Page 3 of THE SOULBOND AND HER BELOVED (Beasts Of Wrath And Madness #4)

Chapter three

CARING FOR MY GRAND LORD

At midnight, long after Emeriel had fallen asleep, Aekeira lay awake, staring at the ceiling.

Her thoughts were restless, circling back to him .

The bruises she had noticed days ago. The tension in his posture. The pain in his eyes.

Sleep was impossible.

Giving up, she rose quietly from the bed and slipped into the dark hallway. Taking the long, silent walk through the corridors, she made her way to the other side of the Royal Residence.

She hesitated for a moment before knocking. Her nerves suddenly all over the place.

“Go away,” a growly voice barked from within.

She knocked again.

“Yaz, I swear I will have you beheaded if you don’t send whoever’s out there on their way!” he snapped dangerously.

“It’s me, Your Highness,” she faltered, her voice quieter than she’d intended. “Aekeir—”

The door swung open so fast she stumbled back.

Grand Lord Vladya filled the doorway, his usually well-styled black hair disheveled. The wild, unfocused look in his gray eyes told her everything she needed to know. A feral episode.

“Now is a bad time,” he warned. Asking for space.

I’m not leaving him like this. Aekeira stepped inside. “How long has it been? When did it start?”

“Aekeira…”

“Please don’t push me away.” She moved closer. “I wish to be here. Let me be here.”

“It might get bad. Very bad .”

Aekeira’s heart sank. It had gotten bad a week ago, hadn’t it? Things had spiraled out of control, and she had blamed him. Taken her hurt out on him, pushing him away, even when it was not his fault.

“I wish to apologize for—wait, these bruises…” she took in the deep discoloration around his jaw and on his forearms. “They are fresh. Did you fight again in court?”

“Just a few rough tumbles during the royal hunt,” he muttered. “It’s nothing.”

“They don’t look like nothing.” But, changing the subject, she looked up at him. “I am deeply sorry for what happened. I w-was mad at myself. Mad at how helpless I felt. I shouldn’t have taken it out on you.”

“There’s no reason to apologize,” Lord Vladya said, shaking his head. “Seeing the condition Emeriel was in… I understand—” His eyes flashed yellow , and his hand shot out, gripping her neck.

“Human scum,” he growled in an angry, deadly tone.

Aekeira’s breath seized as his grip held tight, cutting off her air. Her hands went to his wrist, but she didn’t fight him.

She had learned long ago panicking only made things worse.

As quickly as it began, he released her as though she had bitten him. Stepping back so fast he nearly lost his balance.

“I… I apologize, I apologize, Aekeira. Just leave. Tonight’s… tonight’s bad. I do not want you to get hurt.”

Aekeira inhaled deeply, steadying her breath and pounding heart. “I’m not going anywhere. So you may as well stop trying to push me away.”

He shook his head again, hands balled into fists. “It’s too dangerous—”

“Please, let me help you, Vlad,” she whispered now… pleading.

Before he could protest, she pressed on. “It only gets this bad when you suppress your instincts for too long, and when you haven’t been sleeping well. When was the last time you fed?”

“I’m not touching Merilyn in this state. And sleep…” He barked a bitter laugh. “Sleep is hard to come by when there are so many voices in your head giving you pointers on how to commit a mass massacre and bathe in their damn blood.”

Aekeira wanted to embrace him. To pull him into her arms and take some of that pain away.

But if there was one thing his past episodes had taught her, it was to be cautious in moments like this.

“May I hug you?” she asked gently, opening her arms to him.

For a moment, he was rigid, his gray eyes wild. But slowly, the tension began to drain from him.

Without another word, he stepped stiffly into her embrace, lowering his head to rest against her shoulder.

Relief washed over Aekeira as she held him close, her arms tightening around him. Light-gods, how I had missed this male.

The stiffness in her own body melted away.

Suddenly, everything felt alright in Aekeira’s world again.

***

Kill, kill, kill!

Kill them all...!

Closing his eyes, Vladya forced himself to focus on her touch, grounding himself in her soft arms.

His beast prowled restlessly within him like a confined wild animal, clawing at his insides, desperate to be let out.

Craving to cause destruction.

Hungry for havoc.

"I will run you a bath," Aekeira’s soft voice penetrated his chaotic mind. "And I will send Yaz to fetch some ointment for the bruises and a potion to help reduce the headache—it may help you relax enough to get some sleep, is that okay?"

How did she always know of the headache pounding behind his eyes like his skull was being split in two?

But of course she did. She was Aekeira.

