by G. K. DeRosa
No words crossed my lips. The terror of being discovered was like a vice grip around my throat. Solaris’s uneven breaths burned between my shoulders.
My father continued to stare, his gaze bouncing between the trembling girl I was shielding and me. He blinked and shook his head as if attempting to dispel the thoughts speeding through his mind. “That’s impossible…”
And then reality and the truth came crashing down on him.
Oh gods. He knew.
“Tell me I’m wrong.” His voice was low, but there was no mistaking the dangerous edge clinging to every syllable. “Tell me she isn’t what I think she is.”
I swallowed hard, every ounce of moisture evaporating from my mouth. “Father, I…” What could I possibly say to make this situation any less bad than it was? “Let me explain.”
I’d been caught by the king of Draconis breaking the number one rule. Humans were strictly forbidden, and his son was keeping one under his own roof. What would he think if he knew I’d saved her life multiple times? Would he feel any different if he knew she’d saved mine?
“You’ve brought a human into our world, into our home.” His nostrils flared, and the silver sheen in his eyes reflected through the shadows. “There is nothing to explain. The punishment is death for you both.”
“Wait!” Solaris made the mistake of slipping from behind me. “He’s your son. You can’t kill him.”
I yanked her back to me, trying in vain to block her from my father’s view. She continued to peek from around me.
Just once, couldn’t she keep her mouth shut?
My father took a step forward, his entire presence engulfing the corridor. “I don’t intend to kill my son.” Icicles clung to his words. “You, on the other hand, I do.”
I couldn’t stop the growl from tearing out of my mouth, shaking the stone beneath us. “You won’t touch her.” A cold sweat slickened my skin. I’d just threatened the king.
An invisible noose was already hanging over both our heads.
He pulled up short, his head tilting as he surveyed me. He was looking at me as if I were a stranger. In this moment, I was. I’d never defied my father. I never so much as disagreed with him.
And now I was harboring a human and challenging him over her.
My father stepped closer, his eyes bouncing back and forth between me and the human clutching my arm. His head tilted up as he sniffed the air. “Oh my gods.” His cheeks drained of color. “You’re bound to each other.”
My pulse spiked, and I wanted to cower at the disgust in his tone. The king’s perfect son, his pride and joy, his flawless heir, had done the unthinkable. I hadn’t only brought a human into Draconis, but I’d bound myself to her and she was more than just a blood source.
Sensing my shame, Solaris began to back away. Panic lashed through my body at the sudden distance between us.
“Don’t.” My hand shot out and snatched her wrist, tugging her back to my side. I turned to my father again, meeting his gaze. “Yes, we’re bound.” Of course, the king would know about the old ways. “She’s my human.”
A growl vibrated in his chest. “And now she’s your doom.”
Solaris flinched and cold fear stained the bond. “You can’t let him kill you, Kaige. He’s the king, but he’s still your father.”
I wanted to shake her or at least tape her mouth closed.
“Follow me.” My father spun around and didn’t even wait for us. Why would he? No matter how much human blood I had flowing through my veins, there was no escape for us now.
Chapter 23
Kaige
My hand was fastened around Solaris’s, ready to yank her behind me and shield her at any moment. We watched my father pace in front of the fireplace in his study as he decided our fate.
No matter what, I wouldn’t let anyone hurt her.
“So this is where you’ve been disappearing to?” He motioned toward Solaris. “Off to visit your human?”
“Yes.” More or less. He didn’t need to know the specifics.
He shook his head. “How could my own son accidentally form a bond with a human?”
“Maybe if he would have known what could happen, he wouldn’t have given me his blood in the first place,” Solaris mumbled under her breath.
I squeezed her hand and mentally cursed. That mouth of hers was going to be the end of us both.
My father glanced over his shoulder, his dark, unrelenting eyes narrowing on her. “There isn’t supposed to be contact between our two races, so there was really no reason to explain.”
