“From the looks of it, you’re quite delectable. What a special treat this will be for you, Dominic. I’ve decided to let you watch as I have my way with your lady. I had planned to wait, but you know what? I’m suddenly hungry and I so enjoy a good fight when I take a woman. It makes life so much more interesting. Wonder if she’ll be as fiery as your mother.”
The instruments on the metal trays shook with the force of Dom’s roar. He pulled at the chains like an enraged animal. They held tight and he sunk to the ground again. “How could you allow him to do what he did?” Dom said to his brother, his voice as thin and deadly as a stiletto. “Did you know this? That he…raped her, too?”
“Oh, your brother knows all right. He’s the one who tipped me off on how to get to your parents. He just couldn’t bear to do it himself, right, Alfonso?”
“Yes, m’lord,” Alfonso said, his eyes cast down at his feet.
Pavlos clapped him on the back as a father would. With a jolt, Alfonso’s gaze locked onto Mackenzie’s. He held it for a moment before he looked away. Was that sorrow she saw reflected in his eyes? Desperation? Or maybe a combination of both?
“It’s got to be frustrating, being so ineffectual and weak,” Pavlos said to Dom. “To see the people you love get hurt because of your ineptitude and your misguided beliefs.”
“When did being a monster become the ideal?” Dom said through his fangs.
“It’s called being superior. And if you had realized it all those years ago, your parents would be alive today. Let’s see. Your father would still be smoking those pipes of his, and he’d have his horses. And your mother— Well, she’d have continued to inspire great artists of the twenty-first century with her beauty. Did you know I bought one of the nude paintings she posed for back in—oh, when was it?—1870-something. It’s one of my favorite mementos.”
Dom continued to struggle even though she sensed his energy level was waning fast. Since it had been so long since he’d had any significant amounts of her blood, he probably wouldn’t be able to vapor out of the chain, either.
“And now, here we are again,” Pavlos continued. “I’m going to enjoy this as much as I did back then. In fact, I may enjoy this better. I do so love an audience. Let’s get this little party started.”
Alfonso double-checked the leather of her straps, taking care to count the holes as if to ensure they were tight enough. “M’lord, wouldn’t you be more comfortable taking the woman into your quarters? The metal of the gurney can’t be good with that bad knee of yours.”
Pavlos twisted one of his jeweled rings. “Excellent idea. Always the thinker. Oh, and bring your brother, too.”
Alfonso moved to the foot of her gurney, his expression devoid of all emotion. He snapped his head up when a Darkblood nurse entered the room.
“M’lord, I’m so sorry to interrupt you, but the blonde’s ultrasound showed she’s ovulating and I knew you wanted to watch the first mating.”
“Yes, yes, I do want to watch, but I’m a little busy at the moment. Tell Dr. Skinner to wait. I’ll be there shortly.” He turned back to Mackenzie and ran his yellowed nails along her cheek. When she tried to turn away, he grabbed her cheeks. “You will look at me when I touch you.”
“But, sir,” the nurse said. “Dr. Skinner has already injected the young man with the erectile enhancement drug and he’s ready to go.”
Pavlos’s eyes somehow managed to get blacker.
“M’lord, this is the first one.” Alfonso set the foot brake on Mackenzie’s gurney and joined the nurse near the door. “You need to witness this, sir. It’s history in the making. Just think how much more ready for the woman you’ll be after seeing your dreams come to fruition.”
Pavlos stroked her cheek with the back of his hand. If only her eyes were daggers, she’d cut him to shreds. “Yes, you’re absolutely right. No need to rush things with you, dear. We’ve got plenty of time.”
They filed from the room, leaving a guard at the door, and Mackenzie heard multiple deadbolts slide into place.
With the excess chain wrapped around his forearm, Dom put his foot on the taut length and pulled. All the muscles in his arms bulged as he strained. Nothing.
“Nice try, asshole. You ain’t going nowhere.” The guard came down