Page 6

It was easy enough to get Zane to go where he wanted him. At first, Pavel thought perhaps the doctor was playing along on purpose, but it became apparent when he tripped and lost his precious dagger that wasn’t the case at all.

He was acting on instinct.

Hot.

Pavel tracked him through the forest, making sure to keep enough of a distance his quarry felt like he was getting away, only snapping a branch or twig here and there to scare Zane enough to switch directions. His actions led Pavel to believe this really wasn’t a kink Zane had ever exercised before. Typically when he hooked up with Kazimir, the two of them met at a hotel, so Pavel had an inkling, but to get confirmation…

He liked that he would be Zane’s first. That he was the only one who’d ever hunted his man down.

The only one.

He was going to be the only one.

Period.

Pavel felt how close he was to snapping and practically groaned when he noticed how close they finally were to their destination. With the darkness still thick around them, he doubted Zane could make out the towering stone structure he was racing toward.

Sure enough, the delectable doctor darted beneath the stone arch, entering what was left of the courtyard to what had once been a sprawling castle-like manor. The residence had been abandoned in the woods, forgotten until Pavel had stumbled upon it some years ago. He’d claimed the space as his own and knew every nook and cranny like the back of his hand.

The courtyard, which had once been a grand entrance with high stone walls, was missing two sides and had cracks across the cement floor. The front of the manor wasn’t in any better shape, practically the entire siding of the home crumbling. That only worked in Pavel’s favor though; Zane was unable to sense the danger since he couldn’t process the trees fading, making way for walls until it was too late.

Only a few rooms had survived, and none of them were on the first level. Trees had grown through the floorboards, reaching up high and breaking through the roof to let in bright swaths of moonlight.

By the time Zane noticed the change, he was already in the hallway, his steps slowing before he came to a complete stop, his confusion obvious from the set of his shoulders.

Excitement took control and Pavel’s plan to let the other man scramble through the manor a bit was snuffed beneath it. He strolled forward on silent feet, laughing when his hand came up to wrap around Zane’s throat so suddenly the other man yelped.

He shoved him hard, practically tossing him into the room on the left, blocking the doorway as he watched Zane regain his footing and take in his new surroundings.

This room was missing the left and far walls, with only a single stone beam set at the corner and a bit of edging left. From the gaping hole across from the door, the ocean could be heard slapping against the side of the cliff the manor had been built on. A chilly breeze swept through the room, the low whistle almost covering Zane’s shocked gasp as he wildly glanced around.

“What the…” His eyes landed on the far corner, where a bed was tucked against the remaining walls. The roof was intact there as well, shielding that area from the elements. An iron poster bed had been made up, the black silk sheets smoothed out carefully. He stared at the organized pillows for a moment before his gaze slipped to the center of the bed where a thick link of chains had been left.

Pavel was on him in a flash, and because Zane was still so caught up with the chain on the bed, he instinctively retreated, unaware that that was precisely where he intended for him to go.

In his quick perusal of the rest of the room, he’d missed the chain Pavel had previously coiled around the stone pillar, and Zane made another shocked sound when suddenly a heavy metal cuff was snapped around his wrist, locking him in place with only half a foot or so of wiggle room.

“What the fu—” Zane was pushed against the beam, his mouth covered by Pavel’s in his desperation.

He made good on his earlier threat to devour him, capturing Zane’s chin and forcing him in place when the other man tried to turn away. When Zane shoved at his chest, Pavel merely pressed himself more tightly against him, pinning his hands between them.

Zane tasted better than he remembered. Like honey and wine and—

The doctor bit down on his tongue hard enough for the sharp taste of copper to explode in both of their mouths.

Growling, Pavel pulled back just enough to give him a warning glare, and then dug his fingers and thumb against Zane’s bottom jaw, forcing his mouth open. “Bite me again,” he breathed against his lips a second before he fucked back into him, his tongue tracing the roof of his mouth and his teeth. “I’ll return every favor with one of my own, gorgeous. That’s a threat and a promise.”

Zane shivered and struggled some more, but Pavel was stronger, a fact that was becoming more and more clear from the panic on his face that the doctor hadn’t accounted for.

Pavel blindly felt around the side of the beam until he made contact with the other part of the chain and quickly tightened it around Zane’s chest. Confident his quarry was well and truly trapped, he let go and took a deliberate step back so he could relish in his handiwork.

He let out a whistle. “You look lovely, gorgeous. All flushed from the run and anticipation.” He tipped his head and reconsidered. “Or is that fear I’m sensing?”

Zane tugged against the chains, but all it did was rattle the metal. “What is this? What are you doing?”

