Page 14 of Heavy is the Crown
I have had years of training to withstand various forms of torture. They aren’t reinventing the wheel in this prison.
“Hello, Gerald. To what do I owe the pleasure?” I ask, kicking my legs out in front of me on the bed, the picture of relaxation despite my tense muscles. Muscles that are screaming to flee out the door he’s left open. Magic that is screaming to be unleashed.
He smiles wickedly. “I’m hungry.”
I try my best to give him a look of boredom, to quell the fear cropping up in me. “They’ve already fed from me today.” It’s a rule Alexi put into place: you can only feed so much from us on this level.
“You think anyone will care if anotherwhoreof a witch ends up dead?” Advancing on me, he reaches down and grabs my hair at the roots, pulling me upward. I don’t make a peep, despite the pain; they want my screams. I just keep staring at him. I can see the anger brewing and know what's coming before his fist connects with my cheek. Blood pools at the corner of my mouth as he drops my body back down on the dirty stone floor. Past him, I see the still open door, light streaming in like a beacon of hope.
Leaning down, he gets close to my face. “No one will give a shit. Just because you are in a nicer cage doesn’t make you any more important.”
I attempt to scramble for the open door, but the vampire is too quick, and he yanks my body back against his. I thrash against the hold, but the moment I feel how it excites him, I stop. Anger and rage pour through my veins. My power flickersjust below the surface, and I bite down hard on my lip to keep it under control.
“Mmm, you smell good. I may keep you alive for a while. Maybe I’ll even give you my blood, slowly break you,” he breathes into my ear.
The scent of his breath has me swallowing back bile, but I manage to turn my face to the side and gulp in fresh air. “You have no idea where I came from if you think you can break me,” I growl out, then throw my head back, smashing it into his nose. His hold breaks, and I lurch forward again, but he grabs hold of my legs just as my outstretched arm touches the open doorway. He pulls me back and flings me around so I’m no longer facing the only path of escape.
I let out a loud scream of frustration as he wrestles my body into submission. My mind races—is killing him worth exposing who and what I am? But before I make that decision, the weight lifts off my body, and a strange gurgling noise erupts behind me. Turning my head slightly, I see the tattooed fist through the chest of the vampire just before it pulls back out and the guard drops dead. Behind him stands the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen. My heart sings at the sight of him. His dark hair is short but messy. Tattoos cover every part of him, including one across his face. His eyes are a deep whiskey color, and the moment they lock onto mine, a feeling of peace overwhelms me. I know he’s the one I’ve been waiting for when the word “home” shifts through my mind.
Shadow
(“Eat Your Young” – Hozier)
I wipe my bloodied hand on my jeans as I look down at the corpse of the vampire at my feet. “Fuck. This is going to be a pain in the ass to explain,” I grumble. I had heard the voice of a woman arguing with the very dead guard at my feet, heard a fire in that voice that made my dragon wake up. And he rarelywakes up these days. Curiosity got the better of me, and when I saw him pinning her down, the rage that consumed me had no hope of being contained. Just like I can’t contain how good the blood on my hand feels right now. Or that it is making my cock ridiculously hard.
A tiny squeak has me glancing from his body. Pulls my focus away from the blood.
Two silver eyes lock onto mine as they peer through a mess of blonde hair that's matted and dirty.
I’m struck by her beauty immediately. “I’m not going to hurt you,” I say, trying to make myself less intimidating. My dragon rolls its eyes from deep in its cage. The first engagement he’s had with me in a long time. It’s unsettling and mildly annoying.
Her eyes narrow. “And I should trust you, why?” Her voice sends shivers down my spine.
Shrugging, I crouch down to her level. “I guess because I just ripped this person's heart out. Isn’t that enough?”
She lets out a laugh, the sound beautiful and wild in a place that holds no beauty. It lights up my tattered soul in a way that I’ve never experienced, better than any high. I know in this moment I would follow her to the ends of the earth if she commanded it, if for no other reason than to chase that feeling and to hear that laugh again.
When she moves to push herself back, her scent fills the air. Lilac fields envelop the room, like a warm spring day, despite the rank smell of this place. All I can sense is her. The instant it hits me, I feel the leash I have on my dragon strain, his essence fully awake now. I close my eyes for a moment to regain some type of control. Even covered in filth, she makes my mouth water and heart beat out of my chest. My teeth shift, elongating into their dragon form.
Before I can shove him back, my dragon pushes outward, taking control of my body for a moment. She lets out a gasp as Ipush her against the wall, my massive body crowding in on her small one. I burrow into her neck, inhaling her scent deeply, a low rumble building in my chest.
Pulling back, I lock eyes with her again, then flick my gaze down to watch her lips part. She drags her bottom one between her teeth. “Name?” My voice is a deep growl, more animal than human now.
“Ava,” she practically whimpers, her voice soft in the space around us.
“Mmm.Ava.” I let the name roll around on my tongue.
“Who are you?” she asks tentatively. I’m aware I’m still crowding her, my arms bracketing her body. Her silver eyes are wide, and if it weren’t for the change in her breathing and the way her pupils have blown out, I would think she was afraid. But that's not fear I smell.
I smile wickedly. “I’m the monster in the dark.”
I crash my mouth into hers and instantly moan at the taste and feel. It only takes a moment before she yields to me and allows my tongue to sweep in. She grips my shirt and pulls herself closer, hunger pulsing through those actions. Her breasts press against my chest, that thin shirt doing nothing to hide her hardening nipples. I roughly palm her breast, earning me a gasp that gives way to a long moan. I huff out a laugh against her lips.
Pulling back, I push up the flimsy shirt before covering her soft mounds with my mouth and ravishing her with my tongue. She moans out louder, and for a moment, I worry someone will hear us, but I can’t seem to stop myself. Can’t stop my dragon. A desperation claws at me to find out what she tastes like, what she’ll feel like when I push my cock into her. Dropping down onto my knees, I begin to pull down the shorts she’s in, when her hand grips my hair, pulling my eyes to her face.
“I like you on your knees,” she purrs as she leans down to eye level. “Every princess should have a monster willing to bendthe knee just for her. Willing to worship her as she deserves.” She licks up the side of my face before standing back up and spreading her legs slightly.
The confidence in her voice makes my eyes roll back in my head, the little resolve I was still pretending to have snapping. I rip off her shorts, and my mouth waters at the sight of her pussy. “Fuck, you smell good,” I mutter, my voice husky. “I bet if I touch you, you’ll be soaking wet. Dripping, all for me.” My fingers trail up the inside of her thigh, then back down her leg. The red blood still painting them stands out brightly against her unnaturally pale skin. She lets out an inpatient groan, her fingers tightening in my hair.
