by Zoey Ellis
Amara blinked rapidly trying to adjust to the sudden lack of his awareness but moments later she was climaxing, arching her back, and shuddering as the pleasure ripped through her.
Once his knot was secure within her, she pushed her focus out to the room. She could still feel the draw to Malloron—that didn't seem to have lessened—but the intensity of him had significantly reduced and the cloud of awareness was gone. She took a breath and exhaled it slowly in relief. Hopefully, she could think clearer now.
They lay on their sides, his hips under hers where they were joined. His hands ran over her body leisurely, his breathing calming.
"Does our agreement still stand?” Amara asked hesitantly, turning her head toward him.
Malloron paused for a long moment before answering. "Our agreement can still stand if you wish,” he said. "But I will not be separated from you, so if you wish to enforce that—”
"I still want the answers you promised me,” Amara interrupted. "I want to know if you will still provide them now that the tenebris is repaired.”
Malloron was silent for a long time. "What have you done?”
Amara turned further toward him, breathing shallowly. "What do you mean?”
Malloron propped himself up on one elbow. "You feel… distant. Your hum is the same but... You have done something.”
"My hum?”
"It is how I feel your energy.”
Amara kept herself still. So he could feel her in a similar way that she could feel his draw. "I haven't done anything. At least, nothing that I’m aware of doing.”
"If you want me to be honest with you, you have to be honest with me,” Malloron warned. "Anything to do with the tenebris, you need to disclose to me. That has to be something we agree on.”
"Are we making a new agreement?” Amara shot back at him. "Because if we are, it means the previous one failed. And I am not interested in getting into another.”
Malloron scowled and dropped down beside her, roughly pulling her back against his chest and jostling his knot inside her. She both winced and groaned.
"The agreement stands,” Malloron confirmed.
Amara nodded, somewhat relieved. She lay on her side as he cuddled her into him, thinking of their previous conversations. "Was your previous quee—” Although she stopped herself in time, Malloron’s fingers dug into her skin, serving as a warning. She took a moment to rephrase the question. "Did the last woman who held the tenebris experience it this way?”
"No.”
Amara frowned. "How do you know?”
"Because you don't feel the same way she felt.”
"How do I feel?”
Malloron’s fingers slipped between her legs, massaging her clit and grinding his knot into her deeper as his mouth caressed the side of her face. "You feel soft and wet and delicious,” he said, a smirk in his tone.
Amara huffed, trying not to groan at the same time. "You said you would give me any answer that I wanted.”
Malloron exhaled, but did not remove his fingers. "When the tenebris was within her, I felt it as a separate, distinct energy. Within you it is almost as though both you and it are the same. And the feeling is stronger.” He paused for a moment as he thought. "When you were over the Lands, I could feel you even though you are miles away. It was as strong as the way you feel next to me now. It was never like that with her.”
"Did she feel you the way I feel you?”
She felt him shrug behind her. "I don't know.”
"You didn't care,” she scowled.
"No.” His deepening tone caused the words to vibrate in his chest. "I only care about you.”
He said it as though he had to force the words out and she turned toward him. "You don't have to try to persuade me that you care about me,” she said cuttingly. "I know what my place is here. I know my role. No matter how many times you fuck me, I know my purpose.”
Malloron’s body suddenly tensed as he propped himself back up on his elbow to look down at her. "What is your purpose?”
"To hold the tenebris so you can feed from it until one of us dies,” she responded.
His displeasure in her answer was clear on his face, but it was obviously the truth.
A new thought entered Amara’s mind. "How do you feed from it? How do you draw energy from it?”
"When I connect to you, I will be able to pull energy from the tenebris.”
"Have you tried it yet?” she asked hesitantly. "Connecting to me?”
"No. I want to make sure that it is working correctly before I try that.”
Amara nodded. It was the same when she was out over the Lands. She had to connect with magic in order to manipulate it. Whenever she connected with Malloron, it seemed the feel of him increased dramatically. In fact, she had not felt any emotions from him during the entire conversation since she disconnected. It was good she could control it, but not good that he was aware when she was connected to him and when she wasn't.
Her attention was drawn to the slow caress of his fingers playing gently with her clit. His knot was softening, and previous experience told her he would soon be in her again, and that was a concern since she connected to him whenever they had sex. She searched her mind for something to say, something to distract him. He had mentioned his father before. "You said your father told you to dominate the Land with sex,” she asked, somewhat quickly.
Malloron’s fingers slowed and then became firmer. "So?”
Amara held onto the thought about to slip away from her. "Why when he didn't need to? His rule was a success to many—there was no war, no bitterness between the territories, no one with a foothold on any other. Why didn't he want to maintain that?”
"There has always been bitterness between the territories.”
"Not like there is now,” she pointed out. "And much of that is down to you—you cannot deny it.”
"I don't,” Malloron said, as his cock slipped out of her. "But do not think I created it. It has always been there. It is a characteristic of this particular Land for there to be contention and discord between the territories.”
Amara pursed her lips—that was interesting. "Why?”
