Page 14 of The Crownless King
Being King of the Bayi was title enough for him.
Being King of the South held no appeal to him.
He’d taken the piece of Akachi to aid him in ridding the rest of the Southern USA of the Buru, but the stone had proved harder to control than he’d anticipated. Raven, Sebastian’s mate, had warned him that the pure chaos magic would be too much. He’d taken her words into consideration and still thought the risk was worth it. He was paying for his arrogance. Madness was creeping in and though he hid it from his friends, he was starting to get worried.
For a moment, with Amaya in his arms, all that had gone away. Could that be why he was drawn to her? As he inhaled, her scent lingered in the air and gave him his answer. It wasn’t the Akachi stone controlling his reaction to her. He wantedher.
Everything in him was telling him that Amaya was what he’d subconsciously been searching for. Holding her here against her will wasn’t necessarily a good start to that. His gaze went back to the door she’d exited. Her taste clung to his tongue and if he closed his eyes, he could see her beautiful, defiant face.
Fuck it.
There were worse ways to start a mating.
Chapter five
Amaya paced the luxurious bedroom, her heart thumping through her chest. But it was still hers, inside of her body and functioning. That was a victory in and of itself. Even with her limited knowledge of the king, she knew that not many escaped his wrath.
How was she getting out of this predicament? One would think fear was what was hindering her thoughts but…no. Her magic was flaring wildly around her as her body battled arousal and need. For once, not a single thought in her head was helpful. Her mind was crowded with the king of the vampires. His chiseled face left no room for anything else.
She flashed back to an hour ago when she’d taken his blood. Amaya had looked into his dark eyes and seen the flames swirling within. She could almost feel the monster he was clawing to come out and devour her. It was a foolish choice to give herself to him. But what other option did she have?
Amaya’s body shuddered as she remembered the way his teeth had pierced her throat. The pain had been instantaneous, but quickly swept away by pleasure that had swamped her body. Even the memory of it heated her skin until the air around her left prickles of sensation. Not to mention how her magic reacted to him. The greedy chaos of her power wanted to attach itself to him and revel in his dark aura. It called to her magic in a way she’d never experienced before. She took a deep shuddering breath and headed to the window in her prison.
Escape was a ridiculous notion, especially since he held her mother somewhere in this compound. While her power was useful for the Archive, it would be futile against a mansion fullof vampires. She turned from the window and paced. Had she made the right decision? Would he allow her to change her mind? She bit her lip because she couldn’t in good conscience let him kill her uncle.
Looking around the lavish bedroom, she sighed. This…prison was a lot better than the bedroom of the small house she and her mother were renting. She shook her head; what was she thinking? Not even an hour alone and she was already rationalizing the situation.
“Get it together, Amaya,” she muttered in disgust.
She rushed to her bag the maid had left on the bench in front of her bed. Eyebrows lifting, she was shocked to find her phone. Rolling it around in her hand, she debated her actions. She could call her cousin, and then what?
The rest of her family would be involved. To what end?
She stared at it as a text came in.
Trace:What did Paul want? Did you make it home?
Her hands shook as she typed out the lie that would keep the rest of her family safe.
Amaya:Girl. Same shit different day.
An eyeroll gif was her cousin’s response, but she didn’t question it further. Amaya was thankful that Tracy left it at that. Her head lifted at a knock at the door. She ignored it, not ready to deal with what was on the other side. Holding her breath, she waited on another knock; when it didn’t come, she released the air in her lungs and flopped down on the bed.
Closing her eyes and fighting to center herself, Amaya worked through the panic waiting in the wings to take over. Herhand went to her neck, her fingers trailing the spot where King Levi had bitten her. The skin still tingled there, but closing her eyes, the image of his blood-soaked mouth filled her vision.
She had to get out of here.
Her stomach grumbled as she sat up. Dinner had been long forgotten and now all she could think about was her mother. Was she alright? Amaya rushed to the door, regretting ignoring the knock the first time. She turned the knob, shocked to find that it worked. She wasn’t locked inside.
As she opened it, her breath stalled and she took a shaky step away. King Levi stood at her door, a tray of food in his hand. With every step he took inside her room, she fell back.
“What are you doing here?”
“You refused the tray from the maid I sent earlier,” he told her.
She shook her head because she hadn’t realized how deep she’d been in her thoughts. How long ago had that knock been? Levi set down the tray and turned his full attention to her. All the air in the room was sucked out. His presence left no room for anyone else. Amaya knew power, she worked around it all the time, but this was raw, untamed, similar to the wild chaos she worked with daily. How tied up in the Akachi was the king to be leaking this much magic? It took her breath away. Her body sought to tune itself with his.
The pulse that was once racing slowed to match the hard thump of his. She could tell that he hadn’t fed in a while, but how she knew that was a mystery. Surely it had something to do with the blood bond. Amaya examined her mind; there was a tether to him, though it was light. It was enough for some of his feelings to come through. She sensed his wariness and that…shedidn’t know what to do with that. Why should he be wary? He was holding her hostage.
