongue at me. Despite all my attempts, my l
The King of Beasts Chapter 98
ARIA He didn’t move. One minute passed. Then two… Then three… Hesitantly, I threaded my fingers through his black locks, feeling their softness on my palm and enjoying it. It felt foreign. Fabiano never let me touch him except…on some certain occasions. But with him…this man I knew nothing about, with Damon Xanthos whatever-his-last-name-might-be everything felt new, light and…good. After a few moments, my moves were more confident. My strokes firmer as I ran my fingers through his head, tugging lightly. I felt so…normal. I didn’t know my lips had moved because it was him who informed me about that when he murmured without looking at me; “You have a beautiful smile, my goddess.” **** One night, Fabiano came into my room, covered in blood. His steel eyes were darkened with a maniac energy that made my skin pop with goosebumps. His body, his eyes, everything about him was screaming danger, different than his usual kind. He placed his hands on my face and I flinched when I
The King of Beasts Chapter 97
FABIANO She was his. She might have jumped from the cliff to escape him but that wouldn’t happen in this life. His wife. The mother of his children. His lioness. His Queen. Fucking his. And he’d fight the fucking Gods to keep her with him. They might be Gods, but he was the one who fucking ruled over Hell. *** The doctor said Aria's condition was critical; he fucking knew that but his lioness hadn't opened her eyes in three days. He stared at her pale figure, silently questioning her. Why? But he knew why. Because of him. He had driven her to a point where she chased death; begged for it and was ready to jump into its arms even if it meant being away from him. Why? To escape the cage he kept her in. To fly even though he had cut her wings. He tortured her. He did. It wasn’t her fault. It was his. He couldn’t rein his demons. He couldn’t control himself. He always gave into their demands. He always let hem control him. They were worse. And they wanted to destro
The King of Beasts Chapter 96
FABIANOThe rain had slowed down, turned to drizzle but still, the clouds were rumbling and lightening was illuminating the sky when he rushed with an unconscious and bleeding Aria. He and his men had pulled her body out luckily but she was as close to death as one could be.He swore he could feel the Gods above there, partying and laughing down at her, celebrating their victory.But fuck Gods!Fuck them and fuck their plans!He wouldn’t let them take her away.She wasn’t theirs.She was his.She might have jumped from the cliff to escape him but that wouldn’t happen in this life.His wife.The mother of his children.His lioness.His Queen.Fucking his.And he’d fight the fucking Gods to keep her with him.They might be Gods, but he was the one who fucking ruled over Hell.***The doctor said Aria's condition was critical; he fucking knew that but his lioness hadn't opened her eyes in three days. He stared at her pale figure, silently questioning her. Why?But he knew why.Because
