Chapter 7: Price of Protection

Dimitri POV

The message from his brother threatening to stake him right after he watched Luc sacrifice Ariana still hung over his head like a digital storm cloud, but he wasn't about to tell Ariana. His little pet had been through enough. She wasn't stupid. One encounter with his brother had been enough to scare her into Dimitri's bed.

That bothered him more than it ought to. It was a good trade: safety for companionship, sex, and a life of luxury that she could only dream about. Even if it was in a goddamn gilded cage in the mountains.

Ariana sipped her coffee after breakfast, unhurried. He liked that. He liked that, after watching her rush here and rush there on campus and d*mn near exhaust herself, she could sit back and take life easy for a change.

"So, when can I enroll?"

"Hm?"

"In the local college in Ampero," she prodded. "I still want to get my degree. And you have to admit, doing my degree in a European country will impress anyone who reads my CV."

"Not yet," he said. "This town may hate my family and protect me, but I just got you safely away. It's open enrollment, and it'll take time to transfer your credits, set up a fake identity for you, and so on."

She smelled displeased, folding her arms. "I thought you said I could still study!"

"For now, you can take classes online," he encouraged. "Think about it. In this beautiful house, no distractions ..."

The fire flared in her beautiful eyes, a blue-green flame. "Online?"

He summoned up his patience. "My family is still looking for you, pet."

"And you said they wouldn't find me here. That this city is safe."

Sighing, he ran a hand through his silver hair. "It is, but you have to understand, it takes time to set these things up ... "

"You've had time. You tracked me down, didn't you?"

He growled. "You're turning out to be a brat."

"What, because I don't want to fall behind in my studies?"

"Forget your studies for now! I'll build you a d*mn library. We're talking about your life--which, by the way, belongs to me. I want to make sure my family absolutely can't track you."

He wasn't going to show her Luc's text, but he decided sugar coating things wouldn't fly with his sugar baby. Whipping out the phone, he showed her the text.

Her eyes popped, and her hand went to her mouth. 

"You saw him for five minutes," he prodded. "You had a taste of how vicious he is. Trust me, that was nothing."

Trembling, she said, "He'd really kill you?"

"Oh, yes." He gave her a lopsided smile. "Some things are worth dying for. I would die to protect you, but I'd rather live and enjoy my little pet, thank you very much."

Why didn't she understand? No one in his family had ever gone against tradition. They all knew what would happen. 

She grew very quiet. "If I'm going to give up my studies, my freedom ... then you have to do one thing for me."

What a brat. But he felt a flicker of admiration for her strength. She'd just had her entire life turned upside down, and still wanted to negotiate with him.

Gripping her hand, he said, "Of course."

"Tell me why your family wants to sacrifice the princesses of my family every fifty years! You owe me that."

"I suppose I do. You want the truth? Very well."

He pulled her out of her seat and led her to his wooden-paneled study. One of his favorite rooms in the house. He pulled a massive leather-bound book from a bookshelf and set it on the desk. The ancient pages gave off that old book smell.

"A little light reading," she noted dryly.

Dimitri chuckled and opened the book to the section he was looking for, titled, "A HISTORY OF THE TRENHOLM SACRIFICE PACT."

The illustrations showed, in gory detail, the people of Trenholm being hunted down and bled dry by the vampires and other supernatural creatures. Ariana's eyes widened, seeing the royals of Trenholm pleading for their people's lives.

"Read, pet," Dimitri advised. "Aloud."

Ariana read the passage Dimitri pointed to. "'In the late fifteenth century, when the Wilberforce family met with the royal vampires of Merak and other countries, King Windom offered everything in the royal treasury. However, the vampires saw his innocent daughter, Princess Amalia I, and wanted her as a sacrifice because of her virgin blood and her beauty. A bargain was struck. Princess Amalia I became the first Trenholm sacrifice as the only princess of her generation. In exchange, the Merak royals and the other vampire nations would leave the people of Trenholm alone. And every five decades, a princess of that generation will be offered to the Lyunov family as a sacrifice.'"

