by Nelson, JD
I avoided the inevitable in the bathroom as long as I felt able to, and then walked out to find Kristian feeling both revolted and turned on.
I quickly realized after leaving the bedroom that I was right about this not being the castle. My surroundings were beyond extravagant. The doors lining the hallway were open, and I could see that every room that I passed contained large marble fireplaces, sumptuous fabrics around the windows, and glittering chandeliers above the beds. The house was surreal. Actually, the whole situation felt surreal, as if I was dreaming all of it.
I continued to walk until I heard the sound of voices. Assuming the speakers could lead me in the right direction, I hurried toward them. I needed a map just to find my way around this cavernous place. The voices seemed to take on a more urgent, angry tone, and I picked up my pace, hoping to overhear.
“You have thirty seconds to produce my mate or I will kill you.” An angry voice said. It was Soren’s voice. I crept to the doorway and looked inside. He stood there tall, with his straight white hair trailing down his back, aiming a cruel smile at Kristian, which I couldn’t help but think sexy.
Kristian laughed and turned to look at me in the doorway. “Here she is, safe and sound. Soren believes that I have coerced you into sex. Have I done that, Emelie?”
An answer burst out of my mouth that was not my own. “No, it was I. He’s my husband, I want it.” I hated that there was a kernel of truth in those words.
Soren dismissed my response. “I’m taking her with me.”
Kristian threw his hands up. “Very well, I grow tired of this argument.” He turned to me. “I will let you leave with him to prove my innocence, but I’d like to remind you before you leave that though Soren is much too cavalier to give you what you need, I am not. I know your deepest desires and will not hesitate to fulfill them when you return to me.”
He stalked toward me predatorily and I noticed his violet irises had been replaced with black. He was terrifyingly beautiful.
Stroking his fingers down my face, he said, “She was quite the tart for me before you arrived, Soren. Weren’t you, my wife?”
“Yes.” I said, through gritted teeth. He was speaking for me again.
“Did you know I could make you come where you stand, Emelie? Tell me you don’t want it. Tell me you don’t want me.”
I shook my head sharply and moved to Soren’s side, but he knew I was lying. I wanted whatever he wanted, and as intense pulses ran right to my core, I cried out a humiliating moan of pleasure, fell to my knees, and hoped he would never stop.
Turning to Soren, he boasted. “I almost took her for myself, you know. I was already so close to being inside her; all it would have taken was one push of my cock to take her maidenhood. She was scandalously ready, begging even, weren’t you Emelie?”
“Yes, my husband. I cannot deny that I long for you to take me.” I looked down at the carpet, mortified beyond belief that he’d made me say that, but more turned on than I’d ever been in my life.
“Leave her alone.” Soren growled. “This is your last warning.”
“Oh, don’t get so put out, Soren. I was only having a little fun at your expense. Indulge me in my old age.”
He walked to the doorway and looked back at me, pursing his lips. “I’m taking my leave now, Emelie. You’ve only had a taste of what I can give you. Come back to me when Soren refuses to satisfy you and I’ll finish what we started here tonight. And Emelie? He will refuse you. He’s obsessed with doing the right thing.”
The farther Kristian walked away, the more acute my desire became. When I felt Kristian’s signature leave completely, I broke down and crawled to Soren, trying to unbuckle his belt.
“Emelie, please stop, we have to go.” He pulled me to my feet and I shed the ripped robe. “Soren, I need you.”
“Emelie, any other time I would fuck you senseless, but right now, we have to go.” He dragged his dagger across his neck. “Drink.”
I instantly obeyed and fell into unconsciousness.
The first thing that registered in my brain was that I loved the feel of fur on top of my freezing, nearly bare skin. I didn’t have to open my eyes to know that it was Nils’s warmth that I was snuggled under. I groaned in satisfaction.
“You keep that up and I’m going to think that you want to take this relationship to the next level.”
