Chapter 22 Ask of blood
“Very well, now that you have come to see me, D’Arcy!” the stoic vampire’s voice rang out.
They hugged tightly for some seconds and then it gently broke, moving onto the other man next to the king.
“Uncle Astaroth! Your kindness and dedication shall never be forgotten…” said Valerio when their hug broke too.
Astaroth smiled, as Valerio sat on the empty couch, pairing it with the man who led them in.
The old men’s gazes settled on Ebyths whose feet were barely completing her body.
“I keep slipping into den after den,” she told herself, knowing fully that she was in the wrong place and at the very wrong time.
“You brought your hound?” the Ming asked and sipped gracefully from his chalice.
Valerio stared at Evyths and back at his father.
“Indeed. I took a stroll and so… I thought about my pet. Do not worry, I have tamed her and she knows better than to put on a show…” said Valerio to his father and a gentle chuckle escaped the old vampire’s lips.
“Did you truly tame me or are you merely lying to them?!” Evyths asked herself.
When she felt their intense gaze on her, she instantly knelt.
“G- greetings, y- your majesty!” she greeted, her gaze to the ground. When the silence lingered too long, she continued before she could halt. “How do you fare?”
“A werewolf has no business with the affairs of a graveyard.” the king stated as the rest of her words hung, swallowing hard. Instantly regretting why she had asked about the king’s welfare.
“D’Arcy? You now share the kingdom’s affairs with a foe?”
“I would not dare, my king. She is very... observant, she must have picked it out from rumors within our walls!” said Valerio as he looked over his shoulder, staring at Evyths. “Rise! Find something to eat. Knead a bread perhaps,” Valerio instructed as she nodded and rose. She bent and headed out, guessing where the kitchen would be.
“About your letter, it demanded urgency. What happened?” Astaroth instantly when Evyths left.
But Evyths was lurked behind the wall, listening to their sacred conversation.
Valerio sighed lightly, hinting at something dreadful. All their concerned gazes were on him as he continued.
“Regrettably, I must say this to you, Father. The woman you have bed for years is the perpetrator behind your incurable situation…”
Astaroth scoffed, anger forming within him. “The queen cannot bring herself to such a low position. She's always loved the king,” he said.
“Yet, she poisoned my father.” Valerio almost yelled. “Listen to yourself, uncle, I dare not lie to my father’s rulership,” he stated like thunder behind thick gray clouds. “She admitted the truth when Lady Blackwin confessed. I am as shocked as you are but it is the truth. I know one when I see one,” he added as silence gripped their cold hearts, their thoughts reeling right before them like a vortex.
“Valerio, of all gray things to say, you chose this? Just the moment I…” the king’s words hung instantly, the chalice in his hand fell to the ground as his weak eyes shut.
“Well, I think so. Queen Elena has always been the viper—” the young vampire chimed in angrily.
“Lucian, put sentiments behind. So much is at stake at the moment,” Valerio interrupted.
“At stake?” Lucian chuckled dryly, anger etched across his face. “What is at stake? Your marriage to Lady Blackwin or the kingdom that would be hunted down by hunters and their hybrids?”
“Enough!” Valerio yelled, rising. His fingers balled into fists, and a surge trudged through him.
“Oh, do not shut me up in my house, this is not your palace!” Lucian retorted, rising too. Their gazes at each other were piercing and contemptuous, a thread that was almost cut.
“Enough, you both!” Astaroth scolded both of them instantly, splitting his gaze between the agile vampires. “If not for me, respect your father, the king! Take your nonsense into the field, slit your throats for the hundredth time if need be,” Astaroth stated as they both bowed their heads, apologizing to the king and his brother who was also the king’s advisor.
“Forgive me Father, but I must take a moment else I strangle someone…” Valerio, suppressing his rage, shot a death stare at his half-brother before leaving yet the king said nothing.
Meanwhile, Evyths scurried off when she realized that the prince was about to leave the living room.
Luckily, the kitchen was only a few inches away.
Just like she had expected, the kitchen was empty and cold. Only the smell of dried meat settled in the air. In the cupboard lay a small sack of flour, sugar, and yeast that seemed like it had not been in use for ages.
