Captured (Vampire King Book 2) (11 page)

Long
candles rested in colorful glass holders on end tables, the piano, and some
even hung from a silver chandelier. The room sparkled with light. Even more
candles stood in the back of the room on a tiny stage and surrounded a silver
throne with carved snakes coiling around the arms. On the throne, Princess
Octavia sat, bored and alone. It made me sad to watch her.

“And
there is my lovely sister.” Samuel leaned my way.

“Why
does she look so gloomy when she’s among all of her friends?”

“None
of these people are her friends. If she was dying from starvation, they
wouldn’t give her a drop of blood.”

“Then
why does she have the parties?”

“I’ve
been asking her that for the past ten years, since she first started hosting
these gatherings. These parties are dangerous. The Quiet King forbids them and
says they incite fights, murder, and unlawful behavior.”

“But
he allows blood spirit bars where the same outcomes occur.”

“Of
course.” Samuel smiled. “All of those bars’ money goes straight to the
kingdom.”

“So,
vampires can’t enjoy themselves unless the King is getting some reward in
return?”

Samuel
nodded.

“Then
maybe providing a party is Octavia’s way of promoting resistance against the
King.” I nudged his arm. “You pathfinders can’t have all the fun.”

Samuel
said nothing for a while as if thinking it over in his head.

“Blasted
woman,” Samuel finally said. His body stiffened. A frown replaced his smile.

“What?”

“I
think you may be right.” He shook his head. “It never occurred to me, but this
may be the only way she could go against our father without getting herself
instantly killed.”

We
stood there for a few seconds as the violin music shifted to a piano solo.

“Now
I feel bad for being so hard on her,” Samuel admitted. “I’ve just been so
aggravated with her and our mother, plotting to turn me into a king.”

“Well,
they did get us together,” I reminded him, even though I’d been trying to run
away from him recently. I had one more night left and then I would go off
somewhere else. Gazing at Samuel, I wondered if I should even leave.
Would it be so bad to stay with him?
No
man triggered so much passion inside me like he did. I desired to discover who
I was when it was just me,
but why?
I
bit my lip.

Maybe the answer is here, in
these moments where I walk on the paths that I choose myself. Maybe this great
mystery of me will be solved as I further explore these feelings that linger
between us.

“Maybe.”
He kissed my cheek and guided us to the stage.

I
smirked. “Stop reading my thoughts.”

We
arrived at the stage. Octavia didn’t even turn our way when we approached. Her
eyes concentrated on something far off in the distance, something no one but
her could see. She flicked her hand and yawned.

Two
guards appeared in silver leather. “Princess Octavia doesn’t want to entertain
anyone tonight.”

“Tell
the princess that Samuel wants to speak with her.”

They
returned to her and delivered the message. Her mouth dropped as she snapped her
face to us. She snapped her finger. The guards blew out the candles near her
throne. The space around the stage darkened. None of the dancing or
blood-drinking vampires noticed. Octavia motioned for us to follow her as she
lifted her silver glitter robe and rushed down a shadowed path behind the
throne.

“This
should be interesting.” Samuel clasped his hand around mine and we trailed
behind the guards and her.

The
music, laughter, and chatter from the party drifted away the farther we walked
through the tunnel. The guards lit candles. The walls shined in the dim light
and smelled of cleaning fluids, as if servants tirelessly washed and prepped
the sewer tunnel each night before the festivities.

When
the last remnants of music drifted away and all I could hear was our footsteps
in the space, Octavia spoke, “I assume that is you, Brie, under that horrendous
wig?”

“Yes.
It’s me in the wig.” I smiled.
Leave it
to Octavia to worry about fashion during a time of secrecy and on the edge of
danger.
We rounded the corner into a bedroom full of leather. Chains and
hooks swung from the ceiling. A metal bed stood in the center with no blankets
or pillows. Concrete coated the floor. In some areas, there were drainage
vents.

“What’s
this room?” Samuel asked.

“A
sort of play area,” she said.

“Do
you use this room?”

“Yes.”
She averted her eyes. “Do not judge me, brother. Your distaste for my life gets
tiring after so many years.”

“I’m
not judging.” He headed over to one of the dangling chains with several hooks
sticking out of it. “And what do you use these for?”

“Pleasure
and pain.” Her voice sounded confident, but her face betrayed herself.
Embarrassment and dread outlined the edge of her eyes and frown. “Is this why
you came to my party, to witness my extracurricular activities?”

He
peeled away his mask and slung it on the floor.

She
gasped, hurried to him, and extended her hands. “Those horns are connected to
your head?” He moved away. “No! Don’t touch them.”

“Why
not?” She kept her hands in the air a few inches from them.

“It
would bring me sexual gratification which is absolutely not what I want from my
twin sister.”

She
cringed and stepped back. “How long have you had them?”

“They
appeared today.”

Giving
myself something to do, I walked over to a rack stacked with wooden needles and
tiny daggers.
What does Octavia do in
here and whom does she do it with?

Octavia’s
lips widened into a huge smile. “Mother told me you were ripening into a king.
I hate to say it, but I didn’t believe her.”

“So,
Mother already knows?” A growl left Samuel’s throat.

