Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6

EDOUARD

R omain was mine for two years and five months.

Oh, how we fought each other those first months—his pride and reluctance was the ambrosia I never thought I needed. Even chained to my bed, he’d do anything to disobey me like the untrained pet he was, though that was only at first. I was a popular guy from a powerful family, with friends aplenty. Manuel proposed finishing him off many times and gifting me with someone else, someone more willing. But training Romain was the most exciting, time-consuming yet gratifying challenge I’d ever had.

Those first weeks his leash around my bed pillar didn’t give more than two meters. He had to ask permission to use the bathroom—something he eventually, politely did despite his clenched jaw and fuming glare. I often left him alone, stewing in my room while I’d go downstairs and have lunch or dinner with my family. Every night, I let him go home, because I couldn’t bring myself to disrespect his wish to stay with his piece of shit mother.

And every morning he was back. Countless times I thought that this time I had crossed a line and he wouldn’t be back. He always was, while knowing that I would tie him up to my bed and let him sit there by himself until Manuel would take him to school. The truth was I wasn’t sure what to do with him. Oh, I knew what I wanted to do with him already, but I wanted him to come crawling and beg me for it. Wanted him to rub his face against my thigh like he had done that very first time, and surrender.

It took me four months before he finally did that again.

It was late spring, a Saturday night, and the day had been hot and dry. After the sun had set and the wind had picked up, we finally had some time to cool off. Romain had been in my room the entire day. He refused to wear the clothes I gave him, so instead he’d knelt on my floor wearing his usual tattered jeans and Nike hoodie, the fabric covering most of his dark hair and light features. He sat glaring at the floor when I came in after dinner. He’d finished his own meal, judging by the empty plate, which was another improvement. When he heard me come in, he looked up, and the whiff of a breath caught in my throat when he stared right at me with those piercing eyes. Proud, angry, with a subtle touch of insecurity.

Despite it all, he wanted to be here. I could just fucking feel it.

By his side, he’d left his homework discarded, the pages folded and begging for my gaze to give it a thorough sweep.

“Did you finish?” I asked. He shrugged, grunting, meaning “ no ”. Approaching, I took a look at the books. It was English. We both sucked at modern languages, but he needed the grade to pass the year. I needed him to pass the year. I had graduated last July and I didn’t want him to stay too much behind. Romain shrugged once more and sighed, looking away. He muttered something, the words rushed in accusation, but I caught them.

“You’ve got me caged here like an animal.”

“Yeah.” I slid down to my knees until we were the same height. Tilting his chin up with my ringed forefinger, I inhaled his undignified glare. “I do. Now…” I didn’t take my eyes off of him, but dipped forward and reached over, ignoring how his pupils dilated and his shoulders flinched, and grabbed his school book. “Let’s finish this, shall we?”

We did. And the day after we did that too. And the day after. By the time we finished the week, I changed his leash. This one was made of pure gold that I had melted from a collection of French Francs we’d stolen from an indebted collector. It had a reach of over three meters, allowing him to walk around in my room.

I started bringing him breakfasts, and he begrudgingly accepted after a few days, most likely too hungry to refuse. The moment he broke and gave in, my chest had clenched at the sight of his shaking hands as he wolfed down the food, leaving me thinking how his own mom was clearly incapable of looking after him.

I was.

I. Was.

That realization altered everything. The way I looked at him, those serious, blue eyes, the small nose adorned with golden freckles, that messy, dark hair. His mouth was wide, made to smile, which he so rarely did. His lips plush and firm, yet so easily pressed into that fine line of disappointment. I might have been barely an adult on paper, but I’d made Romain mine. And I’d keep him.

Nine weeks after Dad had given Romain to me, we shifted into something different. We’d start our mornings with breakfast together, before my kitten was brought to and from school by Manuel or one of his peers. He refused to eat at the dining table with the rest of my family, but he’d finish the plate I'd leave him.

I knew my dad sometimes came up to talk to him, knew that my sister sometimes came inside my room when I wasn’t there, for a chat.

They liked him.

