Chapter 4 4

Valentino Dante DeLuca:

Before I was a king, I was the devil they prayed against. Blood built my throne, and I never once needed a crown to be feared.

"My Lord!" Cassian called as I stepped into the interrogation chamber.

The scent of blood hit first. Then the sounds-chains rattling, breathless sobs, bone grinding against metal.

I smirked.

Three rogue wolves were chained to the wall, eyes wild, stinking of fear and filth. Low-born scum. I hated their kind. They begged for mercy before the blade even kissed their skin.

"I ask. You answer. That's the only game we play here," I said, lifting the red-hot iron bar.

I walked to the middle-aged one-gray-streaked hair, pathetic strength-and pressed the iron against his thigh.

He screamed. Bit through his tongue. Blood poured from his mouth.

"You came for the Command Token, didn't you?"

"N-No!" he choked, spitting blood. "I didn't come for anything-I came to curse you!"

I tilted my head.

"You've ruined lives," he gasped. "You kill for sport. You butcher children. You burn villages. All because we're low-born. You think that gives you the right? You're a demon-insatiable, twisted-"

I laughed.

Gods, I laughed.

Because he wasn't wrong. But he wasn't right either.

"You're right. I am cursed. And I like it."

I shoved the iron into his mouth and left it there. His body thrashed for a few seconds before going limp.

One down.

I turned to the second man. Younger. Stronger. Arrogant eyes.

"Did you also come to curse me?"

He chuckled. "No. I came for the Token."

I raised a brow.

He grinned. "There are other princes far better than you. You're not the only one with a bloodline, My Lord."

I tilted my head, amused. "Is that so?"

Without another word, I drew my blade and sliced off both his ears.

He screamed, but I wasn't finished.

I dug the blade under his fingernails. One by one. Then I cut open his stomach, slow, just enough to watch him beg.

"You should have cursed me. Might've died quicker."

I turned to the last one. Silent. Shaking.

I stared at him. He stared at the blood pooling at his feet.

"Anything to say?"

He didn't speak.

I sighed, bored.

"Cassian."

"My Lord?"

"Finish him. I'm late for breakfast."

The dining hall was quiet as I stepped in.

There she was - already seated at the far end of the long obsidian table. Rosalyn. Her gaze was lowered to the table, to the untouched dishes before her. Morning sunlight spilled across her skin, making her almost too luminous to be real.

Beautiful. Dangerously so.

I sat at my end. The staff placed identical dishes before us - BloodHowl tradition: the Luna eats whatever the Alpha eats, nothing more, nothing less.

A moment passed.

I reached for the roast chicken.

So did she.

I picked up a goblet of wine.

She mirrored me.

I narrowed my eyes. "You don't have to mimic every bite I take."

She spoke without looking up. "It's the law, isn't it?"

I scoffed. "Don't be foolish. I don't care about outdated rituals."

"I do," she said softly, still not looking at me. "Obedience is the only thing I have left."

Tch. Clever girl.

I cut into the meat, but my gaze stayed on her longer than it should have. Her sleeves shifted slightly, and I caught sight of something beneath - faint bruises along her arm. Scratches. One still red.

I leaned forward slightly, my voice cold.

"So that's your strategy," I said slowly. "Come here looking like a bruised porcelain doll? Did you think painting your body with marks would stir something in me?"

Her gaze didn't rise.

"No."

"Pity doesn't work on me, Rosalyn."

"Neither does cruelty," she said under her breath.

I leaned in, voice cold. "What was that?"

She looked up. "I said... it's good to know where we stand, my Lord."

Tch. The way she said that-my Lord-like it tasted bitter in her mouth.

I folded my arms. "Let me save you the effort. I'm not interested in your tears, your bruises, or whatever helpless act you're trying to perform. If you think I'll be seduced by a beautiful face and trembling hands, you've miscalculated."

She nodded once, gaze steady.

"I understand your fear."

That made me pause.

"My... what?"

"Your fear," she said again. "That you might lose control if you feel something."

My hands tightened around the silver fork.

She continued, voice smooth and meek. "But rest assured, I have no intention of going beyond my place. I will play the role given to me. Quiet. Obedient. Forgotten, if you like."

