Red as Blood

by Anna Santos

  I needed to find out the truth and that wasn’t going to happen at the palace. I needed to go back to the scene where Snow and her entourage were attacked. Perhaps, my vampire senses could pick up on something that the humans missed. Anything had to be better than hanging around here.

  Chapter FIFTEEN

  Snow’s POV

  I woke up in a cozy bed with a dry mouth and headache.

  “Welcome back,” a voice greeted me.

  I adjusted my eyes to the light and saw the pretty pregnant woman who saved me in the forest. “What happened?”

  “You fainted shortly after arriving at the village. I think you were poisoned by the wound on your leg. The arrows must have been drenched with some sort of hallucinogenic.”

  “Wound? Was I wounded?”

  “Yes. You probably didn’t notice amidst the commotion.”

  I shook my head. “I just wanted to run as fast as I could and save Thunder.”

  “You were quite brave.”

  I covered my chest with the warm blanket. Then, it occurred to me. “How many days have I been out for? And where’s Thunder? Did he survive? Was he poisoned, too?”

  “Calm down and relax. Your horse is fine. You’ve slept for one day, and I’ve been taking care of you.” The young woman smiled. “Are you hungry?”

  I touched my stomach and felt it clench. “Yes, and thirsty.”

  “There’s a glass beside you. Take small sips. You can’t drink too much.”

  I sat up and reached for the glass. “And my father, any news?”

  “He survived.”

  I sighed in relief.

  “Are you feeling better? Do you want to rest more?”

  I shook my head. “I’ve slept for far too long already. When can I go back home?”

  “You can’t, princess. Our spies are saying that it’s not safe for you to show up at the palace. The queen wants you dead. She’ll try again if she knows she has failed.”

  “It’s not the first time,” I assured her. “Strange things kept happening to me. My father wouldn’t believe me if I told him that it was my stepmother’s fault. He’s blinded by the love.”

  “That’s not love.”

  “No,” I agreed. “Still, my father must be worried about me. He needs to know that I’m alive.”

  “It’s too dangerous. If you return, Marlena will find another way to kill you.”

  I held the glass in my trembling hands and drank the water. “What can I do?”

  “For now, they think you are dead. It’s best to remain that way. The queen wants a body, and there are mercenaries wandering about. Meanwhile, the queen will lower her guard if she thinks you’re out of her way. We can plan what to do next while we protect you. But we can only protect you if you remain hidden.”

  “At least, let me contact my fiancé. We were going to his kingdom when we were attacked.”

  “Do you trust him? Are you sure he won’t tell the queen? Why were you leaving the palace to visit him?”

  “To announce our marriage. I was going to meet his family.” Putting the glass down, I looked at the woman with intent. “Dorian is the only one who’ll believe that my stepmother tried to kill me. He can also keep me safe. I need to send a message to the White Cloud Kingdom and tell him that I’m safe before he learns about my death. Can you help me?”

  The woman sat beside me. “I’ll talk to my husband about sending word to your fiancé. What you can do now is try to rest, so you can leave this bed and check on Thunder. He misses you, too. He barely eats.”

  “He loves carrots. Have you tried giving him that? Oh, and apples!”

  The young woman smiled.

  “I’m sorry, I can’t remember your name,” I said sheepishly.

  “It’s Belle.”

  “I’m Snow.”

  “I know. It’s a pleasure to have you here, princess.”

  Belle’s house was huge and far from being what I thought a werewolf’s house would be. It was cozy and modern. It even had electricity which only existed in the vampire kingdoms. My kingdom didn’t have those technologies since vampires didn’t share their knowledge with the outsiders. Why werewolves had that was beyond me.

  Belle and Drake, the rulers of that hidden kingdom, were nice people. They welcomed me as if I was family. I felt safe, but I wasn’t prepared for what they revealed to me.

  “Let me see if I understood this correctly. You’re the werewolves that my stepmother keeps blaming for assaulting the merchants and the villagers in the Black Forest. Yet, you aren’t actually doing that. It’s my stepmother’s men doing it, so they can blame you.”

  Belle nodded.

  “You’re also shapeshifters, and this is a secret kingdom in the middle of the Black Forest, protected by an invisible cloaking shield?”

  Once again, Belle confirmed with a stern nod.

  “My stepmother is a powerful and evil witch who wants to steal a powerful object that you protect.”

  “Yes,” the White Wolf in his handsome male form replied, holding hands with his wife, Belle.

  “My head is spinning, but that makes so much sense that I’m not going to keep repeating what you’ve told me.”

  “I’m glad you believe us,” Belle said.

  “When can I send a missive to Dorian? I need him to know that I’m all right,” I urged. “He must be worried sick and, if I know my stepmother, she’s already preparing my funeral with an empty casket.”

  “Write your letter, I’ll send a messenger,” the alpha replied.

  Jumping to my feet, I rushed to my bedroom where I knew there was paper and ink. Belle joined me, moments after.

  “Do you have a way to prove that it’s you writing the letter?” she questioned.

  “We wrote each other while he was in his kingdom, protecting his border. He’ll recognize my handwriting.”

