A Castle of Sand

by Bella Forrest

  The last thing I could remember was the crazed and manic look on Claudia’s face as I drifted off into unconsciousness. Just before I completely faded away, I could hear Sofia’s voice croak out the same way she did in the dream, “I’m scared, Derek.”

  And by instinct, I knew that when I woke up from the sleep that Claudia had put me in, Sofia would be gone.

  Chapter 44: Sofia

  At the sight of me, Gregor stood up and slightly bowed his head. He had a smile on his face—calm and unnerving. All I wanted to do was get as far away from him as possible.

  “Derek’s not here,” I told him. “I haven’t seen him since I woke up.”

  Gregor looked at Ben, who was standing right behind me. “Is he aware that you’re with your lover boy over here?”

  “What do you want, Gregor?”

  He smirked. “I want you out of this island, Sofia. What else would I want?”

  “Well, I’m here to stay.”

  “No, darling. You’re not,” a feminine voice from behind me spoke up. I didn’t need to turn around to know who it was. Claudia.

  Before I could even react, Gregor lunged for Ben, and Claudia had already tackled me to the ground, her hands around my neck.

  “Derek!” I screamed.

  “Your king is back to sleep for the moment, Sofia.” Claudia grinned before stabbing me in the neck with a syringe. Panic took over as I watched Gregor do the same thing to Ben. A sob escaped my lips as complete dread took over every fiber of my being. I tried to struggle against Claudia, but I knew that there was nothing I could do. I just drifted off into unconsciousness, dreading the thought of Derek waking up to find me gone.

  When I came to, it was clear to see that I was no longer at The Shade. I was lying in the middle of a king-sized bed with soft white linen sheets. I looked around the torch-lit room and was relieved to find it empty.

  Where am I? I sat up on the bed, my head feeling rather hollow. I cringed when I realized what I was wearing—a one-shoulder white dress that went down to my knees. The fabric was so thin, it was practically sheer. The intricate beading it had, however, spoke of the richness of the material. I trembled to think of where I was and what my purpose was for being there.

  It seemed I was about to get answers to the questions filling my mind, because the door swung open and Lucas stepped in.

  “You’re awake!” he exclaimed delightfully.

  “Where am I? What have you done to me? What are you going to do to me?” I spluttered.

  “Always so many questions, huh, Sofia?”

  I glared at him in response.

  He rolled his eyes. “You’re at The Oasis. If you don’t know what that is, it’s the home of the Maslens. We’re in the middle of the desert now, Sofia.”

  The Maslens… Tears began to brim my eyes. The thought was horrifying.

  “What have I done to you?” He smirked. “Well, the question I think should be what do I want to do with you, but I’ll spare you those details? Sadly, as much as I wanted to have my way with you, I had to bring you to Borys Maslen unscathed. He wanted you to remain a virgin until the night of your wedding to him. Now, for you final question, I’m about to take you to your betrothed, Sofia.”

  I was finding it hard to take in the information that I’d just been given. My mind was whirling. “Why would you do this?” was all I could manage to ask.

  “You ruined my life, Sofia. I’m about to ruin yours.” He lunged forward, pushing me down on the bed, and letting his weight fall on top of me. He then whispered right into my ear, “Make no mistake about it, Sofia…after your wedding night, I will have my way with you. I still remember how sweet your blood is. I would’ve taken a bite during the journey back here, but there was no way I could have hidden the scars from Borys.”

  I trembled beneath him as I began to get a better picture of the life I was about to lead should things go the way they planned. “Derek’s going to come for me.”

  He laughed. “Oh baby, that’s exactly what we’re counting on.”

  He got off me and none-too-gently yanked me upward out of the bed, forcing me to stand up on my feet. He looked at me from head to foot.

  “We’re going to have to do something about the hair. It’s a mess. Otherwise, you’re good to go.”

  He clapped his hands and several women stepped in.

