Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11

PHILIP

“Don’t lie to me, princess. It’s unbecoming of royalty. Don’t play dumb as if you don’t know the terror wrought upon my family, my mother, at your father’s behest.”

Again, the dragon claws at my insides, desperate to be free. He wants to exact revenge on Briar, the last living Kendrick. Though I feel similarly, I must keep my head about me.

I cannot lose control. Not now. Not when I’m so close to finding out the truth. My hand hovers close to Briar’s clit. I wonder if I can sexually torture the answers from her pretty lips.

Easing my thumb over the taut bundle of nerves, I swipe a few times, smiling as she bows up against me. Her inner walls clamp down around the dragon’s knot, drawing out a pained groan from my lips. This is supposed to be me torturing her, and not the other way around.

Briar’s eyes widen as the pleasure flushes her face. Her lips open and close a few times as if she longs to say something but cannot find the words. A shiver races down my spine, tingling along my back as I watch her, helpless, stretched out underneath me.

“Well? Anything to say?”

“P- please,” she whines, twisting back and forth. “I can’t take anymore.”

“Yes you can,” I growl, running my thumb along her clit again. “What sort of prince charming would I be if I came and not you?”

“C- came? Came where? You’re already here. Of course, you came.”

As angry as I am, I find I cannot resist the urge to laugh at her confusion. “Ahhh, my sweet little innocent. Perfect for defiling.”

Gripping my base, I tug on my cock, grateful when it finally pops free. I’ll have to remember that for next time. I might not want to be so confined after I fuck her.

The moment my cock leaves the warm haven of her body, Briar comes to life, thrashing about, kicking at me with all her might. I barely feel the soft blows. The dragon, however, takes note of every single one and demands retribution for them.

“Settle,” I growl, sliding my fingers deep inside her cunt.

At the sudden invasion, she freezes. Her eyes water as desperation pours off of her. Poor thing can’t decide if she wants to keep experiencing pleasure at my hand or run for her life. I’m sure of it.

“Open your mouth.”

When she refuses, the dragon snarls, fed up with these antics. I search the room, looking high and low for a way to restrain her. There, off to the side, is a hank of rope. Why it’s there, I’ll never know, but in that moment, I’m grateful something’s going right.

I ease the talons from her wrists and lean up to lap at the blood dripping from the wounds. With each swipe of my tongue, the injury seems to heal right in front of my eyes.

Is this part of the witches’ gifts? Or is this something new? Master Balcom - my father - never wrote about the dragon’s saliva having healing properties. If that were the case, he’d still be with me now. He would just heal himself.

Hot, bitter tears blur my vision, making Briar swim before me. I can’t let her see me weak like this. She’ll no doubt take full advantage. Snarling, I toss her to the floor and stride over to the rope.

Just as I suspected, the instant she’s free of my presence, she scrambles to her feet and runs. Stupid, stupid girl. The dragon locks onto her scent, tracking her as I grab the rope.

There’s still enough brambles and thorns to make her escape slow and treacherous. I don’t have to worry just yet. And so, I take my time, measuring out various lengths and slicing through with my talon.

Once all the pieces are tied to the bed, I start my hunt. With the dragon’s eyes, the world is transformed into a riot of colors and visual sensations. Everything is black and white except the heat coming off of living creatures.

Mice scurry about, fleeing the predator they sense coming out of the room. Small birds flit about, looking for a place to land that isn’t covered in thorns. Smaller mammals waddle about, their movements erratic and unsure.

But they aren’t the ones we care about. Looking across the distance, I spot a much larger shape. Human. Briar. Dragging air into my lungs, I take in her scent and snarl. She’s not too far from me.

Closing my eyes, I regain my normal sight. There, not more than twenty feet away from me, is Briar. Her lovely brown hair snags in the thorns and brambles, keeping her from making more headway.

A grin hovers on my lips. And to think I found child-like derision at the idea of a witch giving her the blessing of hair that never tangled. I’m sure now she wishes they had that much foresight.

As it is, the strands hanging down around her face are pristine, not snarled up. Honestly, it appears as if she just brushed it. However, it doesn’t keep the others from getting wrapped around the branches and holding her tight until I can get there.

The closer I get, the more frantic her movements become. Her fingers claw at her hair as she tugs and pulls, making it far more knotted and unmanageable. Blood drips from her fingers and onto the delicate strands, turning her hair into a muddy brown.

My cock shouldn’t surge up as I watch her. I shouldn’t want to keep her there, impaling her on the thorns as I invade her with my cock. Precum pearls at the tip at the very thought.

Fascination floods my mind as I watch the scratches heal mere moments after her blood drips down. So it’s not my saliva after all. My little princess truly is unbreakable.

