Reluctant Fae Read online

  Reluctant Fae

  Fae Prison Academy Book 1

  Margo Ryerkerk

  & Holly Hook

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Rebellious Fae Blurb

  Rebellious Fae Excerpt

  Nocturnal Academy Series

  Cruel Elites Excerpt

  About Margo Ryerkerk

  About Holly Hook

  Chapter 1

  A knock at the wooden library door made me sit up ramrod straight and shut the book on economics I’d been reading. You did not relax when you were a vampire’s slave.

  Nina, a middle-aged fae servant in a black blouse and skirt set, entered, and I stood, knowing by her stern expression that she was here for me and the news was not good. She looked down at the stack of supply chain management books I’d been reading and frowned. Reading wasn’t a normal pastime for a vampire’s official courtesan.

  “Nina?” I crossed my arms over my low cut, silk dress, which was more in line with my official status. Thankfully, my master had me only act as a courtesan on the surface.

  So far. My mouth went dry from the thought alone of my good fortune running out.

  “What are you doing, Miss Virgie?” Nina wrinkled her nose in disapproval.

  “Nothing.” I wasn’t officially forbidden to study at Steinberg’s library, but it wasn’t entirely appropriate for a courtesan.

  Nina pursed her lips. “Amber Steinberg is here and wants to see you in the sitting room.”

  I froze, then I regained my composure and readjusted my LBD and strutted over to the door in my pumps, even though I didn’t want to be anywhere near Steinberg’s creepy sister. “Of course. Would you be so kind and bring us tea?”

  Nina nodded and led the way down the corridor. My heels clicked against the stone floor, the sound echoing as I forced a smile on my face. Since my arrival at Griffin Steinberg’s mansion nearly half a year ago, I had often asked myself why he had purchased a courtesan when he never touched me. Courtesan fae were much more expensive than servant fae. And the errands Griffin sent me on around Denver seemed trivial. They almost felt like he wanted me to get out of the house and be seen, rather than something that needed to be done by me specifically, because any servant could do it. I tried not to question him too much and be grateful for my cushy position, both of which had become much harder a week ago when Steinberg’s sister Amber arrived from France, leaving her husband behind in their chateau.

  Nina reached the sitting room and opened the mahogany door. My heart raced into my throat, but I stepped inside to be greeted by velvet settees and ebony tables. To my disappointment, Amber, a middle-aged brunette with a strict pageboy haircut, was already sitting at the piano. Redness had crept into her eyes since last night, the sure sign of vampire hunger.

  “Lady Amber, Miss Virgie.” Nina curtsied and exited, shutting the door behind her and locking me in with a click.

  Amber motioned with her long, veiny fingers for me to come closer. “Virgie,” she cooed, flashing her fangs. “Let me have a look at you.”

  I tried not to grimace as her gaze slid over my body. I forced myself to step closer, not because I wanted to, but because I knew she’d enjoy whatever she had planned even more if I seemed reluctant. Since her arrival, Amber had been eyeing me the way a cat studies a mouse.

  Now she had me in a corner.

  Amber adjusted my black dress right above my breasts and trailed her hands down my sides. My skin tightened. She trembled with barely hidden need. So far, Amber hadn’t flat out asked me to pleasure her. It probably went against her strict upbringing, the consequences of which I had witnessed when she had dabbed her mouth a thousand times with her cloth napkin during dinner and had nearly choked when the desserts had come with the wrong spoon.

  I shuddered for a moment and struggled to stay still.

  Had Griffin Steinberg purchased me for his sister to keep it hidden that she was a lesbian? I imagined he’d do anything to keep her unstable ass happy. Focusing on those thoughts was better than the present.

  Amber’s hand grazed over my pubic bone, and I gritted my teeth. I had been trained as a courtesan, so her touch was something I was meant to endure, but Amber’s ambivalence regarding her true sexuality and desires was so much worse than if she had flat out made a request. She made me feel dirty. Her irises glowed with red as she cupped my ass, digging her fingernails into my buttocks. I closed my fists. Amber’s mouth fell open, revealing the tips of her fangs.

  My heart thumped, no doubt letting her smell my fear. Amber smiled and turned her gaze upward to meet mine. Only hunger lived there, unrestrained at last. She would bite me, maybe even drain me.

  I would have to use my persuasion skills and fast.

  “You wanted me to sing a song?” I met her gaze and willed her to stop touching me. Pressure formed behind my brows as I kept thinking, Pick a song. Pick a song.

  Amber must’ve snapped out of her lust, because she dropped her hand and faced the piano. “Yes, please.” The redness quelled in her eyes, and I held in my sigh of relief as I smoothed out my dress, wishing I could wipe away her touch.

  “Ave Maria.”

  I groaned inwardly. A song about Virgin Mary after Amber had pawed me. Yes, Amber definitely had a Madonna-whore complex.

  I maintained my concentration on Amber as I stepped back and sang. This is enough. All you want is to hear me sing.

  Despite Amber’s perversion, I had to admit that the song was a masterpiece. I loved singing the high notes and was disappointed when I reached the final one.

