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The Vampire & Her Witch

Penulis: JustJae
Fantasi
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Ringkasan

In a world where magic is forbidden and witches are hunted, Ashlynn Blackwell has hidden her mark of the witch since birth. The night of her wedding she's betrayed and her secret is exposed. Attacked by her husband and his knights, Ashlynn was abandoned and left for dead in the wilderness. Rescued by the vampire lady Nyrielle, Ashlynn is offered a choice: die as a human or embrace her power as a witch. Bound by a mystical blood pact, Ashlynn is plunged into a world of ancient magic, immortal vampires, and deadly political intrigue for the chance to find eternal love. [Bronze Winner: Weekly Love Tales - Vampire] [Book of the Month: September/October 2024]

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Chapter 1A Shallow Grave

Cold rain poured from the sky, turning the ground soft and slick as a battered woman struggled to pull herself from a shallow grave. Bloody hands clawed at the earth clutching at the root of a nearby tree as she struggled to pull her head above the damp earth. 

Inch by inch, Ashlynn Blackwell emerged from the sodden soil, gasping for breath the instant her head emerged from the earth. Around her battered hands and arms, faint green light flickered, flowing from her body to the tree roots she clutched. 

Slowly, moving at a speed that felt slower than a snail, the roots of the tree bent and twisted, wrapping themselves around Ashlynn's arms. Pain flared in her shoulders and all along her battered body when the tree began to pull her from the shallow grave her husband's knights had dumped her in. 

As Ashlynn fought to escape the sodden earth, her thoughts were mired in the conversation she'd had just twelve hours ago when her mother tried to reassure her that this wouldn't happen.

Ashlynn had paced nervously in the bridal suite, dressed in the most beautiful white gown and wearing the finest jewelry her family could adorn with her as she prepared to wed Owain Lothian, the eldest son of the Marquis Bors Lothian. 

"Mother, what will I do if he sees the mark?" Ashlynn asked the only other person in the room as she fidgeted nervously with the lace at the ends of her sleeves. "How can I hide it when we, we…"

"Just do as I've taught you," her mother sighed, crossing the room to take Ashlynn's hands in her own. "Dim the lights in the bridal suite and slip into your bed before you remove your shift. It's your first time, he won't be suspicious if you're overly shy about showing him your body." 

"Once you bare your chest to him, he'll be too eager to ravish you to bother looking closely at the rest of your body," she said, sounding confident and experienced in front of her blushing daughter. "The important part is to bear him a child as soon as you can," she emphasized.

"Owain is a good man," her mother reassured her. "He won't kill the mother of his child, even if she bears the mark of a witch. Once it's too late, he'll keep your secret." 

"But, what if I just tell him? I've never used my powers, I haven't even learned anything about witchcraft," Ashlynn insisted. "Shouldn't I be honest with my husband if we're to spend our lives together?" 

Back at home in Blackwell County, things had felt so much easier. She'd made it to her twenty-first birthday without anyone ever discovering her secret. Admittedly, she'd spent most of those years rarely leaving her family's estate, content to leave responsibility for social functions to her younger sister while she spent her days in the family's vast library. 

Now, however, she'd come all the way to the frontier of Lothian March. The handsome lord she'd only met at a pair of formal balls was about to become her husband for the rest of her life. 

For two years they'd written letters to each other every month but how well did he truly know her? The love they'd built felt too thin and fragile to support the weight of her secret. Now, on the day of her wedding, she was afraid that it would all come crashing down around her. 

"My dearest daughter," her mother said, placing a hand gently on her daughter's cheek. "If you tell him tonight, before he consummates the marriage, things may go very badly. Lothian March is much closer to the demons than Blackwell County." 

"Young Lord Owain and his father have fought the demons personally so the fear they have for witches is even greater than back home. If he thinks that you're the same as the demons he's fought then he won't hesitate to execute you," she said, her voice becoming cold. 

If her daughter failed here, if she confessed before securing a future with Young Lord Owain, it would spell doom for more than just Ashlynn. When she saw understanding in her daughter's emerald eyes, her stiff expression softened and she continued. 

"It's only through having his child that you can escape that fate. I've done the best I can to prepare you," she said in a softer tone. "Now, calm yourself. Your father will be here soon to walk you down the aisle and you mustn't let him see you anxious," she said.

Just twelve hours ago, the sounds of wedding bells had filled the air as she walked down the aisle before all the lords and ladies of the March of Lothian and their guests to marry the man of her dreams. She stood before the High Priest as he read the rites and her heart soared when Owain slipped an antique ring on her delicate finger.

Even six hours later, after the feast and the ball, she could still feel the touch of his lips on hers as she prepared herself for her first night with her husband. Her mind was filled with dreams of laughing children and a loving family. She was ready to give all of herself to Owain. 

Once he entered the bedchamber, however, her dreams had been torn away along with her bridal undergarments. 

Someone had told him. Somehow, he knew. It could only have happened after they said their vows. It might have been during the ball or at the feast, she had no way of knowing. Whenever it happened, the words someone whispered in her husband's ears had sealed her fate. 

