14. Chapter 13 Svenn
Chapter 13 Svenn
T hat same morning, several moments earlier…
The rustling of my wings is almost as frantic as the thundering inside my chest cavity. My back shrieks in protest when I forcefully beat them rapidly to catch the drift of the southeastern wind. Things are spiraling out of my control fast. I tear through the sky as if I’m being chased by the pressing shadow of the night itself.
‘Tragic, but it does make for a spectacular sight.’
Ruth once said that when he saw one of the made-vampires, the ones these elves called the Nightwalkers, combusted under the sunlight.
That’s exactly how I feel when I look at Rhianelle encased in her sheer nightgown this morning. I can almost see the outline of her breasts through the wispy fabric.
I need to be inside her, feel her heat wrapped around my cock. If she won’t become mine, then I’ll make her. It’s a hassle to find another castle, so I’ll just conquer this one. I’ll keep some of the elves, the ones to cook and care for Rhianelle, the ones she adores to keep her in line.
If she tries to run, I’ll chain her to the wall and make her my plaything. I will break her to the point she hates me, to the point she hates herself for wanting me. She’ll resist me at first, but it won’t be long before she surrenders everything to me.
Fuck off, the wolf beast snarls at the bond.
Get a grip, asshole, Coinneach adds. Nel will never want us that way,
Their rough reminder snaps me from the bond’s vile suggestions.
Fucking hell.
My mind is a goddamn mess. I’m in no state to be near Rhianelle. The impulse to covet her is so strong it terrifies me. I straighten my shoulders, flaring my wings wide to put as much distance as I can from Windhaven.
The peak of the Arcille mountain range is within sight. I need to reach it before I start losing my fucking shit again. My landing on one of the lower hills is less than graceful. I simply crash on the hard granite and soil like a fallen rock from the sky.
Nothing accompanies me in the quiet place other than the sound of my harsh breathing.
Another close call.
I can’t even put a name to this strange carnal urge filling my heart. The effect of the bond has been overpowering lately, drowning my thoughts. I slam my hand to my chest to calm it.
It fucks me knowing that had the beasts not intervened earlier, I might have actually turned around and ravage her.
We’ll end you if you try that, they warn.
For the first time since my millennials of existence, the beasts and me are in agreement with something. Nel must be protected at all costs.
Even from myself.
I inhale several deep breaths until clarity returns and chase away the fog in my head.
I wonder if Rhianelle is experiencing the same thing. My little fawn has been avoiding me lately. She thinks she’s sneaky, but I’ve seen her little head, spying and sneaking behind my back. Surely, she can also feel the pull?
There is a force drawing us together that’s stronger than gravity.
It’s probably just my own imagination, but I suspect the stupid bond is getting out of control because of our recent rift. This can’t go on. I need to talk with her soon.
I haul my ass up and move to the peak of the hill. Pollens sweep into my eyes as the evening breeze picks up. I don’t let the mild irritation deter me from my current task. Carefully, I tuck my wings tight and plan my steps before trudging through the sea of wildflowers.
Plump hydrangeas, tulips, and peonies boast their glorious bloom in the secluded meadow. This hidden garden remains untouched because of its fatal height and proximity to the fae border.
I picture my wife sitting among the vibrant red roses, scenting the flowers one by one and documenting them in her little notebook. She is lovely and perfect in her cream dress, springtime in all its personification. Rhianelle’s head turns to me and a gentle smile curves her lips. I move closer to grasp her hand and the vision vanishes. A mixture of anger and disappointment churns my stomach.
One day I’ll bring Rhianelle here, I silently vow. But for now, I pick the flowers her handmaidens told me she loved. The twins gave me another two samples today.
‘This one is the one she usually puts in her bath. And this one helps her sleep,’ the girl instructed.
Once I’ve gathered enough supplies, I stretch my wings to glide against the updraft.
Thoughts of Rhianelle infiltrate my mind the entire flight.
The bond’s pull is one thing, but I’ve developed an unexplainable feeling towards the girl. It only grows stronger no matter how much I try to smother it.
Well, I’m no longer interested in fighting it.
