Thrall of the Vampire King (Blood Fire Saga Book 4) by Bella Klaus (elon musk reading list .txt) 📕

She walked around the bed, whispering something under her breath. I blocked her out and focussed on trying to rise off the mattress. After three attempts at pushing myself up with a hand on the post, Aurora draped the rough fabric of the reaper cloak over my head.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Getting you ready and dressed to see Healer Calla,” she replied.

“Why?”

Aurora faltered. If I’d asked Aunt Arianna that question, she would have been offended because the answer was obvious. But I needed to know what she intended—not that she would tell me the truth.

“Our Lord wishes you to—”

“Your Lord,” I muttered.

She huffed. “Lord Kresnik wishes you and your family to attend remedial training.”

“How many other children does he have around here?” I raised my head, finally meeting her eyes.

Ignoring my question, Aurora dragged me to my feet. From her lack of answer, I wouldn’t be surprised if every fire user in the Flame was either a child or a descendent of Kresnik.

Chapter Five

I stumbled down the hallways of Kenwood House, with Aurora supporting my weight. The taller woman breathed hard through her nose as though she was enduring my presence on the orders of her lord. This made me bristle.

Every instinct screamed at me to reject her assistance. I’d only agreed to stay in the Flame because they had offered me help to release my magic. They had also said I wasn’t required to fight in their war and could leave with Valentine. Now they wanted me to join an academy?

We passed portraits of that sun god I’d seen over the fireplace. In one of them, he looked just like the dark-skinned vampire who had been depicted in the mausoleum. There was probably a connection between Kresnik and Valentine’s ancestor, but I had bigger things to worry about than ancient genealogy.

Aurora paused at the top of the wrought iron staircase that curved down to the turquoise entrance hall with white pillars. She moved me to the side closest to the handrail and continued to descend.

My fingers wrapped around the cool metal, holding myself steady as I stumbled down the marble steps. If I was going to save Valentine and myself from this latest set of machinations, I needed the help of a healer. And a way to become immune to thrall.

“Why does Kresnik want us to go to an academy?” I asked through clenched teeth.

“Our Lord wishes every resident of the Flame to contribute to the upcoming war,” she said as we reached the bottom of the stairs.

“But I’m providing blood cow services to his Preternatural General.” My tone was more bitter than sour coffee. “Isn’t that enough?”

Aurora released my arm, letting me stumble against the banister. “I’ve had a bellyful of your self-pity.”

Her words hit like a kick to the gut, making me flinch. “What are you talking about?”

“Everybody in the Flame has made sacrifices for our continued existence.” She rounded on me, her eyes flashing. “I suffered years upon years of fertility spells and miscarriages, others sacrificed family members, while some lost limbs and lives! You donated a piece of your magic to Our Lord—magic that wasn’t even yours.”

I clung to the banister, panting hard through flared nostrils. “What are you saying?”

“Because of Our Lord, we fire users will take our rightful place in a society ruled by a benevolent supernatural leader.”

“What about all the humans? They didn’t ask for any of this.” I shook my head. “Nor did the poor phoenix that was stuffed in my soul—”

“Without that creature, you would never have been born,” she said through clenched teeth.

I pressed my lips together in a tight line, watching the insanity flicker on the taller woman’s face. In Logris, she had been registered as a witch and smuggled out before the enforcers could even reach her.

Aurora seemed to be telling me that it was an honor to be part of Kresnik’s regime, even though this source of magic had been the cause of everything that had gone wrong in my life. There were dozens of reasons why she was wrong, but my body felt like crap and without her help, I’d be stuck on these stairs until the effects of the thrall wore off and my body had replenished all that lost blood. Valentine would catch up with me before that happened, and…

A shudder ran down my spine. I didn’t want to think of how Valentine would react to finding me out of bed.

“Why don’t we get going?” I said in the calm tone I might employ to speak to a feral cat.

Aurora narrowed her eyes, staring down at me with bitter disapproval. I smoothed out my expression. As from this moment, I wouldn’t utter a negative word about her regime, her methods, or her precious lord. Complaining hadn’t helped me so far, so it was time to employ a different tactic.

With a huff, she offered me her hand and pulled me up to stand. We continued down the stairs, across the hallway and into the stairwell that led to the basement. At the bottom, she opened the door, revealing the pristine hallways of the Flame, filled with denim-clad people strolling in pairs and groups.

The wards prickled over my skin as we stepped through the doorway, and I marveled at the relaxed atmosphere. With Kresnik in charge, things didn’t seem so regimented.

A few of the fire users cast warm smiles at us as we passed, and I forced my features into what I hoped was an expression of joy. On the inside, the acid in my stomach simmered with anger, but I continued smiling until my face ached.

When we stepped into Healer Calla’s room, the older woman beamed from behind her counter. “Sister Aurora, Sister Hemera. How wonderful it is to see you on this beautiful morning.”

Normally, the sight of the woman would warm my heart. I had thought we had become close over the last few days, and she’d been so supportive with finding the pieces of Valentine’s heart. It had all