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“ F ather?” Moargan’s multi-slate hadn’t stopped pinging ever since their press conference earlier that morning. So far, he’d diverted all messages automatically to Yure, needing to clear his head. His father’s declaration had created chaos and the Green Mansion looked like an army base with Luminary sprawled around.

“In my office, son.”

Milanov looked exhausted, with dark circles under his eyes that sat engraved in his alabaster skin. He stood by the fireplace and stared at a photo framed in gold. It was a family picture taken when his mother was still well. “You have the right to be angry,” Milanov looked up, his amethyst eyes glowed wet and sharp. “But I won't apologize.”

“Why didn’t you tell me he was officially reported missing before the press conference?” Moargan snarled. “You—” He’d been caught off guard when he had to listen to those words in front of the camera. “I—” He snapped his mouth shut. The wave of helplessness was foreign and unwanted. It made his stomach clench and his hands fist. “Damn it. You made me say those things. ”

“I made you fall apart.”

“Exactly,” Moargan gritted through pointy teeth. His plea for his baby brother to come back to them had been off-script. So was the feeling of ache that rolled through his entire body, lighting up his veins with acid.

His father’s smile was soft, a silence before the storm. “I wanted the people to see,” he admitted.

Moargan paced the office. “What happened with trusting Helianth to nail this secret mission? You were the one telling me not to worry.”

“Moargan.”

Moargan didn’t listen. The words kept spilling, fueled by bitterness and regret. “No, you listen! You were the one telling me to fucking trust my baby brother. You are just as guilty!”

“Moargan.”

“You didn’t stop this from happening! You did this. You?—”

“ Moargan! You’re nearly killing him.”

Moargan blinked and stared at the uniform who stood wheezing in front of him, his face splattered with red from the lack of oxygen. Moargan released the hand he’d wrapped around the man’s throat and patted him awkwardly on the shoulder. He hadn’t even noticed grabbing hold of the guard’s throat. The man coughed and sputtered.

“When did you decide that he was missing?” Moargan’s voice was a dangerous rasp.

“You know when. When Kylix was found. Alone .”

“Why didn’t you tell me of that decision before the fucking press conference?” He peered at his father. They both carried the same glint in their eyes, the same need in their bones.

Violence.

Moargan needed it like he needed water.

“Because we need the people by our side,” Milanov sighed. “Something like this has never happened in our history. A royal disappearance? A ruthless killer taking away one of the most valued men on the planet? You, their cruel prince, their fucking hero , falling apart in front of camera? That engrains rage.” He bared his teeth on a growl and his gems flared violet. “And we need them angry, Moargan. We need them fucking furious. We need them to roam the streets and find those responsible for taking my son.” He tipped his head back and let out a roar. The sound sliced through Moargan’s heart like the sharpest of knives, stirring up his own fire.

“Because the Luminary has failed,” he hissed.

“Oh yes,” Milanov agreed, “they failed. They’ve allowed this killer to play us all like a cat plays with a mouse.”

No wonder why Helianth was so obsessed with the case.

There was a sharp knock on the door. “The car’s ready, sir.”

Milanov snapped his fingers. “Let’s go.”

Moargan didn’t miss how his father grabbed the black pouch that lay next to the family photo. They were the jewels his mother should have worn. He’d always kept them.

Zimeon stood in the lobby, barking orders. He dipped his chin when he saw them making their way through the swarm of uniforms. “Milanov,” he greeted but took a step back. “Two units are headed in the direction of the Hospital of the Living Dead. I’ve sent four units to the north.”

“Good. Go door to door in that neighborhood of scum. Bring anyone in who behaves suspiciously. All Luminary have the right to search homes. Moargan—” Milanov threw a finger toward the waiting hover car, “Ride with me.”

They climbed in the back, faces planted out the windows as they drove in silence. The streets were once more filled with people now the press conference had finished. Even with glass separating them from reality, Moargan felt their restlessness.

“Anything on Kylix?” Moargan asked when his father’s multi-slate dinged .

“Nothing yet. The toxicology report showed traces of kayde mixed with narcotics in his blood system. Combined together they create the effect of anaesthetics. There was enough to have rendered him to a state of unconsciousness.”