  “Prepare her,” Lucas ordered, a smirk on his face, as he stood back and watched as they began to fix my hair and straighten out my clothes. I could feel his eyes on me, raking over my body. I shuddered at the thought of being in the same room with him, remembering all the torment he put me through when we were still at The Shade.

  Still, it seemed Lucas was the least of my worries. I’d never met Borys Maslen before, but Vivienne’s memories told me enough about him to know that he was bad news. I couldn’t wrap my mind around the idea of being his “betrothed.” Why would he even want me?

  I then remembered Gregor’s revelation back at the town square. After everything that happened following the whipping at the square, I’d barely given his pronouncement that Ingrid Maslen was my mother any thought. I thought the whole while that he was just bluffing. Since Derek never brought it up, I just assumed that I was right.

  I guess I’m about to find out.

  Once satisfied that I looked good enough to present to Borys, Lucas waved everyone off and walked toward me. “You ready?”

  “No.”

  He just laughed. “Well, it’s not like it matters if you’re ready or not…” He held the small of my back and pushed me forward. “This is going to be fun.”

  We walked through eery torch-lit corridors surrounded by dusty brick walls. We weaved through hallway after hallway until we stopped in front of a large, arched door.

  Lucas pushed the door open and led me into a large courtroom. A lone figure could be seen in the middle of it. He was seated on a tall black throne, made up of what looked like human skulls. At the sight of me, he stood on his feet, his dark eyes lighting up as he licked his lips.

  I immediately assumed that he was Borys Maslen. He didn’t look like I thought he would. I’d expected him to look like the Novaks. He had muddy brown hair, and a stocky, wide, muscular physique. He looked like he could crush me with his bare hands if he wanted to.

  “So this is my Sofia.” He smiled as Lucas pushed me forward, forcing me to approach the throne. “It’s about time you came to me, my dear betrothed.”

  “I’m not your betrothed,” I spat out. The notion was sickening.

  “Actually, Sofia,” a feminine voice came out through the deep burgundy curtains behind Borys’ throne, “you are his betrothed.” A beautiful woman emerged from behind the curtains and it was clear to see who she was. Ingrid Maslen.

  Tears began to flow down my eyes at the sight of her. Gregor was telling the truth. It’s my mother.

  “She looks so happy to see you, Ingrid.” Borys tilted his head to the side.

  I couldn’t even bear looking at him. My eyes were glued on my mother as questions began to flood my mind. “Mom?”

  “Yes, Sofia.” She smiled at me. “It’s me. Your mother. I gave you to Borys a long time ago. You are rightfully his.”

  I had no idea how to cope with all the information being thrown my way, but two things I was still certain about: my mother was indeed crazy and there was no way that I belonged to Borys.

  I managed to pry my eyes away from Ingrid, or whatever she called herself nowadays, and look at the man who was claiming me as his. I felt nothing but disgust toward him. I gathered all the courage I could muster and smirked at him. “You’re too late.” I raised my hand and showed them the ring Derek had given me. “I’m already married to Derek Novak.”

  It wasn’t a difficult lie to tell, because it was almost true. Derek was already my fiancé and it was him whom I belonged with.

  Borys’ face colored into a deep, beet red. He lunged forward, until he was standing right in front of me, grabbing my jaw. “You lie!�
�� he accused.

  I kept the smirk on my face. “You can check if you want. He’s already taken me to his bed. Many times.” At least that part was true. I could almost sense the surprise coming from Lucas. I wondered why he thought Derek would never take me to his bed and realized that Lucas knew that I was different from the beginning, knew that Derek never touched me while I was initially at The Shade.

  To my surprise, Borys took out his frustration on Lucas. He let go of my jaw and threw Lucas against a wall. “How dare your brother touch what is mine! First, he takes Vivienne away from me, now he has soiled my betrothed!”

  I winced when he grabbed a clump of Lucas’ hair and hit him right across the face.

