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  Unaware of her doom, the princess glided toward us with her stately smile.

  I waited for my cock to shoot up at the sight of her lovely physique, but it stayed down. My former erection had been accidental. Relief passed over me, followed by unexpected sharp disappointment.

  The aristocrat angels looked puzzled and dissatisfied, though for a different reason than mine. They had gathered like vultures waiting for a corpse, but the princess appeared unimpressed and unconcerned. Her heartbeat hadn’t risen above normal as she crossed the marble floor of red and gold.

  The court’s interest only increased. Mysthian females were said to be remarkable in bed, and the aristocrats had bet on how long the fey princess could last in the king’s. The lewd way they ogled her suddenly enraged me.

  A spark of black lightning surged to the tips of my feathers.

  Cool off! No need to be aggressive. The alien princess had invoked sexual feelings in me briefly. Her scent hadn’t excited me again. She was nothing to me. I should not be bothered by how others looked at her or that my brother would use her in unthinkable, despicable ways.

  I was who I was. I had no empathy in my heart and no mercy in my bones.

  The Princess of Mysth approached the throne with a touch of icy indifference. That was a good move. If she wanted to survive in Atlantis for the first week, she must never show weakness. But did it matter? Even if she didn’t expire sooner, my brother would break her on their wedding night.

  The only one who had thrived in my brother’s bed was Victoria, his general and mistress.

  The Princess of Mysth stopped at the stairs of the dais.

  “Your Majesty,” she greeted King Agro first, then turned to my father’s astral self that looked as real as if he’d been there.

  We waited for her to curtsy or kneel before the Lord of All Angels, which was only proper. The whole universe was my lord father’s subjects. The princess inclined her head half an inch and said, “Lord of All Angels, Princess Rose Jekaterina Faylinn greets you. I hope you find Earth lovely, if you ever come to visit in person.”

  She’d seen through my father’s phantom self. That was a big score for her.

  But the nerve of the girl.

  She hadn’t curtsied. She hadn’t addressed my father like all other subjects: “At your service, my lord, I’m your humble servant.” She’d called him, “Lord of All Angels,” as if she and the highest ruler in the universe were equal.

  The princess was either naïve or insolent. However, in any Mysthian’s eyes, their princess was the sovereign of the planet. Based on that, she would probably counter us if we pointed out her error.

  But this was the Lord of the Universe she was dealing with. Those who had offended my lord father much less had suffered severe consequences that could chill anyone’s bones.

  Even I could not afford to affront my father.

  My father’s fathomless gaze fell on the girl, and she flashed him a syrupy smile. The full force of his probing stare didn’t freeze her a bit.

  My eyes sharpened.

  The earth magic must be in her—it was giving her such strength and courage to oppose my father. It was almost like seeing the Earth Goddess in a showdown with the Lord of the Universe.

  Could it also be the reason that the fey princess had been able to arouse me briefly? Had the earth magic taunted me?

  My brother grinned. The princess’s attitude toward my lord father had instantly won his fondness for her. He loved to see anyone, other than him, challenge my father’s authority. He didn’t care if the offender would be hung, as long as they defied the Lord of All Angels.

  My father regarded the girl with a deadly stare. He didn’t return her greeting or acknowledge her, but instead suddenly vanished.

  It was as if the princess’s presence had exorcised my father from Earth, or maybe he simply couldn’t stand her.

  But if I were the girl, I wouldn’t smile so soon again.

  Chapter 6

  PRINCESS ROSE

  I walked to the dais where the king and his brother awaited, not too fast and not too slow.

  Let them wait.

  Sunbeams bled into the room from high windows and crystal ceilings. Paintings of harvests and hunting and wars hung on every section of the walls.

  The aristocrat angels on each side of the aisles stared at me like hawks, watching my every step, magnifying every indication of emotion on my face, and waiting for my mishap. At my nearness, their wings—white, black, grey—unfurled threateningly.

  These were all predators who wanted nothing more than hunting and fun and power.

  My guards behind me growled, but I flashed a cold, amused smile at the angels’ sinister display, and the noises quieted down, until the only sounds were my companions’ and my feet padding on the marble floor of red and gold.

  I was young, but I was the future Empress of Mysth. I wouldn’t be the new game on their hunting ground. Instead, I intended to turn them into game.

  I had no illusions about the angel race. Even if I became their queen, they would never truly accept me. I might wear the title for a short period before their king disposed of me and took Mysth.

  I’d keep dangling the right to a claim on the twilight realm in front of the king until the day I struck. I must tread carefully before that. My team and I walked among the most deadly, merciless murderers.

  Danger winked at us as we stared into its face.

  I marched on without so much as a glance at the rest of the court.

  I had said a prayer to Earth Mother earlier, and now I thanked her silently for my steady steps and the new valor growing in my heart. I hadn’t sweated in fear, and my heartbeat hadn’t risen above normal.

  I stood before King Agro and greeted him, “Your Majesty.”

  This was the angel king, whom my emperor father wanted me to charm. As a parting shot, the emperor had warned me that while I stayed in Atlantis, King Agro decided if I got to live or die.

