Total pages in book: 19
Estimated words: 16835 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 84(@200wpm)___ 67(@250wpm)___ 56(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 16835 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 84(@200wpm)___ 67(@250wpm)___ 56(@300wpm)
“My Queen,” she said and bowed, her words slurring slightly because of her forked tongue.
A couple came in next—the first pair I’d seen so far—and I was shocked to see a beastly lord with a tiny human woman close to his side. The way he held her possessively told me whoever this female was, she meant something special to him.
I wanted to talk to the woman, to hear her story, but right now I had to play this part. If this was going to be my life now, I had to try.
The room filled with beings, but then there was this heavy silence that suddenly filled the space.
A massively built humanoid male with pale gray skin covered in distressed leather came into the hall. People parted for him as he came to a stop in front of us.
His black eyes gleamed with a clear hatred as he stared at Draxus. Long black hair fell down his back, plaits on either side of his temples, and pieces of clear spine weaved between them.
This male didn’t bow. He didn’t speak. He just glared at Draxus before moving his slimy gaze to me. That had Draxus growling and pulling me closer and slightly behind his back in a protective manner.
And then the beast grinned at me, his humanoid face terrifying me. I realized that although Draxus didn’t resemble a human at all, I found him handsome in a savage and brutal way.
“Pretty new queen,” the monster growled at me.
Before I knew what was happening, Draxus roared and launched himself from the dais, slamming his big body into the creature.
The males crashed onto the floor with enough force the stone cracked under the onslaught.
The other guests stayed silent, but retreated, giving the fighters room. I covered my mouth with a hand, watching the brutality of what was happening. A part of me wanted to try and stop it, but common sense said I’d only end up getting hurt, or worse.
I was a mere human that would get crushed.
“You dare talk to the Queen in such a way. A way?” Draxus growled and bit the other male in the throat, black blood gushing out. Draxus was pushed off, but he was right back on the other male, using his barbed tail to slam into the creature repeatedly.
The other male bared sharp teeth but then chuckled, “I just took note she is a pretty little thing.”
Gasps echoed through the chamber, and I realized these creatures, these guests, were appalled that anyone was speaking to Draxus–their king–in such a way.
With a roar that shook the walls, Draxus lunged again, this time slamming into the other male, taking him back to the floor hard enough that shards of stone cracked around them. The creature beneath him writhed, black blood pouring from several cuts, bites, and open wounds.
Draxus reared back and drove a fist into his jaw. The room vibrated with his rage. And then he lifted the barbed tip of his tail, poised to strike, but this time aimed for the creature’s heart.
“Draxus,” I said, my voice steady despite the shaking in my bones. “Please,” it’s all I said. I didn’t want to see anymore, didn’t want to witness any death. My king… my mate froze.
The chamber went still.
He turned his head slowly and looked at me, his chest heaving, his claws, and face bloodstained. The male beneath him was alive, but unmoving. I finally stepped forward, my heart pounding.
“No more,” I whispered and reached for his hand, not caring that it was covered in blood.
Draxus looked back at the male beneath him and bared his teeth, nostrils flaring,. I knew he was having a hard time stopping himself. Draxus took a step back and I knew it was hard as hell for him to do. The other male coughed, rolled to his side, and dragged himself back with the little dignity he had left.
Draxus stood tall once more, looming over the room like the god of death himself.
I moved to his side, the train of my dark gown dragging through a puddle of blood I didn’t flinch to step through. No one moved. No one spoke.
Then, slowly, one by one… they knelt… for me and Draxus.
Draxus turned to me, and in that moment, I saw something in his eyes I hadn’t before—not just pride. Not just deep and dark need. Devotion.
He stepped before me, his towering form shadowing mine, his voice low in my ear as he said, “You’ve never been more beautiful than you are now… taming your beast.”
This kingdom was no longer just his. It was ours.
9
QUEEN ELOWEN
As the evening waned, the court started to disperse and find pockets of conversation between each other. But the tension still coiled through the hall, thick enough you could have cut it with a knife.
Draxus kept me close to his side as we made our way around the room, but my gaze was locked on her.