Page 91 of Midnight Crown (Marked by Blood 2)

He shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets. “It’s a shame. I’d love for us to get to know each other better.”

I scoffed out a laugh. “That makes one of us.”

“I like a woman who’s feisty,” he admitted, grinning. “Don’t worry, I won’t give up. I’m not like your husband. I don’t shy away from what I want or feel.”

“You,” I spat, “know nothing about Sebastian.”

“I’ve known him longer than you.”

My fists balled. “Don’t pretend this—” I gestured around us. “—is all consensual. I’ve heard rumors of what happens here, and it’s brutal.”

He rolled his eyes up, then nodded along. “That’s the awful thing with rumors. They lack evidence. It’s such a shame. I really wish I could help you, but the Blood Brothers club is mine, and I protect what’s mine. I hope you understand.”

I stepped away. “You’re going to regret this.”

“No, I won’t.” I turned on my heel, heading to the door, when he called after me.

“Princess, did I make an impression this time?”

I didn’t dignify his question with a response, and instead raced out the double doors, leaving behind the stench of blood and cum.

***

The day felt like it went on forever when I finally reached the grounds. Another party was happening inside, and now the Aslandians were gone, we were wall to wall with mortals for them to feed on.

I grasped the note Sebastian had left on my bed. Meet me in the gardens. With a slight smile, I walked outside, the trail of my navy-blue dress dragging along behind me. I gazed up at the moonlit black canvas pin-pricked with silver stars. At that moment, all I could think about was how my life had gotten so crazy. Less than a year ago, I was staring out my window at the same night sky, grieving Astor. It felt like a lifetime ago.

I made my way through the grounds, past Azia’s cottage, until I reached the blooming lavender. Breathing in the evocative scent, I relaxed. The trees waved in the distance, and I listened to the wind whistling through the branches, frogs from the nearby pond ribbet, and crickets chirping. Every sound since becoming immortal was no longer just noise, but music.

A twig snapped behind me, and I turned, expecting to see Sebastian. Instead, beady, soulless eyes watched me as the aniccipere licked its lipless mouth. Footsteps sounded from behind me, and I prepared my magic. Danger pricked my adrenaline, and I poised to fight.

“Wha—”

A bag was placed over my head before I could finish my question. I screamed, grasping at the fabric, willing my magic into my hands. A pungent, herbal smell coated the material. Before I could fight back, my knees buckled, and I fell into blackness.

THIRTY-SEVEN

Olivia

By the time I awoke, the world had changed.

It took five aniccipere to pin me down, gag me, then strip me bare before I was dragged into a derelict mansion. The walls creaked and groaned as the heavy winds swept through rotting wood. Eyes glared at me through the ominous, dark windows, penetrating the permeating darkness as a tower clock chimed in the distance.

I drove my nails into one of the aniccipere’s arms, digging deep until I felt the bone under my fingertips. The creature flinched, shoving my hand off the now gaping wound, which healed far too fast for me to gain any satisfaction.

In an attempt to touch my magic, I closed my eyes, burying deep into my subconscious, but the thrum of power was reduced to a whisper of a melody, just beyond reach.

The past echoed within its walls as the old door creaked open, and I was pulled inside. Splatters of dried blood browned the peeling wallpaper and unvarnished floorboards. The surrounding energy flooded my barriers—terror. Terrible things had happened here. On the wall in the poorly lit corridor, symbols of demons were etched into the walls, smeared with blood.

One of the soul vampires hissed in my ear as they took me into what I presumed was once a grand living area, now an echo of what it was. I counted eight aniccipere, but I felt the energy from hundreds more, all waiting from the shadows. I had to be in the south. There was no way there were this many close to the castle.

A shiver puckered my skin into goosebumps as I was shoved, naked, into a hard chair, and tied with rope. Finally, they removed the gag, and I sucked in a deep breath. My magic was too far out of reach. The taste of poison was thick on my tongue, and the pungent herbal smell lingered on my hair from the bag. How long had I been out? Hours? Days?

My stomach grumbled with defiance, my body weakening from the lack of substance. While I was immortal, I still needed food, and the slow process of starvation knotted my stomach. I had been out for days. I had to have been.

I swallowed hard. My voice was raspy as I tried to speak. “Water.”

“No,” the creature who’d bound my hands hissed. “Not until he comes.”

---