Arthur turned to the rest of the room, “I’ll be sending a group with her to escort her back.”
"I'll go!" Mamie volunteered.
Blade stood, "But Mamie--"
"She needs someone she can trust to go with her." Mamie beamed at Daphne, "And it's doubtful many others will agree to go."
Daphne frowned, "I don't think it's a good idea…"
Mamie smiled at her, "I'm a lot tougher than I look. I promise."
Mamie looked at Blade who clenched his jaw, wanting to disagree, but he huffed, unable to formulate an argument. Mamie was the best choice as whoever else would be sent wouldn't be as close to Daphne.
"Are you sure about this?" Blade asked, looking at Mamie.
"Positive."
Arthur nodded, "Fine. We'll send three others."
He looked at them, “We’ll send whoever can be trusted to obey orders.”
Blade nodded and looked at Mamie who gave him a comforting smile.
It’ll be fine,
Daphne remained silent as they rode through the canyon into the vampire's territory. Her stomach churned more and more as the distance between them increased. The bond felt like it was vibrating at the back of her mind with Arthur's worry, but she had to be strong.If she panicked, the plan would be for nothing."What's that sound?"Daphne turned to where Mamie was looking out the window and leaned to see. They were still within the canyon, but Daphne had no idea what she was hearing."Cheering," one of the women said with a little sneer. "The vampire queen comes."Daphne pursed her lips, "I don't appreciate your tone.""And I don't appreciate your existence. We all have problems."Mamie growled, "Knock it off. You will speak to her with respect."She glowered at her and rolled her eyes, "We're only here because we were ordered to come. "Daphne swallowed and looked at them, irritated about their flippant disrespect.
In his youth, John had learned quickly that the path to power in the vampire kingdom was one that men could not tread easily. Queen Lily came from a long line of powerful women and all the powerful vampire bloodlines were led by women. The Whitcomb line was no exception until his father was born.He had accepted that the only way to gain power was to marry a powerful woman and wait for, or orchestrate, her death to seize power. Of all the powerful noble and royal women who had been contemporary with him in his youth and throughout the war, Princess Rose August of the vampire domains was the only woman he would have happily ruled beside. Her beauty had been beguiling since they were children; her power had been enchanting.Her daughter may not have had her power, being an only half-vampire, but her scent was enthralling and she was just as beautiful as her mother had been. It had been a bit of a shock to see her exiting the carriage.Young with bright golden eyes
Daphne made it back to her chambers and sat on the couch, hoping she wouldn't ever end up alone with John again. She shuddered at the covetous look in his eyes. How could he think that he was charming when telling her she reminded him of her mother?A knock sounded on the door that connected her suite to Mamie's. She leaped from the couch and opened the door. Mamie looked at her and hummed."Pink is a rather nice color on you."Daphne laughed, "Thanks..."Mamie sat with her, "So what happened?""They're not like Tom and the alphas at all," she frowned. "They don't want a queen because they can't agree to get along... They want a queen for some sort of connection to the moon goddess."Mamie frowned, "But... they're vampires. I've always been told that werewolves were the moon goddess' creations."Daphne shook her head thinking about the tapestry in the library."There was a tapestry in the library back at the castle. I'm not sur
"W-Why are they.... What is this?""This is the royal crypt. Every member of the August line that was not killed and burned in battle is here in something like death. We call it Eternal Sleep and it is unique to the August line.""Eternal?""There are no known cases of one waking up after they have entered Eternal Sleep. They typically fall into it when it's nearing the end of a normal vampire's life or when they have taken on too much damage."Daphne's hands trembled, "W-Will I fall into this?""I don't know... You are the only half-human royal vampire we know of." Nicole said, she took a deep breath. "I brought you down here to see them and to tell you the truth. This is the only place in the castle that is beyond vampire or werewolf hearing."Daphne frowned looking at her and feeling a bit nervous about what she had to say."My grandfather was the brother of Queen Lily," Nicole smiled and Daphne took a sharp breath. "Making me your
After lunch was over, John was left alone with nobles and generals who were aligned with his vision. Unifying the vampire and werewolf lands under one throne would expand all of their land stakes and wealth. They could turn every human within their boundaries and mobilize them and the werewolves to take over the continent with enough time. It was not mere greed, but ambition. It was something that Nicole and the other generals would never understand.They were limited to the August family’s vision of the kingdom under the moon goddess’ blessings, but John figured out a long time ago that the moon goddess was more an idea perfect for controlling the simple minded masses.It was how they explained the differences in power and issues they faced they couldn’t explain or overcome easily.Several of the nobles in the room had lost land and status during the war. Some of them lost family to the front line and the burning hatred for werewolves would no
Days passed with them gathering information in secret and plotting a path out of the castle. She couldn't find a map of the continent as a whole in the library. The other two women were growing more and more anxious and Daphne was at a loss. She understood them wanting to escape, but there was no attempt in trying to escape when they had no idea of where they were going.She huffed, sitting on the couch in the queen's library before frowning, noticing a door on the other side of the room. Hadn't Kayley mentioned an office? She jumped to her feet. Why hadn't she thought of it before? If there was anywhere in the castle that might have had some answers, it had to be the queen's office! She approached the door, tentatively and turned the silver handle. The gems around the frame of the office filled with light as she entered.There was a door inside that led into a dark corridor behind a bookcase.She gasped. Was this how Rose escaped? If it was true that no o
The carriage traveled long enough for Mamie and the other two women to wake up and start struggling, biting, and trying to get the shackles off. They shifted back into their human form and found that the shackles simply adjusted to the change in their sizes. They seethed and glared at Daphne."A traitor to the end, aren't you?" One of them asked.Daphne looked at them as fury rose in her and glared at them, "Shut your mouth."They flinched and their mouths clicked closed."Have you even considered anything that's going on? You're the ones who were itching to leave. Owen doesn't work with Nicole, he probably works with whoever you two overheard."She winced at the pain in her head and the little spell of dizziness. Mamie's eyes widened as she stared at Daphne."I don't know what they want, but I have a feeling we're about to find out."The carriage slowed to a stop. One of them stood and crouched, aiming their head at the door. When it
“What?” Daphne asked, coming up behind her.“The tub,” Mamie said, “It should be heavy enough to break at least one of them.”She turned to the other two, “You two lock the door and make as much noise as possible. Scream, argue, whine, whatever. Daphne, sit down.”Daphne followed Mamie's instructions as the two started yelling at each other about being chosen to come with Daphne. The words were angry and spiteful, but she blocked them out as Mamie maneuvered her hands apart and flat on the floor behind her. Mamie stood beside her. She felt the leg of the tub strike one of the cuffs with a sharp snapping sound. She closed her eyes praying that no one heard anything over the sound of the two screaming. The tub struck her other cuff twice before she could pull her hands apart. She looked up at Mamie who grinned at her.Daphne stood and went to get one of them to help get Mamie's cuffs off."Hey, come in