“Lady Daria is here to help us!” he yelled, and the crowd quieted at his words. “As I said, she’s the vampire spoken of in our dreams. Her help is a sign that our Savior is on His way! Once He rises, it’ll be the end of the nomadic, warring life we’ve been forced to endure for centuries. Once He rises, we’ll live in peace and comfort on this land that’s rightfully ours! We’ll finally have the freedom we deserve!”
The crowd started cheering and clapping again, so enthusiastically that it seemed like they would never stop.
But they did stop—when a group of about ten shifters in human form approached the camp.
The men standing around the edges of the crowd shifted into their wolf forms and bared their teeth at the intruders, ready for a fight.
Karina
Noah thrust the scent concealment charm back into my hand.
I placed it around my neck, understanding his intent. Whoever these wolves were, they couldn’t know I was a vampire.
Noah had control of his own followers, but he couldn’t stop these strangers from attacking me. The concealment charm would keep me safe.
However, by now I had a feeling that the wolves at camp would do whatever was necessary to keep me safe as well—even if it came at the expense of their own lives.
“We come in peace.” The leader of the outside pack—at least I assumed he was the leader because he was the largest and stood in front of the others—raised his hand in what I assumed meant peace. “Is this the camp of the First Prophet?”
“It is.” Noah stepped down from the table and walked through the crowd to face the outside pack’s leader. “I am he.”
“I am Jakob, and this is my pack.” Jakob held out his hand, and Noah shook it. “We heard rumors of wolves throughout the land receiving prophetic dreams that spoke of a Savior, but we didn’t believe it until my daughter, Leah, received one herself. Once she told me of her dream, we came to you immediately.”
Marigold was instantly at Noah’s side. “Which one of you is Leah?” she asked.
“I am.” A girl who looked no older than fifteen stepped forward. Her voice was soft, and she kept her eyes focused on the ground, playing with her hands in front of her. “You must be the witch mentioned in my dream.”
“I am.” Marigold smiled and took Leah’s hand, giving the girl a warm smile. “You must be very special to have received a dream from our Savior. What, exactly, did you see?”
“I saw our Savior,” she said, her voice so quiet that without my strong vampire senses, I wouldn’t have been able to hear her. “He was a wolf more than twice the size of my father—the largest wolf I’ve ever seen. He said that the time was coming for the wolves in the Vale to reclaim our land. He said that with the help of a witch and a vampire, we would clear the Vale of the vampires, so that He can rise. He promised that once He rose, he would bring peace and prosperity to our packs. And He said that I must tell our pack to come here—to this camp—so we could contribute to the cause.”
“She’s not the only one in our pack to have had the dream.” A tall, wiry boy stepped up to join her. “I had the dream too—a few nights ago.”
“Then it sounds like you’re also very special.” Marigold gave him a smile, and he beamed back at her. I had a feeling he didn’t receive compliments often. The witch soon turned her attention back to the pack leader. “There’s plenty of room for your pack at camp, if you would like to join us,” she told him.
“I hope you do,” Noah added. “The more of us who band together to fight, the more pleased our Savior will be. He will give His help to all of the wolves of the Vale, of course, but those who fight for Him will be in His best graces.”
“Thank you for your kind welcome,” Jakob replied. “We’d like to take you up on your offer, and will get ourselves settled in at once.”
Karina
Soon after Jakob’s pack was shown around they were introduced to me—well, to “Lady Daria.” I gave them the same spiel I’d given to the others earlier.
Many wolves came up to greet me individually, some of them offering presents in the form of hand crafted jewelry, pelts, and food. I wouldn’t be able to take the gifts back to the palace—not without the vampires becoming suspicious—but I accepted the gifts anyway, grateful for what they symbolized.
The wolves of the Vale trusted me and were welcoming me to their pack.
But I couldn’t stay for long, so I soon said my farewells, and Noah escorted me back to the boundary of the vampire kingdom.
“That went well,” he told me once we were back.
“It did,” I agreed. “Thank you for bringing me there. Seeing the camp…” I paused, contemplating how to express the emotions I felt about the situation. “I never thought I would say this, but you and the other wolves at the camp surprised me. You’re good people.”
“It only took you until now to realize this?” he asked with a twinkle in his eye.
“Before coming here, I’d never had a conversation with a shifter,” I explained. “You must understand that the wolves of the Vale are very different from the wolves that surround the Carpathian Kingdom.”
“The wolves near the Carpathian Kingdom have lost touch with their humanity.” He said it as a fact, not as a question. “As we had, before receiving our dreams.”
“Yes,” I answered. “I suppose that must be it.”
“Our Savior is a good man.” Noah spoke as if he already knew him. “Once He rises, I’m sure He’ll want to help shifters all over the world—not just the ones in the Vale. He’ll help them get in touch with their humanity once more.”
“I hope so,” I said, and I meant it. If their Savior could stop the violence around the castle in the Carpathian Kingdom, then all the better.
I just hoped that once He rose, He wouldn’t require the sacrifice of any more vampires.
“You look troubled.” Noah stepped closer to me, and it was like his eyes were gazing into my soul. “What’s wrong?”
