Louis
The first blow landed between my shoulder blades with a crack that stole my breath. Pain rippled through my spine, forcing my body forward until the chains bit into my wrists. A low sound escaped me, half‑growl, half‑breath.
Grey didn't pause. His face was so stoic that one would think it was created from stone. His eyes were void of any emotion, his movements practiced and merciless, like he'd been doing this for a long time, which in fact he had.
He never hesitated when my father ordered it. That was why he was still alive. He was both my guardian and punisher.
"Look at me, you bastard."
My father's voice cut through the dark room, with a shrill sadistic smile.
He sat a few feet away beneath a single bulb, the light cutting a harsh ring around him. His presence felt heavier than the chains that seemed like they were holding me down. We both knew I only let him punish me out of loyalty, the chains had no hold over me, they only looked like they did cause I let them.
He held a file in one hand….. interesting. I guess daddy's been watching me.
"Explain," he said. "Why didn't you finish the mission? Why is Viktor still breathing?"
The next strike slammed into the back of my legs. White heat flashed through me, this one went straight to my bones. Pain had always been part of Don Rafael's language. And as his favorite son, I was fluent in it.
I forced air into my lungs, tasting metal smeared with my blood. "Father…" My voice wavered but didn't break. "Eliminating him outright would destabilize his family's holdings. They still own properties and leverage we need," I paused, he gave a nod, signaling me to go on.
"Interestingly, he has no idea how wealthy he is. He works in a small bakery, using the money he makes to get by each day. If he dies suddenly, all of that scatters. He's… more valuable alive."
Rafael's eyebrow lifted, his gaze dissecting me, to see if I was telling him the truth. Nothing piqued my father's interest like money, and I knew that, so I led with that.
"Valuable."
"Yes."
The word left me with effort. Grey struck again, and my knees gave out, chains catching me before I hit the floor. I gritted my teeth.
"Alive, we can control what happens to their assets. Dead… we lose the advantage."
Rafael leaned forward, elbows on his knees. Shadows gathered in the hollows of his face, sharpening every edge. "You chose strategy over obedience. You think I am a fool?"
"I chose efficiency," I corrected, though my breath shook. "Never disobedience. And no father, I do not think you a fool, I'd take my life before such thought nurtures."
"Damn right you would." He stood up in all his glory, his pride shooting through the roof. "Make his words stick to his brain," he said, waving his hand that carried his ring of authority, resting on his index finger.
Whoever wore that ring was appointed as the Alpha. The ring had been in my family for generations and can only be taken off if the current bearer died. That ring had been both a symbol of strength, our people kissed in reverence to my father's authority; as well as a symbol of death for those who crossed him.
Grey delivered another blow to my side; my body lurched with it. Pain pulsed, a reminder of the hierarchy carved into my bones.
Even without touching me, his proximity wrapped around my throat like a hand. Grey moved aside immediately, giving my father a clear view of me under the harsh light.
He circled me once, slow and methodical, before stopping in front of me. "Do you understand control, Louis?" he asked softly. "Killing Viktor would have been easy. But you don't play easy…. You chose… complication."
"I chose what benefits our house most," I managed, lifting my head. "Keeping him alive maintains leverage we can use. His death only creates chaos. I know this because I did my findings and know that the Blackwells are aware of his existence as well."
That seemed to get my father's attention. He locked eyes with Grey to confirm this and when he did, it calmed his resolve.
The Blackwell family was home to the strongest vampire clans, they could go out at noon without facing the scorching anger of the sun. Their skin was the same with the humans, so it was easy to blend in, and that made them very dangerous.
They were drunk with power and lust, not just any lust, but blood lust. The only thing keeping the world safe from them, was the covenant our family established eons ago.
If they had eyes on Viktor, it was for a reason. A reason that may not bode well for my father.
A faint smirk touched his mouth, his hand snapped out and struck me across the face. Not hard, just enough to draw heat and the faint taste of blood. "I shall take care of that," he said, and I nodded in agreement. "And your place?" he murmured.
My jaw tightened against the pain. "I know it, Father."
Something shifted in his eyes, he stepped back, hands clasped behind him, in a manner that looked like he was using all his strength to maintain that position.