  “Very good.” Amber licked her lips as vampire hunger crept back into her eyes. She glanced behind me and smiled, making my heart sink. Despite me asking Nina to bring tea, she hadn’t showed up, and I had the feeling that it was at the behest of Amber. She was getting ballsy.

  Ask me for another song, I thought as a faint headache started between my brows. I was getting tired. Spending time around Amber always drained me.

  Instead of placing another request, Amber reached into her handbag and pulled out something coiled and black that shone in the lamp light. My stomach lurched. A whip. I swallowed hard. “Shall we play a game?” Amber licked her lips.

  “A game?” My terror leaked out through my high-pitched voice. Back at Nocturnal Academy, the prison school where fae were taught to serve vampires, I had feared a whipping for a transgression, but at least there, after the whipping was done, the beaten fae was left alone. Here, it would only be foreplay. Amber would break my skin, then lap up my blood as she forced my head between her legs.

  My position meant I had to submit and let her do whatever she wanted, but I couldn’t. I gritted my teeth. I would not let Steinberg whore me out. I would resist Amber and go to her brother even if it all ended in a punishment for me later.

  “Have you ever been whipped before, Virgie?” Amber’s voice was low and smooth. The monster wanted me to shake.

  Instead of lowering my gaze and playing the helpless girl she wanted me to be, the helpless girl she no doubt had been many times herself, I stared her down and stood tall. It was time to use my persuasion more directly even if that was m
ore dangerous. “You do not want to whip me.” I stared straight into her eyes, willing the words to sink into her brain.

  She opened her mouth, then closed it. Taking advantage of her confusion, I quickly added, “Why don’t we play Mozart’s ‘Queen of the Night?’” I hurried to the cabinet that held the piano notes and pulled out the piece.

  “Yes. ‘Queen of the Night’ it is. A very appropriate piece.” Despite her agreement, impatience lived between her words. My persuasion skills wouldn’t help me much longer. “But be quick, Virgie.”

  I arranged the notes wordlessly, feeling Amber’s hungry gaze drill into me. I sure hoped that me standing up to her wasn’t a turn on that I’d bitterly regret later. As I put my fingers on the piano, Amber rose and coiled the whip around her hand.

  “If you mess up, Virgie, I shall punish you.”

  Before I could respond, the door unlocked and sprang open, and Nina fell into a low curtsy. “Lord Steinberg,” she announced and retreated.

  Sweat ran down my nape, and I practically collapsed in relief as the tall man in a black suit, with salt-and-peppered hair and a three-day beard entered. My master.

  Amber quickly shuffled to hide the whip in her handbag, making the motion appear to be her adjusting her skirt. Lord Steingerg glanced quizzically between his sister and me. “What are you doing here, Amber? I thought you meant to depart last night for Europe.”

  I blinked. If Amber wasn’t supposed to be here, did that mean that Griffin didn’t know what his sister was trying to do to me? If he hadn’t organized it, then…No, I couldn’t tell him. Most likely, he was in denial of his sister’s sexuality and would accuse me of making up the story or worse, tempting her to cheat on her husband. Rule one in the vampire world was that fae took the blame. Always.

  “I decided to stay a few days longer. I told my pilot to wait at the airport. I miss the U.S.” Amber tugged on her pearl necklace.

  Steinberg nodded, emotionless. “If that is what you want, Amber, you are welcome to stay.”

  No love lost between those two. As far as I knew, Steinberg had seen his sister about twice since she’d arrived. My heart sank as I considered all the opportunities Amber would have to be alone with me in the next few days. The urge to run out of the room overcame me, but I remained rooted. Panicking would not help me.

  “For now, I must ask you to leave me and Virgie alone.” Steinberg moved closer.

  Amber shook her head, as if she couldn’t comprehend her brother’s words. Why did Griffin want to be alone with me? Would he blame me for his sister’s queerness? Maybe he had figured it out in the past thirty seconds.

  “Certainly, you can say whatever you must in front of me, Griffin,” Amber protested once she regained her ability to speak.

  Griffin jerked his head no. “This is sensitive information. You must forgive me, but since you are not part of this household, I must ask you to leave.”

  “Very well.” Amber huffed and smoothed her pencil skirt, shooting me a hateful look, as if this was my fault.

  When the door fell shut behind her, Steinberg walked over to the settees and motioned me to follow him. I sank into the velvet seat facing him. Sweat returned to my nape as I studied my master’s dark eyes and the tension that lived there.

  “I assume you’ve heard the guards talking about the recent demolition of Nocturnal Academy.”

  I nodded, forcing myself to sit still and keep a neutral expression on my face. My former school had been destroyed by a group of fae soldiers from the faeland who’d taken the freed fae students somewhere unknown. Rumors had it that Peony, an old friend of mine, had helped in the demolition, which put me under suspicion through association.

  “There’s been a lot of changes recently in our world,” Steinberg continued.

