The Devil son

chapter 4

Only a few candles were lit now. Lucian was laying down on the bed looking up the ceiling. His shiny black hair was spread across the pillow and his golden eyes glowed in the dim light.

When I walked up to the bed he turned his head.

"You should take your robe off. It's very hot in here at night." His observation was completely innocent, but it made my heart beat faster, and suddenly it felt really hot in the room.

I opened my robe and let it slide down my arms. His eyes followed my every movement. I then laid down on the bed, facing the other way. Even though he told me he could wait to consummate the wedding, I still felt nervous.

I felt him shift on the bed and stiffened.

"Hazel," he whispered his voice a soft brush on my back.

"Yes?" I struggled to keep my voice neutral.

"Turn around!" he said with a commanding voice. I found myself turning around to face him.

"I promised to treat you well; you don't have to be afraid."

"I am not," I whispered. He didn't say anything for a while. He probably knew I was lying.

"Goodnight," he finally said.

"Goodnight," I whispered back feeling more relaxed until I eventually fell asleep.

I woke up and tried to shift in the bed, but then realized that a strong arm around my waist was restricting my movement. Lucian!

My back was pressed against his hard chest and I could feel his hot breath on my neck and some strands of his soft hair on my shoulder. He smelled good. He had a spicy scent, and somehow I found myself melting in his embrace. I liked it, liked the warm and secure feeling it gave.

Suddenly, he slid his arm away and sat upon the bed startling me. "What is it?" I asked, sitting as well.

He seemed to be listening to something. I looked around and strained my ears, but couldn't hear anything. Climbing down he put his robe on.

"We have a problem," he said walking to the door.

I quickly put my robe on and went after him.

Some maids and guards were gathered in the hall arguing about something. They fell silent as soon as they saw us.

"Your Highness," they said and bowed.

"What is the problem?" Lucian asked.

They had a look of fear in their eyes. One maid, in particular, was trembling with her hands behind her back.

"What do you have there?" Lucian asked. She was shaking now. Lucian went up to her and took the hidden thing from behind her back. It was a golden hairpin, my hairpin. One of the guards quickly came to the front and fell to his knees in front of Lucian.

"I am sorry, Your Highness, it will never happen again; you can punish me instead" he begged. "Please spare her, she is just a child."

She did look quite young. The white-faced maid fell to her knees too, shaking as much as before. "No, please, it was my fault! Don't punish my brother. He didn't know" she cried.

I had no idea what Lucian would do to them. For that, I both pitied and feared for them. They might get executed, or if they had luck they would get their hands cut off. I didn't know which one sounded worse.

Stealing was of course not okay, but I didn't think anyone should die for it. I hoped Lucian would have mercy on them.

"Since you stole from my wife, I should let her decide the punishment for you," he said, walking behind me and placing his hands on my shoulders. I froze for a moment unsure of what to do.

"How do you want me to punish them for you?" he asked. I looked at the young maid sitting on her knees crying and shaking violently. I went up to her.

"Why did you do it?" I asked in a gentle voice.

"I am sorry, Your Highness. I didn't want to, but my mother is sick and her treatment costs a lot," she said, crying hysterically.

"Get up!" I ordered them both. They got up to their feet.

"What's your name?" I asked her.

"Lisa, Your Highness," she said meekly. "Lisa, you can have the hairpin but you need to promise me that you will never steal again. There are more honest ways to find money, besides putting your life at risk wouldn't help your mother in any way."

Everyone looked at me wide-eyed. They clearly didn't expect to be left alive. Lisa was in shock, she just stared at me.

"Do you promise me?" I repeated.

"I...I promise you...I promise Your Highness" she said. "Thank you so much...thank you" she began to cry again, but this time tears of relief.

"Thank you, Your Highness" her brother repeated. His eyes were also glistening with unshed tears of gratitude.

"Now everyone can go back to work," I said relieved that the situation ended well.

They walked away. Lisa was hugging her brother crying and he was scolding her. " Never do that again!" I found myself smiling. I wish I had a brother like that. My brothers were spoiled brats. Turning around to go back I found Lucian standing there, his arms crossed behind his back. He looked at me with what seemed like admiration but I wasn't sure.

Crossing the distance between us he wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me into his embrace.

