CHAPTER 7
Aimee
When I wake up, it’s midmorning, and the unforgiving winter sunlight is streaming through the high-ceilinged windowpanes.
The dull throbbing of a headache consumes me as I take in the vast expanse of snow-covered gardens beyond the stone balcony of my bedchamber.
Miles and miles of chalk-white land spread in all directions.
Everything is dusted off in snowflakes. An automatic shudder rakes my body.
I wasn’t content with the weather in Annerough, but it was manageable. Here it’s going to be one thousand times worse. Good thing I’m not planning to stick around for long.
The entire vampire kingdom is a miserable winter wonderland. It makes sense, though, that these creatures, and their aversion to heat and sunlight, chose to rule over a perpetually freezing dominion.
I rub my temples in slow circles, wishing the tedious ache away.
Another fucking nightmare crept upon me in the early hours before dawn.
It was a slight variation of the memory of Aurora killing my puppy when we were nine years old.
But this time, instead of Chip staying dead, Aurora brings him back to life, all mangled and broken.
Only he’s not Chip anymore, as froth comes out of his hissing jaws and he barks threateningly at me, snapping his canines and preparing to tackle me to the ground.
My sister cackles ear-shatteringly before the night terror implodes into a million pieces.
This version of the nightmare shakes me to the core, every single time, because it’s not just a horrific memory.
It’s like my subconscious is working against me too, taking an already traumatizing event and magnifying it a hundredfold, twisting it to hellish levels.
It’s bad enough that I survived all this abuse from such a young age.
My mind betraying me this way? Creating atrocities far worse than the dreadful reality?
Some days I feel like I can’t even get a break.
Like now.
Surrounded by enemies, in an unknown castle, wondering what the cruel fates have in store for me.
I should have known that my little blissful bubble of a life would eventually burst in a flaming pile of shit.
Never should I have settled down in Annerough.
I should have kept running, switching places every couple of months, as my initial plan was.
But I got comfortable, and I got confident that my sister would never find me there.
That she would never come looking, because she had more important things to do than hunt me down.
And maybe, just maybe, I was stupid to assume that I deserve a little sliver of make-believe happiness, for all the years of heart-wrenching molestation, mistreatment, and blatant persecution I endured from the hands of my twin.
Little did I know that in the end, it wasn’t Aurora who would obliterate all my precarious dreams of a better life.
Killian fucking Darkling.
That sinister, good-for-nothing, resplendent asshole.
Wait, what? Not resplendent! Vile! Horrid!
Swoon-worthy…
What the fuck, inner voice! I mean, sure, he is, by all means, the hottest piece of ass, as Sariah would put it, that I’ve ever laid my eyes upon.
He looks like sin incarnate, but he is the epitome of evil, and that trumps everything else.
Of course, the most corrupt creature in existence would come wrapped in the most deliciously immoral package.
The worst of predators always have the sparkliest, most colorful exteriors to mesmerize their empty-headed prey.
But I absolutely refuse to be preyed upon.
Nor am I that pea-brained, am I?
A soft knock comes from the bedchamber doors, followed by a feminine voice.
“May I come in, my lady?”
I nod before realizing that, whoever she is, can’t see me through the heavy wooden doors.
“Yes, you may enter,” I say out loud, sitting straighter in bed.
The doors open, and a petite, strawberry blonde woman enters, followed by a few servants bringing in trays filled with food and piles of clothing hanging on golden hangers.
They place the clothes in the black armoire by the door, and leave the trays piled high with mouth-watering foods on the low table by the fireplace, and then exit in silence.
They all look shockingly human, including the dainty female, dressed in a baby blue simple cotton dress.
She takes two steps closer to the bed and smiles my way.
“My lady, I am Nella and I am to be your lady-in-waiting. The King appointed me this morning. He sends his regards and apologizes for not being able to join you for breakfast. He has urgent matters to attend to.”
I scoff in disdain. As if I would ever want to share breakfast with that brute and exchange menial words and pleasantries. Why he is pretending to be a gentleman, and not the despicable creature I know him to be, is beyond my comprehension.
