“Despite my anger in the beginning, I want to thank you.” I suppressed a shudder. “I know now I could have ended up with a much worse fate.”
“You’re welcome,” he said in a low voice.
I felt like Sherlock Holmes trying to solve a mystery. “We need to think of a way to prove your innocence.”
“I appreciate the help, but if they want to blame me, nothing will stop them, not even if the truth hits them in the face.”
“That’s crazy. They can’t do that.”
“They can and they will. They’ll use you and my past, spin an absurd tale about how it all connects, and use it against me.”
The words itched in my throat, and I tried holding them back. “Your past?”
He looked up at the moon and its glow illuminated only half of his face, creating shadows that emphasized his sharp nose, his full mouth, and the sharp edges of his chin and jaw. My eyes followed the line of his jaw down the smooth skin of his long neck.
I swallowed hard, incapable of pushing down the feelings stirring inside me. Drake was a vampire. He was a monster.
“My family and I were happy,” he started, his voice rough. “At least, that’s how I remember it. We weren’t rich, but we lived well for that time. I was the oldest of four children, and my parents were good parents. I remember Father getting mad at us when we misbehaved, but other than a few slaps on our bottoms and being grounded here and there, he was good to us.” His gaze turned to the imposing castle bathed in moonlight. “Our village was attacked by vampires when I was sixteen. They invaded my home and killed my family right in front of me. When they came for me, I fought, much like you did that night at the ball. I fought with all I had, and to my surprise, I was doing quite well. But then the leader of the vampires saw me fighting, and he was quite impressed with my ability. He took me on as his pupil, as he used to say. I hated him. I wanted to kill him. I plotted how to sneak into his suite and kill him so many times. But he treated me well. He took care of me. He raised me. He taught me politics, he showed me what his army did, what they fought for, he taught me how to fight. I still hated vampires with all my soul, but this man, this vampire … he was different. I started not hating him, and then, on my twenty-fifth birthday, he turned me.”
I reached over and placed my hand on his. “I’m sorry.” It was the only thing I could think to say.
“I was too. I think I still am. At first, my old hate consumed me. I rebelled. I left. I spent many years alone and even considered ending my life. But …” He sighed. “I couldn’t do it. I thought about my parents and my siblings, about how I would have wanted them to live—not as vampires, but as humans. I wanted them to live a long, happy life, and because of that guilt, I couldn’t do it. I’ve always hated being a vampire, but I can’t undo it, and I couldn’t take my own life. So, I came back to my maker and I joined his army. I became his right hand.”
I gasped as his words sank. “Lord Reynard,” I whispered. “Lord Reynard killed your family. He took you as a blood slave. Then he turned you.” I couldn’t believe it. “And you still stuck with him?”
He let out a hollow chuckle. “I know it doesn’t make much sense, but when you live for so long, some things, some grudges start to seem petty. You let go of them.” His brows furrowed. “But not everything. Never everything.”
“That’s why they suspect you. Because Lord Reynard killed your family.”
“Yes.”
I slid my hand up his arm. “I’m sorry.” I felt the muscles of his arm stiffen. His gaze dipped to my hand and a knot appeared between his brows. “I’m sorry for your family. I’m sorry you had to live as a blood slave to the man you hated. I’m sorry you’re a suspect in the death of the man you came to love.”
His eyes fixed on mine, a glint in them I didn’t want to recognize, but couldn’t ignore. Couldn’t because I was feeling something similar.
Drake placed his hand over mine, the intensity of his eyes taking my breath away. “Thea …”
“Yes?” I asked, my throat dry.
“You … I’m …” His gaze fell on my mouth and his jaw ticked. “I’m about to do something you might not like,” he said, his voice breathy.
Like a bee drawn to a flower, I leaned closer. “Who said I won’t like it?”
