He pulled slightly away from her, waiting for her to shove him away, to tell him to stop, or to leave her alone. She did none of those things as she stared up at him in wide eyed wonder. She blinked rapidly for a moment, her head tilted slightly as she seemed to be trying to decide what exactly it was that he intended. And as long as she did not tell him to stop, he knew exactly what it was that he wanted from her.
He searched her crystalline sapphire eyes before bending down and kissing her again. Her surprise was palpable, he could sense some fear underneath it all as she remained stiff against him for a moment more. He believed that fear was more from the unknowing of what he wanted, than from the actual kiss or from him. Then, to his surprise and delight, her hard mouth yielded slightly and he could feel the heat of her breath against his mouth. He pulled her closer to him, careful not to scare her as he slowly deepened the kiss.
She was one of the most wonderful things he had ever tasted. She was sweet and giving, her body warm against his as she succumbed even more, pressing closer to him. He had not expected this from her, he had expected some resistance, a fight even, but there was none of that. In fact, she was far more yielding than he had ever imagined she would be, and she felt far better than he had ever thought she would. It felt right to hold her, to touch her. His hand entwined in her loose hair, it was as soft as silk beneath his fingers.
Her hands curled around his forearms, she gasped softly as he ran his tongue along her lips. He wanted to lift her up, to carry her from this room, but he knew he could not move too fast. And her ribs. He had to remember her ribs. He had to remember that she was injured, even as his control began to swiftly unravel.
He pulled away, before he couldn’t. Pulled away before he lost complete control and either hurt her, or rushed her into something that she was not ready for. She was breathing heavily, her eyes wide with wonder as he rested his forehead against hers. He was trembling, nearly shaking with the effort that it was taking for him not to touch her again, not to kiss her again.
Not to drain the wonderfully tempting blood from her.
“I didn’t expect that,” she said softly, her voice tremulous, her grip on his arms fierce.
“Neither did I.”
He brushed the hair lightly back from her face, cradling her cheeks gently within his grasp. What was this girl to him? Why did she affect him so? What the hell was going on here? The questions raced rapidly through his mind, but he couldn’t answer any of them. There were no answers from him. He could not deny that she was special, that he was supposed to have found her, because he knew both of those things to be true.
He was, however, beginning to doubt that he could keep her safe in this world, or even from himself. He knew that he could not keep her happy, she did not belong here. This was not her place, this was not her world, and she would never be safe here. If anyone even suspected that he might have feelings for her, they would kill her. Blood slaves were used, drained, tortured, and tossed away. They were not treasured, they were not taken care of, and they most certainly were not kept alive for extended periods of time.
What the hell was he going to do with her?
She peered questioningly up at him, her fear and hesitance evident. He forced himself to become expressionless; she had obviously seen something that troubled her on his face. “Prince?”
“Braith.”
She blinked at him, her forehead furrowing in confusion. “Excuse me?” she asked in surprise.
“Braith, my name is Braith. You never say it. I want you to use it.”
Her mouth quirked in a small smile, her eyes lit with amusement. “Forgive me your majesty; I am not used to being around royalty.”
Aggravation spurted through him at her words, until he realized that she was teasing him. He didn’t think he had ever been teased before, he wasn’t entirely certain that he liked it, but it seemed to make her happy. And he had to admit that he did enjoy seeing her happy. “I see. I would prefer if you said my name though,” he told her abruptly.
His brisk attitude did not seem to bother her as she shrugged her shoulders. The lack of fear she showed to him was truly amazing, he had never experienced it before. Even other royal vampires were fearful and weary around him. “Braith, why do you always wear those dark glasses?”
His hand darted up to the dark frames. For the most part he didn’t even remember that he was wearing them, they were like another extension of his body. He shrugged, unsure of how to respond, unsure how much he really wanted to reveal to her right now. This situation was strange enough without heaping even more strange onto it.
Thankfully he was saved from responding by a soft knock on the door. He released Arianna and took a small step away before inviting whoever it was to enter. The small brunette he remembered seeing before stepped slowly into the room. Braith bristled, his shoulders straightened as he prepared to take this girl on to.
Arianna rested her hand gently on his arm. He glanced at her, surprised by the calming affect such a simple gesture had upon him. “Hi Maggie,” she said softly, offering a small smile for the obviously frightened girl.
Maggie nodded at her, but her gaze lingered over Arianna’s hand on his arm. Braith pulled slowly away from Arianna, not wanting to hurt her feelings, but knowing that they had to play it safe. He had to be careful with her. “I was told to come up,” she said softly.
“Yes,” Braith responded coldly. “Your friend has been dismissed. Permanently.” The girls brown eyes widened as the implications of those words sank in. “The same will happen to you if you step out of line in anyway. You will take care with her ribs.”
The girl looked slightly stunned, and more than a little confused. “Of course, yes your highness, of course I will,” she stammered out.
“Good.”
Braith moved swiftly past the woman. Grabbing hold of his cane, he left the room with Keegan trailing behind.
