"Love," Lionel scoffed, his upper lip peeling back. "What a weak concept."
"Isn't love supposed to conquer all?" Darius asked casually, not seemed to care at all that he was baiting the monster.
The last of the guests filed out and Vard closed the double doors before leaning back against them and watching us with a hungry expression on his face that could only spell trouble.
"Let's put that to the test then, shall we?" Lionel asked, flicking his wrist so that a spear of shadows bolted from his hand and struck Darius in the chest, knocking him backwards out of his chair and crashing to the floor.
I leapt to my feet with a gasp of alarm but managed to stop myself from moving any further than that as I felt Lionel's eyes fix on me.
"What is it, Roxanya?" he asked in a soft tone which urged me to look his way.
But I knew my fear for Darius would be written all too plainly across my face and my heart thundered as I kept my eyes on him instead, watching as he writhed on the floor beneath the torture the shadows were inflicting on him.
"I asked you a question, girl," Lionel snarled and I reached for the shadows as a jolt of fear spilled through my body. I dove into them head first and let them consume me before I turned to look at him with darkness spilling across my vision.
My lips curled up into a cruel grin as he watched me and I moved a step closer to him, trying to think of the answer he wanted while shivering from the kiss of darkness inside me.
"I was just watching his pain," I said, a touch of amusement colouring my words even while they burned my tongue with bile.
Lionel considered me for several more seconds, reaching out to clasp my chin between his thumb and forefinger and I looked straight back into his eyes as he assessed me.
"Don't ever hesitate when I ask something of you again," he growled.
"No, my King," I agreed.
His gaze narrowed on me then he broke a smile which made my heart lighten because of the damn bond, but also made me relax as his attention moved off of me.
"Get up," Lionel snapped at Darius as he withdrew the shadows from his body and his son rolled over onto all fours, panting to regain his breath.
I was desperate to run to him, hating Lionel, Clara, Stella and Vard with a fury that was unrivalled by any other feeling I'd ever succumbed to. One of these days I would go full Phoenix on their asses and burn them all to soot. But until then, I hated myself with almost as much ferocity for having to stand by and watch them hurt so many people.
Darius gripped the edge of the table as he hauled himself to his feet, his teeth bared at his father and smoke spilling between his lips.
"You're a fucking coward," Darius snarled. "You hide behind the shadows and the girl you bonded to yourself against her will and you refuse to fight me like Fae. Everyone here knows it's because I would beat you. And you're so fucking terrified of that day coming that you just keep finding more barriers to place between us. But one day, I'll break through and prove your fears correct."
Lionel snarled right back, the pungent scent of his smoke slipping from him as he stepped up close behind me and placed both hands on my shoulders, his grip bruising as he clasped me tightly.
"I think it's time you go to bed, boy," Lionel purred and I frowned as he failed to do a single thing to reprimand Darius for speaking out. "You're clearly drunk and the rest of us are tired."
Darius looked like he wanted to argue against that but I shot him a pleading look, begging him not to. I couldn't bear to stand by and watch Lionel torture him and I was guessing he understood what I was asking because he muttered some choice curses and stalked away from us.
“Escort my son back to his room, Stella,” Lionel commanded. “He’s clearly drunk and needs some time to sleep it off.”
“Yes, my King,” she cooed, smiling sweetly before trotting after Darius towards the door.
Vard stepped aside so that Darius and Stella could leave the room and Lionel turned me to look at him as the door closed once more, smiling like a doting parent as he ran a finger down the side of my cheek.
"Such a clever little thing, aren't you, Roxanya?" he asked softly, stroking me again and I hated how much I liked him praising me like that and how I enjoyed the heat of his hand on my skin.
"She's not as clever as me," Clara muttered, but Lionel ignored her, smiling at me before taking my hand and leading me towards the door.
I walked at his side as we approached Vard and he smirked at me with his blood red shadow eye seeming to flare with darkness for a moment, making my stomach knot with tension.