"Good. Viktor remains alive. For now. Make him an instrument of our advantage. Nothing more…." He paused, then continued as he circled me. "And Louis, never disobey me again."
"Yes, Father."
"Finish it up." He motioned to Grey and walked away.
Grey stepped forward again, belt in hand. The chains rattled overhead as I braced myself. The pain returned in steady, merciless waves, but my mind was already elsewhere, focused on the truth:
Viktor was a weapon.
A shield.
A bargaining chip.
And I would wield him exactly as my father commanded, or at least as I let Rafael believe I would.
****
The night air hit my skin like cold steel as Grey guided me out of my father's torturing chamber. My back still hummed with the sting of the strikes he'd dealt me, but he was already acting like my shadow again, silent and obedient.
Once we were outside, he finally spoke. "Why do you let him do that to you?" Grey's voice was low, almost frustrated. "You could take everything from him, Louis. Power, assets, the entire syndicate. You're stronger, smarter. Why don't you end it?"
I let out a breath that tasted faintly like blood.
The collar of my shirt was sticking to my skin, warm with drying sweat. "Because," I said, "as much as I loathe the man… I owe him my life."
Grey glanced at me, jaw flexing.
"He saved me when no one else would," I continued. "My mother was dead. I was ten. I had nothing. He picked me up, off a floor covered in her blood and made me something." I gave a small, humorless laugh. "A monster, yes… but a living one. So I give him loyalty. Undying loyalty."
Grey said nothing.
"We'll just have to wait for the old hag to die, won't we?" I added, smirking at the night sky.
Grey gave me a look, a knowing, exasperated look that said 'whenever you're ready to get rid of him, I shall be your right hand man.'
He held the car door open, settled me into the backseat, climbed into the driver's side, and the car hummed to life as we pulled away from the estate.
By the time we reached my house, the ache in my muscles had dulled into a familiar throb. Grey helped me out, supporting most of my weight, not that he'd ever admit he cared.
He eased me onto my bed and called for the maid, Ellen, who doubled as the household nurse. She rushed in with a medical kit, gasping under her breath when she saw the bruises Grey had given me.
I chuckled.
"What?" Grey muttered, frowning.
"It's just amusing," I said, leaning my head back. "The man who beat me senseless is suddenly worried about my injuries."
Grey glared, but didn't argue. He never argued unless necessary.
Ellen finished checking me over, declared nothing vital was damaged, and left us alone.
Grey crossed his arms. "What now?"
I raised a brow at him.
"Didn't you hear me earlier?"
He blinked. "Earlier? You mean… in the car?"
"Yes." I smirked. "Are you deaf or just selective?"
"You're not serious," he said flatly.
"I'm completely serious."
He rubbed a hand over his face. "You'd marry a man you just met? A man you barely know? The enemy—"
"What better way to give my father a heart attack," I said lazily, "than to sleep with the enemy?"
Grey stared at me like I'd grown a second head. "You've gone mad."
"Probably," I agreed, smiling.
Grey paced once, twice. "How do you intend to carry out this madness?"
I sat up slowly, ignoring the pain stretching across my spine. "Grey," I said, "you may be my father's servant, but we both know where your loyalty actually lies."
His jaw tightened but he didn't deny it.
"You've patched me up after every punishment he ordered. You've risked more for me than he ever would. So you'll help me."
"With what?" he asked cautiously.
"I need you to take me," I said, buttoning my shirt with slow, deliberate motions, "to one of the islands my father is not welcome on."
Grey blinked. "…And then?"
"And then?" A wicked grin tugged at my mouth. "After a few nights of Viktor on his knees with my cock in his throat, I'll know exactly what I want to do with him."
Grey's eyes widened. "So you're saying…"
"I'm saying," I rose to my feet and reached for my suit jacket, "I'll fuck him until I kill him…"
I paused at the doorway, adjusting my collar.
"Or he kills me."
A short, amused laugh left me.
"Or we both die. Who knows?"
Grey called after me, alarmed. "Louis!"
But I was already walking away, the thrill of the plan settling hot in my chest.
For the first time in months, maybe years, I felt alive.