Solaris didn’t recoil at his harsh tone. Of course not. It wasn’t in her nature. I half expected her to argue back.
“They have the same no-contact rule in Imera, do they not?” he asked.
She nodded.
“Then I don’t understand why the two of you—who know about the prophecy—would so blatantly disregard it.” He motioned between us. “Do you think you know more than the seers?”
My brows dipped. “Of course not.”
A hundred years ago, the seers were those remaining nocturnes with true vampire blood still flowing through their veins. It connected them to our ancestors and their magic. When they spoke, nocturnes and humans listened.
Not one single soul questioned the words of the prophecy. No one else held their kind of power.
A pounding suddenly echoed on the door. “Father! I need to speak with you.” Xander’s frantic voice seeped through the heavy stone.
I’d told the king my brother had discovered us in an unused part of the castle. For Xander’s sake, I left out what happened a few days ago. I didn’t know why I felt the need to protect him when he would stop at nothing to hurt me.
My father marched over and unlatched the sturdy lock, opening the door.
Xander stormed in, his face free of blood. He halted when his gaze landed on us, the squeak of his shoes loud in the cavernous room. “You didn’t escape?”
“No.” The king secured the lock behind him. “I found them, and Kaige has told me everything.”
Xander’s shoulders stiffened. “Really?”
The edges of my lips twitched. “Yes, really.” I’d let him believe that for a few moments.
A shudder crawled over Solaris’s back at the sight of my brother, and she stepped closer to me. Waves of emotions zipped across the bond, puckering my skin. My hand brushed along her suddenly chilled arm, trying to comfort her. I hated that the person who hurt her had nearly the same face as mine. She must hate it too. How could she stand to look at me?
“Kaige told me you found them, and they escaped before you could bring them to me.” My father marched back toward the fireplace, resuming his spot in front of the flickering flames.
“Are you going to kill Kaige?” Xander asked, the tiniest hint of regret shadowing his navy eyes.
My father clasped his hands behind his wide back, staring at the fire as if it held all the answers. He’d been the king of Draconis for decades. He was forced to make difficult decisions every day, but I couldn’t imagine any of them were close to deciding whether or not to execute his own son.
Solaris’s green eyes were heavy on me. She stepped even closer, curling her hand in my shirt. “You can’t let him do this,” she gritted between her clenched teeth. “I won’t let you die for saving me.”
I brushed a lock of hair behind her ear, the strands as soft as silk and as beautiful as the finest gold. What was the point in pretending I didn’t care about her now? “No one’s dying,” I murmured, momentarily caught up in her intoxicating presence. Tiny veins in her neck pulsed erratically.
After a long, heavy pause, the king finally delivered his verdict. “No, I will not kill my son over this.”
A breath of relief exited Solaris.
“Of course not.” The edges of Xander’s lips began to tug into an ominous smile. “You’ll lock him up or at the very least not allow him to continue the trials. He isn’t fit to be king.”
My fa
ther slowly turned, his brow arching at my twin. “Kaige will continue the trials.”
Solaris pumped her fist in the air. “Yes!”
I shot her a droll look. “Keep your excitement down, little human.” We weren’t out of the dangerous woods yet.
Xander shook his head and blinked. “Wait. What?”
My father fully turned around, addressing us. “I will allow Kaige to finish the trials.”
“No.” Xander’s body trembled. “You can’t, not after this.” He jerked his hand toward us. “The prophecy. He’s in love with a human!”
My gaze flickered toward her. Was I actually in love with Solaris?
“It’s not that simple, Xander.” The king’s voice echoed through the room.
My twin’s nostrils flared. “At least lock the human up.” He strode toward my father’s desk and yanked a drawer open. The clanking of metal sounded as he pulled out a pair of chains. “I’m taking the human to the dungeons.” The dark glint in his eyes told me he only wanted to get Solaris alone to steal her blood. He may not crave it anymore, but he wanted something to give him an edge in the coming trials.
