Total pages in book: 144
Estimated words: 137871 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 689(@200wpm)___ 551(@250wpm)___ 460(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 137871 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 689(@200wpm)___ 551(@250wpm)___ 460(@300wpm)
His gaze marked every onlooker as he dutifully went to fetch the female. For now, because it suited him, his loyalty was to His Majesty. Cerberus was content to serve as a hound and guardian of the Crown, and the King valued his loyalty.
Death did not haunt Cerberus, and he never hesitated to take a life. He often reported back to Charles with blood still dripping from the horns of his helmet and the echoes of lesser mortals’ screams still echoing in his ears. None of that mattered as long as victory had been won.
“Step aside,” he ordered the guard at the tower chamber.
Cerberus rapped his split knuckles on the metal door and entered. Lilias’s hard glare landed on him with the unflinching regality of a royal, but there was no trace of imperial blood in her body.
However, she possessed immortality in her veins, which was why His Majesty wanted her.
Cerberus barged into her chambers, and she stood, the material of her gown still damp from the rain and clinging to her form. Her breasts jutted against the ripples of silk, unconfined or adorned with the trappings of a corset like the females at court typically wore.
“You promised I wouldn’t be a prisoner here.” She was a commoner with the confidence of a queen.
“You are His Majesty’s guest.”
“If I am his guest, why has he not greeted me?”
“His Majesty has requested your presence in his private quarters.”
Staggering back a small step, she studied him.
His gaze dropped to the slender column of her neck as she swallowed tightly. The slight ripple in her confident façade intrigued him. While immortals were the more advanced species, they were far outnumbered and could quickly be overrun or tortured through experimentation if ever truly exposed.
“Does he know about us?” she whispered too low for the other guards to hear.
Although she was also Norse and of a similar species, she was from a far more delicate race. His breed had been called everything from ghost walkers to skull warriors while her kind awaited maturity and signals from the gods.
Cerberus held her stare and nodded. It was not his preference to mistreat the King's guests unless ordered to do so. “Cooperate, and you will not be harmed.”
Unlike other females, she did not drop her gaze in his presence. “Do I have your word?”
She was wise, hiding her powers beneath symptoms of poverty. Cerberus should have known then not to trust her. “You have my word.”
“What does he want from me?”
“Only your blood.” His gaze again dropped to the slope of her breasts and the swell of her hips. “For now.”
Her head cocked, and a tumble of radiant copper curls fell over her bare shoulder. She looked up at him with eyes as green and glistening as a dewy pasture. “Is he dying?”
“All mortals are dying.”
“Is it the plague? Why not offer him your blood.”
“A female can comfort him in ways I cannot.”
“There is no curing him?”
“No, but your blood can sustain him and gift him with vitality.”
Her chest lifted, pressing her firm breasts against the worn material of her thin gown. A single tear rolled from her ruby lashes down her ivory cheek. “This is not my purpose in life.”
“Tears cannot change your fate now, princess.”
Her gaze snapped to his, sharp with censorship. “I am not a servant to this realm, and you know nothing about my fate.”
The fire in her stare caused his insides to burn with an unfamiliar heat. He could punish her for taking such a sharp tone, but something inexplicable held him back.
“The gods cannot save you now—princess,” he repeated the endearment simply to needle her.
“Is that it then? My purpose in this life is to remain in this tower, occasionally called upon by the king and used for my veins?”
Blood rushed to his cock. The desire to brush away that lonesome tear had his roughened fingers twitching, but he resisted the urge to touch her for fear of breaking her. Never before had he felt so compelled to protect a female.
“Obey your King, and there will be no pain.”
Her head lifted, her ruby curls cascading down her back. “And if I disobey, will you deliver the pain?”
She accurately understood his role, so there was no point in deceiving her. “Yes.”
The sharp angle of her elfin face lifted in challenge. “Neither you nor your King could conceive my threshold for pain.” She eyed him up and down dismissively. “I will not be in this tower forever. My destiny is elsewhere, and nothing you do can change that.”
“Perhaps. I’ll allow you to decide if your stay will be pleasant or unpleasant.”
Her green eyes narrowed. “You’ll never hurt me.”
How wrong she’d been.
The shower started, and the scent of ammonia cut through the air, quickly replaced by the floral bouquet of fragrant soaps. He shut his eyes, his anticipation slowly building. These fanciful moments satisfied him as he hoped they would, but they eased the longing so he could focus on revenge.