A Gift for the Three Alpha's

Chapter 15: The Test

But instead of what Lyra expected, Darius moved to his cupboard and retrieved something that made her blood run cold.

A silver knife.

"The physician sent me a message," Darius said, his voice casual as he examined the blade. "He apologized for skipping one important part of the examination. Apparently, he explained to me that there is a test I should have conducted myself. A blood test to determine your true nature."

Lyra's entire body went rigid. She remembered what Izzy had told her. Royal blood ignites fire. Commoner blood does not.

She began to struggle against the chains, pulling frantically at the manacles around her wrists. The iron bit into her skin, drawing blood, but she did not care. She had to get away. Had to escape before he discovered what she was.

"Stop moving," Darius commanded, his voice brooking no argument.

He grabbed her leg and brought the silver blade down with precision. It was just a nick, barely breaking the skin, but it was enough. Fresh blood began to seep from the wound.

Lyra tried to staunch the bleeding with her fingers, pretending that it hurt, pretending that she was in pain rather than revealing the terror that was consuming her from the inside.

Darius left her side momentarily to retrieve a candle from his nightstand. The flame flickered in the darkness, casting dancing shadows across the room.

He brought the candle closer to the bloody knife, holding it up so the firelight would hit the blood if it was going to react.

Lyra held her breath.

The flame did not grow brighter. It did not ignite. The blood remained exactly as it was – dark and ordinary and completely unremarkable.

Darius let out a breath of relief. "Nothing," he said, almost to himself. "Just common werewolf blood. You are nothing but an inconsequential woman sent to seal a peace treaty."

He seemed satisfied with this conclusion. He set the candle down and turned his attention back to Lyra.

But Lyra's mind was racing. Why had the test not worked? She was royal blood. Her bloodline was ancient and powerful. The fire should have ignited. The test should have revealed her true nature.

Then her eyes fell on the bandages wrapped around her leg. The ones that had been applied after the physician's examination. The blood on them had a paler color than it should have. Paler than true royal blood.

The Nightbloom essence. The root water she had been drinking. It was thinning her blood, diluting it and changing its properties. The pale color was masking the true nature of her heritage. The fire did not ignite because her blood was no longer pure. It was weakened and poisoned.

The realization should have brought relief. Instead, it filled her with a new kind of dread.

If the plant was affecting her blood this severely, what else was it doing to her body? How much longer could she survive drinking it?

While she was lost in these thoughts, Darius cut his own palm with the silver blade. Blood welled from the wound, and without hesitation, he pressed it against her leg.

Lyra gasped.

The wound on her leg began to close. The flesh knitted back together, the skin healing before her eyes. The damage that had taken hours to appear was completely reversed in seconds.

She stared at Darius in shock. He could heal. He could literally mend wounds with just his blood. The ability was extraordinary, terrifying, and completely unexpected.

"What are you?" she whispered.

"Your master," Darius replied coldly. "And now that you are healed, it is time to find out if you were worth keeping."

Lust burned in his dark eyes. He pulled on the chain attached to her wrist, forcing her to move. She tried to resist, tried to turn away from him, but he was far too strong.

He flipped her onto her belly with brutal efficiency, pinning her down with his massive body weight. His legs forced hers apart, spreading her completely open for him.

Without any warning, he thrust two fingers inside her at once.

Lyra gasped at the sudden invasion. It was rougher than Kael's touch had been, more forceful and more demanding. She tried to move away from him, tried to close her legs, but he held her in place with an iron grip.

"Stop," she said, but her voice came out weak and unconvincing.

"Why are you pretending to hate this?" Darius asked, his voice low and dangerous against her ear. "Your body obviously wants it. Listen to yourself."

He was right. Despite her mind's resistance, despite her fury at what he was doing to her, her body was responding to him. Her inner walls were clenching around his fingers, pulling him deeper. Her hips were moving against him in rhythm with his thrusts.

"I do not –" she started to say, but he cut her off.

He withdrew his fingers from inside her and held them up in front of her face.

"Look at this," he commanded.

Lyra looked, and shame flooded through her.

His fingers were completely covered with her wetness. The evidence of her arousal was undeniable.

Her body had betrayed her again, responding to his touch despite her hatred.