Page 17 of The Ballad of the Vampire Prince

The beasts’ attraction to her is not the only thing that is baffling me. Rhianelle somehow remains uncorrupted after over a week of carrying the Rhunhraefn. I’m certain the curse has tempted her with unimaginable power. And yet there she is, trotting around completely untainted.

What made you the way you are, little fawn?

At first glance, Rhianelle may seem like an open book. The longer I stay with her, the more I realize the book is written in a strange language I do not understand, something not even Kheirall’s necklace could translate.

But I screwed up so fucking badly. Now she doesn’t trust me anymore.

Rightfully so.

I tried to break her, kill her.

Every once in a while, Rhianelle looks over her shoulder and rubs her neck, as if she knows I’m watching her.

Good instinct, little fawn.

Some dark-haired bastard approaches the Elf Queen to greet her.

A violent volcano erupts in my gut. The surge of heat makes my canines ache, wanting to rip the male’s throat. My hands twitch instinctively, the claws elongating.

That is fucking mine,the territorial beast in me snarls.

I bury my claws in the wall to physically to restrain myself from pulling her away from him.

“Avalon in the south is our enemy. The dwarves in the north hate us, and now we’re waging war with the Orc Tribes in Myrkheim.” I register his presence before I hear the sound of his light footsteps approaching me. “Enemies are circling us in every corner. My poor queen can’t catch a break.”

Red.

One of the most annoying fuckers I’ve met by far.

The knight is encased in a pristine stygian armor, his long blonde hair covered with a crimson hood. He settles beside me comfortably. Keeping my temper leashed will be a challenge today.

‘She was in my bedroom last week.’

His words coil into my ears like a slithering snake. I’ve wanted to rip his gut open ever since. The unpleasant feeling in my chest did not ease despite his confession that she was there to kill him. Rhianelle stabbed my chest repeatedly in the forest and fucked me madly the same night.

“That is Commander Haldan,” Red says with a smile. “Everything about him screams sheer perfection, doesn’t it?”

“Rumor has it, even the queen has a crush on him,” he continues whispering his poison in my ear. The beast in me falls for his bait easily. Before I know it, I’m growling underneath my breath. It seems that this knight has made it his life’s mission to get on my nerves.

“Haldan was betrothed to her sister. Some say he was mated to Aerin.”

I tune out Red’s commentary, focussing my attention on Rhianelle. But the male elf says something to make her smile and I have to look away.

“His mate is dead. It would be kinder if he had died too,” Red says with a dark amusement. The cold humor prompts me to lift my head to look him.

“Those people who died… It was you,” I mutter, acknowledging his presence.

Ninety-eight bodies.

There is truly a murderer on the loose in this small city, but half of the dead bodies are actually contributed by this guy.

Knight, my ass.

He has no business being near Nel.

“Caught that, did you?” he asks with a grin. His charm fails to camouflage the insanity in his eyes from me.

Red’s eyes simmer as they meet mine. “I only go after the Valorians, the ones with Order Scrolls from the Aeonians to spy on the queen.”