Chapter 69 After The Dark Zone
Kira’s POV
I couldn’t even look at him. Shame and anger rolled off me in massive waves.
Every step away from that river felt like dragging chains.
My body was screaming reminders at me…sore thighs, aching hips, the ghost of his hands still burned into my skin. I could still feel him…every thick inch, every thrust, every time he’d growled my name like I was the only thing keeping him alive.
I hated it.
And I hated myself more for it.
How did I let this happen? How did I go from hating his guts to begging for more, nails raking down his back, mouth open in a gasp as I arched on top of him, head thrown back while he drove into me like the world was ending?
I slept with the enemy. The man who rejected Abby for years. The man who watched her break and did nothing.
Was I drugged? Possessed? Bewitched by some dark-zone spell? Because no way in hell was that me back there…riding him like my life depended on it, coming apart over and over until I blacked out.
Another flash hit…me on my knees, his fingers tangled in my hair, my back bowing as pleasure ripped through me so hard I saw stars.
Flashes kept hitting me like slaps.
Me on top of him, mouth open in a silent scream, back arched so hard I thought it would snap. My hands braced on his chest while I rode him like I’d die if I stopped. His big hands gripping my hips, guiding me harder, faster. The way he’d growled my name right before I threw my head back and shattered around him.
Again.
And again.
And again.
I stopped dead in the middle of the path and screamed like a lunatic…a raw, furious sound that scared birds out of the trees. I slammed both hands over my face, pressing hard, like I could block out the shame.
Behind me, Adrian skidded to a halt. I didn’t have to look to know he was staring, wide-eyed, looking like one wrong word would get his throat ripped out.
Smart. Very smart.
I dropped my hands, sucked in a lungful of icy air, and marched forward again.
Then his words from earlier slithered back in.
“You saved me… I finally felt alive again. Feeling you, being inside you, having you take me like that…”
Alive.
He felt alive now because he finally got what he wanted. He’d won. Tainted the weak, wolfless girl. Ruined the girl he never wanted.
So what’s next, Your Majesty? Going to kill me now that you’ve had your fun? Dispose of the evidence to fix your stupid curse?
Not happening.
I’m Kira goddamn Summers. Reborn to be stubborn as hell. No man…king or not…is ever walking over me again. I’d claw his eyes out first.
I stopped so abruptly he crashed straight into my back. He jumped away like I’d burned him, eyes dropping to the snow like a puppy the second I spun and glared.
And the cherry on top of this disaster? I still didn’t find my wolf. That was the whole damn reason I entered the Dark Zone…to finally awaken for myself what everyone else had. To get fangs and claws and power.
Instead, I got screwed (literally) and came out weaker than ever. No defenses. If he turned on me right now, I’d be dead in minutes.
Perfect.
Adrian cleared his throat, super careful, like he was defusing a bomb. “Princess…why the hell would you go into the Dark Zone alone in the first place?”
I lifted my chin. “I don’t owe you a single explanation.”
He groaned, frustration leaking out, then reached for me…big mistake. His hand closed around my wrist, spinning me to face him.
Our chests slammed together and I glared at him.
That same electric jolt shot through every nerve, straight between my legs. This traitor body lit up like it remembered exactly how good he felt buried deep.
I yanked free so hard I stumbled. “Don’t. Ever. Touch me again or I swear to whatever you hold dear, I’ll cut your hands off and feed them to the dogs.”
His eyes darkened, jaw tight like my threat meant nothing. “If you want my hands off you so badly, then tell me the real reason you went in there. Then maybe I won’t have to grab you to get answers.”
I squared my shoulders, fire in my veins. Fine. If the truth got him to back off, I’d throw it at his face.
“I went looking for my wolf,” I snapped.
Something raw and painful flashed across his face but was gone in a blink. Then anger took over, hot and fierce.
“And who the hell told you your wolf was floating around outside your body…especially in the fucking Dark Zone?”
He launched into a full lecture…voice rising, hands slicing the air…about rogues, wild beasts, bloodsuckers, how stupid and reckless and insane it was, how close I’d come to dying a hundred different ways.
I turned and started walking again without entertaining his lectures. He followed, still ranting.
I cut in without breaking stride. “So if you hadn’t found me, I’d be dead?”
“Yes!” he barked. “Rogues would’ve torn you apart. Or bears. Or worse…vampires draining you dry in some cave.”
Inside my head, I cackled like a villain.
Oh, Victoria, you sneaky little viper. You sent me out to get fang-raped by a vampire? Cute. Real cute.
Just wait till I get my hands on you. I’ll suck the life out of you…one petty torment at a time.
We fell silent after that and kept moving. The palace gates were visible now, tall and imposing against the sky. He could’ve shifted and sprinted ahead ages ago, leaving me to freeze. But no…he stayed, matching my stubborn pace step for step.
Not that it warmed my frozen heart one degree.
I shot him a sideways look. “I heard you’re replacing my maid.”
He nodded slowly, like every word was a potential landmine. “Yes. Liana’s not stable. She’s not… equipped for everything you need right now.”
“Liana came with me from my father’s kingdom. I want her to stay,” I said coolly. “But since you’re so eager to pick someone new, I have the perfect candidate.”
He raised a brow. “Who?”
“A good friend. Her name is Victoria. The daughter of one of your council members,” I answered, smiling like an angel holding a knife.
Inside, I was already scripting the revenge movie… Victoria fetching my tea, scrubbing floors, dealing with my moods 24/7. Payback’s going to taste sweeter than blood.
Adrian didn’t even hesitate. “Consider it done.”
His eyes glazed over…mindlink. A second later… “It’s handled. Victoria will be waiting for you the moment we walk through the gates.”
I nodded once. Then went for blood.
“You slept with me,” I said, voice low and venomous. Like I didn’t beg him to sleep with me. Like I didn’t initiate it. “Bare minimum, you can get me a phone.”
He blinked, caught off guard. “A phone? Who do you even want to call?”
“Who do you call on yours?” I fired back. “Isn’t it barbaric that you banned phones from the entire palace like some medieval tyrant? Newsflash, Adrian…the world’s moving on. Do better.”
He dragged a hand down his face, groaning. “Fine. Which model?”
I named the one I’d drooled over back home…the sleek, insanely expensive phone with the camera that could probably see into other dimensions. The one my father and stepmother always called “too extravagant for a girl my age.”
The Falcon Supernova iPhone 6 Pink Diamond Edition.
And I wanted to use it to spy on those three vultures in LA…see exactly how they were blowing through my mother’s money while I was trapped here.
Adrian’s eyes glazed again. “Done. It’ll be delivered soon.” He paused, voice softer, almost hopeful. “Does that…make you happy? Have you forgiven me?”
I scoffed so hard it echoed. “That’s the absolute bare minimum.” I stormed ahead, foot crunching snow.
Inside, the panic crept back in cold fingers.
I need Liana. Now.
Adrian already had me…tainted me, claimed me, ruined me.
What does that mean for me? For everything?
Where do I even stand anymore? Will I be used just like Liana said?
We reached the towering palace gates together. Guards snapped salutes, iron creaking open.
And then we both froze.
Because sprawled across the courtyard, right under the palace steps, was a scene neither of us ever expected.