I stared at her. Every part of me wanted to snap something cruel back.

But her calmness was infuriating. Her restraint... unsettling.

And then she smiled, barely.

"I didn't think the Alpha of Alphas would already be paying such close attention to me."

I raised a brow. "Close attention?"

"You noticed my bruises. That's attention."

"You think I've fallen for you?"

"No. Of course not." Her voice was low. "But you do seem... aware of me."

I leaned in, cold fury in my voice. "Say that again-say that word again-fallen-and I'll feed you to my wolves and make them bring your bones back in a pretty box."

She didn't blink. Her lips barely parted.

"I understand, my Lord."

I stood, pushing the chair back slowly.

"Finish your meal."

And I left.

But even after I walked out, I could still feel the way her voice clung to the air.

She was dangerous in a way I hadn't predicted.

Not like her father.

Worse.

The rest of the day I drowned myself in parchment-decrees, border reports, betrayal warnings. Nothing new. The ink ran dry, but the blood on my hands never did.

It was past ten when I finally left my study.

And that's when I saw her.

Roslyn.

Sitting just outside my chamber, wrapped in a thin shawl, legs pulled to her chest, staring at nothing.

I should've walked away.

But I didn't.

Something about her presence scratched under my skin.

I moved toward her in silence.

"It's late," I said coldly. "What are you doing out here?"

She looked up slowly, her voice soft. "I couldn't sleep. My Lord... I'm not breaking any law, am I?"

"Your entire existence is a law broken."

She smiled at that. Dry. Bitter. But still-a smile.

"I wanted to thank you," she said. "I didn't expect a knight. Or a wedding. But at least..."

"At least what?"

She looked up toward the sky. "At least I can watch the stars in peace."

She lifted her hand, pointing. "Look, fireflies..."

She laughed quietly.

That sound.

I hated it.

Soft. Warm. Hopeful.

I snapped my fingers.

The fireflies burst into flames midair, their ashes falling around her like black snow.

She gasped. "My Lord!"

"Don't smile," I said darkly. "Ever."

I turned and walked away, fists clenched.

What was that?

Smiling?

Peace?

What part of me did she think deserved that?

Inside my chamber, I slammed the door and leaned against it, jaw tight.

"You're losing it," Dante said, finally stirring in my head. "All this over some glowing bugs and a girl's smile?"

"I don't need your commentary."

"You always need my commentary. I'm the fun one."

"Fun would get us killed."

"Correction-you would die. I'd move on to a new host."

I gritted my teeth. "You're nothing but instincts and destruction."

"And you are a cold, uptight bastard with a stick up his ass," he drawled. "Let me out sometime. I'll show her what a real king feels like."

"She's not for feeling."

"Oh? Then why did you stop? You were going to walk past. But you turned back. You looked at her."

"She was in my space."

"She smiled. That's what messed you up."

I paced, rage burning under my skin. "I don't care if she smiles."

"You do," Dante said, suddenly quiet. "And that's the problem."

I stilled.

"She's going to break you," he whispered. "And I can't wait to watch."

I looked at the mirror.

And for a second... I didn't see just me, I saw him.

My other half.

Grinning back at me through the mirror-fangs bared, eyes burning like hellfire.

Dante.

The beast beneath my skin.

"What are you staring at?" I hissed.

"You."

His voice echoed in my head, smug. "And damn, you look constipated with all that rage."

"I want to kill you, Dante. I swear to the Moon Goddess, you are the worst thing to ever happen to me."

"At least I'm not afraid of the dark."

He chuckled. That deep, teasing sound that made my temples throb.

"Shut up."

"Make me."

I clenched my fists. My jaw.

"Relax," he said, too calm. "No one's going to find out our little secret... unless you want me to tell our lovely wife."

I froze.

"I dare you."

My voice dropped to a growl.

"I'll rip you out of my soul and break you."

Silence.

Then, his laughter. Low, unbothered, pure chaos.

"Haha... not funny. Goodnight anyway, lover boy."

And just like that, he vanished-melting into the shadows of my mind.

I stood there, staring at my reflection, wondering which of us was the real monster.