Filed to story: The Vampire Prince’s Bride
“You must be Camelia,” I said instead.
“Yes,” she said, dropping her hand back to her side. “I see you’ve done your homework.”
“You’re the most powerful witch in the Vale,” I said. “Of course I know who you are. Everyone knows who you are.” I widened my eyes, hoping to look like an impressed fan girl. Admiration struck me as something Camelia would appreciate.
“I’m more than just the most powerful witch in the Vale.” She smirked and placed her hands on her hips. “I’m the most powerful witch in the world.”
I wanted to correct her and say thatGeneva was the most powerful witch in the world, but I held my tongue.
Luckily, a waiter chose that moment to come around with a tray of champagne flutes. Half of them were filled with regular champagne and the other half were tinted red with what I could smell was blood. They looked like mimosas, with blood instead of orange juice.
Weren’t mimosas supposed to be a morning drink?
Camelia reached for two-one with blood and one without. She handed the one with blood to me.
“No thank you,” I said, eying the drink up suspiciously. I rarely drank, especially when I’d been a human blood slave in the Vale. I liked being aware of my surroundings at all time.
“It’s a party.” Camelia laughed. “I insist. Especially because the ones with blood are specifically for the royal vampires. I don’t know how things are run in the Seventh Kingdom,” she said, leaning closer and elongating the name of the kingdom, as if questioning its existence. “But here in the Vale, it would be an insult to turn down such a delicacy.”
I glanced around the room-all of the other princesses had taken a glass of the blood champagne. Not wanting to do anything that made me look like more of an anomaly than I already was, I took the flute from Camelia’s hand. Just holding it wouldn’t kill me.
“Cheers,” she said, raising her glass in the air. “To the quest for Prince Sean’s heart.”
“Cheers.” I clicked my glass with hers and pretended to drink. It smelled delicious-sweet and floral. I was tempted to try it, but I didn’t let it touch my tongue. I needed to be on my game tonight. And while I didn’t want to insult the vampires of the Vale by not accepting their drink, it didn’t mean that I actually needed to drink it.
By now, other couples had joined Sean and Karina on the dance floor, and I glanced around, searching for a way to excuse myself from the conversation with Camelia. The only other person I sort of knew was Isabella, but she was nowhere to be found.
“You’ve caused quite the stir with your arrival,” Camelia continued, seemingly unaware that I was searching for an escape. Or perhaps she simply didn’t care. “The court can’t stop talking about you.”
“Mostly good things, I hope?” I gave her my most innocent smile. Hopefully it hid the fact that I didn’t want to be in the presence of this woman who’d killed two of my closest friends.
But I also realized that getting close to her would be helpful to my mission. After all, Camelia must know the ins and outs of the Vale. It would benefit my cause if I could gain her trust.
Which meant that as much as I hated the thought of it, I needed to try to be her friend.
“People are only curious, as I’m sure you’d expect,” she said. “Especially since Queen Laila asked the other world leaders about you and none of them claimed to be your sire.”
“Of course they didn’t,” I told her. “My sire is the leader of the SeventhKingdom.”
“So you say.” Camelia sighed and took a sip of her champagne.
“Why didn’t Queen Laila say anything once she found out that I wasn’t sired by any of the other leaders?” I asked.
“She said everything she needed by not kicking you out of the Vale,” Camelia said. “If she’d caught you in a lie, you would have already been out of here. So… cheers to remaining in the competition.” She raised her glass again, and once more, I pretended to drink.
I needed to get out this conversation soon, or Camelia would surely notice that the amount of champagne in my flute wasn’t shrinking.
“I’m most grateful to her for letting me stay,” I said.
“I’m sure your sire is as well.” She tilted her head, smiling. “What did you say his name was again?”
“I didn’t,” I said, sharper than expected.
“Oh,” she said, and then the song that was playing ended, leaving us staring at each other in a standstill.
Everyone quieted, and suddenly, someone tapped my shoulder from behind. I turned around, grateful to whoever was rescuing me.
My breath caught at the sight of Sean’s silver eyes.
“Princess Ana.” He gave me a small bow, his gaze locked on mine. “Would you care to dance?”
Scarlett
M y mind flashed back to Christmas Eve in the village square, when Sean had spoken similar words to me.
“Yes,” I said, and I handed my still-full champagne flute to a waiter who’d suddenly popped up nearby.
The next thing I knew, I was in Sean’s arms, and the two of us were gliding across the floor as gracefully as he’d been withKarina.
I supposed I had my heightened vampire senses to thank for my sudden ability to dance.
“It’s an honor to finally have the mysterious princess from the Seventh Kingdom to myself,” he said, smiling down at me.
“It’s an honor to be here,” I tried to repeat his phrasing, wanting to sound as regal as possible. Unfortunately, I suspected that I sounded stiff and formal.
“How far was your journey?” he asked.
I pressed my lips together, aware of what he was doing. Geneva had warned me that other vampires would try to get as much information from me about the Seventh Kingdom as possible. Most importantly, that they would want to know its location.
“I traveled by my kingdom’s private plane, which is so comfortable that it didn’t feel far at all,” I answered.
He smirked, and I knew he knew that I’d avoided his question.
“I heard your lady’s maid teleported in a few hours ago,” he said.