Kingdom of Lust and Lies

Chapter Eighteen

Oh. Fuck.

The protective numbness she'd cloaked herself in these last few days burned away into nothing. In its place was shame that she'd considered, however briefly, giving up. Fear for the three men chained on the floor. And rage at the bruises and blood that covered them.

She started to take a step forward to run to them, but Xanth's hard grip on her hand stopped her. It was a stark reminder that she wasn't free to act on impulse and that, whatever happened in the next few minutes, she needed to be very, very careful. For her sake as well as theirs.

The healer in her took over as she studied their wounds. She couldn't tell without a proper examination, but some of those bruises looked days old, some of the blood dried, some of it fresh. None of it appeared to be life-threatening. Gryff's long, dark hair hung in front of his face, clearly in need of a wash. She could see him sniff the air and immediately look up, noticing her first. His posture straightened as he nudged Coen.

"Not quite the daring rescue you were hoping for, I imagine." Coen's voice sounded dry and strained, like he'd been too long without water. His crooked smile warmed her heart.

Her eyes met Beckett's as he looked up. His entire body went tense. Alayna felt the entire world slip away until it was only the two of them staring at each other.

"Alayna." The relief in his voice was palpable. He tried to stand. It wasn't until a giant fist came out of nowhere to strike him in the stomach that she realized the twins were standing on either side of the little group, holding their chains. Beckett grunted and doubled over.

Realization nearly made her stumble. Xanth had let the twins have her as a reward for torturing her friends. The... the people she loved. She'd come on the twins' cocks time and time again, because they'd beaten some of the people who meant the most to her in the entire world. White hot rage began building inside her. Her eyes went to Vaughn as she recalled Xanth telling her he was the one who usually gave the beatings. Her gaze narrowed on him.

"I understand you're all very well acquainted with my pet."

She bristled at that, and then realized what they must be seeing right now. Oh, Xanth had planned this too well. She'd thought he had cornered her outside the room because he just wanted to touch her, but there had been an ulterior motive. She'd walked into this room wearing silks that barely concealed her body, so thin they could see the outline of her hard nipples. Xanth had mussed her hair in the hallway, making the curls wild, and kissed her so hard her lips were still swollen. And he'd stroked her pussy until she was dripping wet, Gryff no doubt scenting her arousal at this very moment.

That fucking bastard.

She wanted to tell them that she'd been forced into all of this, that none of it was what she wanted. Wanted to tell them about the potion and how he'd conditioned her body to respond. But she wasn't free to say any of that.

Xanth tugged her further into the room. He took a seat on the large, ornate throne at the head of the room and made her stop beside him.

"Somehow these three brave souls made it almost all the way through the Greenfrost. Almost. They stumbled upon one of the outlier farms and were apprehended by the guards stationed there. It caused quite the uproar." Alayna had to school her expression so she didn't frown. "I had them imprisoned in the dungeon while I decided what to do with them. Naturally, my first inclination was to torture and kill them for having the audacity to think they could come steal what is rightfully mine."

He placed a hand on her backside in a clear demonstration of ownership.

"But gossip travels fast in this castle and I knew it would only be a matter of time before you found out I had your former lovers put to death. You sucked my cock so obediently in the city and then again while the twins were having their way with you that I thought this could serve as a reward."