A deep growl came from his throat before his hand wrapped around my wrist. He tugged me closer. He bent over me. I held my breath. Then he stopped, leaving only half an inch between our lips. His eyes searched mine, as if trying to find any objection in them. He wouldn’t find any. Another growl came from him and then his mouth was on mine.
His lips were cold and warm, hard and soft, and his kiss was pure pleasure that moved against me, within me. There was nothing slow about his lips on mine. No, there was only desperate need. He took without asking, and I gave it without hesitating.
His hands traveled around my waist and splayed on my back, pushing me closer, and I held on to his shoulders, afraid this was all but a dream. A deliciously impossible dream.
Surprising me, Drake pulled back, his face stricken. “I’m sorry. That was wrong. I shouldn’t have done that. You—”
“Drake.” I grabbed his shirt and tugged him back to me. “Just shut up and kiss me.”
One corner of his lips curled up before his mouth descended on mine again.
18
Drake
I paced the hallway, up and down, up and down. The restlessness in me was ridiculous. Every feeling inside me right now was ridiculous. I had no idea I could feel like this. Like I wanted to be beside someone every second of every day, like I would do anything, anything, to protect her, like my life didn’t matter, didn’t have any meaning, before I met her.
I felt like I was a fifteen-year-old human again—stupid and easily taken over by hormones.
This was ridiculous.
Stupid and ridic—
The door of her suite opened and I halted. Thea stepped out, wearing another summer dress that showed too much of her smooth, silky skin.
My breath caught.
She glanced at me, a rosy tint rising up her cheeks. “Hi.”
Images from last night flooded my mind, and my body’s temperature went up a million degrees. Stopping kissing her had been hard. Almost impossible. It took all of my control not to slip into her bedroom with her and claim more than her freedom.
I had wanted her like I had never wanted anything else in my entire long life. I still wanted her.
She batted her lashes, the pink in her cheeks increasing. “Everything okay?”
“Everything is great,” I said with a growl. Fast like a cat, I lunged for her. She let out a gasp as I wrapped my hands over her waist and pressed her against the wall. “Everything is perfect.” I leaned into her, slow enough to give her time to object, but not too slow or I might explode with the tension building inside me.
She rose to her tiptoes and pressed her lips on mine. A growl started in my chest, but it died when I closed my mouth over hers.
Her lips were warm and soft and tasted like mint and heaven. I didn’t deserve heaven, never had, but I couldn’t stop now. I needed this heaven; I needed her heaven.
I stepped into her, pinning her to the wall and gluing every inch of my body to hers. She let out a sound that was a mix of a whimper and a moan, a sound that rocked through me, and I almost lost it.
Her scent, her blood rushing, her heart racing, it was too much and too little. I needed more of her, and I needed it right now.
To hell with the hunger that quaked my muscles and demanded a taste of her delicious blood. I wouldn’t succumb to it. Thea was more important than that.
Her stomach growled, a faint sound she probably only felt instead of heard, but with my vampire senses, it had been loud enough. I chuckled against her lips. “Someone is hungry.” I started pulling back, but she only wound her arms around my neck tighter.
“It can wait,” she whispered before deepening the kiss again.
Hell …
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I was a goner. I let her take over for a moment. Surprising me, she ran her tongue over my lower lip before sucking it hard. My gut contracted, and I pushed her harder against the wall, until she felt what she was doing to me.
Her gasp turned into a moan as she readjusted her hips, rubbing more of her on me.
Holy hell. My knees wavered and—
Her stomach growled again.
I stepped back, letting go of her. Thea wobbled to the side, as if she were dizzy, but before I could reach for her again, she slapped her hands on the wall behind her and steadied herself.
There was only three feet between us, but the tension, the heavy charge in the air around us, was palpable. Her eyes met mine, and I could swear the hallway would catch on fire any minute now.
Clearing my throat, I straightened my shirt. Then, I offered her my arm. “Come on. Let’s get you some breakfast.”
Thea hooked her hand under my arm and smiled at me. “I could have gone longer without breakfast, you know.”
