by Leigh Walker
I blinked at him. “My cell phone was how I talked to Katie, my best friend. We literally texted each other fifty times a day.”
“Texted?” The prince still looked confused.
“Never mind—it was just how I used to talk to my friends. When I got in trouble for talking back to my mother or fighting with Iz, my mother used to ground me by taking away my phone.” I crossed my arms. “And I have a similar feeling right now. You say you aren’t mad at me, but I know that look in your eye. I’m about to be grounded.”
“Well, since we’re on the subject of reading each other’s expressions, I suppose I have something to say.” Dominic sat up a little straighter. “It pains me to see you looking afraid. Particularly when it’s at the chapel where we’re to be married in two weeks’ time.”
“I wasn’t afraid.”
Dom regarded me. “Right—petrified was the word I used, and it was the correct one.”
I groaned. “I’m not petrified, but I am eighteen. It’s just…it’s a lot. All of it. Being in the church made it seem more real.”
“That’s because it is real. And as you aren’t prepared to go through with it, we need to call the ceremony off.” His voice held no judgment or recrimination—just authority. He was sure of himself, as usual.
“We can’t call the wedding off. My family is coming to the ceremony! How else am I expected to rescue them from Emperor Resident Evil? I can’t very well do it otherwise, trapped here in your kingdom!”
Dominic pointed at me. “There it is—right there.”
“What?” I cried.
“The reason why I cannot marry you in two weeks.” The prince shook his head.
“What are you talking about?”
“You are not marrying me to be married, my lady. It is a means to an end for you. You’ve only agreed to go through with this because you want to be reunited with your family.”
His words cut me—both because I could hear the hurt behind them and because they were partially true. “Dominic, please. I fought to come back to the kingdom, to come back to you. We’ve spent every night together since, and I can barely stand to be away from you for a minute. I thought you were aware of my feelings.”
He stood up and paced. “I don’t want you to try to convince me. That only makes it worse.”
“I’m not trying to convince you—I’m telling you the truth. For you to accuse me of using you hurts, Your Highness.”
He ran a hand over his head. “I’m not accusing you of anything. Except perhaps being too agreeable then not being able to find a way out. I will not bind you to me if your heart is not in this, Victoria. You’ve already said you’re not ready to be married. It’s about time that I listened to you.”
“I didn’t say that. Not exactly.” But perhaps I had. I studied the even green hedges for a minute, trying to gather my thoughts. The problem—if I were, in fact, admitting there was a problem—was that Dominic seemed genuinely enthusiastic about getting married. I, however, was still in the peeing-my-pants stage of acceptance. Being in the church had made the wedding seem real.
And there was my handsome, loyal fiancé, trying to call it off because he wanted to protect me. From myself. Or from him. It was maddening. Actually, he was. In all his perfection and doing the right thing, he was maddening.
“Of course I’m not ready to be married!” I finally spat. “How could I be? I haven’t even graduated from high school!”
“Victoria—”
“No, no, listen to me. If I were a thousand years older and had experienced the world, or if I could remember our last nine years together—of course I would be as confident as you. But I’m not, and I haven’t. So could you forgive me a bit of nerves?”
He stopped pacing and looked at me. “I can forgive you anything, my lady. But I could not forgive myself for compromising you for my selfish needs. I won’t do it.”
I stood up and faced him. “Can you please stop being heroic for a minute?”
He hung his head. “I cannot—not if it means hurting you. I vowed to protect you, my lady. And I will do so until my last day here on earth.”
“Dominic, please. You can only hurt me by casting me out.” I reached for him, but he stepped back.
His dark gaze raked over me, a mixture of reserve and regret playing out over his handsome features. “I would never cast you out. But I won’t bind you to me against your will, either. I’m afraid I don’t have it in me.” He swept down the path, leaving the private enclave, as well as me, behind.
“Dominic!”
But he was gone before I could argue, or cry, or ask exactly what that meant. I stared at the hedges, hoping they could tell me something. But they only swayed slightly in the light breeze, leaving me alone, with only my regrets for company.
9
For What It’s Worth
My thoughts bubbled and churned as I left the garden and headed for the privacy of my room. I didn’t know what to do. I had no clue what Dominic had planned. Is he done with me? Will he call off the wedding? What will happen to my family if he does that?
It was my last question that brought me up short. I stopped near one of the statues and stared at it blankly. Dominic needed to understand that I wanted—no, I needed—my mother and sister to come to the kingdom for the wedding. And yes, that was why I’d agreed to go through with it in the first place. But it wasn’t the only reason. I also had feelings for him, the ones with a capital F, which was actually an L.
I wanted to save my family. I also wanted to be with the prince. Those things were not mutually exclusive, and I needed Dominic to understand that.
“What’re you staring at, then?” Anthony came up behind, startling me.
“Uh…this statue.” I blinked at the marble face of a woman wearing a toga. Her nose had been chipped off, but she was still beautiful.
Anthony smirked at me. “You and Dom had a fight, did you?”
“Not exactly…”
“I just saw him tearing into the palace. He looked about as grim as you do.”
