My response must not have been what he was looking for because his smile vanished and his eyes flashed with fury.
He poked the ropes that bound my wrists. I let out a hiss of pain as the ropes seared deeper into my flesh.
“You see, Aurelius,” Bastien went on, “This is not the dragon estate. Your father, the great King Cassius, isn’t here. Your men aren’t here. No one here is going to fawn over you and tell you how great you are. It’s just you and me. Do you understand? Your station doesn’t matter, and you belong to me.” He grabbed the rope and pulled it taut against my skin.
Gritting my teeth, I forced myself to contain the groan of pain that wanted to burst from my throat.
“You sure do like to talk,” I hissed.
Bastien stood up so quickly that the stool went rolling back and banged against the wall. “Fine,” he growled, leaning close until his face was inches from mine. “Less talk. More action.”
He strode to the other side of the room and pulled a sheet off a small table. On it, lay a few different items: a vial of liquid; a small red whip, obviously woven with Dragon’s Blood fibers; and a few other things I couldn’t quite see.
Bastien lifted the whip and turned back to face me again.
“You and I both know your wellspring is protected by magical spells. Protective enchantments that keep out anyone who might want to take from it. I want the counter spells.”
“What?” I tilted my head to get a better look at him. “Are you serious?”
“Of course I am,” he said, taking a few steps toward me. “You have the largest wellspring on earth. Do you know how much power that is? It doesn’t even matter that your race of flying fucking lizards is dying out. As long as you have that wellspring, you’ll be equal to us. I can’t have that. Not anymore. We wolves are done trying to live peacefully with you. It’s time we take what’s ours. You will give me the counterspells to breach the wellspring territory”-he held up the whip-“or else.”
The burning pain on my wrists and ankles was already miserable, and the thought of what Bastien would do with the whip sent a terrified shiver through my brain. My inner dragon snarled out in anger and fear, but I kept my cool.
“I suppose you’ll need to do a little work then, big guy. Because I’m not saying shit.”
Bastien grinned, but his eyes betrayed his true emotions. He was pissed that I wasn’t cowing to him. He must have truly believed I’d turn into a whimpering heap of flesh. Well, he was in store for a surprise.
“If that’s the way it needs to be.” Bastien shrugged. “I guess we better get started.”
He snapped the whip, and it landed on my chest again and again, the pain hot and searing. This time, no amount of pride or mental strength could stop the scream from erupting from my throat.
“How’s that feel? Huh?” Bastien asked a while later as he wiped a sheen of sweat from his forehead.
I swallowed hard and licked my lips. Agonizing pain throbbed along every inch of my skin. He’d given up on the Dragon’s Blood whip and had moved on to other techniques, even trying to waterboard me at one point with his men coming in to help. Through it all, I’d managed to keep my wits. I hadn’t broken.
“I feel fine, Bastien,” I said, giving him a steely smile.
“Give me the spells!” Bastien screamed, his veneer of control vanishing in an instant.
I gave no answer to his outburst. All I did was lay my head back and pull on the ropes purposefully. The Dragon’s Blood burned my flesh, but I ignored the pain as I taunted him with my eyes. He could do all he’d already done and more, but he wouldn’t get the reaction he wanted from me. I wouldn’t allow that.
“Get on with it,” I hissed.
Bastien glared at me, dumbstruck, his perfectly coiffed hair hanging in his face in limp strands.
“Okay,” he said, nodding slowly. “We can do that.”
He walked back to the table and chose a long filet knife. Holding it up to the light, he turned back to me.
“Maybe,” he said, his voice shaking with excitement and pleasure. “We’ll make a leather jacket out of your hide. Would you like that?” He took a step toward me, clenching the knife in his white-knuckled fist. “Are we gonna see how much of a badass you can be when I’m peeling your skin off, huh? How much can the big bad dragon take?”
Eyeing the knife, I did my best to prepare myself. Pain was only temporary. The agonies of the day would eventually fade. My body would heal. But the sadistic gleam in Bastien’s eyes made me shudder. What if he got too overzealous? If he plunged that knife into my heart, it would all be over.
And it looked like that was exactly what he wanted to do.
Taking a deep breath, I pushed back all my fears and did what I had to do. What a prince had to do.
“I guess we’ll find out soon, won’t we?” I said.
Bastien’s face went slack with shock and surprise. Then his jaw flexed, the muscles beneath the skin bouncing and rippling as he ground his teeth together. What I saw in his face sent a new shiver of fear through me. How was this man related to Elle? They were polar opposites. One was compassionate, caring, funny, and kind. The other bitter, angry, sadistic, and hateful.
He raised the knife high overhead, and in that moment, I realized it was over. In less than a second, I’d be dead. My inner dragon cried out, but I kept my eyes on his face. If this was how I died, then I would do it with honor.
“For God’s sake, Bastien, put that down.”
Bastien flinched and turned, nearly dropping the knife. I recognized the man at the door. Frederique Laurent. Bastien and Elle’s younger brother. He’d come to greet Elle when we arrived at their family home. Freddy. That’s what she’d called him.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” Bastien asked, sounding like a boy whose mother had walked in while he was jerking off.
“I heard you were here,” Freddy said, throwing a disgusted look my way. “Trying to beat this filthy dragon into submission. Though it looks like things were about to go a little further?” He tilted his head questioningly at Bastien.
Bastien looked at the knife and frowned, almost as if he’d forgotten he was holding it. He tossed it away. The blade skittered across the floor, stopping near the opposite wall.
“I’m only trying to put a little fear into our guest,” Bastien said as he tried to regain some of his former control.
“Uh huh,” Freddy said, and ran a hand through his thick auburn hair. “Dad wants to see you. If you can drag yourself away from this little party you’ve got going on,” he added, giving me another pretentious sneer.
“About what?” Bastien asked, and I noted the plaintive, almost whiny tone in his voice.
Freddy shrugged. “Something about the southern border protection details. He’s worried the dragons will attack, and he’s not sure we have enough people patrolling out there or something.”
“Shit,” Bastien said, and smoothed his hair back. “Fine.” He took two steps toward the door before turning to look at me again. “Don’t get too comfortable, Aurelius. We aren’t done here, yet.”
More Kickass Werewolf Reads
Dive into our collection of free werewolf romance novels—where fierce Alphas, daring heroines, and heart-stopping twists await. Every story burns with forbidden desire, loyalty, and destiny. Don’t wait—here’s a world where love bites hard and nothing is stronger than the call of the mate.
Leave a Reply