She gripped the desk, and her breath came in shallow spurts.

"Deep breaths," he said softly. "Now you know, pet. Now you know why you need to stay close to me always. They will hunt you. Do you understand?"

* * * * *

Ariana POV

She gripped the cool wooden desk to brace herself.

She never knew why her mother always insisted on Ariana being the invisible woman. Now, she knew. Choking back a sob, she thought of what her mother had given up, and all that she had suffered. 

All because of Dimitri's family.

She couldn't look at him. Even though he'd thrown away his family ties and his position as the prince to help her. and even though his touch felt tender last night as he claimed her for his own, he was still part of this cruel royal family.

Her mind and emotions were like a maelstrom, raging out of control. 

"Tell me you understand." His hands rubbed circles along her shoulders and neck. "Say it."

"I understand. I don't like it, but I understand."

She had to save her aunt and uncle as well as herself. They didn't have anything to do with the Trenholm royal family ... 

A horrible thought struck her. "The people of Trenholm! Are they suffering because of me?"

Dimitri massaged her shoulders. "Fortunately, my friends at court are using all their influence to stop my family from doing that."

Trenholm had seemed so far away from her reality. She'd been curious, studying about it online, asking her mother all about it, and treasuring the few mementoes her mother had taken with her from the palace when she fled to the United States. But now, this country she never knew mattered to her. She couldn't bear people there being hurt because of her.

"We have to do something," she murmured. "We have to protect them."

He rubbed her shoulders, his voice soothing. "Just leave it to me, pet."

"NO. Those are my people ... I need to know they're safe!"

His fingers dug into her muscles. "I. Said. Leave. It."

Helpless. She felt absolutely useless, powerless over her own fate. 

She considered her options. Go to Trenholm, where she'd never been, and die on the spot? No. March into the Lyunov family castle and raise the roof, then get herself and Dimitri killed? No. Stay here as a spoiled, indulged pet? It seemed like she had no choice.

"You'll really keep them safe?" she whispered.

He laughed, a deep, rippling sound like the ocean. "Trust me, pet. Have I let you down so far? I think not. Try not to worry. I do have some influence, and friends in Trenholm."

Spinning her around, he burned her with his gaze. "But you have to promise me you'll stay here, and not go out without me or one of my men. Promise me, or I'll have to take some drastic measures. And you won't like them."

"I already don't like this."

His growl made the hair on her arms stand up. "This isn't exactly what I imagined for my life either, my little pet. But we'll both make the most of it."

"You just said you were the rebel of the family," she muttered sullenly. "I think this is the excuse you've been seeking to break away from them."

He stepped back as the truth of her words slapped him across the face. For a moment, for one crazy moment, she considered apologizing, but decided not to.

While she stood there thinking, he moved swiftly and pushed her down to her knees. "I think you need a reminder of who you belong to," he growled, running his fingertip along her collar. "Stay kneeling for me. Don't move until I tell you to."

Still shocked from his sudden power move, she stared up at him, noticing how much bigger and stronger he looked, even with his lean body packed with tennis-player muscles.

"Good girl," he purred. "Stay there, looking at me like that. I'm in control."

He shut the door and she heard the lock click. Panic set in. He wouldn't cause her pain ... would he?

Stalking toward her, all predatory elegance and grace, he dropped to a squat, but still towered over her. "Crawl to me," he murmured. "Hands and knees."

She obeyed, too stunned to resist. As she came close, he made a low sound of satisfaction. "You look so beautiful like this," he murmured. "I hoped to do this in the bedroom, but my study spices things up a bit. Now, stay there, on your hands and knees. I'm going to touch you, to remind you who you belong to. If you're very good, you'll get your reward, If you're bad, you'll get an even bigger lesson that will remind you who owns you."

He stared at her with lust in his eyes, licking his lips. "Shall we begin?"