“These are vampires! They do not cook! Why is there flour? Perhaps the late mistress loved to bake even if it does not make any sense!” Evyths said to herself, going about kneading a small portion of bread as the prince had asked of her.
A few moments later, Evyths finished baking a small loaf that could keep her alive and also give out.
She instantly ate the hot bread, the heat warmed up her chest.
“Dear goddess! It has been so long since I had this,” Evyths told herself.
But one thing lingered in the back of her mind, the argument between Valerio and Lucian.
What were they? She asked herself.
Either way, she knew that the prince did not want to say a word to her and she could only think of a way
Offering some bread even if he would turn it down.
“I have to try!” she told herself.
….
Evyths dragged herself out of the kitchen, with the fresh bread wrapped in a clean fabric that she had found.
She looked from angle to angle, in search of Valerio but all she found was Lucian who was seated by a fireplace on the far end of the hallway that led to the exit.
She swallowed hard, rethinking her choices. What if he decides to drink her blood? She wondered.
She heaved a deep sigh, her hands clutched tightly to the bread in her hand.
When she attempted to walk past him, he spoke up.
“You suddenly think you could calm the storm in a vampire with bread only because he let you breathe?” Lucian asked without looking in her direction as she halted her steps, freezing like a corpse.
“I- I was merely—” her words trembled.
Unfazed, he said; “What a pity, hound. When he's done keeping you around like a plaything, he will rid you like he's done to everyone that cared about a heartless frame like him…” Lucian angrily said as he vanished into the thin air, the flames in the fire place place almost died off due to the brief wind.
Evyths leaned on the nearest wall, her heart thumping against her ribcage. Lucian’s words were hard to process although she knew that she was merely Valerio's plaything and test object, yet he had been gentler with her.
Immediately, she hurried outside, her eyes wandering the large area that was swathed in tall trees.
“My prince?” she called out, her voice struggling to find its place. “Are you out here?” she asked, raising her voice a bit.
Her feet were planted on the cobblestone, as her eyes landed on a thin pathway that led behind the manor.
Although shaking inside her, she slowly walked through. So many eerie thoughts danced through her mind, gradually dragging her feet as something dropped right in front of her.
Evyths jolted, hugging the freshly baked bread to her chest. Her heart sank and her palms sweated profusely, panting almost breathlessly.
After a second of shock, she calmed looking at the object closely. She realized that it was only a pebble.
“Dear goddess! Do you hate me much?!” Evyths let out, steadying her hushed breathing.
Looking ahead of her, she saw the figure she recognized, one that fascinated her despite knowing the cruel consequences of her actions.
Prince Valerio was sitting by a small pond, the moon’s reflection perfectly outlined in the glistening water.
Just like the atmosphere, Valerio was still. His golden hair flowed effortlessly to the rhythm of the chill breeze. Yet he was shirtless, his muscles were a striking proof of his strength and manliness.
For a moment, Evyths’ jaw dropped, a chill running down her spine while goosebumps developed on her skin.
“Why have you come?” he asked her without looking, his gravelly voice laced with resentment.
He had smelled her right from the time Lucian interrupted her in the hallway.
The smell of fresh bread and cinnamon could not have tricked the prince.
Evyths managed to walk towards him, swallowing hard.
If there was anything that she had learned from the prince, then it had to be unshaken confidence.
“Can I... Sit?” she politely asked Valerio, his jaw tightened as he nodded almost invisibly.
Evyths sat next to him, the corners of her eyes threatening to stare at his sharp features that even Raven was obsessed with—his beauty.
“What do you want? You should be asleep or eating or so! Find something useful rather than lurk—”
“I know that you are not hungry, Prince Valerio, but I have brought some bread. Have a taste,” Evyths mustered courage, offering the prince a small portion.
The prince’s gaze was now fully fixated on her, baffled by her singular act even though it seemed ridiculous to feed a vampire with bread not blood.
Suddenly, he chuckled dryly, his gaze darkening as she recoiled back into her skin.
“If I had asked for your blood, would you let me have a taste of it instead?” he asked with a sly, dreadful smile that morphed into danger, the small portion in her hand slipped from her fingers.
The blood in her streams stopped flowing for a second,.
She expected anything but that.
“Would you?” he asked, his impatience etched across his face like a dark fog.