Page 41 of Their Blood Rite

The corner of his mouth twitches.

'Only if you ask very, very nicely.'

‘You touch me, Iwillkill you.’ I cling tighter to the sheet.

‘You’ve said that already. Be warned,Little Pixie. You are not going anywhere. You are ours now. This room is yours. We will feed you and protect you from your coven. We will give you some freedom. We will help you learn to use and control your magics. Both blood and earth. But if you act up or misbehave, that will change. You’ll lose this room and find yourself in a cage instead. You carry on not doing as you’re told, you’ll find yourself in a hole with no light, wishing for death.’

I swallow dryly as he speaks his threats with a velvet-smooth promise.

‘But if you’re a good girl and do as you’re told, you’ll find this much more tolerable. I have minimal patience, and if you need to test its limits, I recommend preparing yourself for a drastically different experience than the one I promised Archie and Dorian I would try to give you.’

Fight or flight consumes me in the blink of an eye. Before he can react, I’ve thrown myself from the bed and sprinted to the door, abandoning the sheet and any dignity left to me.

‘Stop!’

That’s all he says. One fucking word, and my body obeys, freezing an inch from the door. My neck burns hot as I look back at him, gasping in panicked breath after panicked breath.

He hasn’t moved an inch except to slowly turn his head in my direction. Nothing holds me. There are no chains or weapons.

Yet, I can’t move!

‘Come back here,’ he sighs, pointing to the spot between his legs as he remains leisurely in his chair.

I twitch with rage as I obey, my body returning to him despite everything inside me, desperate to refuse.

My feet plant at that precise spot he points to between his feet. He widens his legs, giving me room to fit where he wants me to be.

‘Pretty sure I just told you to behave, or you would regret it. I’m damn certain I didn’t say to try and run off before I’ve even finished threatening you.’

‘How are you doing this?’

‘The more important question is… where do you think you are going?’

He rises from his chair and stands so close his chest brushes against mine. When he’s at full height, my head is tilted back so I can keep looking into those dangerous eyes.

‘Turn around,’ he orders.

My teeth grind as I obey. He leads me to the full-length mirror with his hands on my shoulders.

I take in the sight of my body, bare and exposed.

Red lines mark much of me. Cuts from my own coven.

My hand rests on the deepest of them all. The stab wound on my side.

‘This here,’ he says, his fingers tracing along my neck where a silver mark lingers. The same place my skin burns. ‘This is my Mark. I put it there. Injected you with my venom.’ He moves his fingers so they rest under my chin, lifting my head so I look at him in the mirror. ‘You are Marked by me. Claimed by me. Owned by me. My word is law to you. As far as you are concerned, I am your god. Your lord.’ He lowers his voice to a whisper. ‘Your master and universe.’ His other hand circles the second silver scar on my shoulder. ‘This one belongs to Dorian. His Mark. His claim. His word is your law, too. A word of advice. Don’t piss him off. You won’t enjoy it.’ He trails the tips of his fingers down my body, between my breasts. I grip his wrist when he gets to my lower abdomen. He’s too strong and carries on, avoiding anything intimate until he rests on the silver scar on my thigh.

‘This mark belongs to-’

‘Archwin,’ I breathe.

‘Correct.’

‘He’s a wolf.’ Images of his teeth flash through my mind. The sound of flesh tearing and blood squelching rings through my ears.

‘He’s a shifter,’ he says. ‘Man and wolf. He can transform at will.’

‘There’s no such thing except in stories,’ I reply. ‘Shifters are children of the ancient war gods. They don’t actually exist.’

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