Always attentive. Watching him with those perceptive brown eyes that saw straight through him.

“Alright,” he said, his voice rough.

She pulled back slightly, taking his much larger hand in her smaller one, leading him toward the bed. “Please, lie down.”

She steadied him as he sank onto the mattress. His vision swam, fading in and out, but he could still make out her movements.

Walking to the door, she opened it briefly to speak to someone—likely Yaz—before closing it again. Then she moved to the large tub that was brought in earlier, one he had been too busy holding on to his clanging head to use.

Vladya's unfocused gaze tracked her every move. Rolling up her sleeves, she uncorked a bottle of fragrant oil, pouring it carefully into the water. Stirring the bath with her hand, she spread the soothing scent through the air.

A calm came over him. The kind he hadn’t felt in a while.

The pounding voices in his head began to lower their volume. Fading from deafening screams to murmurs. They were still there but quieter now. Easier to ignore.

It was the most peace he’d had in over a week.

Between Daemonikai’s downward spiral, the court tensions, and his strained relationship with Aekeira, it was safe to say his mind had been in chaos .

But now, as he watched her again, here in his space, the scent of her in his territory , the storm inside him began to settle.

“Your bath is ready, my lord,” she said, standing in front of him.

His eyes snapped open, startled. He had actually drifted off?

But just to be clear, he asked, “I slept?”

“You did." A hint of a smile touched her lips. "But only for a few moments.”

He exhaled a slow breath. “I haven’t had a decent sleep in a long while.”

Eyes soft, she leaned in closer, her voice tender. “Well, let’s get you ready for one now.”

Taking his hand again, she guided him to the edge of the tub. Vladya followed without protest, allowing her to help him undress.

The heat of the water enveloped him as he sank into it, his shoulders dipping beneath the surface.

He let out a low, relieved sigh.

Kneeling beside the tub, Aekeira reached for a clean cloth, dipping it into the water before wringing it out.

Pressing the damp cloth to his neck, she wiped gently. Soothing.

Vladya relaxed further with every touch.

She wiped his arms and hands, her thumbs brushing over the calluses on his palms. Reaching for a small vial of soap, she poured a modest amount into her hands, lathering it before spreading it across his shoulders and back.

At some point, he must have fallen asleep again. Because when he opened his eyes, the bath was over, and she was urging him out of the tub.

She helped him dress, and now stood in his nightclothes, her hands guiding him back to the bed.

“Here.” She held up a small bottle of potion, bringing it to his lips. “Drink this.”

When had Yaz brought the potion? He didn’t remember hearing the door, but it didn’t matter.

The liquid slid down his throat with a faintly bitter aftertaste. He was so sleepy his eyes were barely open.

“This will sting a bit.” She pressed a damp cloth to the cut on his cheek, just beside his scar.

Her brow furrowed in concentration as she dabbed at his wounds. Beside his mouth. Near his shoulder blade.

Her scent was like an elixir.

Vladya breathed deeply, drawing more of it greedily into his lungs.

But all too soon, she pulled away.

He almost groaned at the loss, but then the bed dipped behind him, and he felt her presence again as she climbed in.

She repeated the process, this time on the claw marks raked across his back.

"You smell good enough to eat," Vladya purred, then stiffened, realizing how feral it might sound, and quickly rephrased. “I mean… really, really good.”

“Thank you, my lord.”

He could hear her smile in the breathy words.

With a sigh, Vladya leaned back, burying his nose against her neck, stuffing his lungs full of her scent. Goodness gracious.

For a male who had lived without a loving feminine touch for centuries, he was beginning to feel like an addict.

Two weeks without her, and you are a mess. You are provoked too easily, picking fights like a youngling.

Vladya ignored the voice in his head, instead focusing on the comfort of her presence.

And now you have fallen into the landmine that is your mind, spiraling into a feral episode. Why give a human such power over you?

She winced.

Vladya’s eyes flew open. He had gripped her thigh too hard.

He released her instantly. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

Humans are not to be trusted, the voice hissed again, raging and venomous. She will get you wrapped around her dainty fingers then betray you.

Why else would she stay with a male like you with a fractured mind on a one-way path to madness? She has an ulterior motive. They all do.

"I love you."

Her words cut through the voice in his head.

Vladya’s eyes opened, drifting to her enticing neck. Her blood called to him like a nymph's song. He was struggling to resist.

And because he was feeling a bit pathetic, he rumbled, “Tell me again, Aekeira.”

Her hand stopped moving. “I love you so much, Grand Lord Vladya.”

