Page 21 of Collared by the Vampire Prince

I push at his chest, but he’s already sitting back, expression smooth.

My ears roar. Fury. Anguish. Humiliation. My hands scrabble uselessly at the gag.

I can’t believe it.

How could he do that again? How dare he—

I am going to murder him.

My eyes sting as I try and fail to shift, my human hands remaining just that—no claws, no talons. I glare at him through teary eyes, willing my expression to convey just how much I despise him.

He pours himself more wine and takes a long sip, blue eyes never leaving mine. “Such language from such a pretty mouth.”

I almost scream.

Almost.

But I can’t let him see how this is breaking me, how it will break me if I keep fighting it.

How it will break me if I don’t.

I do the only thing I can. I hold his stare, unwilling to be the first to look away. At least, I try to, but the collar, the gag, it’s too much. Heat pounds behind my eyes now, sharp enough to make my temples ache. I look away. There is a small relief in the way my head bows, my neck arching as if unable to bear the weight of it.

Suddenly, I understand why so many wolves submitted to the Vampire King’s rule once our monarch fell. Wolf citizens who were older, wiser, stronger than I am quickly fell into place. The threat of violence can do that. I didn’t realise that a mere gag would be equally effective.

After another long sip, Nathaniel sets his glass down with a clink and crosses one leg over the other, ankle resting on his knee. “Well, Kira. Let me acquaint you with your situation. First, it’s an hour’s ride to the Academy.”

I glance at him in surprise.

He smiles. “Oh yes. We’re not far. The portal cut our travel time in half. We’ll be out of the woods soon—only literally, of course.”

I roll my eyes and stare out the window.

He continues, “Of course, I could have had us portalled directly to the Academy…”

He trails off, and I know he’s waiting for me to look at him again.

My curiosity gets the better of me, and he smiles when our gazes meet.

“However, I thought you might appreciate a chance to get your bearings before being thrust into student life. A little…pre-enrolment induction.”

His gaze drifts deliberately to the gag, then the collar.

His meaning sinks through me. He could have taken me straight to the school. Which means this entire carriage ride is a farce. It isn’t transport. It’s a game.

An ‘induction’, whatever the hell that means.

Something cold slides through my bones, the spacious carriage seeming to shrink around me.

I’m trapped.

Trapped with a monster more cruel and twisted than I could ever have imagined.

The Vampire Prince, no less.

And if he’s truly anything like his father…

No.