Three Deadly Trials (Battle for The Dark King Book 1)

by VS Winters

  "My Lord, one of the participants, has been eliminated while she slept." He said matter-of-factly.

  "What?" Rowan bellowed, his voice full of rage. "By whom?"

  "We do not know, sire."

  "Fuck!" Rowan shouted, his deep voice almost sounding distorted as anger flushed his face. He paced for a minute before stopping in front of his guard and raking a hand through his disordered hair. "Which female?"

  "The Siren, Pimea, your grace."

  My heart sank at the sound of her name.

  Chapter Twenty

  "Strangulation was the cause of death, sire." Azrael and Rowan went over the briefing as I choked back sobs, resting on the edge of the bed. Pimea had saved my life, she had pulled my broken and bloodied body back here to get help. She had also been the only person besides Scott to try befriending me since arriving in the Fae Realm. I couldn't believe that she was gone and that I hadn't taken the time to get to know her better.

  Anger and sadness rippled through me in chaotic harmony, sending surges of power to my fingertips. I wanted to find who did it, to rip their heart from their chest while they still breathed. Working to conceal it, before either of the men caught on that I was about to explode into flames, I looked up at Rowan.

  "Can I use your restroom?" I asked in a trembling voice. He nodded to me, his eyebrows drawing together with concern. I strode into the bathroom, closing the door behind me just in time for flames to burst from my palms. Racing to the mirror, I was planning on calming myself with a pep talk. When I approached, however, the tears running down my cheeks had caught flames, like gasoline.

  "Fuck," I seethed and slapped at the fire, attempting to extinguish it. After several deep breaths, I finally succeeded in snuffing them out. It was just in time for someone to tap softly on the door. I wiped the mess from underneath my eyes with the back of my hand and swung the door open. Rowan stood there looking like a kicked puppy.

  "What's wrong?" I sniffled.

  "You are to be confined to your quarters until further notice," Rowan spoke quietly like he was being forced to do something that he had no control of. A movement behind his shoulder caught my eye. I drove my way past him, examining his lowered eyes until I could no longer see them. Scott was standing in the room, an expression of full-blown rage on his tight face.

  "With me. Now, Eden," he said, thrusting a finger at the door. I glanced back at Rowan, who had shifted and narrowed his eyes at Scott. The look was one of pure hatred, but he didn't speak out against it. Feeling very much like a teenager being caught with her boyfriend after hours, I bowed my head and walked to where Scott pointed. He trailed behind, seizing my arm as he walked me hurriedly to my room.

  "You don't have to hold my arm that way, Scott. It isn't like I'm going to run away from you. What the hell is going on?"

  "Oh, I don't know." He said, elbowing me into my room and closing the door behind us. My eyes were wide with confusion as I looked back at him after nearly falling from the force of his shove.

  "Perhaps it has something to do with a girl dying at the hands of an unnamed criminal. Or possibly, I'm angry because my student, my queen-to-be, is too busy mating with the prince after nearly dying, to make sure to tell me she is okay. Did you even consider me afterward, Eden? I was concerned about you!"

  My throat constricted as he filled the distance between us, taking a fistful of hair at the back of my neck. I jerked a hand up, alarm prompting my spell to begin forming. With a skillful move, Scott seized my wrist and dragged it back down to my side.

  "What's wrong, princess?" He asked, his eyes wild, burning brightly in their sockets. "Too good for your own kind?"

  "Scott, stop," I said with trembling lips, sensing tears falling onto my cheeks.

  "He doesn't love you, you know that, right? To him, you are just a Witch. Filth, dirt, grime beneath his boots. He wants to take you as he does with the Demon you fight against. You do know that, don't you? That he calls her to his room every night so that he can fuck her?"

  "I'm asking you to stop," I whimpered as he tightened his grip, pulling my hair so that my neck was exposed to him. I flinched against his touch as he began to kiss my neck, rough with anger and frustration. His hand freed my wrist and darted up to the delicate strap on my shoulder. I cried out as he ripped it apart, exposing more of my flesh.