  “Borys, my dear, that’s enough.” Ingrid sounded almost bored. “You’re scaring my daughter.”

  Borys hit Lucas one more time before turning his attention toward me once again. He grabbed my waist and pulled my body against his, yanking me like a rag doll. His free hand began groping me roughly as he pressed his lips against my cheek. I screamed with pain and terror when his claws came out of the hand that was touching my thigh, sinking into my skin as he scratched my thigh upward and drew blood.

  Once satisfied that he had drawn enough blood, he used both his arms to wrap around me so tightly it felt as if he wanted to crush my ribs. He whispered into my ear, “Derek might’ve already had you before I could, but I still want you, Sofia Claremont. Don’t worry. I’m going to make him pay for what he did to you, for taking you away from me. Once I make a widow out of you, you’re going to be mine, Sofia—just as you were always meant to be.”

  He then let go of me and pushed me to the ground. Delight sparked in his eyes when he saw the blood trickling down my thighs. I knew then that I was facing one sadistic man, and I could only shudder to think of all the horrors that Vivienne had to go through under his rule.

  “Heal your daughter,” he instructed Ingrid. “I’ll see to it that everyone prepares for my wedding.” A spark of glee showed in his eyes. “We have to make sure that Derek Novak gets an invitation.”

  Chapter 45: Ben

  When I opened my eyes, the first thing I felt was a sharp pain in the right side of my head. I tried to remember what had just happened, and could recall Gregor Novak hitting me on the head with a hard object. After that, everything was a daze. I sat up, feeling slightly dizzy, and noticed that I was lying on a couch, my wrists cuffed behind my back.

  I looked around the room and immediately saw Sofia, sitting over the edge of a large bed, her hand cuffed to the bed’s railings. It was clear to see from the tear stains on her cheeks and her swollen eyes that she’d been crying.

  “Sofia? What happened? Where are we?”

  She shook her head. “I’m not sure. Lucas says that we’re in Egypt, a place called The Oasis.”

  I drew a breath. The Oasis was the stuff of legends. It’d been one of the hunters’ main quests to find it, because it was rumored to be the Maslen coven’s hideout. I wondered then why on earth Gregor and Claudia would bring us to the Maslens. That’s when what Sofia had said fully registered in my mind. That would mean they’d been working with Lucas all along, and Lucas had been working with the Maslens?

  “Why would they bring us here?” I asked Sofia. “The Novaks and the Maslens are known enemies…”

  “I don’t know why Lucas would work with the Maslens after what Borys did to his sister, but he’s a twisted, sick man… so I can’t pretend to try and understand the way his mind works.”

  I studied Sofia and noticed the blood stains on her dress. Panic gripped me. “What did they do to you? Sofia…”

  “It was Borys Maslen. He clawed through my thighs. He has this notion that I’m meant to be his, that I’m his betrothed…” her voice hitched. “They’re going to force me to marry that sick, sadistic bastard, Ben. They’re sending Derek a wedding invitation.”

  “Derek Novak isn’t a fool. He knows that you love him. He’s not going to believe that you’re in this wedding out of your own will.”

  “I know that,” she assured me. “They’re using the wedding—using me—to trap him. I think the Maslens want to take over The Shade.” She began to sob uncontrollably.

  I wanted to run to her and pull her into my arms, assure her that everything was going to be okay and that all would work out fine, but I couldn’t do that. I wasn’t sure about what was happening or what was going to happen.

  “Ben, I don’t know what I would do if anything happened to Derek,” she managed to say in between sobs. “I wouldn’t know how to live with myself. I’m terrified.”

  I stared at her, my heart breaking on her behalf. I wondered if she’d ever cried for me the way that she did for him. I remembered all the times that I’d caught him looking at her and the way she’d looked at him. As I sat there watching my best friend break down over the man that she loved, I couldn’t help but be amazed over the amount of sacrifice Derek and Sofia were willing to make for each other.

