“Remove the other warriors from his reach, Talon. Take them to the dungeon,” Gidon ordered.
Red eyes that glowed with bloodlust tracked Talon’s movements as he melted away with the remaining Darkans. Drac gritted his teeth as inky darkness entwined in his mind, their needs melding as one.
Slaughter all that brought her harm.
Drac licked the blood that splattered his face and he accorded with his beast. They must die. He made to pursue Talon, and a garbled whimper of stark fear came from the princess. It captured Drac’s attention like nothing else could, and he shiktred before her. An unbidden desire erupted to devour her essence. The temptation, one he’d never before experienced seduced man and demon. He hauled the princess to her feet, and plunged his fangs deep into her neck.
He heard Gidon’s roar, felt the tremble of the earth and darkness lick at Drac’s skin as evil manifested in the form of Gidon’s Cerja— his tattooed demon, contracted, and a Cerberus launched itself off Gidon’s skin with chakra swirling around it with menace.
A rough chuckle filled with malevolence rumbled from Drac as he absorbed the pitilessness that came from Gidon’s three headed monster. It stood ten feet tall on four legs, fangs bared, eyes the color of pewter, reeking of ferocity and cunning. The three heads snapped, and muscles bunched as he growled and crouched with grace and intent, analyzing the situation.
Kill.
“Gidon, wait!” Lachlan shouted hoarsely. “If your beast attacks he may rip her throat.”
“What the fuck is wrong with him?”
“His eyes reflect a madness we cannot reach.”
“I have never seen Drac in such a state,” Gidon rasped. “But do not suggest that we cannot reach him.”
Gidon’s Cerberus circled around Drac stealthily, looking for a moment of weakness to attack, and Drac kept it in his sight, anticipating the battle.
“His beast chakra has subsided; he is regaining control,” Lachlan said.
“We need to get his fangs out of her.” Gidon’s voice vibrated with rage. “Anything can cause him to rip her throat out.”
“Probably not,” Lachlan said. “It is apparent that it was her fear and pain that caused him to lose control.”
With his fangs buried in the princess’s throat, Drac tracked the movement of the predator that circled them, his cadre voices were to him only a distant drone. His beast slammed at his mind, weakening his psychic shield even further. Drac closed his eyes, uncaring of the danger. He only wanted to immerse himself in her taste. The feel of her soft skin against his lips centered him. He finally sucked, unable to bury the need. Blood, hot and spicy rushed down his throat, more intense and pleasurable than the consumption of negative energy. He groaned, his gut tightened, his beast howled in ecstasy and triumph. Her taste ran over Drac’s lips, and he shuddered at the bliss.
He pulled strongly at Saieke’s neck, a hiss slipping from him as her dread increased. They did not like the metallic taste of her fear, beast and man recoiling from its repulsiveness.
Protect, the sibilant voice hissed and Drac stilled.
No...He growled, hating the very idea.
Mine, another whisper echoed across his soul.
He retracted his fangs from her neck and swiped his tongue across the twin punctures. He ran his tongue over his teeth, savoring the sweet taste of her blood. Gidon’s Cerberus growled as it prepared to launch at him. Before it got a chance he shiktred with her to the castle with the king and the rest of the cadre keeping pace.
; ***
Drac placed the Princess gently on the bed in her chambers. Gidon and Lachlan appeared behind him within seconds, ready if he were to make any sudden move toward her. The very thing he dreaded had sneaked upon him, and he’d have to deal with the consequences. Was this how it had been for his brother when Vlad lost his mate? He’d not willingly give over to his demon, but control had been wrested from him?
“The ones who hurt her?” Drac questioned.
A lengthy silence ensued. He knew the reason lay in the distortion of his voice. Two voices spoke, his and the sibilant hiss of his beast.
“Talon took them to the sheriffs in the castle. They will be placed in the dungeon under guard,” Lachlan responded.
All of Drac’s focus rested on the Princess in the bed. Ours, his beast whispered.
She lay bruised and battered. Blood soaked her caftan, purple splotches marred the perfection of her skin, and her chest rose shallowly. His gaze rested on her neck. He had feasted on her blood, a primitive desire from his beast, and he had acted on it without thought. The punctures were healed over from the venom he swiped with his tongue, but her throat still looked tender and raw.
He did not relish her pain, it was repugnant to him. Why?