26. Aurelia
The bells were ringing.
Church bells from the next town over. The same ones they used for funerals. Normally, they were quiet on wedding days so as not to disturb the vampire palace so close to them. After all, the ringing was annoying after a while to our super hearing.
But that day, they went all out. Rung them all. Three, I counted. Every hour for almost a full thirty seconds.
They were celebrating with us.
The humans, who had once cowered in fear of us. Had shunned us. Had hunted us because of our monster status.
They were now celebrating my getting married to some ruthless vampire prince they probably didn’t even recognize.
Maybe they were celebrating my departure, a bitter voice said in the back of my mind.
Maybe they were actually happy that I would be leaving. Or maybe they had heard rumors of the cruel fate that awaited me, and they were rejoicing that the spoiled vampire princess who caused so much fear was finally getting what she deserved.
I much preferred the latter. The hate was easier to digest.
I leaned my head against the cool window in my bedroom. The smell of rose petals was strong on my skin and tickled my nose. For hours, I had handmaidens in my bathroom, scrubbing me from head to toe with scented lotions and soaps. They spent even longer on my hair, making sure it was silky smooth and carefully curled.
They didn’t care how much I protested, citing that it had been an order from my father.
Of course. Even if he knew what awaited me, he still couldn’t pass up the chance to make a statement. A pampered princess on her wedding day. Everything would need to be perfect. I would need to be perfect.
The longer I stayed against the window, the more it began to warm from the shining sun. For a moment, I let myself pretend it was the little mouse.
My delusion told me Vesper wouldn’t have abandoned me.
Not after what she said.
I never wanted to kill you, Aurelia. Never.
But even then, wouldn’t this be something she would want to see? Or maybe even a last chance to come put an end to my misery for good?
I had been so stuck in my own pity party that I didn’t even think of the one final thing I could have asked her.
Ask me anything else.
She could kill me. I didn’t want to die. Quite the opposite. With each passing second, I found the need to run away getting more and more overwhelming. The need to live was a hard thing to ignore.
But somehow, I knew that even if I asked, she still wouldn’t do it. The little mouse had her fair share of chances, and each time it ended up with my fangs in her throat or her hands between my legs.
So where is she?
But the hours ticked by, each second getting me closer and closer to the time when I would be walking down the aisle, and she wasn’t there.
I had nothing else to do but stay near that window and watch as the hundreds of staff prepared my wedding for me. It wouldn’t be until sunset, but I could see them setting up right outside my window, and in my panic, I couldn’t stop watching them.
Their hands were full. Some carrying expensive clothes, some carrying flowers. It was a bit comical watching how panicked they were when I was the one getting married. But my guess was that Father didn’t want them preparing for the wedding until the actual wedding day.
Krae forbid that his throne room be occupied by something other than himself for even a day.
That was where the wedding would be held. It was a beautiful place for it, and I was grateful it was not in the cathedral where my mother passed instead.
The large crystal windows behind Father’s throne would let the setting sun shine through and make for the perfect photo opportunity. But to get there, I had to walk down a bloodred carpet that spanned from the front of the palace to deep inside, with members of the family lining up along the way to see their late queen’s daughter as she was handed off to another family.
I could imagine the headlines now.
Two of the most powerful vampire families finally united!
Princess Aurelia finally getting married off to the handsome Prince Icas!
They would never dare write anything bad about us—not with the amount of money my father gave them. But that didn’t mean that we still didn’t have to perfect our image.
The weight of it all was heavy on my shoulders. The longer I watched them, the harder it became to breathe. It became worse when I realized how low in the sky the sun had fallen.
I’ve been standing here staring at them for god knows how long and not even trying to get the fuck out of here?
The realization of just how much my own uselessness was about to fuck me over hit me like a truck.
There I was, waiting for someone who would never show. Someone whose entire job was to kill me. What did I fucking expect from her?
If she wouldn’t come to me, I would fucking make her.
When I couldn’t take it anymore, I stormed to the door, ready to demand that she come see me, but as soon as I opened it, I came face-to-face with not one but two guards.
Both of them turned to look at me with blank expressions. They weren’t human. For the first time, Father decided to give me vampire guards instead of the normal human ones.
Shit. He knew I would get cold feet. Humans I could fight off easily, but vampires?
“Go get the silver-haired guard,” I ordered them. “I’m thirsty.”
The one on the right looked at the one on the left, but neither responded. Fuck. Think of something, Aurelia!
“Ignoring me?” I asked with a huff and placed my arms on their chests, ready to push them out of my way. I needed to get out of the room. “Useless?—”
They both reached out, their hands capturing my wrists in a bruising grip. I looked up at them in shock. Not once had Father’s guards dared to hurt me. Father was different, he could do whatever he wanted, but never anyone under him. It was an insult to his and my standing.
