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Fabian noticed the man’s stare and shifted. ‘Violet, this is Eaglen. He is the vampire I told you about the other night. The old one,’ he mouthed. The man, Eaglen, smiled.
‘Yes, the old one,’ he echoed, finishing off the last drop in his glass, which was hastily refilled. He chuckled and turned away, seemingly satisfied. I arched an eyebrow at Fabian, who shared my puzzled expression.
‘He’s like that sometimes,’ he muttered.
Glasses continued to be filled at the King’s order, but as the waiters moved forward, bottles now empty, they paused, staring at me – the next nearest blood source. I saw Alex and Kaspar exchange worried looks and Fabian did the same whilst discretely shuffling his chair closer to mine. Conversation died away and the room rippled into hush.
‘Violet, go,’ Ilta said, as Fabian pushed my chair back. ‘Quickly.’
I didn’t need telling twice. I scrabbled out of my chair and backed to the wall, feeling my way across the room, too scared to turn my back on any of them. Every bloodthirsty pair of eyes followed me until I reached the door and fell out, slamming it behind me.
I leaned against the wall of the corridor, breathing heavily. A couple of tears escaped my sore eyes and I wished for nothing more than my bed, at home, where it was safe. A knot of homesickness formed in my stomach once more. At that moment, the door opened and Kaspar slipped out. I wiped the tears away before he noticed I was crying.
‘You okay?’ he asked, stiffly. I shrugged, trying to act offhand.
‘They won’t attack you, you know,’ he said. I looked up at him disbelievingly. ‘If they kill you, there could be an all-out war. Believe it or not, we don’t want that,’ he replied, glumly.
‘This meeting is about me and that is why the council has assembled,’ I replied, equally as sullen. He nodded mutely. ‘Why now?’
Sighing, he leaned up against the wall beside me. ‘Because we have been informed that the slayers have made a truce with a group of rogue vampires. They plan to attack us, take you, and God knows what else.’
‘I—’
‘Don’t bother, no slayer will set foot here,’ Kaspar interjected. He stared blankly at the opposite wall, deep in thought.
‘Life is so crap sometimes,’ I mumbled to myself.
‘Tell me about it,’ I heard him say, ever so softly. I turned to him, surprised. He felt my gaze and turned too.
‘I won’t be safe here any more, will I?’ In an instant, he was right in front of me, breathing on my neck, his chest rising and falling in time to mine. My heartbeat quickened.
‘You were never safe here, Violet Lee.’
He lowered his head to my neck, his hands settling themselves on my hips. I backed as far into the wall as I could, but he just pushed himself further into me. I was shaking and my hands clenched into fists, my body tensing, waiting for the onslaught of pain. I tried pushing him away, but he didn’t move – I doubt he even felt me trying to escape. His fangs met my neck, grazing the skin. I whimpered and turned away. He took a deep breath, inhaling my scent. His mouth opened wider and I prepared for the bite.
‘Don’t. Please.’ A single tear rolled down my cheek, as I resorted to begging. ‘Kaspar,’ I whispered. To my surprise, he pulled away, his eyes opening. Another tear slid down my cheek and he caught it with the back of his thumb, wiping it away.
‘I don’t understand why you don’t get it.’ His hand ran down the length of my neck and side, until it came to rest on my hip once more. ‘We lust for you and your blood and your body. You want it too. I can see it in your eyes and feel it in your heartbeat.’
My eyes searched for the floor, but I could only see him.
‘You don’t get that right now I could snap you in half and suck you dry. You don’t get that you are food and that we struggle to see you as a living creature. An equal. Because you’re not.’
‘And you don’t get that I am a person with feelings,’ I breathed.
He backed away a little, taking his hands off me, searching my face with his eyes. ‘No, I don’t,’ he murmured back. ‘You are never safe here, Violet Lee. Remember that. Never.’
He turned his back to me and I could hear him breathing; see his hands balling into fists, fighting the urge to bite. He turned back, placing his hands against the wall either side of my head. ‘Stay away from Ilta Crimson,’ he said, his eyes burning and menace fuelling his words.
