Red as Blood

by Anna Santos

  Chapter THIRTEEN

  Snow’s POV

  I excitedly got ready to travel with my father to the White Cloud Kingdom. I had feared that Marlena would want to come and make another pass at Dorian, but the queen decided to stay behind and watch over the kingdom instead. That made me even happier about the trip. A chance to be with the two most important men in my life without the queen around wasn’t something that happened often.

  “I can’t wait to see him again, Father.” I walked with the king and our entourage to the carriage. “I think he’s the one.”

  “I knew Marlena was right about finding someone to take care of you.” The king beamed. “We are going to have a great time visiting your fiancé’s kingdom. I just know it, my treasure.”

  I decided to ignore the credit given to my stepmother. That woman would have me married to someone I detested just to spite me.

  “Thank you for accepting, Dad. I know a vampire mate wasn’t your first choice.”

  Quinton shrugged. “I want you to be happy. Everything else is secondary to that.”

  “Well, if you really want me to be happy on this trip, I have a request.” I glanced directly at my father. “Can I please ride Thunder with the knights on our way to the White Cloud Kingdom? We will have more time together once we arrive, and I’ll be in the carriage with you on the way back.”

  The king laughed and gave me a hearty hug. “I guess my adult daughter wants to test her mettle. Fine, you can ride on a horse but don’t forget about me once we arrive. I want you by my side when they give us a tour of Dorian’s Kingdom.”

  “Of course. I love you, Father.” I kissed his cheek and ran to pick up my beloved Thunder.

  I was riding quietly with the knights as night fell. There was an uncomfortable air surrounding the group as we traveled. I assumed it was because I was riding among the knights, and they didn’t know how to react. The whispered conversations and the quick glances made me feel uneasy. As much as I liked to ride Thunder, the next morning, I would probably sit in the carriage with Father. At least, I could talk to him and ask things about his life. It wasn’t often that I had him all to myself.

  The stunning sunset distracted me from my thoughts. The sky was a colorful mixture of orange and copper over the glowing amber of the pine needles. I was so engrossed that I barely noticed when the entourage stopped and steel blades slid out of their scabbard. Thunder’s senses were sharper because he stopped just as an arrow passed by and hit the soldier riding in front of me.

  Dread took over me when I saw the blood dripping from the back of the soldier who fell from his mount with a loud thud. The echo of heavy boots accompanied more arrows traveling toward the entourage.

  “We’re being attacked,” I gasped as I looked around and saw men on horseback and beasts coming our way.

  The royal soldiers held up their shields and turned their horses to face the perpetrators. The two soldiers beside me flanked me and protected me from the arrows with their shields. Then, the shields bounced back as something smashed against them.

  “You need to—” The soldier didn’t finish his sentence. His mouth hung open, and his eyes widened. He gasped, blood dripping from his mouth as he fell to the ground.

  I shrieked and held on to Thunder’s reins. The shock was staggering when I saw who killed the young man. It wasn’t one of the thugs that came from the woods, it was the captain who was supposed to protect me and my father.

  “Why?” I managed to ask him.

  The captain’s lips curled up, and he held up his sword in my direction.

  “Captain!” The other young soldier beside me pushed his horse against the captain’s horse and stopped him from hitting me. “Run, princess. Run!”

  With my heart racing out of control, I pushed Thunder’s reins. My horse maneuvered his way out of the pinned position and onto the road ahead. Glancing back, I saw the other men racing behind us. Not just men but also what I recognized to be wolves. Meanwhile, the soldiers were still fighting, and I assumed that not all of them were against my father. I hadn’t anticipated the captain trying to kill me. The other soldier had probably given his life for me to escape.

  “Thunder,” I whispered, bending down for my horse to race faster. “The forest.” With a tug at the reins, I directed him to the dense forest and away from the main road.

