Blood Bound

By Tay T.

Can the prey really catch the predator? Or will the predator devour the prey?

When Maya, a dark sorceress, discovered an ancient scroll in her search for ultimate power, she kidnapped a lethal Alpha known for his ruthless and brutal ways, an Alpha known to be more beast than man.

Alpha Xavier Thaeos, the Southern Cardinal Lord. He ruled over those weaker than him and he was considered a nightmare come to life. He was the Alpha of Alphas. The head honcho.

And Maya had succeeded in kidnapping him and chaining him to the walls of her keep, never realizing that she was walking face first into a trap big enough to bind herself to the cunning Alpha.

Permanently.

***This steamy werewolf romance contains explicit love scenes.***

Reviews
What readers are saying about this book:

"The storyline is truly captivating and absolutely thrilling. I love the fact that the main [character] is not some naive girl who knows nothing. She has character."

"This story is soo good! I enjoy how Maya isn't the usual goody two shoes. She's cunning and she's not afraid to do anything...She's so badasssss and maaan, I just love it! It is easily one of the most original plots I have read so far."

"This book is just like quicksand. You come here, knowing nothing, and when you realize it's got a hold of you, it's too late, you're addicted, just like the rest of us... This book is so fabulous. Best book ever!"

"This book is amazing!"

"It's a beautiful story. The amount of detail just adds more life to it. I have read many other authors' books but this story and series had attracted me like none other. The amount of suspense, anticipation, love, and hate just encourages me to read the story again and again. Every detail just increases a reader's love for the story..."

"I really like the story, how the characters developed and how the story progressed. I have read her other books and I can say that she's a terrific author, and I can't wait for her future books."

"Fantastic story by a great author. Love reading her books and enjoy how she brings the characters to life."

"[I] absolutely love this book. I have read many werewolf books, but this book has a completely different take and it is written exceptionally well. I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys a good read..."

"The suspense is perfect. The chemistry between them is off the charts and they haven't even properly bonded yet. They both are driven, which makes the dynamics of their soon to be relationship interesting. Who will bend and how will they make it work? So far this book has captured my imagination right from the first chapter. Great writing. Thank you. I have no doubt that with your writing talents you shall be an established author in no time."

"I can vividly picture the story in my mind. The author is truly talented at bringing the character's setting and scenes to life! I’m aroused and excited at every chapter, even in waiting!"

"This story just began and I'm already craving it like a drug...I'm even writing a review, when it is something that I NEVER do! Before reading, you just need to know that it is dark, so if it is something you don't like, this story is not for you. But if you could care less, and you love romance, hot werewolf dominant men, and strong women, this story is just for you!"

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tay T.
• Release date: Dec 16, 2020
• ISBN: 9781005751982

Tay T.

Tay T. enjoys writing dark, steamy romance in her free time while connecting with her readers. Her dream is to write and share as many books as she can with everyone willing to read and envision the worlds she builds. After publishing her first book, The Alpha's Breeder, she hopes to publish many more from The Cardinal Alpha series and The Breeder series. This year, she plans to head off into the darker world of Omegaverse and draft her own story.Follow Tay on here or sign up for Tay's newsletter for exclusive news, teasers, sales, and giveaways: http://eepurl.com/gWglqfTwitter: @authortaytFacebook: www.facebook.com/authortaytWebsite: www.authortayt.com

Book preview

PROLOGUE

BITS OF BLACK MAGIC seeped from gloved fingers like wisps of gray smoke, sliding through the slight gap in the ledge of a decrepit window towards the dusty latch. Upon the magic’s touch, the lock slowly turned, squeaking a small tune of resistance before giving in.

Standing at the dark corner of a decrepit building, Maya pressed one hand against the windowpane and nimbly pried open the aperture to cautiously leap inside.

Once her feet were on the stiff and worn floorboards, she deftly removed the black hood from her head and revealed her ethereal features, vermillion lips, and tousled locks of vibrant red. As she carefully scrutinized her surroundings, her bright green eyes narrowed into slits.

There was absolutely no one in the library—except for her and the columns of shelves, holding thousands and thousands of books and scrolls.

Just the way she wanted it.

Maya’s lips curled up as her gaze settled on a set of unkempt shelves hidden in the far corner from prying eyes.

