Bonds of the Vampire King (Blood Fire Saga Book 7) by Bella Klaus (reading e books .txt) 📕

If you want to make love in a pool of his blood, I will satisfy your every desire—”

Hades’ eyes widened, and he glanced down to find three arrow-shaped spikes protruding from his chest. His lips parted, releasing rivulets of blood. “What is the meaning of this?”

I kept my gaze on his eyes. “Did you know Prince Draconius would send an assassin?”

He reached behind his back. “Miss Griffin?”

I tilted my head to the side, feigning innocence. “What’s wrong?”

“I appear to be impaled by a trident,” he said through clenched teeth.

“Did you know Prince Draconius was plotting against Valentine?” I folded my arms across my chest.

His eyes bulged. “What?”

“Answer my question,” I snarled.

Hades twisted from side to side, trying to reach the handle of the weapon, but Valentine had wedged it so deeply through his torso that removing it from that angle would cause even more pain and damage. He turned around, pointing at the trident protruding from his shoulder blades. “Pull it out.”

“Answer my question,” I snapped.

He staggered toward the door, casting me a shocked glance. “I don’t know how you’re doing this or why—”

Valentine appeared between Hades and the exit. “The lady asked you a question,” he said with a growl. “How much did you know about the assassination beforehand?”

“King Valentine,” Hades spluttered. “It would appear that rumors of your immolation have been greatly exaggerated. I trust you are the bastard who stabbed me in the back?”

“I’m merely returning the favor.” Valentine grabbed the trident’s handle and pushed down.

With a howl that made the dagger slip from my fingers and fall to the bloody floor with a clatter, Hades dropped to his knees. “Alright.” Blood poured from his lips. “I’ll talk.”

“How do we know that whatever you’ll say next will be the truth?” I reached down and picked up the dagger.

“How can I lie to you with Poseidon’s bloody trident grazing my heart?”

Valentine and I exchanged glances, and my heart skipped. Of course, Hades could recognize the weapons of the Greek gods.

“Are you sure?” I crossed the room, bending down to meet his darkened eyes.

“Am I sure that the sanctimonious, water-based magic polluting mine belongs to my worthless brother, or am I sure that it’s mere inches away from my second-most vital organ?”

My lips formed a tight line, and I resisted the urge to ask which organ he considered his most vital. The Demon King would probably make some kind of innuendo that would get himself killed.

“Answer the question,” I said. “Did you know Prince Draconius would attempt to murder Valentine?”

Hades’ shoulders sagged. “It was obvious that he would try. Now that he’s no longer associated with the Royal House, he’s alone, destitute, and quite desperate.”

The door opened, and Caiman stepped in, holding a bottle of green liquid on a silver tray. “The poisons master I consulted managed to infuse the snake bile with a solvent that enhances its potency. Perhaps now is the opportunity to test its efficacy?”

My stomach twisted into knots. It was one thing to attack Hades when we thought he’d arranged the assassination, another thing to challenge him to a duel, but poisoning him with snake bile bordered on cold-blooded murder.

I bit down on my lip and gulped. It wasn’t like I held any affection for Hades. He was a double-crossing dick who tried to take advantage of Valentine’s death with a faux display of sympathy. He also stood by and laughed as Nut and Geb dragged me from his office when he could have negotiated a seven-day extension on my debt.

“Release me this instant, or I’ll confine your soul to the deepest pit of Hell,” Hades snarled.

“You would have done that already if you could,” Valentine said.

The Demon King clenched his teeth. “What do you want?”

“Fight with us against Kresnik,” Valentine said. “Stop plotting against my family, my fiancée, and myself. Stop trying to court Mera, and help me find my father’s soul.”

Hades squeezed his eyes shut and panted. “Remove the trident, and we’ll talk.”

Valentine stepped back and folded his arms across his chest. “Do you agree?”

“Fool,” Hades said through ragged breaths. “Anything I agree to now would be null and void. No contract—verbal or otherwise—can stick if it’s made under extreme duress.”

I chewed the inside of my lip. He had a point, but that didn’t mean we were going to remove the trident.

Valentine stretched out an arm. “Mera, we’re leaving.”

“What?” Hades screeched.

Valentine turned to Caiman. “Have the wards of this room sealed to the maximum until after Mera and I have returned from our honeymoon.”

“Very well, Your Majesty,” replied the butler.

“Honey—” Hades shook his head from side to side. “What are you gibbering about?”

I walked a wide circle around Hades’ fallen form, making sure to avoid the blood pooling across the floor, and reached Valentine’s side.

He placed a hand on the small of my back and guided me toward the door. “When we have defeated Kresnik without your help, we intend to arrange our long-awaited wedding and spend an unspecified time traveling on honeymoon.”

Despite having left the Demon King impaled and bleeding on the floor, my heart still managed to make an excited flip. “Really?”

“We can visit anywhere in the world of your choosing.”

“That’s if Kresnik doesn’t kill you first,” Hades spat.

Valentine and I stepped out into the hallway, where a trio of cloaked wizards already awaited. Each of them held large crystals I recognized to be ward stones.

A breath caught in the back of my throat. Would they really keep Hades injured and walled up in the room for such an unspecified amount of time? Not that he didn’t deserve it. I’d lost count of the amount of disasters that were the direct result of the Demon King’s negligence, and Valentine owed him for helping the Mage King take over his preternatural body.

“Wait,” Hades screamed.

All three of us turned to the open doorway, where the Demon King crawled toward us, stretching out a bloody hand.

“Don’t do this.” His voice broke. “I couldn’t stand to be alone in this room for a day, let