by Marian Tee
BEHOLDEN (BOOK 1)
By Marian Tee
This is a love story between an innocent girl and a jaded man…a pet and her Master…and a soul seer who has yet to realize she’s meant to save the world…and a powerful vampire who has yet to understand his heart still beats.
18-year-old Zari Baltimore is suffering from an identity crisis. Her new school La Scala Legaturia, a training ground for strengthening bonds between Masters and pets, wants Zari to take pride in her role as human pet to Alexandru. But how can she do that when the vampire seems secretly intent on releasing her from his possession?
Maybe it’s time to start distancing herself.
Maybe it’s time to stop thinking as a pet and start practicing her skills as a soul seer.
And maybe, it’s simply time to look for a new Master. At least if Alexandru throws her away, Zari just might be able to survive it.
But then Zari has a vision of someone killing her, and losing Alexandru becomes the least of her problems.
This is the first book in New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Marian Tee’s latest New Adult paranormal romance series Beholden.
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BEHOLDEN (BOOK 1)
By Marian Tee
Copyright 2014 by Streak Digital Publishing
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Chapter One
“The best way for a Master to show his or her pet respect is to take the time to know him or her.” Zari read the words from her draft as she paced the length of their bedroom.
“You just want the whole kingdom to know about the time I forgot our anniversary,” Alexandru drawled.
“I do not—” She stopped talking mid-sentence when she glanced at her Master. He was on his side of the bed, one leg propped up, a copy of her proposal in his hand. He was bare-chested, wearing only a pair of loose cotton pants…and glasses. Glasses?
She shook her head in confusion. “Why are you wearing glasses? You’re a vampire. You’ve got perfect eyesight.”
“You asked me to review your proposal, didn’t you?” He flashed her a devastating smile. “I thought I should look the part as your editor.” His eyes took on a knowing look. “I also thought you’d like seeing me with glasses. You do, don’t you, pet?”
Zari’s red face was his answer.
“Stop laughing, Master. It’s not that funny!”
Walking along the empty school corridors, Alexandru enjoyed the brief respite from the obsessive attention of La Scala Legaturia’s giggling students. A hundred years back, this school had been akin to hallowed grounds, a place where young ladies took their studies seriously and were intent on perfecting the art of pleasing their Masters. But now?
He shook his head, remembering the girls he had passed by at the entrance hall and the way they had simpered at him. Did they not know that vampires as old as he had no time for idiots?
Alexandru paused when he reached the back door of the last classroom. Inside, he heard the teacher, Madame Lavinia, asking for a moment of silence. “Ms. Ellen? Would you be so kind as to start today’s reporting?”
As Alexandru listened to the students report one by one, he realized that their homework was all about explaining the bond between Master and pet. His lips curved. This should be good, Alexandru thought.
Inside his mind, he tapped into the blood bond he shared with his own pet. As usual, she remained oblivious to his presence, her full concentration directed at her nonexistent essay.
My name is Zari Baltimore. She was mentally reciting the words as she scribbled them, thus allowing him a glimpse of her thoughts.
I’m eighteen years old. My dad…
There was a pause in her thoughts, marked by a silence that was both grave and personal, and Alexandru knew his pet was wondering at that moment about her parents’ whereabouts. The last time she had seen them was right before the boating accident, one that resulted in her parents missing and Zari being abducted by trolls. That was over a month ago, and even now, with his men searching for them tirelessly, Alexandru still had no news to share.
My dad is a wildlife photographer and my mother is a wildlife journalist.
The use of present tense told him that she had decided to believe her parents were still alive. She had a tenacious will, his pet, and one he strongly approved of even if it also frustrated him at times.
My Master is Alexandru—
The pause that followed made Alexandru lift a brow.
What was his last name anyway? Was he orphaned? Or maybe he dropped it, sort of like Prince? Maybe his real name went something like The Vampire Formerly Known as Alexandru?
Come to think of it, did vampires have any surname? Maybe they were like rockstars and popstars? Eminem, Rihanna, Pink? Maybe he even used special characters like Ke$ha? This had Zari mentally laughing her ass off. Maybe he wrote his name as @lexandru?
The thoughts wiped the smile off Alexandru’s lips completely. He was going to kill his human pet very slowly, that was for sure.
****
“…lastly, I believe the special bond I share with Master Anton is because of our love for travel.”
“…I can’t think of being a pet to anyone but Master Doru. Our family has served his family for generations, and so it shall be forever and ever.”
“…my Master kicks ass, and it’s my dream to follow in his footsteps and serve the ruling family of Sangre when I finish my training.”
