Chapter 15

LOCHNESS

I watch as the soaked and chilled rat is brought into her chamber. I’m standing next to a warm bath I’ve prepared for her—I don’t want her in anything less than comforting warmth.

I fetched a tub from the mountain, lowering it in here with my talons, filling it with water using a bucket, and then heating it with my fire until it is steaming.

It should be just right.

Madeline stands there, shivering, her clothes drenched, wiping fresh tears from her eyes. I can tell from our bond that she has been happy just a few minutes ago, so something new must have upset her.

But I can’t bear to see her standing there looking so lost and pitiful.

“Get in the tub, or you’ll freeze from that cursed place,” I tell Madeline, watching as she moves stiffly towards the tub.

I soften my tone. “What’s upset you, rat?”

My brother appears behind her, helping to remove her wet clothes.

She remains silent, so he speaks for her.

“The bag wasn’t with her, it was stolen from the store. She lost the slings and the baby items,” Hael grumbles under his breath. “Damn thieving mortals. Worthless and greedy.”

“I-I h-had the b-best day I e-ever had, a-and it was r-ruined… I loved those things we bought with all my heart, I… I’m just s-sad,” Madeline finally speaks, her lips a pale blue and trembling, her body still shaking—making me impatient.

She needs to be in the water now.

Hael places a hand on her back and I appear on her other side, also guiding her towards the tub.

She moves so slowly, it’s infuriating.

I can’t help but growl lowly as I lift her by her freezing waist, placing her into the water.

Madeline sinks until her long red hair is submerged, then she resurfaces, taking a deep breath and sighing, resting her chin on the rim of the tub.

Her cheeks are flushed pink and steam settles on her lashes.

But inside my head, there’s only screaming.

I step back. I can’t appreciate my mate’s beauty when I’m haunted by images of the maimed children, the widows… all the while, oblivious to the fact that Nerezza isn’t just a rogue but my father.

The thought of Madeline being devoured by him… it’s unbearable.

But she killed him. She’s safe. We’re safe.

“I’m going to check on the Horde. Mason is calling out to me. He wants to know you’re safe, mouse. I’ll be back soon,” Hael winks at Madeline before disappearing from the birthing chamber.

“Don’t be long, I…” Madeline’s words trail off, her eyes drooping.

Hael is too quick and doesn’t stay long enough to hear.

Now she turns her turquoise eyes to me. “I need your bite, Nessy.” She’s calm, warm, relaxed… I nod and force myself to step back towards her—dreading what’s to come.

I try to seem casual as I kneel down and take her fingers from the tub, pulling her arm towards me.

“Close your eyes,” I instruct her. “Even if there’s a trace of Nerezza’s venom left in you, his death could be affecting your health… believe it or not, I don’t want to bite you, sweetie, I simply have no choice.”

“I don’t care at all, Nessy, I trust you completely,” Madeline gives me a soft smile.

She closes her eyes and I raise her wrist to my lips.

I press my mouth to her veins, my Dragon recoils—thinking of the evil bastard.

“Hey. You’re not him,” I look over to see her watching me again. “I don’t need to close my eyes, I can watch.”

I growl in the back of my throat. “Always so stubborn,” and always defying me, I think as I force myself to do it—I bite into Madeline’s wrist and I have to close my eyes as she screams, trying to pull away.

I have to hold on for it to be enough.

The truth is, Hael doesn’t have to do it, he doesn’t have the power my rogue venom has.

I also know it will hurt when my venom burns through another’s venom, I just don’t have the heart to ruin her peace.

I can’t bear to see her worry any more. I just need this to be over.

For the first time, Madeline’s screams bring me no joy.

I feel sick.

My heart shatters as her scream fades into a pained whimper as I remove my fangs from her wrist.

I had to go as deep as the bone to ensure her life—I know it must be excruciating.

Her skin glows with an emerald fire as it burns any competing mating bond from her body.

I kiss the wound closed, being as gentle as I can as I watch her look at me for a split second—with real fear in her eyes.

“You could have warned me!” Madeline pulls her arm out of my hold. “Bastard,” she hiccups on a breath and cries out again, submerging her arm under the water, sobbing hard.