"I'm still the favourite aren't I, Daddy?" Clara whined as she hurried after us and I huffed irritably, letting the stupid bond guide my reactions as Lionel led me through the palace towards his chambers.
"Do you still wish to be the favourite, Roxanya?" he asked in a low voice, leaning close to murmur in my ear, his hot breath washing over my nose and making my stomach roil.
"Yes," I forced myself to say, even the draw of the bond not making it any easier to utter that word.
"Then perhaps you're in luck."
I almost tore my hand from his grasp at that suggestion, managing to stop myself from doing it but still flinching enough to make him cock his head at me as he noticed.
I drew on the shadows as I fought not to react, hoping he would dismiss the involuntary motion as nothing more than a muscle spasm.
We started up the spiralling staircase to his chambers and my heart pounded harder with every step we took towards the top of the tower. I listened to Clara's shrieks of protest over him giving me more attention than her with a desperate hope that they'd be enough to make him give in to her.
"It is time, Your Highness," Vard announced as we reached his chambers and I looked around at him in confusion as Lionel tugged me into the massive room at the top of the King's Tower.
Though I probably should have been relieved to have the creep follow us inside. Lionel wasn't into voyeurism as far as I was aware, so I doubted he was planning to fuck anyone with Vard in the room.
"Daddyyyy," Clara whined loudly as Lionel moved me to stand in the centre of the room before stepping back to look at me with a critical eye.
"Clara, if you do not stay silent and learn your place then I will be forced to punish you," Lionel growled. "And not in the way you enjoy."
Clara looked about ready to pitch a fit and my eyes tracked her movements as she turned and ran to the bed, flinging herself down on it dramatically as she sobbed.
"Remove your dress, Roxanya," Lionel growled, his gaze fixed firmly on me as he ignored Clara altogether.
"What?" I balked, my gaze slipping to Vard as he took up position by the door once again, a cruel smirk twisting his features.
"Your dress. Don't you wish to please me?" Lionel challenged and I had to fight not to let my mouth fall open as I just stared at him blankly for way too long and smoke plumed between his teeth. "Is there some reason that I should know of for why you suddenly seem reluctant to show me your love?" he pressed and I quickly shook my head.
I reached for the straps on my golden dress and hurriedly tugged them down my shoulders without answering. Underwear I could cope with, but if he tried to lay a fucking hand on me then I was going to go full Phoenix, burn his cock off then run for the freaking hills. Cover be damned - I wasn't going to fuck this motherfucking asshole no matter what happened.
I dropped my dress and it slid from my body, leaving me standing in my stilettos and black underwear as Vard chuckled like some gross old lech in the corner of the room.
"Good girl," Lionel purred. "Now come here."
I hesitated a beat before walking towards him, Phoenix fire lighting a path through my veins and promising me safety even as fear lit me up from the inside out.
The shadows slid over my skin as I fought to keep my mask in place externally and I stilled in front of Lionel as I waited to see where this was going.
He reached out casually, pushing his fingers into my hair a
nd shoving the pins free that had been styling it as he roughly combed them through it like he was hunting for something.
I stayed still, focusing on the fact that I'd never seen him do anything like this to Clara before fucking her and trying to calm my thrashing heart.
"What is it?" I breathed as he pulled his hands back, his gaze sliding over my thin underwear critically.
"Turn around," he commanded coldly and I forced myself to swallow my complaints as I turned my back on him.
My hands curled into fists which ached to burst into flame as I stood staring through the window at the star filled sky beyond while I waited to find out what this was about.
A sharp prick stung my thigh and I gasped in alarm as the fire in my body shrank away like someone had blown it out and my Phoenix fell away from me into the dark.
“I had to be certain you didn’t have the antidote on you before I gave you a fresh dose of suppressant,” he supplied, tossing the needle aside as I realised too late that I was in serious trouble.
Lionel's hand caught my throat as I tried to lurch away, his grip tightening as he yanked me back against his chest and I cried out in panic.
