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Bishop Dragoslav led me down a dark hall toward one of Maximus’s drawing rooms. There was the same amount of light as usual, all the sconces glowed with candle light and the moon shone through the windows to our left. But I didn’t understand why everything looked so dim.
A shiver went down my spine. My limbs trembled with it. I rolled my shoulders back. Was I growing sick? A cold perhaps. Maybe a chill had gotten into me while sitting outside with Bianca. I hadn’t felt cold, but my body wasn’t the same. The Black King’s blood had changed it, and I still didn’t quite understand how.
Regardless, just an hour ago, sitting in my dormitory, I’d felt fine. Then I’d been summoned for a bi-weekly appointment I’d been ordered to keep, and I’d started feeling sick almost as soon as I entered the palace.
My stomach spasmed. I stopped, bracing a hand against the wall.
The Bishop glanced over his shoulder. “You’d better hurry,” he whispered from under the shade of his ever-present hood. “The blood from your first feeding is wearing out quickly. You will be in much pain soon.”
Was that what I’d been feeling? A wakening thirst for blood?
At the thought, I felt both hunger and revulsion. I didn’t move.
The Bishop walked toward me, grabbed me by the elbow, and led me forward. I would have resisted, but my legs seemed to move of their own accord, taking me to the place where my cravings would be satiated.
I hated myself for it.
Dragoslav pushed the door to the drawing room open and shoved me inside. I first spotted Maximus checking his appearance in a mirror. He turned as the Bishop shut the door behind us, a click sounded as he turned the lock.
For an instant, I was assaulted by disappointment as only Maximus and Dragoslav appeared to be in the room, then a terribly sweet scent assaulted my senses, and my eyes snapped to Talyssa. She was sitting at the far end of the room, looking as someone who wanted to disappear into the sofa she occupied. Her hands were clenched on her lap, and her shoulders were hunched forward as she tried to make herself as small as possible.
“Ah, Nyro,” Maximus said, extending his arms in welcome. “It seems just moments ago you became a Rook and now it’s time for your second feeding.” His red eyes flicked toward Talyssa for an instant.
I took a step back and collided against Bishop Dragoslav. He grabbed my shoulders, angling them in Talyssa’s direction, then gave me a shove. I staggered forward but managed to stay on my feet despite the weakness that shivered over my body.
“I have something rather special for you, Nyro,” the King said, coming closer with an infuriating swagger.
My eyes darted toward Talyssa. She stared at the floor, unmoving, like a bug trying not to be noticed.
“I rarely share my Troves,” Maximus continued, “especially for something like a second feeding. We’ll have to do this carefully. Dragoslav and I will make sure you don’t hurt Talyssa beyond repair.”
I shook my head. “No, not her,” I said even as my mouth watered at her scent.
“Like I said,” the King stopped in front of me, “this is uncommon, but I aim to give you an incentive for the task you are to perform for me.”
The task? What task?
My mind was a foggy swirl. I didn’t know what he was talking about. Only that scent and the sudden ache in my throat and gums seemed to matter.
“You will find Talyssa... exquisite,” Maximus said, his lips tipping into a crooked smile. “After tasting her, you’ll find yourself craving her.” He ran the back of his hand down my cheek in a too-tender caress. “I will let you have more of her, I promise. But...” he paused, putting much emphasis on the word, “only if you bring me what I want. Otherwise, you’ll never have her blood again.”
I should have been disgusted by the scheme. Instead, my skin tingled with anticipation and saliva filled my mouth.
“Go to her,” Maximus said, moving aside and extending a hand in Talyssa’s direction.
Somehow, I managed to stay put, my will overriding the terrible hunger that the sight of the innocent woman stirred in me, even as she shrank from the monsters who surrounded her. To how many horrors had Maximus subjected her already? How many more yet to come? And now, I was to add to them.
“No need to be so shy, Nyro,” Maximus said gently. “Go.”
My entire body clenched in refusal. My fists trembled at my sides. “Let me out of here,” I said through the cage of my teeth.
If I hurt Talyssa, what would I tell Bianca? How could I face her?
Maximus sighed tiredly, then flicked his fingers at Talyssa as if she were a dog. “Come here, dear.”
She rose to her feet and approached. Her scent grew stronger, and it seemed like the only thing I was able to notice. Everything else faded to nothing.
Her eyes, at last, met mine. There was no fear in them, only resignation.
“No,” I growled. Yet, my body tilted in her direction like a tree yielding to sunshine.
“It’s fine,” Talyssa said. “I understand you have no choice.”
Tears filled my eyes. She was a Trove just like my brother. She suffered as he did, and now I would be responsible for more of that suffering. How could I ever forgive myself? I had fed once before, I knew that. But the fact that I couldn’t remember what had happened had made it easier.
This... I would never be able to forget.
Maximus smiled sweetly at her, then inclined his head.
Talyssa came closer, put her hands on my chest, and lifted her chin, baring her throat.
The most amazing sweetness invaded me, like hot honey coating my tongue and sliding down my throat.
Unable to resist, I leaned forward and bit into her soft, pale throat.