Page 46 of Blood Moon Heat

I gasped and scrambled back until I hit the wall.

The prime.

The ancient male’s rheumy gaze slid over me, and he smiled. “Ah, there you are, Mina. Your friend here wouldn’t share your whereabouts. We had to search every nook and cranny in this place to find you.” He held out his hand. “Come here, child.”

I shook my head. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

“Nero told me to come and get you. He won’t be back for some time. You need protection.”

Pretender made a gurgling sound, struggling to get to his hands and knees. One of the prime’s guards slammed a booted foot down on his back, pinning him to the ground.

A cry burst from me. “Please…stop. Don’t hurt him anymore.”

“Then come here,” the prime said.

“Nero… H-he told me to stay here,” I said, my voice shaking as hard as my limbs. “That I wasn’t to leave.”

“Nero didn’t realize the scope of the assignment I sent him on. Now he does, and I am to provide you with safe accommodation until his return.”

Pretender hissed, sounding wild.

“I don’t believe you,” I rasped.

“You dare defy your prime?” one of the guards barked at me. “Nero is beholden to our prime, as are you.” He slid a wicked-looking knife from its sheath and dropped to his knees. Fisting Pretender’s hair, he wrenched his head back, knife to his throat. “Come easy or Nero’s ward dies.”

“Don’t hurt him!” What choice did I have? But I wasn’t stupid. They were trying to make me believe Nero wanted this, but I knew they were lying.

“I’ll come, just please, don’t hurt him anymore.” Pretender was the first friend I’d had in so long, and he was important to Nero. I’d never let anyone hurt him.

“Wise choice,” the prime said, and again held out his hand.

I took it, a shudder moving though me when his cold, clammy skin touched mine. The ancient male stopped beside Pretender and nudged him with his boot. “Your attempts to protect her were valiant, if misplaced.” He smiled wide, flashing his yellowing fangs. “I am prime, and I take what I want. Nero won’t mind if I use her first.” He gave my hand a brutal squeeze, making me wince. “If he does, well, he’ll just have to get over it.”

That’s when what he’d just said registered. Use me?

I tried to pull from his hold again. I’d rather die than let this monster use me in any way. He squeezed my hand tighter, so tightly I cried out in pain and my legs almost buckled beneath me.

“Fighting will only make it worse for you,” he said, then towed me from the room, while Pretender dragged his broken and bloody body toward the door, hissing and growling and trying to follow.

Fifteen

Nero

I’d been right. There were camps all along the border. I was beginning to believe the prime knew exactly what he was doing when he sent me on this mission.

I’d been fighting all day. As I thought, there were others camping close by, and they’d come for me.

Now I was covered in my enemy’s blood and surrounded by bodies. The old royal house needed to be cleared out to ensure peace prevailed, but the new king could have sent his own warriors to do this.

Something wasn’t right. This wasn’t my fight. I shouldn’t even be here. Was the prime trying to reignite a war? Or had he used this mission as a distraction to keep me occupied? To get me out of the way?

Surely he wouldn’t go after Mina. Surely he wasn’t so arrogant and stupid that he believed he was above our laws, that I’d let him get away with harming her in any way.

“Fuck.”

I’d underestimated him.

That’s exactly what he was planning.

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