Soren POV"Well, we know which stone she tuned." Ishtar comments. I try to clean Ayla's ear, but I realize it won't stop bleeding."Get us out of here," I say, and Ishtar looks at me instead."You need to tune your stone..." The sorceress spoke, and I felt Strïth wanted to take over. "Let me hold Ayla." She moved closer.Strïth held Ayla's body tighter."If you don't choose a soul stone now, you'll miss your chance! She's already attuned to hers, you need to find one that's compatible with you and her!" Ishtar said in exasperation. "The longer you delay, the more she'll get hurt."Ishtar then holds out the stone that Ayla had picked up for me. I look at Victor, who approaches and then takes my mate in his arms. The smell of her blood is becoming more intense, and Strïth is becoming more and more uncontrollable. I grab Ishtar's stone and immediately feel my hand burn and let out a grunt of pain, but I look around, hoping to be attracted to something else. Ayla's blood is a problem, as
Soren POVAyla hadn't progressed at all, even though Victor and I had told her several times that she could do things without our permission, she still only did what we told her to.The only evolution was in her reading, she is much better now and reading slightly more complex books, but I think she's making an effort, not because she wants to, but because it's expected of her and that perhaps she'll be punished if she doesn't. Her feelings are distant, and it's hard to understand why she doesn't want to.Her feelings are distant, and it's very difficult for me to connect, it seems that with Strïth asleep it's even worse. Now we're in the living room, Ayla is on her tablet, reading one of the books Victor has chosen, while he and I are playing chess.I feel the air change and become a little heavier and Ishtar appears, with a tired expression but a smile on her face and a little wooden box in her hands. I know all this is going to cost a lot, but it'll be worth it, it has to."That's
Soren POVThe drive back to the castle was practically silent, except for the music Victor was playing. Ayla kept playing on her tablet the whole time, and when I realized she had finished reading something, she would switch to something else.We had to stop at a few places to eat, but usually, Victor would go out and get the food and bring it back to the car so that Ayla could exercise with us for 10 to 15 minutes and ask her to do some exercises.The journey took almost a whole day, which for Victor and me is nothing, but just uncomfortable being in a car, even if it is spacious. I can feel the air of the capital, and it cheers me up at the same time as it worries me. As soon as the castle gates open, I can already see people trying to look into the car and I hear people greeting me mentally.As soon as we arrive, Victor tries to clear the way, saying that we're tired from the trip and that we want to rest, but soon my eyes fall on Lilian and Lily, both of whom are wearing very reve
Soren POV "Tell me honestly, did you want this?" I asked the girlShe swallowed dryly, and I held her chin, forcing our eyes to meet, and then I invaded her mind, she didn't show any resistance and just let me in and what I saw didn't please me, at first she liked Bryan because he was elegant and always attentive to her, but then he started to distance her from other men, fighting when she interacted with other people, he didn't use physical force, but the words of abuse were enough to make my anger almost get out of control. The fear she felt thinking that if she told the truth, no one would believe her and how he only did it in private places, with no one to see...Of course, humans don't know the extent of our powers, even living in the castle, and not all vampires can do what I did, but if she spoke to any of the officers, someone would surely have read her mind.I already had little patience when something like this happened, now that I have Ayla and I know that she was a slave,
Victor POVIt took me a while to get used to Ayla's posture, seeing the way she looked at us, not being able to perceive any change in her expression, and her heart continuing at the same pace...She's like a living doll, both in appearance and in the way she acts, and I can see that everyone gets annoyed as we pass, after all, whenever there's a new human or any other being, they're usually frightened or enchanted.I know that Isaac isn't in his office, he's in the schoolyard, supervising a more advanced class, there are some teachers by his side, the conversation revolving around those who were ahead and those who needed more training. This makes me a little happier, since everyone there will get to meet Ayla straight away."Good afternoon," I said, and the four of them turned to me.I can immediately see their expressions of astonishment when they realize there's a human behind me and then horror, nobody is used to seeing someone like Ayla and I know they're wondering what happened
The Thing POVI'm back in Victor's room, sitting at the table with the tablet in front of me. This Percy Jackson book is really interesting. I know it's fantasy. After all, although the Gods exist, they're not as described in the book. Humans are very creative, besides, focusing on the story helps me forget where I am and now it's my favorite place, inside a book.Instinctively I feel Soren approaching, by his smell and he sits down next to me, I know he's watching me read, it seems to be his favorite thing. His expression of adoration seems sincere."Ayla." He calls me by the name he gave me, but it makes no sense to me.After all, a slave doesn't need a name, but I think it makes it easier for others to identify me. I lift my gaze to look at him."You're going to start your lessons soon, I know Victor has already informed you about the teachers, but there are some things that only Victor or I can ask of you." Soren is more serious. "No one can touch you, not sexually or inappropriat
The Thing POVI woke up, missing something, blinking a few times to understand where I was and to remember what had happened the night before. I widened my eyes, I was missing Soren's warmth, the caress of his fingers and the comfort he brought me.I know it's the bond's fault, his way of bringing me closer to Soren and getting me to let my guard down.I took a deep breath and brought my hand up to my eyes, covering them. Everything is getting complicated, and I know it's only going to get worse.'Do I have enough courage to do the rejection ritual?I found myself wondering, after all, this will only go away once the ritual is done, until then he'll still be affecting me and this bond will only grow.'How much more does he need to destroy my world?I breathed heavily and finally opened my eyes again and sat up in bed, there was no one around, they had probably woken up early and gone to do their duties.I see that there's a breakfast tray on the table, which indicates that they've let
The Thing POVVictor shook his head slightly and sighed."Come on, Ayla. You're already late." He turned away and I looked down. "From tomorrow you need to get up early for your lessons. Memorize the route from my room to the school part."It didn't take long, and we arrived in front of the place where I would be staying, in front of a girl with red hair that resembles copper, some freckles on her face and a smile on her lips, with a backpack on her back."This is Skyler Poole." Victor introduced me. "She's going to be your guide inside the school and also the person responsible for you. Remember what I said yesterday, about only obeying the teachers. The only exception will be Skyler, she's a student too, but you can obey her orders."Victor is going to leave me in this place. I'll have several 'owners', I think it's the same as when in the pack they made a wheel and put me in the middle and told me to do things, always different orders and no matter who I followed I would always be