10
 

 

 

 

It’d been a week since I’d lived with him in the Keep.

By Queen Kaara’s grace, we’d moved to a bigger house with a fenced yard, as if the fence could stop me.

However, if I jumped over the railing and out of the boundary of protection, the shifters would have the right to hunt me and put me down on sight.

Although Kaara was generous and kind to me, she placed my new residency as far away from King Marrok as she could. I was no match for the Wolf King, but an accidental bite from me would cause Marrok great harm, since my venom was manufactured to target him.

He laughed at his mate for her being overprotective since she constantly complained about having to put up with him. 

Marrok also relieved Antonio from all his duties in the Keep, so he would be free to guard me. The pack expected Antonio to tame me, and they pressured him to do it in record time, because the final war with the vampires and the other six clans were looming on the horizon.

It didn’t help that this planet would go up in flames at any time. We’d had three meteorite hits since I’d crashed in the arena and each one proved devastating.

I picked up information here and there, but all urgency was lost to me. The shifters had no idea what it was like to be a new-born vampire. It was a fucking joke that they wanted to train me.

Antonio lectured me about self-control, but I looked at the scars on his neck left by my fangs. He should have learned by now how disciplined I was. I wondered when he would eventually give up on me.

I realized sooner than him that my blood frenzy would never go away; only my shame and self-loathing were fading, though I still felt some guilt when I stared at the wounds on his neck. After all, he was my mate. 

Being a vampire had changed my nature. I was no longer the sweet leopard princess.

I was thankful that Antonio was extremely strong and regenerated fast. A normal human would be a slack of bags under my feet after a week of my feeding.

I didn’t know who had offered Antonio a crappy counsel, because twice he’d brought me animal blood, wanting me to go veggie.

I’d vomited after taking the animal blood and my body had trembled in pain for hours, until Antonio’s blood had fixed it.  

In another attempt, Antonio’s close friend Lou and a couple of guards had been generous enough to donate their blood into a glass, but their blood also smelled repulsive to me. Without having a sip, I went to the bathroom to throw up. 

The only blood I wanted was Antonio’s.

He was both comforted and dismayed by that.

But this should not be his life—being my lifetime supply of drink. 

I slashed a finger across my throat. “You should just end me, Antonio, to save yourself some trouble.”

He growled. “Never say that to me again.”

“All I can give you in return is a few hot fucks. They aren’t worth it.”

“You’re not hot fucks! You’re my mate.”

Some of the shifters who saw the bite marks on his neck were repulsed and pitied him, but Antonio ignored them. He used to care how others regarded him and had always demanded respect.

After all, Antonio Evans had been the general’s son before he’d been banished to Pandemonium. I’d also learned from my father that Antonio was Marrok’s distant cousin. If Marrok died without an heir, Antonio could challenge the current King Jeroboam if he ever returned to our planet and became the Wolf King himself.

I doubted Antonio had such ambition. If he did, he wouldn’t keep me at his own cost.

In the Keep, it didn’t matter that I was Antonio’s mate. I was the pack’s number one enemy—not only that, I was a vampire. My father had slaughtered their parents with the usurper, King Jeroboam, and exiled the wolf cubs to this cursed planet and thus sentenced them all to a fate worse than death.

If they hadn’t had Marrok, who had led them out of the darkness, they’d have fallen apart.

But they’d forgotten that Antonio, their general, had given his all to keep them together as well. Antonio had put his life on the line and led them to fight every battle.

When a few wolves had presented their cases to King Marrok about putting me down, Antonio had jumped on them in the court, trying to tear them apart. Marrok had stopped the bloodshed and given Antonio a severe warning.

After that, no shifters came to our door for fear of Antonio. Queen Kaara had also declared I was under her protection.

Antonio had since stayed on high alert even in his sleep. Because of his vampire mate, he now had to fend off his own people. And after we’d moved to this fenced house, he had dismissed the guards, but I knew the wolves were watching us vigilantly.

I had left the house twice and stood in the fenced yard.

While I’d looked up at the ashy sky, the shifters strolling by our house had regarded me with pure hatred. Antonio had stood by me in a defensive position. He’d snarled threateningly at the wolves, ready to kill his people if they dared come near me.

I squeezed his arm to stop him from baring teeth and returned to my confined room.

There wasn’t much to see anyway in the City of Nine other than the half-burning sky tainted by black smoke.

If only I could have met Antonio under different circumstances.

I wouldn’t ruin him for long.

This shouldn’t be my life either—confined in the house drinking from him every day and fucking him.

I would go down in the final battle against Desdemona and take my revenge.

During our downtime, Lou had come over often. He was the oldest shifter in the Keep. When Jeroboam had cast out the wolf cubs to Pandemonium, Lou was one month short of sixteen, so Jeroboam couldn’t execute him.

Over the past week, I’d accumulated the news or rumors Lou had brought.

Newsflash one: according to the prophecy, Queen Kaara Nightshades would lead the wolves out of Pandemonium and return them to their original home on my planet SunDance and overthrow King Jeroboam, my former fiancé.