“ A ttention !” I call out when the group of rogue brothers fall into me. Romain takes off like a maniac. I keep my outstretched hand against my brother’s chest that’s heaving from their little push and pull game just before. Since we’re all masked, I don’t know who he is, which is definitely part of the fun of being part of the Alpha Fraternarii. These privileged kids love to wear their masks for no particular reason and walk around disguised during most of the evenings we spend together, as if their anonymity makes up for the devilish things they do.

He knows who I am though, since I’m wearing the golden mask tonight. Therefore, he knows whoever he has been chasing is important to me.

“We wait,” I say, pointing my knife toward the torches. “Let’s give him the illusion that he can get away.” Turning around, I use one of the torches to light another cigarette while I watch Romain run. Fuck, the flickering shadows offer the most beautiful light inside the building, dancing around my pet’s lithe, sculpted frame. I hate our school uniform, but on Romain it looks good, tight around the places where it matters, making it a feast for my eyes to watch him, even when he’s running away from me.

I’ll soon catch up with him anyway.

It isn’t until he reaches the staircase that Romain realizes he’s heading the wrong way. That side of the building houses dorms. I don’t mind the party taking place there, even I enjoy a little foreplay like the kind we’re having right now. This entire night has been one big prelude, building up to to when I can take my boy home and go rule my empire. Having to manage the family business from within the walls of Monterrey Castle was a little challenging at times, but knowing that I was close to Romain made up for the impracticalities.

Cat and mouse.

Angling the bait, only to leave it there for a bit and see how Romain would take it, right before I’d pull it up, was one of my favorite ways to pass the time. To watch him get chosen for that position as film boss man for the monthly movie night was fun, the look on his pretty, surprised face priceless.

Taking a deep drag, I watch as Romain turns to stare at us over his shoulder, visibly calculating the time. It’s as if he wants to ask: can I still turn around and run in the other direction?

“Yes, you can,” I whisper through the exhaled smoke, smiling at his tremor.

“Can we chase him down now?” Someone asks.

I shake my head and take another drag. “Nah, give him some time. Let him figure out first where the party’s taking place.”

“Plenty of choice,” another brother chuckles.

“That’s right.” I watch Romain running back, keeping his distance from us as he goes for the other direction of the large reception hall, where he heads for the South Wing.

Clever boy.

I take in another drag, and let him turn around the corner. Then I pass back the nearly finished cigarette to one of my brothers and push myself from the door. “ C’est parti .”

The five of us leisurely stroll through the high-ceilinged hall and move in the same direction as Romain just took. Around us, more brothers are dotted around. Two here, another three against the other side of the wall. Watching. Someone screams, and we snicker.

“Looks like the other participant has made his way inside as well,” one of my rogue brothers hums. I recognize his voice as one of the Deveraux twins, and grin his way. I like Louis and Arthur.

We reach the other side of the hall and open the old, stained glass doors that portray a weeping Mary, and enter the South Wing. The offices of the Alpha Fraternarii are situated in this section of the castle that is closed to the public.

Romain won’t be able to find his way here.

If that doesn’t make my cock fill with wicked desire. There’s just something about him…from his sweet demeanour to his sharp tongue, the way his defense crumbles quickly under my coaxing words, only for him to reveal his true, submissive need. A need I crave. I need him close, need him to tell me about his stars and planets and how they trace different shapes, need to catch that dreamy stare in those blue, wandering eyes.

Always pretending. Always thinking. Always hiding.

Not for me anymore, mon chat .

We start to make our way further into the labyrinth of narrow corridors. Paintings portraying the past dot the walls as we get closer into the heart of the forbidden wing. From here, I can already hear the peculiarly sonorous sound of the gong, chasing the rhythm of soft piano tones.

“The party has already started,” I hum. My dick fills further, making my erection strain against my boxer briefs. Our fleeting touch from before is not enough. I hunger for more of Romain, yet fear that more will never be enough.

Will his mind be able to set his body free? Will it allow him to be used the way he truly needs to be used?

I think of the little surprise I set up for him earlier at the party. It’s something we’ve never done before, but something I’ve always wanted to do with him. Rather than the basket with the pillows he was always so fond of, this gift is one that will be perfect for Romain’s slender wrists and ankles.

Sliding my tongue over my golden tooth, I walk into the room. It’s dark here, in the office of the brotherhood, the place decorated to ensure we have an unforgettable event tonight.

