Prologue: Morals? Non-existent
Tiberius
I’m forced to keep my distance as I scan the crowd for my chosen mate.
A grin curls on my lips at how familiar this feels, watching her from afar just like I did when she was a little girl in my slave quarters.
I miss those days.
Every day was an opportunity to discover something new about her. She held my attention longer than any woman ever had. She was my poison. Iwantedher to ruin me.
My preciousFlaw. My chosen mate.
When I finally spot her, Flaw is looking down at a kid. The ghost of a smile playing on her lips makes me pause. My nails bite into my palms until the metallic scent of blood fills my senses.
I’ve never seen her smile before. I hate it.
It took me years to erase that smile, to dismantle her sense of self and break her soul, and she had the nerve to destroy it all in a single night. My little Flaw spat on everything I had done for her and left to build a life away from me.
I spent years shaping her to my needs, but it was all for nothing. She failed to give me the one thing I wanted most. Her pride. All I asked for was a warm body under my mercy and a mind I could control, and she couldn’t even give me that.
I never expected her to betray me after everything I promised her.
She knew that if she complied, I would drape her in expensive jewels. I even promised not to bruise her tender flesh when I took her, no matter how much I longed to.
She never fully understood how lenient I was with her. She should have been grateful I chose her at all.
The only reason she escaped was because I had a soft spot for her. I let her roam my kingdom freely and allowed her to preserve her innocence for me, even when the wait gnawed at me.
She was special. Special enough that I let her remain naïve for far longer than I should have.
I made one mistake that night, and it cost me years without my mate and my subjects without their queen.
Leaving her alone with Timor was a mistake. My weak-willed brother let her overpower him because he couldn’t keep her in her place. He deserved what Flaw did to him. It was a result of his own failure.
I tamp down the urge to march up to her just to watch that smile slip. For now, I need to stay in the shadows.
I lift my hood over my head when Flaw turns her back to me. My gaze tracks her as she walks away, and my feet betray me with a step forward, dry leaves crunching beneath me.
One of the women snaps her head in my direction, but I’m not worried. She won’t be able to see anything through the cloak of darkness around me.
My flaw is wearing a short dress that makes my teeth clench at the sight of her bare legs. The hem of the dress mocks me, screaming that she no longer respects her future mate enough to cover herself decently.
I will remember this. When I get my hands on her, she will be punished for every act of defiance.
She is oblivious to my presence. Not for long. I’m here to take her back to where she belongs. My kingdom has been without its queen for too long.
Pride coils in my chest as she scans her surroundings like prey sensing a predator.Iinstilled that fear in her. I know she dreads the day I will come for her, and she should.
Once a woman catches my attention, I don’t stop until she’s between my teeth, helpless and mine to break.
Three large men, a child, and two beautiful women flank my mate, laughing like they don’t have a care in the world.
The Horsemen of the Apocalypse. The ones standing between my mate and me.
The first thing I noticed about my Flaw was her posture and the weapons she was strapped with. She has grown into a warrior. The Tetrad kingdom’s decision to let women join their ranks is disgusting, but it has given my mate a fragile illusion of freedom. One I will enjoy tearing apart.
Since the night Flaw left me without warning, I’ve searched for her day and night. I never wanted to experience life above ground, yet I sent my warriors across the human realm for her, but they never caught her scent.
