Chapter 20
Alaric
Amage had taken me for a shower and then vanished not long after. Not literally, but he’d claimed he needed to make a call and requested I stay put. Naturally, I did not stay put. Was he stupid? Probably.
My father rarely employed clever magicals. He preferred the sort of idiots who idolized him and didn’t question it when asked to sign contracts that contained compulsory suicide clauses.
The minute the mage disappeared from view, I dried myself off and pulled some clean pants on. Not a great fit, but they’d do.
Every room I passed was empty. I saw no staff. It was creepy as hell. Almost as if my father expected an attack and had cleared away the evidence of his misdeeds.
I wouldn’t put it past him to do that. He must know eventually his vile experiments would come to light.
People weren’t happy. There had been too many demon attacks.
Too many unnecessary deaths, both human and magical.
There was only so much Dad could say to keep the peace.
The public listened to him in person, thanks to his natural charisma and charm spells, but social media commentary was far more difficult to manage.
Sentiment had shifted, and if he didn’t do something drastic to change public perception of the Supernatural Council’s ability to control things, he’d end up ousted.
Not by his fellow council members. No, those assholes were all ass-licking sycophants who wouldn’t dare go against him. It was more likely that the human leaders would demand his resignation. And as much as he hated the humans, they had the numbers on their side.
No magical being could afford to incur the wrath of the human population. Their weapons would annihilate us all.
But that wasn’t my problem. If my father wanted to ignore the warning signs, fuck him.
I no longer cared about him or my family’s reputation.
Fame or fortune didn’t interest me. I’d had those things my entire life, and none of it had made me happy.
The minute I escaped this place, I would rescue my mother and disappear.
The witch had four other mates. It was better for us all if we went our own ways. She might not like it, but the soul-bond would eventually wither and die if left unsealed. Painful but necessary.
I jogged down the corridor, peering into each room I passed, but I saw nobody. Cameras winked above me, but no mages or witches arrived to drag me back to my sad little room. This should have aroused suspicion, but then I heard a faint whimper.
The soul-bond sparked to life in my chest, muted but not entirely extinguished by the magical cuffs.
Had my father hurt her?
Rage surged through me. If he’d laid one finger on her, I’d fucking tear him apart with my bare hands.
I pushed open the door on my right and saw her curled on the floor, wet hair stuck to flushed cheeks..
“Raven?”
“I need…you.”
Magic coated her skin as the scent of her flooded the room. A dim part of my brain blared out a warning—only shifters could smell arousal, so my reaction was unnatural. But I shoved it down and dropped to the floor beside her.
“What’s wrong?”
“Alaric, I feel awful,” she cried. “Like I’m burning up!”
Sweat beaded down her chest, drawing my attention to her breasts. The robe she wore clung to her curves, highlighting every inch of her lush body. But I shouldn’t be looking, I reminded myself.
“You need a healer.” There had to be one here, right?
“The cramps hurt so bad!”
“Cramps?” Oh…was this a female thing? Ugh. Not my area of expertise, but whatever.
Since the floor was hardly the most comfortable place for her or me, I scooped her up in my arms and carried her over to the bed. She weighed barely anything. Goddess, had these assholes not given her meals?
Yet another reason to murder my father.
“I’ll find you a healer,” I told her, but she shook her head. Teary violet eyes gazed up at me, like amethysts sparkling with raindrops.
“Please don’t leave me, Alaric.” I tried to fight my instincts. Walking away was the most sensible thing. Nobody had come looking for me. If I left now, I still had time to find a way out. Escape. Call for help.
But I couldn’t move.
Not with my soul-bonded mate lying beneath me, her body arching toward mine.
“I need you to touch me,” she panted. “Stop it from hurting!”
My hand cupped her jaw. Did she understand what she was asking of me?
Dad’s voice echoed in my head. He wanted me to seal the bond. Unleash her power. My rational self understood this situation was almost certainly contrived to further my father’s goals, but my chimp brain disregarded the warning.
Cameras blinked in every corner of the room. The door clicked shut, trapping us, and for the first time since I’d arrived at this facility, I didn’t give a flying fuck.