Something about the darkness hovering in that area called to her, so she followed the instinctive desire to search there first.

With light steps, she walked across the old wood and reached out a gloved hand towards the shelf closest to her, moving her long fingers across the fine print etched upon the aged wood.

Her touch caused the letters, indicating the contents of the shelf, to immediately light up and cast a slightly golden-green glow upon her pixie-like face, sparkling like glitter in the dark.

Love Hexes.

Maya moved on, uninterested in the subject. As she walked past the next few shelves, her shadowed eyes glanced rapidly at the glowing words.

Faustian Contracts.

Binding spells.

Repelling mantras.

Subduing charms.

Her mouth pinched into a grim line, and she quickly peered at the last shelf in the column.

Blood Rituals.

Maya paused.

Bingo.

Her dainty fingers hurriedly fumbled through the ancient scrolls and heavy books stacked haphazardly on the shelf. They were all riddled with layers and layers of dust that must have collected for over decades or centuries now. It was as if no one had gone through these scrolls in a long time.

Maya didn’t doubt it. No good white witch would corrupt themselves in search of dark powers like she was. But then again, she wasn’t a good little white witch.

How absurd.

Maya sneered.

She hadn’t been one for over a decade now; although, her entire family were wholly good white witches and wizards. Even her estranged half-sister was a white witch—whatever that meant. But how ironic was it that a coven full of liars and murderers claimed to be all good?

They were just a bunch of hypocrites covered in a thick layer of sheepskin. The rot and ugly underneath had to be covered somehow.

Maya couldn’t stop the vicious smirk from collecting on the corners of her lips. She quickly tossed the thoughts aside and resumed her scavenging through the dust and soot.

Where is it?

Her brows pinched tightly together in building frustration. For all the trouble sneaking in, she didn’t plan on leaving empty-handed, not if she could help it.

With her right hand outstretched and reaching further into the back of the bookshelf, a concealed object brushed against her exposed wrist and scratched the delicate skin, making her recoil upon instinct.

After a second of hesitation, she dug it out and saw that it was an old scroll, seemingly made of dried animal skin. It smelled like something dead. Like it had been dropped into a swamp and stayed at the bottom for twenty days before someone even thought to fish it out.

Her nose wrinkled in distaste.

It smelled horrid, and she was tempted to toss the scroll away because of the smell, but decided otherwise.

Maya carefully removed the deformed and crusty ribbon before unrolling the hard fabric and using a spell to look over the cryptic language.

As the decoded words moved from the page and into her mind, exhilaration inflated her lungs and sweat gathered on her palms.

Found it.

Maya snapped the scroll together and climbed back out of the window.

The sky was still as dark as when she first entered and the mist was still strong, making it even harder to find which direction she needed to traverse. But Maya pushed forward.

She trekked blindly across the land, using bits of magic to lead her towards the north, where the dark forest stood tall and imposing.

If she were to use any more of her powers, the white witches would notice something was amiss, would taste the fragments of darkness oozing in minute amounts from Maya’s alabaster skin. Then, they would come running for her.

And there was no way she could fight them all off and remain unscathed enough to escape.

Maya had attained this knowledge from experience covered in blood, sweat, and tears. Regardless of how much she hated to admit it, Maya knew her limitations. She wouldn’t be searching for supreme power otherwise.

As she walked, her eyes darted from side to side and cold sweat dripped in rivulets down her face, wetting her slim neck in long streaks.

The dark forest was just several yards away.

You can make it, she told herself. You’ve already made it this far, don’t let your efforts be in vain.

From the corner of her eye, the thick clouds in the sky slowly moved until the bright moon was revealed. And little by little, the light started to extinguish the dark, causing the entire meadow to illuminate from area to area and become bright enough for her to see across the land.

If she didn’t move fast enough, she would be caught by the luminous rays.

Maya’s heart pounded rapidly in her chest. She gritted her teeth and breathed heavily through her nose.

Finally, after what seemed like decades, she broke into the magnificent forest and was blanketed by the heavy branches that created shadows similar to figures in the night.

With her free hand, Maya wiped the cold sweat off her temple and glanced at the scroll.

After reading the contents, she knew this was a blood-binding ritual reserved mainly for werewolves and used on werewolves.

Maya wasn’t too sure about the use of it on dark sorceresses, but she was willing to give it a chance.