  It was a long shot, but I hoped to outrun the attackers. The owls were unsettling, and it was getting dark and hard to see where we were going. Tears ran down my cheeks. I didn’t know what had happened to Father. If the captain had tried to kill me, he had probably tried to murder my father, too. I had to survive to tell my story. How far was Dorian’s kingdom? We only rode for a day, and I was already too far from my kingdom or a village where I could ask for help. Hiding in the forest was my only option, if I managed to outrun the wolves and the men on horseback. I could hear the voices shouting behind me and the heavy breathing of Thunder.

  After minutes that felt like hours, my limbs were sore, my hair tangled, and strands kept hitting against my face. My clothes were damp, and the air was cold. I shivered and lowered farther as something swooshed through the air. The only comfort was Thunder’s skin against my body, but I could feel that he was getting tired.

  The forest became denser. There wasn’t a lot of space to run. A hard turn threw me from my horse, and I rolled down the side of a hill. Thunder whimpered, and I heard growls when I tried to get up and look for him.

  When my head stopped hurting, my eyes adjusted to the darkness. I saw wolves pouncing on my horse.

  “Thunder, Thunder!” I screamed as he fought the wolves by pushing them back with his hoofs and stomping them. Nevertheless, the beasts kept biting my beloved friend. I didn’t know what to do.

  There seemed to be no escape. Dorian was never going to see me again, and I was going to be wolf chow. No matter what, I wasn’t going down without a fight. My injuries ached, but I rose to my feet and grabbed a big stick. Wielding it, I rushed to Thunder’s side where the four wild beasts kept trying to hurt him. Despite holding his ground with courage, one of the wolves bit Thunder’s leg, and the horse fell to the ground.

  Screaming with rage, I waved the stick and kept the wolves from biting my horse any more. “Get away. Leave my horse alone!”

  Fear almost had its grip on me. Thankfully, the adrenaline gave me courage to stand up and swing the stick around as if it was a sword. The wolves whimpered with the hits, but they didn’t seem intimidated enough to run away. I knew that I was staving off the inevitable.

  I began throwing rocks and stepping back, so Thunder wasn’t a target. It worked. The wolves aimed their glowing eyes and snapping jaws at me.

  As the wolves growled in my direction and took slow steps toward me, a huge white wolf jumped in front of me. The giant wolf made quick work of the gray wolves, gnawing at them and throwing the creatures around like ragdolls. Soon enough, the wolves wailed and took off running.

  The beast looked back at me. I dropped the stick and fell to my knees. Stopping in front of me, the huge creature leaned forward and pushed its head against my shoulder. The creature didn’t seem to want to attack me. My life had been spared. Was I in the presence of a werewolf? Weren’t they supposed to be vicious creatures with feral instincts?

  “Thank you, whoever you are,” I whispered as tears fell down my cheeks. “You aren’t going to eat us, are you?”

  “That was quite a performance, dear husband.” A pregnant young woman stepped out into the open and interrupted my dialogue with the beast.

  The white wolf sauntered over to the other woman who patted him. “Who are you, girl?”

  “I’m Princess Snow. My father and entourage were attacked on our way to the White Cloud Kingdom,” I explained as I got up and rushed to my horse.

  Thunder tried to raise his head to look at me, but I could see that he was seriously injured.

  More tears escaped, and I caressed his mane. “Oh, I’m so sorry. You were so brave.”


  “Your horse seems to be in pain. Do you want us to—”

  “No.” I grabbed his neck and hugged it. “No one is going to kill him. He’s going to be all right. I’ll take care of his wounds.”

  “I wasn’t going to say that,” the woman assured. “We don’t kill an animal just because it’s wounded. I was going to suggest that we take care of him until he recovers.”

  I wiped my tears. “I’m sorry. I’m just scared. We were attacked, and I have no idea where we are. I don’t know if anyone else survived. My father, our knights … I’m all alone and have no way to venture forth. Could you help me? I’ll repay you, somehow.”

  The woman walked to my side, rubbing her tummy. “I’m Belle, and this is my husband, Drake,” she said. “No need to repay us. We would never let anyone get hurt in these woods. We’ll have our people check the road for survivors and to capture any enemies still wandering about.”

