Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Rhea
“Are you threatening me?” I asked out loud again, minutes after his last words had hit where they weren't meant to. He was still staring at me, but it didn't make it any less intense. “Was that supposed to be a threat?”

“What do you think?” He hissed. His eyes were pitch black now, and he radiated everything I should be afraid of, but I wasn't. Instead, I felt intrigued.

I didn't know Alaric as someone to be passive, or considerate even, but for some strange reason, his eyes softened, momentarily, before he added in a less cruel tone

“It wasn't a threat.” He let out slowly. “It was a fact. You should….”

“I want to hurt you.” The words ripped out of me before I could stop them, burning through my throat like acid. I was so close to Alaric I could feel the heat of his body, the steady hum of power rolling off him. His eyes narrowed just slightly, but his mouth curved, slowly into a mocking cruel, like I hadn't just promised him fire and brimstone if I had the chance.

“You can’t,” he murmured, tilting his head like a predator amused by its prey. “Not without tearing yourself apart first. That’s the beauty of this bond, little hunter. It makes you mine, in every way that matters.”

The smirk only made the fury in my chest claw harder. My fists curled, and my teeth ground together, not because I wanted them to, but because he was right. If I hurt him, I’d feel it too, but I’d be damned if I let him win this war without a fight.

“Don’t get too comfortable,” I shot back, my voice sharp enough to cut glass. “Because one day, I’ll find a way. And when I do, I’ll make sure you bleed.”

His eyes glittered at that, as if my rage was the sweetest wine he’d ever tasted, and then without thinking, without even breathing, I moved.

I might not be able to hurt him directly, but I could hurt his kind for all I care. They were going to be my unofficial guinea pigs here, and I certainly didn't mind playing a crazy doctor down at the lab.

The blade was already in my hand, pulled from the sheath at my thigh in one swift motion. My wrist snapped, as I sent the silver edge of the blade flying across the room. It spun once, twice, then sliced into the arm of the woman who had just stepped through the door.

A blood curdling scream tore through his lips, as she clutched at the wound. Blood welled between her fingers, and for a heartbeat, I felt a savage triumph. But it died almost instantly when I saw her stumble, not with inhuman speed, not with sharpened eyes like the others, but like any other woman would when faced with pain.

She wasn’t one of them. Shit.

The air shifted immediately, like a scene straight out of a horror book. Around me, chairs scraped, footsteps stilled, and then, the fangs came. A dozen of them, flashing in the low light as the vampires closest to her bared their teeth. Their hunger hit the air like static, thick and sharp, and I felt it sink into my bones.

Shit.

I could feel the hunger rolling off them in waves, they practically reeked of the stuff, but for some weird reason, they weren't charging at her. At least not directly.

Their eyes were turned and trained, not to her, but to him.

Alaric.

They were waiting, waiting for their king to give them the word, to let them feed.

“Stand. Down.” Two words, and that was all it took. His voice cracked through the lobby like a whip, and the tension snapped instantly. The vampires lowered their heads, their hunger banked but not extinguished, as they stepped back into the shadows.

For a split second, I actually expected Alaric to give them the go ahead, but I was barely done processing that shock, when something else happened.

He moved then, unhurried, and controlled, like he had all the time in the world and she wasn't bleeding out all over his carpet. His shoes clicked against the marble as he walked toward the woman, who was sobbing now, eyes wild, begging for someone to help her.

“Please…let me go,” her voice cracked with every syllable. “Please, I'll leave and never bother you.. I won't utter a word….”

Alaric crouched in front of her, his expression unreadable, and that was all it took for her to keep mute. With one hand, he caught her trembling wrist. The other hovered over the gash in her arm, and then, right before my eyes, the wound sealed shut, blood vanishing as if it had never been.

“How?” The woman gasped, looking at her arm in disbelief. “What…what did you…”

Alaric’s gaze lifted, catching hers. His voice dropped into that low, hypnotic cadence that sent shivers down my spine even though it wasn’t directed at me.

“You were never here,” he said softly. “You tripped. You cut your arm. A stranger helped you. That’s all you’ll remember.”

“Oh.” Her pupils dilated, her breath slowed, and , just like that, she nodded. “I… tripped, that's all.”

“Good.” He rose to his full height, releasing her. “Now leave.”

She staggered to her feet, dazed,but surprisingly fine, before she hurried out without a backward glance.

The doors shut behind her, and the silence that followed was worse than any scream I'd heard.

Alaric turned slowly, and I didn't miss how his eyes locked on me, burning with a darkness that wasn’t fury alone, it was deeper, heavier, laced with possession and something I didn’t dare name. Disappointment maybe. He crossed the room, every step a promise, until his hand shot out and gripped the back of my neck. It wasn't hard enough to hurt, but firm enough to tell me there was no escape.

“You’re in so much trouble when we get home.” He leaned in, his lips brushing the shell of my ear, his voice a low growl that sent a shiver straight through me. “Little hunter.”

A tremor ran through me, part terror, part anticipation I refused to admit. I should have pulled away, shoved him off, spat in his face. But my body betrayed me, heat coiling low in my belly even as my jaw locked stubbornly.

“Good,” I whispered, forcing the word past my lips. “Then make it worth it.”

The dangerous smile that curved his mouth told me I’d just set fire to a fuse I couldn’t put out.

Shit. What the hell had I gotten myself into?