“Don’t you fucking tou?—”
“Your father’s orders,” the one on the left said, and with ease, they pushed me back into the room and slammed my door shut. The sound of it was such a shock that it was almost enough to silence me. Almost.
“We will let you out when it’s time for the wedding,” the other added, his voice muffled by the door.
I kicked the door, my foot causing the thick wood to dent. But it wasn’t enough. Not to break it down or to give me a chance to escape.
“I haven’t had anything to drink. You want me to starve?”
There was no answer. Fine.
I ran to my vanity, taking the whole fucking thing with me as I ran to the windows, letting out a guttural scream as I threw it at them.
The shattering of the glass was satisfying enough to cause me to let out a small victory noise.
I turned and ran to it, ready to jump out and secure my freedom, but just as my hands wrapped around the sharp edges, I paused.
Because below were three more guards, all looking up at me.
Vampires.
“Don’t try it, princess,” one of them called from below. “Go back to your room, and we’ll come get you shortly.”
One of them even had the audacity to chuckle under his breath.
The realization of just how stuck I was felt akin to ice-cold water being poured on me. There is no escape. Not then, not ever.
Growing up in the family, I always thought that I was used to the attention of thousands on me at any given moment.
Until my wedding.
It was nothing I had ever seen before. The grounds were packed with humans and vampires alike, all of them looking at me. The air was buzzing with excitement. Excited murmurs filled the crowd. I was more of a spectacle than anything else. A circus animal put in front of them to perform.
But all I could do was stand there at the end of the aisle, frozen, feeling their eyes wandering over my entire body. It felt dirty. It felt mortifying.
Father wouldn’t degrade himself to walk with me, so I was accompanied by my guards, who stood close behind me at all times. No doubt for fear that I might run after my little tantrum in my room. They let me sit with the consequences of my own actions until they hauled me out of the room, kicking and screaming, to repair the window and get me dressed.
They weren’t gentle then either, and there were even more of them at my side than ever before. Their presence behind me was stifling, maybe even more so than the guests.
At that moment, I realized just how boxed in I was. Guards at my back. Guests to my right and left. The prince, Father, and the stepbastards waiting for me at the end.
I could run, but then they would catch me. Maybe I could even dive into the crowd. But then what would the people think? What would Father do once the wedding was over and I had caused such a scene?
The setting sun had cooled the air, but the pressure of it all caused my skin to heat unbearably. My clothes were too tight. My hair too in my face. The tiara on my head too heavy.
But worst of all, Vesper was nowhere to be found. Her absence was glaringly obvious and more painful than I’d like to admit.
Music filtered down the aisle, signaling my time to start walking. It was dramatic. The strike of the organ keys mixed with the high-pitched sound of a string instrument sounded more like I was walking into war than into the arms of my prince.
The dress they had given me was made mostly of black lace that was intricately fitted to my body, underneath a light bloodred slip that showed through the fabric. A heavy ruby sat on my chest, with a few more pinned into my hair and about one on every finger.
My deep red shoes peeked out as I compelled my feet to move.
One after the other.
That was all I could chant to myself. I tried not to look into the eyes of the people standing on either side of the aisle. Tried not to remember their names or what they thought of my mother. Tried not to think of what my father had given them.
It worked until I got to poor Henry.
He was forced to sit behind some human politician known for taking blood money donations, not even allowed in the front. Corrupt government officials were more important than our own family.
I wasn’t surprised. Nothing about Father could surprise me…but I was angry.
Angry that our family had turned into this. Angry that there was nothing I could do about it. Angry that right beside him was a vampire the prince had somehow convinced to leave the family.
How did it come to this? How had the family become so twisted that the people who were loyal to me and my mother were forced to the back? Forced to stand next to people who would rather throw me under the bus for a measly house or some pocket change? Even when I begged them not to.
This wasn’t the family I saw as a little girl. This wasn’t what my mother had wanted.
My mother lived her life trying to do right by these people, and what did that get her in the end?
A disappointing daughter. A daughter who couldn’t care less about the people who had tried to save her. Some even lost their lives by standing up to my father.
Why did it take me so long to realize this? Had I been so crazed with trying to fit into the mold of a vampire king’s cruel daughter that I forgot everything else?
It didn’t matter if they had originally joined for Mother—they stayed for me. Their loyalty was to me.
It didn’t matter what Prince Icas offered them, at least not to the truly loyal ones. They would follow me. I just had to have the courage to act.
I gave up before I even tried.
The words were like a slap in the face and strong enough to cause me to stumble slightly. My mind spun. My chest ached. I wanted to cry. I wanted to scream.
If I had done anything even the slightest bit different, would this have changed?
Brushing it off with a smile, I righted myself before the stares could eat me alive. I had never felt so unnerved in my life. Never felt so weak.
Where the fuck is this coming from? I did the best that I could while trapped in my cage. Mother would have understood…wouldn’t she? Would the people?
But after that one cruel sentence flitted through my mind…I couldn’t help but notice all those who came out to see me.