“So the killer drugged him, and once he was out of it, they placed him into another car for him to be found? Why?”

Milanov shrugged. “To show us they have Helianth.”

“But why not just keep both? Kylix is an Essential.”

“But he’s no prince.” His father served himself from the mini fridge and took a drink. “It’s risky to keep many hostages. If it’s money they want, they know we won’t pay more for two members of our family, so why bother? One can be—what the fuck’s going on!” He shouted when a Luminary car sped by them with a piercing siren.

“They’re following a suspect who set an apartment on fire, sir,” the driver rushed.

“Well, don’t just fucking laze around. Follow them!”

Sirens were switched on as they flew through the streets.

“They’ve got my boy. And they’re going to pay for it!” Milanov roared.

“We’re closing in on the suspect, sir,” the driver said.

“Good.” Milanov looked back to Moargan. His eyes were nothing but an amethyst glower. Moargan felt his rapid heartbeat intermingle with his father’s. “Let them riot. Let them be angry. Faster, damn it! Bring me someone. I fucking need it.”

The driver looked terrified. “Yes, sir.”

“Come here, son.” Milanov reached out and pressed his palm against Moargan’s.

Oxygen rushed through Moagan’s insides as a sudden buzz shot strength to his core. “You know why we need the people to fight. Because our planet won’t be destroyed by those who do evil…”

“But by those who watch without doing anything,” Moargan finished, the words falling from his lips as if forced out by a bigger strength inside him.

His father nodded. “And we won’t have our reign destroyed. The people are ours to control. We need their fear, their admiration. And right now, we need their rage.”

Moargan gazed at the warm connection of their flesh in wonder. “For Helianth.”

“That’s right.” Milanov leaned in and kissed Moargan’s palm. “For Helianth. And for the Imperials of Helion. Those who hurt my boy? We will drag them out of the corners of the shadows and tear them apart.”

Moargan’s blood rushed south so quickly that he felt light-headed. His growl spilled past his throat. The streets in the north were filled with riots. People were dragged out of their homes and thrown around, altercations escalating to fights.

“Suspects surrounded, sir.” The hover car skidded to a stop, and both men immediately jumped out and ran to the suspect’s car with Luminary jumping out of the way to give them space. The man threw his hands in the air, eyes wide with fear when he saw the Imperial and his prince approach, their teeth bared and their eyes flaring with rage.

He spluttered when they yanked him out of the car and onto the ground.

He sobbed when he realized he wasn’t going to be arrested for his crimes.

He shouted when the first pair of teeth sank into his flesh and yelled when a second pair joined in.

He begged when he knew his time had come.

He never stood a chance as he was cruelly murdered in front of the Luminary and people of the public, who gave them loud applause and praised their justice. Who internally prayed that it wasn’t them who’d be killed next.

The kill was cruel and bloody. It was violent and oh, so fucking sweet.

It was over too soon.

Wiping his bloody mouth with a bruised knuckle, Moargan huffed out a laugh at his father’s state. “You look worse than I feel.”

“Good light, I needed this.” Milanov stood against the car, his head tilted back, his legs spread. A young Luminary guard sat between his thighs.

“I’ll wait for you in the car.”

“I won’t be long,” Milanov replied, snorting when Moargan made a sound of disgust.

“Any other news?” He asked the driver, who sat behind the wheel with a face white as a sheet. “Your f-friend called while you were—” He stopped himself.

Moargan called Yure back immediately. He was the one who’d been holding his calls.

“Moargan?” Yure sounded out of breath.

“What’s up, brother?”

“It’s Cyprian.”

“Cyprian?” An ice-cold jitter ran through Moargan’s veins. “What the fuck happened to him? Did they?—”

“We’re on our way there now. He was found on a bench at the station, completely out of it. We’re almost there now.”

“What the fuck? Father! I need to go now .”

“Take the car.” Milanov waved him off, gaze focused down.

“Moargan, go home instead,” Yure called through his multi-slate. “We’re already at the station. It will take you longer to get back.”

“He’s my other half.”

