THE VAMPIRE KING'S PET

CHAPTER 5

SOPHIA TYRIAN

I no longer know how many lashes I’ve taken.

I lost count after the fifth, or the tenth… it doesn’t matter.

My throat burns from swallowing back the sobs.

I cannot show weakness.

I cannot give him the pleasure of seeing me broken.

When silence finally falls, he steps back.

The king watches me, satisfied, proud as if he had just tamed a wild beast.

I lower my eyes, controlling every fiber of my body to hide the rage consuming me inside.

“Good girl,” his voice sounds deep, laced with pleasure. “I see that, after all, you learned quickly. That makes me proud.”

I breathe again when I feel the shackles being removed from my wrists.

I quickly sit on the bed, pulling my thin tunic down, feeling my backside throbbing.

I do not look at him.

I repeat to myself what Aiden said: submissive, obedient, without questioning.

“Yes, sir,” I murmur, my voice low and obedient.

He approaches again.

Cold fingers grip my chin, forcing me to lift my face and meet his glowing red eyes. I feel my skin burn under his pressure.

“Submission has its rewards, my pet. From today, I will allow you to leave this room. Walk the halls, see this place that is now your home. But…” His voice grows harder, darker. “Know that you will always be watched. Always.”

He squeezes my face tighter.

“And if you dare even think of escaping… I’ll finish what I started. I’ll destroy you.”

I lower my eyes immediately.

“Yes, sir.”

He releases me violently, his face still wearing that predatory smile.

“I’ll come back to see you tomorrow. I expect you to be ready for me again.”

He smiles before opening the door and leaving me alone.

I stagger toward the mirror, pulling the tunic aside. I face myself. Red marks cover my back, my legs, and my backside.

Tears come without permission.

For an instant, I almost give in to them, but I wipe them away in anger.

“You will not win. I will not be his. Never.”

I fill the basin with cold water and wash my body, each wound burning like fire.

The pain tears me apart, but it also reminds me that I am alive. And as long as I am alive, I have a chance.

Then I put on a clean tunic and grab the hidden dagger. I hold it firmly before strapping it to my leg.

When I open the door, what I expected happens. I see two vampire guards staring at me.

“Where do you think you’re going?” one of them asks harshly.

I take a deep breath, lower my head.

“The king gave me permission to leave. I need a healer. My body… my wounds need treatment.”

They hesitate. I lift my eyes at them, trying to look firm.

“It’s the king’s order. Do you want to be accused of disobedience?”

They exchange a nervous glance and finally lead me through the stone corridors to a wooden door covered in carved symbols.

“The healer is here.”

I give a fragile smile.

“I need privacy. The king wants me cared for in secret.”

They hesitate again, but nod, standing motionless before the door.

I place my hand on the handle… and instead of entering, I hide in the dark corner of the corridor.

I wait for the right moment, until I feel their attention drift, and I run barefoot through the halls, my heart pounding.

I need to find Aiden.

The castle feels like a labyrinth.

I smell blood, hearing vampires feeding further in other rooms.

My eyes widen when I hear footsteps and two vampires walking in my direction. I look around and rush, opening the first door I find and slipping inside.

I close my eyes, but my heart nearly stops when I hear footsteps behind me.

My hand finds the dagger strapped to my leg and I turn to attack, pressing the blade to someone’s throat.

“Sophia?”

I quickly lower my hand when I see Aiden in front of me.

He is wet, fresh from the bath, a towel hanging around his waist. His hair clings to his skin, and his golden eyes immediately rise to me.

“What are you doing here? It’s dangerous.”

The tears I held back so tightly burst all at once.

He looks at the dagger and then at my wrists, seeing the marks on my skin.

Aiden looks confused, and I try to hold back my tears.

“It’s time, Aiden. Do it. Mark me now. We need to start this now.”

His eyes widen.

I grab his arms, squeezing tightly.

“Make me your Luna, Aiden. Now, tonight, please. I can’t take it anymore.”

“If I must keep pretending, I need something real to hold on to. Mark me. Make me yours. Save me before it’s too late.”

Aiden stares at me with golden eyes. I see how he studies me, as if trying to figure out how much more I can endure.

“What did he do to you, Sophia?” his voice comes low, but heavy with fury.

For a moment, I think of hiding it.

Of pretending I’m fine. But I can’t. The pain still burns in my body and soul. I swallow hard, my fingers trembling as I grip the edge of my tunic.

“Do you really want to know?”

Before he answers, I pull the fabric and let the tunic slip off my shoulders.