Not just from hormones, or from the adrenaline drop, but from the excruciating pain I caused—and the lost bag.

Everything. Everything that ruined her perfect day.

~Madeline’s POV~

The burning in my blood, the crunch of his fangs touching the bone—it’s the worst pain I’ve ever experienced.

I scream so loud I wonder if giving birth to twins will even be less painful than the peak of this cursed Dragon venom coursing through me, searching for remnants of Nerezza’s cursed bite.

I feel it tearing my soul apart to flush out anything hidden, before burning me back together.

Physically, it’s excruciating and spiritually? It’s pure fucking torture.

The moment Lochness removes his bloody fangs, even though he doesn’t even bother to clean them, I pull away from his hold and scream at him, “You could have warned me!”

It is so like him not to give me any idea of the torment to come. “Bastard,” I hiccup and try to hold it in, but that pain is the worst thing in the realms.

With my back to Lochness, I feel his fingers brush the brand on my back.

Comfort, pain relief, and warmth push out the pain.

He presses his whole hand to it—and it feels good.

I stop crying, until I remember what he did.

“No, get away.” I move away to the other side of the tub, my back still turned towards him.

“~You’re not escaping this time.~ You don’t get to dictate how I comfort you,” Lochness growls, his voice so fierce that I whirl around to see him stepping into the bath with me, his face twisted into a sneer. “Stop crying.” He orders as the water level rises when he settles behind me. I try to jab him with my elbow as he reaches for me.

“I don’t want—~you near me~, no, n-no—!” I stutter, my mind a whirlwind of confusion after that bite. The pain in my bone still throbs as if it’s been scraped or marked.

Every instinct in me screams to fight him off. Yet, there’s a small part of me that recognizes this as a temporary, artificial panic attack, triggered by the searing sensation that had coursed through my entire body.

Lochness manages to grab my flailing arms, his hands clamping down tightly on my upper arms. “Be still. ~Surrender~. I’ve got you, Madeline, ~you’re safe~,” he soothes, and I stop struggling, my heart still pounding.

Lochness lets go of me, only to wrap his arms around me, pulling me back against his chest, covering the brand. His firm hold seems to smother and extinguish all the residual pain and panic. Just like that. I’m okay.

He rests his forehead on my shoulder, trembling. “Fucking bitch,” Lochness mutters through his tears, his voice barely recognizable. “~You think I’d enjoy that~.” He snarls, and it hits me then… he didn’t warn me about the pain because he was afraid for me. He was just as scared as I was.

I lean back into him, letting the brand rub against his skin. “Sorry, s-sorry,” I whisper, lifting my head and taking a deep breath. Lochness also lifts his head, pressing his cheek against mine.

“Temporary pain, a five on a scale of ten, is all I want you to experience. I would never torture you beyond that,” Lochness confesses in a stubborn tone. “I’m not a monster—I’m not Blackheart, I never was.” I nod slightly, and he continues, “I let everyone believe I was because I didn’t care to correct them.” He tightens his hold on me. “It doesn’t matter now anyway. ~You~ defeated a notorious beast, pure evil,” his voice is solemn but proud. “You’ll need more training, my love.”

“Eh?” I perk up a bit, pressing my hands to my stomach. I’m speechless at his words. Lochness covers my hands with his, feeling our growing child. Heheh.

“These are the only ones you’ll ever have,” Lochness shares a secret with me. “I can’t bear to see you this vulnerable again.”

I smile at his sweetness, watching his hands glide over my belly, his right one dipping lower, disappearing, until two fingers slip and curl into my pussy. So sly, he fingers me. Nessy is smiling at the edge of my vision. I turn to see his handsome smirk and sharp jaw, his emerald eyes clear of tears now, even though his eyelashes are still damp.

“Do you ever think about when I’ll be so big, that you won’t be able to fuck me because I’ll be fat, round and ~so~ ugly, puffy and useless?” I tease, trying to coax a compliment out of him. Lochness is clueless.

