Chasing Scarlett: A Breeder Romance

7. The Oracle I

Everything hurts.

Again and again, I put one foot in front of the other, following Adeline and a set of maids whose eyes are glued to the floor. Several times, I’ve had to refrain from tripping on my gown and theirs as we descent the never-ending staircases. I should still be confined to my room, but Adeline thought it’d be nice if I got some air.

Especially after last night.

While everything that occurred before I passed out has been imprinted upon my brain, I can’t seem to force myself to remember what might have transpired after. If the princes slept in my bed, what the hell that pain was, and if, in fact, I’d truly seen the claws on my fingertips before passing out. I’d awoken naked, feet and nails covered in mud, and Adeline kept smiling from ear to ear as she brushed out leaves from my hair.

I have yet to let myself think of last night and what might have happened. In all honesty, the only reason I got out of bed despite the pain is because I might have a chance of escaping today.

She says the entire castle is in a frenzy. She wasn’t lying. Here and there, opulently dressed people, some devastatingly beautiful with arched ears, some both dashing and dangerous, flit across the halls in fine, black silk, their whispers as loud as the music coming from below;

There’s no heir. How can there be no heir? Those blood-fuckers will make a move. I never believed Dain to be a fool.

Was Riordan not due for the crown? Well, no heir does mean any of us are as entitled to the crown as the four princes.

Hopefully, the Oracle’s decree is something different. I weary of the Lycans ruling us. They say Lord Fionn has been pulling ranks. He’s powerful enough to seize the throne. The Fae haven’t ruled in thousands of years. It’s about time the Goddess stopped picking favorites.

Did you hear? The princelings brought home a human girl. I wonder what the Alpha Lord might think of that. Today is sure to be dramatic as hell.

I bet one of the four killed Dain. Or could be one of the many women in his harem. I wonder if Riordan might inherit his father’s harem. Or whichever of the princes who gets lucky enough to be crown by today’s end.

I focus on my steps, blending in with the maids. I have on their blue voluminous gown and a white head scarf hiding my hair. Adeline said I was pretty enough to pass off as Fae. I had no idea what that meant earlier, but I do now, and I think she’s f*****g delusional. You’ll understand soon.

If this morning is as chaotic as they all say it will be, sneaking out of here might not be so hard. Today, they mourn the loss of their ruler, hosting only the grandest party—revelry ever, and right after, some oracle-witch speaks the Goddess’s will, naming the next heir and whatever conditions that must be met before the coronation may hold. More than enough time to slip away and not be noticed.

The princes had brought me in a car. It’d have to be out there somewhere, though, I can’t say any of these people look like they’ve seen a car before. They have no electricity here, not to speak of the internet. f**k, I’d had to pee in a large pot this morning. Though, the halls are well lit, as well as the chandeliers, not with fire though. Adeline says its magic. I don’t doubt that.

My thighs have begun to cramp terribly by the time we reach the ground floor, and I’m limping through a crowd of hundreds. They fill up the entrance, their laughter as sharp as the tip of their ears. Adeline catches me staring at a green haired man with scaly skin and blue eyes and she yanks me forward before I can blow my cover. “Did you see that man? He had scales!” I whisper, my heart racing.

The only one in our group dressed in black—I assume she’s the Head Maid or something—looks back at me, disdain stark in her gaze. Her beady eyes flicks to Adeline. “Control your cousin, Adeline, lest she become food for the crows by today’s end.” To the rest of the group she murmurs, “Hurry along and join the others by the fountain. Eyes down, voices silent. I will not be held responsible for what might become of you if you interact with them.” Worry shakes her voice on the last sentence. “Mother guide you all, and stay away from the dark ones.”

“Paranoid much?” I joke with Adeline as we break from the group, but her eyes are dark with fear and worry. She’s trembling so hard, I can almost feel it. “Do not gaze upon them. Not even if they touch you. I shouldn’t have brought you.” She says the last sentence more to herself, her lips quivering.

We meet up with the ‘rest’ and I am handed a tray of desserts that smell so good, I snatch one piece of the awkward looking thing and pop it into my mouth. I practically moan at the explosion of such sweet flavors. I take another and devour it. Perhaps, it is because I have yet to have breakfast. This is so good. I wonder if I can bring some of them back with me to Ohio—whatever they are.

I am swallowing the fifth when Adeline returns with a tray of hers and leads me into the throng with several others following behind. I keep my gaze fixed on the ground for the most part, but my curiosity makes me lift my head every time someone lifts the dissert off my tray and all I see is devastating beauty. So much of it, my eyes seem to truly hurt.

As the last piece of dessert is picked off my tray, something catches my attention. There’s a group a few feet away from me, dancing. The dance in itself is entrancing, but that isn’t what has my attention. It’s the tallest of the seven. His head is bent over a maid’s, so close, he looks like he is kissing her neck.

The maid, a pretty redhead with unreal pink irises, has an expression that strikes me as…blissful. That would be fine if those eyes didn’t look glassy. Like she’s somewhere else, far from here, far from the entrancing music, seeing things I cannot. Her hands shoot out to grip the male’s shoulder and the fruit in my stomach turns to ash when another pale male crowds her from behind and his full, kissable lips pull back from…

His teeth don’t look right.

Two wickedly long and pointed canines jut from his gums and his eyes gleam a bright red when he sinks it into the woman’s delicate neck, while his hands slip into her bodice, fumbling her bare breasts. I stare, frozen to the spot as black blood spills down her neck—and a third man joins in, a long tongue lapping off the stain on her perfect skin.

I…I feel hot in my undergarment. The sight is absolutely revolting, and icy fear creeps up my spine, yet…there something else happening to me. They’re killing her and she doesn’t seem to realize this. She’s moaning and salivating and…and…I want that to be me. Her skirt is lifted, bunched around her hips and she throws her head back as a fourth—

“Scarlett!” Adeline hisses, and I blink twice, turning my gaze to her with reluctance. Her green hands are on my hands and I peer down to see I’ve begun to raise the hem of my dress. Abruptly, I pull back, breathing hard, sweating profusely. My nostrils flare and my chest heaves. “What…are they doing?” I ask, voice thick and husky.

She snatches my arm, attempting to pull me away, but I’m too stiff. “Feeding, and if you don’t move right now, that, will be you.”

Is…is that such a terrible thing? My eyes drift to the woman. I want to experience what she is. My core aches so terribly, I hiss when I clench.

Her eyes search mine and she cusses violently, the first I’ve heard from the woman since I came here. “It’s the endorphin rush. Your body is responding.” Her hands grip mine harshly, and for the first time, I notice I’m no longer holding my tray. Or hers. “I’ll take you aside for some air. Follow me before they smell you.”

“I don’t want to go outside,” I say, pulling my hands out of hers, and I snarl when she pushes me back before I can take one step in the direction of blissful pleasure. “Snap out of it!” she yells, earning more attention from those around us.

Including them.