Page 85 of Red Queen

“Care to wager, General?” Her voice is a caress, an invitation laced with thorns.

“Only if you’re prepared to lose.” I select an arrow and nock it to my own bow.

The strings of our bows twang, and our arrows fly, hers kissing the center of the bale, mine an inch off.

“Close, but not quite.”

She steps closer. “Perhaps you need a lesson.” She takes another arrow, her movements are fluid, honed by her new vampiric evolution. She releases another arrow, and I can’t help but admire her lethal elegance—she outmatches me, and it stirs a pride within, mingled with desire.

“Show-off.”

Her laugh rings out, clear and bold. “Merely demonstrating superiority.”

Above us, Moros, Erebos, and Nyx circle in the slate sky. Their red eyes glint, watching over their mistress with a vigilance that matches my own protective instincts.

“Beautiful, aren’t they?” I nod toward her ravens.

“Powerful. Fierce,” she says, correcting me, her gaze following the birds’ flight. “Like their mistress.”

“Indeed.”

We fall into a rhythm as we practice, arrows finding their mark with each release. Her cerise eyes flashes with enjoyment, a fire that ignites something raw and primal within me. As I watch her draw the bowstring back, muscles defined beneath her fitted tunic, I’m struck by the depth of my yearning to close the distance between us, to feel the press of her body against mine.

The air hums with tension, both competitive and electrifying, with a subtle undercurrent of something more carnal.

Eleanna’s arrow soars true, embedding itself in the target.

I notch another arrow, drawing the bowstring back to my cheek as I aim for the center of the target. Beside me, Eleanna does the same, her hair wild in the breeze. She makes it look effortless, like breathing.

“Seems like you’re falling behind, Alexandru,” she taunts playfully. “Need me to give you some tips?”

I laugh, flashing her a cocky grin. “I’ll catch up soon enough, my Queen. Just you wait.”

Gods, what this woman does to me. I watch as she lets her arrow fly, admiring the fluid exquisiteness of her movements, the way the morning light caresses her luminous skin. She’s a vision of ferocious beauty.

For a stolen moment, we simply stand and breathe in the crisp forest air, listening to the rustle of leaves and the calls of her raven familiars. These fleeting seconds of tranquility are precious, an eye in the hurricane of chaos that constantly swirls around us.

Eleanna turns to me, her striking cerise eyes searching mine, delving into my very soul. “Tell me, Alexandru, what do you see when you look toward our future?”

I pause, considering, letting her question sink in. Then I speak. “I see strength born from unity. From the unbreakable bonds of trust, loyalty...and love.”

Something shifts in her gaze, a softening, an understanding. “I believe in that vision too,” she murmurs, her words almost lost on the wind.

Emboldened, I raise my bow again and draw back the string, my muscles flexing. Eleanna’s presence surrounds me, an all-consuming fire, guiding my aim like the hand of destiny. The moment I release, I feel her essence flow through me, an intimate connection that steals the breath from my lungs.

The arrow strikes true, burying itself in the heart of the target with a resounding thud. I turn to her. “Looks like I caught up after all, my beloved.”

“Well done,” she says, moving closer until the heat of her body melds with mine and I catch the intoxicating scent of night jasmine on her skin. Her eyes glitter. “But don’t get too comfortable, Alexandru. I’ll be sure to reclaim my lead soon enough.”

“Is that so?” I reach out and wind a lock of her silken hair around my finger. “Perhaps we should raise the stakes, then. Make things more...interesting.”

She raises one delicate brow, her smile turning wicked. “Oh? And what exactly did you have in mind, my dashing General?”

I lean in until my lips brush the shell of her ear and whisper all the dark, delicious things I long to do to her, again. She shivers against me, a soft moan escaping her.

“You drive a hard bargain,” she says, her fingers curling into the fabric of my attire. “But I accept your challenge.”

Satisfaction unfurls within me. “Then let the games begin, my Queen.”

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