I ponder the question, mulling it over in my mind.
Can I really bring myself so low? Am I so desperate that I’m willing to beg him to take me? I don’t want to, god knows I don’t want to, but I can’t hold out any more. I need it.
My succubus stirs when she senses that I’m giving in to the vampire. “I’m going to take the gag out of your mouth now, whore, and then I need to hear you beg. Beg me to come and I will grant your request.”
Soul-crushing shame bears down on me for my weakness as he removes the ball from my sore jaws. Blood and saliva that had pooled in my mouth leaks down my chest now that the dam holding it back has been removed, just further adding to my shame.
“So sexy,” he says while smearing the mixture all over my tits. “Well, female. I’m waiting. Beg me.” With my legs still spread wide, he begins to circle my clit again, keeping me right on the edge of a huge orgasm. I try to wiggle into his finger, putting it where I need it, but the grip on my legs is too strong.
“Beg me! Scream for me to take you!” he shouts at me before composing himself. “I need to hear you abase yourself. You need this. All you have to do is ask me for it.” His voice is just above a whisper as he plays with my clit, encouraging me to demean myself.
The disparity of the situation is not lost on me. I don’t want to submit to him, but the promise of getting my release is too fucking enticing. My succubus scratches beneath the surface of my skin, imploring for me to make her feel good.
Resigned, I take a deep breath, preparing to give in, when I feel something, a pull, that I haven't felt in a while. At first I think it’s just some fantastical feeling my damaged mind has conjured to help me get through this situation. But as it grows stronger, my chest warms with the memory of that one perfect night, and I know it’s real. Smiling, I retreat deep inside myself, determined to use all my remaining strength to resist. To fight.
Still playing with me, the vampire taunts, “I’m waiting, female. Are you ready to beg me to fuck you?”
Grinning, I nod my head and speak, drawing out the words, “I… want… you… to… fuck…”
“Yes! Yes! Say it!.”
“Off!” I shout the last word at him. He roars and grabs my waist. Digging his nails into my skin, he thrusts the entire length of his cock into me at once, and I scream at the intrusion. This male is huge, and the abrupt way he drove into me stretches me unnaturally fast. My insides cramp as I try to adjust to his size, but it’s difficult as he’s relentless in his assault, thrust after thrust, while his minions maintain their hold on my legs, keeping me spread for him.
My hips ache and my skin becomes painful where he grips me. I’m sure bruises have spread from the tightness of his fingers. He pummels into me as if he seeks his salvation between my thighs. I reach deep inside myself, and latch onto that gloriously happy feeling while the vampire fucks me tirelessly.
“I’m going to flood your pussy with my cum, whore. As it leaks from your cunt, remember who it is that owns you.” His thrusts become brutal as he chases his climax. With my legs spread wide, he starts to work my clit with his fingers. I moan at the contact, and my whole body thrums with excitement.
I’m finally going to get to come! And I didn’t have to beg the blood sucker. As pressure builds in preparation for my orgasm, I pull on that once familiar link and draw on memories of that wonderful male as I reach my climax, moaning in ecstasy. Wave after glorious wave of pleasure courses through me as the vampire continues his unending assault on my clit and fucks me until he finds his end at last.
He roars out his climax, and my succubus greedily feeds on his release, drinking down his pleasure, filling us with renewed energy. My bud feels raw from his fervent attention. Just when I think I can’t take him touching me for one more second, he pulls out of me. I can hear him panting from his efforts.
“Fuck, slave. Your pussy looks so fucking hot right now, swollen from how hard I fucked you and dripping with my cum. You’re mine, whore. Mine! Don’t ever forget who you belong to.”
His footsteps retreat away from me, and I hear the rustle of clothes. “Release her from the cross and secure her to the table.”
Hands unhook the shackles that bind my wrists. I struggle to fight them off, but they wrestle me a short distance and throw me down on a cold, hard surface. The relief in my shoulders and wrists is cut short. My arms are gripped tightly and yanked above my head while my wrists and ankles are fastened to the table.