A flash of heat ran through me; he’d do as well as Soren or Kristian would. I smiled up at him. “Why not?”
“Are you serious?”
“As a heart attack.”
His face was one of bewilderment. “What does that mean?”
I reached down to stroke his hardening length. “It means that I want you.”
His puzzled expression instantly changed to one of hunger. “Are you sure?”
“Do I need to continue my demonstration?”
He hesitated only a second longer before savagely taking my mouth. His kiss was wild, intense, and almost an attack. I matched his furiosity with my own uninhibited desire, crying out and digging my nails in his ass when he thrust against me. That brought his intensity to a whole other level. He bit into my lip; bringing the taste of blood to our mouths and making our fangs emerge. I broke the kiss and sank my teeth into his shoulder quickly replacing what Kristian had drunk from me. He retaliated by ripping the crotch from my panties. I gasped, breaking the suction. He used the opportunity to take my mouth again before tensing up and starting to growl.
“Am I interrupting something?”
I followed the sound of the voice and found Soren fuming in the doorway.
“Leave now.” Nils thundered, his eyes going wolf yellow.
Soren smirked. “Forgive me. I thought this was the living room, not your bedroom.”
Nils stood up, gloriously naked and ready to fight. “Are you going to fucking leave?”
Soren met his challenge, positively dripping with murderous intent as he stepped forward. “No, I’m not going to fucking leave. She is my true-mate, idiot.”
They were so boring, typical males with their posturing. I stood to leave, letting what was left of my robe fall to the carpet and said, “I’ll be in my room.” I bent to retrieve the scraps and purposely flashed them while I did it, positive that their eyes were on my every move as I sashayed past them and up the stairs.
There was an immediate knock on my door after I closed it. Maybe Nils came to finish what we’d started. I hoped so. I was so ready to release the pent up urges I’d been feeling since I’d left Kristian.
To my disappointment, it was Soren’s energy humming through the wood. Nifty trick though. This new talent was just one of the many things I could do now. I knew things, secret thoughts, hopes, dreams, and even the future. With the amount of magic I had now, I could manipulate anyone however I wanted. Right now, I wanted the hell out of here.
“Save your breath, Soren.” I called.
“Emelie, you’re not in your right mind. You must know that.”
I scoffed at his audacity and opened the door. “You know, I’d say I’m exactly in my right mind. In fact, my mind has never been so clear. Leave Soren, I need to take a shower before I go.”
“And where are you going to go, back to Kristian’s shell at the doppelgänger’s lair? It has possessed him, Emelie. He is no longer your mate, just as you are no longer entirely his.”
“I am myself and he is my king. The doppelgänger has nothing to do with this. I have to leave here, Soren. The kingdom will wonder where I am.” I didn’t bother to tell him that Kristian’s call to come to him was unrelenting. Every second, he summoned me.
“Kristian has already been reported as kidnapped, and they already know you have been put into hiding. Jakob has taken care of everything in your absence.”
“You can’t keep me here against my will. I have to leave.”
“I can and will, if I have to. Now, take your shower and come down for dinner; Hilda has made your favorite.”
“I told you I can
’t.” I turned toward the shower leaving him, mouth agape.
“Emelie,” he bellowed. “You will obey me.”
That pissed me off. “Look, I’ve had just about enough of you telling me what to do. Fuck. Off.”
Livid, really seemed like too tame a word to describe his face. “Fuck off? No, fuck you, Emelie. I’m trying to help you. You’re going to do what I tell you or I will make you do it.”
There was only a twinge of guilt as I summoned the power through me and let loose an enchantment that would change his Fate and take him away from me. It was too easy.
Immediately after, I worried if I’d done the right thing. Soren had always had my best interest at heart hadn’t he? Did I just ruin everything between us? Why was I even worried? I didn’t care one bit about his good intentions thirty seconds ago.
“Do you really think that you can enchant me?” Soren said in a scathing voice from behind me.