My lust burns hotter than the dragon’s fire hovering at the base of my throat. Forget the paltry ropes on the bed. My little hellcat will feel the kiss of thorns pressing into her flesh, holding her open for me.

“Poor little princess,” I purr, circling around her.

Again, she thrashes, crying out as the thorns yank her hair. But it’s not the sob of pain or agony. Oh no. It’s the soft, husky moan of desperation. Her arousal mixed with my cum slides down her inner thighs, making them glisten, revealing the magnitude of her need.

“I can help you, sweet Briar. I can ease your discomfort. Would you like that? Would you like me to make you sing your pleasure to the heavens so loud my men at the castle will hear you?”

Her movements still as her mouth drops open in a horrified ‘O’. “Y- your men? Your men now have the castle? But- But-”

“But what? But your father? Do you want to know where your father is, little Briar?”

I slide up behind her and cup her breast, allowing my talon to extend and graze her nipple. She drops her head back as a wanton moan flits from her lips. How I wish we had this moment under different circumstances.

If only her family didn’t lay destruction at her feet. I could have explored each and every sigh, every moan, discovering what she liked, what she loved, and what she craved. But that opportunity is gone now.

“Ask me to tell you where your father is. Beg me. Plead with me. Maybe I might show you mercy and tell you. Maybe I’ll let your imagination do its worst. Maybe I’ll fuck you senseless and you won’t care either way. What will it be, little Briar?”

Her eyes flash with indecision. Poor thing probably doesn’t want to know. Pulling back, I allow her an infinitesimal moment of reprieve. “I’ll make a deal with you. Tell me what you know about my family’s castle lying in ruins, and I’ll show you mercy. I’ll fuck that sweet pussy of yours while I tell you where your father lies.”

“I- I know nothing!” she cries out, her fingers once more seeking out her hair.

When will she ever learn she cannot escape me?

Shaking my head, I grab her wrist and hold it still. With my other hand, I take hold of a prickly vine. The thorns pierce my skin, but I grit my teeth and refuse to cry out. With grim determination, I wrap them around her delicate wrist, my balls clenching as her fevered cries ring out in the forest.

Next, I wrap a vine around her other wrist, then her ankles, spreading her legs wide so I have full access to her body. After she’s where I want her, I place my hand in between her heaving breasts, resting it against the bone.

Her heart pounds against me as I slowly, inexorably push her back. The moment the larger thorns pierce her body, I know it. Briar’s head falls back as her body shudders. Pained moans drift around her like a cloak, settling on my skin like the gentlest of rain.

Blood drips onto the ground, mingling with the cloudy puddle of combined fluids. “You can’t get away from me, little Briar. Now tell me what I want to know.”

I slide my fingers inside her, groaning at how they grip me. Pumping in and out, I listen to her panting, feel her body straining. She’s not trying to get away. For this moment, at least, she strains toward completion.

“Tell me. Tell me and I’ll grant you pleasure beyond anything your body can comprehend.”

“Please. Philip. I-”

“There is no Philip here,” a guttural voice rasps from my throat. “Tell your Dragon King what it is he wishes to know. Why do my men lie slaughtered on the ground? Why does my father burn on a funeral pyre? Why was Philip’s mother so brutally used and tortured, cast away as if she were nothing?”

At that last part, Briar freezes. Everything seizes as she looks at me, horror in her eyes. She didn’t know? How could she not know? I want to believe her, to know for certain she had nothing to do with this. But until she tells me what happened, I can’t believe the shifting expressions crossing her face.

Curling my fingers, I stroke that spot deep inside her, my cock pulsing as horror gives way to pleasure once more. I tease her a bit, bringing her ever closer to her release, but refusing to allow her to tip over into that sea of bliss.

“Answer me, Briar. I can do this all day. The question is, can your body hold out? Can you survive being brought to the edge like this? Over and over? Here, let me help you make your decision.”

The dragon’s tongue slithers out from between my lips, long and thin. Briar jumps as she watches it dip down, impaling herself further onto the vines. But there is no escape from our plans.

I flick the tip against her clit, smiling as she howls in need and thrashes about. In the haze of her pleasure, she seems to forget the thorns pushing deeper and deeper into her body. Blood slithers down her limbs, dripping onto the ground below.

In this moment, she’s never been more beautiful to me. Trussed up, her body taut with need, and her cries spurring me forward. Pulling my fingers out, I add another digit and slide three deep inside, stretching her out a bit more.

It’s not the size of my knot, but her keening wails tell me just how much she likes it. Again, I lash at her clit with the tip of my tongue, feeling her inner walls clench and release. She’s close. So very close.

Pulling back, I look up at her, my eyes burning with intensity as the dragon fights to take over. “Tell me, Briar. All of this will be over if you tell me.”