“Great.” I sighed. “Hey—where did you disappear to in the village? You never even made it to the church.”
“I had an errand to run is all. A private one.”
“What sort of errand is private? You didn’t get another cat for Mr. Fitz, did you?”
He raked a hand through his bright shock of hair. “I did no such thing. One mangy beast is quite enough.”
“Well, that’s good,” I said, because nothing better came to mind. But nothing seemed good, nothing at all.
“Tor. Why are you just standing there with your mouth hanging open?”
“Uh, I don’t know. I suppose I should get going.” Instead, I stayed rooted to the spot. The problem was I didn’t know where I was going. For all I knew, Dom had already called off the wedding. Then the only place I would be going was back into the lake.
“So why aren’t you moving if you have somewhere to go?”
I sighed. “I don’t know what to do. I’m worried Dom’s going to call off the wedding…”
Anthony shook his head. “What’d you do this time?”
“Nothing.” I picked at the lace of my dress. “I mean, I might’ve said I wasn’t ready to get married. And I might’ve yelled at him. Just a little, of course.”
He guffawed. “Of course.”
Just then, Mistress Olivia burst from the castle and hustled toward us. “There you are. I’ve been looking everywhere!”
“What’s wrong?” I braced myself for the news that Dominic had gone ahead and made an announcement.
“The queen was very pleased with the news that the church visit went so well. She has lots of new ideas for events planned in preparation for the wedding. She’s issuing some sort of decree.”
“What do you mean? We’ve only just gotten back.” The queen moved too fast for me. I could barely keep track of her plots, let alone her motivations.
“Come along, then,” Mistress Olivia said, already s
etting off back to the castle. “She’s called court in the grand library.”
Anthony and I hurried to catch up. “You still didn’t tell me what happened,” Anthony whispered. “D’you think he’s going to forgive you this time?”
“I don’t know.” I shook my head. I wanted Dominic’s forgiveness, of course, but more than that, I wanted him to understand my position. “You never told me what your private errand was, either.”
“That’s because it’s private.” Anthony fake-smiled sweetly. “Which means it’s for me to know and you to not find out.”
I scowled at him, but it was too late to argue further. We entered the library, and I was surprised to see the king surrounded by a grim-looking faction of well-dressed vampires—the council. The entire group of sacrifices was also present, dressed in their finest, along with Professor Talbot, who was wearing her typical black gown, scowl, and fantastic hair. The guards and the palace staff rounded out the audience. I caught a glimpse of Dominic, who was stationed near the back of the room, looking as though he were trying to hide behind a large potted plant.
I went to his side immediately. “What’s this about?”
He stared straight ahead. “I went to speak with my mother as soon as I left you. But she didn’t give me a chance to even say a word. She’s on the warpath for the council and is plowing ahead with her agenda. So now she’s issuing decrees.”
“I’m glad you didn’t say anything to her.” I grabbed his hand, but it was cold and still beneath mine. “I need to talk to you.”
Dom’s expression was sour. “No, you don’t.”
“Ha. I’m glad to see you’re at least capable of being moody. It’s annoying how perfect you are all the time.”
He finally shot me a look. It was a dirty one, but it was at least something.
“Dominic, please.” I leaned closer to him, shaking my hair a little the way the slaves had shown me so that he would catch my scent. He only glared.
I sighed. “Give me a chance to explain myself. You’re immortal—you’ve got all the time in the world to figure out the right thing to say. The rest of us aren’t so gifted. Sometimes my only gift is putting my foot in my mouth.”
The muscle in his jaw twitched. “I don’t know what to say to you right now.”
“Thank goodness.” I squeezed his hand. “It’s a relief you’re not completely flawless.”
But then his mother stalked to the front of the room, and any relief was immediately replaced by icy needles jabbing down my spine. Queen Danica’s dark hair was parted down the middle, falling in loose waves around her shoulders. But that was the only soft thing about her appearance. Her black taffeta gown was stiff and austere, as was the expression on her face. The room immediately fell silent in her presence.
“Thank you all for gathering on such short notice,” she said. “I am happy to announce that the visit to the village church this morning was an unbridled success. My guards report that they’ve only seen crowds like this gather for the Trade.”
The audience clapped politely then waited for her to continue.
“It is my duty as queen to lead our kingdom on its path to greatness. For too long, we have denied ourselves our power and destiny. I believe that the villagers’ excitement about the royal wedding is proof from the gods that I am guiding us in the right direction. We must continue on this path. We must take it further.”
The room was silent. I held my breath as I waited to hear what Her Highness actually meant.
“I’m issuing several decrees this morning. Firstly: the wedding will take place as planned in two weeks’ time. Prince Dominic will wed Lady Victoria in the chapel in the village. All of the villagers are invited—they don’t know this yet, of course. Our foreign vampire counterparts will also witness the ceremony. There will be a large attendance. We will compensate for the overflow with outdoor accommodations during the ceremony.”
Queen Danica waited for a moment before she continued. “Secondly, for the first time, the sacrifices will be allowed back into the kingdom, to be seen in public. They will also attend the wedding as esteemed guests of the royal family.”
