It was four months later, on the sixteenth of December, when the Princess suddenly felt a few strange sensations.

Shayla was walking back to her chamber, after having said farewell to the new Lady Taylor Myers, when she suddenly felt fatigued and bloated. She guessed that was to be expected; she had just attending a wedding and had eaten quite a bit more than she usually did.

But why did she also feel nauseous? She had never been a heavy drinker and as a matter of fact, she hadn't drank anything tonight.

As soon as she entered her chamber, she stripped down to her shift and climbed into bed. She wondered how Merrick was doing - he was a little drunk so she insisted that he went to his chamber tonight rather than hers. She remembered that had been quieter than usual at the wedding, probably thinking about how they'd never have a wedding like that.

The Princess sighed. All Merrick could ever be was her protector. All they could ever have was the affair they had resumed during hunting season. All of a sudden, Shayla felt the need to urinate again, for the twentieth time already. Rising from the chamber pot, she groaned as she felt the familiar cramping in her uterus.

Her last menses started on the nineteenth of November which was about a month ago. It added up. Shayla simply put on a linen pad and went to bed.

Sure enough, the next day she woke up to bloody drawers.

After taking a bath, Shayla dressed up and was about to leave her chamber when a guard yelled, "The Grand Duke of Org!"

She rolled her eyes. What did he want? In fact, when did he get back? For the past five months or so, he kept leaving the city to visit his estate and then returned after two weeks almost every time. Not that she cared. It was great that he was at his estate more often than he was at her father's palace. Not only did she get to avoid the royal consummation but she also got to spend more time with Merrick.

He really had no reason to come to her chamber; he had his own. "Enter!"

"Your Royal Highness," Viktor greeted, beaming at her.

"Viktor. Is there anything I can do for you?"

Said man turned around and ushered someone into the room. The royal physician. As of late, he had been thinking and had come to the conclusion that it the Mystics beat the Master, his help would no longer be required. Where would that leave him? What if the King urged for a divorce, opting for Shayla to remarry a younger man? No. He couldn't allow that to happen. Hence the physician.

"I would like the physician to check something," Viktor replied.

"What is that?"

"To see if you are healthy enough to conceive." Shayla's breath caught in her throat. She'd hoped that this day would never come. She didn't want to consummate their marriage.

"I understand." How would she get out of this one? She took one look at the physician and then looked back at Viktor. "What will this... procedure entail?"

"You will only have to lay down for a while. I will leave to give you privacy."

Viktor left the room and Shayla reluctantly lay down on her bed. She flinched as the woman lifted her dress and pulled down her drawers. After about a minute of silence, the physician suddenly looked up at her in confusion.

"What is wrong?" the Princess asked, before feeling very light headed.

"Princess, you may dress again," she simply replied, pacing the room.

"Katie please," she implored, suddenly feeling very sick. She instantly ran to the chamber pot and retched but nothing came out. Katie came to her and helped her up. "I apologise. I think I have the flu."

"I do not understand," Katie started. "The royal consummation has not yet happened but you are not virtuous. When I checked you almost a whole year ago, you were."

The Princess fought the urge to throw up again. This was awful.

Suddenly the door burst open and Shayla looked up to see a very furious Viktor.

"Do not breathe a word of this to anyone," he hissed at Katie. "Leave." The royal physician gave Shayla a somewhat pitiful glance before leaving. Viktor slammed the door shut and then walked over to his pale faced wife.

For a few minutes, there was nothing but deafening silence. And then, Shayla mustered up the courage to speak.

"What Katie said is true. I am not virtuous," she admitted unabashedly, her head held high. Most ladies would've lied in this situation but not her. Doing so would paint Katie as a liar. The Princess would never save herself at the expense of another.

"Who is he?" he seethed, cracking his knuckles. He would've roared if this was his own castle but it wasn't. Thank the Gods.

"I cannot tell you," she replied firmly. Viktor narrowed his eyes.

"Tell me or I will tell your father you are spoilt goods," he threatened haughtily.

"I will not," Shayla bravely refused.

Viktor ground his teeth and scowled. She wasn't going to tell him her lover's name any time soon... but he couldn't just let her get away with that. He had the upperhand; he could tell the King the truth whenever he pleased and she knew it.

Before he could make any demands, the guard outside announced another arrival.

"His Majesty, the King!" Shayla went red and started sweating. Her father couldn't have visited at a worse time.

Viktor smirked.

"Enter!"

The doors were thrown open and the King strolled in, smiling at both his daughter and son in law, oblivious to the tense atmosphere.

"Sire, is there anything you require?" Viktor questioned, putting on a terrifyingly plastic smile.

"No. I was just walking to my chamber when I saw Katie Walker leaving the East Wing in a hurry. She looked troubled," Animus explained. "Is there anything wrong?"

The Grand Duke looked at the Princess and discreetly smirked at her. She looked at him with wide eyes, silently pleading him not to tell. Viktor saw the hint of relent in her eyes and raised his eyebrow at her. He had her where he wanted.

"No. Her Royal Highness has a flu. That is all," he answered.

"Yes Father, the Grand Duke is correct. Katie merely has a few family issues to sort out hence her behaviour," Shayla elaborated.

"I see. I will take my leave." And with that, the King of Animaria left.

Shayla glanced at her husband who gave her a smug look. She had to refrain from rolling her eyes.

"What will buy me your silence?" she finally asked.

"An heir."

