Page 29 of Queen of Vampire Hearts

I stood again, determined to at leasttry.I headed out of the throne room, leaving my two pseudo advisors behind. A vampire noble and his daughter waylaid me the moment I stepped through the doorway.

“Sire, if I might have a word?” the vampire asked, preventing me from continuing on my search. I struggled not to snap at the other vampire, ignoring the voice in my head that whispered,wouldn’t the noble look spectacular without a head?

I nodded and gestured with my hand for them to continue. “What is it?”

“We were curious about what species your queen is. We noticed she is not a vampire.”

They were already probing for weaknesses between us. I gnashed my teeth to keep from killing them. My lip curled back from my fangs, but I held onto my patience, barely. Normally, I would have amused myself with the possible motive for such a question, but that was when I was in complete command of my actions. It was a different situation when I was so unpredictable, so volatile. The longer I went without claiming Phoebe, the harder it would be to control my temper.

“She’s a witch. Anything else?” I said harshly.

There was a loaded glance between father and daughter. “The reason we ask, sire, is that we are worried she could have placed a spell on you to make you believe she is yours. Witches are untrustworthy.”

I burst out laughing. I couldn’t help it. The idea that Phoebe had cast a spell to make me believe she was my mate was so outlandish I could barely believe they felt the need to bring it up. “Rest easy. She has cast no spell on me. Her cuffs prevent all such magic.”

I shouldn’t have let that slip, but I couldn’t call the words back, and the two vampires slunk away before I could explain. I almost wished she had cast an enchantment on me, that she wanted me like that.

I headed straight for my bedroom, a thrum of excitement coursing through me at the thought of Phoebe in my ancestral bed. So many nights, I lay awake, dreading the future, trying to distract myself from the aching emptiness and loneliness hounding me. I knew there was nothing but more of the same ahead of me. The same cycle of loneliness and distraction, round and round and round it went.

I swung the door open, immediately noticing the bed was empty except for her black cat, curled up on her pillow. No! She could not have escaped.Cassie said she was sleeping. I took a large, calming breath before starting my search and caught her lingering scent in the halls. She must have paced through the labyrinth, leaving numerous paths that led to many destinations.

I was too frantic to find the freshest, most recent one. Had she done so on purpose to confuse me while she escaped? I wouldn’t put it past my clever queen. I needed to get control. With yet another calming breath, I reassured myself that she hadn’t escaped. I continued looking for her, though the calm I needed to zero in on her scent was absent.

“Sire, if I may?” The housekeeper tried to stop me. Yet another delay. Was the universe conspiring to keep me from her?

I nodded to the woman, throwing doors open, continuing the search for my mate. I didn’t break stride, but she kept pace with me. “We’ve had varied attire brought in for your new queen, but Lady Cassandra mentioned your mate is a witch, and I was wondering if there’s perhaps more she might need to practice her craft.”

I hadn’t even thought of that. If I removed Phoebe’s cuffs, she would no doubt want to continue honing her magic. I bit back my instinctive need to say she would never use her powers again. If she learned more magic, would it make it easier for her to leave me? I would have to take the cuffs off first.If she were free, she would require all the things a witch used to commune with their magic. My mind and emotions were in such turmoil, I answered without thinking, “She won’t be practicing any magic. There’s no need to accommodate her.”

Could I ever truly allow her to practice her dangerous magic with complete trust? Trust she wouldn’t disappear on me one day, leaving me lost and alone? I shook off the sense of foreboding, waving the housekeeper away.

Still, I searched, flinging open doors in pursuit of Phoebe. I looked for hours, becoming more frantic with each passing minute. Had she found a way to leave me? Madness banged against my skull as others waylaid me multiple times. Staff, my nobles, asking my opinion about the time for the coronation, prompting me to give a date two weeks into the future. Two weeks to win Phoebe, two weeks to convince her to stay. Again, the feeling of despair crashed over me like a wave. Why would she stay with me? She hated me.

Where the hells was she? My panic quickly escalated to fury the longer I searched. It was hours before I finally found her huddled in a corner of the library, cuddling an enormous book.

“Phoebe,” I growled, half in reprimand, half in relief, pulling the book from her hands. A flash of hurt went through me when I saw the title.Architecture of Întuneric Castel.She was looking for an escape route. She was looking to leave me, just like everyone else.

XIV

The Realm of Mortals.

Întuneric Castel, Romania.

I CRADLED HER GENTLY IN MY ARMS,carrying her toward our room. She turned to me in her sleep, seeking comfort. While her mind may hate me, her body searched for mine. I could take a little solace in that. Could I work to coax her from her anger? Coax her into giving us a chance?

Back in our room, she stayed asleep as I gently laid her on the bed and undressed her. I tried not to ogle her as I put her into a nightgown left by the housekeeper. It was difficult, but I wanted to take care of her, keep her safe, even from my own desires.

I stripped off my clothes to join her, leaving my briefs on. Normally, I slept naked, but I’d already pushed her enough by putting her in bed with me. I didn’t need to be naked when she woke up as well. I pulled her into my arms, stroking her hair softly, gently tracing the furrow in her brow as she dreamed. Her scent flooded me, relaxing my muscles, soothing my mind enough for my eyes to close.

I could only have been asleep for a couple of minutes before I felt her tossing, muttering under her breath, “No! Please! I didn’t know!”

I pulled her back against me, brushing her hair away from her face. “Shh,vrajitoare, I’ve got you. You’re safe,” I murmured, calling her an enchantress in Romanian, the endearment tumbling from me. Slowly, she relaxed into me, clinging to me. “I’ve got you. I won’t let you go.”

She drifted off again, and I quickly followed when her breath evened out. I awoke to her nightmares twice more, repeating the process till she relaxed and fell back asleep. She wiggled from my arms each time I drifted off. It seemed she was constantly hoping to escape me, even in sleep.

When the sun slowly rose over the horizon, her dreams became more violent, causing her to toss and turn, a stray punch bloodying my lip and waking me again. The injury healed almost immediately, but my concern over the contents of her nightmares would not. I rolled over her, pinning her to the bed, pressing her wrists to the mattress above her head. “Wake up!”

Her eyes opened, but she stared at me blankly, still trapped in her nightmare. “Lucien?” she questioned, her voice breaking a little. “Don’t let them take me!”

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