‘Why?’ I asked, surprised at his complete change of tone.
‘Because I don’t trust him,’ he growled.
‘You don’t trust him?’ I mouthed, surprised. ‘In case you didn’t notice, he wasn’t trying to bite my head off back there. He is the least of my worries.’
‘Goddamn it, Girly! Why don’t you just listen to me? Just trust me!’ he yelled back, all softness in his nature gone, disappearing so quickly I flinched and hit the back of my head on the wall.
‘Trust you?’ I squealed. ‘Why would I trust you? You kidnapped me! You constantly try to suck my blood! I’d much rather trust Ilta than you!’
‘But you don’t know him! You don’t know what he is capable of!’ Kaspar roared back, grabbing my shoulders and shaking me like a ragdoll.
‘No. You’re right. I don’t know him,’ I replied, more calmly, taking deep breaths. His hands unsnapped from my shoulders like my skin was made of hot coals. I sidestepped away from him. ‘But I’ll take the risk, thanks,’ I spat.
His face lit up with anger, his eyes turning pure black. I turned and walked away, fuming.
‘Where the hell are you going?’ he shouted down the corridor after me.
‘To my room!’ I screamed back, spinning to face him. Our eyes met, and I glared at him for a full minute.
‘On your own head be it, Girly. Don’t say I didn’t warn you,’ he snarled.
I turned on my heel and stormed up the hall, towards the stairs. But as I reached the end, I couldn’t resist having the last word. I spun around to see Kaspar staring at me, anger still evident in his face.
‘You know what, Kaspar? I wish you had just killed me back in London! Just ended it there. Then I wouldn’t have to suffer this. Why didn’t you? Why?’ I shrieked, and ran, but not before I caught his expression, which spoke a thousand words.
He didn’t know why.
SEVENTEEN
Kaspar
Council meetings really are the best fun one can have, I thought bitterly, staring out the window at freedom. I sat at the far end of the table, hardly listening as my father debated with Ilta Crimson over something or other. His whole family were swindlers. They thought the sun revolved around them, but Ilta was the worst. Quiet, calm and controlled, he was always the charmer. It wasn’t hard to see how Girly was fooled by him. He was a snake. He would slither in, hiss at you until you were lulled and then he would rise up and bite you. Especially if you were much younger and female.
I suppressed my thoughts as the meeting progressed. My only consolation was the firm grasp on my leg, which came from Charity, who sat next to me. She looked up at me with adoring eyes, batting her eyelids, giving me the occasional seductive wink.
She began stroking the inside of my leg and I shuddered, enjoying the feelings of lust gushing through my system. I shuddered again, as her hand reached for the fly on my trousers.
‘Ghost pass over your grave, Kaspar?’ Ilta sneered from the other side of the room, false concern in his voice. His dark blue eyes were crinkled with amusement.
I snapped back from my trance. ‘No, quite fine, Ilta,’ I answered.
My father turned to glare at me. He gave the tiniest shake of his head and I knew he was perfectly aware of the whereabouts of Charity’s hand. I discretely slipped one of my own hands under the table and moved hers back down to my knee. She looked up at me for a moment and feigned hurt. But I knew she was faking it. She always faked it.
‘How do we even know Lee will retaliate with the help of the slayers? Until then, I refuse to even consider a plan of action,’ Lamair declared, placing his hands on the table as though that was that.
I sighed. We had been over this twice already.
‘My dear Lamair, as I said before, we have reliable sources,’ my father said.
Mutterings erupted throughout the room and I resolved to stare at the bookshelves of my father’s study, desperate to entertain myself. I wonder how long it would take to read all of them?
A while, my voice answered.
I gritted my teeth. Nobody asked you.
But you’re still talking to me, it sniggered, which always beat me. Voices aren’t meant to snigger.
Well, you get used to it after eighteen odd years, I finished and it fell silent. It never had an answer to that one.
‘Well then, I say we just kill her. That way all our troubles our over.’
‘No, Lamair. That will cause problems with the human government. We have to be diplomatic.’