“And I ’m your best friend. Go home. Vandor!” Yure shouted. There were muffled voices in the background, followed by the slamming of doors, then Yure was back. “Cyprian’s here. He’s safe. He doesn’t seem to be injured. He’s unconscious. Vandor called in medical. Go. Home. We’ll meet you there. ”

Cars approached—an ambulance, though the corpse didn’t need any nurses anymore, and more Luminary.

“I’ll drive with Zimeon,” Milanov said, approaching. He frowned. “What’s wrong? Is it Helianth?”

Moargan shook his head. “It’s Cyprian.”

“What about him?”

“He was found by the station. Unconscious.”

Milanov let out a string of swear words. “We need Kylix awake. Now . Go to Cyprian, and stay connected, damn it. We need each other now more than ever.”

T he ride home felt like forever. By the time he got home, Moargan was exhausted. His gems ached, the craving for more violence and destruction rising with every breath.

He was on-fucking-edge, he was worried and he had questions.

Ignoring the kitchen and its occupants altogether, he headed straight for his sleeping quarters, dismissing the guards who stood in front of his bedroom door.

“Moargan!” Yure came running after him. “Medical just checked him.”

“And?”

“There was a tiny dose of kayde mixed with narcotics, just like was found with Kylix.”

Moargan’s hand clenched around the metal. “Are you saying Cyprian got in touch with Attica?” His need for violence returned with alarming speed, despite the earlier kill. “Arrest the guards. They failed to look after him.”

Yure shook his head. “He didn’t have any guards. We sent everyone out to search for Helianth.”

“Arrest them anyway,” Moargan snarled through clenched teeth. He turned over his shoulder. “They should have known better than to leave him.”

“Moargan…”

“ What. ”

“I told him you were coming for him.”

Moargan’s hand froze on the doorknob. “Was he awake?”

“He’s been rousing in and out. Whatever he took wasn’t as strong as what Kylix was given.”

“Thank light.” Relief washed through Moargan. “And thank you, friend.”

He closed the door behind him and peered inside. Cyprian was huddled in bed, his black strands a delectable contrast to his fair skin. From up close, Moargan admired the way those curvy, dark lashes fanned his lover’s cheekbones. His closed eyes fluttered.

Home. They’d brought him home.

The realization stole his breath away.

After making sure Cyprian was comfortable, Moargan moved to the windowsill. Taking a long drag from his red cinder cigarette, his gaze swept over Cyprian. “Time to wake up, lover.”

As if hearing his words, Cyprian tossed in his sleep.

“I’m going to need some answers.” Moargan took another drag.

This time, Cyprian didn’t stir.

“No? You don’t want to give me any answers?”

Silence was his only answer.

The need for vengeance swirled inside him, battling with a very different kind of hunger. One that made him want to stake his claim, again and again. “Oh, I’m going to make you talk, even if I need to use force,” Moargan decided. “What the fuck were you thinking, going out there today? You’ve got no idea the shit we’re in here. Kylix, Helianth, and now you. And you just go out without telling me?”

Moargan flicked away the cigarette and strolled back to the bed. “I deserve some answers.” Taking his time to get out of his shirt, pants, and underwear, he felt a ripple of pleasure as his erection hit his navel with a wet smear. Oh yes, his hunger had only gotten fiercer. “And if you don’t give them to me, then I’ll come and get them myself.”

Fueled by his glowing incisors, Moargan grabbed two large hooks from his bedside drawer and screwed them into the ready holes in the ceiling. Then he grabbed hold of the rope, looping it through the hooks. Cyprian looked even prettier without all that silk wrapped around his long, shapely limbs.

“I shouldn’t be doing this. Not when you’ve just been returned to me.” He stripped Cyprian of his briefs, then folded his knees one by one and tied them up. “But that’s just the kind of guy I am, lover. A devil. Your devil. And today, you’ve made me very angry.” With his legs bent tightly, Cyprian’s ass was perfectly presented, his pink little hole a delicious flutter, begging to be filled.

Moargan grabbed the bottle of lube and started opening Cyprian for him, chuckling when his lover squirmed at the connection of the cool wetness at his crease.