Malloron shrugged. "Its people have always been so—and will always be so.”
"And you believe it can never change?”
"It cannot,” he confirmed.
"I don't believe that.”
"That’s because you did not grow up here.”
Amara inclined her head, but she didn't believe it. She had done the research on the Western Lands and nothing suggested that these people were incapable of changing—he just didn't want them to.
Malloron moved and fixed himself on top of her, slotting himself over her and caging her in with his arms the way he always did when they used to focus on the tenebris. Amara tried to ignore the trickle of his seed oozing out of her and automatically fixed herself underneath him, enjoying his heat and scent until she noticed he was watching her closely, a strange look on his face.
He stared at her for a long moment. "You were different with your sister.”
She stilled. "What do you mean?”
He tilted his head. "You… laughed.”
Amara opened her mouth, but didn't know how to answer. What exactly was he saying? Of course, she would be different with Cailyn. "I grew up with her. It is easy to fall into certain patterns of familiar behavior with certain people. We played that game all the time to develop our Talent—the three of us. Cailyn won most of the time.”
"Three of you?”
"Me, Cailyn, and Victoya. We are all the same age. There were Omegas older than us and younger than us, but we were the only ones our age in our area of the compound. We played together a lot and as we grew, we trained together and looked out for each other.”
"You were happy,” Malloron murmured.
Amara shrugged. "We were young and ignorant of what the world was like. All children are happy when they are young and safe.”
Malloron didn't respond, and after
a long moment, Amara realized his gaze had lifted above her head. "Wasn't your childhood safe and happy?” she asked. "You had your brothers and sisters… you played games and ran about the castle causing havoc for your father, didn't you?”
"No.” His gaze drifted back to hers. "Once I was identified as the next heir I was kept apart from my siblings.”
"Why?”
"Because I was the next heir.”
Amara made a face. "That doesn't mean you didn't need someone to talk to or have fun with.”
"Talk to about what?”
Amara stared at him in disbelief and stuttered as she tried to answer. "Err… things that are important to you?” Her voice faded away as she squinted at him. A sudden curiosity rising in her. "Does anyone else know about the tenebris?”
"No.”
"Not even your—” she paused. "Do you have any friends?”
Malloron held her eyes, his voice deep and rumbly when he answered. "No. Kings don't have friends, Amara. We rule.”
Once again his expression was solemn. It was as though his mask had been stripped away, and he was just a man. He was even more handsome in that moment, and a sudden nervousness fluttered in her chest. She looked away and took a breath. She could deal with King Malloron when he was making smart remarks or mocking her or demanding things of her. But for some reason, she felt strange when he looked at her with that kind of seriousness.
"Everyone needs friends,” she murmured, lowering her eyes.
He was quiet for a moment. "I disagree.”
She lifted her eyes to look at him quizzically. "Why?”
"Friends are not necessary to be successful or to live a fulfilling life. They may be nice to have, but no one needs them.”
Amara stared at him. How could anyone truly think that? She didn't know how she could have gotten through any of her missions without Cailyn and Victoya to talk to. "You brought Cailyn here to see me,” she said slowly. "You clearly felt I needed her. It’s the same thing.”
Malloron shook his head. "Your life was at risk. You needed the familiarity of someone you knew—someone to engage you positively and lighten your mood, someone who could make you see your circumstances aren't as terrible as you deemed them to be. But it was only a one-time occurrence. You won't need her like that again.”
Amara frowned. "She is my sister. I will always need her.”
Malloron’s voice deepened. "No, you won't.”
"Why?”
He lowered his face until his nose was almost grazing hers as he looked into his eyes. "Because I will be that for you from now on.”
That lingering strange feeling slammed into her again, but this time she couldn't look away. Why was he saying these things to her? Was it some sort of new manipulation? This was a man she knew she hated, and yet his behavior was making her feel… She couldn't even describe it. Why was he behaving differently to how he behaved with her before? Maybe the tenebris made him different now that it was working. Regardless, she couldn't become vulnerable to him, not after everything he had done.
Before she could find words to respond, he began fondling her breast. "I know you hate me right now,” he murmured. "But over time that will change.”
She shook her head as he pinched her nipple, the zing through her body making her squirm. "It won't. I am your prisoner. You have me here against my will, Malloron,” she whispered. "You cannot replace my sister—my family. You and I…” Her voice faded as she struggled to find the words.
His expression didn't change as his hand ran down her stomach. "We are compatible in every way. You are my true mate, Amara.”
She shook her head. "I don’t believe that. And even if it were true, that doesn't mean I will be happy, that I will laugh with you like I do with Cailyn, that you will lighten my mood.”
"You will,” Malloron insisted, his voice hard. "You just need to accept your circumstance.”
"Oh, I accept it. I accept that I am blind and deaf and your prisoner,” Amara said. "I do not accept that you will replace my family and friends. It is impossible.”
