Page 116 of Kingly Bitten

I ignored the sharp gasps and cries of pleasure and pain that followed.

I ignored the echoing grunts.

I ignored the cruel laughter.

I ignored the chilling sensation of power that welcomed us to a back area.

And most of all, I ignored the warmth at my side.

Or I tried to, anyway.

In reality, I took in every detail, memorized the scents and sounds and sights of the floor, my brain mapping out a potential escape route based on my senses alone.

Jace heard every word, his arm a brand at my back as he not so subtly reminded me that running wasn’t an option.

Predators liked to chase.

They also enjoy fucking what they catch, Jace added into my mind as he pulled me down onto his lap.Whatever you do, don’t look at the stage.

His words gave me pause, then I trailed the comment to his own recollection of what he’d seen.

My stomach churned at the erotic display of death that appeared in his mind.

Bloodied humans were being fucked to literal death on various torture implements.

Several were silently screaming.

Others were too numbed to the world to care.

And a sea of voyeuristic vampires watched the show, many of them enjoying their own forms of pleasure at their respective tables.

Blood-laced wine flowed throughout the room.Literally from fountains.

Jace maintained a bored facade as he and Darius engaged each other in conversation. They also flagged a waiter, who I could see through Jace’s mind’s eye was naked apart from a few cleverly placed piercings, and ordered a snack for the table.

Of the human variety.

Jace pressed his lips to my thundering pulse.The mortals here are going to die regardless of what Darius or I do. We can at least provide one a swift end.

I know. Because I could read the intent from his mind.

Part of me acknowledged that having the mental link to Jace was probably all that kept me from outwardly reacting to the nightmare around me. I could hear his own disgust at the display and his irritation at how little regard Lajos possessed for humanity.

It wasn’t how Jace chose to rule. Yes, he had humans that were allocated for the food industry. But he chose them carefully, typically ensuring they were of a certain age or physical decline before reaching that point.

However, if he were to truly be in charge of the world, he would create a blood bank program filled with voluntary donors. He reasoned that many mortals would see vampires as the gods they were and would willingly serve them in return for protection.

I sifted through his ideas and lost myself in the future he craved, and found I rather approved of his ideas.

Just thinking about them calmed me.

I almost sighed in relief.

Until a new charge entered the air.

“Lajos,” Jace greeted, his palms finding my hips and moving me onto the bench beside him so he could stand. The cool leather bit through my dress, making me shiver as Jace’s body heat left my own.

“Jace,” a deep voice returned. “How good to see you.”