14. Vesper
Finally.
After all the mind games, the night had finally come where I would fulfill the duty set upon me by my father.
I had to stand there and watch as the princess goaded me. Like she knew just how close I had been and was reminding me of my failed job.
The image of her completely naked and waiting in her bed had been a memory that haunted my every waking moment.
I didn’t want to think of her that way. I didn’t want to remember what she tasted like on my lips. I didn’t want to remember what she sounded like when I made her feel better than that prick of a vampire prince did.
When the guests came the other day, I had already had enough of him. He looked at me like I was some competition. Like he could already clearly see a relationship between us that didn’t exist.
Or, well…that I didn’t want to exist.
I couldn’t deny that, even after the vampire venom was gone, I still had a need for her. Instead of the violent one the vampire venom incited, it was more like an ache that made itself known at the most uncomfortable times.
Like when I was sneaking out to finally fulfill what I had come here for.
I had planned it perfectly.
After the night in the fountain, the princess hadn’t called on me. She gave me a few glances here and there when I was working, but never again were we alone.
Almost like she was avoiding me.
The guests stayed for three days, and after that, the house was quiet. Everyone recovering from a negotiation well done. Or at least that’s what the whispers in the guard quarters were about.
So I took my chance. When it was quietest and when there was the least chance of me getting caught.
It was late at night, all the human guards were dead asleep in the rickety beds provided to us by the family. There were a few out patrolling, but most had fallen into the false sense of security the mundane life at the palace provided.
It wasn’t hard to sneak out of the room after Cedar was asleep. One would think that a witch of her caliber would be wide awake at the slightest sound, but her beastly snores drowned out any possible sound I could make, even the bed that creaked with every move.
She had been the same when I was all but kidnapped from my bed at the princess’s request.
Or maybe she just hadn’t wanted to get involved.
The path up to the princess’s room was a different thing, though.
It wasn’t just the guards sent by the prince—the family also had their own guards patrolling. After all, the guards were a show. Fresh blood. They hadn’t actually put them in any position of importance.
And luckily for me, because of my new role at the princess’s side, I had been taken off the nightly patrol schedule.
But that didn’t mean I hadn’t memorized it. Cedar had caught me when I was reading it in the dead of night once, when she woke up to go to the bathroom, but never said anything. Instead, she just gave me that irritating, all-knowing look.
I paused as I shut the door behind me, her snores darting out through the closed door. It was late enough at night that most who were asleep were in deep, and hopefully the vampires had their own priorities to take care of.
This time, I made sure not to forget my sword.
When I was sure it was clear, I silently walked down the stone hallway before pausing at the end of the corridor. Taking a breath and counting to twenty in my head, I peeked around the corner just in time to catch the back of the guard rounding the long corner past the stairs.
I need to work quickly to climb the stairs before he turns back around.
My heart was pumping wildly, fear gripping my chest. This was it. Everything that I had been working toward down to these few moments.
I forced one foot in front of the other, cursing when one of my steps sounded a bit too loud against the stone. The boots were too thick for something like this. Instead of letting it deter me, I forced myself to work faster. I slipped around the railing and pulled myself up just as the guard’s footsteps sounded throughout the hallway.
I waited again. Forcing myself to hold my breath for fear I would be caught.
No one can see me. At least not one of the guards. Not if I want any chance of getting out of here alive.
Waitstaff and the feeders were different—they would mind their business. But the guards would be forced to report anyone they saw walking the halls. Even one of their own.
When he finally turned the corner again, I pushed myself up the stairs. The flight I had chosen was for those who wished not to be seen. Mostly people like myself and feeders. The higher floors weren’t guarded all that well, so as I ascended, the weight on my chest got lighter.
By the time I reached the fifth floor and home of the princess, I had seen only one other soul. A feeder who had looked far worse for wear and probably was too out of it to even look twice at me.
Easy.
Besides the princess sticking her fangs in my neck and the tantrums…the whole job had been easy—textbook perfect. I had done the hours, years of prep, and mixed with a little luck, I got to where I wanted to be on the first day.
Maybe it was all luck. Maybe all the time and effort I had put into it didn’t mean anything as soon as I stepped through the palace doors.
Why had I caught her eye? It had been my goal all along, but I couldn’t understand it.