  “Powerful witches can fake handwriting.”

  “True.” I played with the pendant hanging from my necklace. Then, I looked at my ring. “He gave me this ring. He’ll recognize it. I’d promised him that I would never take it off.”

  “Snow, I hope that man truly loves you, or you might be in more danger.”

  “Dorian’s love is the only thing I have for certain in this life. It’s also the only way that I can return safely to my kingdom. My fiancé won’t let any harm come to me.”

  “Maybe not. We’ll need to discuss a way to keep you safe and destroy the evil witch. It’s about time she pays for her errors and stops terrorizing the people of our kingdoms.”

  “Now that I know what she is, I’ll help you destroy her,” I assured her as I pondered what to write to Dorian besides that I was alive and loved him to insanity.

  Chapter SIXTEEN

  Dorian’s POV

  Coming to the palace had been a waste of time. Not only was I not able to talk to the king, but the queen also seemed determined to shower me with unwanted attention.

  I entered my quarters, ready to pack. That was when I saw her.

  “Your Majesty, what are you doing here?” I asked, coming face to face with the queen next to the chest of drawers.

  Queen Marlena twirled around and plastered on a smile. “I was looking for you and decided to wait here.”

  I frowned, not believing it. “Is the king feeling better today?”

  Her hand moved theatrically. “Alas, no. Though, I hope you had an insightful conversation with the captain of the guard.” She walked toward me.

  “I’m afraid he didn’t say anything useful.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that. I know how committed you are to finding any clue about why this happened.”

  I nodded. “Since you are here, I don’t need to find you and say my goodbyes.”

  She raised her brows. “Giving up already?”

  “No. I’m heading to the Black Forest. I’m going to investigate the place where they were attacked and follow the path that Snow might have taken when running away. I might find some clues, but I’m s
ure I’ll be away for a few days. I also wanted to ask for your permission to operate within your kingdom’s borders.”

  “Will you come back?”

  “Yes. I want to check on the king. Maybe talk to him, even if my quest is pointless.”

  “Of course,” she said, placing her hands on my chest.

  I frowned and stepped back.

  “Oh, you are so strong.” She giggled and averted her eyes only to peek at me again. “I hope you’ll find something. Maybe even Snow’s body.”

  I narrowed my eyes and gritted my teeth. Folding my hands behind my back, I held in my rage. “I have another favor to ask of you, Your Majesty.”

  “Anything.”

  “Could you hold off on the funeral ceremonies until I return?”

  Queen Marlena tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and traced her bottom lip with her tongue. “Do you hope that she’s alive?”

  “They might be holding her prisoner.”

  The queen frowned. “If so, I doubt she’ll be in good shape. They are barbarians. Only the gods know what they do to the women they imprison.” Folding her arms and holding up her chin, she mumbled, “She’s better off dead.”

  “Excuse me?” I asked, appalled.

  “Surely, as a warrior who’s been on the battlefield, you are no stranger to what men do to the women who are caught in the enemy’s lands.”

  I clenched my jaw. “I’ll kill them all if they touched her.”

  “Their deaths won’t erase her mental scars.” Sweetening her voice, she added as she placed her hand against my cheek, “Don’t get your hopes up and return unharmed, all right?”

  I removed her hand, unable to stand her touch.

  “It would be a shame if something happened to you, milord. You are too young.”

  I faked a smile. “Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty.”

  She straightened up and walked away with the elegance of a predator.

  Once the door closed, I looked around to see if anything was missing.

  “Dorian!”

  I looked up and saw my trusted friend, Luke, entering via the balcony of my bedroom.

  “Why are you sneaking in? You could use the door,” I reminded him.

  “Force of habit,” he said with a shrug. Walking to a chair, he sat down and relaxed while rubbing his forehead. “I did what you asked.”

  “Any progress?” I took a seat next to him.

  He looked at me. “Everybody seems too afraid to talk about what happened to the princess. The reports about the shapeshifters’ attacks are also contradictory. Many villagers say that the White Wolf is a savior while the nobles are under the impression that he’s the villain.”

  “Hmm.”

  “The majority of the servants in the palace seem to fear the queen.”

  “Nothing new there.” I relaxed back and sighed. “What about the king? Did you find out anything about his condition?”

  Luke snickered. “The servants aren’t talking. There are no healers taking care of him. The ones I enthralled told me that the queen is personally taking care of the king and doesn’t let anyone else in his bedroom. Also, it seems she’s the one preparing the medicine. There are always two guards in front of the king’s bedroom door. A few guards that I questioned let it slip that the king wanted to go back and search for the princess, but the captain of the guard didn’t obey. All searches for the princess were called off by the queen, and the king suddenly became ill.”

  “Yes, that was what I suspected. The queen is behind all this and is planning to take control of the kingdom.”

  Luke folded his arms. “What are we going to do? If she’s truly a witch, it’s dangerous for us to remain here. With the princess dead, your engagement is over. No more alliance.”

  I balled my hands. “We can’t let her get away with this. If she killed the love of my life, I need to do something.”