I’d countered: no one in the City of Nine seemed to have met this First Seer of Death Valley galaxy, so the shifter should check the credibility of the prophecy. I didn’t care what they believed, but I would watch Antonio’s back and prevent him from falling into the same gullibility. I understood the living conditions on this planet became direr every day, and they needed to hold onto the slimmest hope, but I’d rather face the brutal truth than be delusional.

Newsflash two: the prophecy shifted a little. Ha! It wasn’t Queen Kaara but the Wickedest Witch who would find the portal to get everyone home. Queen Kaara had been guarding the witch for that purpose, so now the wolves headed toward the Witch Tower to keep them both alive. 

Newsflash three came in just now as Lou brought Antonio lunch.

They whispered in the living room while I slept in the bedroom. I caught every word. I often took a nap at daytime even though the city was forever in the shade, probably because vampires were creatures of shadows.

“The First Seer said when an Angel with black wings falls onto Pandemonium,” Lou started, “we’ll know the time has come for us to go home. The Angel fell today! The guarding wolves saw him. His Majesty ran all the way back to the Witch Tower.”

Since Antonio couldn’t leave me unguarded to verify things for himself, he hung onto every crap word Lou fed him.

I got out of bed and stepped into the living room. 

“Did the First Seer of Death Valley galaxy tell you in person, Lou?” I sneered. “And who is this Seer?” I hadn’t talked to anyone other than Antonio for a while, and I was surprised that my voice sounded regal in my ears.

Both Antonio and Lou raised their heads and stared at me in surprise.

At my appearance, Antonio’s eyes brightened, and Lou’s sharpened in alert. He pulled his chair slightly back and let Antonio stay between us. If I jumped onto our guest and went for his throat, I would have to get past Antonio.

I didn’t blame Lou. The wolves were a suspicious lot. Actually, everyone in the City of Nine was paranoid since it was a small victory just to breathe to the next moment.

“No, but the First Seer told our queen in person,” Lou said defensively.

“So, the queen told you so,” I drawled. 

“Queen Kaara never lies,” said Lou.

I see. Their new queen had gained the shifters’ love in a short time. I didn’t even need to try, and they’d all hated me. Of course, I was their number one enemy’s daughter plus a vampire.

“Everyone lies,” I said sourly. 

“Before this day,” Lou said, “Queen Kaara asked us to watch the sky. She said when an Angel with black wings fell, then we needed to get ready to leave the City of Nine and go home. The Angel is in the Witch Tower now. He has a pair of massive black wings, just as the Seer predicted, though he broke his wings in his fall. The wolves in the Witch Tower reported back that the Angel cannot spread his wings to their full potential yet.” Lou pounded the arm of the chair in excitement. “No matter. The prophecy has come to pass!”

“Kaara did mention the Angel,” Antonio said, a small, bright hope sparking in his blue eyes. If the prophecy was true, he could bring me out of the confinement and out of this pit in space.

He could make life better for me once we got off the planet.

“I need to see the Angel of black wings with my own eyes,” said Antonio. “Only then will I believe the prophecy.”

“When will you stop being so suspicious, Antonio?” Lou sighed. “Fine. I’ll watch Bella while you go.”

I bared my teeth and hissed, just to scare Lou, and he blinked. 

“Bella,” Antonio chided. “Lou is a good friend.”

“Then he shall taste friendly,” I said, twirling a strand of red-gold hair in my fingers.

Antonio glowered. Would he always be so possessive?

Lou laughed. “Trying to scare me off? You don’t even want my donated blood.”

Now, he remembered that? A moment ago, he’d tried to put distance between us.

“Perhaps I can go with you to see the fallen Angel with broken wings, Antonio?” I said in a half joke.

Lou choked on a cough.

King Marrok wouldn’t lift the ban on me leaving the house, especially when the shifters were about to go to war with the vampires. I’d already caused a lot of inconveniences for the wolves and taken their general and best warrior off the battlefield.

“We’ll go together one day,” Antonio said, “when things cool down a little.”

Things would never cool down.

A sad look in Lou’s warm eyes said as much. “Well, I gotta go,” he said. “I need to get the bar ready for today. The Angel has fallen. We’re going to celebrate.”

Lou was also a part-time bartender when he didn’t have other duties.

He smiled at me and departed, leaving Antonio and me alone. 

I wouldn’t be invited to the celebration. Neither would Antonio because of me, and he was their general. He lived in exile amid his own people, but he’d never complained.

I sauntered to him and sat on his lap, trying hard not to eye the veins on his neck.

To my delight, he immediately got hard, his huge erection pushing his trousers out of shape and pricking against my bottom.

“Did you have a nice nap?” he asked.

Vampires didn’t dream. Their sleep—my sleep—was all black and empty.

The only brightness in my life was drinking from Antonio and fucking him, but I didn’t think he would let me have another sip.

I glanced at his veins on his neck, and Antonio involuntarily shifted me, moving to face him but away from his neck.

I licked my lips.

“You fed this morning before your nap. You won’t drink from me again until tomorrow morning.”

