Chapter 20

CHAPTER 20

NYRA

Ishould have gone to sleep, but adrenaline coursed through my body.

I could still feel my power.

The city slumbered as I quickly moved through the quiet pathways and made my way to the training grounds.

I had my bow and quiver strapped to my back, and even though my fingers ached with the hours of practice we had been doing, I felt desperate to wrap my hand around the grip.

I hadn’t been good at it, but it gave me a sense of control that I hadn’t had before.

I quickened my pace as I crossed the old wooden bridge, avoiding looking down at the murky water below. The rickety boards creaked and swayed under my feet, making me feel unsteady as I moved toward the other side.

The streets were quiet, but I could hear the echoes of footsteps somewhere in the distance as I made my way to the training grounds. A constant blanket of darkness cast over the deserted grounds, and there was only a faint flicker of firelight lighting the path.

With the others gone for the night, a sense of eerie stillness settled in the air.

But I still continued forward and leaned my quiver against the far wall as I pulled my bow off my back and ran my fingers along the taut string.

The night air was cool against my still buzzing skin as I took an arrow from the quiver and moved several paces in front of a makeshift target on the wall. I held the bow in my hand at my side as I stared at it.

Traitor.

The word ran over and over in my head, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it no matter how hard I tried.

Dacre had barely spoken to me after we left that cove. He thought I was a liar, and I was, but not about this.

Not about my power.

My power.

Each syllable felt like a stranger in my mind, but the lingering warmth of magic still coursed through my veins. It was hard to accept the reality of what had happened.

A sharp, searing pain radiated in my chest as memories of my father’s relentless attempts to pull power from me flooded my mind.

Guilt slammed into me as I thought of my mother. Tears threatened to spill over as I thought about what could have been, if only I had been stronger.

She would still be queen.

She would still be alive.

My hands, once steady, now shook uncontrollably. I stared down at them, desperate to summon the power that Dacre had forced from me. But despite my efforts, my palms remained empty and powerless.

I didn’t know what was wrong with me.

“You do realize that staring at the target doesn’t actually do anything, right?”

I jumped at the sudden sound of Dacre’s voice, my eyes scanning the dimly lit training grounds. My heart rate jumped as I saw him sitting against the wall, his form illuminated by a flickering flame nearby. One leg was bent in front of him while he leaned his head against his arm, exhaustion evident in every line of his body.

“What are you doing here?” My fingers clenched around the smooth, polished wood of my bow, and I shoved both hands behind my back.

His eyes narrowed as he leaned in closer, his gaze fixated on me. “I should be the one asking you that,” he said, his voice low and predatory. “It’s late.”

“I couldn’t sleep.” I swallowed and looked back to the target for only a moment before looking back to him.

He ignored my words completely and squinted his eyes for a moment as he assessed me. “You should leave.”

I scoffed at the absurdity of him. “No. You should leave.” I pointed the tip of my arrow in his direction.

“Not tonight, Nyra.” His voice was cold and harsh as he spoke, each word laced with venom. My skin prickled in response to the malice radiating from him. “I’m not in the mood to deal with you tonight.”

“You’re never in the mood to deal with me.” My heart raced, sending waves of heat through my body. “You’re always in a bad mood.”

He was silent for a long moment, but his gaze didn’t waver from me for even a moment. “I am.” He nodded as he ran his hand slowly over his jaw. “But tonight, I might take it out on you.”

My heart hammered against my rib cage, echoing in my ears as I locked eyes with him, and the surge of power that had been fueling me earlier now felt like a raging storm inside me. An ache started low in my belly, and I struggled to keep my breathing steady.

“And what if that’s what I want?”

He swallowed hard, and I watched as his Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat. “You don’t.”

“You don’t know that.” My voice trembled, but all I could think about was the way he had touched me before and the way he had acted as if he regretted it ever since.

I couldn’t get his words from earlier out of my head. The memory of him standing before me with fire in his eyes as he accused me of betrayal played on repeat. Even the set of his jaw and the clenched fists at his sides conveyed his conviction.

He had called me a traitor before, but this time, every part of him believed it.

Dacre’s eyes narrowed, a dangerous glint flickering in the dark depths. I could still see his anger in his gaze, but there was also an undeniable hunger that boiled just beneath the surface.

