Page 8 of Her Tortured Beasts

Warm, golden bulbs highlight the most stunning bathroom I’ve ever been in, and despite everything, I gape at the finery of the claw-footed bathtub, the fancy black marble floor tiles, and the golden dragon head spout at the sink and shower. It’s like our Animus Academy bathroom, but on steroids.

A sharp pang of homesickness strikes me without warning and I double over, putting my head between my legs and regulating my breathing like Henry would guide me to do. Minnie, Raquel, Stacey and Connor. Will they ever forgive me for this? Will my mates ever forgive me? Will they be able tolookat me again after I regina-ordered them to stay put?

I fear the answer. I fear their wrath.

But there’s nothing to be done about it, except to get off the damned pretty toilet, head over to the sink, splash icy water on my face, and steel myself for what is to come. I made the decision to be here and I will own that.

The gold collar is pretty if I look at it with a certain squint. Sabrina would have turned it into a fashion statement. Surely I can do the same.

My teeth grind themselves as I get the urge to punch the mirror into a thousand pieces. The fucking audacity. The fucking nerve of these people.

Xander might no longer see the mating mark on my neck, but he’s branded himself onto me. Clutching the sides of the sink, it takes me long moments to calm myself.

When I emerge back into the bedroom, Xander is sitting in the armchair by the fireplace, a joint between his fingers in one hand and his phone in the other.

My cage door is now open. Without looking at me, Xander says in a low voice. “Get in.”

I am here to play the game, so play I will. Biting my tongue, I stroll towards the cage. I have to drop to my hands and knees and crawl in and pull my gown in behind me. But once I’m sitting in there, I pull the blanket into my lap, wondering how the hell I’m supposed to sleep.

Xander rises and stalks towards the cage, swings the door shut, and locks it.

I have to clench my teeth at this feeling of utter vulnerability. I had fought the bonds of a cage for so damn long, only to crawl into one voluntarily.

It feels like absolute shite.

“The suite door is dragon-locked,” he announces. “Don’t bother trying to escape.”

“Here by my own choice, remember?” I grumble, unfolding my new blanket and sniffing it.

Xander doesn’t reply, he just flicks the black out cover shut.

I’m left in complete darkness, my only companion the sound of Xander shutting the bathroom door.

Blowing out a heavy breath, I lie down, drawing my knees up because the length of me isn’t going to fit in this thing. I’m proud to say it’s only a single tear that slips out.

Chapter 5

Xander

Nothing Else Matters – Luka Sulic ft Evgeny Genchev

Iwake up the next morning with a blaring headache. A smart rap on my door tells me Olly is waiting outside. I mentally unlock the door, and it releases its magic with a soft hum, giving silent permission for the human butler to enter.

He does so with bustling purpose, bowing as he steps inside, his heart beat like a trotting pony. “Good morning, my lord.”

Pushing back my black sheet—amuchfinersort compared to Animus Academy’s cheap linens—I sit on the edge of my bed as Olly opens the heavy maroon drapes. Sharp light fills the room, and I refrain from rubbing my temples.

“There is much on the agenda today, my lord,” Olly prattles. “Will it be a bath this morning, or will a shower suffice?”

A muffled snort comes from the cage against the wall. Rising to my feet, I stretch out my back. I missed my old bed, luxurious and velvet soft, but it will take some getting used to after the wooden slab that was the academy’s mattress. I’d slept well after an hour of waiting for my own adrenaline to subside. The old noises of the house took a while to adjust to—the creaking, thewood settling, the low hum of other heartbeats—and worst of all, the sound of Spawn tossing and turning and huffing.

“I don’t want to waste any time,” I say to Olly, who is now holding out my towel in one hand and a tablet in the other. “Email me my agenda and do that every morning from now on.”

I don’t miss the curious glance Olly runs down my bare torso, his human pupils dilating with instinctual awe. He hasn’t seen me since I was fifteen, when I was more like a string bean. I’m a man grown now, and I know what difference that will make in this household.

“Apologies, my lord.” Olly bows again. “And your father has requested family breakfast this morning.”

Well, that’s certainly new. Olly smiles at me awkwardly as I take the fluffy white towel from him.

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