I’m confessing everything to Nel once I see her.
The sight of the gray tower of Windhaven sends my blood racing knowing that she is somewhere in the keep. I slip through the small window opening and land soundlessly in the room, my wings folding behind me. The sweet hint of waterlilies fills the air, summoning me to its owner. Everything about Rhianelle is created to draw me in, to haunt me.
I find my wife on the floor with her eyes closed, lost in her reverie. Divine, lovely, a piece of heaven itself.
I see her, and just like that, it’s like Satan himself sets me on fire. I’m burning for her.
Her eyes flutter open as soft as a butterfly’s wings.
Silence crashes into the room as the girl stares at me, her eyes widening. I can’t understand the panic in her face. She looks as if she had just seen a basilisk, utterly petrified and afraid.
My heart slams against its chest hard enough to bruise. Fuck—is it the fucking wings? I quickly cloak them and hasten my shift, but Rhianelle remains frozen.
After three tortuous heartbeats, she gathers her belongings on the floor and scrambles to her feet. The girl leaves the room before I can say a word.
I stare back at her as she bolts to the passage’s end.
What the fuck just happened?
“Nel?” I call to her, feeling dumbfounded and a little stunned.
She keeps running away without looking back.
Is this a game like last time? I smile at the tease of a hunt. I do enjoy our little cat and mouse game.
I begin chasing after her.
Every breath, every heartbeat gives her away.
No, this is different.
There is nothing playful about it this time. It’s pure survival. Rhianelle is running for her life.
She’s not even wearing her shoes…
“Nel, wait!”
The girl ignores my summon and keeps running barefooted. She really doesn’t want to be caught.
I can’t afford to let Rhianelle get out of sight. If she starts hiding with that silent skill of hers, I’ll never find her.
I pursue her relentlessly down the hall into the library. She makes a sharp turn to the dark basement. I can tell from the air flow it’s a dead end.
The cellar is dim and deserted. I listen to the sound of her distressed breathing in the dark, like a cornered small animal.
“I told you not to run,” I chastise, my stride eating up the distance between us.
“Rhianelle?” I call but she doesn’t show any sign that she heard me.
The girl suddenly whirls around and launches herself towards me in offense. The impact of her gentle body crashing into mine is laughable despite her feral energy. The effect is, however—fuck, I missed this. I missed her touch.
I missed her.
“You like being chased, don’t you?” I snake an arm around her waist, pulling her closer against me.
“Was this your plan all along?” I tease, sinking my hand into her silver hair and pulling her head back. “Luring me into a dark basement and—”
The words trail as I stare down into her wild eyes, her chest heaving in irregular intervals.
She’s looking at me but she’s not really here. It’s like I’m staring back at a creature in the wilderness.
Rhianelle is purely consumed by the bond.
Seeing her like this triggers something hot and primal within me. I’ve always prided myself on my restraint, it all goes to shit when she’s clawing at me, trying to rip my clothes. I can barely stand it anymore.
“Rhianelle…” Her name drawls itself from my mouth. She tugs at my belt buckle, her fingers frantic as she undoes the straps to my breeches—shit. Each breath feels like a struggle when her fingers graze my abdomen.
Her touch has always been my undoing.
The last remaining shred of my self-control frays. I sweep her feet out from under her and we both fall to the floor. I throw my weight down, pinning her with my entire body. She squirms underneath me, panting and gasping.
I take her slender wrists in my hand, pinning them above her head. They are so delicate I can snap them without trying.
I give in, letting the bond take hold of me entirely.
I rip the front of her dress with one hand. My breath stalls when I look at her naked skin and the slope of her breast. She’s so fucking beautiful. I have truly missed her.
Her breasts are begging me to take them in my mouth for a taste. I latch my lips on her pebbled nipple, running my tongue in tight circles around the sensitive buds, eliciting the sweetest strangled gasp from her.
Her moans of pleasure are turning me on like nothing else, feeding into my lust. She arches her back, her body trembling with intensity. “Svenn, please…”
So fucking needy, Nel. I smile.
