Chapter 11: A Throne of Ruin: Chapter 11

Hadriel led me down the quiet hallway on the second floor. Everyone had wandered off, having finished their hobbies for the day. Most doors stood open, the rooms dark. At the end of the hallway, the wide double door stood mostly closed, only showing a slice of what lay beyond.

“I’m surprised it took you so long to get down here,” Hadriel said. Leala had stayed behind in the tower to put everything away and order up a tray of bread and cheese for whenever I wandered back up. I hadn’t wanted to be rushed. I’d brave the demons in the hallways to spend more time perusing. “I’d thought it was the one thing you wanted above all else in the castle.”

“In the castle, yes.” I felt the nervous excitement coiling in my belly. “In the world, no. Making the nulling elixir was more important.”

“You’re a good human, Finley.” His tone was uncharacteristically serious. “You’re a good reminder of what life outside of this accursed castle could be.”

“We’ll get back to that someday.”

“We can’t return to something we never had. The nobles were pompous assholes, and the king was a tight-fisted ass. They worried about themselves and their kind and looked down on the common man. We would’ve been taxed for a cure.”

I remembered Nyfain’s comments about my generosity. I shrugged. “Desperate times, as they say.”

“Indeed.”

Hadriel put out his hand to stop me and then walked into the library and turned around, pushing the door mostly closed. I heard something click, and then he pulled both doors open at the same time, a grand gesture. He stepped to the side and swung out his hand.

“Milady. Welcome to the library of your dreams.”

I beamed, crossing the threshold.

My stomach dropped out of my body. My smile slid off my face. I had to squeeze my legs together so that I didn’t pee myself.

“Oh…” That was all I could get out.

He led me forward on my suddenly wooden legs. My face had lost feeling. I simply could not believe what I was seeing.

First, the sheer size of the space was incredible. It was bigger than two of my house, one stacked on top of the other. Much bigger. The ceiling arched over the enormous room, and there were little pockets within the beams covered in hand-painted murals. Shelves lined the walls, decorated with wood columns between each of the stacks. A ladder attached to a metal rod at the top could be slid along to access the top shelves. Above that, a balcony constructed of the same polished wood ran around the room, the walls lined with more books.

The wood floor was covered in plush rugs, and comfortable seating options abounded, from recliners to piles of large pillows that lay everywhere—on the furniture, in piles on the ground, and in little cushioned corner nooks, or cleverly positioned between the stacks. It wasn’t just a place for browsers—it was a place for readers. It was a place to settle in and stay for a while.

The deliciously sweet, musty smell of old books wafted toward my nose. It was a smell of comfort, of knowledge, of fantastic adventures and faraway places. It worked into my mind and relaxed my body.

“Where would I even start?” I breathed, trailing my fingertips down my mostly bare chest.

I’d decided to wear one of Cecil’s dresses. The neckline plunged to my sternum, collected under my freely hanging breasts, and from there the material skimmed down my stomach. Five straps fit over my shoulders, two on one side and three on the other, each of them holding the dress a little differently. A slit ran up my right side and the bottom dragged against the floor in the back. It was elegant and plain and comfortable, and I felt slinky and sexy when I wore it. Underneath I wore no underwear, mostly because I was still embarrassed about the wild lady beard that definitely needed to be tamed. I hadn’t dusted my face with makeup or bothered to change my hair from the messy bun. I’d just wanted the feel of the soft, flowing material against my skin.

“How about with finding the place you will read?”

His sandpaper voice flowed over me. Goosebumps coated my skin. My animal eagerly sat up and took notice.

Hadriel drifted to the side as Nyfain walked toward me from around a corner deeper in the library. Clearly there was more to it. His gray T-shirt, though a bit looser than the white ones he usually wore, stretched across those impossibly broad shoulders. His jeans hugged that delicious bulge.