"Let's get back to bed."

His voice, his scent, the warmth of his body, all filled my senses and made me unable to think clearly. Before I knew he was carrying me to our chamber, and then laid me down on the bed. Bed? Wait, no!

He lay down next to me and when I tried to get up, he put an arm around my shoulders and held me down.

"Lay still and let me hold you," he said, taking his arm away from my shoulders and putting them around my waist instead.

"Why?"

"Because I like holding you and you like it when I do that" he replied.

"And how would you know?" I said, a teasing lilt to my voice. "What? You don't like it?" I was afraid that if I said I liked it he would want to take it to the next level, but I didn't want to lie either.

"It's... alright," I said cautiously, a shy smile making its way to my face. He grabbed my chin and made me turn around to face him.

"Is my touch just alright?"

He let go of my chin and traced with his fingers down my neck and up my shoulder, removing my robe from one side. My pulse quickened and my skin tingled where he had touched. He leaned closer.

"I don't think so," he whispered.

"You... you promised not to do anything," I said.

"No, I didn't. I promised to treat you well." Oh god! That was true. He never promised to not consume the wedding and who knows what treating well means to him. I pulled myself away from his grasp and climbed down from the bed.

Clearing my throat "I am hungry," I said, "Aren't you?" He smiled a devilish smile "Oh, I am very hungry" he said scanning me with eyes that showed hunger for something other than food. My heart skipped a beat, but I ignored it.

"Then we should go and eat," I said, turning around and walking away before he could say anything.

Lucian tried to ignore the burning need in his body and tried to focus on eating his breakfast. He glanced at his wife the same time she glanced at him. Their eyes met and she looked down quickly, her cheeks turning a light pink. He wanted to reach for her from across the table but stood up from his seat instead.

"I have some work to do," he said and strode out of the room before he lost control.

What was wrong with him? Why was his body burning and his heart beating in his ears? He had never felt like this before.

He came a bit late to the meeting with his father and brothers. His father didn't bother to look at him, and his brothers shot him angry glances. He took a seat and listened to how his father planned to take over other kingdoms. His greed had no end.

"That's all for today. I expect all of you to fulfill your duties," the king said, looking at each of his sons except Lucian, he then walked out of the room.

His brothers turned to him most of them looking angry and irritated while Pierre had a smirk on his face. He was the cruelest.

"Your wife seems very fond of you," Pierre said. Lucian knew his brother was trying to pick a fight with him, as usual, so he ignored him, walking away. Pierre grabbed him by the shoulder to stop him from going.

"I am talking to you, Lucian! Don't you dare ignore me. I am the crown prince, and in the future, I will be your king so you should be careful to get on my bad side."

Lucian chuckled darkly. "As if I am already not on your bad side," he said "and you know what? Even when you become a king, you will never become my king."

His brother laughed "I will become your king and when I do," he leaned closer, "I will get rid of you and make your beautiful wife my concubine."

That was what finally tipped Lucian over the edge. He punched and kicked Pierre before his other brothers got involved and tried to hold him, but to no avail. He was too angry and nothing could stop him now. He sat atop his brother and started punching him, the rest of his brothers unable to hold him away. He was too strong for them. He took some time to knock down some of them before he continued with his punching. Guards came into the room and grabbed his arms.

"Hold him down for me," one of his brothers said. Even though they were many they had a hard time holding him down. "What are you doing?" Someone yelled from the door. Everyone froze.

"Your Highness, we were just..."

"Enough!" It was the king "You are not children anymore, and you dare to fight? Prepare for your punishment." "Your Highness." A maid came running to the garden. "His Highness is in trouble."

"What trouble?" I asked, worried.

"He is getting whipped."

"What?" I shrieked in panic. What on earth could he have done? We ran through the hall to the main garden. Several men were handcuffed on their knees, leather wh.i.p.s repeatedly being brought down across their backs. I looked for Lucian, and my heart dropped at the sight of him. He was handcuffed too, although he still stood, unlike the other men. His shirt was torn to rags with blood steadily soaking through it. One whip landed on his back, and I almost screamed but he didn't make a sound. He didn't even grimace. He was staring at something. I looked to see his brothers standing on the other side and watching.

"He is a prince. Why is he getting whipped?"

