Chapter 18
1176 Words
A slow, wicked smirk curled across his sinful lips.
So this frightens her.
He wasn’t even sure why he’d done it, but the sight of crimson blood streaking her pale porcelain skin stirred something primal in him something that found it almost... appealing.
It even tasted good.
The predator within him stirred, fully awakened by the way her entire body quaked, trembling as waves of fear rolled off her. Deliberately, he pressed a kiss to her blood-smeared skin. She jolted.
He found it entertaining.
Now he knew what truly terrified her.
His thumb brushed over the erratic thrum of her pulse at her throat before he drew back to look at her again. The satisfaction deepened the curve of his mouth. Her face was ghost-pale, her eyelids shut tight, tears streaking down her cheeks like silver threads.
When he finally let go of her throat, he noticed the damage he’d left behind a deepening bruise already beginning to surface, the skin flushed red and sure to worsen by morning.
Why was she so fragile?
Perhaps because she was just a woman.
He caught one of her tears on the tip of his finger, studying it with mild curiosity. Why did these creatures cry so much?
“Cat got your tongue?” he rasped, one hand braced against the wall beside her head. Her eyes remained closed as she yanked at her wrist, and when he released it, she instantly cradled it to her chest, gently rubbing the tender skin in a futile attempt to soothe the pain.
When she blinked her eyes open, her reaction surprised him.
That little ball of fire craned her neck and glared up at him vicious and unyielding.
“Move,” she ordered, and her defiance grated on him. Irritation flickered across his features, but he schooled his expression, making no effort to shift. He remained in her space, looming like a shadow made of torment.
“Try not to show me your face again if you want to live,” he said coolly. The menace in his thick voice was unmistakable sharp as a blade. “And go ahead, try to escape again. I won’t stop you. But the guards will. And you’ll die executed under the king’s command. What a shame that would be,” he added with a cruel, sardonic twist.
Azzurra bit back the retort burning on her tongue.
Her teary red eyes stayed locked on him in silent fury. But her breath caught when she noticed the blood on his lower lip her blood. He seemed to follow her gaze, and with a deliberate motion, his tongue flicked out, licking the stain slowly.
She shuddered.
His head tilted, eyes tracking her reaction as she suddenly ducked beneath his arm and scurried away. He could have caught her before she’d taken another breath but he didn’t. He let her go, watching her retreat as she hobbled up the stairs, his gaze falling to her dainty, injured feet.
So small. So breakable.
Azzurra slammed the bedroom door behind her and locked it, rushing into the bathroom. She stared at her reflection in the mirror.
Just below her collarbone, a deep, horizontal laceration stretched across her skin roughly two inches long. It might scar.
Not that it mattered.
If she survived this place, she only had twelve more years to live anyway. After that, she’d be dead regardless.
With her uninjured hand, she cleaned the wound and pressed tissues against it to stem the bleeding. Her tear-streaked face stared back at her in the mirror. Her gaze dropped to the darkening bruise at her throat… and the red mark blooming across her wrist.
That man wasn’t human.
An animal. A monster. A bastard prince.
She wished both the royal brothers would die and that she might one day be free.
Wishful thinking.
There was nothing to dress the wound with, so she left it alone. She didn’t know what she’d say if Benedetto noticed… maybe she’d find clothes to cover it.
She barely slept that night.
Fear kept her tethered to consciousness, trembling under the weight of it. That man had embedded terror into her bones.
She prayed she’d never have to face him again.
But the gods had no mercy. After breakfast the next morning, a summons arrived Prince Mattia requested her presence.
Benedetto gripped her leash as he escorted her down the hall toward the main room. Her heart stopped when she saw him Marcello. Her nightmare.
And beside him stood the king.
“You finally decided to show up,” Mattia said with a smirk. “Let’s go.”
Azzurra’s eyes flicked to Marcello, who seemed more interested in his watch than in her. He turned and exited first, Mattia following with her leash in hand. She trailed behind them in silence, unsure where they were headed.
They passed through the mansion’s doors and began walking toward the woods.
“Brother,” Mattia said suddenly, “should we let her participate? Might be a good way to get rid of her.”
Marcello glanced over, visibly contemplating the idea.
Azzurra tensed behind them, her throat tightening. Participate in what?
“Father won’t approve,” Marcello replied smoothly.
Then he looked back eyes locking with hers.
She flinched, dropping her gaze.
“Too bad,” Mattia muttered.
Just then, a cattle truck pulled into view.
A guard leapt aboard and began yanking humans out like they were sacks of grain soulless, unimportant. Marcello and Mattia stood back, surveying the crowd like hunters eyeing prey.
“They brought some good stock this time,” Mattia muttered.
Marcello said nothing, observing in silence.
“Damn, we’re supposed to choose now?” Mattia huffed. “Why not just throw them into a pit and let whoever survives be the ones who fight?”
Marcello didn’t answer right away, but his gaze shifted.
To her.
Azzurra stood frozen, wide-eyed with horror as she took in the trembling crowd. Concern etched every line of her face.
Marcello remembered the girl she’d tried to protect on her first day here.
So this little tigress had a soft spot for her kind.
A sinister idea bloomed behind his eyes.
Without warning, he snatched the leash from Mattia and yanked her forward. She yelped, stumbling into him, her hand instinctively grabbing his arm to steady herself. But she recoiled the moment she realized what she’d done, withdrawing like she’d touched fire.
He glared coldly at her, then dragged her toward the cluster of humans.
Azzurra clutched the leash, struggling to match his pace, her heart thundering. When he finally stopped, he turned to face her, and the glint in his eyes told her whatever came next would be cruel.
“Pick the ones you think are strong,” he ordered.
Her heart clenched in her chest.
“What… what will happen to the others?” she asked, her voice shaking.
He didn’t answer. Instead, he studied the panic rising in her eyes.
After a few agonizing seconds, he replied, voice flat.
“They’ll die.”
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