Behind the rows of rich vampires and powerful humans, they were all there. I remembered them. Every single one. I could pick out the faces of those who kneeled down in front of my mother to greet me every time she and I walked through the palace grounds.
I remembered the ones who came to see me in the pouring rain after my mother died.
We weren’t allowed a funeral, but they did their best to provide me with wreaths of petrified roses, a gesture to let me know Mother would stay just like that—frozen in their memories, never to be forgotten.
I looked at them all, using their faces as my guide down the aisle. Instead of racing to my husband, I was racing to their memories.
My stomach twisted itself into a knot. So tight, it threatened to bring up whatever leftover blood I had in my stomach. Regret. An aching, all-powerful feeling that caused a sense of shame to fall over me.
As soon as my feet hit the threshold of the throne room, all those familiar faces left. There was not one person in there who was a part of the family, save for Father’s court members. The rest were from other families in the area, all of them packed into the throne room. Making a once vast space seem so crowded.
I recognized a few.
Elora and her rotten husband. She looked just as withered as the last time I saw her. But even then, she managed a smile for me.
Dalia and her husband were there, standing side by side, his father not far behind.
And then, right at the end, on his throne, sat my father. He wore his red ceremonial robe, which he usually reserved for initiating family members. It was the same dark red I was wearing, with intricate golden designs. My stepmother and her daughter were by him in all black.
They looked down at me with smug grins. Maybe to onlookers, their expressions would have looked supportive, but I knew better. I had seen that sly smirk one too many times to be fooled by it.
They were eating it up. Their attempt to get me out of their hair angered me, but it saddened me even more to realize just how complacent I had been.
Because of me, they were able to pull it off. Because of me, they would now be in charge of all the family members I left behind.
At last, my eyes found the man of the hour. Prince Icas stood at the bottom of the steps, waiting for me. His hair was slicked back, and he wore a white robe with dark red underneath. It was so showy, I was surprised my father even allowed it. He gave me a beaming smile that, I’m sure, melted at least some of the hearts in the room.
At least the ones who didn’t know just how twisted he was behind that mask of his.
I don’t want to do this.
Less than ten steps away from him, my stomach fell to my feet.
The dress felt too tight. Too itchy.
It was getting hard to breathe.
The room was spinning.
The voices were getting louder.
My hands were shaking. My legs felt like they might give out any second.
Can I still stop this? Can anyone?
Four steps. He reached out his hand for me.
I couldn’t stop myself from recoiling. All the muscles in my body seized. The need to run was crushing me.
His eyes were on me, waiting. Then his smile dropped when he realized what was happening.
I can’t do this. I’m sorry, Mother, I?—
The sound of a sword being pulled was so fast and hidden underneath the intensity of the music that I almost missed it. Almost.
Until my eyes caught a movement behind the prince. A fast, dark blob that materialized as it got closer. It was so fast that if I had so much as blinked, I would have missed it.
Silver hair that shone in the setting sun was the first thing I could make out. The second was the pale face filled with battle scars. Chains were fastened around her neck and wrists. A startling image that had pain expanding through me.
But it was followed by hope. She came.
My dead heart felt like it would explode out of my chest.
Then, when she got close enough, I could make out her honey-colored eyes narrowed in on her target. She wasn’t fazed by the crowd or by the way my father was staring at her with a smile I hadn’t seen in years.
Just like the first time I had seen her, her heart was calm. Beating steadily and evenly. A sound that comforted me as soon as it reached my ears. There was no fear in her scent. No panic in her expression. Totally and completely focused.
I knew she was hiding something back then, but I couldn’t make it out at the time.
Not until I saw the monster hiding in her shadow.
Warm, thick blood splashed across my face as she shoved her sword through the prince’s chest and twisted it before immediately pulling it back. The blood seeped into his white clothing, painting a beautifully gory image of his last moments.
Suddenly, the white made all the sense in the world.
The smile on the prince’s face crumpled, but the light in his eyes was long gone before his body fell limply to the floor. It happened so fast. Much faster than every time she attempted to do the same to me.
He was gone. Just like that.
The music cut out. Screams filled the room. All the noise was drowned out by a rush in my ears.
Vesper stood there, her face covered in vampire blood, eyes trained on me. The relief that washed through me threatened to bring me to my knees. She looked even better covered in the blood of that bastard.
My shaky hand lifted to my face, trying to feel for any possible blood splatter. Instead, I came into contact with something worse.
My own smile.
And then Father climbed down the stairs, his hands up, trying to call for the crowd’s attention. He was back in the spotlight after losing it for mere moments.
His mouth was moving, but I couldn’t hear his words. I couldn’t make sense of what was happening.
I’m free. Free.
But the relief didn’t last long. Because Vesper looked up at him, waiting for his command even when her true commander lay dead at her feet. And then the little mouse kneeled at his feet.