"His highness didn't accept someone to get his punishment," the maid explained. "He had a fight with his brothers."

I looked back at Lucian. While the other men were almost falling to their knees he was still standing steadily. It was as if the whipping didn't affect him at all, but I knew it did. He just didn't want to give his brothers the satisfaction of seeing him get hurt. Another whip landed on his back and I felt a hand grasp my wrist.

"Your Highness, you shouldn't get involved. It was the king's order." I didn't realize that I was trying to get to him.

Please God, make this stop.

God must have heard my prayers because they started to uncuff his hands. As soon as they uncuffed him, he fell on his knees. I ran toward him, but some guards got to him before me and helped him up.

Once we reached the chamber he pushed the guards away. "Leave!"

"But Your Highness you need..."

"I. said. Leave!" he shouted savagely, and the guards hurried away. He sat down on the bed.

"You should leave too," he said lowering his voice. "Then who will clean your wounds? Now take off what remains of your shirt and lay on your stomach," I ordered, grabbing a bowl of water and a piece of the cloth that the maid had brought, but he didn't move.

"Do you need help?" I said grabbing his shirt to help him get out of it. He grabbed my wrist to stop me.

"I told you to go," he said with clenched teeth.

"I don't want to. How can I leave when you're hurting?"

"I'm not, so leave." "No, I won't" I insisted stubbornly, then everything happened in a second. He grabbed me by the neck and pinned me to the wall, his face only an inch from mine. His eyes not golden anymore, the flames in them burning with intensity. "Don't make me break my promise," he growled.

"You are not the only one who wants to treat someone well," I said, ignoring the pain his grip caused. He looked at me for a while. The flames in his eyes slowly dying and their color becoming golden again. He let go of my neck and looked down as if regretting what he had just done.

"You should... take your shirt off," I said.

Walking back to the bed, he ripped his shirt open, showing a perfectly toned stomach and chest. The muscles in his arm twitched as he lay down on the bed.

"Are you just going to stare?" he asked. Embarrassed I hurried to the bed, sat down and started cleaning his wounds.

This was horrible. The wounds seemed deep and they would probably leave scars on his back. It must have hurt a lot. Was his family always so cruel to him? And I had thought my family were too cruel. I wondered what his childhood was like. Was he always like this? Rejected by his family, bullied and punished? He must have been so lonely.

"Why are you crying?" A tear fell down my cheek. Am I crying? Why? He sat up, facing me. "What is it?" he asked softly.

"Why did you take the punishment?"

"Because I can't let someone else get punished for what I did," he said, wiping a tear away from my cheek.

"Why did you even fight in the first place? Look what happened to you now. It must hurt a lot and you will get a lot of scars. I don't like seeing you get hit and I don't like your brothers." I said more tears falling down my cheeks. I hated this, it wasn't right.

"Are you crying for my sake now? You really confuse me, one time you are scared of me and the other one you cry because I am hurt, even though I hurt you just now."

To be honest, I was confused myself, but I just didn't like to see him like this.

"Hazel," he said, adopting a softer tone and wiping away more tears with his thumb "What are you doing to me?" "What?" I said, confused but he grabbed my waist and pulled me down on the bed with him on top of me. He laid so our bodies were perfectly aligned, but most of his weight was held by his arms as to not crush me.

He leaned closer as if to kiss me, and I shut my eyes tightly and pressed my lips into a thin line. I don't know why I reacted that way, but instead of feeling his lips on mine I felt them on my neck. My body went rigid, surprised by the heat that blossomed inside of me at the feeling of his lips on my skin. When he kissed right under my ear, a m.o.a.n escaped my lips and I dig my fingers into his back. He hissed in pain but continued kissing me in the same place. I felt wetness on my fingers. Blood. His wounds. I put my hands on his chest and pushed him away lightly.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"I..I never finished cleaning your wounds," I said.

"You don't have to. It doesn't hurt anymore," he said, pressing his lips on my neck again making me all dizzy. "Just let me have you."

"Lucian.." I tried to push him away again but he grabbed my wrists and pinned them down. I started panicking. He was losing control. What if he doesn't listen to me? As if sensing my fear he stopped and let go of my wrists. He sat up on the bed, looking hurt.

"You can continue," he said softly.