Nella seems to sense my apprehension and rubs her hands on the sides of her dress before she takes another step in my direction.
“Would you like to serve breakfast first, or would you prefer a chance to freshen up in the en-suite bathroom while I prepare you a change of clothes?”
I narrow my eyes at her servitude, and the easy-going smile she has plastered on her face. She’s a human, for fuck’s sake! How can she seem so at ease in this place, when her very life is at peril?
“You’re neither Fae nor vampire,” I say.
“Yes, my lady.”
“Why?”
She frowns slightly at my question. “Why am I human, my lady? I guess because I was born that way. My father was human, and so was my mother,” she says as if she has to explain to a small child how babies are brought into this world.
“No, not that,” I snort at her reply. “I mean, why are you here? How can you be working here, for them? Are you in danger? Is it a type of situation? Do you need help?”
Nella chuckles and shakes her head, her blonde locks swaying with the movement. “Of course not, my lady. I work here because I want to. We all do. I am safe here, as you are too, my lady.”
“Yeah, right,” I grumble under my breath. This poor woman is delusional. “Safe in the hands of the Vampire King, suuuuuure.” I’ve never heard of vampires having mind-control powers, but something like that must be what’s happening here.
“So, my lady, shower or food, what would you like?” Nella asks, changing the subject.
“A shower sounds nice,” I answer, rolling my shoulders to ease the tension that has gathered there.
“And please call me Aimee, Nella. None of that business.”
“Of course, my la… I mean, Aimee.” She gestures towards the door on the right side of the bed. “The bathroom is through there. I will be here preparing your attire for the day. Please let me know if you need anything else.”
I need to escape this gilded cage; that’s what I need. But it’s fairly obvious the woman won’t be of any help in that department, so I shake my head as I stand from the bed and move towards the bath chamber.
“That will be all, Nella. Thank you.”
After a long hot shower and a hearty breakfast later, I am sitting on a black settee in front of a tall mirror, while Nella is brushing my hair gently.
I’m wearing a long, dark brown velvet dress with a sweetheart neckline and golden embroidery woven along the full length of the tight sleeves.
It’s quite beautiful, I must admit, and it fits my body like a second skin.
I’ve perused the various pieces of clothing that fill the armoire, and I’m speechless at the exquisite materials and designs.
Long, flowy dresses made from the softest silks, warm capes and tight leather pants, as well as all sorts of heels, boots and slippers.
It’s a wardrobe fit for a queen, and for the life of me, I don’t understand why Killian would bother with such a thing for a prisoner.
Maybe it’s a prettily wrapped bribe, meant to persuade me into lowering my guard and helping him get to my sister?
As if! But I do like the clothes, if I’m being honest with myself.
“So, Aimee, what would you like to do today? Would you like to explore the castle? Would you be interested in visiting the library, maybe spending a few hours reading? Or some fresh air would be more to your liking? The gardens are quite splendid, this time of day,” Nella says from behind me, finishing pinning a few locks away from my face with pearl-adorned golden hair combs.
Exploring the castle is high on my list of priorities, but so is walking the grounds, so I can start crafting an escape. And the idea of fresh air, even cold air, brings a sharp thrill through my limbs.
“A walk in the gardens sounds lovely,” I answer her with a smile. I’ve decided Nella doesn’t deserve my contempt, even though she seems to be willingly serving the worst being in all Imiryion.
The petite human accompanies me through the castle towards the gardens, telling me about what each floor houses.
I try to memorize all the details and store them for later use.
Apparently, my room is on the last floor of the castle, which is the King’s floor, warded heavily against intruders.
A floor below is the location of the library, several studies and the bedchambers of the other vampires residing at the vampire court.
The ground level has several sitting chambers and waiting rooms, as well as an official ballroom for more formal affairs.
Below that are the kitchens, while the servant’s quarters are in the east wing.
I am appalled to know that I am sleeping on the same floor as Killian himself. That complicates matters further for me, as I will have to be extremely stealthy to disappear from right under his nose.
We reach a set of heavy metal double doors, and Nella stops walking.
“Here are the gardens, Aimee. Would you like me to accompany you on your walk, or would you prefer some alone time?”