The Owain that entered their bedchambers was like a man possessed. The smell of strong wine clung to his breath as he shouted at her, demanding the truth from her. Hot tears spilled from his eyes even as spittle flew from his lips. 

When she protested, he turned violent, pinning her to the wall and tearing the clothing from her body until the truth was revealed. 

There, on her hip, in the shape of an ash tree, lay the Mark of the Witch. As an infant, her father had attempted to cut away the mark, even attempted to burn it away with a branding iron, but the mark always returned. 

From her earliest memories, her mother had insisted that she never show anyone the mark, going so far as to bathe her child personally instead of allowing servants to attend to her. 

It wasn't until years later that she realized what the mark meant. When she was old enough, she swore to her parents to never become a witch, to never usurp the power that belonged to the Holy Lord of Light. 

She'd done everything she could to be a dutiful and devout daughter, dedicated to her family and she was prepared to offer the same devotion to Owain on the night of their wedding. 

Yet no matter how she sobbed, no matter how she pleaded, Owain wouldn't hear it. Blow after blow from his powerful fists rained down on her body when he saw the birthmark on her hip. When she fell to the ground, punches turned into kicks and stomps as Owain vented his feelings of hurt, betrayal, and rage on the body of the woman he'd taken as his bride.

To Ashlynn, it felt like the beating lasted for an eternity filled with sharp pains and bitter sobs before Owain summoned two of his knights.

"Take her away," he commanded fiercely. He turned his back to where Ashlynn lay on the ground in a crumpled heap as though he couldn't bear to witness what he'd done with his own hands. 

"Take her body into the Vale and burn it there," he said hoarsely. "I will not have a witch buried on my father's lands. Scatter her ashes to the winds and crush her bones. Leave nothing that could haunt us later."

"Shouldn't we bring her to the High Priest?" Sir Tommin, the older of the two knights, asked his lord. "The Church…"

"The Church will launch an inquisition if they find out that I married a witch," Owain spat, rounding on his loyal retainer with fury he thought he'd fully vented when he beat his wife to death. 

"You do this quietly and you never speak of it again or you'll find a place beside her in the Vale," he hissed, barely holding himself back from shouting loudly enough to be heard by others outside the bedchambers.

What could the knights do but agree? Within a decade at most, the old lord would retire and pass the rule of the march to Owain. Defying him now would not only doom them but their families as well. 

Ashlynn was quickly wrapped in a bedsheet and taken from the lord's manor. The knights loaded her into a cart and raced down the ancient road along the river until they'd passed beyond the borderstone and into the lands still ruled by heathen demons.

The night was cold and moonless and rain that had been a slight drizzle when the knights left the manor had turned into a downpour by the time they reached the forest of the vale. Now, no matter how much they doused Ashlynn in lamp oil, they couldn't strike a spark to burn her unmoving body. 

"She's already dead," Sir Broll told his companion, giving her body a fierce kick to prove his point. "Let's just bury her and be done with it."

That one moment of negligence proved to be Ashlynn's salvation. Despite the terrible beating she'd suffered, a dim flame had begun to burn in Ashlynn's heart. 

It can't end like this, she thought. She couldn't let it end when she didn't even know who betrayed her. More than that, she refused to die without taking Owain with her. 

She couldn't. She refused. Stubbornly, she clung to the last glimmer of life within her chest while she was jostled along the road in the cart. She did nothing as she was kicked and beaten before the knights dumped her into a shallow grave. Even as they began to cover her in damp soil, she did nothing until minutes had passed since she felt the last shovel full of earth dumped on her body.

When she finally began to struggle her way free of the earth she clawed at the earth with more than just her hands. Fueled by hurt and anger, she tapped into the long-dormant power slumbering in her chest, forcing it outward with her struggling hands.

She didn't know how to properly use that power. At the moment, her mind was too clouded by pain and soul-wrenching grief to think clearly about what she wanted her power to do. All she knew was that she had to escape this grave, and the trees responded to her desires, using their roots to help pull her from the earth. 

Now, free of the shallow grave, Ashlynn clutched at the dirty bed sheet she'd been buried in and staggered towards the ancient road. She wasn't sure where she was going or how she would survive but she knew one thing and she repeated it over and over again in her mind as though it were a magic spell. 

She wouldn't die tonight. She wouldn't die tomorrow. As long as there was breath in her body, she refused to die until she dragged the people responsible for this night into a grave along with her.

Anda Mungkin Juga Menyukai

Omega's Rebirth

What was worse than death itself? Well it was dying knowing that no one would miss you, knowing that your death was a favour to everyone you ever knew. This was exactly how I felt the day I died. I was the love child of the Eclipse Alpha King, in a time where the mate bond was considered sacred, a child born out of wedlock was nothing short of sacrilegious... 'It was his fault, he loved someone other than his mate...' 'It was his fault, he had carnal knowledge of a human woman.' 'It was all his fault, my only crime was being born out of his lust.' But why was that Alpha King father of mine perfectly safe, while I was hated, scorned and blamed for everything instead? Why did I have to be my father's bargaining chip, used to achieve his goals? Why could I not get a rejection like everyone else but was instead murdered by my own mate? Why was I killed before I even had a chance to live? I had a thousand questions and yet there was no one to answer and this was exactly how I died... So why then did my eyes flutter open to that day, a month before my death? Was it because of my little secret? A secret I will tell no one else but you... From the title of my tale, you must think I am an omega wolf... No, you got it wrong... I am not an Omega wolf, I am an Alpha wolf and my name is Omega. ~Second Book in the Werewolf Rebirth Series. *Not a prequel or sequel to 'The Alpha King's Nemesis', both books are not related save for the world setting and Werewolf Rebirth concept. *Cover art sourced from the internet, all credits to the original artist.*