***
Aria popped the grape into her mouth, chewing the sweet fruit eagerly as she picked at the tray of food. She was starving from not having eaten yesterday. She heaped more fruits onto her plate, then some breads and meat. There was so much, and it all looked so good that she didn’t know where to start. She popped a handful of grapes into her mouth as she made her way to the window seat. She had not read in over a week, she’d missed it and was eager to continue with the story, but she wanted to wait for Braith to come back. She was afraid that she would miss something, or would get something confused whenever she read on her own. Though, he said that she was making good progress, and was doing well on her own.
Truth be told though, she simply enjoyed curling up next to him and listening to the deep rumble of his voice as he slowly read with her. She stared out the window, slowly rolling the fruit around in her mouth as she thought over the implications of that admission. What the hell was the matter with her? Had becoming a blood slave caused her to completely lose her mind?
Was she actually beginning to have feelings for a monster? Feelings for one of the creatures that she had hated, and fought against her entire life? That was crazy, it was simply insane. It could not be possible, it really couldn’t.
But she truly believed that she was, and she didn’t understand any of it. She had thought that he had turned against her. That he had purposely set Lauren on her in punishment, but he hadn’t. And not only had he not known that Lauren was hurting her, but once he had found out about it he had been attentive, caring, protective of her and worried about her safety.
And then he had kissed her.
And that damn kiss had almost been her undoing. She thought back to the kiss she had shared with Max, it had been sweet and kind and it had left her feeling safe and warm. Braith’s kiss hadn’t left her feeling any of those things. It had left her shaken, torn, bewildered, on fire, and longing for more. Longing for so much more. She wanted him to hold her, and kiss her, and touch her forever. Yet it wasn’t possible, none of it would ever be possible.
She was a b
lood slave; she was supposed to die eventually. What was going to happen to her?
She chewed on a piece of cheese as she watched the light play over the gardens. Though she didn’t think he was, she knew there was still a possibility that he could be playing with her. That he was toying with her emotions only to make her emotional breakdown even more pleasurable in the end. But if that kiss was a sign of anything, she thought it was definitely a sign that he would not purposely be cruel or mean to her.
She just didn’t know exactly what he was going to be to her. She was far from certain of anything these days. A few weeks ago she would have been terrified by this realization; she was surprised that she was not terrified now. And she felt that it was because of him. It was hard to be terrified when he was there, looking out for her, taking care of her, protecting her.
Aria frowned as she realized that she had never really been sheltered before. Her family loved her, and had always tried to keep her safe, but she had been on her own far more often than she had been under their wing since the time she was a young child. In her life, children could not be sheltered, not once they were old enough to start helping out. Every hand was needed in order to try and feed the many hungry mouths, and to help keep everyone safe.
Hunger, it was a foreign concept to her at the moment, as she munched on some more cheese and fruit. But it was not a concept that was foreign to her family, to her friends right now. Guilt tugged at her, for a moment she could not swallow the food as it stuck in her throat. She was daydreaming about something that could never happen, a life she could never have, and her family and friends were still struggling, still fighting for their lives every moment of every hard day.
Arianna managed to choke down the food, but she dropped her half full plate back on the tray. Her appetite was gone now anyway. Though she had been given this brief moment, this reprieve from the hunger, death, and struggle that had constituted most moments of her life, she knew that it could not last. It could never last. His world would never allow it to last. And she was a foolish child for even thinking that it might. A foolish child for not realizing the futility of this whole situation.
Aria touched the leather binding of the book, her fingers trailed slowly over it as she admired the simple beauty of the thing. “Do you need me for anything else?”
Arianna lifted her head; she had forgotten that Maggie was here. She had been working on Arianna’s dresses; some of them had needed to be let out as she had put on weight. “Oh no, thank you though. Would you like something to eat?”
The girls brown eyes widened slightly, her mouth curved in a small smile. Though she had not commented upon the bruises marring Aria’s skin, Aria had seen the shock and dismay in the girl’s tender gaze. Aria had wanted to tell her that the bruises were not from Braith, that he had not done this to her, but the words stuck in her throat. It was probably best if people began to believe he was mistreating her, though Lauren’s dismissal might negate that fact. She imagined rumors and gossip were already flying around, and she found that she didn’t care.
“No, thank you, I have other things I must attend to.”
“Oh,” Aria said softly, feeling a twinge of guilt over taking the girl away from her work. “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to keep you.”
“Oh no, it’s fine,” Maggie assured her. “You are my number one priority. The prince has seen to that.”
“I see.”
“I’ll see you later.”
“Yes.”
Maggie was at the door, her hand upon the handle before she turned back to Aria. “The prince has never had a blood slave before, did you know that?”
Aria felt her eyes widen, her mouth parted slightly as she stared at Maggie in disbelief. She recalled her encounter with Braith’s sister. The woman had asked what he was doing with her. She had thought the question odd at the time, had wondered if she was the first but she had never given much credit to the notion. This revelation did little to ease the confusion inside of her. In fact it made it even worse. “No, I didn’t know that.”
Maggie nodded. “It’s true, he has never had one.”
