Chapter 3 Wolves

ELYSIA'S POV

The King ordered for me to be brought up to the balcony.

I followed the guards, my eyes taking in the grand interior of the castle. We passed through many winding, dark corridors and climbed what felt like hundreds of stone steps until we finally emerged onto the balcony. The guardsmen bowed deeply to the King waiting there, turned on their heels, and left me alone with him.

The Vampire King gestured for me to come closer. My heart was beating too fast beneath my ribs. Dread settled in my throat as I wondered if this was it—if he would actually kill me right here, and if everything before this moment had just been a cruel farce to lure me inside.

I forced my feet to move closer, stepping into the balcony with him. Seeing him face to face properly now, the imposing presence of him nearly stole the breath from my lungs. I did not want to examine too deeply how gorgeous he was, but it was impossible to ignore. His long black hair fell past his shoulders like spun silk, contrasting against skin so pale it gleamed beneath the moonlight. He possessed a sharp, unblemished jawline and an angular nose that gave him the look of a sculpted deity. But it was his eyes that truly held me—they were a deep, piercing crimson, and I did not need a soothsayer to tell me he was a Pure-blooded vampire.

I watched as he clasped his hands behind the small of his back, his long night robe shifting with the action. He quirked his left eyebrow at me.

"And what might your name be, little woman?"

I forced myself to ignore the shivers his velvety voice ignited across my skin. "Elysia," I answered.

The corner of his lips quirked upward. "Elysia," he pronounced, testing the word on his tongue. His eyes remained on me, unblinking. "And what might you, Elysia, be doing in my kingdom? Do you realize I can throw you to my wolves to feast on for dinner?"

More shivers wracked my body at his words. I didn't want to think about whether the King actually kept wolves for pets, or if he was trying to terrify me into submission.

In a small but steady voice, I spoke. "I apologize for intruding into your kingdom at such an unseeming hour. I needed help, and there was no other option left for me than to come here." I held my tongue, carefully omitting any mention of Mama’s instructions to seek him out.

He leaned back slightly, his piercing gaze tracking the slight tremble of my hands. "Help of what sort?"

I breathed out shakily, the memory of the night’s horrors rushing back into my mind. "The Daggers, the human king's most ruthless hunters, are terrorizing my village," I told him, the words tumbling out in a desperate rush. "They came in search of the Dragon Keeper and the dragon. My parents... they were the Keepers. But tonight, they had to send the glory over to me and force me to escape with Azira. They went to face the Daggers themselves. They are going to confess to being the Dragon Keepers while holding them off, just to stop them from killing the rest of the villagers." I told him, the words tumbling out in a rush. "They came in search of the Dragon Keeper and the dragon. My parents... they were the Keepers. But tonight, they had to bestow the power upon me and force me to escape with Azira. They went to face the Daggers themselves. They were going to confess to being the Dragon Keepers while holding them off, just to stop them from killing the rest of the villagers."

I hadn't even noticed the tears marring my face until I finished speaking, the chill of them tracing wet paths down my cheeks. I wiped my eyes immediately with the back of my hand and forced myself to look back up at him.

But the Vampire King was just looking at me, unblinking. There was no pity softening his expression, or amusement dancing in his crimson eyes. There was no emotion of any sort on his face, as though I had just stated a mundane report about the day's weather to him rather than the slaughter of my family. But what was I to expect? I had not come here to be pitied.

After a short pause, he finally spoke. "What are you willing to offer in exchange for my help?"

I sighed softly. I knew this was coming. Nothing was free in this world, especially not from the vampires who feasted on the blood and demise of others.

"I can be a servant for your castle," I suggested quickly. I needed a home to stay in just as much as I needed protection. I knew with certainty that I could never go back to Murea. I didn't even want to think about what horrific state my home was in right now.

"I have enough servants for the castle," he countered smoothly, his voice devoid of interest.

I breathed out a shaky breath, my mind scrambling as I realized I didn't have anything else to offer him. I possessed nothing but the clothes on my back, a map, and a key. I didn't even dare to think about offering to be his wife; I had no idea if he already had a queen.

A predatory glint flared in his eyes. He took a languid step toward me. "You will become my Blood Mistress."

Instinctively, I took a step back, my posture stiffening as a fierce glare overtook my face. The immediate defiance in my stance seemed to amuse him deeply.

"I will not give you my blood," I snapped, the revulsion clear in my tone.

He let out a low chuckle. "I'm afraid you have no other choice if you want to sleep peacefully in my kingdom."

I doubted I was going to sleep peacefully either way in this den of monsters.

"If you don't agree, of course, you have the freedom to go back to Murea," he added casually.

My brow furrowed in confusion. I wondered how he even knew the name of the human kingdom, but then again, what would a vampire king not know? Unable to help myself, I asked, "How do you know where I am from?"

"Your pretty hazel eyes and chestnut hair are evidence enough," he replied smoothly, his gaze taking in my features.

Silence settled between us as I took in his words, the reality of my desperate situation pressing down on my chest.

"What have you decided?" he asked.

My mind was a chaotic mess; I had not decided anything, and my thoughts were too fractured to make a binding choice that would seal my fate to a vampire. "Can I... can I sleep tonight, and give you my answer tomorrow?"

The King's smile widened slightly at my evasion. Just as I went to quiet my thoughts, a sudden realization clicked in my mind—Azira’s egg. It was still sitting abandoned in the cold cave back. I opened my mouth to speak, to beg for it to be retrieved, but I thought against it.

I was exhausted. Extremely so. My human body was running on pure adrenaline, and I truly needed sleep. A lifetime of tragedy had happened in the span of a few hours.

The King clicked his fingers together, and a maid appeared from the corridor soon after.

"Take her to one of the rooms below my floor," he ordered the maid, his eyes snapping back to me. "I need to keep an eye on the human intruder, don't I?"

He smirked, a habit I was quickly noticing he favored, and as his lips parted, I caught the sharp glint of a white fang showing.

The maid bowed and led me away from the balcony without a single word spoken between us. She guided me down a flight of stairs to a spacious room and gestured for me to enter. The moment she closed the door and I turned the lock from the inside, the fragile wall of strength I had been holding up completely crumbled.

The weight of my exhaustion and grief ate me alive. I plopped onto the bed, burying my face into the pillows, and let the first sobs wrack my entire body. I cried intensely, the hot tears soaking into the pillow.

I knew I had lost them. I knew I had lost Papa and Mama tonight, and that I would never, ever see their faces or hear their voices again. They were gone, all because of the endless greed and the wicked hearts of humans. I cried through the remaining hours of the dark night, mourning my parents, mourning my home, and mourning the life I knew I would never see again.