Blood Deception: A Reverse Harem Paranormal Romance (Royal Covens Book 2)

by Kaylin Peyerk

  “Good morning Blair!” Alina calls from down the hall and I flinch.

  “Good morning,” I reply while swigging back the rest of my breakfast. “Ack.”

  I’m close to her when I make the usual face, and she laughs. “I can’t believe you still hate blood. You might be the first vampire in existence to dislike it.”

  She takes the container for me and leads me into the room, setting it on the table against the wall by the door. It’s a familiar routine, one that we’ve perfected in our own fucked up way. Niceties to start, maybe a little bit of small talk. Then her demands and the feelings and the spooling of them. But as I said, there’s a new step to it besides me leaving to weep in my room. Alina tells me exactly what she wants from me, or rather, what she expects from me. That’s the only part of this that has become interesting. She’s like a villain that’s revealing every step in her evil plan to the hero. It would be funny if I didn’t know that she considers me as her evil sidekick, or maybe her lapdog.

  I go through the motions, barely feeling a feeling as she lands blows across my body and mind. When the love bursts forth, it’s healing, and the light of it is blinding inside my skull. I think it’s the only thing that has kept me sane over the past few months. Without it I would be a broken individual. I would be exactly what Alina thinks I already am. So I bask in it, revel in it, take it into my heart like a long lost friend if only to feel an ounce of what it’s like to have someone to love me.

  “Spool it in, you fool!” Alina shrieks, kicking out with her foot and hitting me in the thigh.

  I cry out, unable to keep it in that time when her steel toed thigh high boot connects with my leg. The force of the blow vibrates through my bones, forcing me to convulse with pain. In the midst of it, I expel a breath and bring the love back into myself, hugging it to my heart deep within. Alina makes a satisfied noise from above me somewhere before walking to the table to sit down. I know she expects me to get up and sit across from her, but I’m afraid I won’t be able to stand.

  I try to anyway, biting my lip when my leg throbs mercilessly. Is the bone broken, I wonder? It doesn’t matter, I tell myself as I grip the edge of the table and haul myself to my feet. Alina would only care to give me a matching injury on the other side just to even the score. Struggling by myself is the best choice.

  “Alright, what do you have on the agenda today?” I grind out through clenched teeth.

  She watches me settle into the chair across from hers, eyes a little bit too attentive to my left leg. The one she stomped on. So, it’s obvious that she knows full well how difficult it was to stand up and didn’t bother helping in the first place. Further proving my point that it would have been useless to ask her for help getting off the cold stone floor.

  “This is it, my dear. We’re done,” she replies, examining her long blood red fingernails.

  My eyes widen at the statement. It can’t be a coincidence that a few days before my own scheduled break out she would just call it all off? How is that possible? My powers still aren’t responding the way she wants them to, plus I’m full of bruises and broken bones now. There’s no way she’d send me along to the lords in a state like this. So this must be a test instead. I narrow my eyes at her from across the table, grasping the edge in an iron grip.

  “What’s this about? Why are you saying things you don’t mean?”

  Her eyes finally rise to meet mine, a slight challenge lingering there. “Whatever do you mean, my dear? I’m done training you, you’re ready.”

  “But we can’t control it yet! I have no idea what I’m doing, and half the time I struggle to bring it back into my chest. This had to be a trick, a test to see if I believe I’m ready or not.”

  Each word raised my panic until I was shouting at her, half out of my seat and wincing at the pain in my leg. Alina had watched with a small, amused smile on her face. It does nothing for my anger but fuel it. My fists clench at my sides even as I force myself to sit back down, taking two deep breaths. She wants a reaction out of me; I realize with a start. I stuff all my feelings down into that pit of darkness in my stomach and school my face into indifference.

  “Fuck me you’re dense sometimes, aren’t you? I’m telling the truth, Blair. You’ll be delivered to the lords in the morning. I’m done with you. This isn’t a test.”