I start screaming profanities at them, any insult I can think of while thrashing on the table. A slap hits the side of my face, stinging my skin, the force causing me to still as the sound of metal scraping against metal fills my ears. It reminds me of the noise a blade makes when it is sharpened. Boris used the sound as punishment before, instilling fear by sharpening his dagger just before he sliced me with it.
What the fuck are they going to do to me?
I whimper as terror fills my veins, and a shiver creeps up my spine.
Oh my God, is he going to cut me?
Trying to be brave, I calm my breathing, accepting my fate. This is what I wanted after all, right? An end to my misery.
The pull in my chest feels stronger, like he’s getting closer, and my phoenix stirs beneath inside me. I’m having a hard time believing that he could be here. There is no way he would associate with vampires like the ones that are my Handlers for tonight.
“Vampires, surround her and get ready. It’s time for the final act.”
The final act? What final act? I don’t remember there being a first or second act. Fuck! What is going on?
That’s when I feel the kiss of a blade penetrate the skin between my collar bones. Horror consumes me, and I scream so hard my voice cuts out, going hoarse as my skin is split open between my breasts. Excruciating pain sears through me, and I howl in agony as the blade continues it’s bloody path down my body. Warm liquid seeps onto my heaving torso as my blood pours from the wound. I can hear it dripping onto the floor.
“Don’t waste her blood! Drink it! Catch it with your mouths.” The nauseating sound of vampires lapping up my blood surrounds me. The pain twists my mind, and I can’t form logical thoughts or focus anymore as my body throbs from the severity of the wound. Then the vampire lord starts to chant but I can’t understand the language of his words. The others soon join in, and their creepy incantations echo around me.
It’s then I feel his fingers penetrate my chest cavity, digging around inside my body, and screams rip from my already hoarse throat. I shriek and howl, thrashing my head from side to side as he buries his hand under my skin. The intense, agonizing pain is unbearable, tearing sobs from my mouth, as tears stain my cheeks. Flashes of white fill my vision, and I teeter on the brink of consciousness.
I can’t take it any more and beg for death to come for me.
A final plunge into my chest seals my fate as his cold, dead fingers wrap around my beating heart. Gurgling and wet, raspy screams fill my ears, the noises sounding near inhuman in their torment. It takes a second for me to realize the sounds of anguish are coming from me.
The vampire laughs, only it’s not a happy sound; it’s evil and menacing, and my terror spikes even more. I’m petrified, more so than I ever thought possible. The vampire Lord holds my heart in his hands while I lie helpless, strapped to this bloody table.
“I’ve found it! I’ve got her heart! Just a few more minutes and it will be mine. The world will be mine, and all will bow before me! I will be unstoppable!” His sinister voice rings with satisfaction and malice, pushing me to hysterics.
“You are part of something monumental, female! You should feel honored to have participated in such an event! This will be the beginning of a new world, my world! I will be all powerful, a living God!” he exalts triumphantly, his once diseased voice now strong and forceful. I choke as he squeezes my heart, and it stops beating in my chest. The world around me begins to fade as my oxygen deprived brain stops functioning.
As I
start to fade, my brain summons thoughts of the nameless male who called me princess and treated me with such reverence, giving me the best night of my life. Using the last bit of energy I have, I search deep within my soul and tug at our link, hoping he’ll know that my last thoughts are of him, even as I leave this world.
Making my way through the crumbling ruins back to the foyer to meet up with the rest of my team, I can’t get the image of that stone female out of my head. The look of abject horror and agony on her face stays with me, searing itself in the forefront of my mind. A feeling of dread spreads through me, weighing me down like an anchor on a ship as I enter the foyer and find that I am the first one back.
Something isn’t right, and it’s not just the eerie feeling I got from the statues that bothers me.
It’s her. Trinity. I can feel her bond, calling to me like a wounded child would its mother.