“Shut up,” he growls in my ear. “We’re fucking every day until the birth. If you can’t move, all the better… and you’re beautiful, so stop pretending. Do you really think my brother and I would keep an ugly mate? We would have rejected you and thrown you out a long time ago.”

I gasp as Lochness’s fingers hit the right spot, while I turn and glare at him. “~You’d do what if I was ugly—?~”

He tugs on my hair, forcing me to rest my head on his collarbone as he glares into my eyes. “Don’t manipulate me or I’ll manipulate you, pretty princess.”

“You like it,” I flash him a wicked smile and tighten my pussy around his fingers, my thighs also wrapping around his warm arm, holding him close.

“What do I like?” Lochness leans down until his nose is almost touching mine, his fingers swirling inside me, no longer fucking, just making me wetter. I wrap my hand around his cock next to me and even though his brow twitches, he keeps me focused. “Use words, Madeline.”

“You like being manipulative, so you can do it back,” I explain. “So when you’re mean, you have an excuse every time.” Lochness’s eyes twinkle with mischief, and he smirks.

“Correct,” my naughty rogue agrees, and my mouth falls open in surprise. He looks at my parted lips and his gaze lingers there. With heavy-lidded, smoky eyes, he leans down to kiss me. It’s deep and slow, tilting my head back until it rests on the waterline. I grab onto his arms as he tightens his grip on my hair, trying to control me.

~I need more than your fingers,~ I plead with him through our bond, not wanting to break the kiss.

Nessy’s eyes open and meet mine as he leans back to breathe over my mouth. Without a word, he lifts my thigh, raises my lower half, and twists me slightly—so his cock slides right into my pussy. I feel a string inside me, plucked and resonating with one more request. I should really hold my tongue—but I let it out.

“Now fuck me like you’re my slave, Nessy,” I tease him with a giggle. Lochness hesitates, and I add in a husky voice, “You owe me this for that.” Nessy quickly leans back down to my lips, and I brace myself for a snarl—but he only whispers, “You’re right,” grinning. Lochness stands up and carries me out of the bath, taking us to a wooden bench where he sits down and thrusts up into my pussy, one hand on my belly, the other helping me rise and fall. But he’s strong enough for his hips to push me up with the power of his thrusts—making the bouncing effortless. I feel like I’m floating, held up by his dick as my legs spread over his thighs. He even kisses the brand on my back. ~How do you like it? Am I a good slave, princess?~ he chuckles when I start riding him faster, gripping his knees and digging my nails into them in agreement.

My blood is on fire—I know this will never, ever happen again. I can’t even respond, I just feel my pussy give one last shudder and then I’m soaring. “I’m…I’m ~coming~,” I manage to stutter, clutching his hands in mine, using them for leverage as I continue to ride him. His cock pulses beneath me, remaining rock hard.

“Oh, fuck,” I murmur, settling down onto him, feeling him grow even harder.

I glance over my shoulder to see Nessy, leaning casually against a rock, a content smile on his face.

My body shudders, my pussy clenching as I grind my hips a bit, biting my lip. “How do ~you~ like it? Do you enjoy role-playing with me like this?”

Nessy’s eyes narrow instantly. “I am pretending,” he drawls out. “Now it’s ~my turn~.”

He grips my thighs, lifting me up and flipping me onto the bench so I’m on my hands and knees.

He positions himself behind me, one foot on the bench, the other on the ground. Holding my waist tightly, he bends his knees and withdraws his cock from my pussy, aligning it with my ass.

He grabs a handful of my hair before he thrusts in, fucking me relentlessly.

I gasp, trying to crawl forward a bit, but he pulls me back.

~So hard, you’re so cruel,~ I whimper through our bond.

“~How do you like it?~” Nessy leans over me, thrusting deep, his thighs pressing against either side of my ass, holding me captive as he continues to fuck me, harder and deeper. ~Answer me, brat, do you like my cock buried deep in your ass?~

“I love it!” I scream out. He releases my hair and my waist, watching as I thrust myself back onto him, grinding and fucking him from behind.

My movements are slower, less coordinated, but I try.

~So do I.~ Nessy’s cool laughter echoes in my head. ~Good mouse.~