“Tell me what you want, little traitor,” he demanded, his voice low and menacing, and my stomach ached as the last word slipped from his lips.

I swallowed, trying to keep my nerves in check. This was a dangerous game, but I couldn’t stop myself from playing. I didn’t want to stop. “Don’t call me that.”

“I’m not in the mood to take orders from you.” He leaned his head back against the wall as if he needed to get a better look at me. “Tell me what you want.”

“I don’t know,” I whispered, feeling the lie in my voice even as I said it. “But I can’t stop thinking about it.”

He let out a low laugh, the sound echoing through the empty training grounds. He turned away from me, letting the flickering firelight cast shadows over his face as he clenched and released his jaw.

“What do you want?” I asked, my voice barely audible.

He turned his head, a glint in his dark eyes as they raked over my features with a predatory intensity. His lip curled into a sly smirk, and I couldn’t help but feel a shiver run down my spine.

“Drop that bow and get on your knees.” He ran his tongue over his bottom lip, and I almost fell to them at that one movement. “Then I want you to crawl to me and beg.”

I didn’t know what I was doing, but I felt my hand instinctively tighten around the bow’s grip as if it were the only thing keeping me anchored to reality. My other hand moved, and my fingers trembled as they wrapped around the string, the cold wood a stark contrast to the heat that was surging through me.

“You can’t just order me around like that.” My voice trembled, and he smirked at the sound.

“Yes. I can.” He ran his hand over his knee, and I felt mesmerized by watching him. “And you want to do it.”

The way he said the words made my spine snap straight and my core tighten.

“Don’t you?”

He was right. I couldn’t deny the desire that was pooling in my core and threatening to consume me.

But I also hated that he knew it. With a simple look, he knew what he was doing to me.

I started to shake my head to deny the truth that we both knew, but he wouldn’t allow it.

“On your knees, Nyra. Don’t make me tell you again.”

“I…” I trailed off, unable to form the words. My heart was pounding in my chest, and I could feel the unfamiliar magic coursing through my veins. I wanted to do what he said, and there was something about the way he was commanding me to do so that made me want it even more.

Even though I knew I should have left and gone straight back to my room.

I should have been running from this place altogether.

But it wasn’t what I found myself doing as I gently laid my bow and arrow on the ground at my side and dropped to my knees before him.

The searing heat of the firelight flickered and danced in the darkness, its light casting eerie shadows across Dacre’s cold, hard features as he watched me without making a single move. I felt as though I were being devoured by his eyes, consumed by the darkness that threatened to swallow me whole.

“Good girl,” he purred, a sinister smile curling his lips as he watched me with anticipation.

I swallowed, the ache in my belly intensifying as I stared at him.

“Come here.” He lifted a hand, and he gave a subtle curl of his fingers, beckoning me forward.

My hands trembled as I leaned forward and pressed them into the cold, hard ground. I dropped my head as my chest heaved, trying to swallow breath after breath.

“Look at me.”

My head snapped up at his command.

“I want to see you as you crawl to me.” Dacre ran his hand down the front of his trousers, and my breath hitched at the bulge I saw there.

For a moment, I was frozen in place, my heart racing at his command. But then, against every ounce of willpower I had left, I pushed myself forward, crawling slowly toward him. The hard ground was rough against my knees, and I could feel the gritty dirt sticking to my palms.

As I reached the edge of his boot, I stopped, still on my hands and knees, but looking up at him with wide eyes.

“Closer,” he hissed. His eyes were dark, almost black, with a glint of hunger that made me feel alive. They seemed to devour me, like two deep pools of obsidian that held a hint of fire within.

I took a deep breath as he widened his legs, making room for me to come even closer. I began to crawl again, pulling myself toward him inch by excruciating inch.

The intense warmth emanating from his body enveloped me. It was intoxicating.

Dacre reached forward as I stopped, his finger lifting my chin higher until I had nowhere to look but at him. His thumb ran over my bottom lip roughly, and I felt powerless under his touch.

In spite of my magic surfacing, he still managed to make me feel weak.

“You look so fucking beautiful like this,” he groaned as he dropped his hand to run over the length of my neck. He toyed with my hair, his touch gentle, almost tender. And yet, there was a fierce intensity behind it, a promise of something more.