  I nodded again, heart in my throat, not daring to speak. I’d supplied Onyx, another former schoolmate, with information of Lord Vulthus’ whereabouts. Vulthus was the most despicable of the vamps and also an enemy of Steinberg. I’d assumed that Steinberg would be happy about Vulthus’s death, leaving me safe. What I hadn’t planned for was that Thorsten, Steinberg’s heir, would kill Vulthus and thus inherit Vulthus’ estate. Only made a few years earlier by Griffin, Thorsten was now a master vampire, unheard of given his young age. It meant Griffin and Thorsten now each had a seat in the Elites and thus more power, but it also gave Thorsten more independence. And while Griffin was mild by vampire standards, he was old school. Thorsten wasn’t. Rumors flew that he didn’t treat the fae he’d inherited from Vulthus like slaves and even paid them.

  If Griffin ever discovered that I had helped Thorsten gain his independence, he wouldn’t be happy. Steinberg’s other heir Jason had turned out to be a disappointment and with Steinberg being over five hundred years old, he desperately needed an heir to be taken seriously by the Elites.

  “Hopefully, the order will be restored soon.” Steinberg’s low voice tore me back into the present. Panic ran through me. He had been speaking for the past few minutes. How much had I missed? Since I couldn’t ask him to repeat himself, I simply nodded, and he continued. “The vampires, the fae...everything is shifting. I’m glad I made arrangements on how to deal with this new situation a while ago.”

  Worry gripped me, and I seized the arms of the chair. What was Steinberg talking about?

  Steinberg rose, signaling that the conversation was concluded. “Go to your room and pack your things immediately, Virgie. I have made arrangements for you to be transported.”

  Panic shot through me. “Where will I be taken?” I no longer cared if Steinberg punished me for being out of line. If he was reselling me, I needed to know to whom.

  Steinberg shook his head, expression unreadable. “I don’t know.”

  He didn’t know. I jumped to my feet, black dots dancing in front of my eyes at the sudden movement. “But—”

  “What is done is done,” Steinberg said calmly and opened the door of the sitting room where a vampire guard in a black uniform was waiting, ready to escort me to my chamber.

  I moved, my body as heavy as lead. If Steinberg didn’t know where my new owner would take me, the situation was very dire. He must’ve sold me to a vampire who was as horrible as Vulthus. Did Vulthus have any family? A vengeful brother or cousin? Vampire law didn’t oppose one vampire killing another one, but someone always paid. And this time, it would be me.

  Chapter 2

  After packing, I sat in my chamber for what felt like an eternity. I sat on my single bed, not sure what to do other than stare at the opposing wall.

  Why hadn’t I tried harder to get answers from Steinberg? Amber must’ve shaken me really badly. Or had the past reared its ugly head, making me too scared to react? I knew how to take control of a situation. But maintaining it was difficult, and once, trying to do so had almost cost me everything.

  No, I wouldn’t think about the Wild hunt. I got up and paced. My room was small but comfortable and located in the basement of Steinberg’s mansion, in a corridor away from the other fae servants’ quarters. The wooden walls were dark, my bed was soft, and my closet was full of dresses and business suits. Would I have all of these luxuries where I was going? What would my new quarters look like? By the end of tonight, I’d find out. Steinberg was one of the softer vampires. I’d heard stories from the other fae servants, Nina included, that some vampires kept their earthbound fae in cages and pens. I bet those fae wished that their ancestors had never left the faeland when the plague swept over it. Coming to Earth hadn’t been the answer. Instead of finding a safe haven, we were enslaved by vampires, weakened by iron, and forgotten by our brethren in the faeland.

  At least until recently. Some troops from the Summer Court had taken the students in Nocturnal Academy. But why? Steinberg was right. Things were changing. But rumor had it that the faeland fae looked down on us, the deserters, and believed that we deserved our enslavement.

  I had been one of the luckier fae. Now my luck had run out.

 
The clock crept toward eight, which marked sunset at this time of the year. My new master would arrive to collect me once the sun went down. I looked out my small basement window, positioned near the ceiling, and eyed the full moon rising. It was a beautiful, orange harvest moon.

  Where I was going, I might never see the outside again.

  Breathe, Virgie. I’d survived so far. This was just another step in my journey. I would sweet talk my new master. Maybe I could even manipulate him or her to advance me through the ranks of our society.

  I would handle this and not let things get out of hand again.

  At eight-thirty, footsteps approached my closed door. A knock followed. I adjusted my dress, grabbed my suitcase, and opened the door, determined to get the moment of truth over. Facing my new master with fear would not help me.

  The air tingled and crackled with magic that swept over me like a wave. I blinked, unsure of what I was seeing at first, then I inhaled sharply.

  The man standing in the corridor was fae, not vampire. His pointed ears stuck out from his messy, dark brown hair and his eyes were a brilliant blue-green with brown spots. He wore a green and gold uniform, an elegant one with forest green pants and golden stripes running down his thighs. Though skinny and a bit too tall for his frame, he stood with one hand behind his back like a royal dignitary. Golden buttons ran down the front of his green shirt, shining in the pale light.

  The air cracked with energy, the way it had done sometimes in Nocturnal Academy when we had been taught by pureblood fae. I was staring at a powerful fae who looked like he had come straight from the Summer Court.