“Goddess have mercy on us mere mortals,” he said as his gaze roamed over me. “Cecil does not disappoint.” He glanced to the right. “Hadriel, that will be all. Close the doors after you. We are not to be disturbed.”

I smiled, dropping my gaze in sudden embarrassment. When Nyfain reached me, he fitted his hand below my chin. Pressure had me looking up, meeting his golden gaze.

“You are a vision, Finley.”

I ran my hand alongside my face, then touched my hair. “I didn’t dress up or anything. This is a lounging dress, he called it.” I shrugged. “It’s comfortable.”

His smile was soft, and his gaze hadn’t left my eyes. “You don’t need your hair and makeup done. Your inner beauty radiates out of you, enhancing what nature gave you. The dress blends into the background. Your fire, your strength, your unyielding power… You are… You take my breath away.”

He bent slowly, grazing his lips across mine. I placed my palms against his chest and then slid them up and hooked them around his neck as the kiss deepened. His tongue swept through my mouth, his taste delighting my senses. His smell beat that of the books, balmy and comforting and sensual, like a lazy afternoon in the sun beside a high mountain lake.

When he backed off, he slid his tongue down the side of my throat. He kissed softly where he’d bitten me on the neck in the past. He moved down then, his lips lingering at the base of my neck. My heart sped up. My core tightened.

“This dress would show a mark very well,” he growled. He sucked in my fevered skin to the point of pain.

“Hmm, yes.” I tilted my head, outside of myself, not thinking about anything other than the heat of his mouth and how desperate I was for the sharp stab of his teeth in my flesh. “Please.”

He pulled off, my skin popping out of his mouth. The air caressed the new mark, chilling it.

my animal thought desperately “I can’t,” Nyfain said, as if hearing her. Or maybe he was talking to his dragon. “I have to…stop.”

He put his arms around me, his palms flat, feeling the soft fabric against my flesh. He cupped my butt then slid his hand across to the other cheek before coming back. The other hand reached up along my front as he nibbled my lips, his kiss sending me into a state of anticipatory bliss. I moaned softly, my pussy pounding, needing to be filled.

He pulled back, his eyes dark with arousal. The bond blistered with it. He stared at me for a long time, indecision coloring the bond. Once again, his eyes seemed to be reaching down through me, searching for answers to undisclosed questions.

“Come.” He took my hand, threading his fingers through mine. “Let me show you around.”

I staggered a little, and he waited for me to regain my composure. In a moment, I followed him, trying to ignore the wetness sliding down my upper thigh, my animal’s cry of frustration at his change of pace.

“I’ll take care of you before I leave, I promise,” he rumbled, pulling me around the corner.

“What do you mean?”

“My dragon promised that we would fulfill your carnal needs, right? I haven’t been holding up my end of the bargain.”

my animal purred.

Shivers coated my body, and heat pounded in my core. I didn’t trust myself to speak. Thankfully, my brain took over, overriding my body’s tightness.

Nyfain walked me through the various sections of the library, showing the little metal plaques that identified each area by genre. They were tasteful and inconspicuous, blending into the overall beauty. We walked all the way around the room, toured the second story, and Nyfain paused frequently for me to brush my fingers across a spine or take out a book and look it over. At the end, he led me to a darkened corner in the very back. A forward-facing lounger sat behind a large hanging tapestry. The table beside it held a leafy green plant that seemed to block the view.

“If you sit a certain way, you can see most of the library. I’ll show you in a bit. Right now…” He gently tugged me deeper into the corner. Behind a squat shelf, a collection of volumes chronicled the historic laws of foreign kingdoms. He reached behind one of them and flicked a switch. A door popped open within the bookcase.

“Your mother’s secret library,” I said with an excited grin.

“I’m still waiting on a letter from you.”

The hidden space was about as big as my living room back home, crowded with all kinds of books in no particular order.