He leaned closer to me until his lips brushed against the skin of my throat. I gasped, a shiver running down my spine as I felt moisture pool between my shaky thighs. Dacre was dangerous, but the ache in my core only grew stronger with each passing second, my need for him becoming almost unbearable.

“Please,” I whispered, my voice barely audible.

“I love hearing you beg,” he murmured against my skin, and I couldn’t stop the small whine that passed through my lips. “You like it too, don’t you?” He groaned and his tongue ran over the skin where my neck and shoulder met.

My hands trembled against the ground, and I desperately wanted to reach out for him. To touch him in ways I had been imagining for days.

“Fucking beg me, little traitor,” he commanded before his teeth grazed against my skin.

The moan that left my mouth was loud enough to make my cheeks flush with embarrassment. I pressed my thighs together and desperately wanted to reach between them with my fingers and ease the ache that was threatening to consume me.

Instead, I dug my fingers into the ground and begged the gods for Dacre to do something.

For him to do anything.

“Gods, you do love it.” He pulled back and his hand moved to the back of my neck. He gripped my hair roughly in his hand before he forced my head back farther, and the edge of pain made my body tighten even more. His mouth ran over mine, not in a kiss, more of a caress as he spoke against my mouth. “Let’s see how much you love to beg while I taste you.”

He let go of my hair abruptly, and I rocked forward without his touch. He moved out from in front of me, and I tried to watch him as he stood and moved behind me.

My breath caught in my throat as I forced myself to remain still on my knees, my eyes drawn to the ground as I tried to calm my racing heart. I could hear the rustle of his clothes as he moved, and my hands trembled against the ground as anticipation raced through me.

His hand lazily grazed over my lower back, and I let out a small whimper. His touch was so light, I would have thought I imagined it if it hadn’t been for the electricity that was sending shivers down my spine.

I tried to focus on that feeling, to revel in the heat of his touch, but my mind was clouded by the need for more.

His hand skated over my lower back until he reached my ass, and I surged forward as he slowly ran his hand over the curve until he reached the edge of my thighs. It didn’t matter that I was fully clothed. I felt completely bare before him.

I turned and glanced over my shoulder to see his hungry gaze taking in every curve of my body. Self-consciousness crept into me, but he quickly snuffed it out as his hands pressed more firmly against my thighs and a ragged groan left his mouth.

He dropped to his knees behind me, and my chest heaved as my core tightened.

His hands moved in a lazy path over my thighs, gently grazing against my core, and I arched my back in a desperate attempt to get closer to him.

“Such a needy little thing.” He laughed, but the sound held no humor as his hands moved to my hips and gripped just above the hem of my trousers.

His thumbs slid just beneath the fabric, only enough that there was nothing between us, but my skin burned as if he were branding me.

Dacre leaned forward, his breath hot against my neck as his body curved over mine. “You look so perfect like this,” he whispered hoarsely. His fingers dug possessively into my hips, making my muscles clench involuntarily.

His hands slowly moved down the sides of my thighs, and I could feel the rough fabric of his trousers that did little to hide his want for me. His hand moved around my body, and I jerked forward as his fingers roughly pushed against my sex through my trousers.

“Are you ready to beg yet?” His lips were against my ear, and I gasped as his teeth nipped against my sensitive earlobe.

“Please,” I begged, my voice rough with want.

His fingers pressed harder against me, and pleasure lashed through me as he began to stroke me through the fabric of my trousers.

“Please what, little traitor?”

“Please touch me, Dacre.” I was too needy to be embarrassed by my words. I knew I would most likely regret them tomorrow, but right then, I had no room for shame.

Not when I wanted him so badly.

Not when I felt so raw from everything that happened today.

His laugh was dark and seductive, and I shivered at the sound. “You’re not begging me properly, little traitor.” His hand pressed hard against me, and I could feel my clit throbbing beneath his touch. “I think I need to give you more motivation to plead for it.”

I didn’t answer him, and I didn’t need to. He pulled his hand away from me, and a whimper passed my lips before I could stop it. He was making me feel crazy, but I didn’t care.

His hand skated up my abdomen until his finger dipped into my belly button through my shirt. My hands and knees were beginning to ache, but I couldn’t think about that when he slowly lowered his hand again, but this time slipping it beneath my trousers. His warm skin pressed against mine as he moved his hand against me at an achingly slow pace.

