Chapter 3
Desire
Me: Find out everything about Thornton and Vance. FIND OUT IF HE’S FUCKING HER. You have three hours.
My fingers type out the message to Steve and Isaac as I leave the atrium.
Control over the body’s reactions is the most important thing in a killer’s work.
If I didn’t have control, I’d have died long before Africa.
The people who don’t dare raise their eyes to my face see nothing suspicious in my calm stride.
Inside, though, I’m a fucking storm. With my gaze lingering on a sophomore for a second, she drops her textbooks and fidgets with her gray choker.
I walk past without another glance at another cheap slut who’ll soon be broken by my men.
To say I’m furious would be an understatement. The moment I saw my little doll in the parking lot, my cock turned to stone.
She was wearing tight jeans that hugged her delicious ass—the same ass she was wiping across my parking spot—and a blue T-shirt.
The doll-like ringlets were gone—her golden hair was straightened and falling loose over her shoulders, framing her perfect face.
Her big tits were heaving, stretching the thin fabric with every ragged breath.
She looked tinier than normal in the sneakers one of those bitches desperate to get into the Initiation had given her.
Aurora survived a nightmare. The kind that either breaks one or makes one stronger. But today, she looked just as innocent and arousing as she had the first time we met.
I liked her hunted look. Like she chose a third option—to trust the monster and seek protection in his shadow. On an instinctual level, she knows she belongs to me, and so she chooses to remain prey. The perfect toy.
The moment I saw the younger Thornton hovering around her like the legitimate boyfriend, my first instinct was to tear across the lot, snap the bastard’s neck, and do things to my toy that only the devil would dream of.
My princess was lucky I had perfect control over myself, but it wouldn’t save her anyway.
I thought I knew everything about Aurora.
I’ve had her under surveillance the whole time I’ve been away.
No public boyfriends. Visits to her therapists.
The same virgin best friend. A gray life without a single bright spot.
I’ve even skimmed the transcripts of her sessions.
There wasn’t a word about me, but there wasn’t a word about Zack either.
How the fuck did that bastard get close to her? Zack must have been hiding from the Vances. He could have used the service entrances at the clinic and his dead father’s old connections—Alistair had a network of medical facilities—to sneak onto the grounds disguised as staff.
Today, my doll-like princess surprised me in the worst way.
I can guess why Zack is hanging around: the only witness to his father’s murder is still alive.
Obviously, the cops didn’t kill Alistair.
So Zack knows the killer might get attached to the victim and come back for more.
Maybe the son of a bitch is staking her out, hoping for revenge or hoping to pick up the killer’s trail.
The bigger question is why the hell Rory is letting that upstart get so close to her? The son of her captor! Did she really try to replace the Prince with that cheap substitute while I was in Africa?
Unlikely. The way she looks at me and the way she looks at him are night and day.
My doll hasn’t realized it yet, but her body doesn’t lie: she senses her worst nightmare in me.
And she looks at Zack with pity. This girl will never give herself to someone she pities.
She is made for something else. Only for someone who’ll put a leash on her, yank the chain, and give a short command.
If that bastard touched her, he’ll know hell.
My thoughts are interrupted by a call from my brother.
Settling into the university lounge area, I stretch out on a leather sofa, staring at the dark wall of forest beyond the window.
Laurent is three years older than me and frighteningly smart.
No wonder he’s angling to be the family’s chief strategist.
“I haven’t congratulated you on Africa.” His voice is measured, tinged with a hint of irony. “Incredibly well done.”
“It’s not worth the praise,” I toss back without changing position. “A nothing job.”
My brother chuckles. “Be that as it may, opening those supply lines will give your kingdom full autonomy. You’ll be able to spread its influence across the entire state.
Not to mention, you won’t have to go asking Dad for checks anymore—you’ll be able to funnel resources into Stonehaven yourself, bypassing the family. ”
“That’s the only reason I bothered,” I grunt, studying my palms.
Stonehaven is teeming with the offspring of wealthy and influential families, and the competition here has always been fierce.
Besides my kingdom, other exclusive clubs are multiplying across campus.
I dropped in on Asgard’s underground fights once—a bunch of reckless roid-raging savages.