Malloron’s growl shuddered through her and his hand hardened on her hip, but she ignored him. He was being idiotic. How could he believe he could replace someone she had grown up with? Someone who loved her unconditionally and had her best interests at heart? But as she continued to consider, she realized he had never had that. He had no understanding of what a friend was. "Is that what your father taught you? That friends are not worth it?”
"My father made me a capable and strong ruler—one with limited weaknesses.”
Amara thought for a moment. For a man to drill that into his son, to not allow him to have friends or even his siblings to talk to, he must have been regretful over something significant. "What was his weakness?”
"My mother.”
Amara’s eyes widened. In none of their research about the Visant family had the Omegas been able to find out about Malloron’s mother. It was as though he never had one, although of course that was impossible.
"What happened to her?” she breathed.
Malloron gave her a wry smile. "It will upset you.”
Amara breathed shallowly as she squinted at him. "And it won't upset you?”
He shrugged. "I didn't know her.”
Amara stared at him wondering how he could be so cold. Even if he didn't know her, she was still his mother. It wasn't as though Amara knew her and he still thought she would be upset… unless… "It has something to do with the tenebris,” she concluded.
Malloron said nothing, and in his silence he told her she was right.
"She is the one who held the tenebris before," Amara said cautiously. When he didn't reply, she continued. "What happened?"
Malloron lifted himself upright, kneeling on the bed, his thick muscled thighs creating a V over her. She avoided looking at the one part of him that always beckoned. Any time she did, her mouth ended up on it. "You will promise not to get angry or upset," he said as he looked down at her. It was not a question and not a negotiation.
She nodded. "Yes. I promise."
Malloron climbed off the bed, lifted her, and carried her to the living area. The candle lamps that sat in each corner glowed a gentle light, even though the skies were only just darkening. "My grandfather was one of the most powerful Talent-crafters that existed,” he began, as he settled them on a couch. "As soon as he found out about the tenebris, he took every step he could to try to prevent its effects. He ran numerous experiments and tried multiple ways to reduce the impact of it on his father, but nothing worked. He poured over countless documentation and paperwork of family members who discovered the Talent and tried to find ways to change how he connected with magic in order to see whether his connection with the tenebris would change. At some point he discovered something—no one knows what it was, but he suddenly became very excited about it. He worked in secret for years, but it turned out that in the prime of his physical agility, he fortified one of the dungeons to keep an Omega child hidden in there.”
Amara’s face contorted in horror. "Why?”
"He discovered that Omegas interact with magic differently,” Malloron said. "And he wanted to experiment with that to lessen the impact of the tenebris.”
Amara shook her head in disbelief as Malloron maneuvered her legs around his waist so they faced each other. "But how did he even find an Omega child? Surely they were all being taken by then?”
"Most were, but he managed to find a child whose dynamic had only just been revealed. He took her and ensured no one could find her by keeping her in that dungeon.”
Amara held herself still, frozen with the horror. "What did he do with her?”
"From what I understand from my father, he didn't do anything at first, he needed to understand exactly how Omegas use magic, and the child herself did not know. He had to do a lot of experimentation with her to see what she was capable of before he could try to use her to mitigate the effects of the tenebris. But in the meantime, my father discove
red her.”
"And he loved her?” Amara asked, tentatively.
"Yes. Almost immediately,” Malloron said. "They were young, but the connection between them was strong.”
"Did your grandfather know?”
"My father said that Grandfather was pleased with the outcome because it meant the Omega was motivated to help him.”
Amara made a noise of disgust. Malloron’s grandfather sounded like a true bastard.
"And it worked at first,” Malloron continued. "She tried harder and he made more progress, but as time went on, he was becoming more and more incapable of controlling his body. Finally he discovered a way to transfer the tenebris to my mother.”
Amara held her breath, but he didn't continue. "What happened?”
"It worked,” Malloron said slowly. "My grandfather was able to regain use of his body, but my father was unhappy with the control he had over his mate.”
Amara nodded. That would make sense. No Alpha would want his mate to be under the control of another man, regardless of who that man was. And if his mother was attracted to his grandfather because of the tenebris…
"Do you know how your mother felt with the tenebris?” she asked cautiously. "Did she… experience it like I do?”
"I don't know,” Malloron admitted. "My father never wanted to discuss it in any depth. All I know is that the only thing that could have overtaken Grandfather’s control over the tenebris was the Omega being soul-bonded and he didn't allow my mother to claim my father. It caused much disruption between them. Their arguments and disagreements became so bad they resorted to blows, and in the end, my father refused to continue in such a way.”
Amara’s eyes widened. "What did he do?”
"The tenebris was already coded to his blood but he couldn't control it while my grandfather had control over it, so he killed him and took it out of my mother and into himself.”
Amara was speechless. She stared at Malloron, a cold shock shuddering through her at that kind of ruthlessness toward a family member. Malloron held her eyes, his warm brown moving over her face. He didn't seem particularly upset—it was as though he was just telling the story, and Amara had to wonder which was more disturbing—the events he was retelling or his lack of connection and reaction to it. "What happened then?” she whispered.
