Chapter 8 #3
Bal cocked his head. “I am an Original vampire, Shane, and you carry my blood, my power, and my scent. That makes you mine. It also makes you a Made. It doesn’t matter if you are part shifter.
You will succumb to my compulsion just like any other fledgling who has nearly made it through bloodlust. I am old and far more powerful than you. ”
His compulsion kept pulsing through me until I groaned and my knees shook.
“Stop fighting me. There is no shame in this.
You need to control yourself, and you will learn how to do so, but it takes time.
Until then, I am the only one who can control you.
You need to let me. If you lose yourself to a blood craving when you are around other people, it will be a bloodbath.
It will incite a feeding frenzy amongst any vampires nearby.
I cannot allow that, so you will give in to my compulsion, or I will make you. “
I managed a snarl. “You can’t make me.”
He shrugged his impressive shoulders. “I can. I will keep you weak enough that you are unable to resist my compulsion until you have mastered your baser needs. Is that what you want, to lose this beautiful body again, and constantly suffer from the hunger that you endured over the past ten days?”
Ten days? I’d been feeding and allowing him to control my pleasure for more than a week?
Shit. But he was right, I needed him, and he knew it.
I wouldn’t risk hurting Sorcha. Gritting my teeth and pushing away the dark memories that threatened to consume me, I let my knees sag to the floor.
Sweat trickled down my temples, and my hands began to tremble. I hid it by squeezing them into fists.
Balthazar didn’t gloat. He said nothing.
Instead, he continued to get dressed. He slipped a black t-shirt over his head, covering his sinfully toned body and pulled on socks and running shoes.
It was such a casual outfit for him that it looked odd.
He stopped in front of me, and my heart slammed against my chest wall, but this time not from lust. He seemed to pause before gently grabbing my chin.
I jerked away, relieved when he didn’t force his hold on me.
I wasn’t sure I could have held it together if he had.
When I glared up at him, my nostrils flaring, his brows were drawn down, his intense eyes trained on my face like he was trying to work something out.
I clenched my jaw, my breathing shallow and fast. I had so much fear and anger zipping around my body that I was dizzy. I’d fought through a ton of shit in my life, and this position was always the one that made me freak out. It was always a precursor to humiliation, pain, and vulnerability.
But what had I expected? That Balthazar Rossi would treat me with respect and kindness just because he’d dragged copious orgasms from my traitorous cock?
That this Original vampire had feelings for me?
I almost snorted at my own ridiculousness, then remembered Sorcha’s hurt.
Yeah, Balthazar was someone people craved, yet no one ever affected him.
No matter his small acts of kindness, his heart was shrouded in ice.
I needed to remember that. He’d kept me alive for no other reason than his alliance with Connor, even if he’d enjoyed the physical side of it.
Or had he? I had no recollection of touching him intimately, only his forearms to feed.
It had been his hands on me. That thought left a sour taste in my mouth.
It had been me begging, me needing him, not the other way around.
“You will remain there on your knees until Davlov brings your food.”
“No, you said I’d only be on my knees for you.” I started fighting the compulsion.
Bal nodded once. “It is. He will not look at you or engage with you.”
Fury built an inferno in my chest. “But he will know…”
“He will. But this is a vital lesson in control. He will not hurt you or mock you. Dav understands how important it is that you allow me to control you when you cannot yet control yourself. This isn’t about humiliation.
It’s about the safety of those around you.
When he has left, you may move, but you will remain in this room. Sorcha is safer if you stay here.”
My nostrils flared, but I knew he was right.
“And Shane?”
“What?” I hissed between my clenched teeth.
“Eat everything on that tray, but do not touch the blood in the cool box. That’s mine, and I will not have the scent of another vampire on you. I will return to feed you again later.”
My stomach flipped as I realised he was actually leaving.
No matter how strong I was as a shifter, I wasn’t even a fully turned vampire yet, and I had no idea what to expect.
What would I do if the bloodlust came on while I was alone?
Could I break that door down? I didn’t want to hurt Sorcha, although feeding on that cold bastard Davlov wouldn’t be a chore.
As soon as the thought of hurting Sorcha entered my mind, pain ripped through my chest, and my wolf howled.
Bal opened the bedroom door. He didn’t even glance back before he stepped out and pulled it closed. Before it snapped shut, a scream blew in on the breeze, followed by the staccato sound of gunshots.
The door slammed open again. “Stay here!” Another wave of compulsion slammed into me before Balthazar literally disappeared.
“Wait! You fucker!”