The marks appear before him. Red cuts, burning welts, dark bruises beginning to form. My back looks like a battlefield.

His expression changes.

The air around him grows heavier, and I see the muscles in his jaw clench with rage.

“He did this to you?”

I nod, taking a deep breath.

“I followed your advice. I pretended total submission to him. And it worked. He gave me permission to leave the room. But I don’t have much time, Aiden. If someone catches us here…”

He cuts me off, his voice tense.

“If someone sees me here with you, Sophia, it’s death. For me. For you. For both of us.”

I step closer, holding his gaze with all the strength I have.

“Then we need to do this now.”

“Sophia…”

“I can’t take it anymore, please. Please, I’m dying slowly, Aiden.”

He touches my face as I begin to sob.

I’m not surprised when he pulls me into a tight embrace.

I cry against his chest, breathing in the scent of his skin.

“Please, free me from this nightmare, I’m begging you…”

He touches my hair.

I lift my head to see him looking at me. I blink, touching his face.

“Make me yours.”

He finally nods and steps back from me.

“You’re right. We don’t have much time.”

He locks the door and walks toward me.

“Are you sure? Are you ready for this?”

“Yes. I am ready.”

When he is finally before me, his large hand grips my wrist firmly. With the other, he draws a silver dagger, the cold shine reflecting in the dim light of the room.

“Then you must say the words.”

My breath falters, but I repeat them as if every syllable is my destiny.

“I, Sophia Tyrian, accept to be claimed by Aiden Duskbane and to become his Luna before the gods.”

The dagger cuts my wrist.

The cold blade slides across my skin and slices my wrist. Blood runs hot, staining my hand. He repeats the same vows, his voice filled with power:

“I, Aiden Duskbane, accept to claim Sophia Tyrian as my Luna before the gods.”

He cuts his own wrist as well, his blood pouring strong and red.

Then he takes a dark chalice from the table and lets our blood drip into it.

“Drink, Sophia.”

My hands tremble as I hold the cup.

Aiden drinks after me, wiping his lips with the back of his hand. His eyes shine brighter, as if fire itself had been lit within them.

“Now comes the last part,” he says, stepping closer.

His breath brushes my face, hot. “I will bite you. It will hurt. But after this, you will be mine.”

“I don’t care. Do it.”

He gently pushes me onto the bed, and I fall back on it.

Aiden looms over me, his eyes locked on mine.

I squeeze my eyes shut, turning my head and leaving my neck fully exposed to him, but he refuses.

“A bite on your neck would be too visible to everyone…” he whispers, touching there, then grabbing my hand.

“I will bite here. You can hide it with clothes.” He touches my wrist, and I nod.

He keeps his eyes on me as he brings my wrist to his mouth. I bite my lips hard when I feel the pain of the bite, but it’s not worse than the king’s.

I do not cry. I only begin to feel different.

After tonight I will be like him, I will belong to a powerful bloodline of werewolves and no longer be a frightened girl.

Aiden bites harder, and when he finishes, he hovers over me, touching my face.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes…”

I whisper, unable to look away at that moment.

I blink and my gaze drops to his lips.

I feel different with each passing second now. I can even hear his heartbeat.

We are connected now. It was like this with Marco, but with Aiden it feels stronger for some reason I don’t know.

“It’s done.”

He wipes the tears from my eyes, and time seems to stop around us as he leans toward my face and seconds later kisses me.

I close my eyes, kissing him back, sealing completely our mate bond.

My hands pull his hair hard. Now it feels like I can no longer control my movements or feelings.

I feel his tongue inside my mouth, and I know we’re in great danger, but I don’t care.

My nails scratch his back hard as Aiden kisses and licks my neck.

I keep my eyes shut and open them when I feel him pulling back just enough to study me.

I take a deep breath, trying to process it all, but the heat inside me only grows.

“What… what is this I feel?”

“It’s the bond. It’s the power of my pack running inside you. Now you are my Luna, Sophia. Now we have a chance.”

I bring my hand to my chest, still breathless.

The hatred I feel for the vampires mixes with this new strength pulsing in my veins.

It’s unlike anything I’ve ever felt. It’s as if I’ve been reborn.

I look at him, my eyes tearful but firm.

“We will kill him, Aiden. We will kill the king. And they will all pay for what they’ve done.”

He holds my face again, his gaze firm on mine.

“Yes. But now you must be clever. Pretend. Deceive. The king must believe you are his until the right moment. Only then can we defeat him.”

I nod slowly, still feeling his mark pulsing on my wrist.

“I can do it. I will do it. Because I never was and never will be his. I am yours now.”