Arabella’s eyes glossed over as she instinctively smiled up at him. Her expression changed like she remembered he’d just snapped a man’s neck.
She leaned away from him and whispered, “Um, you just killed a man.”
Orion’s gentle expression darkened, and his eyes flashed with hurt that she was questioning his action. He stared down at her like he was lost.
She was hurting my Revered’s feelings.
The never-ending well of violence inside me expanded, and fire spread across my shoulders.
“You dare treat Orion so rudely?” I asked as the hall became feverishly warm. “You trap us by tying us to your disgusting presence, then dare to scoff at my Revered? He’s everything, and you’re nothing.”
I poured all my malice and hatred into my words.
Arabella chuckled softly, and the sound was husky. “All I did was point out that he murdered someone. Also, you think I’d want to be tied to your literal flaming ass for all of eternity? I couldn’t think of a worse fate for myself.”
Scorpius sneered, “Then why aren’t you afraid? You’re at our mercy.”
“And we have none,” I promised.
Flame shadows flickered across black marble, and for a second, dark-blue eyes shuttered as they met mine. From her expression, she was remembering how she’d boiled alive beneath my might.
The moment passed, and blue eyes became black.
Empty.
Ice cold.
She said in a monotone voice, “Because I don’t care. Never have.” Arabella laid her arched cheekbone against the floor as she exhaled smoke.
She grinned, and it wasn’t a pleasant expression.
Dust particles floated in the hall and shimmered as stained glass cast colorful shadows across my mates.
I’d never noticed how beautiful the academy was. It was peaceful. The architecture was grand and artistic, the perfect space for silent contemplation.
I shook my head at my whimsical thoughts.
I was losing my mind.
The slave tattoo must still be affecting me, because this was beyond weird.
I didn’t have peaceful thoughts. Ever.
And while I freaked out, Arabella lounged like a pampered princess that didn’t know the meaning of suffering.
She was a drug addict, and from what I’d seen on the dance floor, she was a slut.
She had no discipline. Sure, she’d trained beside us, but it had only been for two months, which was no time in the grand scheme of things.
We’d suffered for years and hadn’t complained half as much.
A sudden burst of excitement bubbled up my chest as I realized what this opportunity meant.
We would teach Arabella the meaning of true torment. I would teach her what it was like for your soul to ache every waking minute of your life.
It was the perfect plan.
When Arabella learned a tenth of the pain we lived with every day and Lothaire found our missing mate, then we’d get rid of her.
Even enchanted tattoos were just marks on flesh.
And flesh could be removed.
Our missing mate would never suffer the injustice of being tied to the lying bitch before us. His Ignis would not allow it; it was the least I could do for my missing Protector.
Everything would work out.
The sun god had named us and marked us as his kings for a reason.
It meant something.
Symbols of what we were: the eye on Scorpius’s throat and “Vidimus” on his shoulders; flowers along Orion’s collarbone trailing up to his jaw and the “Venimus” on his back; a sword on my neck and “Vicimus” across my shoulders.
Orion’s tattoo translated to “we came.”
Scorpius’s—“we saw.”
Mine—“we conquered.”
The ancient saying and art on our skin reflected the powers that lived within us. Like the colorful markings of a poisonous animal, they were a warning to others.
We were destined to do the unthinkable for the greater good.
Arabella mumbled something derogatory under her breath.
I swallowed down the urge to growl at her like a wild animal.
Instead, I said calmly, “You’re our slave, and your father isn’t here to protect you. I wouldn’t be saying shit under your breath if I were you. Especially since he can’t be around at all times to protect you. And you’re stuck with us.”
Scorpius chuckled. “You’re going to wish you were never born.”
“Too late,” Arabella whispered.
An unfamiliar pang twisted in my chest. Orion rubbed at his forehead like he had a headache as he stared down at Arabella with a sad expression.
Hardening my heart, I tugged him behind me.
I crouched so we were at eye level. “This is how it’s going to go.”
I clicked my tongue. “We own you.”
Click. “As soon as Lothaire finds our mate, we’ll cut the brand from your flesh and sever this bond.”
Click. “You won’t interfere with our mate bond forever, and you’ll never know our secrets. Not while I live and breathe.”
Instead of cowering like I expected, Arabella sat up, and her eyes shone bright with excitement. “Cutting off the tattoo will sever the bond? Then I’ll cut it now.”
Sun-god-damn it. I’d let my anger get the best of me, and I’d wanted to hurt her so badly that I’d inadvertently revealed our plans.
Everything about her had me off-kilter.
She pulled at her loose sweatpants and clawed at her skin like she was going to rip off the tattoo with her bare nails.
Annoyance sparked.
How dare she want to remove the tattoo? She should be honored to be bound to us.
I shook my head at the irrational thoughts and grabbed her wrist. It was pathetically small, and my fingers overlapped twice.
The girl was fine-boned, for fuck’s sake.
Gross.
She had long limbs, and the lean, cut muscles of a dancer.
Soldiers needed width. Thick muscles to protect us from the elements and weapons.
She wasn’t built for war.
We were.
Even Orion, who was built slightly shorter and leaner than Scorpius and me, was still covered in layers of impressive muscles. Our size, just like our tattoos, reflected what we were.
Power incarnate.
Arabella tried pathetically to wrench her arm from my punishing hold.
“Stop it,” I snarled. “You will not remove the tattoo until we find our fourth.” I tightened my hand until her bone creaked. “If you remove it, we’ll immediately have a new tattoo branded on you,” I lied through my teeth.
The ringing silence of our missing mate bond hung heavy around us and was testament to the fact that I’d never willingly agree to another binding.
Arabella saw through my ploy and scoffed, “If I remove it, you won’t ever find me. You have nothing over me.”
I exploded into flames.
She called my bluff so easily it was infuriating. Could she not be agreeable for five fucking seconds?
I held her tighter.
“But, Arabella, Daddy wants you protected.” Scorpius laughed as he crouched beside me. “We’re only in this predicament because he’s convinced you’re so weak you’ll be immediately killed.”
His milky eyes flashed with cruelty, and his sharp jaw was tight.
Scorpius had never liked Aran and had raged over Orion’s infatuation with the pathetic boy. Now he could do something about it.