Page 5 of Blood Day (Blood Alliance #7)

A weird thought, one that probably wasn’t right at all. This vampire hated me. He wanted to fail me. Why would he treat me kindly on the floor?

His lips brushed my neck, his resulting hum trickling over my skin and setting my blood on fire for him. I almost tilted my head, my instinct to give in to his vampiric kiss one practically trained into me from birth.

He didn’t bite me.

He merely pressed his lips to my throat and held me beneath him with ease.

My eyes fell shut, resignation falling over me as I submitted to him the way a human should.

Which earned me a tsk from his lips. “A single error in execution would end in your death every time, sweet flower,” he whispered, his mouth traveling up to my ear. “You’re too delicate, too weak , for combat. Whether against me, or against your own. It’s not the right path for you.”

He gathered my wrists beneath one hand, holding my arms over my head as he lowered his opposite hand to my throat.

I shivered as he moved back to stare down at me with those cold, dark orbs. “You wouldn’t survive a single day in the Immortal Cup, Prospect. Even with perfect execution, you would die. That’s why you’ll always fail.” His focus fell to my mouth as I bit my lower lip to keep from reacting.

Except that was a reaction in itself.

A telling one, too.

Because his words pierced a part of me that didn’t want to hear his assessment. His cruelty. His promise for failure.

I was smaller than the others—a petite female of only five feet, four inches. And the compound kept me thin by regulating my daily intake of calories.

But I wanted to be strong.

To fight.

To be a human of worth, not a sexual servant or a blood slave.

How could I change my fate when vampires like Master Cedric refused to teach me? How could I improve my strength without more energy?

I’d witnessed so many others in my position give up and succumb to their fates.

I refused.

I wanted to prove my worth, to be the human I knew I could be with proper training.

It was why I’d enrolled myself in his course.

“I can do this,” I told him. “I can perfect my skills and perform flawless executions of your techniques.” I wasn’t sure where my boldness had come from, or what had provoked my words of confidence, but I didn’t apologize for speaking so bluntly.

Because there was nothing else for me to lose.

He’d threatened to fail me, had proved his point by easily taking me down to the floor.

But that didn’t mean I couldn’t try again, that I couldn’t learn to be better.

His gaze narrowed, a dark emotion I couldn’t define lurking in his inky irises. He didn’t move or speak, just continued to study me as though testing my resolve. Perhaps like he’d done when I’d gone to my knees.

I wasn’t a quitter.

I was a fighter .

And I would continue fighting until my dying breath.

“We’ll see,” he finally said after a beat. “Same time tomorrow. Same position. Don’t disappoint me, Prospect.”

He released me in a fluid motion, rolling off of me and up to his feet in a blink.

Vampire , I thought, swallowing at the graceful movement. He’d moved faster than my mind could comprehend, his strength and agility far superior to my own.

And yet he’d been almost gentle with me on the floor.

How strange.

“Good night, little flower,” he murmured as he returned to his desk. “Don’t forget your clothes.”

My lips parted at the not-so-subtle reminder of my nude state.

I’d completely forgotten about stripping for him before practicing my positions. Performing the fighting sequence had taken over my thoughts, making me forget about my lack of clothing.

But I was very aware of it now.

More aware than I’d ever been.

Because he’d been on top of me, holding me to the ground while I was naked. Which meant he’d felt my nipples pebbling beneath him. He’d probably scented my submissive arousal as well.

It was only natural to react to his presence.

Although, my reaction to him had certainly been more potent than usual. Probably because he was among the first of his kind to actually touch me. I never volunteered in sexual studies for demonstrations with the superiors; I preferred to watch and perform on other humans.

Just as I usually sparred with mortals in Master Cedric’s class.

Until tonight .

Until he watched me perform seven times while naked before flattening me to the floor.

“Prospect?” Master Cedric prompted, his eyebrow arching. “Did that little tumble disrupt your hearing?”

“N-no, Master,” I said, jumping up from the ground to begin dressing.

Only, I moved too fast and the world began to spin, causing me to lose my footing.

His arm caught my waist in the next instant, holding me upright when I would have fallen, his vampiric speed taking my breath away.

I shuddered as his minty scent washed over me, his hard body eliciting forbidden yearnings deep within.

For a moment, I wondered how I would react to him needing a volunteer in a sexual arts class. He might just tempt me to raise my hand.

A foolish notion.

Because he would probably choke me to a point of unconsciousness. Then fail me for not being able to swallow.

But the potential to see him in that way, to taste him, suddenly appealed to me a lot more than it should.

His arm tightened around me, his palm going to the nape of my neck as he pulled my head back to gaze up at him. A slight frown creased his brow, his dark eyes a little less cold. Or maybe that was an illusion. A dream.

A fantasy for later.

Maybe.

I felt pretty light-headed.

Like I might just fall asleep right now.

“Lily.” Master Cedric’s voice held a strange note to it. Not chilling or cruel like usual. But an odd deepness that made me warm all over. Except I didn’t understand his comment. He seemed to always be talking about flowers .

And fighting.

And death.

And failing me.

I tried to shake my head, but that only made my dizziness worse.

“When was the last time you ate something?” he asked.

“Breakfast bag,” I replied, my voice a bit hoarse.

He sighed. “And you’ve already missed dinner.”

“Did I miss it again?” I wondered out loud, uncertain of the time. Probably, I thought. The window for picking up food was very strict, and he’d likely kept me too long for tonight’s session.

His scent slithered around me as he pressed another kiss to my pulse. “So delicate and fragile,” he whispered. “My sweet Lily flower.”

My lips nearly curled down, but I caught the instinct at the last moment before I could react.

Reactions weren’t allowed.

Humans who screamed— died .

Humans who showed displeasure— died .

Humans who displayed anything other than contentment or boredom— died .

My stomach rumbled then, stirring another wave of dizziness. He’d told me to get dressed and leave, but I couldn’t move with his arm trapping me against him.

I swallowed, uncertain of how to proceed.

Then he slowly led me to the chair behind his desk. It was the only furniture in the room aside from the mats. “Sit,” he said, his tone oddly soft.

I started to move toward the ground but found my hips in his hands as he directed me to the chair.

My eyes widened, as this position was one I shouldn’t be taking. My legs nearly gave out, my body automatically trying to retreat to the floor, but his grip around my hips tightened in response.

“Don’t. Move.” His command thundered over me, locking me in place against the leather. “Do you remember what I said about disobeying me, Prospect?”

My stomach twisted. I disobeyed him by not getting dressed and leaving. Which meant… “You’ll fail me.” Because that was his threat.

“The moment you disobey me, I’ll fail you on the spot.”

Those were his exact words.

My lips parted, my gaze falling to his desk.

“Yes, Prospect. That’s exactly what I said.” He released my hips and placed his hands on the arms of the chair to lean down, caging me between him and the leather at my back. “So stay here like an obedient little pet and don’t fucking move.”

With that pronouncement, he pushed away from me, turned off the lights, and disappeared from the room.

Which left me shaking in his chair.

Alone in his classroom.

Abandoned after curfew.

Without my clothes.

In the dark.