“Are you wet for me?” His opposite hand pressed against my chest and lifted me until my back was leaning on his chest.

I nodded my head, and he ran his nose along the length of my neck as his fingers gently drummed against the top of my sex, making me more than aware of how desperately I needed him to lower them.

“Use your words, Nyra.”

Nyra. Gods. For the first time since I arrived, I regretted not giving him my real name. He would hate me for who I really was, but I wanted to hear him call out my name; I wanted to hear how desperately it would roll off his tongue.

“Please, Dacre,” I breathed, my voice laced with my want. “I’m so wet for you.”

His groan was deep, and I could feel the vibrations travel through my body and echo in my core. “I think I should make sure of that.”

His hand slowly lowered, and I reached behind me, gripping onto his thigh for support. I dug my nails into his trousers as his fingers found the wetness that was waiting there for him, and I arched back against him.

His cock pressed firmly against my ass, and I ground down against it as his fingers skimmed over my clit.

“Fuck.” He groaned against the back of my neck as his fingers slid through me easily. “Is this all for me?”

He spread the wetness around as he toyed with me, his two fingers sliding up and down my pussy as if he was trying to memorize every inch.

“Please.” I ground harder against him and whimpered at the feel of him behind me. He was everywhere, yet he felt just out of my grasp all at once. “Dacre, please.”

His fingers paused just over my clit before he pressed down roughly, and my hips shot forward at the sudden change.

“Oh gods.”

His fingers began to move in small circles, the movement concentrated exactly where I needed him, and I chased the feeling with my hips.

I was so busy focusing on those two fingers that I missed the way his other hand crept up my chest and pressed against my jaw. He forced my head toward him, giving me no choice but to face him, and his dark eyes narrowed as if he couldn’t decide if he wanted to fuck me or destroy me.

In that moment, I would let him do anything he wanted.

Looking up into his stormy eyes while he played my body so easily was too much, and I whimpered as I closed my eyes and tried to focus on nothing but the feeling he was giving me.

“Look at me.” The command in his voice forced me to snap my eyes back open, and I watched as he licked his lips just as his hand tightened on my jaw. “You’re such a needy little traitor.”

His thumb grazed across my bottom lip, and I was desperate for him to kiss me. I wanted it more than anything. I nipped my teeth against the tip of his thumb before he could pull it away, and his gaze somehow darkened even further.

“So fucking greedy.” His words sounded like a plea before he jerked my chin toward him and slammed his mouth down against mine. The kiss had none of the delicacy of his fingers. It was as if something had snapped inside him, some need that he wasn’t able to control, and my kiss was the only cure.

His lips were harsh against mine, his tongue begging for entrance, and when I gave in, his teeth nipped, and he kissed me as if he worried he would never taste me again.

His fingers slid lower until he pushed them both inside me, and I groaned against his mouth at the fullness of him.

“Gods, look how well you take me,” he murmured against my lips as he curled his fingers in and out of me and pressed his palm against my clit. “When I can’t sleep at night, it’s because I can think of nothing but the way you would look beneath me with my cock sliding in and out of this tight little pussy.”

His words sent shivers through my body, and I arched back into him in response. It was too much for me to handle, the feel of him, his words, and the heat between us that threatened to burn me alive.

The way my power seemed to thrum inside me with him being so close.

“Please,” I begged again, my voice raw and pleading. My hips bucked against his fingers as I desperately tried to find some relief.

He groaned against me, his breath hot against my cheek.

“You want more?” He withdrew his fingers from me, and I groaned in protest.

I looked at him, searching his face for some clue as to what he was thinking, but he wasn’t looking at me. He was staring down at his hand as he pulled it from my trousers and lifted it before us. I could see my wetness coating his fingers, and a flush crept up my face at the sight.

“You’ve had the pleasure of tasting this, but I haven’t.” He moved his hand closer to us until he held it directly between our mouths. “It’s another thing that keeps me up at night. Imagining exactly what you’ll taste like.”

I whimpered, and he slid his fingers between his lips as his gaze held mine. He didn’t lap at them gently. Instead, he made a show of rolling his tongue over every inch of his fingers that were coated with me.

He pulled his fingers from his mouth and ran them over my lips before they fell to my neck. “It’s even better than I could have dreamed.”