His fangs descended, his dick twitching in his pants.

Lies. All of it.

“There are voices in my head I wish to silence. I need a distraction,” he said. “Will you let me feed from you?”

“How do you want me?” Her answer came without hesitation, filled with trust and love.

His cock loved that simple question. Hardening, throbbing against the fabric of his pants.

Suddenly, Vladya wanted far more than just sleep.

“Come and stand before me.”

Climbing off the bed, she moved to stand before him in her flimsy nightdress.

The thin fabric clung to her in places, still damp from his bathwater. The way it hugged her curves made his hunger for her body spike.

Sitting upright, his large hands encircled her waist as he guided her closer onto his lap to straddle him. His fingers tangled in her soft strands, tilting her neck, before his fangs sank in.

Aekeira moaned, her head tipping back as she arched into him.

Vladya drank from her lazily. Savoring her blood like the rarest wine. His eyes slithered closed, his focus narrowing to the taste of her and the way her body pressed against his.

The way she clung to him, her fingers curling against his neck, pulling him closer. The way she rocked her waist against his arousal.

It was subtle at first. Small twitches, the kind one couldn’t quite control.

But then her need overtook her hesitation, and she openly gyrated against his dick, seeking more.

I need to be inside her.

“I need you inside me, please,” she begged, her movement growing increasingly frantic and uncoordinated. “Oh, please,”

Exactly my thoughts, my young princess .

Taking hold of her hips, he stilled her movements, holding her up, unfastening his shorts, freeing his aching cock.

Bunching up her nightdress, he guided her down onto him, her slick heat enveloping him inch by glorious inch.

“Oooooh…” Her cry was long and drawn-out, head falling back as he filled her completely.

She was so moist, so tight. So ready for him. She fit around him perfectly like a molded glove.

And he hadn’t even released any pheromones yet.

After so long without being inside her, Vladya’s desire knew no restraint. The pleasure was pure, almost all-consuming.

He moved beneath her, thrusting up, filling her over and over. The voices in his head disappeared, drowned out by the pleasure coursing through him.

The restlessness faded into nothingness, and even the constant headache was gone. All he could feel was this .

“I have missed this.” The confession was so soft it might have gone unheard, but Vladya caught every word. “I’ve missed you so much.”

He couldn’t believe the warm feeling spreading through his chest.

Sipping her blood like one might savor their favorite meal, she stretched it out so it wouldn’t end too soon.

His hand tightened on her waist, angling her hips to hit her spots accurately.

“Yes, yes, like that. Ahhh…”

His shy, reserved princess was the verbal one tonight.

Vladya smiled a bit as he continued taking from her, nursing from her, his release approaching. Only then did he release pheromones.

Aekeira’s breath came faster, her cries growing louder. She clung to him desperately, meeting his thrusts with her own, moving even more frantically.

Her moans shifted into a high-pitched, keening whine as her climax overtook her, tremors wracking her body,

Vladya had carefully timed her release before he came, so her pleasure would drown out the burn of his semen. He let go with a muffled groan, fucking into her one final time before he went still.

Spilling deep inside her, his grip on her hips going tight for a moment before they loosened.

“Oh gods…” she cried out. Her strength left her completely, and she slumped against him, resting her forehead on his shoulder.

His beast purred, satisfied.

Pulling his fangs from her neck, Vladya swiped the wound closed. Then, exhaustion hit him all at once, more intense than before.

“Tired,” he confessed.

“Me too.” She uncurved herself from his lap, standing on wobbly legs, adjusting her nightdress in a sluggish, clumsy way. “You need sleep. Lie down.”

Vladya sank back onto the bed with a heavy sigh, but not before grabbing her wrist, pulling her down with him. “Sleep beside me.”

She went willingly, lying beside him with her head resting on his chest.

***

Aekeira was exhausted.

Her mind was blissfully quiet for the first time in days, and she had a soft, contented smile.

Lord Vladya's arm was around her protectively, his breathing evening out in sleep. He looked so peaceful now, his earlier tension and pain gone.

She watched him with lazy eyes, already feeling the effects of the bloodfeeding. Tracing the strong line of his jaw, the scar that marred his cheek, the faint frown lines that hadn’t yet faded.

This powerful male who was hers had been through so much, and Aekeira was overjoyed knowing she had been able to soothe him tonight.

The stress, the anxiety, the panic of the past few weeks melted away as her eyelids grew heavy. Relaxing fully, she closed her eyes, and with his closeness surrounding her, she fell asleep.