But with my current influence and resources, few are willing to challenge me anymore. My kingdom is powerful.
“When will Jefferson come up with the third target?” I change the subject, returning to what truly makes my blood race through my veins.
Thanks to Rory’s little stunt, I’m itching to kill someone. Inside, everything is buzzing with the thirst for action, and if they try to ship me off to another continent again, they’ll regret it.
“You just got back yesterday, Desire. Have a rest.”
“When will there be a target?” I repeat, ignoring the advice.
“I’ll ask, if it means that much to you.”
I decide to share a doubt that’s been gnawing at me for a while. “I have questions about the targets Jefferson has been choosing. The Thorntons, for instance—our auditors found they were drowning in debt. Are you sure they were the most strategically sound choices from a business perspective?”
“You’re cutting to the heart of it.” Laurent’s tone turns professional.
“It almost feels like Jefferson is using your surgical skills to clear out people he or his partners simply don’t like.
But what does it matter to us? Our agreement with his organization doesn’t depend on who the targets are.
We’ll get our piece of the pie regardless, and you’ll get the funding for your projects. ”
“Whatever you say,” I state, losing interest in the conversation.
Let Laurent handle that while sitting on his ass in front of monitors and endless reports. He’s the strategist. I’m the hunter. I’m the Prince. I’m meant to rule and to punish.
Laurent doesn’t let up, droning on about family business.
I only end the call when I leave the academic sector and enter Kingdom territory.
Formally, it’s still part of the campus, but even on paper, the tenant—my club—has absolute power here.
My laws rule. During the day, the gilded gates usually stand wide open, but those who aren’t in the club don’t dare cross the line.
Steve is waiting by the gate, wearing a wide bracelet on his right wrist. Every member of the Kingdom has a bracelet with an individual pattern.
The exact same prints adorn the chokers of their girls.
Steve’s pattern is a paisley. Isaac’s has stars and stripes.
Fucking jokers. But they’re my captains, and I let a lot slide.
A lot but not everything. Isaac once floated the idea of an “Aloha” print.
I promised I’d personally feed his hand into a meat grinder if he brought that beachy crap onto my territory.
My bracelet is matte gold with no pattern, but I’m not wearing it right now.
“Report,” I growl, closing the distance.
Is he fucking her?
“Better to go inside the Citadel. Isaac’s there,” the captain says.
As we reach the porch of the Citadel—the main building, a massive castle-like tower—we run into someone we didn’t expect.
“Well, well, well, look who’s showed up.” Steve whistles.
Up ahead, Aurora and her friend Kelsey are walking along the gravel path.
The initiative clearly came from Rory, but judging by the eager look in the other girl’s eyes, she wasn’t at all opposed to this little adventure.
Two “good girls” used to the silence of libraries and diligent studying have wandered into our lair.
They look scared and excited at the same time.
They turn at the sound of our footsteps, and Rory takes a deep breath, her tits bouncing, and my cock instantly strains.
“Hey there, dolls!” Steve waves, not hiding his obvious interest in Kelsey’s legs. “You’re gonna like it here, sweetheart.”
“You think?” She glances down at his bracelet, then at his biceps straining against his T-shirt. The girl clearly wants to become some strong guy’s toy. She never even looked at Brad, Zack’s friend.
Arms crossed over my chest, I stop. My captain freezes beside me. Aurora lifts her head, her wide eyes meeting mine.
“Wrong side of campus,” I toss out.
“I’ve come for my collar,” she states.
The corners of my mouth twitch upward almost imperceptibly, and Aurora flushes red. I feel like playing with her. The punishment for that bastard Zack will come later.
“I see you’re completely clueless about the survival rules in this harsh world,” I say, raking my gaze over her bare neck. “If someone who isn’t in the club wanders into Kingdom territory, they die.”
She flinches, freezing.
“What nonsense. We’re on campus grounds …” she says, looking around. “And my boyfriend is a club member!” she hisses.
“So you’re looking for him here, like a little lost puppy?” I step toward her with a smirk, blocking out the sun and casting my shadow over her pale face. “Can’t make a phone call?”
“He’s not answering.” She breathes out the admission before she can bite her tongue.
I stop so close I feel her thighs tensing.
“Give me the same band he has,” she demands, looking up at me.