His hand tightened on my neck, and he moved closer to me until his mouth was pressed against mine. “Now I won’t be able to sleep until I taste it from your skin.” He nipped my bottom lip between his and sucked it into his mouth. “I think we should fix that.”

Dacre pulled away from me, but his dark gaze lingered on my mouth. My body shook with need as I tried to calculate his next move.

“On your feet, Nyra.”

My pulse hammered in my chest, and I tried to calm my shaking hands. He was going to taste me, put his mouth on my body, and even though I had never wanted anything more, fear raced through me.

“What if that’s not what I want?” My voice trembled with need and betrayed my words.

He smiled at me, the move sinister and lacking warmth, as he reached out and cupped me directly between my thighs. “We both know it is. You want it, and you’re going to take it.”

His hand pressed firmly against me, and my thighs trembled with how badly I needed him.

“Stand up. Don’t make me tell you again.”

I hesitated for only a second before I pushed myself to my feet. Dacre lifted higher on his knees before me, and his hands trailed over my thighs before settling on my hips.

He pulled at the edge of my trousers, lowering the leather down an inch before he stared up at me. “If this isn’t what you want, you need to leave.” His voice was lethal. “I’m not lying when I tell you that I will take whatever I want from you, and you will not leave this cave until the sound of my name is the only thing you can taste on your tongue.”

He watched me with a hungry gaze, his eyes dark and intense as I made no move to leave, and we both knew that he held all the power in this moment.

I felt a strange sense of relief wash over me, accepting that I was at his mercy. I didn’t want to fight what I so desperately wanted any longer.

He slowly pulled my trousers lower and lower, taking my undergarments with them until I was bare before him. I swallowed down a shaky breath as I fought the urge to cover myself.

“So beautiful,” he murmured so quietly that I barely heard him.

He leaned forward until he was lined up directly in front of my pussy, and I looked to the ceiling as I felt him press a kiss to the inside of my thigh before he brushed his nose against my center.

“Look at me.” His voice was low and commanding, sending a surge of desire through me as I obeyed.

His hands ran up the length of my thighs, and they trembled beneath his touch.

“I want you to watch me as I taste what’s mine for the first time.”

“It’s not yours.” I somehow managed to find my voice long enough to say the one thing I shouldn’t have.

His hands paused at the apex of my thighs, and he grinned before quickly moving them to my pussy and spreading me open with his thumbs. “Let’s see exactly how long you can hold on to that resolve, little traitor.”

I opened my mouth to argue back with him, but he leaned forward, and his tongue ran up the length of my pussy and threatened to bring me to my knees. I gripped my fingers into his hair, holding on to him as I tried to breathe, but it was no use.

He sucked my clit between his lips, and I cried out.

And I couldn’t look away from him.

There wasn’t an ounce of tenderness in his touch, and as his teeth raked against my sensitive flesh, my moan could be heard throughout the entire cave. My fingers raked through his hair, tangling in the strands and pulling him impossibly closer to me.

I had never felt such pleasure, such overwhelming, consuming want. Dacre’s mouth feasted on me, exploring my body in ways I didn’t know were possible, as his hands gripped my thighs so tightly that I bit down on my lip at the sting of pain.

He hummed against me, the sound vibrating through me, and then, finally, he lifted his hand and thrust two fingers inside me.

I arched my back, meeting his hungry mouth, my body feeling so greedy for more. My stomach tightened and my breath hitched as he moved his fingers in and out of me in perfect rhythm with his tongue. I could hardly spread my legs, and the position made me feel so incredibly full of him.

“You’re so tight,” he murmured against my skin. “So wet.”

His words were like fuel to my already raging desire, and I couldn’t help but beg for more. “Please, Dacre…please…”

I gripped his hair tighter in my hands, and he looked up at me. The wickedness in his eyes reflected the desire I could feel rippling through me. “You want to come?”

“Please.” The way I begged him felt so foreign on my tongue, but it also felt so right.

He chuckled, the vibrations spreading through my sensitive flesh. “Tell me who this pussy belongs to.” He plunged his fingers deeper inside me, making me cry out at the mixture of pleasure and pain.

I bit down on my tongue because the smirk on his face made the defiance inside me flare. But I knew that he was going to get exactly what he wanted. I would tell him anything to finally give me the feeling I was chasing so desperately.

