Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 85552 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85552 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
However, she had to have seen our approach. Granted, we wore masks, so she probably thought we were some guests there to annoy her.
Slowly, Princess Octavia flicked her hand and yawned.
Two guards appeared, clad in gleaming silver-hued armor. Coiled metal snakes decorated the front.
One spoke, “Princess Octavia doesn’t want to entertain anyone tonight.”
Xander smirked. “Tell the princess that Xander wants to speak with her.”
The one that spoke left us to deliver the message.
The other remained and scowled our way.
As soon as the guard whispered in her ear, her mouth dropped.
Then, she directed her view to us and quickly snapped her fingers.
To my shock, the guard that had been scowling, stepped back, rushed to the candles near her throne, and blew them all out.
The space around the stage darkened. None of the dancing or blood-drinking vampires noticed.
Octavia motioned for us to follow her as she lifted her silver glitter robe and rushed down a shadowed path behind the throne.
I blinked.
“This should be interesting.” Xander clasped his hand around mine and we trailed behind the guards and her.
The sounds of the music, laughter, and chatter from the party drifted away the farther we walked through the tunnel.
In front of us, the guards lit candles.
The walls shined in the dim light and smelled of cleaning fluids, as if servants tirelessly washed and prepped the sewer tunnel each night before the festivities.
When the last remnants of music drifted away and all I could hear was our footsteps in the space, Octavia spoke, “I assume that is you, Camille, under that horrendous wig?”
Leave it to Octavia to worry about fashion during a time of secrecy and on the edge of danger.
“Yes.” I smiled. “It’s me in the wig.”
We rounded the corner into a bedroom full of leather. Chains and hooks swung from the ceiling. A metal bed stood in the center with no blankets or pillows. Concrete coated the floor. In some areas, there were drainage vents.
Xander walked in and looked around. “What’s this room?”
A wicked grin spread across her face. “A sort of play area.”
Xander scowled. “Do you use this room?”
“Yes.” She averted her eyes. “Do not judge me, brother. Your distaste for my life gets tiring after so many years.”
“I’m not judging.” He headed over to one of the dangling chains with several hooks sticking out of it. “And what do you use these for?”
“Pleasure and pain.” Her voice sounded confident, but her face betrayed herself. Embarrassment and dread outlined the edge of her eyes and frown. “Is this why you came to my party, to witness my extracurricular activities?”
He peeled away his mask and slung it on the floor.
Octavia gasped and hurried to him. “Wait. . .the horns are not part of the mask. . .”
He moved away. “No! Don’t touch them.”
“Why not?” She kept her hands in the air a few inches from them.
“It would bring me sexual gratification which is absolutely not what I want from my twin sister.”
She cringed and stepped back. “How long have you had them?”
“They appeared today.”
Giving myself something to do, I walked over to a rack stacked with wooden needles and tiny daggers.
What does Octavia do in here and whom does she do it with?
Octavia’s lips widened into a huge smile. “Mother told me you were ripening into a king. I hate to say it, but I didn’t believe her.”
“So, Mother already knows?” A growl left Xander’s throat. “How?”
“Relax.” Octavia raised her hands in front of her and edged back. “Mother isn’t as bad as you think.”
Xander’s voice deepened to a dark level. “How did she find out Camille’s blood triggered my maturity?”
“Leeta wrote a message and sent it back with one of Mother’s crows.”
“Did you know that Freemont was destroyed?” Xander stepped her way. “I doubt it’s a coincidence that Mother discovers my ripening and then the next day guards storm the town.”
“She wouldn’t have had anything to do with that. Are you accusing our mother of the destruction of an entire town?”
Xander snorted. “I never know what to expect with her.”
“Our mother only wants to free this nation. It’s not just about us, you know. Soon our father will try and conquer all magical creatures—”
“And I’m somehow supposed to build an army to fight him?” he countered.
“Who else could do it?” She gazed down at the floor. “Do you know how Father helps me find husbands? You’ve never asked.”
Xander crossed his arms around his chest. “How?”
“I walk into his chamber naked and lie down on a stone table. Would-be suitors from rich territories stand around, study me, and bid.” She continued to stare at the ground. “Father uses a long silver stick to point at my most appealing attributes.”
I turned to her. Shock vibrated through me.
A cruel smile appeared on her face. “‘Look at her breasts,’ father says in all our heads and then he pokes my nipples with that stupid stick. ‘These breasts will give you satisfaction and feed your little ones when the time comes.’”