I tried to call on my magic to fight him off, but I was overwhelmed with horror at the idea of hurting him as the Guardian bond on my arm burned in outrage at the suggestion.
"So, so clever," he sneered in my ear, his hand squeezing my throat until I couldn't draw breath at all and even then I couldn't force my body to fight back against him.
Someone grabbed my hand and I wheeled my gaze to my left, spotting Vard there and managing to blast him with fire magic before he could snap the cuff he was holding around my wrist.
Lionel snarled angrily at my back, squeezing my throat so tightly that spots began to swim over my vision and my high heels scrambled uselessly against the wooden floor. I brought my hand up to clasp his arm where he held me, but I couldn't even force myself to try and tear his hand off of me as the bond forced me to let him do this.
The stars beyond the window seemed to mock me as the darkness drew in even closer and I felt the magic restricting cuffs snap closed around my wrists just as I was certain I was going to black out.
But before I could escape into oblivion, Lionel threw me away from him with the full strength of his Dragon.
My forehead slammed into the corner of the nightstand on my way down and the pain of it almost blinded me as I crashed to the floor, gasping for breath with blood streaming down my face.
Clara cried out in victory, jumping from the bed before kicking me in the side with her bare foot and sending more pain splintering through my body.
She kicked me twice more before I managed to catch my breath enough to try and fight back.
I caught her ankle as she aimed another kick my way, yanking hard and unbalancing her so that she fell to the floor with a shriek of rage.
She dove at me and I punched her in her stupid shadow twat face with a snarl of fury for everything that her and the men in this room had done to me. Something cracked beneath the force of my blow and she screamed in pain before driving the shadows into me like a thousand knives peeling my flesh from my bones all at once, blinding me in agony.
My back slammed hard against something as I screamed and when she finally withdrew the shadows from my flesh, I found myself strapped to the chair from my nightmares, bloody and panting and filled with a fear so pure it was paralysing.
"My foolish son has been worming his way back into your heart, hasn't he?" Lionel sneered as he stood over me and I lifted my chin before spitting right in his face. It was over now anyway. He knew. So fuck him and fuck this bullshit half life I’d been living beneath him.
Lionel flinched as blood and saliva ran down his face then growled at me as he grasped my throat again in an iron clad grip. He reached down to score a line of fire across my thigh with a single finger, burning through the concealment spell I'd placed on my skin to hide my tattoo.
"How sweet," he purred as he read the words marking me as Darius’s before wrapping his hand over the ink and drawing Dragon fire to his palm.
I couldn't help but scream as the ink was destroyed alongside the flesh on my thigh and the sickening scent of burning skin filled the air. When he finally withdrew his hand, I almost passed out from the pain of it.
Vard drew close behind him as Clara's laughter filled the air and my gaze caught on the ruby necklace she was wearing. The one that Darius had given me which she twisted between her fingers to taunt me with.
Tremors racked my body as I tried to remember everything Max had taught me about evading Cyclops invasion. But with so much pain in my flesh it was almost impossible to force my thoughts to align enough to prepare for it.
Vard licked his lips as his mismatched eyes slid together and Lionel grasped my chin as he forced me to turn and look at his Seer.
I gritted my teeth and forced my mind to lock all of the secrets I was keeping away in the dark. He wasn’t going to find them. I’d die before I gave my sister up, my brother, my friends. I would keep everything we’d been doing to fight back against this monster secret and conceal the location of the Imperial Star no matter what. He wasn’t going to break me. But he was definitely going to try.
The last thing I heard before I fell into the chasm of Vard's power was Lionel's voice thick and heavy in my ear. "I think it's time you were reminded of who you truly love, Roxanya."
I sat eating my breakfast at the huge dining table beside Xavier, waiting for Roxy to arrive while my gut knotted with tension over how late they all were to appear.
I wasn't sure how much longer I was going to be able to go on with this ruse. I hated it. Fucking loathed it. And we still hadn't made a single bit of progress towards finding anything that would free her from the bond my father had placed upon her.
