The air crackled with silence. Everyone was still, frozen.
The king, standing tall with the elegance of centuries, took a step forward. His piercing eyes locked onto mine, sharp as a blade. The crowd's murmurs faded into the background. My legs felt like stone, but I didn't let them shake. I couldn't.
"Who are you?" the king he asked again, his voice low but commanding.
I didn't move. The nobles behind me whispered. They didn't know.
"I—" I cleared my throat, forcing myself to breathe. Not to let any nervousness show. I've had time to think about the lie I would tell when I got to this point while traveling.
I paused, letting the words sink in. "I don't know who I am. I woke up in the forest a few days ago. Alone" I fought to keep my voice from shaking, my heart beat from hammering out of my chest.
I had to lie perfectly.
"I wandered here because of the noise" I kept my voice soft. I tried to be the picture of innocence.
The king's gaze narrowed, the muscles in his jaw tensing. He looked me up and down like a puzzle he was still trying to solve. His eyes held something calculating, something cold. But then, his expression softened, and a smile crept onto his lips.
"Well, then," the king said, voice rising to a declaration. "She has saved the life of my son. She has prevented a great tragedy from marrying this celebration . Her courage cannot be repaid."
The crowd was silent now. Every noble, every commoner, even the prince, was watching him closely.
"But what I can do, and what I must do," he continued, "is make sure she is treated as a true member of this royal family. A reward for her bravery, for risking her life."
A gasp rippled through the crowd, like the wind had swept across them all at once.
The king raised his hand, his voice booming, "My son, Prince Kael, shall marry her."
The words echoed in my ears. I froze. Every eye was on me, expectant, stunned.
"What?" The prince's voice rang out, sharp, full of disbelief. His eyes widened in fury.
"Father, no. This is absurd!" His protest was immediate, but the king didn't flinch.
"No, Kael," the king said, his voice lowering, but with finality. "This is the least I can do to repay her for saving your life." His gaze swept the room. "This will be her place. Her new title. Her future."
I could feel the weight of the moment crash down on me. I couldn't breathe. The words were heavy, suffocating.
I would be married to my enemy.
But then a voice inside my head, cold, one I had never heard before whispered.
"Think of what you would do from inside the heart of royalty."
Prince Kael opened his mouth again, ready to protest. "Father, this is—"
The king raised his hand, cutting him off with a sharp gesture. "It is final. The celebrations continue. Let us not delay the festival any longer."
There was nothing left to say. The prince looked at me eyes cold as if I had been the one to threaten his life.
I almost glared back.
The king turned, his eyes now softer but filled with a strange calculation. He spoke to a noble near him. "Duchess Arenia," he said, "This woman shall be under your care until the wedding is arranged."
The woman who I suppose was Duchess Arenia stepped forward, her presence like an iceberg gliding through a sea of whispers.
She was the kind of noble that commanded attention—her cold beauty almost blinding in the daylight. She didn't speak a word, but the look in her eyes said it all: I'll handle this.
The crowd parted, and she motioned for me to follow. Without a word, I complied. The weight of her stare was unyielding, and I felt like a bug under her gaze. The prince didn't even look at me as I walked away.
---
The carriage ride was silent, the tension so thick I could taste it. Duchess Arenia sat across from me, her posture perfect, her hands folded neatly in her lap. Her eyes flickered over me with a sharpness that made my skin crawl.
"So," she said, her voice sweet, like sugar, but laced with something dangerous, "you've been very clever, haven't you? A vampire who can't remember where she comes from? How... convenient."
I gulped but kept my face passive. I would not give her any reason to doubt me.
Suddenly with supernatural speed she lunges at me, my reflexes made me flinch but there was no way for me to retreat, the carriage was too small.
She buried her head in my neck and retreated before I could do anything.
"You smell newly made" she said.
I didn't respond. I kept my gaze forward, pretending not to hear the bite in her words. I could feel her watching me, trying to read me like a book.
"You must have been made by someone—someone with great power," she continued, her smile thin. "But they left you in the forest, didn't they? Left you to wander. How... tragic."
Her tone was almost mocking, but I didn't bite. I just nodded.
I kept my face impassive. "I don't remember."
Duchess Arenia's lips twitched. "Of course, you don't."
She leaned forward, her gaze unwavering. Musing to her self. "Let me guess, a vampire of high standing made you, didn't they? A powerful one. And then... abandoned you after all it is breaking the rules. How exciting. They could never have imagined your luck."
She laughed, a soft sound. "You are mine from now on. It's only logical. You wouldn't have wandered into my life otherwise. " Her smile was a razor blade wrapped in velvet.
She believed me, and that's all that mattered.
For now.
The rest of the ride passed in silence. When we arrived at her mansion, she led me inside with the kind of graceful dominance that only the truly powerful possessed.
The mansion was impressive—grand, but cold. The high ceilings, the polished floors, the walls adorned with portraits of long-dead ancestors. The place felt as if it was built to intimidate.
"Welcome to my home," Duchess Arenia said, a glint of amusement in her eyes. "Make yourself comfortable. You'll be here for quite a while."
I nodded, following her through the large hallways. The human servants were quick to bow and move aside as we passed.
Everything about Arenia screamed entitlement. Her presence was imposing, and I couldn't tell if she was amused by me or planning my downfall.
She stopped in front of a grand door and opened it, revealing a lavish room. "This will be yours for now," she said. "You'll want to get accustomed to your new life. A princess, soon to be married."
I looked around the room. The bed was vast, with deep red curtains hanging around it. Rich tapestries adorned the walls, and a fire burned in the hearth. The room was beautiful, but empty.
"Take your time to change," Arenia continued, her voice smooth as silk. "You must look the part of royalty now. You are the prince's future wife."
I nodded. There was nothing I could do now but play along.
Kael's POV
I was pacing. My fists were clenched so tight, my nails dug into my palms, but I barely noticed the pain. My jaw was locked, and my chest felt like it was going to burst with the frustration bubbling inside me.
"I don't understand, Sylva," I spat, turning to my younger brother. He was sitting there, on the edge of the bed, watching me with that worried expression he always had when I was losing my temper.
"This... this vampire. Who is she? Why did Father insist she marry me?"
Sylva didn't say anything at first. He just shrugged, like it was all simple to him. "Maybe because you owe her. She saved your life, Kael."
I froze, my mind spinning. "Saved my life?" I laughed bitterly, shaking my head. "How are we sure she didn't plan the whole thing? mysterious vampires don't pop out of nowhere. And now she's supposed to be my wife?"
I sneered, fury boiling over. I couldn't even look at her without feeling the anger rising in me. "It's not a coincidence. She's hiding something. I don't trust her."
Sylva tilted his head, studying me with that annoying calmness. "But what if it's true? What if she was just... there?"
I snapped my gaze toward him, frustration flaring. "And if she wasn't? What if she's using me? What if she set this whole thing up? If she's manipulating this, then this whole marriage... it's all a ploy"
"How could she have?" He asked "how would she know father would make you marry her?"
"I don't know" I said raising my voice more than i should.
I started pacing again, the anger surging in my veins. My mind was racing, trying to find a solution. One clear path out of this mess.
"I won't marry her. I can't. I won't," I muttered under my breath, like I could say it enough times for it to be true.
Sylva didn't say anything. He just watched me, probably waiting for me to calm down. But I wasn't calming down. I couldn't. This—she—was going to ruin everything I'd worked for.
Father must have known that I was planning to marry to marry Maren, her family would have been a powerful ally in my cause to end his madness.
I stopped, staring at the window.
But I knew one thing for sure.
This wedding couldn't happen.