“The Savior is requiring the vampires in the Vale be cleared from the land so He can rise.” I needed to tread carefully, since Noah admired the Savior so much. “What happens if He wants all the vampires in the world dead once He’s here?”
“He won’t.” Noah spoke calmly and surely. “This land—the Vale—has been sacred since the dawn of time. The wolves who live here have been protecting it for thousands of years—long before the vampires invaded. From what I know, our numbers were far less back then. When Queen Laila settled here with her army of vampires, she was either going to kill my ancestors or make a deal with them. They told her this land was sacred to our kind and she should find somewhere else to go, but learning that the land was sacred made her want it even more. She thought the magic of the land would bring prosperity to her kingdom. My ancestors weren’t strong enough to best her in a war, so they agreed to the peace treaty to ensure our survival. Since then, we’ve grown our numbers, preparing for the time when we could take our land back. The Savior has come to us and told us that the time is now.”
“And the vampires of the Vale refuse to leave voluntarily.” I said it as a statement, not a question. Over the past few centuries, the Vale had grown into a thriving vampire kingdom. Queen Laila wouldn’t leave without a fight.
But this was my species. I didn’t want vampires to die if they didn’t have to.
“Have you tried to explain the situation to them so they at least have a choice to leave?” I asked.
“The vampires of the Vale won’t listen to us,” he told me. “The only chance we have to reclaim our land is war. The Savior has told us this in our dreams. But our Savior is a good man. He’s rising to bring peace to the world so the fighting can end. And no other kingdom is built on sacred ground, so he’ll have no need to expel the vampires from their homes. Once He rises, He’ll bring together the wolves and vampires of the Carpathian Kingdom—not pit them against each other. And He certainly won’t call for any unnecessary death.”
“Thank you,” I said, his assuran
ce easing my worries. When he put it that way, I realized how reckless Queen Laila had been to insist on building her kingdom on ground that was sacred to the shifters. She had to have known that doing such a thing would eventually have a consequence.
She’d dug herself—and her kingdom—into this grave centuries ago, when she’d ignored the wolves’ warning and claimed this land as her own. I couldn’t allow myself to feel guilty for her mistake.
“There’s no need to thank me.” Noah swallowed, his eyes swirling with emotion as he stared at me, and he took my hands in his. “I will do whatever it takes to make sure no harm comes to you, Princess Karina. You have my word—not just as a shifter or as the First Prophet—but as a man whose respect you have earned.”
I nodded, unable to break my gaze from his. He spoke so honestly, and I could feel myself being sucked into his intensity, my heart thudding with every second that passed. The warmth of his hands spread through my body, making me feel safe and protected. It was like there was a magnetic force pulling us closer, until there were only inches between us.
I hadn’t felt this way around a man since Peter.
The thought of my one true love snapped me back to reality.
I yanked my hands out of Noah’s and stepped back, shaking off whatever effect he had on me. Whatever I was feeling for him was only from the intensity of the moment. I couldn’t allow myself to forget my motive for being here. I wasn’t doing this for the wolves, for their Savior, or for Noah.
I was doing this so I could get Geneva’s ring and get Peter back.
My feelings for Noah were fleeting. There was no need to get myself more involved in this war than necessary.
“The sun is growing stronger,” I said stiffly, the excuse coming easily. “I need to go back to the palace so I can heal before sunset.”
I turned around and hurried away from him, afraid that he might say something that would convince me to stay.
“Wait,” he called, just as I’d stepped through the boundary.
I turned around, unable to ignore him completely, and waited for him to continue.
“Stay off the streets tomorrow,” he warned, his eyes fierce. “I can’t tell you any more—I wasn’t even supposed to tell you that at all. But I trust you and I don’t want you to get hurt. So stay in the palace tomorrow, and you’ll be safe.”
I nodded and turned around, running back toward the palace before he had a chance to stop me again.
Annika
I approached Jacen’s quarters wearing jeans, a silk tank top, and chunky black heels. The heels were Geneva’s insistence. She thought it was horrible that I was dressing so casual for my date with the prince—she’d already selected a gown for me to wear a few days ago—but once I told her of the chat Jacen and I had in the hall, she had no choice but to keep her lips sealed about her thoughts regarding my attire.
I’d also used my power over the ring to command that she kept her opinions to herself.
“Princess Ana,” Jacen greeted me upon my arrival. He was also dressed casually, in jeans and a button down shirt. But despite his casual attire, he commanded the room like a prince.
How had I ever believed he was a fellow human blood slave? The person I was seeing right now was the real Jacen.
The vampire prince who used blood slaves and left them for dead without caring in the slightest.
“Your Highness.” I lowered myself into an awkward curtsy, the heel of my shoe banging against the floor, and quickly righted myself.
“There’s no need for such formalities in private.” He stepped aside, ushering me into his rooms. “Please, call me Jacen.”
I nodded, looking around his quarters in awe. I’d thought my accommodations in the palace were nice, but Jacen’s rooms put mine to shame. The Turkish rug in the entrance probably cost as much as a car.
But the luxurious furniture in his quarters had nothing on the view. The huge window across the way looked out over the entire kingdom.
