Chapter 3

There was dead silence all around. All of the servants took a sharp breath and looked at me hatefully and with disdain. I stood stunned where I was. It never occurred to me that Anna would stoop so low to destroy her reputation just to frame me.

Dracula turned slowly to look at me. His eyes were red when he stared at me. "Emily… You got someone to rape her?!"

"No, I didn't!" I shook my head and tried to explain. "All I did was lock her up. She was the one who—"

"Enough!" There was a loud slap. Dracula had slapped me hard on the face with full force. I was smacked heavily into the wall and spat out blood. "How dare you still give excuses, Emily?! You need to be smarter with your lies! Tell me, who in their right mind would get someone to rape themselves?"

I knew there was no point in explaining, so I kept my mouth shut. However, this seemed to verify the situation for him. "Werewolves are just unevolved beasts. If you enjoy using despicable means to trample on the dignities of others, I'll show you what it feels like to have your own dignity trampled to the ground!"

He pointed at Anna's feet and ordered me, "Kneel! Kneel at Anna's feet in front of everyone, and slap yourself until Anna tells you to stop."

I looked at him in disbelief. I was his mate. I was the Werewolf Princess. How could he ask me to kneel at the feet of his mistress and slap myself? "I won't do it." I straightened up my back. I had to protect the last of my dignity.

"You won't do it?" Dracula sneered and gathered energy into his hand. "You may be tough, but what about the bastard in your belly? Do you want him to suffer?"

Bastard?

My heart tightened in my chest. How could he call his own baby a bastard? He knew how much I cared for the baby, which was why he threatened me this way.

I closed my eyes. It felt like the blood in my veins was starting to flow backward. I had only one more day to get through this, so I held myself back.

My knees hit hard on the ground. I could hear the servants trying to stifle their laughs. I raised my hand and slapped myself on the face.

Anna buried herself in Dracula's arms. A victorious smile appeared on her face despite her audible crying. "Dracula, Emily looks so pitiful. Let's forget about it."

However, Dracula did not listen to her and said coldly, "Continue slapping yourself! Haven't you eaten? Slap yourself harder!"

Any remaining feelings I had of him vanished with every slap. I had no idea how many times I slapped myself. My cheeks were terribly swollen, and my mouth was covered in blood.

"That's enough." Dracula finally stopped me, and he looked at me in disgust. "The way you look right now is truly unappetizing. Men! Throw her into the water dungeon! Lock her up there to wash her dirty heart until it's clean!"

I did not put up a struggle. All I did was give Dracula a deathly stare. "You'll regret this, Dracula." However, he did not even look back at me and left with Anna in his arms.

The guards pushed me roughly into the water dungeon and cuffed my hands. That was when I realized that the chains cuffing me were made of pure silver.

When the pure silver touched my wrists, the smell from the burn started to fill the air. The intensity of the pain spread from my skin into my bones, and my body quivered from it.

I could not hold back my screams as my body curled up involuntarily. The baby in my belly started to squirm violently. It was clear that he had also been affected.

The guards looked at each other. "The count must have really been angered. Look at how cruel he is to her even though she's pregnant."

"Don't be fooled by her. The count said her body is physically strong."

"Serves her right for not knowing her place."

"She's just a princess the werewolves don't want."

"Ms. Bordeaux is the apple of the count's eye. She should be honored to be punished for doing what she did to Ms. Bordeaux."

They kicked away the only source of food and water I had that was placed in the corner before they locked the doors to the dungeon. "The count has given orders that the countess doesn't need to have any food or water to keep her temper in check, especially when she has such a hot temper."

Their footsteps got further and further away, and dead silence returned to the dungeon. I was sprawled on the ground with the skin on my wrists burnt to a crisp. My sight started to blur as I remembered memories from my past life.

My skin corroded from taking a hit of holy water from a demon hunter when it was meant for Dracula. He had held me in his arms, his eyes filled with pain as he swore to me, "I will never let you suffer like this again as long as I'm alive.

"You're my wife, and I will give you the best of everything in this world. Once we have our baby, he'll become the most noble count of all."

His loving words rang in my ears sarcastically.

The baby's movement in my body got even more agitated. That little guy must be protesting his environment. I looked up with difficulty as sweat got into my eyes. It really hurt.

There was only one day left until the Great Glare, but I could not hold on any longer.