"The wedding will be held in six days." He picked up the wine glass and swirled it. "It'll be a traditional vampire ceremony, with few human customs added. I've already sent invitations to every major court. In six days, this castle will be full of guests."
"Of course." Lyanna kept her voice casual. "You want maximum crowd to watch my humiliation."
"Yes, I want every vampire who saw you reject me six years ago to see you marry me willingly this time. I want there to be no doubt. You will stand before hundreds of nobles and choose me." He replied shamelessly.
"But this is a forced marriage." She finally said it aloud, finding the courage.
He put his glass down, and slightly leaned forward.
"You can refuse, you know. Even at the altar when everyone will be watching. You can say no. You'll die, of course, but you can choose death over a forced marriage."
"You're a monster."
"I already know that. Now, can we discuss the rules of your new life?"
"Didn't you tell me already?"
"Those were the basic rules. I prefer details." He took a sip. "In public, you will address me as 'Your Majesty' or 'My Lord'. You will stand beside me during official functions. You will smile and play the role of a devoted bride regardless of what you're actually feeling. If you rebel, or disrespect me in public you'll face the consequences. Understood?"
"Yes."
"Yes, what?"
Lyanna's jaw clenched.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"In private, as I already told you, you can call me by my name, but you will still obey my every command without question. I'll control what you wear." He gestured at her dress. "What you eat, where you go, and whom you talk to. Everything will be approved by me."
"Even my clothes?"
"Especially your clothes. You represent me now. I can't let you dress inappropriately or wear colors I don't like."
"You'll sleep in my bed every night after the wedding." He continued. "You'll attend all social functions I want you to, learn everything Helena teaches you about vampire culture, and perform your duties as queen flawlessly."
"What duties?"
"Managing household staff, writing to other courts, hosting guests. And of course, the most important duty, submitting to me physically whenever I desire, however I desire, with enthusiasm you may need to fake."
Lyanna turned pale. He was saying it so casually, as if he were discussing a business contract.
"What do you mean by submitting to you physically?
"The marital rights of a husband to his wife in vampire culture." His tone didn't change. "You agreed to this, Lyanna. You accepted my terms."
"I chose not to die!"
"And you're getting to live, just under my control." He took a sip again. "I don't expect you to enjoy it. But I do expect you to participate. Can you do that? Can you lie with your body as well as you once lied with your words at that altar?"
"You want me to be your whore?"
"No." Azrael replied immediately. "I want you to be my wife. You'll get a crown and a title while being my whore. A much better arrangement, don't you think?"
Lyanna stood up abruptly.
"You're sick."
"Sit down."
"No."
"Sit. Down." His voice made her knees weaken, but she kept standing.
"I said I'd marry you. I agreed to submit to you. But I won't sit here and listen to you talk about me like I'm your property." Her hands were shaking, but she kept her voice steady. "I'm a person. I have dignity…"
"You have what I allow you to have." Azrael snapped and stood up. His calm was gone, he looked like a predator now. "Dignity? Pride? You lost those privileges when you humiliated me. Now, I'll decide for how long you'll be powerless."
In a blur, he was in front of her, backing her against the wall before she could even blink. His one hand rested on the wall behind her head, caging her in.
"Let me be very clear, you're in this castle because I allowed it." He said softly, his face only inches away from hers. "You breathe because I permit it. You have no rights except what I grant you. And if you think throwing a tantrum will change that, you're even more naive than I thought."
"Then kill me. If I'm really that worthless, just kill me now and be done with it."
"You'd prefer death over this?" He sounded a little surprised.
"I just want to be treated like a human being. But since you've made it clear that's not an option, so yes, I'd prefer death over this life."
They stared at each other, faces inches apart, breathing hard. Azrael then stepped back abruptly.
"You want your traitor mother's sacrifice to be in vain?" He mocked her. "Maybe so. What else can I expect from a traitor's daughter?"
Lyanna hands clenched into fists. She wanted to slap him, wanted to hurt him, but she controlled herself.
Not now. Not now.
Azrael noticed that and laughed.
"Good. I like how you know your place." He smirked. "But no, you won't get the easy way out." He walked to the door and called the guards.
Guards came running immediately.
"Escort her back to her chambers." He said and then turned back to look at Lyanna. "You'll stay in your chambers until you learn how to behave. Clara will bring your meals. You'll have no visitors except her."
"You're locking me up?"
"You wanted to be treated like a human being, right? Then behave like one. Throw tantrums at me and I'll treat you like a child, isolated until you learn how to behave like an adult, especially with your soon to be husband." He left without waiting for her response.
The guards immediately escorted her back to her chambers. The moment Lyanna stepped inside, they locked the door and left.
She stood alone in that beautiful prison, shaking with anger and fear, wondering how long he would lock her there.