“Exactly what I told you I would.” He tapped against Zane’s nose, chuckling when the other man snapped at him. “I already warned you what will happen if you bite me again. I’ll have to pay you back for the first one,” he stuck out the tip of his tongue and touched it, the pad of his thumb coming back stained red, “later, right now I have other plans for you that don’t involve you bleeding.”

“Is that supposed to be comforting?” Zane snapped.

“Not at all, Doctor,” he said. “I would never insult your intelligence like that.” Pavel reached out and grabbed onto Zane’s belt buckle, grinning when that had the other man instantly stilling. “What? You didn’t really think I was going to let you keep your pants, did you?” He tutted at him, and then while Zane cursed and tried to twist out of his grasp, stripped him of both his pants and his boxers.

They got caught around Zane’s ankles, but that was fine, he had enough access to the other man like this.

“You aren’t hard for me,” he noted, a bit disappointed as he palmed at Zane’s flaccid dick. “But you are warm.”

“Don’t touch me!” He swiveled his hips in an attempt to turn away from Pavel’s grasp, so Pavel stomped down on the material of his pants between his feet, effectively preventing him from doing so. “Get off!”

“I am,” Pavel replied, lightly pawing at Zane’s body, knowing the stimuli would eventually be enough to get a reaction. “You’re big, Doctor.” His mood soured. “I bet Lyra likes that.”

“What—Shit!” Zane squeezed his eyes shut and banged his head back against the stone when Pavel squeezed his balls. “Stop!”

He let up, going back to stroking him in slow, measured caresses. “Have you ever fucked Kazimir’s hole?” He hated that he had to ask, but there were things he’d been unable to find out on his own from the outside looking in. When Zane glared at him, he gave another warning squeeze that seemed to do the trick.

His doctor was a fast learner.

“No,” Zane grated. “I never fucked him.”

“Let’s not lie, gorgeous,” he quipped. “It’ll only piss me off.”

“Fine, obviously we’ve fucked, but no, I’ve never topped him.”

“No interest?”

Zane hesitated but Pavel allowed it this time. Then he shook his head once.

“Do you enjoy sticking it to Lyra?”

“I—”

“Remember to be honest, gorgeous.”

Zane blew out a breath then admitted in a quiet, almost sullen voice, “I used to.”

Pavel hummed in understanding and stepped closer, his free hand slipping beneath the end of Zane’s black dress shirt. He slid it upward, practically salivating as he traveled over the rise and fall of Zane’s muscular form before reaching his left nipple. He pressed against it, and when that garnered him no reaction, roughly tweaked it between two fingers.

Zane gasped and arched slightly off the beam as much as the chains would allow.

“I see they trained you to enjoy nipple play.” At least they’d done something right. That along with turning Zane into the sex-starved creature he was. There’d been a period of time where any little thing that stressed or annoyed the doctor would send him running straight into Kaz’s arms.

Pavel had killed a lot of people during that year.

But that was over. From now on, the only person Zane would be allowed to turn to for comfort was him.

“You’re such a needy thing,” he cooed. “We both know it. Why bother pretending?”

“I’m not—”

Pavel twisted that sensitive bud, quirking a brow when Zane cried out. “What did I say about lying?”

“You’re an asshole.”

“I’m a sadist,” he corrected. “But don’t fret. I’ll only push you past your limits when you deserve it.”

Zane’s dick twitched against Pavel’s palm, but they both pretended not to notice. “Does your brother know how fucked up you are, or am I special?”

“Oh, you’re most definitely special,” Pavel said, “But yes, Ledger knows exactly what I am. We don’t keep secrets from one another. We’re brothers.”

“That doesn’t mean anything,” there was something in his tone, something…Pavel couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but Zane held his gaze and the color that bloomed across his cheeks distracted Pavel from finding out what that something could be.

“How long can you hold your breath, Doctor?” Pavel asked, his hand leaving his chest to settle around the front of his neck. His hold there was passive at first, giving the other man time to worry about where this was going.

“Not long,” Zane told him, eyes widening when that hand tightened and cut off his airway.

“Lying,” Pavel growled, “again. And here I thought you were learning. All you had to do was say six minutes. Is that really so hard?” He loosened his grip so he could get an answer.

“If you already knew,” Zane sputtered, “why bother asking?”

“Because what I’m after here is your honesty. This is the first lesson, gorgeous, and you’re not doing a good job with it. Now, let’s try again, shall we?” His fingers pressed beneath Zane’s jaw, feeling the thrum of his pulse. “Did you mean it earlier? When you called me pretty?”

He hadn’t really, not in so many words. Zane had really just parroted back gorgeous trying to be a brat, but Pavel would rather tease him over it than anything else.