The unknown answer was making my skin itch. She treated me with a passive-aggressive disdain mixed with playful curiosity, as some sort of pet she could play with, and pouted whenever I didn’t play nice with her.
Yet she didn’t get rid of me the moment I rejected her…So what gives?
Images of her writhing against the couch, her eyes hooded and her lips open flashed across my mind. Seeing my own blood coating her mouth should have disgusted me. It usually would have. But when I was there between her legs, making her feel the things she assured me I never could…it felt more like a claim.
I shook the thoughts from my head and looked out at the rows of windows overlooking the palace grounds. A dark, inky sky was beyond, but the stars and moon were so bright even to human eyes that the hallway was clear to see.
Plush carpet concealed my footsteps. The air was warm, pleasant. A stark change from what we were forced to live with on the floors below.
I calmed my heart and forced it to go still.
She would be awake in there. Vampires never slept. Constantly forced to roam the world without even so much as a moment of rest. Yet she hadn’t called for me or, hopefully, anyone else.
She will be bored. May even welcome the distraction. But I expected it. Expected her to fight back.
It’s why I chose nighttime. So no one could hear her. No one could hear us as we fought. And when I was done, I could sneak back into my room and act like it never happened while I prepared for my exit.
When I reached her door, I hesitated. Wrapping my fingers around the crystal doorknob, my mind stalled. This is it. The most important moment of my career and the thing that would make my and my family’s name go down in history.
Fuck it.
I pushed the door open and slipped in, shutting it softly behind me. The click was like a thunder crack in the silent room. She was there, I could feel her presence in the room, but she made no movement to greet me.
I hadn’t taken a good look at her room the last time I was here, too preoccupied with trying not to give into the ache for her. But even in the darkness, it looked fit for a princess of her status.
Large, fluffy bed against the back wall. Floor-to-ceiling windows letting in the moonlight. A fucking crystal chandelier hanging over the center. The dimly lit candles that were placed all over the room caused light to bounce off it and sent beautiful reflections all over the floor and walls.
Next to the bed was a bird cage covered by a blanket, an odd addition that made me pause.
But then there was a motionless lump in the middle of the bed. Vampires don’t sleep, I reminded myself. She had to be putting on a show.
You don’t want to play? Her words from that night played again in my head, the teasing tone sounding all the more sinister when I was trapped in a room alone with her.
She must have heard me coming down the hallway or smelled the familiar scent of my blood.
But this time, I would play along. I walked forward, one foot after the other, my eyes never leaving the bed.
Isn’t this what you wanted? That damned voice. I couldn’t get it out of my head.
I wanted this…more importantly, I wanted this phase of my life to be over. I wanted to turn the shitty cards I had been dealt around and go back to save my brother from the abuse my parents had forced on us.
There is no other way. And all it took was killing a single spoiled princess.
I could do it. I had killed for less. I had killed for money.
Fucking move, I commanded my frozen feet. They were as heavy as lead as I closed the last few steps between me and the bed. Where just a few nights before she had been sitting, naked, and spreading her legs for me.
All the while never knowing that this was my true plan.
She didn’t move, not even when I was right at the foot of the bed staring at her. Another game. She wanted to see what I would do.
I grabbed the short sword from my back, ready to pull?—
“I knew there was something interesting about you, little mouse.”
She had moved in an instant. Her vampire speed was too fast for me to catch. She had thrown back the covers and was before me, on her knees and in nothing but a frilly lace nightgown that floated around her sides. It was light pink and see-through, giving me a look at the matching underwear she had on underneath.
It was a sinful image. One that almost made me believe she had been waiting for the moment I would show up.
Her face was inches away from mine, her fangs peeking out of her lips as she gave me a smirk, telling me that she wasn’t disappointed with the turn of events.
She is amused.
My brain took a second to kick into motion, but after all that training, my instincts were faster.
“No hard feelings, princess,” I said as I pulled the sword out of its sheath and pushed it down on her. It had magic woven into it. Even if I had to use it on a human before this, it should still pack quite a punch when it came to vampires.
But her fucking vampire speed meant that my sword came down onto the soft bed cover, splitting it and causing a burst of feathers to shoot up into the air.
