Page 1 of The Sorcerer of Shadowholde

CHAPTER 1

Vita

“ON ALL FOURS ISexactlythe way I like to see you.”

A shiver shot down Vita’s spine as she scrubbed the stone floor of the kitchen, the scent of vinegar burning her eyes and nose. Dropping the rag in the bucket, she tilted her head to look up at her employer, who stood at the other end of the room with his arms crossed over his chest.

Not this again.

Vita Quirinius moved cautiously, like an animal caught in a snare. Resisting a grunt, she pushed herself up to stand, not wanting to be onher knees when he approached. His eyes were hungry, roving over her body as she brushed off her ankle-length tunic.

“Can I assist you with something, Praetor Amulius?” Vita asked, head bowed slightly and voice quiet.

Avoiding eye contact seemed best, as she hated the cruel smirk that lingered on his face anytime he glanced her way.

“Oh, Vita, there are so many things you could assist me with.” His sibilant voice sent a wave of panic through her.

Where was his wife, the Domina? A warm hand grasped her chin, pulling her gaze up to meet his. His eyes were dark, almost black, and he would have been handsome if it weren’t for the cruelty etched into every line of his face.

“So very many things,” he said as he looked down into her hazel eyes, lips pursed into a harsh smile.

Vita’s heart raced as he rubbed his thumb over her bottom lip. Though he’d made suggestive comments in the past, had let his gaze linger over her body in a way that was unseemly, he’d never laid his hands on her in such an intimate manner. Not in the five years she had worked for him.

Where was the Domina? She would put an end to this nonsense if she were here.

“What a lovely girl you are, but hiding so many little secrets from me,” Amulius breathed, his face dangerously close to hers.

Every one of her muscles tensed as tight as a bowstring. Little secrets? Her stomach roiled as he moved his hand behind her head, gripping her long, black hair, his other grasping her waist and pulling her close.

Vita blanched as his arousal pressed against her, and she rested her palms on his chest, desperate to keep any distance between them. His dark eyes moved down to her breasts heaving against the fabric of her tunic, and he licked his lips with a low groan.

“You have been teasing me for far too long, lovely Vita.”

“I am not sure what you mean, Praetor,” she said, trying to keep her voice steady.

He tsked, running his thumb along the red scar on her cheek. The scar he had given to her years ago when she’d first learned of his cruelty.

“I see the looks you give me, the way you dress, the way you do your hair. If you wanted me to fuck you, you could have just asked.”

His vile words cut her like a knife, shocking her to her very core. What the Hells was he talking about?

Vita had been barely twenty when she answered the advertisement, desperate for a job and a place to stay. The Praetor was one of the most powerful people in Shadowholde, the head of the military and administrator of justice ranking just below the High Consul. Working for him meant free room and board, so she could save all of her meager wages.

Everything had seemed fine at first.

Domina Amulius had shown her around the villa and instructed her on the particular way she liked things done. The other servants were kind, had taught her how to keep the couple happy. Vita had her own room, small but cozy. She wrote her stories there late into the night, of princeps and priestesses, harpies and minotaurs, mages and palaces.

The Praetor was aloof, but not cruel. Not at first. Not until a few months in, when he slashed her across the face for accidentally breaking one of his wife’s favorite wine glasses. The violence had shocked Vita, though she quickly became accustomed to it.

But this? He had never touched herthisway, or so directly stated what he wanted to do with her. And what did he mean by ‘little secrets’? Surely, he didn’t know… not when she’d worked so hard to keep it hidden.

Vita shivered with fear as the Praetor clutched her, the ugly smile still plastered on his face. Energy seared through her body, threatening to bubble to the surface, and she desperately tried to contain it. It wouldn’t do to have one of her surges right now.

“I don’t want that,” she said, willing some confidence into her quiet voice.

Amulius pursed his lips as if sucking on a lemon, narrowing his eyes to a glare. “Oh? Is that so?”

He slid his hand up her body like a snake, not even bothering to avoid brushing against her breast, bile settling in her throat.

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