Killian.
Caserta, Italy.
I was expecting to meet an old man with a bald head and big belly. But Draco Bathory was way far from that.
Right now, while standing in the middle of a vast ballroom of this four-storey chateau, I was looking at a tall, lean and looking very respectful man, standing near a podium. He was looking sophisticated in a luxurious three piece suit, complemented with his pale skin and dark penetrating eyes. It’s as if he was looking deep into me, yet, his face was devoid with emotion.
And just by looking at him, I could tell what kind of being he was. No way he was a human.
I could smell him.
‘Bloodsucker!’
Though he smelled faintly like those monsters, I was still sure he was one of them.
It confused me. If he was a vampire, his daughter must be the same.
And didn’t most vampires couldn’t walk during the day? They feared the sun—the light coming from it, to be specific. It could burn them. But I couldn’t see him like that, as well as Yzabelle.
Yzabelle may have silky fair skin but there was a glow in her—unlike Draco Bathory.
And how come I was mated with a vampire? Wasn’t it against the law of the moon?
“To whom do I owe this visit, Lycan Prince?” His slender fingers touched the rim of his wine glass as he looked straight into my eyes. “Don't you think it's dangerous to step into a different realm without bringing a companion on your side?”
I could feel an imitating danger right from that pair of dark eyes.
And he knew me? Did he also anticipate my visit even before my butler arranged for it?
I was actually expecting him to meet me at a hotel near his business suit but he decided to meet me here, away from many people. At first I was confused. But now, I understand why.
We couldn’t risk being seen by humans, fighting with each other, just in case a disagreement occurs.
“I have your daughter,” I calmly said.
I saw how his eyes flickered with fierceness. But surprisingly, his face seemed too calm.
“Which daughter?” he asked unwaveringly.
I was confused at first. But I remembered the bitch at the mall. So, he also considered that girl as his daughter? Not a stepdaughter but a daughter? No wonder the girl acted too full of herself.
“The original one,” I was determined to provoke him. So we can get to a discussion. A real discussion.
He suddenly laughed with mockery. “How do you know which was the original one?”
“She had the distinct faint smell like yours,”
His eyebrow twitched. “You’re lying.” He grinned. “The original can hide her true scent, Lycan Prince. That’s why I can easily keep and protect her from our ancestors.”
My eyes perked up. I kind of like what he said. That meant he didn’t want to join those bloodsucker ancestors of his. But it still confused me. Why was he hiding his daughter from them?
“I don’t think Yzabelle was one of yours,”
There, I already pulled the string of his calmness. His eyes turned red and he seemed readying himself to attack me.
“What do you need from my daughter?!” He angrily hissed.
“Calm down, Draco,” I said as I took my time walking to the single couch set at the center, across the podium.
There was a glass of wine near it that I knew was prepared for me. But I didn’t plan on drinking with him. I couldn’t risk accepting generosity from a vampire whom I barely knew. And probably was thinking of me as either a friend or an enemy. Who knows, maybe there’s something that will contaminate my blood.
I sat leisurely as I looked at him. I liked that he was starting to lose his confidence.
The great looking and sophisticated man who seemed to stand like a king, was now on the verge of his sanity.
I don’t mind if he would attack me. I could tell he wasn’t that strong like his ancestors that I once fought. I could smell he had at least a quarter of their blood or less.
Well, blood suckers were incredibly full of themselves as we, lycans. And if camouflaging with humans made them feel superior, I wouldn’t be surprised to know that Draco decided to blend with them to feed that ego.
But I thought that wasn’t the very reason why they were blending with humans.
“Yzabelle is my mate,” I finally said.
His fierceness subsided a little.
“We don’t follow lycan’s rule. We are from a different realm,” his eyes turned into their usual dark color.
I guessed he’s starting to calm down now.
“I know, that’s why I was confused,” I sighed.
I’d been sensing something different from Yzabelle. But after I found out that he was the daughter of a vampire, my confusion still wasn’t answered.
It wasn’t her vampire blood that I’d sensed from her. There was something in her.
And yeah, Draco must be right. Yzabelle can hide her vampire scent because for the week we’ve been living together, I never once smelled that distinct scent of hers just like his father.
Or maybe, Yzabelle wasn’t aware of it.
Did it surprise her to find out that she could hear human thoughts?
“Did Yzabelle know about your ancestors?” I suddenly asked.
Draco’s lips tightened together. And there, I got the answer.
“How long are you going to keep it from her?” I gritted my teeth in anger. “You’re just putting her life in danger!”
“No!” he fiercely argued. “As long as she lived as a normal human and her scent was in a hide, she was safe. I planned all this already. From birth, she only showed her scent once. After that, it never showed again. Her everything was totally human. She doesn't drink blood and was never thirsty for it. She’s a day walker, actually. That’s an ability that rarely occurs in my ancestry. There’s no way the danger could trace her, plus…” He stopped in mid sentence.
It seemed to me that he was hiding something that he couldn’t risk spilling to anyone. But we could deal with that later. I would surely find out what it is.
I shook my head. “You’re wrong, Draco,”
I expected him to be surprised… to be confused… to be worried. But his face was still devoid of emotions.
“Yzabelle was showing unusual ability lately,”
His eyes moved restlessly. I knew somehow, it shocked him a bit. He gulped into his wine glass, completely emptying it, and disregarded the class and elegance.
I knew it. From the way he moved, he was anxious.
“I need to know everything about Yzabelle. So, I can protect her. You need to tell me everything. Every. Single. Thing.”
There, I said. I need to gain his trust for him to tell me everything. Though I knew it would be hard. Vampires were never gullible beings.