“Relax.”
Octavia raised her hands in front of her and edged back. “Mother isn’t as bad
as you think.”

“How
did she find out Brie’s blood triggered my maturity?” Samuel’s voice deepened
to a dark level.

“Leeta
wrote a message and sent it back on one of Mother’s crows.”

“Did
you know that Freemont was destroyed?” Samuel stepped her way. “I doubt it’s a
coincidence that Mother discovers my ripening and then the next day guards
storm the town.”

“She
wouldn’t have anything to do with any of that. Are you accusing her of that
destruction?”

Samuel
snorted. “I never know what to expect with her.”

“Our
mother only wants to free this nation. It’s not just about us, you know. Soon
our father will try and conquer all magical creatures—”

“And
I’m supposed to build an army to fight him?” he countered.

“Who
else could do it?” She gazed down at the floor. “Do you know how Father helps
me find husbands? You’ve never asked.”

Samuel
crossed his arms around his chest. “How?”

“I
walk into his chamber naked and lie down on a stone table. Would-be suitors
from rich territories stand around, study me, and bid.” She continued to stare
at the ground. “Father uses a long silver stick to point at my most appealing
attributes. ‘Look at her breasts,’ he says in all our heads and pokes my
nipples. ‘This will give you satisfaction and feed your little ones when the
time comes.’”

Samuel
sighed and rubbed his forehead.

“‘Open
your legs, Octavia, and show them your greatest gift,’ he says into my mind.
And I do as he orders, partly because I want him to love me and partly because
I know he’ll kill me with one flick of his finger, if I don’t. But in the end,
even if he weren’t blind, he still would never see me. I’m nothing to him.”

Tears
spilled out of her eyes and streamed down her cheeks.

“That’s
enough, sister.” Samuel looked away with unease. “Please don’t cry, Octavia.”

“Oh
but those are the easiest parts.” She moved closer to him. “There are male
humans at our castle called studs. They’re kept in the dungeon, fed reasonably
well, and when they are allowed outside time, it’s with a green leash around
their necks.”

“And
why were they imprisoned?” Samuel asked.

“Because
the poor blasted men were born with huge dicks between their legs.” Octavia
displayed a grin that held cruelty on her lips. “Their sole job is to show the
bidders how good I am when a big one is inside me. They take me on that stone
in front of all the bidders whether I want to or not, and when they’re done,
everything on my body aches, my mouth, my—”

“Enough!”
Samuel rubbed his eyes some more with his hands. “Why haven’t you ever told me
this?”

“What
would you do? Our father’s blood bond is strongest with his princesses. If he
found me missing, all he would need to do is call me back. And my body would
bring me back whether I wanted it or not. I need you powerful before you can
save me.” She leaned her face to the side. “But what would you do now as you’re
ripening? Help me escape while the problem still remains? While our
half-sisters deal with the same treatment.”

“Half-sisters,”
Samuel murmured in annoyance.

“Whether
you think it or not, most of the people who walk that castle are our
half-siblings. We owe them safety.” She pointed at him. “You owe them
protection.”

“I
didn’t ask to owe anyone anything!” Samuel growled so loud the chains clinked
back and forth against themselves. Some of the wooden whips on the shelf
dropped to the floor and rolled to my feet. The guards rushed in and jumped in
front of Octavia.

“Calm
down.” I hurried to him and held his waist, worried Samuel would attack them.

Octavia
waved the guards away and wiped the tears from her face as they left. “You have
the possibility to be a great king. You’ll be powerful. You’ll do what we all
can’t.”

“I’ll
die,” Samuel muttered. “I’m only ripening.”

“Mother
says Brie’s blood will boost your power at a quick rate.”

“And
how does Queen Regina know this?” I snapped.

“I’m
not entirely sure.” Octavia turned to me. “She saw your hair and said that you
looked like the Quiet King’s first queen, the one that triggered his ripening.”

I
bit my lip.

But I thought Ian’s first queen
had hair like mine. Was he lying while describing his brother’s queen?

Ian told you that?
Samuel’s voice entered my mind.

I
nodded.

I don’t like him talking to you,
Samuel mentally said.

But he could help us,
I thought back.

Or destroy us.
His voice brushed against me the
way only a lover’s would.

An
intake of breath sounded across the room. Octavia held her hands over her
mouth. “You’re both communicating in your minds?”

“Yes,”
I admitted.

“What
else can you do, brother?” Octavia’s eyes brightened with hope.

Samuel
pushed his black claws out of his fingers. His eyes glowed. The muscles around
his arms and chest bulged until his jacket ripped at the seams.

“Marvelous.”
Octavia backed up and pressed her body into the stone wall behind her. “Leeta
delivered a message as soon as you both left for Zumaya. Mother was pretty
upset that Samuel was still taking you home.”

Little
did his mother know that Samuel had intentionally led me in the wrong
direction. A bunch of blood pirates who came to kill Samuel happened to tell me
we were actually heading north instead of south to Zumaya.

“Are
you with child now?” Octavia raised a blond eyebrow.

“No.”
I blushed and felt caught off guard. “At least I don’t think so.”

We’ll have to be more careful
when we make love again,
I
mentally warned Samuel.