  I bowed my head to my saviors. “Thank you for saving me. I will be forever in your debt.”

  “Let’s get you to our village.”

  “My horse, I can’t leave Thunder alone.”

  Belle looked at the white wolf, and he dashed into the forest. “My husband will get help to take your horse with us.”

  “Thank you!”

  Chapter FOURTEEN

  Dorian’s POV

  Snow was dead. The news hit me like a wall of bricks. I was barely able to breathe for the next minutes upon receiving the messenger with the terrible missive. The queen’s letter was brief and didn’t provide many details. All I knew was that the king had survived and returned to his kingdom. The princess wasn’t so lucky and perished when the retinue was attacked by thieves.

  Discontent, I led my own research. My sources said that Snow’s body hadn’t been found. Therefore, for me, she wasn’t dead. Upon seeing my pain, my father let me leave our kingdom with my most trusted warriors and travel the Black Forest road in search of the perpetrators. All we found were the other men who identified themselves as the Meadows Kingdom’s hunter elite squad, conducting their own investigation to track down the thieves and bring them to justice.

  In a few days, I arrived at the Meadows Kingdom in grief. Dark cloths were hung in many shops, and the flags were at half-mast. The princess was missing, yet everybody was under the impression that she was dead. I had to talk with the king and get to the bottom of this situation. I wasn’t ready to give up on finding my fiancée, and I was determined to prove that she still breathed. Maybe it was the romantic in me or worse, I had lost my mind. But, if there was a chance that she was lost in the woods, fighting for survival, I had to find her. Life without the woman who touched my soul was unbearable. My vampire lifetime now seemed more of a hindrance than an advantage.

  “Prince Dorian, you have arrived.” Queen Marlena ran out of the castle’s gates to greet me. She wore full black, but I couldn’t help noticing her long dress had a high slit on the side and showed plenty of cleavage. Looking back, I didn’t see the king.

  “Is His Majesty busy with the search?”

  “Search?” the queen asked, her eyelashes fluttering.

  “For Snow.”

  The queen stepped closer with a sad expression. “Oh, sweet boy, Snow is gone. Don’t get your hopes up. I understand how difficult this may be—”

  I held my hand for her to stop. “Please, I wish to speak with the king.”

  Her smile faded. “I’m afraid that won’t be possible.”

  “Why?”

  “My husband has been ill ever since the attack. I’m the one holding the kingdom together.”

  “Ill? Was he hurt in the attack?”

  “No. The death of his daughter, it broke his heart.” She grabbed my hand. “It also broke mine. I’m barely holding it together. I can only imagine how you’re feeling. Still, I’m happy that you left everything to come here.”

  “I came here to find Snow, not to mourn her death,” I warned her. “There’s still a chance. I’d like to talk to the king.”

  “Maybe some other time.” The queen’s face became sober. “He’s secluded himself in his quarters and left me all alone to deal with this. Now that you’re here, I can share the burden.”

  I frowned at her words. “Can you provide accommodations for me and my knights? I know that I came without warning, but I couldn’t…”

  “Say no more,” the queen stated. “My servants will take care of everything. I began the preparations as soon as my soldiers warned me of your arrival. You’ll stay in your old bedroom. Tonight, I’m hosting a small gathering to pray for the fallen ones. I hope you can join us.”

  “A gathering? A religious ceremony?”

  “Yes, you can call it that. Our traditions are different from yours. We don’t believe in the same gods.”

  I interjected, “I’m sorry. I’m really tired. I rode all night and day. I’ll need to rest before I can be social with anyone.”

  The queen smiled again and laced her arm through mine. “Of course. Follow me. I’ll take you to your quarters while my servants take care of your entourage.” She continued to talk as we walked to the palace. “Quinton will be happy to know you’re here. I hope you can comfort him because I haven’t been able to.”

  “Of course, I’m glad to offer any comfort,” I said. “Have you heard any news about finding Snow’s body or the one’s responsible for the attack?”