‘Surely—’
A vampire I should probably know the name of cut in on him. ‘Forgive me, Your Majesty, but I don’t understand why we are risking the Kingdom for the sake of one human girl? She is not worth a fight with the slayers and a possible loss of good relations with the human government, is she?’
There were several calls of ‘hear, hear’. I noticed Eaglen was unusually quiet. He leaned on his hands thoughtfully, but almost as soon as I looked at him, he raised his eyes to mine and I turned away.
‘This is the daughter of one of the greatest antagonists vampire kind has ever faced. We cannot afford to be rash, for fear of starting something we will long regret,’ my father explained. That one crucial fact – who she was, or rather, who her father was – still didn’t seem to have sunk into their thick skulls. My father turned to Eaglen. ‘You acted as one of our ambassadors to the human government most recently. What is your opinion?’
Eaglen sighed. ‘The government’s and, crucially, the Prime Minister’s stance on us is a no intervention policy – in other words, they turn a blind eye. The PM refused to see Ashton or I whilst we were in Westminster, although he sent his assurances that the investigation into the London Bloodbath will be quietly closed, alongside an insistence that he will not be so compliant in the event of a similar incident.’ He looked pointedly at me. ‘But he is not our problem. Lee is.’ He leaned forward and rested his arms on the table, flicking his hair back behind his shoulders. ‘Lee cannot make a move yet. He has direct orders from the PM not to do anything to threaten national security – he is afraid that any attempt on our lives will result in retaliation and the consequent loss of innocent life.’
Cain, who had looked just as bored as I was, sat bolt up, a spark of alarm in his voice as he spoke. ‘It wouldn’t though, would it?’
Father shook his head.
Eaglen continued, pointing in Cain’s direction. ‘Ah, but we’re better off letting them think that, because as long as we do, Lee won’t do anything. To disobey that order would end his career.’
‘And no job, no power,’ I interjected, following his train of thought.
‘Exactly, young Prince!’ he exclaimed, turning his crooked left forefinger to me. ‘We must remember that Lee doesn’t just want his daughter back, he wants to bring about our downfall.’ That was no secret. Ever since the current government had come to power just over three years ago, Lee had made his intentions towards us quite clear. ‘But he is fully aware that bullets and guns won’t achieve that. So he needs the hunters and the rogues. But the hunters will not liaise with him unless he has power, influence and money.’
Or access to the taxpayer’s money, I thought.
‘The Prime Minister’s orders are to not intervene unless we make any threat or show of violence. If we do, Lee will be ready.’ A blanket of silence descended upon the room and wrapped itself around the table. ‘We need to avoid confrontation at all costs. We cannot kill the girl or force her to turn and we cannot threaten Lee or his government, and presumably the hunters, either.’
‘So what do we do then?’ was Lamair’s uneasy question. I was sure it was one almost every person sat in the room shared.
‘We do nothing and wait until the girl turns of her own free will,’ Father replied. There was a badly hidden gasp of shock. The idea of doing nothing was not one anybody in the room had entertained, clearly. But I gawped at my father for a different reason. If he thought Girly was going to turn anytime soon, he had another thing coming.
‘Quite agreed,’ Eaglen said. ‘We carry on as normal and give them no reason to suspect we know of their plans and no reason to attack. Meanwhile, I suggest we keep Miss Lee as sheltered as possible – there is no need for her to know of the other dimensions with all these prophecy rumours circulating among the Sage. A human knowing the strength of our seers and the Prophecy of the Heroines is the last thing we need. I’m sure the inter-dimensional council will agree to that.’ He waved his hand dismissively. ‘I also propose, Your Majesty, that to ensure her life and her blood are not threatened, you place the King and Crown’s Protection over her.’
Father nodded. ‘It will be implemented with immediate effect.’
‘I think it might be wise not to let her know of that, or about anything to do with her father,’ Sky added. ‘She strikes me as the sort who would act rashly if she knew. Neither do we want to give her any hope of leaving Varnley. She would never turn if that were the case.’
Finally, some sense!