I faced him. He was furious, electricity danced along a whirlwind of his magic that whipped around him like a hurricane. His eyes held a contempt that I’d never seen before. I started backing away and for the first time since we’d met, he frightened me.
“I am the son of Odin,” he continued. “Your magic could never compare to mine. You will get dressed and join us for dinner or I will dress you and drag you there myself.”
“Just try it,” I mumbled under my breath.
Instantly, I was frozen. “Damn it, Soren. Let me go.”
“You brought this on yourself.” He said with an evil smile.
“Fine, you’ve stopped me from leaving. How will you dress me?”
“Very simply.” He snapped his fingers and I was dressed in a sweater, jeans, and a pair of boots.
“Cute,” I groused. “I know you’re right, by the way.”
He gave me a disbelieving look. “What was that?”
“I said you’re right. It would be mad to go back to Kristian now.” I touched the still tender spots on my neck. “He did try to drain me.”
He walked to me and looked me in the eyes. “Is this a trick?”
“No tricks, I promise. You’ll have to help me though. It’s incredibly hard to stay away from him. He calls to me incessantly.”
He sighed and let go of the magic holding me in place.
“Thanks,” I said sarcastically, as I stumbled forward. I regained my balance and started for the door, but he called me back.
“You do understand that I’m only trying to help don’t you?”
“Of course I do. I know you love me.”
“I love you more than anything I’ve ever known, but it’s more than even that, Emelie. I have to keep you safe, not just for me, it’s for everyone. Even if in doing that it means I will have to be your jailer for a lifetime of imprisonment. You are a very powerful weapon in the doppelgänger’s hands. We cannot ever let him control you completely.”
“You would imprison me?”
“If it were necessary, I would do anything to keep you protected.”
I didn’t know whether to be flattered or terrified of his statement. “So…Chicken Parmesan then?”
His smile was so genuine. I’d forgotten what he was like when he let his guard down. “With extra mozzarella.
“Hilda, this looks delicious.” I took a big bite as soon as she set the plate down. I was starving. It seemed like weeks since I’d last eaten and it turned out that Hilda could make a mean Chicken Parmesan dinner.
The guys were unusually quiet as they woofed down their own huge portions. I knew why—me. I’d caused every single problem since Soren had brought me into their lives.
“Em,” Nils said firmly. “It’s not your fault.”
I frowned. I thought I’d gotten the blocking thing under control—guess not. “Sorry, I didn’t realize I was broadcasting my problems.”
“You weren’t. I can read the guilt on your face like a book.”
“Sorry.”
“Yeah, well, fuck sorry. This is the doppelgänger’s doing. Blame him for this shit, not yourself. Repeat after me: This is the doppelgänger’s fault, not mine.”
I decided to humor him. “This is the doppelgänger’s fault, not mine.”
Viggo chuckled sarcastically. “Good job, Emelie. Hey Nils, repeat after me, I will stop trying to bang anything that moves.”
Nils cranked up a middle finger in his direction. “Unlike some of the other females at the table, I busted out of the chastity belt about five thousand years ago.”
I rolled my eyes, which felt way too normal. “Busted, nice word choice.”
He preened under my attention. “You know me, Em. I’m a real wordsmith.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “Especially with the ladies.”
Soren reached for my hand under the table. There was no doubt that he felt Nils was encroaching on his Fated mate. Judging by all the sexed up glances I’d been getting from Nils tonight, he was right.
Soren’s hand felt warm against my palm. I tried to ignore the urge at first, but eventually caved and looked into his eyes. He was so beautiful—so incredibly sexy. I wanted him…now. “Soren, I need some air. Can you walk me outside?”
—Chapter Ten—
The panic I’d felt subsided as Soren and I strolled around the grounds. He was close but keeping quiet about his thoughts and had seemed even more pensive than usual throughout dinner. “Are you alright?” I ventured.