“Fucking tell me it’s mine, little traitor.” He curled his fingers deep inside me before he sucked my clit back into his mouth, his tongue flicking over the sensitive bud in a rhythm that would make me tell him anything.

“It’s yours,” I managed to choke out. The admission felt like a knife twisting in my chest, but I couldn’t deny the truth. He was the last person I should have been saying it to, but he was the only one I wanted.

Dacre pulled back with a smirk, his eyes glinting wickedly as he released my clit from between his lips. I was trembling on my feet, my mind a whirlwind of emotions and sensations. I felt humiliated, aching, and yet so alive.

“That’s right.” His fingers moved in and out of me at a pace that was driving me crazy. “This is mine, little traitor. You are this fucking wet for me. No one else.”

He leaned forward and nipped his teeth on my inner thigh. “You’re mine.” The growl that ripped through his chest was almost enough to push me over the edge.

He continued to lick and suck at my clit, his fingers still pounding inside me until I felt like I was going to lose my mind. My fingers squeezed in his hair, and I could feel tears prick behind my eyes.

“Mine.”

I cried out as he thrust his fingers in and out of me, the vibration of his claim pushing me over the edge. My body shook uncontrollably as I came, my orgasm rippling through me like a current.

His other hand wrapped around my back, holding me steady as he milked every bit of my orgasm from my body.

“That’s it.” I could feel him watching me, but I didn’t care.

My pussy was clenching around his fingers in a desperate need for more, and I never wanted to come down from the high he had given me.

Dacre didn’t let up as he continued to slowly fuck me with his fingers, prolonging the pleasure, making me cry out his name again and again until my body went limp against him.

Dacre pulled his fingers out of me, slowly withdrawing his hand from my wetness.

I looked down at him and felt a strange mix of relief and shame course through me.

He climbed to his feet, licking his fingers clean, a satisfied grin on his face, before he reached forward and helped me pull my trousers back in place.

I looked down and saw how hard he was beneath his trousers, and despite the shame that I couldn’t deny, I wanted to touch him. I wanted to have the same power over him that he had over me.

I ran my hand over the length of him, and he groaned low and guttural as his hand slipped into my hair. He tugged back, forcing me to look up at him, and the desire that was staring back at me was almost enough to make me come again.

“I want to touch you,” I whispered, and his gaze seemed to become impossibly darker.

“Nyra.” His growl was a warning, but it did nothing but send a thrill through me.

“I want to taste you.”

His hand tightened in my hair to the point that I cried out in pain, but still, I wanted more. I wasn’t sure there would ever be a moment when I didn’t want more from him, and that thought scared me.

I could feel the heat in his eyes as he studied me, the intensity of it making my heart race.

“Do you want me to get on my knees for you?” I reached out and pressed my hand against his chest.

“Little traitor.” The words were a plea on his lips.

“Dacre.” The deep voice echoed through the space, and my spine stiffened.

Dacre dropped his hold from me and stepped back quickly as if he had been caught with the traitor that he thought I was.

That he knew I was.

His gaze flickered to the towering figure in the entrance to the cave, his eyes blazing with fury.

“Father.” Dacre’s voice faltered for only a second before he straightened and looked every bit of the leader that they had forced him to be.

My stomach ached, and my body screamed for me to run. I hadn’t seen Dacre’s father since he choked me while looking for answers I had refused to give.

“We just got word,” his father said, his gaze flickering back and forth between me and his son, even though Dacre had his back turned to me. “We’re leaving within the hour.”

I brushed my hand through my hair, pushing it out of my face, even though I was sure I still looked completely disheveled from what we had just done.

“I’m ready.” Dacre nodded, stepped forward, and leaned down until he grabbed my discarded bow and arrow in his hand.

“Do you need to escort Nyra back to the quarters?”

“No.” Dacre’s answer was swift and firm. “She can find her own way back.”

It was a dismissal. He had just been as desperate for me as I had been him, and now he was dismissing me as if I was nothing.

His father looked at me, and there was nothing but distrust staring back at me. It made me feel sick to my stomach. Yet, Dacre just stood there.

“I’m more than capable.” I stepped forward and jerked my bow from Dacre’s hand before quickly moving back to the target and grabbing my quiver from where I left it.

I could feel Dacre watching me, but I didn’t give him the satisfaction of turning back around.