Anguish, despair, and fear overwhelm my senses, as waves of emotion that aren’t my own crash down on me. The overwhelming feeling of intense suffering brings me to my knees. Whatever is happening to the Princess, she is somehow projecting through our link. My shoulders ache, my jaws hurt, and a sharp, stabbing pain pierces several areas of my body. I grunt, clenching my fists and grinding my molars as I fight against the onslaught of sensations.
We need to get to the Princess and fast. If what she’s going through is even half of what I’m feeling…
Orian comes barreling into the foyer, interrupting my thoughts. He drops to his knees in front of me and rests his hand on my back as he takes in my pained countenance.
“Christ, Keegan, are you okay?” Concern is evident in his voice.
“I know this is going to sound crazy, but it’s Trinity,” I manage to grit out from behind my clenched teeth. Taking a deep breath, I exhale before I continue. “I can sense her pain, Ri, her emotions. She’s dying. I can feel it in my soul, and it’s tearing me apart inside. If we don’t get to her soon…”
“Guys, you’re not going to believe what I found back th-” Lachlan stops when his gaze lands on me, worry flitting across his arctic eyes. “What the hell happened?”
He crouches next to me, and Orian gives him a rundown of what I just told him.
Lachlan nods as he takes in this information. “If what you’re saying is true, then we need to hurry. In the area of the castle I scouted, I came across a sealed room, black as the night, that smelled of blood and death. But without any light, I couldn’t search it further. Something tells me that’s where we need to go. Do you think you can walk?”
Ignoring his question, I say, “There’s something you guys need to see first. Quickly, go through the archway behind me, and you’ll come upon a circular room. Take care to study what you find there before coming back to me because I think it’s important. I’ll be ready to go when you return, I just need a moment.”
“Okay, Keegan. I hate to leave you like this, but if you’re sure…”
“I’m sure. Go.”
The last sounds like an order. “Okay, boss, hang in there, and we’ll be back in a few minutes.” I stand up and look at Lachlan. He shrugs and pats Keegan on the back before standing to follow me.
Making our way through the archway, we don’t have to go far before we find the odd circular room filled with gruesome depictions.
“Holy shit! What is this place?” Lachlan exclaims as he glances around at the lifelike statues inhabiting it.
“Wait a second,” I say as a cold chill makes its way up my spine. I slowly walk over to the statue on the far right, and my body goes numb.
It’s him.
It’s a depiction of the menacing male from the ballroom I visited, only in this statue he’s... transforming.
“Lach, I’ve seen this guy before, in the section of the castle I searched. I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”
“You think he’s bad? Come take a look at this one.”
I walk over to Lachlan and stand next to him, shoulder to shoulder. I gasp as I take in the horrific sight before me.
“What do you think it means?”
“Not sure.” I move to study them closer. Three scenes show a female in various horrific situations, each more terrifying than the next.
“Fuck. Who is she, and why are they doing this to her?”
The answer hits me like a bolt of lightning, tingling my awareness. “If Keegan is laid out in immense pain that he thinks stems from the Princess, and these statues portray a sacrificial female in obvious agony…” I don’t finish my thought as I catch his eye.
“Fuck, don’t even say it.” He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. Pausing for a moment before opening his eyes, he stares into mine with determination written across his face, like the trained warrior that he is, ready to face battle. “We need to go, now! Let’s hope Keegan can move because if this is what you think it is, then the Princess’ very life is at stake, and I’m not willing to take that chance.”
Turning abruptly, he runs out of the room, racing towards the foyer where we left our leader riddled with pain.
They’re going to kill her!
The thought grips my heart like a vice, squeezing the life out of me like juice from a lemon as I run to find Keegan. I let out a sigh of relief when I see him standing tall, waiting for our arrival.
“Feeling better?” I ask him as I stop in front of him.
“Yes, it was so strange. One moment I could barely breathe, the agony was so intense, and then it was just… gone.”
The thought should comfort me, but it only brings on fear. If he can’t sense her anymore, then maybe there’s nothing left of her to latch onto.