“She liked to hunt for her reads,” he explained as I browsed, biting my lip. “She liked to pull down books and leaf through them. If something caught her eye, she’d read the book. If not, she’d try again, and again, until she finally decided to pick something.” He stood by the open door, watching me look. “I remember being so annoyed by how long it took her to pick a book. That was before I knew about this room. She did it with all books. Later on, I’d settle in and read while she hunted for a find that would appease her in that specific moment in time. She said that there was a book for every single moment, and she was not satisfied until she had found it.”

“That’s so cool. I haven’t heard of anyone else doing that.” I ran my hand across the books. “So in here, where there was no rhyme or reason, she didn’t even have to limit herself by genre. She could just pick at random and had no idea what she would get.”

“Yes, exactly.” He waited a while for me to look them over, trying her method.

“I think I’d rather read the synopsis.”

He laughed. “Me too.”

“Maybe I’ll try her method when I’m indecisive.”

I wandered toward him, my hands behind my back. My breasts popped out. He glanced at them and then did a double take. Hunger flared in his eyes.

“What will you choose for me to read?” I asked.

He shook his head slowly and reached out, cupping a breast. His thumb circled the nipple, and I closed my eyes as pleasure speared through my body. “I won’t pick right now. You need to roam and explore. Pick a few for yourself.”

“So what is the system for checking things out?”

He kissed beside my lips, then on them. “There isn’t one. Not for you. Use this library as your own. I know you’ll treat it with the respect my mother would’ve wanted.” He sucked in my bottom lip and nibbled. “I wanted to show you the library myself because of the secret room. No one else knows about it. Not even the staff. Not anyone left alive, anyway. Keep it closed when you’re not in it. Or when you are, if you’d like. It’s hard to see this corner from the rest of the library, and the books kept here, right outside this room, are the most boring in the kingdom.”

“I’ll read them anyway. One day.”

His smile was sad. He didn’t respond.

I wanted to ask about his past, about his ex-fiancée, but he was already pulling me out of the room and settling me on the lounger.

“Check out the view while I lick your pussy. Or would you like some other means of pleasure?”

He didn’t wait for an answer as he slid his hands up the outsides of my legs, gathering the material with them.

I watched the fabric shimmer as it bunched, revealing more and more of my thighs. He pushed the dress up to my waist and growled when he saw that I wasn’t wearing any panties.

“I need to go to the salon before I wear the panties he made me,” I whispered.

“You don’t, but if you would like to, we can book you into the salon when we have time. How’s that?”

“We?”

“Yes. No one will be touching you but me. I’ll take care of whatever you need.”

He trailed his lips up my inner thigh.

“Spread your legs,” he commanded, and I whimpered as lust came over me.

I did as he said, gasping when his hot mouth went for me immediately. He sucked in my clit and thrust two fingers into my pussy, stroking just right. I arched into him, moving my hips in rhythm with his fingers, with the suction of his mouth. I gripped the lounger, no staying power at all. I hadn’t been self-pleasuring in the evenings. It had been some time since I’d felt something this good in a place so intimate.

I groaned his name. Pushed up to his mouth. My body tensed, so tight. So hot. Right there—

The climax tore through me. I shouted his name, vibrating in bliss. He licked up my middle, tasting my release, and then pushed up, his knee between mine, his kiss on my lips. I tasted myself on him and threw an arm around his neck.

“My turn,” I murmured against his lips.

“I wish. I have to go. The demon king’s creatures must’ve been released by now. You can stay here for another hour, at the most, then head up to the tower. No one is supposed to use the library for their sexual adventures, but the parameters I’ve set are often overlooked when I’m gone. I don’t want a demon to find you here. Not until we can start some long overdue combat training.”

I snuck in another kiss with a smile. “Awesome. I badly need it.”

“Yes. I am aware.” He gave me another kiss before parting. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Just an hour, okay? I’m trusting you.”

He really should’ve known better than to trust a bookworm in a library.

Two hours later, I sat at the edge of the lounger, ready to close the book and walk upstairs. A small pile of volumes sat at my feet, one for every mood. One of them was about frogs.