Which was why he laughed when Zane’s lips thinned in defiance.

“Okay,” Pavel smiled, “I’ll let you have that one, too. As long as you answer this next one.” It didn’t really matter whether or not he got confirmation this second, not when the other man’s dick was now hard and heavy in his hand. “What did you get on last week's history quiz?”

The curveball question caught him off guard and Zane stared up at him perplexed. “An A.”

Pavel tightened his fingers around his throat, pressing on the sides of the man’s neck to limit oxygen flow. He started slow, cutting it off completely when Zane began to struggle once more. His other hand flexed around Zane’s dick and began to stroke him more vigorously, glancing down when he felt the first gush of precome.

“You’re wet for me,” he said, wonder slipping into his tone as he eased up on the choking.

“I was telling the truth!” Zane coughed and growled.

“I know,” Pavel nodded. “That time wasn’t a punishment. It was a reward, and look at how much you liked it.” He pressed his thumb against Zane’s damp slit, groaning when that had the doctor’s eyes slipping shut and his jaw clenching. “Don’t fight it. Give it to me, gorgeous. Let me milk your cock and show you how bad of a liar you are.”

Frantically, Zane shook his head. “This is a physical reaction. I do not want this.”

“You knew what you were getting yourself into when you ran.”

“You didn’t give me a choice!”

Pavel shrugged, not about to waste time on semantics. “Next time we’ll do this in the bed, but you have to earn that first. Tonight, we’re here to make a point. To learn some lessons. As you can see, despite all your verbal denials, I turn you on.”

“You’re a warm body,” Zane stated. “Nothing more, nothing less.”

“Trying to piss me off? Interesting approach. You’ll have to do better than that though. I’ve got years getting used to what it’s like being in your peripheral. Standing off to the side, close enough you’re aware I exist, but not near enough you care about my presence. We’re going to fix that. After tonight, you’re going to be hyper-aware of me, aren’t you, gorgeous?”

He didn’t expect a response. Pavel fisted him and jerked him off in rapid motions, his own cock growing between his legs at the wet sounds that made. Zane was leaking rigorously now, his precome slicking down his impressive shaft, making the glid for Pavel’s hand easier and easier with each passing second.

“You’re so hot,” Pavel told him, staring as the muscles in Zane’s upper thighs quivered. His hipbones were sharp and the thin line of dark hairs that trailed down to where Pavel’s hand was wringing him was so sexy. “I’ll be honest, I worried it wouldn’t be this easy, but you’re reacting to me perfectly. Now I’m just going to need you to come for me like the good boy I know you can be.”

“No.” Zane shook against his bonds but of course, nothing happened.

“You don’t have a choice. Think about it this way,” his hand repositioned itself around his throat again, “I have you in my hands. All of you. Your pleasure and your life. I’m willing to let you keep one, Doctor, but only one. Which will it be? Are you going to come for me,” he tugged a little more forcefully on Zane’s dick, making the man mewl in protest, “or are you going to suffocate for me?”

Pavel would never let that happen.

But Zane didn’t need to know that part.

“Have you ever practiced breath play before?” Pavel hadn’t meant to ask it, wasn’t planning on changing things one way or the other, but it sort of just slipped out.

Zane did that annoying thing where he clamped his mouth shut, clearly not wanting to tell him.

Which really just told him everything he needed to know.

“Seriously?” Pavel was pleased with this knowledge. At first. “…With Kazimir?”

More hesitation but then he seemed able to tell he was pushing his luck too far and Zane shook his head as much as he was able with Pavel’s hand still gripping him.

“Lyra then?”

He nodded yes.

The corner of Pavel’s lips twitched. “Do you need her to choke you in order to come for her?” He started pulling back, only for Zane to stop him.

“Honestly?”

Pavel paused. Progress. “Preferably.”

“No, I’ve never needed breath play to come for her.”

“Are you into it, or do you participate because she likes it?”

“She does it for me.”

So the Imperial Heir wasn’t a fan but was willing to play along for Zane’s sake. That made Pavel hate her a little less, since it meant she wasn’t completely mistreating or violating him.

But only a little.

“How often has she—”

“Only twice,” Zane didn’t let him finish asking. “The first time was…an accident. The second time, I requested it.”

“You discovered you enjoyed it?”

“Like I said,” his hips jerked of their own accord, reminding them both that he was still being stroked even during this rather tame conversation, “it only happened twice.”

So he wasn’t entirely sure, was what he meant.

“You’re in luck, Doctor. I happen to be an expert at this. If there were any doubts before, allow me to relieve you of them.”

“Wait—”

He didn’t.

But he went easier on him.