  Queen Marlena sighed and pulled me along. “Who knows when we might find a body. Those monsters probably carted it off with any valuables they stole. I have heard stories of dark magic being performed in the woods Snow was seen fleeing into. The naive girl probably signed her own death warrant staying outside the carriage and abandoning her father and the entourage. Did you know that she wanted to ride her own horse? How reckless of her!”

  I squared my jaw at her words. The assumption that Snow caused her own death didn’t sit well with me. Neither did the idea that riding a horse with knights around meant she abandoned the king. It was not her job to protect anyone. “I would like to listen to the king’s version of the events.”

  “Oh,” the queen paused. “The healers are trying some remedies, and they need complete privacy. It was a sudden change, but you can question the captain of the guard.”

  “I’ll be thankful for that.”

  “You know,” the queen said as we strolled through the palace, “the king might not be long for this world. I want him to pull through, but there’s a chance that he will not live for much longer.”

  “Must be terrible for you,” I noted, looking anywhere but her face or body.

  “When Quinton’s gone, I will be needing a new king,” Queen Marlena continued, “one who is powerful enough to bring about change to Fayland with me. Stomp out all the violence and resistance. Snow died because of chaos we didn’t seek out in advance. Members of our elite fighting squad stated seeing a white wolf in the woods. My squad didn’t arrive there in time, but other villagers also have confirmed that they had seen him. They also swear that he’s a shapeshifter. There’s no traces of the beast, but he might be the one responsible for Snow’s death.”

  “You think Snow was killed by a werewolf?” I asked, finally interested in her ramblings.

  “It’s not a certainty. Perhaps, Snow’s slight at the ball offended those creatures more than expected.” Queen Marlena shrugged. “Such an attack is bold and must have been prepared in advance. Who else knew that you had invited them to your kingdom?”

  “Are you implying that my people have anything to do with the attack?” I pulled away from the queen.

  The queen’s face darkened for a moment then calmed. If not for my vampire senses, I might have missed it. “Of course not. Not your people, but someone who’s holding a grudge. Your kingdom has been attacked—”

  “I was going to marry Snow. My kingdom has no interest in killing anyone of this royal family.”

  “I know that, but the other nobles…”

  “Am I not welc
ome here?”

  “You are to me,” she said in a mellifluous voice. “Nothing will happen to you while you’re under my protection.”

  “I just need your authorization to patrol your forest while looking for Snow with my men.”

  “Of course, whatever I can do to help end your grief and bring a closure to this awful situation.”

  “Thank you. Now, I don’t want to seem unpolite, but my travel was long, and I need to get some rest,” I lied.

  “My apologies.” The queen giggled. “Pardon my mood swings. Between losing Snow and my husband’s illness, I’m unsure of what I can do to deal with my pain. Please, forgive me.”

  “There’s nothing to forgive. You’re also grieving.”

  The queen waved her hand at the servants that were following us. “You know your way around, and the servants will provide for anything you need.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I wish for your presence at dinner,” she stated.

  “Very well.”

  She tilted her face downward. “I’m going to my husband’s side. After all, I might not have a lot of time left with him. I have to make sure that he’s comfortable enough.”

  “Are you sure I can’t see him?”

  “He spends more time sleeping than awake. Maybe if he’s better tomorrow.”

  I nodded and looked at the servants. “Please, lead the way.”

  One of the servants stepped forward, and I walked briskly until the queen was long gone.

  Whatever was going on, it was clear that I was more interested in finding Snow than her stepmother. Dead or alive, I needed to know the truth. Those woods had been rumored to house various creatures, including a powerful fairy. Such creatures wouldn’t attack unprovoked.

  After speaking with the queen, I had an unsettling feeling that what happened to Snow wasn’t an unfortunate attack. Not once did the queen seem sad. The black dress looked more like a party garment than a formal one suitable for mourning. If this was, indeed, a seduction technique, Marlena had picked the wrong time and target. I wanted no one but Snow and, even if I was open to a new love, Marlena wasn’t my type. She could be beautiful, but the woman was clearly shallow. Not the kind of woman I could ever spend my life with as a vampire. I needed more than that.