But it was colorful and eye-catching, and I’d leafed through it and decided I wanted to know more. I had two books for heavy reading, plus one adventure story I was reading at a lightning pace because it was so good. There was also a picture book for children about shifters in my pile. I figured that would help me learn about my people, about myself, and then I could go on a deeper research mission.

I finished a paragraph, and then decided I’d just as soon finish the chapter before I closed it and went upstairs. I would’ve gone up sooner, but the lounge was so comfortable, the library so beautiful, and the little reading nook was nice and cozy. I had every reason to believe it would become my favorite place in all the world very, very soon.

Voices bled through the images dancing in my head. I ignored them, flipping a page. They got louder, and then a woman laughed in a seductive way.

I turned my head a little to maybe look and see what was happening, but the villain had a knife to the hero’s throat, and it just wasn’t a great time to clue into reality.

A deep baritone spoke, and then another, and it became obvious there were other people in the library. I ignored them, nearly at the end of the chapter now. It was time to get going, anyway. I could continue reading in my room, undisturbed.

A feminine moan brought me up short. I cranked my head around and then leaned back on the lounger to look through the little space between the plant and the tapestry. From there, I could see most of the entrance, tinged green on one side.

A woman sauntered farther into the library, a red dress flowing over her shapely hips and cutting across the top of perky breasts. Two guys walked behind her, one closer than the other, both wearing dress shirts and black slacks. There must be a fancy dress party on tonight. Or maybe they just wanted a reason—or needed no reason—to dress up.

“This room is off-limits,” said the guy in the back, glancing up at the second story. “If the master finds us in here, he’ll rip our throats out.”

“He’s never around at this time of night…” She stopped by the couch and fanned her arms across the back.

The first guy walked around her, putting his back to me, and the other stopped a bit away. “I don’t know…” He messed with his spiky white-blond hair as if nervous.

“I thought you both wanted to plug my holes. Isn’t that what you said, Thomous?” the woman said, sticking out her chest.

The guy closest to her, with hair down to his shoulders, leaned a hand against the back of the couch. “That is what we said, Thomous, don’t you remember? How long has it been since we got to fuck our fair lady here without the demon magic messing with our heads?”

“We can do it anywhere, that’s the thing. The master—”

“Is a little less rigid lately now that he’s got his captive to fuck. If he’s here, which he isn’t, he’ll be with her.” She licked her lips. “Besides, it’s more exciting because he might catch us. Maybe he’ll take a turn with me, too.”

The first guy ran his hand down her bare arm. “Come on, Thomous. We don’t want to keep her waiting.”

The woman looked at Thomous as she ran a hand across Long Hair’s shoulder. He pushed in a bit closer, angling so I could see better. His hand drifted up her side and then over the swell of her breast. He bent to kiss her neck, kneading.

She moaned and tilted back a little, now reaching for Thomous.

I stared, horrified. I shouldn’t be watching this. This was an intimate moment that was clearly about to get sexual. I needed to remove myself and give them some privacy.

Except…there were only two exits in the library, and they’d see me if I tried to use either of them. I could slink back into the secret room, but what if the movement caught their attention?

Of course, I could also go now, before anything happened. They’d talked a dirty game, but no one had exposed themselves—

Long Hair pushed the top of the woman’s dress down, exposing her breasts, and there went my chance of a non-awkward escape.

My core tingled with uncomfortable arousal. This shouldn’t be turning me on. It absolutely shouldn’t be. Fuck, though, it totally was.

Long Hair bent and fastened his mouth to one pink nipple.

“Hmm, yes, baby,” she said as Thomous finally ventured closer, the outline of his rigid cock filling his trousers.

He palmed her other breast and bent to capture her lips. She felt down with both hands, one for each cock, stroking through their pants.

“Yes,” she said again as Thomous kissed down her neck and gave her a little nip. “Hmm.”