Arianna frowned, her eyebrows drawing sharply together as she thought over what Maggie had just revealed. She didn’t know what to make of the words, or what they might implicate. Why would he choose her then? What was it that he wanted from her?
Before Aria could ask any of these questions Maggie slipped out the door, leaving her alone with her thoughts. She sighed softly as she settled onto the window seat, torn and guilt ridden. It was an awful mess that she was in, that they both might be in right now. She didn’t know what the rules for a blood slave were, but she imagined she was not supposed to be treated so kindly. And she was fairly certain that she was not supposed to live for long.
That realization turned her thoughts back to Max. He was out there somewhere, going through God only knew what and possibly on the verge of losing his life already. Sweet, gentle Max who deserved far better than what he was probably enduring right now. Sweet, gentle Max who was only here because of her. Aria sat silently, her thoughts turning over the situation. Max had vowed to try and rescue her, they had both known that it would be a slim possibility, but was there any chance that she might be able to get to him?
Her gaze traveled over the beautiful apartment, and all of its wonderful things. She was lucky to be here, she was lucky that Braith had rescued her from that other, vile creature, but no matter how lucky she was, how well she had it, and how angry it would make Braith, she knew that she had to break free of here. She had to get to Max, and she had to get them both to safety before it was too late. Because no matter how safe and secure she felt now, it would not last. It could not last.
It was only a matter of time before this all crumpled around her, she had to do something before that happened. She had to save her friend before they were both doomed. Arianna sighed softly, her gaze slid slowly back to the tray of food. If she was going to plan an escape, going to get them both free she would need as much food, energy, and strength as she could get, but the idea of an escape was enough to make her stomach twist. She needed the food, but there was no way that she could force it down her throat right now. She was too frightened and lost right now to even attempt it. Tomorrow she would start taking better care of herself, for now she simply wanted to sit in silent misery as she tried to formulate some kind of a plan to get out of here.
The first thing she had to do was locate Max. It would do her little good if she was able to break free, yet unable to find her friend. If she got out of here, she would have to know where he was so that she could get to him swiftly, and safely. It would be hard, she knew that, but she was fairly certain that she would be able to do it.
She hoped.
Her attention was drawn to the door as Braith returned; his loyal wolf close to his side. She knew immediately that something was not right. His shoulders were too stiff, his jaw clenched tight. Arianna’s eyes widened, her hands clenched tight before her as she braced herself for whatever it was he had to say.
“Caleb will be here shortly. I need you to go to my room and stay there until I call for you.”
Aria swallowed heavily, she managed a brief nod for him. “Of course.”
“Arianna.” She turned back at his soft word. His knuckles were white as he gripped the head of his cane. “I mean it; do not come out of there.”
Her temper bristled slightly, she wanted to rebel against his command, but she was able to keep her mouth shut as she nodded again. She didn’t particularly want to see his brother again anyway; there was something about the man that frightened her on a primal, instinctive level. She slipped silently from the room.
CHAPTER 8
Arianna hated the thin gold leash, but she accepted the fact that she had to wear it, that she would not be allowed out without it. And all she wanted was out. It was the only chance she had of maybe finding Max. Thankfully she didn’t have to plead with Braith to take her with him to town; she suspected
that he wanted people to see her chained to him like any other blood slave should be.
Arianna ignored the questioning stares as Braith led her through the streets that she hadn’t truly noticed on their walk to the palace. They were clean, made of cobblestone, and lined by sweeping, beautiful buildings that she tried hard not to gape at as they made their way swiftly along. Vampires moved about the street, many had blood slaves following meekly behind. The gold leash was the brightest thing about the poor victims that trudged behind their masters.
Aria tried hard not to stare at the blood slaves, tried hard not to notice the misery that radiated from them, but by the time they had made it a few hundred feet down the road she had tears forming in her eyes. These slaves were thin, beaten, marred with bruises and bite marks. There were some that looked healthier than others, but there was still a bleak look in their eyes that left Aria shaken and confused. These were her people, and they were being cruelly used and slowly bled to death. Braith had spared her from such a fate, but it had nearly been her as well. That thought did not ease the pain clawing at her, but only increased it. She had been lucky enough to be spared such a fate, but why? She was no better than any of them; she did not deserve to be spared when they had not been.
Braith grabbed hold of her elbow, pulling her close against him. “Do not cry; do not show sympathy, if you do so then we must go back. You are not permitted to show such emotions, do you understand me?” he hissed in her ear.
Aria swallowed heavily, her head bowed as tried to blink away the hot tears burning her eyes. How could she not show sympathy for these poor, broken people? They were her people after all, and they were suffering unfairly. Braith released her arm; he took a swift step away from her as they neared the busier section of town.
Vampires and people mingled about the shops and stores, merchants sold their wares in the streets, shouting to be heard above the hustle and bustle of the people. Aria’s eyes darted over everything, there was so much to take in, and she could not do it all at once. She had never seen anything like it in her life of wilderness and caves. She had never even imagined that such a thing existed.
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