“Aw, too slow,” she teased, her voice inches from my ear. One of her hands caressed my neck, almost like she was ready to choke me, but the touch was so featherlight, it felt more like the touch of a lover than a vampire who was about to murder me. The other grabbed onto my hip, hard enough for me to recognize the pressure but not to keep me in place. “And here I was just thinking of how bored?—”
I twisted around, bringing down the sword where her voice was, but she was gone.
She let out an annoyed huff, calling my attention to my right. She hadn’t moved far and just stood there, looking down at her nightgown, which was now slit at the side.
I got close.
It was enough to give me some type of hope. Assurance that it wasn’t all ruined.
“This is one of my favorite night—ugh, can you stop?!”
My attempt to stab at her stomach was thwarted by her sidestepping, then lunging at me. My back hit the carpeted floor with a hard enough impact that it forced all the air out of my lungs. My vision blurred. The ceiling multiplied. A ringing sounded through my head.
She made quick work of forcing the sword out of my hand and throwing it across the room while I was trying to regain my composure. The hard thud of it embedding into the wall echoed throughout the room.
Her hand was around my throat, her red eyes shining through the night. This time, she meant business. Whatever fun and games she had been playing were over.
It wasn’t the pleasure-fueled stare that she had given me that night. There was no teasing in her eyes. It was anger. It was hurt. It was feral. It was…so much better than any of it.
There was something so breathtaking about her anger. It was so unrestrained, and for the first time, it felt like I was finally seeing something real from her.
The need was back in full force. I couldn’t deny it. I couldn’t blame it on the venom.
It was all me, feeling something I wasn’t supposed to for a person who was supposed to be my sworn enemy.
Her nostrils flared and her eyes searched my face. She was caught off guard by my body’s reaction.
But I wasn’t. I had denied it, but I wasn’t surprised. Her reaction was the in I needed.
I grabbed the knife at my thigh, and with one thrust, I?—
Her hand caught my wrist just as the blade was about to pierce her ribs. The sword wasn’t long enough with her arm extended.
Fuck.
“Never have I ever seen someone act with the utter careless confidence you have,” she whispered, her face coming closer to mine. Her breath wafted across my lips, daring me to close the space. She was smiling again. “Was this your plan all along, little mouse? If so, you should have at least fucked me when you had the chance. How boring.”
Anger burst through me, and I couldn’t help but bare my teeth at her. I had just tried to kill her, and she was saying I was…boring?
She’s crazy. Completely and utterly insane.
She forced my wrist to the floor, squeezing hard enough to force me to let go of my grip.
I had never been overtaken so easily before. Not by a human, witch, or vampire. And yet she had me pinned down in minutes. Maybe it was me who had underestimated her.
She shifted against me. Her legs had been on either side of me, but for the first time, she pushed her body against mine. Melding us together, just like at the party. I had the foolish thought that she was going to kiss me…until she leaned to the side, her tongue licking the pulse in my neck. My heart skipped a beat and heat traveled through my body, starting right where her wet tongue met my skin.
“I have also never been so turned on by an assassination attempt,” she whispered against my skin. “I guess the same could probably be said for you.”
She let me flip us. Let me put my hand around her throat. This time, she didn’t flinch. All she did was wrap her legs around my waist so I couldn’t separate us. I had all the power. Was in the perfect position.
Yet her legs around me felt like wrought iron bars, rendering me incapable of moving.
“Regardless, I’ll be the one to end your life tonight,” I growled.
She let out a breathy laugh, her hands coming up to run down my chest. My heartbeat skittered under her touch.
“Then why don’t you?” she asked. “In fact, if you were so serious about it, why didn’t you just let me die that first time?”
I hadn’t realized how close I had gotten until our lips were centimeters away. Hadn’t realized how my heart pounded in my chest. But fuck did I realize the heat that settled in my belly and the need. The need that I thought only existed when her fangs were deep in my neck.
“I wanted to be the one to do it,” I whispered, unable to tear my eyes away from her lips. “Who knew you’d be stupid enough to poison yourself?”
“Lies,” she whispered.
I couldn’t stop what happened even if I wanted to. I should have sensed it from the start. We were two unstoppable, chaotic forces bonded by opposing goals that were on a predestined path to collide.
