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

I folded my arms across my chest and marveled at the likeness. The demon had even perfected Krensnik’s haughty posture and leering smile, but perhaps that was a feature common to all of the male Greek gods.

Hades strode to the door and paused. “Shout when you’re ready to search for Tartarus. I will do everything I can to help.” His eyes lingered on mine for a heartbeat longer than necessary. “Miss Griffin, it was a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

I dropped my gaze to the burned floorboards. Maybe Valentine could cope with having such a powerful frenemy, but the way Hades switched from seducer to betrayer gave me whiplash.

As Hades stepped out into the hallway and disappeared, Valentine scooped me up into his arms. He placed the bag of spheres on my lap and crossed the room.

“We should leave Hampton Court before it burns down,” he said.

“Do you think they’ll riot?” I asked.

“Humans have done worse to false prophets.” He climbed out of the window and floated above the snow-covered courtyard. “They’ll be furious when Hades admits to carrying out the world’s most audacious hoax.”

Cold wind swirled around our bodies, accompanied by tiny flakes of snow. Valentine’s idea was brilliant, and I loved the idea of Kresnik being committed to history as a lunatic, but it wouldn’t begin to negate all the damage Kresnik had done.

I rested my head against his shoulder and sighed. “It doesn’t matter what Hades tells them about special effects and laser displays. Some people will still believe in him.”

“As long as there’s an element of doubt, and we take the right precautions, the Supernatural World will be safe.”

Valentine rose over the rooftops, over its high towers and chimneys and Union Jack flag, until the concert and Hampton Court Palace was a mere blot within acres of snow-covered parkland. We were so high up that not even the supernaturals on the ground with enhanced vision could spot us.

Even though the clouds had thinned, snowflakes continued to drift in the wind, which drowned out the sound of the concert.

I peered down at the pinpricks of lights from the stage. “He’s going to let them storm the stage and kill him?”

“They can try,” Valentine said with a chuckle. “But the Demon King is slippery enough to make a discreet escape.”

“I hope it works.”

Valentine placed a soft kiss on my lips.

I slid my arms around his neck. “Do you remember the first time you flew across London with me?”

He stiffened. “Vaguely,” he said in a tone that made me believe he not only recalled stealing me away from Beatrice’s apartment but the memory of it made him cringe. “Why do you ask?”

I trailed a finger down his leather armor. “Some of the things we did while you were a preternatural were fun.”

“Really?” He pressed another kiss on my temple.

“What’s stopping us from doing them again?”

“You’re—” He shook his head.

I tilted my head, trying to meet his eyes. Moonlight reflected off the layer of clay on his skin, making him look as ashen as he had the night he’d risen from the dead.

When I continued staring at him, he peered down at me through eyes that gleamed like amethysts and gave me a fond smile.

“You were going to say I was pure or something,” I said.

He shook his head. “I stopped myself from calling you fragile, but you’re nothing of the sort, since you single-handedly defeated Kresnik.”

I wrinkled my nose. “It was just a case of fighting fire with fire, and I had a lot of help.”

His lips curled into a smile that made my stomach flip. “I’ve just discovered something else I love about you, Innamorata.”

“What?” I whispered.

“Modesty.” He pressed a kiss on the tip of my nose.

“I love how you’re always protecting me.” I ran a hand down the breastplate of his armor. “Even though you remember how much I loved your darker side.”

Valentine’s chest rumbled, almost sounding like a purr. “Any time you want me to play the big bad preternatural, I’ll be ready.”

A tingle of excitement settled between my legs. “Really?”

“You and I are going to have centuries of bliss.” He pressed a soft kiss on my lips and then another and another until I melted into his touch.

As Valentine flew us through the cold sky, nothing else mattered, not Hades, not Prince Draconius, not the Supernatural Council. Not even what was soon to be a distant memory of Kresnik. I relaxed into the embrace and surrendered to the kiss.

Last October, when I had decided to stop pining over Valentine, I hadn’t expected him to walk through the doors of the Crystal Shop and back into my life. I certainly hadn’t expected him to confess that his love for me had never waned. It was hard to believe everything that had happened. From unlocking the forbidden power in my soul, resurrecting Valentine from the dead, and meeting my birth parents, to banishing the most dangerous supernatural in living memory.

Snowflakes continued to swirl around our bodies, cooling my fevered skin. I curled my fingers into Valentine’s hair and moaned into the kiss.

He drew back, exhaling a sigh that was as relieved as it was blissful. “When you left Logris for the Human World, I thought about you every day.”

The backs of my eyes turned hot, and I blinked away my tears. “I couldn’t get you out of my mind.”

“You’re returning to Logris as the hero who slayed Kresnik,” he said with a fond smile. “And my soulmate.”

A happy laugh bubbled from my insides, and I placed a hand on the bag of spheres to keep them steady. “After everything we’ve overcome, we deserve this happily ever after.”

Fifteen Years Later

Stifling a yawn, I sat straighter in my seat and let my gaze drift across the circular table. Valentine sat opposite me with his fingers steepled and his face held in an unreadable mask.

I didn’t need to be a mind reader to know that he also wanted this meeting to