I drape my body over hers, my teeth ravaging her skin, trailing a path of bites everywhere.
I’m too hungry for her touch to listen to my brain at the moment.
No.
It’s not enough. This is far from enough. I want more.
Give me everything.
“Svenn…”
Her helpless whimper finally breaks me from my trance. I stare down at the girl writhing beneath me, her soft skin now marred with my bite marks. Guilt stabs my heart like a knife. I’m a fucking animal for doing this to her.
I release her wrists and instantly back away from her. Rhianelle jumps towards me before I can catch my next breath, stumbling us both towards the shelf. She’s clawing at me, pulling me closer.
“Svenn, touch me more.” Her demand sounds sultry and innocent all at the same time.
“You’re not yourself,” I mutter through clenched teeth. I can barely hear my voice over the tumultuous pounding in my chest.
“Don’t you want me?” she asks, tilting her head. I stiffen at the dejection in her voice.
I want her. But not like this.
Not when she’s driven by pure instinct and lust without an ounce of sane thought.
She plants a soft kiss on my jaw. I can’t hold back my groan when she’s grinding her hips down on me.
I’m ready to yield to this, but I know Rhianelle will hate herself if she continues any further. I caress her pale cheek with my hand. “Come back to me, Nel.”
She closes her eyes, leaning to the touch. When she opens them again, light returns to her pupils. A delicate moment passes.
“Svenn?” the girl calls for me softly.
“I’m here, little fawn.” I keep my voice even. I don’t want to scare her. I sure as fuck don’t want to hurt her.
Horror fills her gaze when she looks at her unfamiliar surroundings. Pain lances at me over the vulnerability in her eyes. She retracts her hand from me in a way that almost breaks my fucking heart.
Rhianelle takes a quick glance at our disheveled state and her eyes lower to the floor in embarrassment. “I didn’t mean to—” she chokes on the words, her chest heaving with emotion.
This loss of control shames us both. We know what the bond wants us to do. She rearranges her clothes and retreats into the shadows. I give her several moments to hide and collect herself before approaching her carefully. “Are you hurt?”
She gives me no answer. Her hands are clasped to her face, trying not to let the tears fall. “Don’t come any closer.”
Fuck that.
I do the exact opposite. She stares back at me with wild, frightened eyes. “Svenn, don’t…”
I can’t bear the thought of her being afraid of me. I try holding out my hand.
She cowers away from my touch, shaking her head. “My body isn’t listening to me. What if I attack you again?”
This girl… I was seconds away from fucking the living daylights out of her and she’s worried for me?
“It’s nothing I can’t handle.” I dismiss her concern.
Her face is rife with worry and she hesitates for a moment. I ease a breath into my lungs when she slowly crawls out of the dark. “This is so wrong. It’s messed up. I’m sorry.”
I ignore the apology and seize the opportunity to draw her into my lap. She doesn’t protest when I wrap my arms around her. Nel feels like she was made just for me as she rests her head on my chest. Her water lily scent has a hint of vanilla today, and god-fucking-damn-it, I love that smell. Now that I have her in my clutches, I’m never letting this girl go. I’ve been starved of her for far too long. Rhianelle blinks softly, like a lost deer who doesn’t know she’s in the grasp of a wolf.
“I lied before,” she confesses, her voice as soft as a whisper. “The bond still affects me.”
Yes, it’s perfectly clear now. I am not alone in my obsession. Rhianelle needs me too. I release a long pent-up breath.
“It’s the same for me, Nel,” I reply with equal quiet.
Neither of us speaks for a long moment, only the sound of our breathing filtering the cold air.
Rhianelle shifts in my lap, straightening her back to look me in the eye. “The bond is always telling me to do things…”
In all of those times the bond pushed me into madness, it never occurred to me that Rhianelle may have been going through the same motions as me. Today alone the aberrant connection has persuaded me to slaughter everyone in town just so I can keep her.
Maybe it had driven Rhianelle to something close. If it’s skeletons she needs to hide, I’ll help her bury them.
“It’s terrible…” she says, her lips trembling.
