Mother smiled. “Don’t worry about that, my darling, he’ll be fine. Just have fun for one night. You are here to train and become great warriors but you’re still young and need free time. My mother never let me do anything and I resented her for it. We have this celebration to give you all a break. So dance, laugh, and just be seventeen.”
“You don’t have to tell me twice,” Legacy said and took a bottle of something from her bedside drawer.
Mother chuckled but shook her head. “But don’t overdo it either. I need to go talk with some guards and make sure our security is tight. See you later, girls.”
“Bye,” I said and waved as she walked out.
Lora appeared and knocked on the doorframe. “You ready to party?” She looked us over. “I love your dresses!”
“Thanks,” Legacy and I both said at once then laughed.
“When are you meeting Zyacus?” Lora asked.
Our plan of meeting at the bottom of the stairs at six might be off. I didn’t get the chance to talk to him before I left with my mother. “I’m not sure now that his father is here. I’ll send him a note.” The ticking clock on the wall showed one minute to six.
They waited for me to write it and then we talked for a few minutes but there was no reply. “Let’s just go and if he’s not downstairs, I’m sure I’ll see him there.”
As we descended to the lower level, I held my breath, hoping he’d be there waiting but he wasn’t. So many things started running through my mind. Would his father make him break it off with me? Would he force him to take Jennika instead? It felt childish and stupid given that King Enden was probably more worried about going out and hunting blood drinkers than his son’s juvenile love interests but why wasn’t he here?
“Did Freya already meet up with Taz?” I asked. I may have been in my own little Zyacus world but I still tried to keep up with my friends’ affairs.
“Yes, like a half-hour ago,” Lora replied brushing her blonde hair behind her ear. “I thought Vyce was going to ask me but he never did and I haven’t seen him all day.”
“He’s stupid if he doesn’t like you, Lora,” Legacy said. “You’re amazing and fun and so pretty.”
She shrugged as if it didn’t bother her either way. “Thanks.”
Other fancily dressed teens made their way to the dance. No uniforms meant it wasn’t obvious where each of us was from and I didn’t think we’d ever looked more unified. There weren’t kingdoms or allegiances to separate us. We were simply a bunch of young people looking for a good time, exactly like my mother wanted.
Upbeat music drifted our way and when we stepped out the back doors and outside, it was unusually warm. A thin glittering veil surrounded us; someone must have spelled the area to keep warm for the evening. Small blue and white orbs hung in the air giving off an ambient glow. Azure, turquoise, and white flowers were placed decoratively on pillars and along the paths. Magic snowflakes the size of my hand floated randomly above our heads. I reached up and touched one; it was made of ice. It also smelled vaguely of citrus, mixed with baked goods. It was a winter wonderland without the freezing temperatures.
Yet even with the beautiful atmosphere, anxiety crept up like a slow trickle as I looked around at all the smiling faces and none of them was my prince.
“He’ll be here soon, don’t worry,” Legacy said, locking her elbow around mine. “Come dance with your girls.” Lora grabbed my other arm and they skipped to the dance floor which was a large stone circle and to the left on a raised platform was a band.
I tried to let my worries go and danced, swaying to the music. Legacy passed me her bottle of bubbly, “It’s happiness wine,” she said.
I took a slug of it, then another and gave it back. It was sweet and welcome. I needed some happiness to mask my angst. We spun around and giggled but I was still on the lookout, and when I saw a beautiful boy with dark hair I froze. It wasn’t my prince but the other. Aric was here in a suit looking as dashing as ever but I almost threw up at the sight of him. Why is he here?!
Legacy stopped dancing when she noticed my stillness. “What’s wro—” she followed my line of sight and then squealed and ran straight into Aric’s open arms. He lifted her up and spun her around.
What is he doing here?! I screamed in my head. I tried to control my breathing, remembering my vision didn’t have us in dresses and suits. If he was going to die it couldn’t be tonight right? We couldn’t be attacked now… ugh but I felt sick. I thought with him gone I wouldn’t have to worry.
I jumped when a hand slid around my waist. “Apologies for being late, Princess.”
My skin crawled as I turned because I knew that wasn’t Zyacus’s voice. Senica pulled me close to him and as I was about to scream, about to let my magic loose, when he said, “Keep quiet or the prince dies.”
My mouth clamped shut and a sadistic smile curled at his lips. “Good girl.” He led me around the dance floor and all I could think about was that I hadn’t seen Zyacus’s death. So how could they possibly have him? But as I was considering the ways I could kill Senica, I noticed his eyes following Aric. Oh no— that’s the prince he meant.
“What do you want?” I snapped.
“Your blood.” He answered, as casually as if he’d asked for water.
“So what? I slit my wrist, pour you a glass, and you leave Aric alone?”
Senica laughed and lowered his hand on my back to a place I wasn’t comfortable with. “I want your blood every day for eternity and maybe a few other pleasures once we get to know each other better. My personal blood slave.”
“No,” I growled.
As if they’d grown into daggers, his nails dug into my flesh through my gown. I winced and tried to wiggle away but he only held me tighter. “What makes you think I won’t just take it?”
“Because if you could, you wouldn’t need to use Aric against me.”
“Aren’t you wondering how he got here? Why he would come back here knowing it might cost his life?”
“How did you know about that?”
A serpent smile. “We have eyes and ears everywhere. We know of your grandmother’s premonition.”
It didn’t surprise me. “Fine, why is he here?”
“Oh, I thought you’d never ask.”
If I could have slit his throat right then I would have.
“He’s under my control. For convenience, I made him forget about that pesky premonition. He’s here to see his girlfriend, and take her to the dance like he promised. But if things don’t go like I want, I can tell him to cut his own throat and he will.” He curled his fingers around my hand tighter. “Or perhaps I’ll have him stick that dagger where it would hurt you even worse.”
Legacy! “Don’t you dare.”
“When you sent him back to Collweya, you practically gifted him to us. This would have never worked without him. He was good leverage for some of the good vampires. They don’t want their poor prince hurt so they started to play nice.”
I had no clue how he was mind controlling Aric. If it was magic, it was dark magic and not something most would have access to or dare use. And I couldn’t fathom how they’d gotten Aric back here so fast. Without my mother to open a portal or dragon it would take at least six weeks to travel. How were these blood drinkers getting here?