Alyssa
I stare at Azrael, unable to move because he has hit me with the truth. The strings of my heart are playing a tune of surrender. It's tired of running from the spiraling heat in my chest.
And I agree—I can't flee forever. Not when Azrael's eyes are imprinted into my mind. He is like a spreading infection. When he was gone, I couldn't focus. It was like someone had taken all the colors from my eyes and painted the sky black.
I was in pain when Azrael was gone, and now he is here—so why can't I just be honest with myself and take what I want? Why am I afraid?
I wet my lips. "We should..."
I can't finish the sentence. Something unnamed is swelling between us, warm and tender. It gives life to Azrael's eyes, and his features show radiant humor. Does he have to be so beautiful? He gives me sappy butterflies without even trying.
"We should what?" Azrael is watching me while walking. "Fuck? Because that would be a great idea."
AlyssaThe plan is simple: find Sleepy and somehow return to our world. Azreal is going to try and open up a portal. But first, we need to find my mate. I can faintly sense him. It must mean we are getting closer. Sadly, it's dark, and Azrael and I have found a cave for shelter. A fire is lighting up the cave walls, and I'm sitting with my hands reached forward. The warmth feels nice on my skin. "I didn't think vampires could get cold," Azrael comments from the other side of the fire. He is wearing a curious smile. "Yeah, but..." I hesitate before speaking, unsure if I should tell him what I'm about to say. I'm still not sure. "I think I'm becoming human again. This realm is doing strange things to me, and I'm not even weak to the sun anymore. My skin might be pale, but I no longer burn.""Interesting... Do you think it's only because of this being the realm you came from? I have a hard time believing you could handle the sun back in our realm, err, the realm we lived in."My chest
Alyssa I come from a long line of vampires. I'm the princess of the darkness, who longs to walk in the sun, but I keep to the shadows since the beautiful glimmering light would kill me. Walking out at night isn't a problem, though. And tonight, my heart clenched too much to stick around after dinner. As usual, my father wouldn't leave me alone—I left as soon as he preached about my duties as the princess. My father thinks he can control me, which has inspired me to climb out through my bedroom window more often these days. Fresh air is needed when you have spent decades in a house with more rules than you can count on one hand. Hunching my shoulders, I duck under a tree branch to keep walking through the magical forest. Blue lights are dancing in the air; we call them will-o-wisps. My mother has told me to stay away from them—she claims they love to collect lost souls; meanwhile, my grandma says they are here to lead us to our fate. Fate, that
Alyssa As I run past trees and sneak through bushes to avoid being seen by the villagers, my heart is still pounding, reverberating every time I remember Azrael's smile—I can't for the life of me get him out of my damn head! Groaning in irritation, I rush the last distance home until it feels like my limbs will burn and fall to the ground. It feels good; anything is better than remembering the angel—falling in love with him would literally kill me, and I'm already crushing on the guy. "Ugh, I'm so annoyed!" I complain to no one in particular while brushing my fingers through my untamed, orange, or red, whatever hair in frustration. The spell set on our castle hums in the air, and I walk through the opening rift, glad to finally be home where angels with blonde hair and smirking faces aren't roaming around like free real estate. "Alyssa! You're finally back!" A happy voice calls out, and I jump in fright when a beaming smile swoops down from a
AlyssaMaze has left the castle together with my grandmother, and it feels so empty without them! My father isn't talking with me since I rejected Fabian for the billionth time, and my mother is her usual snarky tea-drinking self. Nose in the air, eyes half-closed whenever I catch sight of her delicate frame. It's as if she can never relax, not even around the ghosts of the castle.Sighing, I kick myself up from bed while still wearing my nightgown, it's white and old, but my grandmother gave it to me. So I guess wearing it makes it feel as if she never left.And wearing it isn't that wrong. There is a spell that blocks out the sun on our castle grounds—it's eternal night here.I walk out of my room, stopping in the window once I see a horse carriage standing in the courtyard. Dread immediately covers my mouth like death's hand, and I stand there, paralyzed as I witness Fabian set foot outside. Not a sound dares escape my lips. I'm terrified he will
Alyssa Leaving my family behind to die wasn't easy. I had to force myself to the village. The pressure made me stumble, cry out into the night as I searched the town for a horse carriage. People screamed at the terrifying beast searching for me; Fabian swallowed plenty of humans while looking left and right in his restless search for my blood. Fabian crashed through buildings with his heavy leather-clad wings, stomped over horses, and ate anyone who dared raise their gun at him. I'm guessing he felt offended by their courageous acts of self-defense because it's not like bullets could hurt him—Fabian has turned into a monster. The horse that is pulling the carriage neigh a complaint, and I blink away from my reflections as I return to reality. A farmer is yelling at the horse, whipping it angrily to speed up its pace, and I sigh from behind the heaps of hay surrounding me. I press my back harder against the wooden planks behind me and pray to t
AlyssaI don't know what I expected the castle's inside to look like, but this wasn't it. This place looks like a bordello!A red carpet covers the floor, and expensive lamps hang from the ceiling, ornamented with diamonds and other gemstones from different parts of the world.Couches are covering the walls, each one velvet red, and the candles positioned on every table give this place that ultimate touch of sex—it wouldn't surprise me if Azrael claimed he was a pimp. I'm expecting an escort to jump out at every corner!"Are you coming?" Azrael asks playfully as I hesitantly follow him up a staircase."This isn't really what I expected this place to look like,"Azrael chuckles. "Not as fancy as your castle, princess?"I glare at him, which earns me yet another chuckle. He leads me further into his cave, and it gets weirder by the minute.The other floor got way too many rooms for a castle. Music is sounding behind a close
Alyssa Waking up the next day in a room that hasn't been mine for more than twenty-four hours is strange. My eyes dart to the left, a chair is standing placed before my bed with clothes draped over it, but somehow, I find the letter stamped with a heart on it more compelling. Smiling and not knowing what to expect, I reach out my hand to grab the letter and bring it back to bed. Red hair in the color of flames is fanned out over my pillow, and my heart pounds against my ribcage in this beautiful rhythm as I claw up the envelope. Good morning, Princess Laughter finds me as soon as I spot my new nickname, but I keep reading, interested in what my new boss has in store for me. I left your new working attire on your chair while you were talking about me in your sleep. I shake my head, snorting through my nose. "I did not do that!" Maybe I made that up. "Hell, yeah, you did!
Alyssa Entering the maze was a different kind of mindfuck—the lush, green walls made of bushes straightened higher as we walked in, and now I'm almost convinced I could climb them to reach the sky. "I don't like this place," Sleepy says. "I can't believe I agreed on this," An eerie howl sound in the distance, and Sleepy immediately hides under my red hair. I resist the urge to laugh. When I met him, Sleepy had such an attitude that it surprises me to see him act like such a scaredy-cat. I clear my throat to draw Sleepy's attention. I'm still fighting that inner urge to pick him up like a toy. Although small, his presence now burns at the side of my neck. "Can you fly above the walls and look where we are going? I don't want to walk around in circles," The fairy peeps out from under my hair with a grimace. "Azrael's spell would shoot me down from the sky in an instant. I can fly in here, but only as far as the walls can reach," "Huh," I