  We lock eyes, and I can tell that she’s trying to portray her message through them. I don’t know why I’m having such a hard time believing that she’d suddenly let me go without warning. Especially when my power has barely manifested, barely grown into something that can be used or managed. It’s fishy, the whole situation is. There’s another angle here, some specific reason that she’s decided to move up the timeframe. Something has changed.

  “What is it, huh?” I ask, sounding more antagonizing than I ever have when talking to Alina.

  She leans back, crossing her small arms delicately across her chest. “Elaborate on your question, Blair. I don’t speak caveman.”

  She’s teasing me, the bitch!

  “Why. Are. You. Sending. Me. Away?” I say more clearly, enunciating every syllable.

  Now it’s her turn to narrow her eyes. “They’ve been looking for you, you know. They’ve never stopped. They’re here, actually. In my castle. It seems they recognized something in that vision you sent them after all.”

  The simmering rage in her tone isn’t lost on me. She isn't giving me away; she’s being forced to hand me over to the lords. And they’re here, in the castle. My skin begins to buzz with awareness, and my eyes begin to dart from side to side like I’ll see them in the room with me. Alina’s eyes track my movements with an expert like precision as I begin to pace.

  I rapid fire questions at her. “Where are they? Will I see them today? What’s our plan?”

  She chuckles. “Oh? So now you’re on board?” I give her a withering look before motioning for her to answer me. “Fine, fine. No, you will not see them today. And no, I will not tell you where they are. You’re mine until dawn. They will not get you a moment sooner.”

  Her words send a chill edging across my skin. Is she planning something? And if so, what? She hasn’t mentioned anything about a plan even though I asked.

  “Okay. What’s the plan then? Are you going to. . . kill them?”

  She’s silent for a moment, giving me a quizzical look before sighing through her nose. “That would be the easier way to go about this, wouldn’t it? But no, I’m not going to kill them, I couldn’t even if I wanted to.”

  My shoulders sag at her answer, all the tension I didn’t know I was holding within them fleeing. They are strong enough to defy her, to control her. And really, I should have realized it sooner. Alina would have taken their throne centuries ago if she had the power to do so, but instead, she’s chosen to play the long game. Too bad a big piece of the puzzle for that involves me.

  “You’re dismissed. Go to your room and don’t leave. Han will be there shortly to guard the door.”

  I leave without so much as muttering an agreement because there’s no way in hell that I’ll be staying in that room all night when the lords are within reach.

  Chapter Twelve

  Alina wasn’t lying when she said Han would be here to guard me, or the door, or both. But she probably didn’t know that he’d end up inside my rooms lounging on the couch in front of the fire with a trade paperback in his hand. Apparently he isn’t all that worried about the lords somehow finding where I’m staying in the castle. Or maybe there’s some way that made it impossible for them to find me. Either way, Han looks more comfortable than I’ve ever seen him. I didn’t know that he’s a reader but learning that fact only makes me enjoy his company even more. He’s the one person I’ll be sad to never see again from this place.

  “So, Han. . . “ I hedge, dangling my head off the edge of the bed upside down.

  “Nope,” he quips.

  “Come on, you don’t even know what I’m going to say.”

  He levels his
eyes at me. “I know exactly what you’re going to ask. No, you cannot know where the lords are, and no, I will not allow you to leave this room.”

  I sigh dramatically while turning my gaze to the canopy above the bed. Han just snorts before turning back to his book and becoming engrossed again. I would sleep if I could. It’s what I usually do right after dinner and a shower, but this time I jumped out of the tub like the water was on fire, energy coursing through my veins. Ever since learning of their presence here, my skin has been itchy with the need to go to them, to run to them. I know it’s a emotional reaction; the hope that they can provide me with something more than whatever the hell this torture castle is overwhelming me. But another part of me. . . the human part of me feels overwise. The pull in my chest almost feels supernatural like the magic running through my veins. Is this what love feels like? Or is it something else entirely?