“Come on guys, I think she’s this way.” I wave my hand, encouraging them to follow me down the long hall to the secret room on the right.
After knocking down the remaining rock blocking the doorway and cursing about the putrid smell emanating from the room, I turn to Keegan. “Do you think you could call your fire to light up the room?”
A determined expression crosses his face, and with a resolute nod, he raises his arm, conjuring a flaming ball in his outstretched hand. He looks at me, one blue eyebrow raised, and a satisfied smirk on his face as he enters the room.
Ri clicks on a flashlight as he follows behind us. The air feels stagnant and thick as I follow him inside, like walking through a dense fog. Reaching out his other hand, he calls on his fire again, now controlling two flaming beacons of light.
Lifting his arms up high, he attempts to brighten the entire room. However, now that we’re here and taking a look around, I wish he hadn’t. If I could use one word to describe this room, it would be death.
The room reeks of old blood and decay. Ancient runes are carved into the stone walls in a language unfamiliar to me. “Ri, any idea what these say?” I ask our resident computer.
“No. I’ve never seen anything like this, even in the old tomes,” he concedes, with awe in his voice. He tips his head back and uses his flashlight to look up at the indecipherable writing decorating the top third of the walls.
Giving him more room, I back up, only to step on something hard, the crunch echoing off the stone walls. “What the-” I don’t complete my sentence as a shiver makes its way up my spine. “Keegan, bring your fire over here, now!” I shout the last bit at him as my eyes see what my heart doesn’t want to believe.
“Hang on, Lach, there are torches on the walls, let me light them up.”
I hold my breath and anxiously wait for Keegan to light up the room. As his flames connect with the torches around the room, we all suck in a collective gasp at the horror the light reveals.
Blood. So much blood. It covers the stone room. The square space is about twenty feet across and in the center is a raised stone dais that, at first glance, appears black from the amount of death covering it. Different devices of torture lurk in the corners of the abandoned room. I recognize several ‘X’ structures that mimic the ones we saw in the circular room, with bloody shackles and chains still att
ached to them. But that's not the worst discovery in this room of horror. Along the base of the walls lay the remains of bodies in various states of decay.
I slap a hand over my mouth and close my eyes, trying to hold back the wave of nausea that ripples through me. Throughout all my years as a warrior, this is undeniably the worst sight I’ve ever laid eyes on. After taking a moment to pull myself together, I reopen my eyes and peer around the room.
“From their skeletal structure I can say with confidence that they are all female,“ Ri whispers as he walks the perimeter of the room. “There must be twenty bodies in here. What kind of sick fucks would do something like this?”
I look down and confirm that what I stepped on earlier was, in fact, bones. The skeleton still has bindings around her wrists and ankles. “I think these females are all victims of the ritualistic sacrifices we saw indications of in the circular room. They still wear the evidence of their torture, even in death,” I say in disgust.
“We don’t have time to dwell on the misfortune of these poor souls, but let’s make a vow here and now, to give them a proper burial when this is all over.” Keegan says with a fierce determination in his voice. “No one should have to live eternity trapped in this room of horror.” Ri and I look at him and quickly agree.
“Judging by the bodies’ state of decay, I don’t think this room has been used for some time. The vampires didn’t bring the Princess here. She must be somewhere else. Keegan, are you getting anything from her?” Ri asks.
Keegan closes his eyes, furrowing his brow and clenching his jaw as a look of concentration crosses his face. After a long moment he opens his eyes, the light from the torches flashes in his golden orbs.
“Down. We need to go down. She is underground somewhere in this decrepit castle. The connection feels so faint right now that without full concentration, I wouldn’t be aware of its presence.” He swallows hard. “She doesn’t have long.” For the first time since beginning our mission to find the Princess, our leader falters, giving into his emotions. “We need to save her! I’m not sure my soul would survive her death,” he chokes out with a pleading look. His eyes fill with despair, and his voice shakes with his declaration.
Bound For Blood (Feathers & Fire Book 1) Page 13
