Hostile Genus: An Epic Military Sci-Fi Series (Invasive Species Book 2) Ben Stevens (best contemporary novels txt) 📖

rumors concerning Sofia and her opinion on the king’s taking of a second wife, very few lips whispered anything close to the truth.

Sofia, for all her perversions and hedonistic ways, did not like the situation one bit.

It wasn’t so much that she minded the idea of sharing her man with another woman—they already had done that together many times. She had, as well, without the presence or permission of her husband, taken many playthings to bed, a kinky pastime that most often ended in the deaths of her new friends as well as the sating of her animal appetites. What irritated her was Lily herself. There was just something about her. Sofia hated her. Loathed her. She despised her for being human.

How could a human seduce my husband without even trying?

This was no lust or sexual play, with which Sofia would have been fine. No, this was something else. This pop-tart bitch had captured her man’s heart, it would seem. In this, Sofia found a special edge to her hate.

Sofia hadn’t been happy in a long time, hadn’t ever been happy—not really. But this insult to her queenly pride was too much to bear. She would not suffer the slight. She would dare her imbecile husband to strike her, to retaliate, and then she would make him pay.

Like her husband, she, too, had a vision for New Puebla. One where vampires weren’t executed by sun for the raping and killing of a human. Humans were food and toys, nothing more. A wolf might dominate the sheep, only taking what it needed and allowing the herd to continue, but a cat… A cat played with its food. A cat killed for fun and sport. Cats had been worshiped before, and they would be again. Sofia thought it was time for the ruling of New Puebla to benefit from a woman’s touch.

It was the time of the queen.

Let him drink his little bitch on stage.

She had her loyal men. She would put on a show that would rival Lily Sapphire’s.

A show that no one would ever forget.

“Señorita Sapphire?” the young female assistant asked timidly as she peeked her head into the lavishly ornate green room that Don Luis had built for Maya.

“Yes? Come in,” Maya said into the mirror, continuing to apply her makeup. She was already familiar with the girl and her voice. After his previous rejection in her suite, Don Luis had assigned one of the girls who had bathed her the night before to be Maya’s assistant.

The girl had been tasked with helping to procure and provide anything and everything that “Señorita Sapphire” might need or want.

The girl, whose name was Rose, had been given a royal decree to carry around and present to the various merchants in the city. It gave her great authority and allowed her to speak for the king, at least in regard to her assigned task of assisting Señorita Sapphire. The girl had been overwhelmed with her sudden promotion, her chest swelled with obvious pride, and she performed her job well. Taking into account her current state of mind and her previously shy disposition, Maya saw in her a boon of opportunity. Rose offered no opposition or inquiry into anything that Maya requested, and so she had Ratt put together a shopping list of things they would need for the big surprise finale of Lily Sapphire’s greatest concert. Lucy, for her part, revisited the home of Eduardo, his sisters, and their mother. Without going into too much detail, Lucy explained to Eduardo that the time for revolution would be during the Lily Sapphire show and that he should carefully gather all his like-minded friends and be ready to help out once the dust settled.

The resulting machinations and preparations of Maya’s plan proved to be as smooth as the polished obsidian that decorated the columns inside her royal suite.

“Señorita Sapphire, they are, um… I mean, I have been instructed by Señor Fernando that we are ready for you.” The girl squeaked it out in the manner of a curious, approaching animal, not sure whether the food being offered was merely a trick that would result in its death.

Impatient little man, thought Maya to herself and rolled her eyes. She couldn’t imagine how things must be for Sofia, or what they would be like for her should Maya’s ruse become reality. To be married to such a man, to be owned and dangled, like a piece of jewelry. Even with Maya, she was certain he would be kind only as long as the novelty remained, and then he would grow bored, and with boredom would come the inevitable cruelty.

“Of course. Five more minutes, please,” Maya said in her kindest, most ladylike voice. She observed Rose’s reflection in the mirror and felt sure that Rose had missed the eye-roll, as the timid little thing was staring at her own feet, only halfway through the door of the room. When the girl neither spoke nor moved, Maya added, “In private. Please tell my fiancé that the show will start when I am fully ready, and not a moment sooner.” Maya tried to sound gentle but firm.

She saw Rose’s eyes flicker to the mirror and quickly back down, as was befitting not only her character but her class. The glance had been as fleeting as the affections of Don Luis were sure to be, but Maya had caught the look of terror on the girl's face and recognized it for what it truly was. She instantly regretted her choice of words and realized what a precarious position it would put poor Rose in. Don Luis was as likely to kill the girl in his outrage at Maya’s brazenness as he was to laugh it off and become aroused by his new wife’s sauciness.

“No, not that, Rose. Just tell my Señor Fernando that the show will start in about five minutes. Please tell him that I need to be perfect for him.” Rose looked back up into the