Long Hair bent, pushing down her dress as he did so, and it stretched over her hips and fell to the floor. He knelt in front of her and rubbed between her thighs, kissing her navel.

She reached over and undid Thomous’s zipper. He cupped the back of her head as he kissed her, his tongue delving into her mouth while Long Hair pulled down her panties and put his hands on her upper thighs, spreading.

Instead of complying, she pushed away. With a sultry smile, she stepped out of her dress, still in red high heels. Her hips swayed as she walked around the couch on the left, in full view of me. She’d just made this a spectator sport.

My core pounded, and a gush of wetness made me decide to push my limits. What was a little voyeurism among friends?

I pushed the plant back just a little and settled in, pushing a knee wide and bending my leg. I dipped my hand up into my dress, brushing my fingers across my wetness. I pushed in a finger as I continued to watch before lazily circling my clit.

Honestly, they were the ones doing it in public. She’d even said there was a thrill in potentially getting caught. Besides, hadn’t Nyfain admitted to watching the goings-on of the castle? He hadn’t been the least bit bashful, and given all the stuff Hadriel had said, no one would care one bit.

Game on.

The woman sat on the couch, her thighs spread, giving me an eyeful. Her pussy was completely shaved, not a tuft of hair in sight. Long Hair met her there quickly, stripping his shirt and pulling down his zipper. He put a knee on the couch beside her, his crotch at her eye level.

She reached in and took out his cock, eyeing Thomous as she licked the tip. Long Hair reached over and caught her nipple between his first finger and thumb, rubbing and pulling. She sucked him in as Thomous reached them, his own shirt off. He didn’t pull out his cock yet, though. Instead, he bent between her thighs.

She leaned back to give Thomous more room but also sideways so as to reach Long Hair’s cock. Positioning was clearly the key to having multiple partners. I could just see Thomous lick through her folds, reaching her clit and fastening his mouth. He slid his fingers into her, eliciting a heady moan.

Long Hair pushed his cock into her mouth. She fisted the base and sucked him in in greedy slurps, her cheeks hollowing as she did so. Long Hair groaned, tilting his head back in bliss for a moment. He looked down between her thighs, where Thomous was sucking her clit and using hard, heavy finger strokes, beating into her pussy—happy to do a little voyeurism himself.

“Make her squirt,” Long Hair said as he kneaded her breast. “Make her squirt, bro.”

Thomous rose and took a battle stance, it looked like, with his hard cock poking out of his pants. He slammed his middle and ring finger into her glistening depths, slapping her pussy with his palm.

She groaned around Long Hair’s dick before pulling away, still pumping with her hand. Her mouth gaped in ecstasy at Thomous, who was finger-banging her aggressively. Her upper body lifted off the couch and tensed, straining, her mouth hanging wide open now, reaching for that orgasm.

“Yeah, baby. Come on, baby,” Thomous goaded, working his cock with the other hand. He increased his tempo, his fingers slamming into her, leaning over a little to get more muscle behind it.

“Oh goddess, yes, ,” the woman said, pushing her knees out further, her whole body tense. She let go of Long Hair’s dick and gripped the couch. “Yes, yeee—

!”

She shuddered with a loud cry, leaning her head back and arching. Her pussy erupted, spraying her orgasm over the edge of the couch and onto the floor like a fucking waterspout.

My fingers stilled. I’d never even known that was a thing, and I…I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. I mean…that was a mighty powerful orgasm, but now it was everywhere. I definitely would be sitting on that couch.

Thomous peeled off his pants and shoes and sat down beside the woman, his knees wide and his shaved balls on display. The woman repositioned herself and knelt between his knees, taking his cock into her mouth. Her head started bobbing.

Long Hair came around behind her, and in one fluid movement he pulled her ass into the air and threaded his cock into her waiting cunt. He took hold of her hips and pulled back as he thrust, his skin slapping against hers. She moaned, taking more cock now, her hand pumping.