  “Not our kingdom, not our business. Revenge will only start a war,” Luke reasoned. “There are other princesses to court.”

  I glared at him. “Stop saying nonsense. Snow is my beloved, and I’ll never forget her. I also don’t believe she’s dead. Her body was never found. The queen would have thrown a parade if she had the body.”

  “The werewolves might have killed her and eaten the body.”

  I sneered at Luke. “Can you stop with the gruesome suppositions?”

  “Or, they could have saved her,” Luke added. “Think about it, the queen hates the White Wolf. She does everything to discredit the werewolves hiding in the Black Forest. The only place where people are attacked is in the Black Forest. They live there. Snow was in the Black Forest and disappeared while being chased by the enemy. What if she found the werewolves?”

  “That’s why I’m planning to leave today and go looking for her. As you said, it’s dangerous to stay here.”

  “The queen seems to be rather fond of you, though,” Luke said with a grin. “She’s a beauty, although a dangerous murderous witch.”

  “Yes, not my type.”

  “Do you know what witches do to stay young?”

  I frowned. “Do you?”

  He nodded. “I’m older than you.”

  I rolled my eyes. “By five years.”

  He waved his hand for me to shut up. “Anyway, it seems that witches eat young girls’ hearts and bathe in their blood. Maybe she killed the princess for her heart and her blood. That’s why there’s no body.”

  Punching his arm with a closed fist, I muttered, “Can you stop saying my princess is dead?”

  Luke rubbed his arm with mock hurt. “I’m giving you useful information. You don’t need to resort to violence.”

  “Shut up and tell our men that we are leaving. I’m going to pack and then we’ll go to the Black Forest to look for the White Wolf.”

  Luke got up and dusted off his clothes. “Sure. Anywhere is better than this creepy place. If there’s anyone’s blood I won't drink, that witch’s blood is at the top of my list.”

  “Prepare the horses.”

  My friend bowed and took his leave, using the door this time.

  Chapter SEVENTEEN

  Dorian’s POV

  I rode with my men to where the king’s entourage was attacked. It took a few hours to get there, so I had time to think about everything while we pushed the horses.

  As I understood, the queen wasn’t even trying to pretend that she was grieving for Snow’s presumed death. She was also behind the king’s illness. I had to find my fiancée to stop whatever evil plan that vicious witch was preparing. My sanity depended on finding out what had happened to Snow. If the queen had something to do with it, I was taking my revenge.

  Our investigation began where the carriage and entourage were first ambushed. Bodies no longer littered the ground, but there were signs of battle despite human intervention, time, and nature getting rid of most of the evidence. The rocks had deep gouges made by arrows, the trees had signs of red splotches soaked into the wood. There were tracks from the carriage, pieces of weapons, and the smell of blood and sweat lingering in the air. My vampire senses could smell any bit of blood present or catch anything left behind not discernible by humans.

  Once I scouted the surrounding forest and analyzed the clues left behind, I was more than sure that the attack hadn’t been random. The men had waited to ambush the entourage, and the tip of the arrows that I removed from the trees were made of good quality steel. Another thing was bothering me. How could simple-minded rogues break the tight formation of the guards? The shields and superior fighting skills should have been enough to protect their king and princess. Why had Snow left the safety of the guards’ formation to run into the forest? It made no sense. Snow wasn’t reckless or a coward. Her horse was well-trained.

  “Smells of werewolves,” Luke said, coming out of the woods and dusting off his clothes. “Did you smell them, too? They seemed to be hiding with the rest of the attackers.”

  “I smelled them.” I looked arou
nd. “Where do you think she ran to?”

  “Straight ahead, most likely,” Luke said, pointing at the road that led to my kingdom. “Maybe she believed she could reach our borders.”

  “She’s not an imbecile. It would take hours by horse to reach my borders.”

  Luke mused and sniffed the air. “She entered the woods then. If she was trying to run away from the wolves or the riders going after her, she most likely tried to lose them in the forest.”

  I folded my arms. “Thunder is a fast horse, but the ground is tricky inside the woods.”

  “She might have fallen from her horse to her death,” Luke said, rubbing his chin. I raised my fisted hand to punch him, but he evaded my blow. “All right, she’s alive. She’s probably lost in the woods, looking for a way home.”

  I squinted. “It’s been a few days. She wouldn’t survive that long.”

  “We should find the White Wolf’s pack and ask them what they know about the princess’s disappearance.”

  I raised my arm and waved at my men. “Spread around and look for broken branches, horse tracks, and werewolf scent. I have to find out what path Snow took in these woods.”

  “I’m sure the queen’s men have done this and already ruined the possible leads,” Luke ranted.

  “Well, then look for their tracks. If the queen ordered this attack, her men would know what path Snow’s horse took when running away.”

  “I know you’re feeling guilty for not sending your own men to escort your fiancée, but you had no idea that this would happen.”

  I sighed and rubbed my forehead. “I should have guessed. These are dangerous roads and, if I’m right, the queen controls several guards.”

  “Probably the captain of the guard. The king was lucky to have survived.”