“Zari?”
She pretended not to hear it, hoping Madame Lavinia would take pity on her and move on the next student.
“Zari? It’s your turn now.” Madame Lavinia actually came to stand right next to her desk.
Drat. There went her escape plan.
“Sorry, Madame Lavinia.”
“That’s okay.” Madame Lavinia started walking back to her desk. “I’m sure I’
m not the only one who’s eager to learn about what you have to say as a human pet to Master Alexandru.”
At her words, half of the girls in Zari’s class looked disgruntled while the other half looked envious. Either way, she knew that all of them would kill to swap places with her.
Grabbing her notebook from her desk, Zari reluctantly followed behind her teacher. Since she always sat at the back and classrooms in La Scala Legaturia were all vast and luxurious, she had a lot of distance to cover.
Just as she was about to reach the platform in front, someone suddenly stuck a foot in front of Zari.
“Aaaah!” Zari flailed like a fish out of water to keep herself from falling, balancing herself on her toes before pulling back. The whole class burst into laughter throughout her antics, and when the girl to her right snickered, saying, “Loser,” another round of laughter followed.
Zari was red-faced with embarrassment, but she didn’t bother saying a word despite knowing exactly who had tried to trip her.
A petite brunette with exotic features, Ellen Carne was one of the school’s most popular girls, an unclaimed pet born to a family who had served vampires for centuries. Unclaimed meant she still didn’t have a Master, and if rumors were to be believed, she was dying to steal Alexandru from Zari.
When Zari’s eyes clashed with Ellen’s, the other girl demanded, “What are you looking at?”
Zari bit back a sigh. She had been so silly to think the supernatural world of vampires, trolls, and what-have-yous would be different from the world she came from. Apparently, bullies were bullies, regardless of their form or species.
Ignoring Ellen, Zari proceeded to the front, not wanting to get into an argument. She hated arguing. She wasn’t used to it at all since she had spent most of her life in the jungles, and the company she had kept then was only made up of her parents and wild animals.
Madame Lavinia beamed from her seat behind the teacher’s desk. “You can start anytime.”
How about never, Zari thought glumly even as she answered, “Thank you, Madame Lavinia.” She remembered just in time to curtsy after the greeting and was rewarded with an approving nod.
Zari welcomed the teacher’s positive reaction. These days, Madame Lavinia appeared the only one to believe she shouldn’t be kicked out of LSL. Who knew? Maybe this week, she could finally enjoy a higher grade than C for the first time.
Turning to the class, she opened her notebook and began to read. “My name is Zari Baltimore. I’m 18 years old. My dad is a wildlife photographer, my mom a wildlife journalist. My Master’s name is Alexandru.” She waited for the class to laugh, but they didn’t.
Mm…maybe her Master really didn’t have a surname? Maybe he was like the vampire version of…Usher? She thought about it. Nah. Usher was too good a dancer to be like Master Alexandru. Maybe…Bono? Yeah, that sounded about right, age-wise.
She flipped to the next page, coughing, buying herself time because after that little paragraph, she had nothing. Taking a deep breath, Zari decided to fake it. From scratch.
“The bond between Master Alexandru and I is, umm, kinda new.” Like, one-month-new since that was exactly how long she had known her Master. It was the exact opposite of most of the other pets in school, whose relationships with their Masters had either started or had been predestined since the day they were born.
From the first row, Ellen rolled her eyes. “New is such a vague word. Tell it as it is, First Made trash.”
Control, control, Zari reminded herself. If she got into a fight with any of the girls here, that would definitely reach her Master, and she didn’t want to cause him any trouble.
As if sensing a possible argument, Madame Lavinia asked brightly, “What’s Master Alexandru like as a master?”
What was Alexandru as a Master? The word ‘pervert’ immediately came to mind. The first day they had met, he had kept touching and kissing her. The word ‘bully’ also flashed before her eyes. He was definitely a bully, the way he liked doing and saying stuff that would make her blush.
Zari inhaled, preparing herself to reveal to the world the truth about her Master.
Yes, go on, pet. I’m interested in hearing what you have to say.
Her head jerked, her eyes landing on the silent figure that had come into the classroom in patent disbelief. The class, picking up on her shock, followed her gaze, and everyone squealed when they saw Alexandru at the back.
It had been one month. One month since she had last seen him, and somehow it felt like one month had wrought such a huge change in him. He was taller than she remembered, his powerful aura more authoritative. Even his sheer gorgeousness came as a shock to her, with his wavy black hair and green eyes. Had he really been this beautiful from the very start?
