“Is that…? Has that ever happened before? Is that allowed?” My stomach flipped with the question, understanding slowly seeping into my mind. “You broke the rules when you tried to turn me…” Oh, Goddess. What did that mean for me?
He grinned, his dark eyes radiating amusement. “And I’d do it again,” he admitted. “As to your former question, I don’t know. Jace seemed familiar with hybrids, as he was the one to point out what you’d become. I’ll have to ask if he knows any others.”
“Jace?” I repeated. “Like the royal?”
“Did you miss him standing in the living room?”
My heart stopped. Jace was the icy-eyed vampire. “He’s… he’s a royal.”
“I’m aware.”
Why didn’t he seem concerned about this? “They’re going to kill me, aren’t they?” I asked, my pulse slamming back to life with a vengeance. “W-why would you do this to me? Offer me life just to… just to…?” I couldn’t finish.
He said something I couldn’t hear, my head spinning with visuals of my impending demise. And words. So many words.
We’re not done yet played on repeat.
No wonder he wouldn’t tell me what happened when we were done. My death was the answer. I grabbed his shoulders to shove him away, but he didn’t budge, his dark eyes studying me in that frustratingly curious way. As if I were an object that amused him.
Which was exactly what he thought of me.
A pet.
A thing.
A life to play with and toss away.
“Get. Off. Of. Me.” The words came out clipped and underlined in a strange sort of commanding tone. Yet I could hear the hysteria in it, too.
Oh, but he wouldn’t budge.
If anything, he just appeared bemused.
How could he be so cruel?
He’d saved me to kill me.
All to what? Fuck me first? Enjoy me as a passing amusement until he grew bored?
That was the plan, wasn’t it? To keep me around until I no longer intrigued him.
I tried to shove him away again, but he was too damn heavy. Ugh!
“You’re quite angry,” he mused, his words cutting through the chaos of my mind. “Why? Most mortals crave immortality. Should I have let you die?”
“I am going to die,” I snapped. And yeah, my voice sounded a bit more hysterical now.
His brow furrowed. “I don’t understand. You seem very much alive to me.”
“Because you turned me into a hybrid!”
“Exactly. So what’s the problem?”
Was he messing with me? Was this some cruel immortal mindfuck? “Did you have permission to turn me?” I demanded.
“Permission from whom?”
“The council. The Goddess. I don’t know. Whoever makes those allowances.” If there even was such a thing. “Only two humans are gifted immortality every year after earning it in the Immortal Cup.”
He scoffed at that. “What a ridiculous rule. I turn who I want to turn, Willow.”
“At what expense? My life? Yours?” I nearly laughed. “Oh, but they won’t kill you. You’re a royal. That’s against the Blood Alliance.” Or it required a trial or something. Regardless, he’d be fine. I would not.
“Is it?” he asked, considering for a moment. “Interesting. But no, I turned you because I wanted you to live. It had nothing to do with permission or edicts.”
“Do you understand what they will do to me?”
“I understand what they may try to do, yes. But you seem to be under the misconception that I’ll allow it, which I won’t. You’re mine, Willow. They’ll have to get through me to touch you, and I assure you, that won’t be an easy feat.”
I blinked, his words a splash of cold water to my senses. “You…?” I wasn’t sure what I wanted to ask. It didn’t make sense.
He arched a brow. “What about me? Are you questioning my ability to keep you safe? Is that because you nearly died last night?” He frowned. “I… I suppose I did fail you to an extent. I should have noticed the signs. And I was admittedly careless when I initially healed you as well. Had I evaluated your wounds more extensively, I might have noticed the bite mark.”
His gaze turned inward, his expression less confident.
“Do you feel I can’t adequately protect you now as a result of my carelessness?” He seemed to be asking himself more than me. “I… I can still train you and improve your current techniques. If you trust me to do so. Unless… do you prefer the lycans? Would you rather learn more about your animal nature and how to fight as a wolf?”