It was only a matter of time before we met. But who could have predicted it would be like this?
Our lips were fused together, the hand I had locked around her throat keeping her in place as I ravished her mouth. The low moan she let out traveled through me, and wetness began to pool between my legs.
My other hand gripped her hip, and I forced myself into a kneeling position so she could sit flush against me. I couldn’t let her go. Couldn’t give us even so much as room to breathe for fear that it might bring me to my senses. I needed to feel her against me. Needed to know what it felt like for her to grind her wet cunt all over me.
I wanted her to make a mess of me, stain my uniform.
Immediately, she straddled me, her arms wrapping around me and pulling us impossibly close together. Clinging to me just like I was to her.
I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. The only thing I could focus on was the heat running through my body. The need to get as close to her as possible. The need to hear the sound that she made at that party again.
It was dominating my entire being. Making me forget about the true reason I had come here. My dagger lay just a few feet away from me, where I could easily reach it to punch it into her chest while she was distracted, but instead, I grabbed her hips. Instead, I let my hands slip into the sides of her gown and teased the edge that covered her breasts.
She kissed me like she had nothing to hold back anymore. Vicious and unrelenting. I felt like she was punishing me for taking so long to get us to this point. Her teeth scraped against my bottom lip, hard enough for blood to pool between our mouths. She greedily drank it up.
“Don’t think this means anything,” I mumbled against her lips. She let out a gasp when I slipped my hand into her panties. She was so unbelievably wet, even more so than in my daydreams. “You were just waiting for me to come in here and fuck you, weren’t you?”
“You’re so full of yourself for a human,” she spat back bitterly. “You think just because you performed well at the party that I’ll just forgive your attempted assassination?”
“No,” I said, with a dark chuckle as my fingers ran through her wet folds. “But I think you’ll let me do whatever I want to this pussy because this is the most turned on you’ve been in years.”
To prove my point, I slipped two fingers into her entrance. She reacted with an immediate sharp inhale and ground down on my hand. I didn’t even need to pump into her. She did all the work riding my hand like some depraved, unsatisfied being who hadn’t orgasmed in years.
I pulled back to watch her. To get a good look as she threw her head back, her arms wrapped around me and using me for balance as she fucked me. She was so determined at that moment. She was going to force her orgasm, whether or not I participated.
But fuck did I want to be the one to make her feel that way. I used my thumb to rub her clit, my breath catching as her pussy clenched my fingers. She was so responsive. So willing to take all the pleasure I could give.
Who exactly has she been with that refused to pleasure her in such a way? It was so satisfying to think of all the people she fucked before me, none of them even getting close to what this mere blood bag could offer her.
“I think you like being fucked by a human way more than you let on, princess,” I teased, trailing open-mouthed kisses down her neck. When I got to the place where her shoulder and neck met, I sunk my teeth into the pale flesh.
She can’t tune me out, not now. I’m gonna make her pay attention to me. I’m gonna make her remember the one that makes her feel like this.
“Harder,” she demanded.
I did as she asked, biting her as hard as I could. Of course, with my teeth, I couldn’t break the skin, but as I pulled away, I saw a satisfying bruise just before it disappeared.
I wanted to mark her like she had me. Even if it was temporary. It would make what happened just that much harder to dismiss.
I pulled down her flimsy top, freeing her breasts. Perfect. They sat there, so patiently waiting for their turn. Her nipples were erect and just begging for my mouth on them, just like the night in the fountain. But this time I let myself pull one into my mouth, sucking on it before teasing it with my teeth. Her whole body shuddered against me, and she rode my hand even harder, slamming her hips down onto me and getting more unrestrained with each movement. Her pussy was clenching tighter and tighter around me, and I knew within moments she would be coming.
So fast, with so little effort…it was enticing.
She pushed me down, causing us both to fall to the ground. She was straddling me again. She slapped both hands onto my chest, forcing me down as she continued to ride me. I anchored a hand on her hip, forcing her to stop so I could be the one pumping into her hard and fast, the heel of my palm hitting her clit each time.
She froze above me, her eyes meeting mine as her face was overtaken by pleasure. And then her lips, still stained with my blood, formed into a snarl. As her orgasm ran through her, she was at my neck, and in an instant, her fangs sank into my flesh.