Shocked whispers ripped through the council, while the sacrifices huddled together, their faces shining with hope and excitement.
“Your Highness.” One of the councilwomen stepped forward. She was tall and humorless, her hair pulled back into a severe bun. She frowned in clear disapproval. “What on earth are you going to tell the villagers about the sacrifices? What about the girls who are missing? What about the villagers who’ve been vanished so many times they don’t remember their families? How will we explain the presence of our slaves to them?”
Queen Danica bowed her head. “I think you underestimate the villagers, Lady Dowd. They will be happy to see the sacrifices. Their joy at the event will eclipse any lingering questions they might have. Besides…” She turned and smiled warmly at the blood slaves. “These women are part of our family. They would be missed. Their attendance is absolutely necessary at the ceremony, and I’m sure my son feels the same way.”
All eyes turned to Dominic, to the spot he was sharing with me in the corner. He only nodded once in response. I squeezed his hand, desperate to know what was behind the queen’s apparently softened position toward the sacrifices. Whatever it was, it couldn’t be good.
“Thirdly, this wedding celebration is an opportunity to unite the crown, our people, and the foreign dignitaries invited to celebrate this sacred event with us. We need to maximize the potential of the next two weeks. To that end, I am having several lead-up events organized. First, the sacrifices and Professor Talbot will help Lady Victoria on a daily basis with a regime of exercise, beauty care, and etiquette. At the end of this week, the king and I shall host a royal ball, to which everyone here is invited.”
Excited whispers broke out among the sacrifices at the same time the council members frowned and muttered to each other in worried tones. Queen Danica cleared her throat, and everyone went silent at once.
“After that,” she continued, “we will host a special reception for our foreign guests. And after that, we will stage both a wedding rehearsal and rehearsal dinner that is open to the public. Suitable accommodations are being sought for this in the village as we speak.”
Lady Dowd stepped forward again. “What is the meaning of all these events? And why on earth are we giving such deference to the slaves and the villagers? Surely, our riches could be better spent on functional things, like improving infrastructure—”
Queen Danica stepped forward. “The villagers and the sacrifices are both important to my son, who I might remind you has come of age and taken a seat on the council. I should also remind you that he is my heir, the next to rule the kingdom for centuries to come. Do not deny me the opportunity to expand my vision to include our future generations. The infrastructure is just fine, and you know it. Our relationship with the humans, however, could use some repair.”
Lady Dowd looked positively perplexed as the queen smoothly continued, “You are all dismissed. Everyone should be quite busy, I expect. News of the ball and the other events will be forthcoming. Professor Talbot, please come and see me about your administrative duties for the rest of the week.”
Knowing better than to cross the queen, the crowd disassembled. Dom didn’t say a word as he watched his mother speak to Professor Talbot, nor did he move.
“Are you all right?” I whispered.
“Not at all.” His lips were set in a grim line.
“What do you think she’s up to?”
He gave me a quick glance. “I don’t know. But I have a feeling it rhymes with human enslavement.”
“Huh? What rhymes with that?”
He blinked at me. “Human enslavement.”
“Dominic. Lady Victoria. A word, please.” The queen dismissed the professor and waved us over. “You both have many preparations to make. Lady Victoria, you will go to the sacrifices’ building as soon as we’re done here.”
I nodded. “Yes, Your Highness.” At least she hadn’t called me “it.”
“In addition to the schedule I discussed, you will also be having a proper date in the village later this week. I will have it arranged so that the villagers can cheer you on and offer you their finest in terms of wine and food.” Queen Danica smiled indulgently at her son. “Not that you’ll be eating, dear. But I am certain you can tolerate their peasant wine for one evening. You do have such a soft spot for the humans.” Her gaze flicked briefly to me then away again.
Dominic’s face was set in stone. “What are you doing, Mother?”
“I am taking action.” She smiled at him, a genuine smile that went all the way to her eyes. “I told you: I neither forgive nor forget. I only get even. If the council wants to curtail my powers, I will simply circumnavigate them until I have the opportunity to stake their hearts in the public setting of my choice. So off you go. I have many things I need to do to prepare for the coming celebrations. Keep up the good work, Dominic. You help me in spite of yourself, but one day, you’ll thank me.”
With that, she swept off, leaving Dominic and me just staring.
10
Wedding Boot Camp
I turned to the prince once his mother was out of sight and I could think straight again. “D’you think she’ll let you call off the wedding now?” I tried not to laugh, but I failed. It wasn’t funny. None of it was funny, yet there I was, hysterical.
Dominic looked at me as though I’d sprouted three heads. “No, I don’t.”
I tried to stop laughing by forcing a cough. Then I cleared my throat. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings before.”
He sighed. “You didn’t. And even if you did, it’s fine.”
“It’s not fine that I hurt you.” I sighed too, trying to gather both my bravery and my thoughts. “And it’s not that I don’t want to marry you.”
“Victoria, we’ve been over this.” Dom raked a hand over his hair. “I’m well aware that there’s a ‘but.’”