Cyprian let out a gasp and pulled on his cuffs.

“No, beautiful, you’re not going anywhere,” Moargan hummed, dipping a finger inside Cyprian through his tight, hot channel. “I want to know where you were. With whom .”

Cyprian moaned sleepily and rolled his hips against Moargan’s invasion.

“Oh, you like that, hmm? Want more? Will you tell me where you were?” Moargan slipped in another finger, pushing further as he searched for Cyprian’s prostate. Cyprian panted, hips stuttering as his eyes fluttered, then opened.

“Gotcha.” Moargan grinned.

Cyprian looked around, yellow eyes wide and glassy, and tipped his head as he traced the ropes back to the ceiling. Then they darted back to his knees.

“Wh-wh?—”

“Sshh.” Moargan lubed his cock and stroked himself in that same slow and teasing way he played with Cyprian’s ass. “You got yourself in danger today.”

Cyprian shivered, lips parting as he let out another strangled wheeze. “Sorry,” he finally stammered.

“Sorry.” Moargan swallowed his grin at the admission. “Why didn’t you text me to say you were leaving the house?” He crooked his fingers, hitting Cyprian’s prostate. His cock wept in his hold at the sight of pure ecstasy on his lover’s face. He rolled his hips, needing more of Moargan’s touch.

“I-I’m not sure.”

“You mean you forgot?”

Cyprian mewled, shaking his head wildly.

“Where did you go?” Moargan insisted.

Cyprian bit his lower lip when he pulled out his fingers and wrapped them around his own cock, before nudging the head against his lover’s loosened opening. “Just. Out. Out .” He hissed when the crown of Moargan’s cock penetrated his hole breaching his lover as he worked himself in. Only then did he give them a moment to breathe. And then he slowly started rocking back and forth.

“You were risking your life because you needed to be fucking out ?” Moargan growled. It was so typical Cyprian that it made his need for violence waver. “Were you having visions again?”

“Too tired,” Cyprian breathed, then moaned. He thrashed in his bonds, looking so fucking sexy. Moargan wanted to keep him like this forever, restrained, his dick buried in Cyprian’s warm, tight hole. Safe. Cherished .

Their palms connected, finding each other in the darkness, making their bodies thrum with a desire so deep it had become a permanent part of them. Home.

Moargan’s lips kissed the shell of Cyprian’s ear. “If only you would let me in, I could fight the world for you. My Royal Consort.”

Cyprian hummed in reply, a smooth, low rasp. He was close, Moargan could feel it in the way he panted and tightened around his cock, eyes filled with fire.

There was a crackle, then suddenly the room sparked to light. Cyprian whined and his cock spasmed in Moargan’s grip.

“You’re mine, aeon . Only mine.” Moargan sped up his rhythm. Sweat dripped down his forehead and fire licked his veins as he thrusted toward the finish line. “You drive me fucking crazy.”

Beneath him, Cyprian trembled. He opened his mouth, and the first light bulb shattered.

“Fuck, lover—” Moargan gasped. His orgasm was approaching.

Another light bulb burst, followed by another one.

Moargan shouted as he came, releasing in Cyprian’s hole as pleasure raced through his insides.

More light bulbs spat, making the room go darker until finally it shimmered once more in twilight.

Moargan rode out the waves of heat until he felt empty and spent, then he dived forward and took Cyprian’s trembling cock inside his mouth and down to his throat in one fluid suction.

“Moargan…” Cyprian moaned. “Angel.” The final light bulb shattered, and Cyprian did too, whimpering when he filled Moargan with his release.

Moargan moaned as he swallowed. Ropes and ropes of release filled his mouth. When he’d fully milked Cyprian’s dick, he released his cock from his mouth, licked the head clean, and went to untying his lover’s knees and ankles from the rope.

Cyprian nestled against his chest; leg wrapped around Moargan’s thighs.

“Let me in,” Moargan whispered against Cyprian’s raven hair strands.

“I’m trying,” came Cyprian’s soft reply. He sighed when Moargan stroked his hair in a slow, soothing rhythm.

“I know you are, lover, I know you are.”