My father cleared his throat. ‘Agreed. Nothing that we spoke of today leaves this room. But for now, this meeting is adjourned until we receive further news.’
I sighed again, exasperated. Chairs scraped and people began to leave the room, bowing and curtseying. Charity skipped off after them, exclaiming excitedly that she was going dress-shopping for the Autumnal Equinox.
‘Try and stay focused next time, Kaspar,’ my father scolded from the opposite side of the room, where he stood waiting for me to join him. Reluctantly, I walked towards him, waiting for the lecture I would undoubtedly receive.
‘Five hours, Father! Five hours and the only thing they could agree on was that Violet should choose to turn. You do know that is not going to happen, don’t you?’
‘That is where you come in, young Prince,’ Eaglen chuckled, limping around the table towards us. I frowned. Eaglen never usually had a limp. He might be old, but he wasn’t frail. Yet he had aged over the summer. His hair was whiter and the fine lines that appeared around the corners of his eyes didn’t disappear when he stopped laughing. ‘And you too, young Earl,’ he added, addressing Fabian who was hanging back, waiting for me. He came forward.
‘You two interact with her on a daily basis, correct?’ my father asked. We nodded.
‘Then you are what she sees of our kind. Give her a reason to believe we are not murderers, which is doubtless what she thinks. Convince her that this is a life she could lead,’ Eaglen instructed. Fabian nodded, almost eager, but I scowled, sceptic.
‘It will take more than that to persuade her to turn.’
Eaglen smiled. ‘When she has lost hope of returning home, it will take far less leverage.’
‘I won’t do it.’
I saw my father’s eyes become black. ‘You will do it. It’s time you took responsibility for your actions—’
‘And accept the consequences of my rash escapades. Yeah, I’ve heard it before. It’s getting old,’ I snapped, turning on my heel and leaving the room. The door slammed behind me with a satisfying bang. But it opened just as quickly again and Eaglen appeared, limping after me.
‘Give it a try,’ he said, patting me on the back. ‘You might have more in common than you think.’
I arched an eyebrow, but said nothing, walking away before I really did get angry. Yet I couldn’t resist one glance back at the aging, but by no means foolish, man, who watched me retreat with a knowing smirk.
What are you playing at, Eaglen? I thought. What do you know this time?
EIGHTEEN
Violet
August 28th brought my eighteenth birthday, and with it little reason for cheer. I had kept my mind well-guarded since I made the connection between the Queen’s death and my father, so nobody realized I was a year older.
I should have been out partying, enjoying my first legal drink of alcohol; instead I was stuck in a living room full of vampires, because sitting up seemed a better option than running the risk of experiencing yet another dream. They were endless, and I didn’t believe Fabian for a single second: they were real. The chill I felt every morning told me that.
Today was August 27th. Which meant tomorrow was the 28th and therefore my eighteenth birthday.
I propped myself up against a couple of pillows, staring blankly into space. I should be out partying, opening presents and having my first legal drink of alcohol, not lying on a bed in the middle of nowhere, afraid to go to sleep.
I glanced at the clock. It was going on 10 o’clock. I didn’t want to sleep. I was too afraid of the nightmares I knew would ensue as soon as I closed my eyes. But I had no choice. My body was screaming at me to close my eyes, disgusted at my self-neglect. I grabbed a tank top and a pair of shorts, changed, and climbed into bed. I tugged the sheets right up to my chin, hoping the warmth would somehow drive away the dreams. I reached over, switched the lamp off and closed my eyes.
But the dream never came. In fact, I fell into a peaceful, unbroken daze until far away I heard bells chiming, resonating in the stillness. Twelve times they rang.
I seemed to be rolling and rolling and I shivered. The air had got cooler. Far, far cooler. Then it went sub-zero.
I scarpered up, screaming at the top of my lungs. My sheets were plastered to my legs and I was soaked: someone or something had poured freezing cold water onto my bed. I heard several suppressed giggles and a low chuckle. In the darkness, I could just make out numerous dark figures surrounding my bed, outlined by the moonlight shining through my windows.
