Vampire Queen

Chapter eighteen

Alexei was lying in my bed. His face was buried in the pillows. I treated his wounds. He only had them because of me. Cassius had no right to do that to him. I should have been the one to bear his wrath.

I carefully washed off the blood with cold water. From the wounds on the back, a new and new one was springing up. He was covered in blood. The flesh on his back was torn. The wounds ran deep. It will heal badly even with our abilities. He winced in pain with every touch. I wished I could transfer his pain to myself. He didn't deserve it.

"I'm so sorry, brother," I said fighting back tears. "Forgive me."

"I have nothing to forgive you, sister," said Alexei as if nothing had happened. "It's the king's fault."

"However, I provoked him." I objected.

"Don't defend him," said Alexei. "You're always looking for a light in every monster, that isn't there. You won't find it in him."

"Maybe I wanted to see the good in him so much that I blinded myself with delusions," I said.

"Some people are just born evil, Dragomira," remarked Alexei.

"I was hoping I could be his light like you were mine, brother." I daydreamed a little.

"But his darkness will suffocate you at the end," said Alexei.

His wounds were ugly red. I can imagine how terribly it must have hurt, how he must suffer. He pretends to be strong, just so I don't have any regrets. But I had them anyway. I put a towel soaked in cold water on his back to cool his wounds a little. It flushed with fresh blood.

"I'm sorry," I repeated. "He should have done it to me."

"I wouldn't let him do that," Alexei objected.

"You wouldn't have a choice," I said.

In that, he remembered the blood on my neck. "You're hurt too, Dragomira."

He tried to sit up. His face contorted in pain. I pushed him back to lie down.

"I'm fine," I said. "You need to rest."

"I've been through worse." he laughed lightly, but even the laughter seemed to hurt him.

He took a wet rag from my hand and washed the blood from my neck. He looked at my wound.

"Did he bite you?" he was horrified.

"It's nothing," I said. "It's gone in the morning."

Of course, I lied. It was profound. Cassius was careful not to tear the flesh, but it would take a few days to heal. However, his wounds were incomparably worse. He needed a healer.

"Dragomira." he gave me a worried look. "You can't stay here."

"If I even try to escape, he will kill you. I won't risk it." I refused such a possibility.

"If you stay, he will kill you," Alexei countered.

"That was his plan from the beginning. I'm just his toy." I admitted.

Alexei's eyes widened in shock. He wanted to say something, but the words wouldn't come out of his throat. "Why didn't you tell me?" he stammered at last.

"Because you would do something stupid," I replied. "Please, don't tell father, Alexei," I urged. "He would stand against the king, and you know very well he would kill him."

"You know I can't," said Alexei.

"Promise you won't fight for me," I demanded.

There was sadness in his eyes as if he had already lost me. There was defeat in him.

"Promise!"

⸸

Alexei was sleeping. He wasn't the type to like sleep, but the pain quickly put him to sleep. At least in his dreams, he could rest from it.

Bael snuck into my rooms.

"How did you get here?" I wondered. "Cassius had the door guarded."

"Look who's guarding them." he grinned.

I went to have a look. I opened the door and saw a familiar face.

"You?" I couldn't help but wonder.

"Miss Dragomira," Balmore said.

"You really are a wolf in sheep's clothing," I said.

"And how did you get through the rest of the guards?" I asked Bael. "I'm sure Cassius has more than enough here."

"What happened is spreading among the guards. They will let me go to see you," he replied.

"So Cassius is being defied by his own army? You two are really undermining his power."

"You do, Dragomira," Bael argued. "They see you defying him, so they do too. That's why Cassius wants to tame you so much. He didn't realize the consequences of what it would mean to have you as his bride. And besides, your brother is popular among the guards. They didn't like it when Cassius had him flogged for you."

"Even though your brother is a vampire, he's a good man," Balmore said.

"The commander of the guards refused to carry out that order and Cassius had him executed for it," Bael noted. "Your brother will become the new commander of the guards when he recovers. Cassius must really want your forgiveness."

"No," I said. "Alexei cannot become the commander of the guards. He will take advantage of that position and try to save me. Cassius will kill him."

"In that case, Cassius must die first," Bael said.

I sighed deeply. "I'll kill him." I let myself be drawn into their plans for regicide.

"Really?" Balmore and Bael looked at me in surprise.

"I'll kill him," I said with conviction. "Now he had Alexei flogged. What will he do next? He is a monster and must die."

Balmore drew his dagger and handed it to me. It was a simple dagger with a wooden handle that had characters burned into it in a language I didn't understand. It looked old. I took it in my hand. I immediately felt the power pulsing in it. It was not an ordinary dagger. Not by chance.

"You carry it with you all the time?" I raised my eyebrows in question.

"I don't want to miss the chance to stab my father in the heart with it," he replied with a wicked smirk.

I pushed him against the wall and put the dagger to his neck. The blade cut into his skin.

"How do I know you'll make a better king?" I told him. "A human will take the throne and all the vampires will end up on the run from the hunters."

"You definitely don't need to worry about me," replied Balmore. "Bael has always been like a father to me. I know that not all vampires are evil. You will be judged just like people. You won't have to hide anymore."

"Dragomira." There was a warning in Bael's voice.

I let go of Balmore . I kept the dagger.

"Just to make it clear. I do it for myself and my family. I have nothing to do with your coup."

"I don't even expect anything more from you," Bael said.