Chapter 28

28

Ella

Cassius's expression hardened with a cold anger. I hadn't meant to call him a pompous prince; it had just slipped out. Fear constricted my throat as his furious gaze fell to the throbbing pulse in my neck, a clear reminder which one of us was the predator and which the prey.

My pulse quickened, and his pupils dilated. Was he going to leap from his horse and drive his fangs into my neck? The prince was no ravening monster, but something told me that once he'd decided to hunt, he would not be so easily turned away.

Eyes darting around, I searched for an escape. The dense trees would give me an advantage if I ran as before, but I'd be kidding myself if I thought I could outrun him, and using my magic in front of the prince would be too risky.

The dark rider eased his horse forward until he was staring straight down at me. There was no escaping him now. His lip curled as he extended his hand. "You'll ride back with me."

I swallowed. That was mildly better than the other scenarios, but I shook my head. "Absolutely not."

The muscles in his jaw tightened.

"I'll walk. You lead the way." I repositioned the satchel hanging over my shoulder and began heading in what I hoped was the right direction. I already felt like an idiot, and I didn't need to give him any additional reasons to doubt me.

"That wasn't a request," his voice boomed from behind me—not a shout, but with the force to stop me in my tracks.

Panic blossomed. There was no room on the horse. I'd be pressed up against the monster of a man. Maybe that was what Bianca dreamed of, but for me, it was a nightmare. I shivered as I remembered the way his touch had sent tingles along my arm and the way his looming presence addled my thoughts.

When I didn't move, he said, "If you don't come willingly, I'll throw you over the back of Tenebris and tie you down. I promise that won't be comfortable."

Neither would riding with him.

I wanted to protest, but his tone told me the arrogant, entitled bastard wasn't going to negotiate. What did he care how I, or any woman, felt?

I grudgingly turned back and took the prince's hand. A shiver slipped over my skin, just as it had the other day. I bit my lip.

He paused for just a fraction of a second. Had he felt it, too?

Without warning, he heaved me upward. Deftly maneuvered by his hands, I dropped into the saddle in front of him with one swift tug.

Oh, Fates.

The rich, earthy scent of leather and vetiver enveloped me, and my breath quickened as liquid heat spread through my body. I stiffened, my back straighter than a board as I inched forward, but his body was large, and there was only so much space in the saddle for the two of us.

"Is this really necessary?" I squeaked.

"It's the fastest way home." The prince leaned forward, his chest brushing my back. "And if you're late for your shift at the stables, the prince will be very displeased."

"The prince doesn't seem to be the sort who is ever happy," I muttered. "He's as grim as the castle gargoyles."

"Is that what they say?" he asked, his voice rich like honey and laden with threat.

He urged Tenebris into an easy stroll, and the gentle rocking motion made it even more difficult not to lean into him. I shimmied my hips forward.

He growled deep and low. "Stop moving, will you?"

"Well, if you weren't taking up so much space, I wouldn't have to."

He slipped his arm around my waist and drew me back against him with a quick yank. My anger flared, and I struggled, but his hand stayed firm against my belly, pinning me in place. "You are only making this worse for both of us," he rumbled, his voice stiff with irritation. "Not to mention the horse."

His thick thighs cradled mine, and the warm, hard planes of his body pressed into me, including the bulge pushing into my lower back.

Heat spread through me, and I stiffened. Everything about this was so, so wrong, yet it felt…thrilling.

I'd imagined he'd be as cold and hard as his exterior, but he was the opposite. The rocking motion of our bodies was driving me to madness, and shame engulfed me even as I savored the warmth and strength and hardness of him. I dug my nails into the pommel and searched for anything that might distract me from the desire that was building at my core.

"You never answered my question." His breath heated my skin, and I swore I felt his lips brush against my neck. "What were you doing out there?"

I pressed my eyes closed, willing myself to get a hold of the shivers that spread in the wake of his touch. "I was looking for medicine to heal my sister, but you wouldn't understand."

"I understand more than you would think." It was like he'd turned to ice. The warmth of his breath was gone, and the arm wrapped around me became nothing more than a cold iron restraint. There was something there beneath his words. Pain. A loss. After a moment, he cleared his throat and continued, his tone different. "Is she the one you were looking for that night I met you?"

His question caught me off guard. "Yes."