  "Rowan," I whispered without understanding why, as the sapphire tint overtook my vision for a split-second. All I knew was that I needed him to be here, to stop this, as I didn't have the strength or know-how.

  "He isn't here, Eden. And you won't be accompanying him again. I'll be arranging transport to get you back to the Coven tonight. While you are there, you can think about marrying someone who does love you, someone like me--"

  With a splintering crack, the door banged open and split into pieces that tumbled to the floor. Rowan marched in, his shoulders heaving as his violently glowing eyes landed on Scott. With one hand, he hoisted the male Witch into the air and sent him flying into the wall behind me. Rowan's eyes trailed down my body, lingering on my chest. I glanced down to see that one of my breasts was completely exposed and hastily covered myself before moving behind my savior. Rowan's eyes heeded me, his jaw clenching until he was sure that I was safely within his reach.

  "I'll fucking kill you, Witch." He roared at Scott, who was scrambling to his feet. Electricity swirled in the air; I could feel the tension of their separate powers clashing against each other. Rowan moved with ease to the other side of the room, picking Scott up by the throat. I could hear Scott laboring to inhale as Rowan's hand began to tighten, slowly crushing his windpipe.

  "Rowan, don't, please," I screamed. Rowan glanced at me and then looked back up to Scott. His body wavered in hesitation, as though it was taking every ounce of concentration not to finish the job.

  "If I see your worm face anywhere in the seven kingdoms again, I will remove your head from your body." With that, he flung Scott to the side like a ragdoll. Azrael jogged up behind me, pushing past my trembling frame to enter the room.

  "Your Grace, I apologize. I didn't sense that you were leaving."

  "Take this trash to the border and toss him into the wilds. He can find his people without our help."

  I gazed at Scott sorrowfully, watching the blood dribble from his nose. The look on his face was no longer rage, it was regret. I felt sad for him, wishing that I hadn't troubled him the way that I had. Azrael obeyed his Prince, yanking Scott to his feet by the collar of his coat and removing him from my room. I didn't look Scott in the eye as they passed by. But I could sense his grief as it flowed through him. I wanted to weep with my eyes locked on the mess of splintered wood on the floor.

  "You are staying in my room tonight," Rowan ordered, making me look back up. "I'm not letting you out of my sight now."

  Rowan strode to my wardrobe, extracting a lavish robe and draping it over my shoulders. He also grabbed a replacement dress and led me back to his room. Thankfully, the halls were deserted, as the castle was on lockdown. Once we were safely back in his room, I changed clothes and crawled into the bed, letting the emotions pour out of me. Rowan held my hand in silence as I let it all out.

  Sniffing back tears, I eventually wiped my face with the handkerchief Rowan provided at some point and looked at him apologetically.

  "Sorry," I croaked, my voice weak from sobbing. "It's just been kind of a crazy day, you know?"

  "Don't apologize, Eden. None of this is your fault."

  "Maybe not. I can't help but notice that I either drive people away or make them want to hurt me. From my mother leaving, and my father dying of cancer, Pimea getting killed, and then Scott attacking me the way that he did. Not to mention, I was a total bitch to Benjamin when all he wanted was a date," I snorted. "I'm fucking tainted. Ruined."

  "No, you're not," Rowan said in a tone softer than I had ever heard come out of his mouth. "You are loving and courageous. Not to mention, stunning from head to toe. Please, don't be upset."

&nbs
p; "What would you know?" I replied dejectedly, shaking my head as I wiped my nose on the cloth. "You don't know me at all."

  "I know that you care for others, Eden. Even when that Witch attacked you, I saw in your eyes that you felt responsible. You feel responsible for your mother leaving, and for having to leave your sister and your father." He moved closer, his head low as the next words rumbled from his chest with such sincerity that I almost started bawling again.

  "I'm so sorry, Eden. If I could take it all back, I would. Had I felt for you in the beginning, the way that I do now, I would have surrendered every pleasing moment that I've had with you, to spare you from all of this pain that you are feeling."