Panic flared through the bond from Solaris. Her eyes grew distant, her mind probably drumming up images of what Xander had done to her only a few days ago.
That wasn’t happening ever again.
A crimson haze descended over my vision, and I yanked her behind me. “You won’t lay a finger on her.” Growls curled up my throat as I locked eyes with Xander.
“You’ve put us all at risk,” he said, slowly making his way toward us. “I won’t have our world destroyed because you were stupid enough to fall in love with a human.”
A barking laugh slipped from my mouth. “Don’t pretend this is anything heroic. You want her blood. Too bad it’s mine.”
“Kaige, Xander is right. We need to separate you two before it’s too late.” My father’s voice was too close, and I spun around, finding him within touching distance.
“Back off!” This time, my voice was the one that boomed along the marble walls. “Both of you.” My feet shuffled backward.
“Kaige, just let them take me,” Solaris said. “If it’ll save you—”
“Stop trying to save me.” My eyes danced between the two enemies. “I’m supposed to protect you. You’re the weak little human.”
She scoffed. “Who are you calling weak?”
My father’s hands lifted, and he and Xander continued to close the distance between us. “Just stay calm, Kaige. We won’t hurt her. We only want to put her in a cell—”
“You will do no such thing, Razvan.”
The king spun around as my mother entered from a secret door in the wall. “What are you doing here? How did you know what was going on?”
Her lips thinned as she met us in the center of the room. “I’m a mother. I have my ways.” Her gaze shifted to Solaris.
My little human took a step back. Now she wanted to hide?
“Don’t be afraid.” My mother’s expression softened for a moment. “No one’s going to hurt you.” Her eyes narrowed on the king and then on Xander. “Not while I’m here.”
“Dacia, we don’t have a choice,” my father said. “She’s a threat. The prophecy—”
My mother cut him off with a hard stare that put his to shame. No one got in her way when she was protecting her children even if they were breaking the law. “I don’t care about the prophecy. I care about my family.”
Xander’s nostrils flared as he lowered the chains. He knew better than to argue with her.
My mother crossed her arms against her chest and coolly regarded the king. “Unless you want to incite the anger of the human government, you’re going to have to let her go.”
His brows dipped. “What are you talking about?”
Solaris and I traded weary glances. We both saw where my mother was headed.
“This isn’t just any human.” She reached out and gently patted Solaris’s hand as it rested in mine. “This is Malcolm Levant’s daughter, a high-ranking Equality Agent in The Collective.” The edges of her lips twitched, fighting a satisfied smile. “I don’t think killing her is the answer. For all we know, her death could incite a war from which both sides may never recover, thus fulfilling the prophecy.”
I swallowed hard and ignored the waves of panic running through the bond. The only war Turstan would launch was one to kill Solaris himself. She may be the daughter of Malcolm Levant, but by now, she was enemy number one in Imera.
Chapter 24
Solaris
Who knew being Malcolm Levant’s daughter would get me out of trouble in Draconis? I exhaled slowly, trying to slow my erratic heartbeats. Between the swell of emotions running through the bond and my own rising panic, I felt like I was on the verge of a heart attack.
“How did you recognize her, Mother?” Kaige’s frantic voice lowered a notch.
“You think your father is the only one who keeps abreast of news from Imera?” She arched her brow with a smirk. “I didn’t become queen solely on my charms.” Her gaze turned to me. “All of Imera has been in quite a turmoil since the disappearance of Malcolm Levant and his teenage daughter.”
All the air was sucked out of my lungs. I felt like a skydiver without a parachute. “My father’s missing?” My voice was small and weak, and I hated sounding that way in front of the king and queen.
“Oh gods, Kaige, don’t tell me you have him hidden within the castle walls too?” The king’s chest puffed out as his thundering voice echoed through the cavernous study.
