"And after you give me my first heir, we will rule side by side and bring our enemies to their knees."
"You dream too much, darling," she purred as she gently removed his hand from her thigh. "I know why you've chosen me, and even if my father finds a way to force me to accept, you will never get what you want."
Her long luscious hair swayed in the wind as she leaned over the railing of the small boat. She admired the beautiful view of the river, it was peaceful but not for long.
Loud screams echoed through the air and it was the last thing she could hear before she was enveloped by darkness.
Panic surged through my veins, I sat up and nursed my aching head. Flashes of the dream replayed in my mind, followed by a horrible headache.
"Your very first memory," Dassy said as she from the corner of the room. "You're handling this better than I had predicted."
"That wasn't a dream? No wonder it felt so real," I sighed as I adjusted in bed. "I don't remember that ever happening" I whispered.
"It's not your memory," she explained. "That memory belonged to your host, Audrey."
"You were both killed and betrayed by the men you loved and that's why she let you into her body," Dassy explained further.
"What's in it for her?" I asked.
"That's were your second task comes in," she retorted.
"Second task?" I gasped. "I've barely recovered from seeing my abandoned body."
"Lord Treton, a dark haired master of poison and dark magic. He is heavily armed with spells and potions, you must be very careful before you steal from him" Dassy instructed.
"What?…Steal?" I stuttered. "I can't steal… I've never stolen from anyone."
"After your host's death, Trenton betrayed her family and stole the Diamond of the Solstice, a family heirloom that kept them safe."
"Slow down, Dassy. All these feels a little overwhelming," I whined.
"You have 12 hours" Dassy announced as she began to slowly fade into the light.
"Hold on…please wait" I begged. But it was too late. She had vanished, leaving me in a poorly decorated servant's room in my family's home.
"She's in here, come," a voice sounded from outside the door.
The door knob twisted slowly and Damian's brother walked in with another man and my stepmother.
The man was just as tall as he was with short dark hair and dark broody eyes.
I froze as my stepmother leaned over and inspected my body.
"She's obviously a runaway slave, she looks nothing like us," she declared.
"What an awful hair colour, must be some kind of hybrid human," she whispered as she gently probed my skin.
The two men looked among themselves but said nothing. Stepmother continued her assessment until she was satisfied.
"You're lucky Prince Jamal found you before the rogues, you would have made an easy meal," stepmother laughed heartily.
"You can have this one, Lord Treton. I don't need more slaves," she said as she looked at me with a hint of disgust.
"Lord Treton?" I whispered under my breath.
He was the one I had to steal from and fate had brought him right to me.
"What's your name, girl?" Lord Trenton asked.
"Marcella," Jamal answered hastily. "Her name is Marcella."
"I'm sure the girl can speak for herself," Lord Trenton sneered.
"She's hurt and she's in no condition to serve," Jamal argued.
"I have the best healers back at Dinari, she will be treated before she resumes her duties," Lord Trenton argued.
"You can choose to go with him or stay here in Versalis," Jamal said to me.
"She is a slave, she doesn't get to choose," Lord Trenton barked.
"Marcella, it's up to you. Choose," Jamal said, ignoring Trenton's outburst.
"I'll go with him," I whimpered. "I'll go with Lord Trenton."
Jamal's face fell and there was a hint of disappointment as he walked out without uttering another word.
Stepmother ran after him and I was left alone with Trenton.
"You are quite the flower," he growled as he ran his calloused palm up my arm.
"Now that you shall belong to me, I will work every single part of you until you have nothing else to give."
His threat sent shivers down my spine and for a split second, I stopped feeling guilty about having to steal from him.
I listened to him brag and babble about his wealth and the large castles in Dinari and with our brief interaction, I was able to tell a lot about who he was.
I sighed in relief when he finally got bored and left the room to get his horses ready. He was insufferable and I couldn't wait to finish this mission and hopefully never see him again.
"Do I need to kill a man in front of you before you learn to tell them not to touch you" a guttural growl echoed through the room.
Hades' figure slowly formed from the shadows and he took slow strides to the bed.
"How many times do I have to tell you, Kitten?" he snarled. "You're mine and I hate sharing."
"I am not an object you can own," I spat.
"Don't tempt me, Kitten," he snarled as he inched closer to me.
"Or what?" I taunted. "You'll kill me?"
He growled and wrapped his large hand around my neck. I gasped and twitched violently but he only tightened his grip the more I kicked and struggled.
"If you let him touch you again, I'll snap his scrawny fingers off. One at a time"....