Next to the window was a table for two that looked like it had been plucked out of a fancy steakhouse.
I immediately felt underdressed in my casual clothing. It took all of my self-control to stop from asking him if I should go back to my room and change into something more appropriate.
Instead, I wrapped my arms around myself, feeling as out of place as ever.
“The chef has prepared a wonderful menu for tonight.” Jacen smiled and led the way to the table. “Come. Let’s get started.”
We were midway through the second course—a salad—and the date was going horribly. I had no idea what to say or do. Why had conversing with him come so easily to me as Annika, but I was scrambling for conversation now?
The answer was obvious—because Jacen was constantly trying to ask me questions about the Seventh Kingdom. And I was doing my best to avoid answering.
“You seem enamored by the view,” he said after a glance out of the window. “Do you have similar views back at your home?”
“We have great views,” I said, since I couldn’t make the Seventh Kingdom sound like a dump. “But no two views are ever the same, are they?”
“I take it the Seventh Kingdom isn’t in the mountains, then?” he asked.
I stilled, aware of what he was doing. It was what he’d been doing all evening—trying to get information about the Seventh Kingdom.
“I’m afraid I’m not at liberty to say,” I told him with what I hoped was a polite smile.
It felt like I’d been repeating a similar statement all night.
I took another bite of my salad, wracking my mind for a fresh conversation in the time it took me to chew. What on Earth would he want to talk about? This stiff, domesticated version of Jacen was so different from the wild, rebellious prince I’d known before.
But I needed to remember that the wild rebelliousness had been an act. The Jacen I was sitting across from right now was the real Jacen.
And the two of us had absolutely nothing in common.
“Did you decorate your rooms yourself?” I grimaced after I spoke and stuffed another piece of lettuce into my mouth. Chewing would stop me from saying anything that sounded even stupider.
“No,” he told me, and then he placed down his silverware, looking at me seriously.
My stomach plummeted. Was he going to eliminate me on the spot?
After how terribly this date was going, I wouldn’t blame him.
“What?” I finally asked.
“I want to keep you here,” he told me, and from the sure way he spoke, I had a feeling that he meant it.
“Why?” I asked. “Because if this date is better than your dates with the other princesses, then those dates must have been flat out torture.”
He laughed, and the tension in the room broke for the first time since I’d arrived. “There she is,” he said, his eyes still sparkling with laughter.
“Who?” I halfway expected that another princess had appeared in the room behind me. I turned around to look, but nope. It was still just the two of us.
“The spunky girl I spoke with in the hallway the other day—the one who was brave enough to slip out of her dress in front of the entire vampire court and perform a gymnastics routine in her underwear,” he said, and my cheeks heated at the reminder of what I’d done on the first night in the palace. I hadn’t had a choice, really—it was that or not performing a talent at all. “I want to get to know you, Ana.” He leaned forward, his expression turning serious once more. “But I can’t do that if you refuse to open up to me about who you are or where you come from. With the way you’re holding back, I’m starting to worry that Queen Laila was right, and that the Seventh Kingdom doesn’t exist after all.”
I swallowed, trying to formulate an answer—and trying to push aside the emotions swirling within me from the intense way he was looking at me. “The Seventh Kingdom exists,” I said, the lie feeling heavy as I spoke it. “But you must understand—my kingdom is secretive. Even my coming here was risky. I can�
�t give you any information about the Seventh Kingdom unless you choose me as your bride.”
“Is that your way of bribing me to choose you?” he asked, but I could tell by the way his lips curved up slightly that he was joking.
“Of course not,” I said quickly. “I would never do that. I guess I was just hoping you would choose me for me, and not because of my kingdom.”
“We’re royalty, Ana,” he reminded me. “We don’t always have the luxury of marrying for love. I’m not at liberty to give you much information, but the Vale is in need of an alliance. I need to make sure that the princess I choose comes from a kingdom that will be an asset to my own. How am I supposed to do that when you’ll reveal nothing of the Seventh Kingdom?”
Panic fluttered through my chest. He was right. I’d come here hoping he’d pick me on my personality alone, but I hadn’t given any consideration to the fact that there was likely more at play.
Jacen wasn’t going to choose me as long as he knew nothing about the Seventh Kingdom. Which meant he wasn’t going to choose me at all.
I needed Geneva to help me kill Laila sooner rather than later.
In the meantime, I needed to stay in the competition long enough for her to figure out the details on how we could do that.
“You look sad,” Jacen observed. “What’s wrong?”
“This is a really tough situation for me,” I said, since it was the truth. “I’ve sworn to keep the secrets of the Seventh Kingdom unless you choose me as your bride. But you won’t choose me as your bride unless you know about the Seventh Kingdom. What am I supposed to do?”
“It is quite the problem,” he agreed. “And we certainly aren’t getting any closer to solving it in here.”
“We definitely aren’t.” I laughed, since this date was clearly a total bust.
“How about we get out of here?” he asked.
“What?” I startled, since that was the last thing I’d expected him to say. “And go where?”
The Vampire Wish: The Complete Series (Dark World) Page 34