Pavel moved his hand away from his throat, dropping it over Zane’s nose and mouth. He pushed his head back against the solid stone at his back and held, cutting off his airflow and tutting at him when Zane’s struggles picked back up. “Stop resisting.”

He could tell the doctor was close, his body more than willing to betray his mind for the chance to get off, and he took advantage, pumping Zane’s dick with fervor until he was leaking in his black slacks and Zane’s eyes were noticeably rolling in the back of his head.

“There you go,” he cooed. “Come for me. Prove to us both who has the power here.”

Zane stiffened a second before he exploded in Pavel’s hand, come shooting from his slit to paint the stone floor. His hips bucked, and when Pavel released his hold on his mouth at the same time, allowing him to suck in a deep breath, he practically sobbed with pleasure.

Pavel worked him until his body jerked with every drag of his fist and the flow of come was nothing more than a few lone droplets. When Zane went lax against his bonds, he finally took pity on him, pulling away only to stroke that same hand through Zane’s damp hair.

Zane scowled. “That’s disgusting.”

“If you think that about your own fluids, you’re going to be livid when you figure out what I plan to do to you.” He grinned wolfishly when Zane actually cowered some from that. “Am I breaking you already?” He clucked his tongue. “We can’t have that now. That was only lesson one.”

Quickly, he undid the chains and took a large step back as Zane’s body crumpled to the dirty floor. The doctor glared up at him but didn’t immediately make any moves to attack, which was good.

“There are still some questions I need answers to,” Pavel told him. “I’m going to give you another chance to make a run for it, but,” he held up a finger in warning, “you aren’t allowed to leave the castle. Understood?”

Zane snorted. “And what happens if I do?”

“I’m going to drag you back here by the hair, chain you back to that pillar, and leave.”

He frowned, waiting for Pavel to continue, and when it became apparent he was done, asked, “What do you mean?”

“I’m saying, I’ll keep you here all night, alone, freezing, and without any hope of anyone else ever discovering your whereabouts. In fact, maybe I should do that after all. What do you think? There’s nothing stopping me from tying you up and keeping you.”

“Except for my free will.”

“Not important.”

Zane didn’t seem all that surprised by that response. “And Kelevra.”

“He’ll never suspect me.” Pavel smirked knowingly. “As far as anyone else is concerned, Doctor, I’ve never paid any attention to you, remember? No one would ever suspect me of being your kidnapper. I could keep you here forever, using you at my leisure the same way Lyra—”

“I’ll do it,” Zane cut him off, a dark note in his voice that gave away how badly he didn’t want to. “I’ll run for you.”

Pavel tipped his head. “You’re wishing you hadn’t dropped your dagger right now, aren’t you?”

“I would stab it through your navel and drag it all the way up to your heart,” Zane said without skipping a beat.

“I already gave you a heart, gorgeous, don’t you remember?” Well, he’d cut Samuel’s out with the intention of gifting it, he just hadn’t gotten around to it yet. “It doesn’t bother me that you want to kill me.” Not right now, since he’d always known this was going to be a process. “Just remember that no matter how much you want to, you can’t.”

“Because of the video?”

“That too.”

Zane eyed him, but his breathing was starting to even out again and his coloring was returning to normal, the lingering results of his orgasm dissipating.

“Would you like a head start?” Pavel asked.

“Are you really going to trust that I won’t leave this…” he glanced around, “Where the hell are we anyway?”

“The place of your undoing.” He waggled his brow teasingly, laughing when Zane’s expression merely darkened. “To answer your other question, yes, Zane. Yes, I do trust that you’ll do as you're told like the good boy I know you can be. Do you know why?”

“…Why?”

“Because I’m holding the strings to the one thing you actually care about. Your future.”

Zane inhaled slowly and then exhaled at the same speed. Just when Pavel grew antsy, he reached back and pushed off the stone pillar, rising to his feet. He brought his pants and boxers up with him, doing up the zipper and the button, but not bothering with the belt.

“I don’t need a head start,” he said after a moment where the two of them stared each other down.

“Are you sure?”

“Let’s just get this over with,” Zane said reluctantly.

Pavel could tell him that he’d mistaken something, something important. Could tell him that this wasn’t just a random thing for him to get his rocks off. That this night wasn’t their end, but their beginning. Yet the determination and fury were so cute on Zane’s face, Pavel couldn’t bring himself to do it.

Once he had him writhing beneath him, truly trapped and forced to acknowledge what Pavel had always known, that was when he’d tell him everything.

That was when he’d make it clear in no uncertain terms exactly who Zane Solace belonged to, and what this night truly signified.

But for now…

“Run, Doctor,” he urged in a silky tone. “Let’s see how far you can get.”