Page 1 of Battle for the Shadow Prince (A Bargain with the Shadow Prince #2)

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Blood it’s bonding by blood and old magic. As queen, Valeska could ignore that prohibition and force a mating bond on me. She’d likely even escape any reproach for it. But she can’t ignore that I am already mated. A vessel can only hold so much, and mine is full. My biology will not allow me to have sex, let alone mate another as long as Eloise is alive.

The last thing I want is for Valeska to target Eloise. The queen absolutely cannot know my mate’s identity. The second she does, she’ll send the finest soldiers from her army to kill her. I can’t let that happen. Maybe I can distract her. “I’ll be returning to my homeworld as soon as I find a witch who can open the rift. I’m the wrong choice for you.”

“That would be counterproductive, Damien. You’re needed here. I find your specific talents to be exactly what I’m looking for in a mate and consort.”

Yeah, the ability to serve as her combination blood bag and watchdog makes me the ideal companion. Only problem is I hate the bitch, and the idea of spending a single night in her bed, let alone hundreds, turns my stomach. I’d rather fall on my blade. “Not interested.”

“Maybe you just need the proper motivation. Who is it I smell on you Damien? Who is this human woman you’ve mated?”

I say nothing. I’ll die before I offer a single thing about her.

“Who is she?” Her shrill voice echoes off stone.

I glare at her from my prison of light.

Our eyes lock, and I don’t mask my hatred for her.

She releases a frustrated hiss. “Conjure the woman!” she commands the Kims.

Tae exchanges a worried glance with his brother. “If you have a vial of her blood, we can attempt it once we’ve rested.”

“Of course I don’t have her blood. Use his. He must have drunk from her.”

Lang swallows hard, then bows. “Your Majesty, it isn’t possible. While he is surrounded by light, he is mortal. If her blood remains in his system, its magical properties are, unfortunately, destroyed and therefore useless to us.”

The way Valeska’s lips peel off her teeth removes any pretense of humanity from her visage. She’s an animal. An unholy demon.

“Bring the scribe!” the queen commands.

The sound of footsteps heralds Lazarus’s arrival. Armed guards escort my friend and confidant into the room. His conformation is even worse than normal, his skin ashen and papery, as if he’s underfed. The guards thrust him forward, his oversized nocturnal eyes blinking against the bright light that surrounds me. “My queen?”

“Is there a spell in that vast pile of books you keep that the Kims can use to conjure Damien’s mate? Something in the lost-or-forgotten-magic section, perhaps?”

Lazarus frowns, his bulbous eyes seeking mine for a fraction of a second before he rushes forth an answer. “No, my queen. It is impossible without her blood.”

I grimace. In all my years of friendship with the scribe, he’s never called something impossible. There’s always more research to do. Finding lost magic is his specialty.

Valeska’s scowl turns murderous. She knows he’s lying. “How can you be sure, scribe, unless you check every book?” She bares her fangs. “Guards, escort Lazarus back to the stacks and keep him there until he finds a way to be more… helpful.”

“Yes, my queen.” One guard bows, then takes Lazarus roughly by the arm and drags him from the room.

Valeska redirects her rage-filled glare at me. “Who. Is. She? Tell me now and I will show you mercy.”

Mercy, my ass. Eloise poses a problem for Valeska, and she knows it.

“Who is the woman?” she demands again.

I flash a wicked, taunting grin. “Come to me through the sunlight, Valeska, and I’ll whisper her name in your ear.”

The vampire queen paces around my cell, wringing her hands. She’s frustrated. This plan of hers won’t work and she knows it.

“Tell me her name.”

“Free me and I will.” Right before I slice your head from your shoulders .

Valeska laughs, and the sound is like shattering icicles. Frigid. Brittle. Heartless. “I’m afraid that won’t be possible, Damien. You see, I may not be able to mate you or take you as my consort under the circumstances, but I am within my power to keep you as my political prisoner for as long as necessary.”

“Political prisoner?”

“Yes. You’ve admitted to me you herald from a different world, a different kingdom. How do I know you haven’t been spying on Night Haven the entire time you’ve been living among my vampires, taking advantage of our hospitality?”

“That’s bullshit and you know it.”

She shakes her head. “One way or another, you’ll remain at my side. Give me your mate’s name and your living conditions will be far more comfortable.”

“I will never give up her name.” I growl, baring my teeth.

She turns toward the Kims. “Please escort our guest to the cell we’ve prepared.”

Tae lowers himself into a crouch and circles his forearms at the elbow, hands clutching invisible spheres. I’m temporarily blinded by a flash of light that stings my skin. Weakness and fatigue settle on me like a disease, and I stagger forward just as the symbol dissipates.

Immediately I attempt to escape through the network of shadows, but my power fizzles, and it doesn’t take long for me to understand why. My wrists are bound in front of me in cuffs of pure sunlight. All my energy drains into those cuffs. My knees wobble with the effort to remain standing.

Valeska flashes an evil grin. I cringe when she crosses to me and brings her blood-red lips close to my ear. “In time you’ll be begging to be my mate.”

My teeth grind even as my bones ache where the light shines through my skin. My voice holds every ounce of hatred I feel for her as I respond. “Don’t. Bet. On. It.”