Page 17 of The Stolen Throne

Bene ushers me ahead of the others, and I almost miss the king saying, “I see you have covered the mirrors. Such a shame.”

“Mirrors do not have a place in my castle, Father. I certainly do not want the being within your mirrors checking up on me or trying to control me,” Dax grumbles.

The being? Is he talking about the tentacles that come out of the mirror? The king chuckles. “Nothing controls me, son. Best you remember that.”

I hear Dax grunt behind me, and we continue down the hallway. I wish I could argue against what they are planning. But I also have a lot of questions. I suppose I can wait till we are behind closed doors again to give Dax a piece of my mind. Though, considering all their eyes are engulfed in black, I may lose my nerve.

My mouth is dry, but I manage to whisper, “So… what’s the plan here?”

Asher’s gravelly voice sounds from right behind me. “We are going to make the king believe we are torturing you.”

“Do I want to know how you guys plan to do that?”

His eyes flash back to their normal light blue before black consumes them once more. He grins. “Do you really want to know, Snow bunny?”

The look he sends me before his eyes shift back to black makes me want to say no. No, I do not want to know because it will just make me want to run.

As if reading my mind, Bene lowers to whisper in my ear, “Do run, Darling. We would love a good chase. The darkness is hungry.” The way he growls hungry makes heat pool low in my belly.

Ash opens the door to the bed chamber with a flourish before heading in. I jump when I hear the door slam shut behind me. Looking over my shoulder, I see Dax bathed in swirls of dark shadows. Admittedly, he doesn’t look scary like his father does; he looks like a hungry beast. And I’m his prey. Pulling my hand away from Bene, I turn to face Dax.

The others fan out around the room. Gathering every bit of courage I can, I manage to ask, “So what is the plan, Dax?”

The sound that comes from him is almost like a purr. Did he seriously purr just because I said his name? He takes a step toward me, and I retreat a step. He shoots me a wicked smile as he takes another step forward, and I do the same but back. We continue this dance until my legs hit the foot of the bed.

I quickly glance over my shoulder then back to find him standing right in front of me. I gasp when I see the metallic glint of a knife. He holds it out in front of him, testing the sharpness of the tip. When his eyes meet mine, all I see is my reflection in those deep ebony pits.

“I’m going to make each of those scars mine. Each cut will remind you of me. Only me,” he says, pushing me down, so I fall onto my back on the bed.

“Are you serious?” My voice sounds less like a question and more like a breathy gasp. Damn.

He smirks as he lifts the blade. “Do I look serious to you?”

He does in fact look serious. He also looks like he is going to enjoy this way too much and, considering the heat pooling in my abdomen, I think I will too. I can already feel my thin underwear getting wet.

Even though my body betrays me, my mind won't. “You hold no power over me.” Though these men are completely different than my previous sexual encounters. They are different than the king and his disgusting guards. Different from the smooth, mirrored tentacles that forced me to climax.

He grins and taunts, “Are you sure about that, Little Raven?”

“Yes,” I state rather unconvincingly. My body wants these men, and my mind can no longer fight that it does too. I don’t hate them like I do the king and his guards, and my body knows it.

“I’m going to have fun testing that.” He turns to Branimir and orders, “Mir, hold her arm.”

Without argument, Branimir steps up to my right. He pulls me up toward the head of the bed and clamps down on my wrist, pinning it above my head. I don’t have time to fight because Dax continues issuing orders, immediately saying, “Bene, grab her other arm.”

He does the same, holding my left wrist, so both of my arms are pinned over my head. Dax points the knife at Alair. “Hold her leg; I’ll need them spread far apart for what I have planned.” He points his knife to Reverie next. “Rev, hold her other leg.”

Alair does as he is told, holding down my right leg as Rev holds my left. They spread my legs apart making me feel like a starfish.

My eyes go wide when I realize I am completely powerless and vulnerable in this position. “Dax! Dax, what are you doing?”

He smirks at me. “I’m going to make you hurt so good, Little Raven. I’ll make sure you leave here so thoroughly satisfied that you will be as obsessed with us as we are with you.”

“All of you couldn’t possibly be obsessed with me,” I insist.

He clicks his tongue and slips the tip of the knife under my clothes. “Then you haven’t been paying enough attention.” He turns to Asher as he says, “Ash, by her head.”

Ash climbs onto the bed, and his knees frame my head. “Can’t have you looking away, Snow Bunny.”

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