From Slave To Queen (Athena and Michael) novel Chapter 35

Chapter 35

A muscle in Cassian’s jaw twitches as Ciro steps forward, takes my hand, and kisses my skin. His lips are cold, and yet I feel something electric.

“Pleasure to meet you.” He glances sideways at Cassian. “She’s not how you described her. She’s a beautiful feeder–were you afraid I’d steal her from you?”

Cassian lets out a sound halfway between amusement and mockery.

“Beautiful, if you like the bland type.” His eyes stab into mine. “Impertinent and boring.”

“That didn’t really answer my question.”

“I’ve said more than enough.”

“Don’t forget you owe me a feeder,” Ciro says lightly. “You killed one of mine.”

“I wouldn’t have if she hadn’t been a nuisance.”

I watch the exchange utterly stunned, shifting my gaze between them.

“You know your effect on women.” Ciro tilts his head as if studying him. “You can’t kill them all just for wanting a bit of your

attention.”

Even though Ciro is smiling, I sense something dark swirling between the two.

“Sorry I’m not like you, getting lost in anyone’s skirts.”

“You think you’re special just because you don’t sleep with humans?”

“Men are always better–much more grateful,” Aeron comments, and I can’t tell if he’s trying to steer the conversation elsewhere or just being sarcastic.

“Aeron, you know our dear Cassian doesn’t lie with human men either.”

Cassian’s nostrils flare, making it very clear that this conversation annoys and disgusts him. To be honest, almost everything annoys and disgusts him. Seeing him in a good mood seems impossible. Without warning, he grabs my arm roughly and pulls me back toward the door.

“I think that’s enough for today,” he says without looking at Ciro or Aeron. “Everything we needed to discuss has already been said.”

He opens the door without waiting for his companions to say goodbye or call him an idiot–which I would. Out of the corner of my eye, I catch Walter watching us with slight astonishment but still maintaining his submissive posture next to Aeron. When the door closes, it trembles. We hurry down the stairs and once outside, with a sharp tug, he pulls the cloak over my head and drags me through the dark alleys, retracing our steps, back to the horses.

I stumble slightly–not that he cares–and when we finally exit the slums and reach the overgrowth that surrounds the city, I sigh in relief. At least he’ll stop dragging me around the streets like a rag doll. I stroke the mare’s side as I mount, this time without Cassian’s help.

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Chapter 33

His horse bolts forward, forcing the mare to match its pace. I struggle against the wind to keep my hood firmly over my head. The air cuts my cheeks and my eyes begin to water. We move fast, much faster than before, giving the animals no rest as they keep running, kicking up dirt behind us.

We enter the area thick with vegetation, now even darker. The trees lean over the path, suffocating, and despite our speed, I feel the unease growing inside me. And as if that earlier sensation had been a premonition, a scream cuts through the rhythmic sound of hooves on the dirt. I barely have time to react before I’m thrown to the ground. The mare whinnies, frightened and pained by a wound on her back that makes her fall. I manage to dodge just in time to avoid being crushed by her weight. I try to get up and see Cassian fighting alone against more than a dozen men. He snaps necks or moves his hand and reduces them to nothing. I’m horrified and yet relieved that they don’t seem to pose a real threat to him.

I drop to the ground beside the fallen animal, who has a gash in her belly. My hands quickly become stained with her blood, and I’m so focused on the mare that I don’t notice the threat behind my back.

They grab me by the hair and drag me to my knees until I’m forced to stand. I feel the blade of a knife against my throat, pressing against my jugular.

“You’re making a mistake,” I say, my voice trembling. “I’m not important.”

A rough laugh escapes him.

“That’s not for you to decide.

Cassian’s gaze turns toward us, and I see his eyes widen when he sees me in the arms of one of them. He takes a step forward and stops when I feel the hot trickle sliding down my neck.

“Release my companion,” says my captor.

Cassian is holding one of them, his neck bent at an unnatural angle. He’s dead. Cassian obeys and lets the lifeless body drop to the ground. He brushes the dust off his cloak without taking his eyes off us.

“What do you want?”

“You haven’t figured it out yet?”

I can feel his smile behind my neck.

“You’re an idiot if you think I care enough about her for you to use her as leverage.”

“You don’t get it.”

I feel teeth sink into my neck, and my eyes fly open in horror. I let out an agonized scream. His bite is meant to hurt–not to feed. I didn’t even think they were vampires. Are they? Their skin isn’t as pale–though I can’t see them well either. Most of them move at inhuman angles. I try to reach behind me to grab my captor and pull him off, but it’s useless. His teeth clamp harder onto my neck, and I’m terrified he’ll tear it open.

Amid this chaos, one of the fallen rises and silently walks behind Cassian. I want to scream at him to turn around, but the pain freezes my vocal cords. The only sound that escapes me could be a scream of pain–or warning.

He doesn’t see it coming. I see the blade of a white wooden dagger pierce his chest. More men come out from the trees and grab him by the arms. My attacker takes the chance to drag me away from there. I reach for my neck as he drags me across the ground, tearing my clothes and pulling out locks of my hair. My scalp and knees burn. With every second, we move farther from the path. I don’t know where he’s taking me.

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Chapter 25

My fingers cling to anything they can find on the ground. I come across a rock and owe it to strike the hand holding me. He grants when he sees his bruised knuckles, and my body collapses to the ground. I don’t even have time to recover–te’s already on top of me, strangling me.

“Fucking bitch”

I can’t speak, scream, or breathe.

His grip is strong, and I swear I’m about to pass out. Then I see his skin begin to wither, turning the color of death. His eyes -which I hadn’t seen until now–are amber, but as the seconds pass, they lose their life and a whine. Something strange escapes from him and enters my mouth. His hands lose strength and finally release my neck. Ha body falls completly on top of mine, crushing me against the cold earth. It takes me several attempts to push him of When I manage in I spend just a few seconds looking at my attacker. His skin is ashen, and from where I am. I can see he looks like he’s about to crumble like a dry leaf.

I don’t stop to think about what just happened—I don’t know. One second I thought I was going to die, and the next… I

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