I made circles around my clit, pleasure starting to build inside me. I ran my fingers down my slit and returned, everything slick. I wanted Nyfain here with me, a partner in crime, watching the others while we fucked in tandem. Naughty and sexy and titillating.

Long Hair pulled out as she was still bobbing on Thomous. He knelt behind her and spread her ass cheeks wide. He bent between them, and though I couldn’t see exactly what he was doing, I got the impression he was circling or prodding her asshole with his tongue. He was getting it ready. This was about to get real.

“Hmm,” she said, stilling on Thomous for a moment to take a little time.

Long Hair bobbed a bit, clearly now fucking her ass with his tongue. My core pounded, and I dipped my fingers deep into my pussy while half frowning. Great goddess, that was erotically filthy. But somehow incredibly hot, because I knew he was about to fuck her ass and also likely didn’t give two shits about anything else. If it wasn’t my tongue, who cared?

I worked my fingers hard, breathing fast now.

He put his face in her cheeks, really going after it. She was moaning hard, stroking Thomous, who had reached out to palm her breast.

Long Hair pulled back and stood, stroking his cock a little while repositioning himself.

I slowed, wondering what would happen next. They all seemed to be enmeshed in some sort of erotic dance, the steps known, the players clear on what to do and when. No bumbling around with various holes for this experienced crew. They were masters.

Thomous stayed where he was, receiving a scorching kiss from the woman before she turned around, using the back of the couch for support. She planted her feet on the couch cushions on either side of Thomous’s legs. Thomous grabbed the sides of her butt and held her for a moment.

Long Hair rifled through his discarded pants and came back with a little canister. He scooped out something that looked like gel before pocketing it again. Whatever it was, he smeared it down Thomous’s cock, stroking a couple times while he was there, running his thumb across Thomous’s tip.

“Hmm, yes, boys,” the woman said.

Long Hair leaned forward and kissed her, his hand leaving Thomous’s cock and finding her asshole. He rubbed the gel across and then in, pumping a couple times with his fingers.

“Yeah,” Thomous said, lowering her again.

“Fuck her in the ass,” Long Hair said.

Thomous rubbed the head of his cock around her asshole before pausing at the opening. She lowered herself down slowly, the tip getting resistance at first. She backed off before sitting down a little more, leaning forward. Up and then back down, a little further. His cock pushed into her ass, deeper and deeper. As she lowered this time, he thrust up, clearly unable to contain himself, fully seating within her ass.

“Oh fuck, baby,” she said in a throaty moan. “Hmm, yes.”

I bit my lip harder. Holy fuck, this was hot. Crazy but hot. My fingers moved faster. Gleefully. This was so wrong and exciting, for all of us!

She rose on him, his cock pulling up a bit before she sat back down. He pulled her hips as she did, thrusting into her. Long Hair bent to her clit, licking and sucking while she worked her ass around Thomous’s cock. In a moment, Long Hair rose and pushed forward, and I wanted to run closer and get a better view. As it was, I leaned up a bit more on the lounger, peering around the plant.

Long Hair crested her opening with his cock, paused, and then slowly but firmly threaded it into her pussy. She groaned, he groaned, I groaned—we all groaned!

He fully sheathed his cock, and I wondered how incredibly full she must feel. Give her one more guy, and she’d have some serious dongage on her hands.

Long Hair pumped forward, and she leaned back a bit farther, pushing with her hands and feet to bridge off Thomous a bit. In a moment, I saw why. Both guys were pumping into her, Long Hair more than Thomous, and I bet they were kinda rubbing against each other inside of her body, getting more friction. The bottom dick moved in and out of her ass, good and deep, and the top thrust hard into her pussy.

I rubbed my clit, watching in awe, my body taut. The guys kept going, grunting, the woman moaning long and loud. Everything sped up, their cries louder, my breathing faster. They were right there, I could tell. I was right there with them, Creep-O-Meter going off big time.

The door slammed open and a roar filled the space. Everyone froze in terror.