The last time I'd spoken to Orion about it he'd suggested we figure out a way to trap her and Clara somewhere, leaving my father vulnerable and them unable to run to his aid so that I could finally force him to face me like a true Fae. And I had to agree.
The only problem with doing that would be in actually tricking the two of them and managing to hold them for long enough to enact it. We wouldn't even be able to tell Roxy our plan or the bond would force her to thwart it and the idea of locking her up somewhere without her even knowing why made me feel all kinds of uncomfortable. But I knew she'd understand after it was done.
Clara was the main issue. She never left Father's side and seemed to have no desires beyond pleasing him, so trapping her was going to be damn near impossible to orchestrate without him realising what was going on. And while he could still call on the Nymphs to protect him too, we really needed to make sure he was alone somewhere and unable to call on them in time to save himself.
There wouldn't be any mistakes this time. We couldn't afford for it to go wrong again.
I’d been calling Orion repeatedly while sitting here too, wanting to hear more about how everything had gone with Diego’s hat, but his Atlas was just going straight to voicemail. And thanks to the fact that I’d snagged a bottle of rum and taken it back to my room to drink myself into oblivion after the party last night, I’d woken up too late to head over to the summerhouse in person.
Father had made it clear he expected us here for Christmas breakfast at eight, but it was almost nine now and he still hadn’t arrived.
The door finally opened as Jenkins pushed it wide for my father with a simpering bow and the man who had sired me strode into the room. But instead of Roxy walking in by his side like she did every morning that she stayed here in the palace, he came alone. Even Clara was absent, and the strangeness of that fact put me on edge immediately.
"Oh no, boys, don't stand on account of your father," he said disdainfully as neither I nor Xavier made the slightest attempt to move from our positions sitting over our plates of food. "I'm just the man who gifted you life, who brought you into this world, who raised you to be strong and fearless and take what is yours like a
true Fae. I'm only the one who gave you the shadows and elevated you above all others. Just the man who has assured that you will be king in my place one day, Darius."
"Where's Roxy?" I asked, ignoring his bullshit rant. I hadn't asked for a single one of those things from him and he knew it.
Xavier straightened beside me and put a hand on my shoulder in warning, but I didn't care if I was punished for my insolence. I needed to see my girl.
Father clucked his tongue and sighed heavily as he moved to take a seat directly opposite me.
"Merry Christmas, Darius," he said with a cruel smile. "Wouldn't you like to know what your gift is?"
A growl built in my throat as I met his gaze, the Dragon in me shifting uncomfortably like it had already figured out what he was talking about even while I stayed rooted in my position, having no idea.
"I don't want anything from you," I replied but his smile only grew as he slowly took his Atlas from his pocket and placed it on the table before sliding it towards me.
"Last night was very interesting for me," he said casually, brushing some invisible speck of dirt from his cuff before levelling me with that hungry look again. "So many lies brought to light. It got me thinking about the things I need to do to secure my hold on the throne."
"Like what?" Xavier breathed and Father shot him a disgusted look like he'd only just realised his second son was here at all.
"Do not speak unless you are spoken to, horse," he snarled before his gaze flicked back to me.
"Don't talk to him like that," I growled, my eyes flickering to reptilian slits and back as the beast in me hungered for his blood.
"It's fine," Xavier insisted, gripping my arm like he thought I might lunge across the table at the scum sitting before me, but I hadn't entirely lost control yet.
"You would do well to remember that I am not above filicide. The unsightly specimen beside you is not and never will be an Heir of mine. He may have my blood running thick and fast in his veins, but his worth has been lost with this twisted curse sent from the stars. No Heir of mine will pass on equine DNA. You are just lucky that you are my son, Xavier, because believe me, when I had it checked, I was hoping to find out you weren't. And then I would have drowned you like the runt you clearly are."
Zodiac Academy: Fated Throne Page 69