  The dark haired king was as striking as my spies had reported. His eyes were sky-blue, only they were also deadly cruel and tainted by madness.

  I then acknowledged the Lord of All Angels, a towering figure on the throne.

  Unlike his sons, who liked to fuss over their wings, the Lord of All Angels made his invisible.

  His hair was silver. He wore a long robe of white and purple instead of armor, but that didn’t make him less formidable.

  His eyes conveyed the power of the deepest universe and they knew not the difference between evil and good.

  He could have been one of the primordial beings, as ancient as the cosmos. Then I noticed something strange. I didn’t sense life essence in him. The Lord of All Angels was but an empty shell.

  Even so, his phantom self made me tremble inside. What would happen when the Lord of All Angels stood before me in flesh?

  No wonder the great Earth Mother had to hide from such power even when the angels had trespassed on our world and slaughtered her children.

  A cold panic formed inside me. How could I fight against such a fearsome force?

  Both the king and the high prince watched me with predatory intensity.

  Was this another test? They wanted to see if I could tell if their lord father was present.

  I raised my chin and met the angel lord’s probing, piercing gaze. He studied me as if he could strip my soul bare.

  What did he want to find in me?

  Despite my inner shudder, I didn’t cave in an inch.

  I did not have the great earth magic in me, but I was born with a natural resistance that would fend off any outside force that tried to invade my mind. The Mysthian royal bloodline’s inborn shield was the strongest on Earth.

  For a second, the Lord of All Angels looked surprised.

  Earth is mine, not yours. I hoped he could hear my stern message. You’re the trespasser, and you aren’t welcome here.

  I didn’t bow or kneel. I was sovereign in my own right.

  Then suddenl
y, the Lord of All Angels shattered his image and vanished.

  King Agro snickered.

  The high prince, however, watched me with the chilliest look.

  Chapter 7

  PRINCE SETH

  Agro took back his throne as soon as my father’s astral self flickered off.

  He leaned forward, his eyes beaming with deference toward the princess. The king and his future queen started exchanging pleasantries, hitting it off.

  I yawned as I listened to the princess asking how the king liked the planet of Earth. She hung on his every word and flattered him, and my brother chuckled like a hillbilly.

  I frowned deeply as the girl laughed at Agro’s jokes. She must be insane to think my brother funny.

  Despite her questionable sanity, the princess looked mesmerizing, basked in sunlight from the high arched ceilings. After a while I did not remember what she’d said but studied the light dancing in her eyes like liquid fire and the shifting smiles on her lips. Those soft lips were delicate flowers. How would it feel if I crushed my hard mouth on them?

  What did I think that for? Feminine beauty hadn’t touched me for ages.

  My annoyance increased as, the whole time, the princess didn’t even acknowledge me, and my brother had no interest in introducing me.

  I could feel my eyes grow colder. I wouldn’t tolerate being treated as a piece of decoration. In my long existence no female had ever ignored me like that, and this female’s effort to please my brother grated on my nerves.

  Was she so eager to court her doom? Her stroking of his ego and interest would spell disaster for herself. My brother was the cruelest being in existence, next to my father. He had no brake.

  My wings ruffled in exasperation.

  The princess turned her head toward me, her sunset-auburn hair flowing around her shoulders in curly waves. “Oh, look at my manners,” she said. A smile lingered on her lips, but its meaning had changed. It was no longer sweetened but lofty, sharp. “We completely forgot the young prince here.”

  Young prince? I hit her gaze with my direct alpha stare. I’d been shooting the stars and conquering worlds across the universe, before you were ever born, little girl!

  The king snickered delightfully. “Don’t mind my brother,” he said. “I’m quite surprised that you didn’t notice him. Females usually swarm to him at first sight.”

  The princess opened her mouth agape and then threw a hand over it. “Really? It’s hard to believe—” She purposefully gave me an once-over, as if I were about to be bid on at a slave market.

  She’d just gotten her revenge for my aggression toward her on the bridge. This fey female was vindictive.

  “Do you think maybe it’s his wings?” she consulted my brother, her smile amused now. “They seem restless and big, which surely draws a lot of attention.”

  Agro roared with laughter and wiped tears from the corner of his blue eyes.

  First, the princess had challenged my father, refusing to acknowledge her lower status, and now she looked down her nose at me while showing my brother the courtesy he didn’t deserve.

  The princess had abandoned all common sense and violated the etiquettes of a foreign court, and we weren’t just any court on Earth. We were the Earth’s new conquerors. She’d done this intentionally.

  The question was why?

  However, I wouldn’t put up with any kind of disrespect. Angels would kill for less.

  I wouldn’t strike down the princess since she’d just upgraded herself to my brother’s favorite plaything, and my father still had a use of her, but I would take out her lead guard. That would put her mouth in its proper place on her stunning, yet haughty face.

  I shot into the air, my wings fanning out with sparks of black lightning at their tips.

  The princess looked alarmed, but didn’t recoil.

  Her guards, who stood five yards apart as the protocol demanded, tensed, their hands on their swords. Every one of them was ready to charge me. The princess’s ladies-in-waiting had moved closer to her.