"So, you found her?"

"I did. It turned out that she wasn't far."

"Then you are lucky." His voice was distant, and it piqued my curiosity.

"And you? Why were you in the woods that night? Looking for a snack?"

"My brother," he said in a tone laced with ice and sorrow. "He slipped into these woods fifty years ago and never returned. I have no idea if he is alive or dead, or if he even wants to be found."

"I'm sorry," I said softly. "I didn't know." I couldn't imagine the pain of losing Belle and never learning her fate.

"How could you not know?" the prince asked. "Valen was to wear the crown, not me."

Now that I thought about it, I had known. His brother had disappeared during my father's youth.

"We're little more than your playthings, so who rules the Bloodvale makes no difference to our kind."

"It should," he rumbled.

Some of the rumors had even suggested Cassius had killed his brother to take the throne—a common path to power for immortals of all ranks—but something in the tone of his voice made me suspect he hadn't. It vibrated with a consuming loss and affection that even his practiced iron exterior couldn't completely conceal.

The disappearance might be ancient history to me, but it seemed still raw to him.

"You miss him."

Cassius growled, shifting against me in irritation. "He abandoned his duty. The throne should be his."

I'd always thought that the immortals were as thirsty for power as they were for blood—Bianca and Lorayna proved the type—but the prince didn't sound happy about the prospect of taking the throne. It made no sense. "Don't you want to be king?"

"What I want doesn't matter. Duty comes before desire."

My anger rose like a swarm of hornets. "You talk of duty like it's a burden. You do realize that you have more wealth than most people can dream of? The power you wield over us…it's not right."

He pulled his arm away, releasing his hold on me. "It is a burden," he said sharply. "And wealth and power mean nothing to me."

"That's because you don't know what it means to have nothing ."

He remained silent, then said grimly, "I do not. But you do not know what it is to rule. My court may enjoy their privilege, but I do not live for myself, and if I do not take the throne, you have no comprehension of the chaos and misery that would ensue. Your life and the lives of those you love hang on the decisions I make, so do not speak to me about things you do not understand."

His tone was biting and cold, and I wondered what kind of chaos and misery would unfold if he didn't become king. I imagined Lorayna and Bianca, unchecked in their power, and I swallowed.

It was completely dark now, and the castle lights flickered through the trees. We rode in awkward silence until he finally spoke. "I'm sorry, Ella. That came out harsher than I'd intended."

I wasn't sure what baffled me more, the fact that I was straddled between the prince's thighs or that he'd just apologized to me. "We're from different worlds. I don't understand yours, just like you don't understand mine."

What I really didn't understand was why I was trying to make him feel better. He was the enemy. Whether by choice or by duty, he ruled. He was the one responsible for repressing magic and keeping humans like chattel.

And yet, I was beginning to see that he wasn't the cold, murderous, power-hungry bastard I'd imagined. There was something more to him. Maybe it was the way he spoke of duty. Maybe it was that he could recognize our struggle.

Lorayna and Bianca certainly did not. They lived for themselves at every moment.

We exited the woods, and as the prince lightly lifted the reins, Tenebris stopped. Puffy clouds blocked the stars, casting an eerie glow over the valley.

"You are quite the enigma, Ella," he said. "Perhaps that's why I find you so intriguing. But do not take my kindness for granted. If I catch you sneaking into the woods again, I will not show you mercy."

Well, that was going to put a damper on things.

With a swift motion, he urged Tenebris into a gallop across the grassy meadow below the rear of the castle. The imposing fortress perched on a high cliff overlooking the river, its walls almost seamless with the sheer rock face. My vision wavered for a second, as if I were looking through heat rising from coals, and for a moment I thought I saw another spire rising into the sky, taller even than the prince's tower.

Then whatever I'd seen was gone. I blinked but all that remained was the castle as it had always been.

I shook my head. Just a trick of the wind and the darkness.

My attention was torn away from the castle as Cassius's arm returned to my waist, and we both fell into the rhythmic cadence of the horse's gallop. My eyes watered from the onslaught of the cool wind, but I relished the fresh air and momentary relief from the prince's intoxicating presence.

Charging across the landscape on horseback had always felt freeing, and I wistfully thought of my father's manor. Though it was just around the valley, it felt like a million miles away.