JHeart · Fantasi
4.7
754 Chs

Married to the Devil's Son

【Volume 1 - Married to the Devil's Son】 A prince, rumored to be the son of the Devil. He is the definition of Danger. He is the Darkness itself. A princess. Imprisoned in her own home, only to come out once she gets married. But married to whom? *** Once upon a time, the Devil fell in love with one of the King's many wives. One night he went to her room disguised as her husband and made love to her. She got pregnant with his child. Knowing this The King ordered her execution believing his wife cheated on him, but then the Devil appeared to the king making him a deal. In exchange for great power for his Kingdom, the King will let his wife Sire The Devil's Child. The King who was greedy for power agrees to the deal and his Kingdom becomes one of the most powerful Kingdoms and the Devil's Child, the seventh Prince of the Kingdom. Being a princess probably sounds nice. A life full of luxury, beautiful dresses and nice shoes, but for Hazel, there is nothing nice about being a princess. She can never go outside the palace, she can never have friends, she can never eat or say or wear whatever she wants and she can never choose the person she is going to marry. Soon she's getting married to a man she has never met, a prince rumored to be Son of the Devil. 【Volume 2 - Return of the Devil's Son】 **Sequel to Married to the Devil's son** He is back! This time fiercer, faster and stronger, with only one thing in mind. Revenge! Prince of Darkness, Son of the Devil, Lucian is back, and he has only one thing on his mind. Revenge! That's until he meets her. A woman who entices him beyond reason, but who also claims to be his wife. Surrounded by dark secrets and powerful enemies, Lucian must decide who to trust and who to destroy. After getting her heart broken once, Klara vowed never to fall in love again. But when her brother tries to force her into a marriage and the annoying but wickedly handsome Roshan rescues her, things get difficult. Can she protect her heart from the man whose touch sets her body aflame? Or will she surrender to her desire and risk her heart once again? —————————————————————————————————— 【Volume 3 - The Devil In Her Dreams】 THE BEAST AMONGST US Imagine living in a world full of fiery, feral beings, hiding in the shadows, roving in our dreams, creeping under our skin. Eavesdropping, manipulating our minds and exploring our bodies. They are savages, beasts but some of them are companions and childhood friends.  Some are dangerous, others even more dangerous. They live amongst us. Some of us call them Demons, others call them Djinn. But some of them should never be called.  THE BEAUTY  LOOKING FOR LOVE  Heaven, the devil’s granddaughter and princess of Decresh has everything in life. Loving parents, beauty, wealth, and status. But one thing is missing. And that is love. Heaven dreams of the kind of love her parents have and now that she has come of age to get married she has to find her dream man and the future king of Decresh. And she has to find him soon.  There is one man. A mysterious silver-eyed stranger who keeps appearing in her dreams. Who is he and what does he want? As the line of suitors grows, Heaven’s dreams become more vivid forcing her to go on a journey to find the man in her dreams. Could he also be the man of her dreams? Or would he turn out to be a nightmare?

JasmineJosef · Fantasi
4.7
314 Chs

The Alpha: Claiming His Enemy's Daughter

WARNING! -DARK ROMANCE- “Why do you have scars?” All of sudden, Iris changed the topic, as she looked at Cane in the eyes. She was still clutching to his sleeves. “Your father gave me,” Cane replied. He thought, Iris wouldn’t remember this conversation when she woke up. “That must be so painful.” “They are.” “Will the scars heal?” “I don’t think so.” The night indeed made you vulnerable and let you said something that you would never admit when it was bright. The obscurity softened your heart. “Too bad. You have a warm soul.” Iris frowned slightly. “I no longer have a soul.” He had sold his soul for the freedom of his people. There was nothing left of him right now. “Yes, you have, but you are in so much pain.” Iris blinked her eyes. “Your beast is in pain. You have so many scars.” “The only scars that I have is on my face.” Iris shook her head meekly. “I am not talking about your face. I am talking about your soul. Too bad, you are in so much pain… what my father and brother had done to you must be painful…” And after that, Iris closed her eyes and fell asleep. ====================== She is the daughter of an alpha who has killed his family, razed his pack and has also made his people slaves. Now, he has achieved revenge after ten years of being treated as a slave and was living a life that no one would ever imagine. Life akin to hell. And ten years later, Alpha Cane manages to take over and kill the alpha who has made the lives of his people worse than death. It was time for him to make the children of the alpha pay for what their father had done. Only… Iris was a runt and she was very different from her father.

i_want_to_sleep · Fantasi
4.6
1042 Chs