An urge to spin her around and pin her to the wall again hit me hard, but I pushed it away. I had already had breakfast—more blood than I usually had at this time, just to be safe—but she hadn’t. As a human, she was way more fragile than I was.
Besides, taking her to breakfast gave me a break. It would force me away from her, and this way I could think clearly—something I didn’t have any control over when she was so close.
In the dining room, Thea let go of my arm and took her usual seat at the middle of the table. I fought the pull to take the seat beside her, because I really needed to think straight, and sat at the end of the table.
Her brows furrowed, Thea looked at the food spread in front of her.
“Is there something wrong?”
“No,” she said, her voice tight.
In silence, she ate while I thought, though my eyes were on her the entire time.
I had to find a way to prove I was innocent. If I was charged, I would be executed, and then Thea and Thomas would be taken as blood slaves by other vampires. No doubt Alex would claim Thea.
Rage swept over me, and I closed my hands into tight fists.
That couldn’t happen.
But if it came to that, then I should have a plan B. I needed to find a way of taking Thea and Thomas away from the palace in case I was killed. But how?
I heard the shuffling outside the door two seconds before a knock sounded loud and clear.
Her eyes wide, Thea straightened in her chair.
“It’s okay,” I assured her, standing up. “It’s only Holden, one of my guards.”
Thomas beat me to the door. He took a sealed envelope from Holden, then delivered it to me.
Thomas helped clear Thea’s breakfast while I opened the letter and read it. A quick note from Gray, asking me to meet him in his quarters.
I approached Thea, who was watching from the steps before the dining room. “I have to go out for a bit,” I told her. I glanced at Thomas, who was across the room. “Things aren’t going well around the castle, so, please, you two stay inside today.”
“Yes, my prince,” Thomas said with a slight bow of his head. I had already told him over a hundred times to stop calling me that and bowing to me, but he kept doing it.
Thea’s brows knotted. “Are you okay?”
A soft smile tugged at my lips and pride bloomed in my chest at the worry in her voice. “I think so. I’m going talk to another prince. As far as I know, he’s on my side.”
“Be careful,” she whispered.
I leaned into her and pressed my lips in her forehead. “Always.” More now than ever.
Without another glance or words, I dashed out of my chambers, probably faster than Thea’s and Thomas’ eyes could follow.
I hated leaving her, but it was probably for the best. I needed some fresh air, even if it was visiting another corner of the castle where her sweet scent wasn’t filling every square inch.
The guards in front of Gray’s chambers saw me approaching and opened the front door for me. They lowered their heads when I walked by them and stepped inside.
Prince Gray and Prince Phelps were seated on the long, black leather sofa in the center of the living room. Unlike my place, the other princes liked to follow the castle’s decoration—dark walls, dark floors, dark furniture, with black and deep red predominating over browns and dark gray.
“Prince Drake, take a seat,” Gray said.
Reluctantly, I sat down in a heavy armchair across from the sofa. “What is this about?”
“Since we’re on your side,” Phelps started, “we felt the need to tell you Prince Alex has been active since the interrogations last night. He has been going from prince to prince, trying to get them all on his side.”
I gritted my teeth. Of course he was. “What else do you know?”
“Not much,” Gray said. “He approached us, told us some lies about you, and Lord Reynard, and your new pet.” A waved of anger rolled in my stomach. Thea was not my pet. I wasn’t sure what she was yet, but she definitely meant a lot. “He’s even spreading rumors to lower-ranking vampires, in the hopes that it’ll cause paranoia in everyone in the castle.”
“He’s doing whatever he can to incriminate you,” Phelps added.
“Hell,” I muttered, running a hand through my hair.
“Besides all that,” Gray said, “we just received a report from one of our informants that some witch covens are on the move. They are agitated. We think they know we’re uncentered now that Lord Reynard is gone, and we haven’t chosen a new lord yet. They might take advantage of that and attack.”