The instructions were rather simple on how to draw power from a werewolf’s blood, since their blood played an even bigger role than most creatures on the planet.

It classified them as Alpha, Beta, Gamma, or Omega.

It gave them power.

It gave them status.

And it also gave them the ability to mark and subdue those beneath them.

In order to obtain their power, Maya had to consume their blood. Though this wasn’t something she looked forward to, Maya was willing to do anything at this point. If this was the path to success, she would walk it without a single look back.

According to the scroll, the first steps of the ritual would give her temporary use of their powers—like a trial run—but she needed more than a trial run.

She needed something reliable and consistent, and the ritual would only give her that once she completed all the steps.

Permanently.

Maya really liked the sound of that.

Just the thought of it made her entire body tremble with excitement, alike to finding a float in the midst of the ocean when one had been drowning for too long. But she figured, if she wanted to go through with this, she had to go big.

Who wanted an Omega or a Beta?

Maya wanted an Alpha.

Not just any Alpha.

She wanted the most powerful.

She wanted a Cardinal Alpha.

Everette, she drawled, voice crisp and raspy with concealed excitement.

At her call, a snow-white dove perched itself on a small tree branch high above her.

Its shining eyes glowed red in the dark, eerie and sharp, as it stared down at her still form and cocked its head to the side, as if in question of her demands.

I want you to help me locate the Southern Cardinal Alpha, Alpha Xavier Thaeos.

CHAPTER 1

THERE WERE FIVE CARDINAL Alphas on this continent, each over centuries-old and known to be one of the most powerful beings still alive on the earth. These five Alphas happened to rule large expanses of land across the states and other Alphas weaker than them.

They were the head honchos.

The Alpha of Alphas.

And the dark sorceress had her eye on a certain Cardinal Alpha to implement in her plans for the blood ritual. She had never met the Cardinal Alpha herself, but she had heard plenty of him from rumors and stories.

They called him the Southern Lord.

The Cardinal Alpha Xavier Thaeos.

He was said to be more beast than man.

Lethal.

Deadly.

Cruel.

Ruthless.

Brutal.

Corrosive.

That was just to name a few words said to be associated with him.

He was said to kill with or without reason. Any who stood in his way lost their lives beneath his majestic feet, with no remains for burial or closure.

They said no one was worthy to stand by him. Even his true mate was terrified of him, which was why she never showed up all these years. Or perhaps, he had killed her because he didn’t want anything tying him down, especially a weak female.

And all the people he ruled feared him like the plague. They even told bedtime stories about Alpha Xavier Thaeos to scare their children—young or old—from doing bad things. And it worked.

Xavier Thaeos was what nightmares were made of—a terrifying nightmare in the form of a man.

Having lived over one thousand years, he ruled after he killed his blood father and brothers with his bare claws.

What was there not to like about him?

In fact, he sounded like just the man she was looking for.

One of the best candidates if she had to say so herself.

Who else could do the job as well as Alpha Xavier Thaeos?

A malicious smirk colored Maya’s lips. She straightened the black vest of her staff uniform and carefully tucked a loose strand of midnight-colored hair back into place.

Her pretty red hair was no longer visible. In its place was an inky black color that shimmered under the yellow lighting of the dark hallway. It was meticulously formed into a neat and sleek bun usually seen on the female staff in this hotel.

As she walked, her short heels clicked with every step upon the marble floor, resounding in the seemingly empty halls. She treaded straight to the elevator stationed at the far end and hit the button once before waiting patiently for the doors to open.

Although her face was completely calm and her lips were pulled into a decent smile of some sort, she was extremely anxious on the inside.

Since she was not the type of person to walk muddle-headed into a situation, she had calculated several back up plans before taking action.

If it didn’t work out, she wanted a detailed and easy escape, no matter how minimal that chance was. But her success ratio was currently only at thirty percent, and that was because she had added luck to the equation.

This was the only plan she’d ever drafted with an unknown outcome. The only time she was so irrational as to walk herself to death’s door.

Even Everette had said she was digging her own grave and suggested a small funeral if the dove shifter couldn’t retrieve enough remains for burial. But Maya had laughed it off and continued with the ludicrous plan anyway. She wasn’t one to back down from a challenge, especially when everyone thought her insane. Maya liked proving people wrong. It was in her blood, and she enjoyed it immensely.

