Compelled (Shadow Beast Shifters Book 5)

The next morning when I dragged myself out of the supremely comfortable bed, my stomach raged at me, reminding me that I’d bailed after my obligatory dance with the masters and hadn’t ventured near the wall of food.

Going on two days without eating, with wine and a few mouthfuls of water my only sustenance, there was no way I could miss breakfast. It had to fit into my schedule no matter what.

“They dropped off this envelope early this morning,” Len said as I stumbled toward the sitting area. Peering through slitted, blurry eyes, I noticed how awake he looked.

“I hate you,” I groaned. “No one told me you were a morning person.”

Len laughed, seeming to take no offense in his cheery mood. Seriously, morning people were the worst. Straight up sociopaths.

“I haven’t slept at all,” he said. “I find that’s the best way to avoid the dreaded early morning wake-up call.” He nudged the large, cream-colored envelope toward me, and I snatched it up.

“How long can you go without sleep?” I asked around a yawn.

“Weeks,” he replied. “I use energy from my crystals to power my own internal magic. I won’t take a risk with your safety while on duty.”

I waved him off as another huge yawn took over my face and made my eyes water. “You can sleep. I don’t think the danger is that high.”

He smirked and crossed his arms over his chest. “I stopped two of the selected from ripping your throat out last night. They got into the room, moving at vampiric speed. It was lucky I had those stones set to give me a head’s up.”

Okay, that had me waking right the fuck up.

On instinct I put my free hand to my throat. “What did you do with them?” I asked, turning toward the front door, which was securely closed with no sign of forced entry. “How did they get in?”

How had I missed the attacks? Sure, I’d been tired and a little drunk, but that was no excuse. My shifter instincts were suffering badly, and it could have gotten me killed.

“They appeared to have the entry code,” Len said. “I’ve had it changed.” He rambled off some numbers, which I immediately forgot. “Lucien took them away. Seems the competition is already down to twenty-nine, so you’re doing well.”

I laughed. “And yet I’m not supposed to be whittling away the contestants to make it easier for me to win. Maybe I should attack someone and get myself thrown out.”

Len shook his head. “Judging by the look on Lucien’s face, I don’t think that was their only punishment. I wouldn’t suggest it as a viable plan.”

Of course, it wasn’t. Why would an actual plan fall in our laps.

Taking the letter with me, I made my way into the bathroom, wincing at the bright lights filling the ceiling. The red of the sun filtering through the bedroom window hadn’t hurt, but fake fluorescents always annoyed me.

Dropping the letter near the sink, I decided to read it after a refreshing shower. Closing my eyes, I stood under the hot spray, my body begging me to reach down and relieve the tension that had been building since Lucien lost his shit at the dance. Sexy, angry vampire was apparently my aphrodisiac.

I’d learned the hard way that I couldn’t ease this need, so I refrained from even bothering. Stirring up the arousal and blood inside was a surefire way to send me back into the screaming fit. And we had no time for that.

When I couldn’t avoid life any longer, I finished by brushing my teeth, shaving hairy parts, and washing other parts, then got out of the shower to prepare for the day. Ignoring makeup, I went for a bare-faced look and brushed my hair up into a high ponytail. My mane of dark hair was longer and thicker than ever, which I mostly noticed because the hair tie barely got around twice.

“Vampire blood,” I muttered. Being back here had the blood inside me reacting to the vampire energy, and I couldn’t deny that it was changing me. Lucien wanted me to feed more from him, and while the anticipation of that had me feeling all kinds of things, a part of me still worried that I’d lose the last of my wolf.

She lifted her head then and let out a sad howl that made me want to cry. “I’ll free you,” I promised, saying it out loud while staring at myself in the mirror. “We might need more blood to strengthen us, but I will not allow you to vanish under it.”

Wrapping the cloth around me, I left the bathroom and made my way to my wardrobe. I still hadn’t bothered to read the itinerary yet, but since I really didn’t give a shit what was expected any longer, I decided to just wear what I was comfortable in: skinny black jeans, low-heeled boots that zipped up to my calf, a plain white shirt, and a black jacket.

It wasn’t cold in Valdor, with their spring temperature, but I’d be fine in a jacket and boots. Back in the bathroom, I picked up the envelope and opened it. Pulling free one piece of thick parchment, I saw fancy cursive writing.

There are twenty-nine selected remaining in this competition.

Five more will be eliminated today.

Please note the events in order below. Do not be late for any of them.

First: Breakfast in the great hall. Refuel for maximum strength.

Second: Blessing from the Stone of Katu. Strive for acceptance.

Third: Obstacle course to determine fitness levels and agility. Strive for victory.

I blinked at three. Was fitness level really an important factor in a true mate? Did they want a lovely long-distance runner who could do a backflip in her sleep?

At least an obstacle course would be an easy one to fail since I would struggle to keep up with a vampire for even a short period of time.

As I exited the bathroom, there was a chime through the room, and Len was at the door in a heartbeat. When he opened it, I couldn’t see who stood on the other side until they stepped inside.

Lucien.

Moving toward him, I wondered why he was here. “Everything okay?” I asked.

He nodded, and I took a second to look him over. He was dressed in black army-style pants, black shit-kicker boots, and a dark green shirt that made his eyes a deeper green than normal. He looked good. Really, really good. This would be so much easier if Lucien didn’t always look so damn fuckable.

“I want to start the process of building your mental and physical barriers,” he told me, and somehow, I found the strength to focus on his words. “Carter is going to do everything in his power to ensure you make it through to the next round so he can continue to influence you. We need to start building now, before it gets any worse.”

I nodded. “Yeah, and if we could ensure I wake up before my throat almost gets ripped out next time, that would be great too.”

For the first time there was a flicker of emotion in his face. “That too,” he said gruffly, “though I’ve sent out a warning to the other selected advising them of what happened to the two who attacked during the sleep cycle.”

I snorted. “Think that will work?”

Lucien straightened, expression confident. “If it doesn’t, the next punishment will be much worse.”

“Okay, then. So, what do we need to do this morning?”

He stepped closer, and his scent was strong as it filled my nose, drifting down inside me. The blood he’d eased in the shower started to swirl again in heated arcs, and I tried not to think about what was about to happen. I wasn’t even sure what I wanted to happen.

The door to the room opened, and I heard Len call out. “I’ll give you two some privacy.”

Neither of us responded or looked his way. I couldn’t tear my eyes from Lucien, even if I wanted to, and I was starting to wonder if maybe taking more of his blood was a bad idea. It might help me resist Carter, but it was getting harder every damn day to resist Lucien.

At this point, though, he was the lesser of two evils, so I’d just have to hope that this wouldn’t come back to destroy me later.

“Do you want to bite me?” he asked. “If you call up your wolf, you can take control.”

I swallowed hard, trying to find moisture in my mouth. “I can try. She’s buried deep, and I don’t think she’s too keen on more vampire blood, but it’s worth a shot.”

“Take the shot,” he murmured, and I wondered if all the moisture missing from my mouth was in my underwear, because goddamn.

This girl was ready for some action.