The Vampire Twins' Breeder

Three is a Crowd

Chapter 17

Aurelia's POV

The first thing I felt was the cold. It seeped up from the stone floor of the balcony, biting through my towel and into my skin.

My head was throbbing painfully, a direct gift from the chemical the werewolf scout had forced me to inhale. I gasped for air, my lungs feeling heavy and coated in a sweet, sickly film.

I rolled onto my side, my vision swimming. As the world stopped spinning, I felt a hard, cold object pressed against my palm. I looked down. It was the glass vial.

The clear liquid inside shimmered in the early morning light like some kind of precious liquid gemstone.

Right here was my death warrant. If I used it, I was poisoning the only men who had given me a bed and a meal. If I didn't, the scout would return, and the Silver Fang would make good on their promise to skin me alive.

I was a traitor no matter what I chose.

The sounds of the castle hit me then. The Blood Bell was ringing again and I wondered what attack was going on now.

I heard the distant, muffled sounds of metal clashing and the bone-chilling howls of wolves that sounded far too close. The war wasn't at the forest or city borders anymore, it was inside.

I scrambled to my feet, nearly tripping over the hem of my robe.

I had to hide the vial. I bolted into the bedroom, my eyes darting around the gold-and-black furniture.

The mattress.

I grabbed a small loose thread near the corner of the heavy silk bedding and shoved the vial deep into the lining, burying it under the horsehair stuffing.

I had just smoothed the sheets when the bedroom door burst open.

Draven stepped into the room, and for a second, I forgot how to breathe.

He looked like he had just crawled out of a grave. He was dressed in a black armor and it was covered in grey soot and splattered with thick, drying blood. A deep cut ran across his cheek, still oozing red.

I gasped, stunned.

He didn't ask if I was okay or if I was hurt. He strode across the room in three long, predatory steps and stopped inches from me.

"Why is your window open?" he barked.

I looked at the open window and froze.

“Well?!" He repeated.

"I... I..." I stammered, backing away until my calves hit the bed frame.

Draven didn't wait for an answer. He walked past me to the balcony, his boots crunching on the glass from a broken vase.

He leaned out, his nostrils flaring as he caught the scent of the morning air. He turned back to me, his face a mask of pure fury.

"Explain to me," he hissed, prowling back toward me, "why my brother's quarters smell like wet dog and why there are fresh scuff marks on the stone railing."

He was right on top of me now. He reached out, his hand slamming into the wall beside my head, pinning me in place.

He leaned down, his face so close I could see the flecks of gold in his dark pupils. He sniffed the air around my hair, and I felt my knees go weak.

"I asked you a question, human," he growled.

"I was scared!" I lied, the words tumbling out in a panicked rush. "The bell... the noise. I couldn't handle it. I opened the window because I thought I was going to jump. I knew we were being attacked again because you told me what the bell was. So, I wanted it to end. I thought if the wolves got in, I’d rather be dead on the pavement than caught by them."

Draven’s eyes searched mine. He didn't look like he believed a word of it. He reached out with his free hand, his cold fingers grabbing my jaw and forcing me to look up at him.

He leaned in even closer, his fangs grazing the sensitive skin of my ear.

"If I find out you’re lying to me," he whispered, "I won't let the wolves have you. I will make your execution become the main event of the evening. I will tear the truth out of your throat myself."

I couldn't speak. I could only stare at the blood on his collar.

Just as he squeezed my jaw tight enough to bruise, a shadow fell across the doorway.

"Prince Draven! We are losing the perimeter!"

Draven let go of me so fast I nearly fell.

We both turned to see a new figure in the doorway. He was a vampire, but he looked older. His hair was a stark, shocking silver, and his eyes were gray. He was covered in more blood than Draven, and he carried a massive broadsword that was dripping onto the rug.

"Commander Hogan," Draven said, standing straight. "Report."

"The southern wall is buckling," Hogan said loudly. "The Alphas have brought down the iron gate. Caelum is holding the line at the border, but we need your raw power, My Prince. If we don't push them back now, they’ll be in the throne room by sunrise."

Draven looked at me, then back at Hogan. He looked torn between wanting to kill me and needing to save his kingdom.

"I don't trust the guards," Draven snapped. "The one I killed the other night was only the beginning. I'm not leaving her here for someone else to 'find'."

He reached out and grabbed my arm firmly. "Come with me."

"Where are we going?" I cried, trying to keep up as he dragged me out of the room.

"To the Solaris Tower," Draven said, not looking back. "It’s the highest point in the inner circle. It’s isolated, and I can see it from the ramparts. You’ll be locked in until the sun goes down or until I say otherwise."

We ran through the hallways.

Goodness, it was chaos. Servants were screaming, guards were shouting, and the smell of ozone and blood was everywhere.

As we rounded the corner toward the tower stairs, a figure came flying out of a side room, nearly colliding with us.

It was Isadora. She looked hysterical. Her beautiful purple dress was torn at the hem, and her black hair was falling out of its elaborate pins.

She looked terrified, her eyes darting around wildly.

"Draven!" she shrieked, throwing herself at him and clutching his armored arm. "You have to help me! I saw them! I saw a shadow moving in the servant quarters, it was a wolf! They’re inside the house!"

Draven shoved her off with a grunt of disgust. "Get a hold of yourself, Isadora. You’re a Princess of the South, act like it."

"I can't stay in my room!" she sobbed, looking at me with a flash of pure hatred even in her panic. "Don't leave me with the guards! They’re all dying!"

Draven looked at the tower door, then at Hogan, who was looking impatiently at the staircase. Draven let out a frustrated growl and grabbed Isadora by the shoulder, shoving her toward me.

"Fine," Draven snapped. "Both of you. Into the tower. Now."

He pushed us through the heavy iron door of the Solaris Tower. It was a small, circular room with stone walls and one high, barred window that overlooked the burning city below.

There was nothing inside but a single wooden bench and a flickering torch on the wall.

"Stay here," Draven warned, looking at both of us. "And stay quiet. If you open this door for anyone but me or Caelum, you’re dead."

He slammed the iron door shut, and I heard the heavy bolt slide into place.

I was trapped.

I was locked in a cold stone room with a woman who wanted me dead. I looked at Isadora. She was standing by the wall and her eyes were fixed on me with a murderous glare.