After acquiring the Alpha’s whereabouts, she had precariously taken on the form of a female staff member and prepped to perfection before she dared to walk these halls.

Although she had cast a small spell around herself, Maya kept the black magic to a bare minimum, knowing Xavier Thaeos wasn’t a reigning Cardinal Lord for nothing.

His superior nose would pick out her scent before she could even take a breath, and he could break her neck just as easy the next.

The dark sorceress didn’t want to throw him a bone before she could complete her dastardly plans.

Suddenly, the elevator made a dinging noise and opened to reveal its empty confines. Maya stepped inside and pushed the button for floor thirty-nine.

Not even the boring music could calm her nerves.

As the elevator went up, she stood stock-still and concentrated on the auras close to her.

Nine...Ten...Twelve...Fourteen...Twenty...Twenty-five...Thirty...

The numbers increased until her final stop came and the doors slid open.

Maya hesitated, freezing in her spot as her heart beat like a war drum.

The risk was too high. If she failed today, there was no chance she would walk out of here alive.

Absolutely none.

Maya bit down on her lower lip and thought of the bigger picture, of what victory would mean, to abate her nerves and fear of failure.

With a sharp intake of breath, Maya pushed the closing elevator doors apart and stepped out into the dimmed halls.

There was only one room on this level, yet the hallway seemed exceedingly long, to the point that she thought it would never end. And at the end of the long hallway stood large oak doors, immaculate and imposing. Yet the guards were nowhere to be seen.

As expected, Everette had done a flawless job in distracting the guards, leaving an opening for Maya to quickly get what she needed and leave. Alpha Xavier Thaeos included, of course.

When Maya took one step forward, she was forced five steps back. She felt the Alpha’s aura and power surround her like a second skin, defensively constricting her body like an anaconda would its prey.

Just from the might and strength of his aura, she could already tell how powerful the man was and couldn’t contain the excitement threatening to tear through her calm facade.

Maya had never met anyone who could push her back with just the might of their aura. It was downright impossible. But he had managed to do so.

The knowledge made Maya extremely excited to strip him of his powers for her own use, to choke him with his strength once it became hers.

From his defensive action, she was sure she was already halfway to victory.

The poison had done its job.

At the realization, all her nervousness and anxiety had shed away. But Maya still kept her defenses up.

She confidently strutted to the door, broke the lock with a simple spell, and put her hands on the golden knob, twisting it easily under her cold palms.

With a deft push, the heavy doors opened to reveal an immaculate hotel suite. It was a luxurious room. The spacious living area had a big TV screen, comfortable couches, a couple of fancy lamps, and a carved coffee table. There was a large bed draped with black silk on the left and a bathroom to the side.

But where the hell was Xavier Thaeos?

Just seconds before she entered the room, his aura had completely disappeared from all around her and the entire area had become empty of life.

Had she miscalculated?

Maya’s eyes widened at the sudden thought, and the panic quickly settled in. She pulled a bottle from her skirt pocket and prepared for the worst. But she barely had the chance to turn around when a set of big hands encircled her neck and lifted her off her feet.

He made no noise when he moved.

Maya immediately swung her arms up, aiming the bottle into his face, and sprayed several times. But his reflexes were ten times faster than her own, almost like a blur when he deflected the liquid with his forearms. Once the caustic mixture touched him, the flesh rapidly rotted away as the concentrated silver ate his skin.

Maya barely managed to free herself when he backhanded her straight across the face, as if he had not been affected by her meager attempts to wound him. She slammed against the television and into the wall almost ten yards away before rolling to the ground with a loud thud. The dark sorceress held on to her stomach, and blood dripped down the corner of her mouth from the force of his backhand.

Her jaw had completely unhinged, and the inside of her cheek was a bloody mess from when she bit into the soft flesh.

Maya hardly had time to recuperate.

The fearsome Alpha blurred to where she was and lifted her by her shirt until her feet left the ground and dangled rather pathetically underneath her.

The fabric of her vest seemed to squeak under the pressure, and she could hear the sharp crack of one of her black heels hitting the marble floor.

Maya didn’t have any strength to struggle or fight after that.

Her dark concealment shattered like glass all around her until locks of inky hair shimmered into vibrant red and curled around her chin and cheeks, sticking