“Which will lead to a full out war,” Phelps said.
I grunted under my breath. Witches were vile, petty beings. They took advantage of every situation they could, and these witches wouldn’t be any different. We all knew the stories of witches taking over powerful vampire covens and werewolves packs all over the world—and all they had to do was wait for the right opportunity.
“We need to find the real killer and fast,” I said, the wheels in my head turning in rapid succession. “And then we need to elect a new leader.”
“Exactly,” Gray said. “The longer we wait, the more chances the witches will have to strike.”
Holy hell … “If Alex isn’t playing fair, then we shouldn’t either,” I said. “We can’t wait until everything crumbles to dust. We need to act now.”
Phelps let out a long breath. “Do you have any ideas?”
I groaned, feeling hopeless. “Not one.”
19
Thea
I knew it was a dream, but it was a damn good one.
Drake slipped into bed with me, and staring with dark, hungry eyes, he ripped my nightgown to pieces, revealing my naked body underneath. Then, he lowered himself over me, pressing his hard body on mine, and his delicious mouth against mine.
I half-sighed and half-moaned as—
A scream filled the night, and I jerked up, awake and alert.
That hadn’t come from my dream, I was sure.
Holding my breath, I waited.
The scream echoed through my bedroom again.
I darted off the bed, grabbed a thin robe, and tied it over myself while I ran into the corridor. I bumped into Thomas.
“Was that you?” he asked, his eyes wide.
“No,” I said, my heart racing.
If it wasn’t him, or me, then …
The scream came again, more guttural and low this time.
My heart sank. “Drake.”
Thomas and I ran to the prince’s suite at the end of the hallway.
Thomas pushed the door open, and we both skidded to a stop at the sight inside. Like that night in the ballroom, Drake was pinned to the wall by two long swords protruding through his shoulders, and a thick wooden stake in his chest.
My hand flew to my mouth. “Oh my …”
Drake growled, a scream lost in his throat.
Thomas and I rushed to him, and
with some effort, we pulled the swords out. Drake slumped to the floor, his fall cushioned by my weak hold on his heavy body. With effort, we laid him down, his head on my legs.
“Is he …?” Thomas asked, his huge eyes darting from the stake in Drake’s chest to my face.
My hand hovered over the stake as I examined it. “I don’t think so. I think … I think the stake missed his heart.”
As if to confirm he wasn’t dead, Drake’s eyes fluttered open and his unfocused gaze met mine. “Thea,” he whispered, his voice weak.
“Shh,” I whispered back as tears clouded my vision. I had just admitted to myself how much I liked him, how much I was willing to see where this was going. He couldn’t die now. I pulled the top comforter from the bed and pressed a corner of it around the stake, trying to stop the bleeding. “Save your strength.”
Kneeling beside us, Thomas fidgeted, his body rocking front and back, as if he needed the motion to control himself. “What do we do? What do we do?”
I racked my brain. “We shouldn’t take the stake out, not yet. It might do more harm than good. We also shouldn’t move him, in case the stake moves with him and reaches his heart.” I traced my fingertips over Drake’s sweaty and feverish face. “We need a healer. Go fetch a healer from the infirmary.”
Thomas shook his head. “No, that’s dangerous. Most men there love Prince Alex. They might betray us.”
“Then who? Who can we trust? Who can heal him?”
“Sarki,” Thomas said. “She always favored Prince Drake and she’s half witch. She might be able to heal him.”
“Then go!” I hissed. “Bring her here. Fast.”
Thomas skidded off the bedroom, his footfalls dull on the cold floor.
I ran my hand over Drake’s face once more, pushing his hair away from his forehead.
“Thea,” he whispered. He blinked, trying to look at me.
“Be quiet, Drake,” I told him, my voice gentle. “You need to conserve your strength.”
A half smile appeared over his pale lips. “I appreciate the concern, but I’m afraid I’m too far gone.”
The Vampire Heir Page 10