“You can tell me,” I assure her calmly. She can do no wrong in my eyes. Hell knows I have a few things I will have to come clean about as well.
Lines crease between her brows and her face tightens solemnly with a hint of distress. I brace myself for her damning revelation.
“Sometimes when I look at your broad back, all I want to do is jump and hug you,” she finally admits.
Ah.
My Nel is truly too fucking pure for this world. I scratch the plan of confessing my truth. How can I tell this beautiful, innocent creature all my depraved, darkest fantasies about her? The times I want my cock in her mouth, the times I want to wrap my hand around her throat and thrust into her relentlessly. Of the people I almost and will kill for her.
“I think about you all the time, Nel,” I say instead. My hand finds the small of her back and I guide her closer to my chest, pressing her body to mine.
We stay like that for a moment, just holding on to each other and breathing in the silence.
I reach for the box beside us purely out of curiosity. A low guttural sound slips past Rhianelle’s lips. I think the girl meant to snarl but it ends up sounding closer to a kitten’s hiss. She is trying to push me away from the metallic case.
“Svenn, please…” she begs, scrubbing her cheek from the remnants of her tears. “Don’t look…”
Her pleading is a little too late as my eyes fall on the first object in the box. I can’t make sense of the content at all. I look to my wife for answers. “What is this?”
She shrinks in my lap, fear clouding her soft features. “I don’t know.”
I shift my gaze inside the box once again. There are some buttons, bootlaces, a hunting knife… all of these are my things that have been missing for weeks. I thought a mouse had gotten to them. I even sent out my familiars to catch the poor creature. Turns out it’s this thieving fawn.
“I keep these to calm myself.” Her lips tremble and so does her voice. “When you’re not around it becomes unbearable for me.”
It must be frustrating and terrifying for a rational person like Rhianelle to have these odd cravings and wants. I make the dumb mistake of looking down into her moist eyes. Something carnal and potent grips me.
Claim her, now, the bond commands, but I keep the fucker at bay.
The same can’t be said for Rhianelle. Her hands are trembling as she clutches her head, the spark of lust reigniting in her eyes.
“You need to go now,” she warns me.
“Why?”
“I can’t fight this thing when it wants me to throw myself at you,” she mutters, her eyes moist and glistening in the dark.
“Then don’t fight it,” I say, keeping my tone soft.
I look at the angelic face staring back at me. It doesn’t seem right that it’s full of fear and tears now. I feel an urge to put a smile on it right away.
“You don’t understand…” She purses her lips and shakes her head. “It’s telling me to bite.”
“Do it.” I prompt her. “It’s fine.”
She’s done it before in the forest. If that’s what it takes to calm her, I don’t detest the experience the slightest bit. In fact, I welcome it. “Come on, Nel.”
“Svenn…” she murmurs in the dimness. “I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You won’t.”
She hesitates at first.
Then slowly her hands twine around my neck, pulling herself up so she can reach my neck.
“I’m sorry,” she whispers before nipping my throat. She latches her lips on my skin, her mouth eager and warm. Then she begins sucking, licking, and nibbling on me. Each breath feels like a struggle as she elicits the grunts from my chest with the flick of her tongue against my skin. I’m fucking confused which one of us is the vampire right now. This Elf Queen might kill me. But hell, what a fucking way to go.
Her wild desperation proves it. Rhianelle needs me just as much as I need her. My body craves release, demanding me to match her passion. That primal instinct takes over and I’m ready to strip her bare and fuck her against the wall until…
A drop of tear lands on my skin.
Another one comes until it becomes a constant flow. I realize then that Rhianelle is shivering and crying while she’s biting me.
“I’m sorry…” I hear her murmur to my skin. The girl is trying so hard to resist the bond.
It doesn’t hurt, Nel, I want to tell her so she wouldn’t be so tormented. But I know it’s useless because this is just who she is.
This divine creature is so full of light and innocence. She is now right here in my arms, ripe for the taking. A forbidden fruit in the garden of Eden.
My dark soul is twisted beyond salvation. There is not an ounce of good in me. I know I will never go to heaven if there is one.
So fuck it, I’m stealing her.