  My eyes skipped over their princess and landed on the biggest Mysthian warrior, her captain. I dove toward him, my blade appearing in my hand in an instant. I planned to snatch him up into the air and then drop him from the ceiling, and I wanted to see the look on the alien princess’s face after that.

  “You’ll not!” the Princess of Mysth hissed, her weapon out.

  As if that tiny thing could stop me. I sneered.

  Watch me, Princess, and pay the price for your insufferable insolence.

  Chapter 8

  PRINCESS ROSE

  The High Prince of Angels had tried to humiliate me earlier, and now he fluttered his wings impatiently to demand my attention and shot me an icy glare to warn me that he couldn’t be messed with.

  I’ll give you my attention, rude bastard!

  I was confident that no angels, not even the high prince, would strike me without King Agro’s nod of approval. My spies’ intel had stressed that the king and his brother were at odds. The more the prince went against me, the more the king would favor me.

  I sent the prince a condescending smile. “Oh, look at my manners. We completely forgot the young prince here.”

  The high prince was one of the most ancient, powerful beings among angels, though he looked like he was in his late twenties.

  The king laughed to tears. “Never mind my brother.” He backed me up. “I’m surprised that you didn’t notice him. Females usually swarm to him at first sight.”

  I could see why females swarmed to the prince, but I would never be one of them. I widened my eyes and threw a hand to cover my mouth. “Really? It’s hard to believe—”

  Want my attention? Here’s what you get. Any arrogant jerk deserved to learn a lesson in humility.

  I gave his wings an evaluation as if he were a stallion. “Do you think maybe it’s his wings?” I asked the king. “They seem restless and big, which surely draws a lot of attention.”

  The king laughed as if he’d never been so entertained.

  The prince’s cold grey eyes darkened, aggression brewing inside.

  Not used to being teased, was he?

  Before I could further test if he possessed any sense of humor, the prince rose into the air, his menacing wings sweeping to full length and blotting out the sunlight.

  Angels would kill if one looked at them the wrong way.

  I’d gone too far. I’d been too impulsive. I’d risked myself unnecessarily.

  I commanded my heart to stop pounding so hard, and my hand moved toward my hidden chakram around my left upper arm.

  I’d been trained with swords and bows among others, but the chakram was my favorite weapon. Few could escape my steel wheel—when it spun and hit my targets, heads often fell in clean cuts, and my chakram would return to me.

  Engraved with ancient runes and spells in pure gold, my chakram was a beauty. I knew earthly weapons couldn’t cut the angels, but my chakram wasn’t an ordinary earth weapon. It was one of a kind, forged by potent magic. It was pity that that craft had been lost ages ago and we couldn’t make more weapons out of offensive magic.

  It was my right to defend myself if the high prince attacked me. I would be glad to introduce him to my chakram.

  My guards surrounded me in a ring in a battle formation.

  The prince sneered, as if our efforts were laughable. His murderous look skipped me but settled on Hector. Then I realized I was never his direct mark.

  He would kill my captain of the guards in order to punish me.

  “You’ll not!” I cried, my chakram in my grip.

  Cold dread spread in me. My warriors would all die with me today because of my recklessness and miscalculation.

  When Mysth fell, it would be because I’d failed before I’d even started.

  Chapter 9

  PRINCE SETH

  Agro screamed in blind rage, about to hack at anyone in his way. If he hoped he could use this opportunity to get rid of me, then he wa
s seriously mistaken.

  One, he knew well that I wouldn’t violate the angels’ law if I took out only a Mysthian guard, even in the throne room.

  Two, the Princess of Mysth had offended me. Angels could stab someone if they so much as looked cross-eyed at us. The fey princess was the first one in millennia to insult me in public. I had the right to retaliate.

  Smelling a fight, the aristocrats stirred with excitement and drew blades in bloodlust.

  Though I reported only to my father, Agro outranked me in the realm of Earth. Even so, he couldn’t stop me from taking down a Mysthian guard today.

  Victoria, my brother’s mistress and general, cheered, eager for me to rip out the Mysthian princess’s throat. For that, she might even take my side if I crossed blades with the king.

  Black lightning flickering on my wings, I lunged toward the Mysthian lead guard, who only intended to defend his princess.

  Then the scent, the same perfume that had muddled my mind, hit me like a magic wave.

  I’d thought it had been an accident. I’d thought it couldn’t happen again, but it had returned in a vengeful douse. It smacked me in the face like hail when I had no face armor.

  Lust burned through my veins.

  Stunned, I inhaled and gasped. I couldn’t get enough of it. For a moment, I didn’t know what else to do but halt in the air and wait for the scent to evaporate.

  It kept coming, evoking a primal male drive that had been vacant for ages.

  My cock turned rigid and enlarged in my leather trousers.

  All thoughts escaped my mind, except that I wanted to mate with the fey princess right there, right now.

  I swept a glance over the throne hall—no one else seemed affected.

  I was the one and only target.

  The scent, irresistible, almost vicious, yet erotic beyond anything filled the room.

  One could fight the power of beauty or a seducing Siren’s voice, but how could one resist the scent that was part of air and wind? At the realization, I at once stopped inhaling, but it was already too late.