Shayla let out a short and sharp breath. The consequences of her actions had finally caught up with her. To protect the man she gave her virginity to, she had to sacrifice her body to a man who was older than her father. To protect the man she loved, she had to bear the child of a man she hated.

She realised that her dreams of having a family with Merrick were ultimately shattered now. She had just stopped bleeding yesterday; there was no way she was carrying his child. But she knew that one word from Viktor was enough for her father to put two and two together.

"Very well," she agreed in a barely audible voice

A completely naked Shayla lay on the bed stiffly as an equally bare Viktor climbed over her. She reminded herself that she had to do this to protect Merrick.

Besides, what Viktor had said was true; she had to have a child. Preferably a boy. An heir who was not only a prince of Animaria but also the firstborn son of the Grand Duke of Org. As much as she hated to admit it, her child would be so much more secure with a father with that much power. He'd be a king with his two very own armies, as well those of his allies.

Yes. This truly was a cloud with a silver lining. Love had no place in a queen's life. She was beginning to see that. The Princess repeated these thoughts in her mind as she braced herself for the worst few minutes of her life.

Shayla found herself being turned around and then hoisted up so that she was on her knees.

"Put your hands in front and then straighten your back," Viktor ordered in a gruff voice.

Shayla begrudgingly did as she was told and realised she was positioned like a dog. She remembered catching a glimpse of something like this in an erotic book. Her face grew hot as she realised her quim was literally staring her husband in the face.

Without any warning, Viktor placed one hand on her waist and roughly shoved his shaft into her. Letting out a sharp cry, Shayla realised that it wasn't her quim he had entered but her arse. Before she could say anything, Viktor started thrusting while beginning to rub her wet quim at the same time. She didn't understand how this was meant to get her pregnant.

"Viktor. You are meant to take me in my quim, not there. This is a sin," she reprimanded as he slipped two fingers into her throbbing quim.

"You should have thought about that before letting your lover get there first!" he grunted, pounding harder. Shayla gasped at the burning sensation, making him stretch his fingers apart inside her. "I can see you have never been taken in the arse before. Consider this as losing your virginity."

Tears sprung into Shayla's eyes as Viktor continued to thrust his thick fingers inside her oversensitive quim. She was ashamed to realise that he was actually hitting the right spot, eliciting a moan from her. And then, just as she was on the verge of release, he withdrew his fingers. She flinched as he grabbed her hair and tugged on it, muttering obscenities and continuing to pound into her arse until he finally came in it.

"Ah!" she half cried, half sobbed, feeling the liquid fill her.

"Your pretty little arse is so fucking tight," Viktor commented, pulling out and slapping her rear end.

Shayla was too shocked to stop him from turning her onto her back again. She couldn't believe this. Anal sex was something she had never done before and now he had stolen her anal virginity from her. It was so disgusting and felt very unpleasant; she'd never even let Merrick do it to her. Just when she thought it couldn't get any worse, he suddenly grabbed her breasts, making her wince.

They were particularly sore; she guessed the pain from her menses hadn't yet worn off. Shayla was unimpressed when she saw finally saw his shaft. It was nothing compared to Merrick's. But then again, he - as a man - was nothing compared to Merrick either.

Viktor pushed his rather small shaft in between Shayla's round breasts. Squeezing her breasts against his shaft, he began to move against her chest wildly, drawing out his own perverted groans. Shayla had never done this before either; Merrick's shaft was too big for her average sized breasts.

This was the worst moment of her life. "How will I become withchild like this?" she asked aloud, a sticky white liquid squirting onto her chin.

"Worry not, my wife. I will take you in the quim now," Viktor claimed.

He gripped her legs and then pushed them back, so that her knees were near either side of her head. She felt so humiliated. He then slowly pushed his shaft into her soaked quim and slowly moved out again. Shayla was not amused. He was doing this on purpose. He wanted her to beg.

But she wouldn't. He had disrespected and violated her enough tonight. She, a crown princess, would not stoop so low. And besides, he was a man; he would not be able to control himself much longer.

She was right.

After about a minute of very sluggish movements, Viktor couldn't take it anymore. The Princess was just so tight. Said woman smirked and purposely contracted her vaginal walls, driving her husband mad. He finally gave up and drove into his wife with wild abandon, making her moan in pleasure. This carried on for about half a minute until he pulled her long and slender legs over his shoulders, allowing him to go deeper inside her.

Shayla climaxed, thinking of Merrick's shaft rather than the one inside her. On the other hand, Viktor pulled out and shot forward, pushing his shaft into her mouth. Shayla's surprised gasp was muffled as the tip of his shaft grazed the back of her throat, almost making her gag. Had he been Merrick's size, the whole ordeal would have been truly terrifying. As soon as he reached the verge, - 20 seconds later - he withdrew and released his seed on Shayla's face. The Princess grimaced as the familiar white liquid landed on her face in several pulsating shudders.

Viktor then quickly fell asleep, his hand still possessively gripping her breast. Shayla lay awake in the dark, wondering how her life had been reduced to this. Tears escaped her eyes as she thought of how the night had gone to waste. He had done everything but come inside her which was the reason why she agreed to sleep with him in the first place. He had treated her - the Crown Princess of Animaria - like a common whore.

As the moonlight shone on her, she closed her eyes and her mind was flooded by thoughts of her beloved protector, of his kind smile and his calloused yet gentle hands. He could never know about this. It would destroy him.