Enchanted Seduction

Chapter 18

The Isle of Secrets wasn't the largest of Ethan's properties, but it was the most private, secluded far enough from prying eyes to ensure that nothing escaped his notice. Every inch of the island was under his watchful gaze, heavily protected by wards, traps, and his loyal guards. From the thick mist that clung to the rocky shores to the winding paths that led to the castle, every detail had been meticulously crafted to keep unwanted visitors at bay. But more than that, the island served one crucial purpose: protecting Leila.

She was his greatest asset and his greatest weakness.

Ethan knew this all too well. He had spent centuries guarding the secret of his kind, hidden in the shadows, lurking in myths and legends. Yet Leila was different. She wasn’t just another human he could toy with or discard once her usefulness had run out. She was the only hope for his people, the one who could break the curse that had damned them for generations.

But that meant one thing: everyone would be coming for her.

His enemies, both human and supernatural, wouldn’t sit idly by while he held the key to their salvation. They would fight him for her. His enemies among his own kind would see her as a threat, and then there were the witches, the sorcerers, and those cursed by magic, all desperate to undo the curse she could lift. Ethan knew he had to be careful. One wrong move, and she would be lost forever, and with her, the future of his race.

That's why he had sent Caroline. To ease Leila’s fears, to assure her that she was safe with him even if he had no intention of making that true.

Caroline had done her part well, though he wasn't surprised that she had warned Leila about him. She always did. There was something endearing about Caroline's loyalty to Leila, despite the fact that she was human and so easily manipulated. Still, he couldn't let her disobedience go unpunished.

Caroline knew better than to challenge him. That’s why she had been made an example of. The memory of her punishment brought a slow smile to his lips. He had always enjoyed punishing Caroline. There was something satisfying about the way she’d squirm under his hand, her defiance so easily broken, yet never completely snuffed out.

It wasn’t just Caroline, though. He loved hunting far more than keeping blood bags in storage, like his kin often did. That had never interested him. The thrill of the hunt, the terror in his prey's eyes as he chased them, cornered them it was intoxicating.

Ethan preferred to stalk his prey in the dark, to watch the fear grow in their eyes as they realized they couldn’t escape. The way their heartbeat accelerated, the rush of adrenaline filling their veins it was like a drug to him. When he caught them, the fear that radiated off them in waves as he paralyzed them with his venom, rendering them motionless, was his ultimate reward. Their blood, warm and thick, gave him a rush, flooding his mind with their memories and emotions. It was the closest thing to feeling alive, something he’d envied in humans for centuries. The way they lived with such abandon, their fragility reminding him of just how distant he was from that kind of mortality.

But there was something else about humans that gnawed at him: their ability to procreate.

Children were so annoyingly fragile, but also fascinating. The way they embodied both the innocence and resilience of humanity that fascinated him. He had always wanted that for his kind. Vampires could live for centuries, but they could not create life. That was something reserved for humans, and it infuriated him. What kind of world would it be if he could have both eternal life and the ability to create more of his kind?

That was what Leila could give him. She could restore that gift, that life force, to him and his kind. It was no longer a matter of desire it was a necessity. And he could no longer delay it.

The time had come to speak with the witch and his vampire wife, Claudia. The last time they had discussed this, Claudia’s jealousy had nearly ruined everything. She could never stand the idea of anyone coming between them, even when it was for the survival of their kind. Her possessiveness, her emotions she’d always been prone to wild swings of emotion, but this time, it had to be different. If she interfered again, Ethan wouldn’t hesitate to destroy her.

He turned away from the window, the gray light of the overcast sky reflecting off the cold stone walls of his study. The Isle of Secrets was his sanctuary, but it could just as easily become his wife's prison if she dared to cross him again after all right now she was useless to him, Leila was much more valuable. He would show no mercy this time.

As for Leila, she had been avoiding him, hiding in her room for days. She took her meals there, locked away, no doubt terrified of what awaited her. She’d been trying her hardest to avoid him, but it was useless. He knew her every move, every thought. She couldn’t run from him forever.

Ethan’s lips curled into a cruel smile as he thought of her. Soon, she would have no choice but to face him. It was time to make her his bride, officially in vampire court and begin the ritual that would free his kind forever. She had been chosen for this role, whether she liked it or not. And Ethan was nothing if not a man who claimed what was his.

He could feel her fear through the walls, the way her heart raced when he passed by her door. She thought she could stay hidden, but he would show her who the true master was. There would be no more hiding, no more resistance. She would learn her place, and soon enough, she would accept it.

Today would be the day he visited her. He had been patient, but no more. They had to get married, and the sooner the better. The forces arrayed against them would not wait forever, and neither would he.

Ethan swept from the study, his long coat trailing behind him as he moved through the castle with inhuman speed, looking every inch as handsome and impeccable as he always was, if you didn't know better, you would mistake him for an angel. The halls echoed with the silence of the place, a silence only broken by the occasional flicker of flames from the torches lining the walls. He reached Leila’s door within moments, pausing to listen. Her breathing was shallow, quick, as though she sensed him nearby.

Without knocking, he pushed the door open, stepping inside.

Leila was sitting by the window, her back to him. She stiffened when she heard the door creak open, but she didn’t turn to face him.

“Leila,” he said softly, his voice a low purr that sent a shiver down her spine. “We need to talk.”

She said nothing, her silence a form of rebellion he found mildly amusing. But it wouldn’t last. She would come to him, sooner or later. They always did.

“We’re getting married, officially in my court, before my kind, I have fulfilled your little human ceremony, now you have to be a good girl and fulfil mine, he smiled as she stiffened”. he continued, stepping closer. “It’s time you accepted that.”

Still, no answer. Ethan’s smile widened. He loved a challenge.

He moved in behind her, leaning down to whisper in her ear, his breath cool against her skin. “You can’t hide in forever, little one.”

This time, she reacted, her shoulders tensing, her breath quickening as goose bumps engulfed her , his touch repulsed her, she wished she had gone back in time and gone to jail instead. She finally turned to face him. Her eyes were filled with anger, but beneath that, he could see the fear the fear she tried so hard to hide.

“I won’t let you control me,” she whispered, her voice shaking despite her attempt at defiance.

Ethan chuckled, his hand reaching out to gently caress her cheek. “Oh, Leila,” he murmured, his fingers brushing her skin with a touch that was both tender and menacing. “You don’t have a choice and you never will.” We would see about that was her unspoken answer as she remained rigid and defiant.