Tainted Love

Lucian's grip bruised my skin.

Gone was the man who once whispered promises against my throat under stolen moons.

This creature — this darkened king — looked at me like I was prey.

Still, I didn't pull away.

I couldn't.

I had traded my soul to bring him back — and now he was mine, whether he wanted to be or not.

His breathing was ragged, chest heaving with something far more dangerous than lust.

Rage.

Hunger.

Possession.

His black-ringed eyes drank me in, wild and lost.

"Seraphina," he growled, the sound more wolf than man. "You gave up your wolf for me."

I nodded, heart shattering all over again.

He slammed me against the nearest tree, making the breath whoosh out of my lungs.

But when his mouth crashed down on mine — it wasn't hatred.

It was desperation.

His kiss was brutal, teeth nicking my lips, tasting my blood like it was a sacrament.

A claim.

Mine.

His hands roamed over me, trembling — whether from restraint or madness, I couldn't tell.

Every touch burned, dragging me under with him.

I moaned against his mouth, clinging to his ruined body.

Even broken, he was unstoppable.

Untouchable.

Mine.

He tore away suddenly, breathing hard, staring at me like I was both salvation and damnation.

"You shouldn't have done it," he snarled, pressing his forehead against mine.

"I would do it again," I whispered.

A low, vicious sound rumbled from his chest.

And then he spun — picking me up like I weighed nothing, throwing me over his shoulder.

I pounded my fists against his back.

"Lucian! Where are you taking me?"

He didn't answer.

He didn't have to.

I could feel it in every thundering step he took deeper into the blackened woods.

To his Kingdom.

The Rogue Kingdom.

The place where broken wolves and cursed creatures ruled without mercy.

My new home.

My prison.

My throne.

I kicked against him, but he only gripped me tighter, one hand splaying over the curve of my ass in a punishing hold.

"You're mine now," he growled. "You wanted me alive, Seraphina. You belong to what you saved."

The forest changed around us — twisted trees bowing to him, shadows parting.

The gates loomed ahead — black iron, covered in spikes, blood still dripping from the tips.

Beyond them, I could hear the howls of the forsaken, the damned.

My heart slammed against my ribs.

Lucian shoved the gates open with a snarl, the metal shrieking in protest.

A crowd awaited us.

Rogues with silver eyes, snarling beasts in half-shifted forms, witches with broken smiles.

And every single one of them bowed.

Not to me.

To him.

"My King," they whispered.

Lucian dropped me to the ground, gripping my chin between his fingers, forcing me to look up at him.

"Tell them, Seraphina," he purred darkly. "Tell them who you are."

Tears burned the back of my throat.

I could barely breathe under the weight of all the eyes, all the hatred, all the brokenness.

"I…" My voice cracked. "I am your Queen."

The Rogues howled — a sound that shook the bones of the earth.

Lucian smiled — a wicked, feral thing — and dragged me into his chest.

"You were born for this," he murmured against my hair. "You just didn't know it yet."

And as the gates slammed shut behind me, cutting me off from the world I once knew—

I realized…

I hadn't saved Lucian.

I had unleashed something the world would never survive.