  Han sighs ten minutes later, setting down his book and turning his body to face mine. “Would you sit up? Your face is turning purple. Plus, the constant staring is weird.”

  I startle out of my thoughts, blinking. I hadn’t noticed that I was staring at Han this entire time, still hanging upside down. How embarrassing, he must think I’m some desperate weirdo. Cringing, I roll onto my stomach and look anywhere but at him. His gaze bores into the side of my head for long enough that it’s my turn to sigh and turn myself to face him. When Han wants something, there’s no way he won’t get it. The guy is just too persistent.

  “Alright. Time to talk about this then,” he says, voice gruff as ever.

  “Talk about what?”

  Nervousness lined my tone even though I forced myself to look him in the eyes when asking the obvious question. Anyone with a brain would know that I’m deflecting his statement, and Han doesn’t miss anything. His expression doesn’t change, the same exasperation still present. Anytime someone gives me a look like that shame immediately coils in my gut. I’m not sure if that’s a natural reaction or some type of leftover reaction from my human life. Either way, it’s awful.

  “Okay, okay. I get it, sheesh. Just stop looking at me like that,” I grumble, twisting my fingers together.

  He uncrosses his arms before relaxing his features into an easy smile. “Works on you every time, peaches.”

  I frown at him. “I told you to stop calling me that.”

  “I never said I would. Now stop avoiding it and tell me why you’re so eager to meet four extremely powerful vampires that would rather kill you than talk to you.”

  We stare at each for a moment, having a battle of wills. How am I supposed to tell my brutal martial arts teacher that my human side, who I may or may not be connected to, is in love with those four men that vampire me has never met? My explanation even sounds strange in my own head, let alone saying it out loud to him. What a mess.

  “If I tell you, do you promise not to laugh or judge?”

  Now a grin comes to his lips. “You’re killing me with this suspense.”

  “Han!”

  “Alright, alright. Fine. Yes, I promise.”

  Instead of having so much distance between us, I scoot off the bed and sit on the couch next to him. He hands me my knit blanket, and I smile gratefully before wrapping it around my shoulders. That act of kindness alone eases my nerves as I melt into the couch. Han can be trusted, even if his boss cannot.

  “Here it goes,” I start, pausing to take a deep breath. “So when I woke up I could still vaguely. . . feel things from my human life.”

  He blinks. “What kind of things?”

  “Uh, like emotions and sometimes random memory flashes. Nothing concrete. It’s mostly feelings if I’m honest.”

  Han’s eyes widen then; his mouth opening and closing a few times in shock. I almost laugh at the look on his face. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him shocked since we first started training together. It was never something I thought I’d see, either. Instead, my lips turn up in a slight smile. Once his eyes focus on that, they narrow on me.

  “So, you still love them?” he asks, eyes full of curiosity.

  “Uh, not exactly. My human soul does, but my vampire soul doesn’t even know them. That’s why I want to meet them.”

  He sits back into the arm of the couch, rubbing his chin. “So, you can determine whether or not your human soul is still present depending on the reaction you have to them?”

  “More or less.”

  Han looks away into the fireplace, eyes distant as he comes up with some sort of plan. I watch him anxiously, hoping that he’ll tell me that we’re going to sneak into their rooms or out in the night. Not that it’s a very accurate fantasy. Han is Alina’s personal bodyguard. There’s no way that he’d defy her for me. We met two months ago for god’s sake. But the hope won’t go away no matter how many reasons I give it to.

  Then it comes to me.

  “Han, do you believe in what Alina is trying to do?”

  His eyes snap back to mine, an unreadable look on his face. “That’s a complicated question.”

  I tilt my head at him, smiling. “Then give me a complicated answer.”