  "How you feel about me?" I snorted. As much as I had tried to take Scott's words with a grain of salt, I couldn't shake what he had said. "You and Nija are doing stuff behind the scenes, so I've heard. I'm nothing more than a pawn--"

  "You're wrong." Rowan's eyes were hard and cold. "You know naught of what you speak. Nija is a means to an end. One that I'm beginning to reconsider."

  "I don't even know what that means," I rolled my eyes and rubbed my temples. Rowan took my hand in his, stroking the back of it with his thumb. I remembered what else he had stroked with that thumb, earlier…

  "I don't enjoy taking her; you must understand that. Nija needs to feed on power, she would die without it. Being a part of these Trials, she has no other choice in a source. My people are at war with hers, I must accommodate her while she is in my care."

  "So," I swallowed against the dryness in my throat. "The sex with her is a transaction?"

  "Precisely," Rowan replied grimly. "Eden, I--"

  He stopped, lowering his eyes to the floor. It was strange to see him this way, so exposed and vulnerable with his feelings. Nothing like the hard-ass Fae prince I had met several days ago. I placed my fingers under his chin, lifting it so that his gaze was on me again, encouraging him to continue. His lips twitched at the corners, a nervous grin showing ever-so-slightly.

  "Eden," He cleared his throat and I could feel his hands begin to shake in mine. Puffing out a breath of air, he glanced at the table, trying to find a distraction. "I think that you should eat something. You need strength for the Final Trial tomorrow."

  "That's all you wanted to tell me?" I asked quietly, seeing in his eyes that there was more. I tried to sift through the feelings emanating from him, but he had walls up, and I didn't know how to control my empathic side. My belly growled on cue, shifting the mood as if to prove what he was saying was what he meant all along. Knowing better, my head lowered and I nodded. "Okay, I'll eat something. Then we can finish this conversation. Right?"

  Rowan agreed and snapped his fingers, summoning a servant into the room. She popped out of thin air with a whoosh, which sent me falling backward onto the bed.

  "Food," Rowan said simply. The servant bowed, eyeing me nervously before running out of the entrance. We waited in silence for her to return. She reappeared promptly, pushing a trolley full of various silver trays. Most of them held berries, bread, and cheese. Plus, a few bottles of wine and other spirits. After placing them on the table, which was several sizes larger than the one in my chamber, she bowed again and left in a hurry.

  "Please," Rowan motioned at the table. As much as I wanted to just forgo the eating and get right to the nitty-gritty, my stomach had other ideas. I yielded, walking to the table to sit and eat till my belly was full and content. Rowan sat across from me, nibbling on bits and pieces of fruit. I got the impression that he was only doing it to make me feel more comfortable, not because he was hungry. Rubbing my hands together after I tossed down the apple core I'd been gnawing on, my back fell against the chair.

  "Okay, I ate. Now let's talk."

  He seemed conflicted. Like something was simmering under the surface, struggling to get out. My eyes tracked him as he moved from the chair, holding out a hand for me. I caught it so that he could pull me up in front of his chest. Drawing me tight in an embrace, Rowan held me against himself for several moments before speaking. Leaning me back so that he could look into my eyes, he smiled sweetly, making me want to forget about our talk altogether just so that I could kiss him until sunrise.

  "I want you to be mine," he said slowly, sweeping a finger across my forehead to remove a stray hair. "It is wrong for someone in my position to take sides. But...I want you to win the Trial. I've never met anyone like you before, and--" His Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed hard, his eyelashes drooping under my stare.

  "I demand to have you as my queen."

  I could hardly feel my breath as it left my chest. I wanted him too, god knows I did. And I couldn't even explain why. Everything inside of me told me to hate him, to kick and scream until he sent me away. He was everything that I'd always been afraid of. A perfect man. It scared me to death. But it was more than that. My desire for him was untamed, I couldn't explain it if I tried.

  "You don't have to feel the same, Eden. I just needed to tell you. Now you know-"

  "I feel the same," I said, not able to keep staring into his piercing gaze. "I know that I shouldn't. I know that it is wrong. But I can't help how I feel. When I'm with you, things feel right. In ways that I can't explain."

  A smirk broke out across his face in my peripherals, making my heart stutter. Was it really so crazy to Rowan that a weak nobody could care about him the way I did? His hand lifted to caress my cheek, luring me to his lips with a soft kiss.