He set a ration—no more than three mouthfuls a day. Was that how he was going to shape me into a disciplined vampire? And with only two to three mouthfuls of blood daily, I would survive but wouldn’t grow too strong to fight him.

After I’d had my portion, I always latched onto him and refused to let him go. Every time he had to wring me off him, no matter how I threatened or begged.

He was incredibly strong. And when it became too much for him, he used the Meridian points on me. I’d learned at least three different points where he could paralyze me temporarily or put me to sleep.

And no matter what, Antonio refused to place me in chains. If anyone ever suggested it, he’d threaten to shackle them and toss their asses at the cannibals. 

Storms, this planet had many different kinds of cannibals.

Antonio lifted me into his arms, rose from the chair, and went to kick the door shut.

I knew what he wanted to do, and my heart pounded in thrilling anticipation. Now was the best time to negotiate with him.

“One more sip?” I pleaded. “Please?”

“No. We stick to the rules.”

I was sick of his rules. There were always rules. He thought rules were important.

“If I don’t get a drop, you don’t get a fuck,” I said.

“Fine. But you want it as badly as I do. I’m curious to see how you’re gonna fight it.”

I bit my lip. The aching need between my thighs was growing unbearable. And he was right, even though my blood frenzy always lurked there, I had fed. I could wait until the next day since I had no other options. Besides, Antonio was most vulnerable the moment when he climaxed. I could strike then.

He hadn’t kept me immobile while we’d fucked lately as a reward for my good behavior. I hadn’t bitten him without his permission for a week. Which wasn’t easy, but I’d achieved it.

“Fine,” I said. “We’ll fuck on one condition.”

He arched an eyebrow.

“Tomorrow morning when I drink, I get to drink from your neck,” I said.

“We’ve also established that rule. You’ll only drink from my wrist.”

“But it’s easier to drink from your neck,” I said. “The veins are bigger.” His poignant, spicy blood often poured onto my tongue when I sank my fangs into the veins in his neck. “I promise I’ll stop after two mouthfuls, or maybe one and half mouthfuls.”

“Only when I truly see the progress of your discipline, you can drink from my neck again.”

Antonio really didn’t know how to compromise, and he probably treated me like his soldiers.

I gave him a pouting look, slid off him, and stormed into the bedroom.

I rolled onto the bed and gave him my back.

Antonio climbed into the bed without my invitation. He pressed against me, his body heat radiating to me. My skin was always cold since I’d turned, but I loved his heat.

Antonio draped his muscled arm over my waist.

“Bella, baby,” he whispered, his lips on my earlobe, his hard length straining against the hollow place between my thighs.

My nipples were so taut, and my pussy desperately needed to be filled with his cock. 

So instead of battling his will, I wiggled my ass against his groin, rubbing his shaft.

He growled erotically.

He stripped me and tossed my clothing under the bed. His large hand came around to cup my breast and fondled it roughly.

I rolled onto my stomach and opened my legs wide for him. 

He could relax now. In this position, there was no chance I could get my fangs near his neck.

He moved on top of me, and his delicious weight fell onto me.

When his lips traced along the column of my neck, I suppressed a pleasurable moan.

I raised my rear, my pussy bared for him to access.

Antonio inhaled and cursed.

His cock brushed my folds back and forth to tease it. Its blunt head nudged at my entrance.

But why hadn’t he entered yet?

I looked over my shoulder.

He was staring at how his cock played with my pussy in dark fascination, lust twisting the shape of his sensual lips.

I swayed my ass to urge him to invade me.

“Bella!” He groaned hoarsely, and thrust into me.

I gasped and moaned.

“You have the hottest pussy, little mate, just as I dreamt,” he said. “I’ll fuck you slowly first until you beg, and then I’ll fuck you harder than you can take.”

I swallowed. But I didn’t beg. I slammed into him. Let’s see how slowly he could go.

“Naughty,” he said. “I said slow first. I have to spank you to punish you.”

“Do your worst,” I breathed.

I rammed toward him again to take all his shaft into my depth and ride along his length.

“What a ride,” I murmured.

“You asked for it!”

Antonio spanked my ass lightly, but he couldn’t keep his promise of going slowly. He plunged into me, each thrust faster and harder than the previous one, until he fucked me with blinding speed and brutal strength.

The waves of pleasure were so high all I could do was pant and moan and enjoy.

“Yes, Antonio,” I moaned his name.

“You want more, mate?”

“Yes! No, no more! It’s too much. And yes, Antonio, more!”

“Make up your mind. But no matter, I’ll give you more. I’ll give you all!”

My inner walls clenched his cock, every hard inch of it, and milked it violently.

Antonio growled and drove through my orgasm. He pumped into me, long and hard, and emptied himself.

After our shudders ceased, he remained on top of me, his cock still granite-hard inside me.

I almost felt complete. It was an intoxicating feeling. 

For the first time, I didn’t seek to bite him.

“Bella, my Bella,” he whispered my name, his lips tracing from my shoulders up to my neck. Then he started moving inside me again.

Slowly at first.

Scorching hot waves once again seized me and put me under its irresistible power.