After I finished cleaning his wounds in silence, I walked out of the chamber to let him rest. The guards were waiting outside and looked terribly worried.

"His Highness is fine," I told them and then walked away. I went to the garden and sat on the swing. Even though I was outside in the cold breeze, I still felt hot. I touched my neck where he had kissed me. I didn't know that a kiss could affect someone so much. Ylva and Lydia would sometimes tell me about their passionate night with their husband, how only a touch could make them weak and wild. I always loved hearing their crazy stories. If it weren't for them, I would have been so lonely.

I don't know how long I was sitting, immersed in my own memories, but eventually, the sound of footsteps nearby broke my reverie.

"Lucian? What are you doing here? You are supposed to rest," I scolded.

"I'm fine," he said, sitting down next to me. "It felt uncomfortable to sleep in the bloody sheets so I told the maids to clean them. Why are you looking sad?"

"I'm not." "Is it because I hurt you?" He inquired. I didn't know what to say.

I was a bit hurt that he hurt me, but I didn't want him to feel guilty now that he was already hurting.

"I am sorry," he said with a slight grimace. By the way, he said it, I could tell it was something he didn't often say.

"It's alright. I wasn't sad because of you. It's just that sometimes when I am alone I miss my maids. Anyways, you should go back to bed. I am sure the maid is done." I stood up. "It's fine. I won't be sleeping here tonight, I have somewhere else to be," he said as he too rose from his chair.

"Somewhere else to be at night? When you are hurt? You are not thinking of going to your brothers fighting again are you?" He chuckled "If I am, what will you do to stop me?" I knew he was playing around.

"I think.." he said, walking around me and standing behind me "I should go and spend some time with my mistress," he whispered near my ear. A sudden rage filled me This may be a joke to him, but not to me. I walked away from him, ignoring him as he called after me.

I went to my personal room and shut the door, waiting for him to come after me and say something, but he never came. He didn't come the whole night. I knew it would be like this, but I had just hoped he would be different, I thought he would be different, but he wasn't. He was just like any other man.

As I tried to sleep, I heard someone call my name. I sat up in the deathly silence, trying to hear the imperceptible noise again. It came again, but then I realized with a jolt that it was coming from inside my head.. It was Lucian.

"Hazel! Hazel!" Lucian called, his voice filled with pain and agony. Was he in pain? No, he couldn't be. I couldn't be hearing this, but I heard my name again "Hazel". Maybe all this wasn't in my head, maybe he was calling for me. I climbed down from the bed, put my robe on and stalked out of the room.

"Where is His Highness?" I asked two guards walking through the hall.

"I am sorry Your Highness, but we can't tell you. He doesn't want to be disturbed."

Disturbed? So I would disturb him?

Of course, he was having fun with his mistress, and here I am worried about him for nothing. I decided not to worry or care anymore and went back to bed.

Opening my eyes with a yawn I scanned my surroundings. Lucian was sitting in front of the mirror and a maid was combing his hair. Her fingers caressed his cheek and neck when she tried to gather some strands of his hair. I could see that she didn't touch him accidentally, she was doing it on purpose. Disturbed by her action I climbed down from the bed.

When she saw my reflection in the mirror she turned around. "Good morning, Your Highness," she said, bowing deeply.

"Good morning," I said although I had the urge to ignore her but being rude was just not my thing. "I will help His Highness; you may leave." She glanced at Lucian, waiting for him to give her a sign that she could leave, but he didn't move a muscle. Hesitating, she walked out of the room.

I went up to Lucian and stood behind him, staring at his reflection. He didn't look back at me or greet me like he does every morning. He just stared down at the book he held in his hand. Why was he behaving like this?

"Won't you comb my hair since you dismissed the maid?" He asked, still looking at the book. I got the urge to pull his hair and mess it up. Maybe I should. He deserves it for the way he was treating me right now.

"Of course," I said with the softest voice I could muster. I knew how to fix hair and many other things that princesses usually don't have to know, because I was often bored, and I would tell Lydia and Ylva to teach me.

The thing is I wasn't planning on fixing his hair but playing with it. I took the brush and started brushing his hair. It was softer and thicker than my own. How could a man have such beautiful hair? It was not the time for admiring, it was time for messing around I reminded myself. I made a few braids here and there, not caring how they looked.