Burning incense leaves delicate shapes of smoke, wrapping our environment into a woodsy, earthy fog. It’s too warm for the fireplace to be lit, but the old piece of furniture has been adorned with candles in all shapes and sizes. The torches have not followed us inside, most likely due to safety reasons, but when I steal a glance outside, I catch sight of them, planted into the ground of the inner court. They give the flowers an eerie glow.

Inside, the place is slowly filling with more brothers. I recognize Elder Jacques who stands talking to two other Elders, the white fur stitched to the edges of their cloaks proof of their status. Further inside, with his back against the wall, stands Jeff, one of my guys from the family. He’s not a student, has failed miserably in pretending to be one, and is here to execute my orders flawlessly. He’s the only one in the room wearing an identical golden mask to myself. I look at him, only to find his eyes already on mine, sending me a single, short jerk of his chin before he pushes himself off the wall and slowly comes my way. He lights a cigarette, hands it to me, then gives me another one of those silent acknowledgments to an unspoken order.

Taking a deep drag, I watch him head toward the exit of the room where he will search for my chosen one, who seems to have lost his way to his party. My guy is one of the best. He will find Romain no matter where he’s hiding. And bring him here.

I turn my gaze back toward the center of the room, where a comfortable looking leather seat stands. Around it, hanging from long, smooth and twisted wooden branches, hangs the equipment. Pure golden cuffs are waiting to meld around Romain’s limbs, where they’ll hold him snug while he’ll sag back into the leather swing. Oh, I’ll make him fly by the time I’ve got him there, presented to me like the precious gift he has always been. Sensual and scowling, proud and tortured by pleasure, so fierce it will make him burn when I finally let him ride my dick.

I’m still revelling at the sensation those thoughts bring, when two cloaked brothers rush inside the room. They head straight for Elder Jacques and his fellowmen, gesturing wildly with their arms as soon as they’re given attention. What follows is a banging command from the Elder himself, as he booms his cane with the golden crow a few times on the massive wooden flooring. The piano stops at once, and the blindfolded musician tips up his head as if he can see.

“It seems that an uninvited guest has made his way on our land,” the Elder says. Next to me, a light flickers, illuminating the set of golden rings I carry on each of my fingers.

“Uninvited guest?” Someone asks.

“An eliminated participant?”

“No.” Elder Jacques lets his gaze dart around, and I always wonder if he knows which identity hides under the collection of brilliant shining venetian masks. “As a matter of fact, it’s a teacher.”

They all gasp at that. No teacher is a member of the Alpha Fraternarii, of that I’m sure. Unlike the board themselves, they don’t have the status.

“Monsieur Montague,” the Elder says. “has just entered the building through the front door. He shouldn’t have seen anyone, but?—”

“I’ll go.” Not a question. A tall frame huddled under blackness, disguised by a plain, white mask. I recognize him immediately. The Elder just nods. “Now, the good news is that our participants have both entered the castle. Although I’m afraid they’re running around like terrified madmen.”

Someone chuckles at that, the sound followed by more muffled taunts. I find my own lips curl up as well, the movement led by desire and impatience and the carnal need to have Romain back where he belongs.

The Elder roams his gaze lazily over us, until he ends up staring at the wall. There, in red cloaks, is presented the entertainment for tonight. From experience, I know that they are exquisite. When I feel his gaze on me, I take a final drag from my cigarette, then casually flick it into the fireplace, before giving him what he hates most. My unfurling smile, unhurried in its disrespect.

I am bigger than you , it says. And that’s true. He might be born privileged and rule the world, but I was born a Beaumont, and we climbed up to own the entire, fucking underworld.

“I’ll go and fetch him,” I say. Not a hair on my head considering leaving Romain alone and afraid when a teacher can bump into him anytime, regardless of my man hunting for him, or my fellow brother taking care of the uninvited guest. My brothers watch me leave, smirking and chuckling in approval. That’s right, assholes. I’m going to bring my love right here and claim him right in front of you all.

Once I leave the room, I check my phone. There’s a message from Alexandre. He and the other boys have headed back inside the castle, his boy ready to taste his forbidden fruit. What can I say, I’m a generous man when I want to be.