  He laughs before moving the stand, and I almost lunge to grasp his hand but force myself to stay put. It’s not my place to be forcing anything out of him. Hell, I barely gave him a solid answer to his question. But in my defense it’s the best answer I could muster with how confusing the past two months have been for me. Ever since discovering this new power of mine I’ve felt uncontrollable to such a degree that it truly frightens me.

  “Oh, peaches. I don’t think you understand how dangerous you are.”

  I scramble to lean over the back of the couch as he walks toward the door. He’s reaching for the handle when I can’t help but call out to him, hoping to get him back on the couch, back to talking about anything with me rather than leaving me alone.

  “Wait! What does that mean?”

  Han stops with one hand on the knob, glancing back at me with a sly smile on his face. “Your power goes beyond amplifying your own emotions. You have the uncanny ability to make me feel at ease; something that no one in my long existence has accomplished before. People spill their secrets in drops around you until it’s suddenly the whole picture and they don’t even notice.”

  ***

  Han stayed outside the room for the rest of the night, and each time I peeked out the door he told me resolutely to go back in my room until morning. It’s three o’clock in the morning now, and I still can’t sleep no matter how hard I try. The best I can do is curl into a fetal position until morning arrives. I don’t really feel tired anyway as sleep is an illusion for vampires. We can sleep, but we don’t need to. I could stay awake for the rest of my immortal life and never feel tired again.

  I don’t know why exactly, but that little tidbit about my new species scared me the most when learning about it. Because that means Alina is out there stalking her prey and smoothing her plans into place at all hours of the day. No rest. No eating. Only blood which can be consumed both quickly and easily. Thinking about it that way, about Alina and every other horrible vampire I’ve met in this castle, our species truly is made up of monsters wearing human skin.

  Rolling over in bed to look out the grand floor to ceiling window, I sigh through my nose at the darkness beyond the light of the castle. It will be at least five more hours before Alina comes to collect me in the morning, if not more. She might be willing to take her sweet time, to train me one last morning, just to make the lords wait like dogs waiting for a bone. I shudder at the thought; that space in my chest that’s been aching since early yesterday twinging in pain. Seeing the lords tomorrow, well today, is my top priority even if I have to fight Alina or Han to do it. No one will keep me from them, not now, not when they’re so close.

  Just a few more hours.

  My eyes drift in and out of focus as I count the stars that I can see through the window. There are hundreds of them, all shining mutely in the sky, giving the yard outside just enough light not to be c
ompletely pitch black. It’s not the best entertainment, but it’s the best I can do to distract myself. Han refused to come back into the room after I pried a little too deeply and he revealed just how passive my power seems to be. Glancing down, I clench and unclench my fists over and over again, trying to visualize my power turning on and off. I feel no change each time, and after trying for five more minutes I become bored and give up. Nothing I do or anything Alina does has helped to curb my power, it’s useless.

  Clink!

  The small sound startles me, and I sit up in bed to look at the door. Was that a knock? No, Han wouldn’t have knocked before coming in.

  Clink!

  There it comes again, this time from behind me. I turn again, my eyes going to the window. Keeping my attention on it, I slowly climb out of the bed, lifting the skirts of my ridiculous nightgown so I don’t trip over it.

  Clink!

  That time I see the pebble hit the windowpane, and I stop in my tracks. Who in the hell could be throwing pebbles at my window? And how has Han not picked up the sound with his super hearing abilities? I whirl around toward the door, my chest rising and falling rapidly. It’s still firmly shut. He’s not coming in, if he heard the noise, he would be barging past me toward the window already.

  Clink!

  Refusing to ignore it any longer, I tiptoe toward the window and glance out. A shadowed figure is below the second story window waving their hands in the air like a fool. I narrow my eyes while pleading for my vampire abilities to answer. For my eyes to change and give me the night vision inherent to vampires. My eyes do change, but it takes an excruciatingly long time for it to happen. I stare at the shadow figure the entire time, allowing my magic to focus on being able to see who it is before I dare open the window.