“No, of course not.” Kaige turned to me, his eyes full of so much pity, I thought I’d break down right in front of everyone.
“Turstan has him,” I whispered, the words clogging my throat.
“We’ll get him back, I promise.” He squeezed me tighter into the crook of his shoulder.
“What are you two muttering about, anyway?” Xander crossed the room, getting way too close for my comfort.
I cringed, and Kaige must’ve noticed.
“Stay back, Xander. So help me if you come one step closer,” he growled.
“Enough,” shouted the king. “I will not have you two fighting over the blood of some human.”
If he only knew human blood was what started all of this. I stared at the king now that his focus was on his sons. Was he the one behind the blood trafficking? I bit my tongue to keep from blurting the question out loud.
“Then tell Xander to back the hell off.” Kaige’s sharp tone drew me from my dark musings.
“Kaige, do not speak to your father that way.” The queen passed her hand over her son’s shoulder, and his body relaxed ever so slightly. “Solaris will not be harmed while she is under this roof.” She turned her fierce gaze to her husband. “Once the trials are over, she will be brought back to Imera where she belongs, and we will forget all of this ugliness. I will not have the royal family’s transgressions aired out in public, prophecy or not.”
“What do you suggest we do with her, Dacia?” Anger burned Razvan’s cheeks a deep crimson, but he managed a calm and composed tone with his wife.
Kaige cut in. “She can stay in the old human quarters where I’ve been keeping her. No one else will have to know she’s here, and I’ll keep her safe.”
“You’ll do no such thing,” his father roared. “The more time you spend together, the stronger the bond will be and the more you tempt the prophecy. Do not mistake my leniency for acceptance.”
I guessed now was not the time to mention we’d made the bond permanent. Kaige’s smoky eyes flickered toward mine as if he’d heard my thoughts. He didn’t have to worry; I wasn’t going to bring it up. Although by now it was probably pretty obvious to everyone in the room.
“Then how can you assure me she’ll be safe alone down there?” Sometimes Kaige’s protectiveness was a bit much, but right now I’d take it.
“Garridan can stand guard.” The king fixed his dark eyes on Kaige, and a chill ran up my spine.
“He doesn’t—”
“Spare me the lies, Kaige.” He threw his hand up immediately silencing his son. “He must be the one that told you about the secret living quarters. I can’t think of anyone else in this castle who would have known of their existence.”
Kaige pressed his lips together and huffed. “I compelled him to keep my secret. None of this is his fault.”
“Enough, Kaige. I know that old fool well enough by now. He’d do anything to protect you.” He shook his head and leaned against the massive fireplace.
“So that’s it?” I’d almost forgotten Xander was in the room until his sharp voice sent a wave of goose bumps over my skin. “Kaige brings a human into Draconis, and he just gets a slap on the wrist? And the human gets to enjoy an all-expenses paid vacation at the royal castle?”
Razvan’s gaze darkened, his electric blue eyes narrowing in on his son. “Do not question me, boy. Now get out of my sight, both of you. Don’t you have a trial to prepare for?”
His booming voice reverberated off the stone walls and sent my heart crashing against my ribcage. He didn’t have to ask me twice. I was more than happy to get out of there.
The queen took hold of my arm and ushered us out of the study. Kaige refused to release my other arm so I felt like a human-nocturne sandwich as we walked down the dark corridor. Xander passed us in the hall, muttering to himself. He spun around and opened his mouth as if to speak, but then clamped it shut at the last moment. I was sure the reason was the imposing woman standing next to me. He frowned and stomped off in the opposite direction.
“Please excuse Xander. He’s generally not so rude.” Dacia patted my hand, and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.
I don’t know why Kaige hadn’t ratted out Xander for biting me. I would have in a heartbeat. Maybe he was keeping his secret to hold over his head for later. At least that’s what I hoped.
I swallowed down the dryness in my throat and peered up at the elegant queen. “You said you heard my father and I were both missing?”