  "What if I fail?" I breathed, dread gripping my gut tightly. "What if I'm bested, and then you are lost to me forever? I won't know what to do…" Tears stung my eyes, dropping me in a puddle of uncertainty. Didn't I want to go home, to be with my family? What the fuck was wrong with me, talking like this was my new home? As though I could just forget where I came from. I guess a part of me wanted to leave it all behind.

  "You won't fail," Rowan said stubbornly. I gazed at his face with pure admiration, tracing every feature with my eyes. How could he have so much faith in me when days ago he had wanted nothing more than for me to fail?

  "Would I be able to bring my family here? You have healers, they could care for my father, couldn't they?"

  "There are rules here, Eden," Rowan said in a kind tone that masked what he was telling me. "Your sister is unknown to us right now, but your father is not Faekind. If you were to bring him here, he wouldn't be able to return. Is that something he would agree to?"

  "Maybe," I shrugged, resisting the tears forming in my eyes again as I pushed away to sit at the foot of the mattress. "I can't leave them behind, Rowan."

  "And I cannot be without you," he replied, sitting beside me and wrapping a muscular arm around my waist. His hand gripped my thigh. "I stand by what I said before, anything you desire shall be yours. As my Queen, you would have anything you could ask for, your family included. My healers aren't entirely unfamiliar with human illness. They may be able to treat your father."

  "Thank you," I sighed, feeling that the stone that had been weighing heavily on my heart was finally lifted. The pieces of the puzzle were crashing into place around me. Rowan's grip on my thighs tightened, provoking a burning in my belly.

  I wanted this.

  Wanted him.

  I knew that after everything we said, everything we'd done, there was no going back. This moment—if we acted on it—would solidify this connection we shared.

  I should walk away, because there are no guarantees, especially in my dark king's world. But instead, I lean in.

  I give in.

  Knowing full well I may never recover.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Rowan pulled up the pale blue dress around me with his fingers and stood to remove it.

  Grabbing his tunic's buttons in my own hands, I moved with the urgency that was building inside of me to undo them. Pulling open his white shirt, it revealed a flawlessly chiseled torso, taut with muscles.

  "Dear God," I muttered, feeling myself growing moist. He allowed me to unbutton his pants
, waiting as I dropped to my knees in front of him. My fingers fumbled with the clasp. He smothered a roguish grin and brought his hands up to assist me. I sighed in relief as the last button popped open, allowing me to drag the pants down so that his cock sprang up, slapping against his belly. Holy fucking huge dick, I thought with a drying throat.

  "I want you in my mouth." I gulped, looking up through my lashes at him.

  "Whatever you wish," he whispered with the grin still on his beautiful face.

  Grasping the shaft of his enormous cock in one hand, I guided him inside of my mouth, feeling him swell against my cheeks as I sucked him softly. His length slid up my slick tongue inch by inch until it pressed against the back of my throat. I drew back, feeling his body tense as I flicked my tongue just underneath the head, teasing him before pushing him into me again. There was no way I was going to get the entire thing in this way, but I was sure as fuck going to try.

  I continued to bob my head on him, gently twisting and pumping with my hand as I sucked and tongued every curve of him until pre-come beaded at the tip of his dick. It tingled in my mouth, a perfect mixture of salty and sweet. Rowan's fingers raked through my hair as his orgasm swelled within, pushing himself a little further than I could with each thrust of his hips. My cheeks were full of him and it felt right, like I was the lock and he was the key. Seafoam eyes never left mine as his pushes grew urgent, his eyebrows drawing together while the release slid from him and onto the back of my tongue and down my throat.

  A deep, growling moan left his lips as he came, making the wet between my legs increase. Once the shaking in his thighs had come to a stop, I finished sucking him and slowly drew my head back, giving him one last tease with my tongue before he dropped from my lips. The sensation made him shudder and moan again. I presumed that he would lose the stiffness in his dick, but instead, he gazed at me with burning eyes and drew me up with his arms, laying me flat on my back atop the bed.