All in all, Alexandru made a larger than life figure, and the way he took everyone’s dumbstruck attention as nothing out of ordinary just made him more intimidatingly attractive. Zari’s head reeled at the thought that the vampire everyone was staring dreamily at was her Master. And she – a person as ordinary as her – was his human pet.
Zari watched her Master’s lips curve in a familiar sly smile. “Go on, pet. I’m eager to hear what you have to say. What do you think of me as a Master?” Before she could answer, he continued in his mind, Because earlier I heard exactly what you thought. Pervert, wasn’t it? And bully, too?
Alexandru almost laughed out loud when he saw the look of horror dawning on his pet’s face just before color spread in her cheeks.
And there it was, the blush he had missed seeing. It was disturbing, the way he had found himself thinking about that blushing look on Zari’s face so many times while he had been out hunting.
Small and with a body so slim it was almost boyish, Zari would have appeared average if not for her lush, ash-blonde hair. But what he really liked about his little pet were her large gray eyes and expressive face. In all the years he had roamed the earth, and they were very many years, Alexandru had hated all things that could be described as cute…until this girl came into the picture.
With her, “cute” was synonymous to arousing and right now, she was being extremely cute with the way she lied in a straight face. “My Master is the kindest Master on earth. He is the most intelligent, the bravest, and just the very best all around.”
The entire class was silent, as if unable to decide whether Zari was being sincere or sarcastic.
Zari lowered her head in shame. She was such a major fail at becoming an ideal pet.
Alexandru slowly shifted on his feet, not wanting anyone to catch how his cock had reacted to Zari’s futile attempt to butter him up. Did she know how cute she was? Did she?
Madame Lavinia cleared her throat. “We are so honored you have found the time to visit us, Master Alexandru. Class, please give Master Alexandru a warm welcome.”
Wide-eyed, Zari watched the entire class quickly and gracefully slide to their feet and drop to a curtsy. She hurried to do the same, not wanting to be the odd duck out…again.
“Welcome, Master Alexandru,” the entire class chorused.
“Welcome, Master Alexandru,” Zari hurried to say, but she was too late. Her Master knew it, too, judging by the amusement glinting in his green gaze.
It’s not funny, Master, she griped at him glumly.
It is. And since I find the way you make the worst human pet in the entire school entirely delightful, you should be thankful.
She glared at him. Is that supposed to make me feel better?
His smile widened. You see, pet? You should have been happy about what I told you, and yet here you are, glaring at me in front of the entire class—
Zari jerked at Alexandru’s words, and when she looked back at the other girls, she realized that all of them were glaring at her on her Master’s behalf.
“Go and give your Master a proper welcome, dear Zari,” her teacher urged.
Before Zari could even think of what a proper welcome meant, Madame Lavinia was already pushing her forward, l
eaving Zari no choice but to walk towards Alexandru. She stopped when she was in front of the vampire but kept her gaze down. She needed a moment to herself because right now, all she could think about was that her Master was really indeed here.
Did you miss me, pet?
No, Master.
Alexandru chuckled in her mind. As always, the lies. You know I have to punish you for that, don’t you?
Her head snapped up, Zari ready to protest.
Alexandru took that as his cue to kiss her, his fingers curling around her nape just before his lips took hers.
Shock and embarrassment flared up inside Zari at the unexpected touch of Alexandru’s lips over hers. Oh, she should have known! She thought about struggling but decided not to, knowing that would only make her lose much-needed brownie points with her teacher. The only way she could resist then – and stay sane – was to refuse her Master entry to her mouth.
Fists clenched against her side so she wouldn’t accidentally cling to him, Zari did her best to keep her lips pressed together.
Alexandru knew Zari was doing her best to resist him, but it only made him want her more. It only made more determined to have her begging. Open your mouth, pet.
No, Master.
If you don’t open your mouth—
Slowly, he moved his hands, settling them on her waist. Just that one simple touch and he felt her shudder. She was so beautifully responsive, and Alexandru knew he would die a happy man if she remained like that for all eternity.
Will you open your mouth now?
No—
He lifted his head up, reluctantly ending the kiss because he wanted to see her reaction. When her eyes slowly drifted open, Alexandru immediately moved his hands up, enough to reach the undersides of her breasts.
Zari stiffened in shock at her Master’s touch, unable to believe where his hands were. Just as unbelievable was the lack of protest from the teacher and the other girls in the room. Did they all think this was a proper welcome for a Master?