“No, I am not. My true-mate is bound to a king possessed by Freyr’s doppelgänger and is possessed by him herself. I am the very opposite of alright.”
I wanted to comfort him, but knew there was nothing that I could do. I was a stranger to him the way I was now. Instead, I lifted a hand and had the vines hanging before us braid themselves into a seat for two. “Sit with me, Soren.”
He obliged and I made sure to keep my distance in the seat. Touching him made the urges intolerable. After the embarrassment of finding that out at dinner, I was just glad that I’d finally gained the clarity to stop myself from sexually harassing him.
“How can we win against him, Emelie?” He asked, interrupting my thoughts.
“I don’t know, I…” Without warning, I had a vision of Katrine. She was crying in a glowing, opaque force field of sorts. When the vision dried up and Soren appeared in front of me, I said, “I think we need to rescue Katrine.”
“Emelie, your eyes, what have you seen?”
“The doppelgänger has Katrine imprisoned in the same castle we were at before. It’s the same room. I know she can help us, I just haven’t figured out how yet.”
“Are you sure? She is a traitor.”
“I don’t think so.” I took his hand and was surprised to find that that the urges that were unbearable earlier were now gone. “Soren, the doppelgänger is gone. I can’t feel him anymore.”
He jerked his gaze to me, frantic. “Do you think he knows about the magic you are using to see Katrine? Do you think he’s using you as a spy?”
I shook my head emphatically. “No, I think my magic is pushing his hold away from me. My mind clears a little more every time I use it.”
He didn’t look convinced. How could I make him believe me? “Kiss me.”
His reaction was the one I expected. With a disconsolate, but hardened look, he said, “You are still unwell, little one.”
“Soren, I am well. I mean to prove it by showing restraint. I can’t think of a better way to make you believe me.”
His frown clearly showed he distrusted me, but he leaned into me and lightly kissed my lips. I kissed him back, showing no forcefulness, only innocence.
“See?”
“I do.” He growled, before kissing me much more thoroughly, then laying his head on my shoulder.
“I missed you.” I said into his beautiful hair.
“Every day without you has been agony for me, not being able to keep you safe has been the hardest part. Kristian is weak. I knew he wouldn’t be able to keep you safe.”
I could feel my eyes tur
ning silver. “Kristian isn’t just a normal elf. He has a power for influence.”
His eyes widened. “What?”
I didn’t want to believe that Kristian was involved in the doppelgänger’s plot, but he was. It might as well be circled in magic marker for as obvious as my magic made it now. I saw it all.
His talent for influence was what got him in league with the doppelgänger over a hundred years ago. He was desperate to become king, not being able to stomach the idea of a light elf on his father’s throne. My mother was hired much later on to align Viveka’s Fate with Jakob’s instead of my father’s and everything was wrapped up in a neat little bow. However, in a turn that surprised Kristian, my mother made a plea to save my father from death by agreeing to give him her firstborn daughter. He would still be able to marry a light elf to stop the war that he started and it would make him a hero. Kristian had lined up the perfect scenario for himself.
There was only one problem. What did the doppelgänger have to gain for his part? Did Kristian honestly think he would orchestrate all this for him with no payment? No, what he wanted a puppet, and he found one.
“Emelie, what have you seen?”
I quickly told Soren everything.
“I am not surprised by this. I’ve told you my opinion of Kristian before.”
“How much of this do you think is the doppelgänger’s doing? I’m definitely seeing that Kristian is an opportunist, but I feel like he is only a pawn in the doppelgänger’s master plan.
“He wouldn’t still be involved with Kristian if he wasn’t still awaiting his own prize. I wish you could see what that might be.”
“I do; it’s me. He wants to kill me to hurt you.” I left the, ‘after he tortures me’ part unsaid. “You’ve done something to him in the past that he believes deserves retribution. That, I can’t see.” I wondered if Soren would tell me what happened.
He was alarmed, but tried to play it cool. “I want you to use your magic as much as you can until we capture him.”