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I want this to last, but there’s too much I want to do with her. Fuck her all over the manor. Cum in every hole. Claim her forever.

“You’re so good at this, baby.”

My hand is in her hair, gripping it tightly without pulling.

A smile breaks across her face, but then tightens her lips. I’m losing control and she senses it. So she moves her head faster.

My balls clench as I’m stuffed in her mouth. Cum pulses out in hard, rapid bursts.

She keeps her mouth open to collect it all. Wicked little thing, with her lashes fluttering as she swallows it down.

“That’s my good girl.”

I pull her to her feet, right into a kiss.

We have a week until the final Trial and the vote. To survive it with my sanity intact, Zaiya will spend most of it naked and at my mercy.

I’m going to fuck her constantly until she says it’s time to kill Frank.

CHAPTER 38

ZAIYA

Highstone Manor speaks. History lingers within these walls, preserved in a pocket untouched by time. A museum of grief dressed as luxury.

In the music room, a phonograph plays a slow, crackling song, the needle hissing softly between notes. A song that belongs to another century. Heavy curtains cover the windows, even though there’s still daylight. Edwin’s aversion to the sun keeps him locked inside until night falls.

We stretch across a chaise lounge like characters from some 19th-century novel, pretending we’re not living in a nightmare. His head rests in my lap, blonde hair spilling over my thighs. Indoors, it appears darker, though I still make out the natural highlights as I run my fingers through it.

I’m surprised he agreed to leave the bedroom. We’d been in there for two days straight. Two days of the world consisting of only his bed and the intensity of his desire. Anger still burned inside him, and he took it out on my body with the way he thrust into me and squeezed my flesh as if he were trying to make us one.

I didn’t mind that part.

But I want to spare him the pain.

His brothers remain in the dark about Frank. He said it would create chaos that would ruin everything if they knew. So I keep the secret, surrounded by men who would reduce the world to ash if the truth reached them.

Edwin won’t even be in the same room as his grandfather.

Dealing with Frank after the Sovereign vote is the right call, but Evelyn and Calista weigh on my mind. He hid an entire identity behind a name change and a good Christian smile. If he can conceal something that large, what else has he buried?

Edwin won’t let me out of his sight to search for answers now. He claims it’s for my safety. The safest place in the world is this fortress with men eager to kill. At least this cage feels like a sanctuary.

My gaze drifts down to Edwin. His eyes remain closed. Even at rest, tension lingers in his jaw. One hand flexes against the cushion under him as if his body is bracing for impact. I stroke my fingers through his hair. The music plays on.

Marcus steps in like he has a secret he’s itching to tell. He stands in front of us with his hands behind his back, patiently waiting for acknowledgment.

Edwin doesn’t bother to lift his head. “What do you want?” His voice is flat, bored on purpose.

A balloon pops up on a ribbon behind Marcus, bright gold against the dark room. It bobs above his head like a cheerful insult.

Happy Birthday.

My fingers stop in Edwin’s hair.

“Edwin?” I ask. “It’s your birthday?”

His eyes open and he raises his torso to sit up like a vampire rising from his coffin.