  It was the first time I truly began to accept that Derek and Sofia were meant for each other, and I knew then that nothing in the world could keep Derek Novak from storming The Oasis to get Sofia back.

  “Derek is known to be the most powerful vampire alive, Sofia. If he comes, he’s going to put up a good fight and considering that it’s you who’s involved, I think it’s the Maslens who have reason to tremble. Don’t underestimate the man you love, Rose Red.”

  She looked at me with hopeful eyes. It seemed the words were enough to console her.

  “Everything’s going to be okay, Sofia. I know it.” As I said the words, I realized that I now meant every word. It gave me a sense of resignation, but also a sense of fulfillment, to know that she was in good hands, that my best friend really had found her true love in the person of Derek Novak.

  Though I was still filled with dread over what she might possibly go through at The Oasis, a part of me was happy for her, knowing that unlike me, she would live her life knowing that she loved and that she was loved in return.

  Chapter 46: Derek

  Since Sofia’s disappearance, I’d been turning The Shade upside down trying to find her. It helped that she was so loved by the citizens of The Shade, because their full cooperation was immediately given to me the moment news that she was no longer on the island came out.

  During a council meeting called specifically to discuss what to do in order to find Sofia, I found myself losing hope.

  “She most likely eloped with the boy.” Felix leaned back on his seat, not bothering to hide how bored he was by the entire thing.

  At that, Gavin scoffed, earning himself Felix’s ire.

  I shook my head. “No. She wouldn’t do that to me.”

  “Then maybe your father was right. She’s in league with the Maslens and she’s probably now at The Oasis cavorting with her mother and their king. We all know she has a taste for royalty.” Felix eyed me pointedly.

  “For crying out loud, Felix,” Cameron interrupted in his distinct Scottish accent. “Will you shut up for a moment? Do you not think before you speak?”

  I was trying to reel my temper in, and was thankful that Cameron butted in on behalf of me. “It is true that Ingrid Maslen is Sofia’s mother. Eli’s background checks have already proven this as true, but I know Sofia. I know for a fact that she had no idea that Camilla Claremont became a vampire. I believe her father tried to protect her from the knowledge.”

  “We know Claudia has something to do with their disappearance, obviously, since she’s the one who tranquilized Derek,” Liana spoke up. “And I suspect Gregor is involved too. It’s too much of a coincidence that they would both disappear the same time Ben and Sofia did.”

  “My thoughts exactly,” Gavin agreed. “Sofia is far too loyal to The Shade or perhaps more to you.” He gestured toward me.“To leave The Shade out of her own accord.”

  “The arrival of the human boy…this friend of hers…changes everything and we know it.” Felix frowned. “He might
have been working with Lucas all along and they might have been communicating with Claudia and Gregor.”

  “You’re Gregor’s right hand man, Felix,” Gavin butted in. “Don’t you know what he’s been up to?”

  Felix frowned. It was clear to see that the fact that my father made a move without his knowledge wasn’t something that he was entirely pleased with.

  “Why would Claudia turn her back on us?” Xavier spoke up, ignoring Felix entirely.

  “I know Claudia has several scores to settle with you,” Yuri spoke up, looking at me with a hint of accusation. “You took Ben from her, you had her punished simply for defying you, then you shortened her sentence after sleeping with her. Does that sum up all the things that would give her a reason to hold a grudge against you?”

  I grimaced. Claudia may not be the most shining example of a good-hearted vampire, but I had to admit that neither was I, and it was true that I’d wronged her in the worst possible way when I visited her cell and ended up sleeping with her. I knew immediately that I’d made a mistake when I told her that I’d shorten her sentence. I regretted it, and I regretted never apologizing to her properly for it.

  I looked Yuri in the eye. “I never intended to sleep with her. It happened, and I offered to shorten her sentence without thinking it through. I should’ve apologized.”

  “Well, it’s too late now, isn’t it?” Yuri narrowed his eyes at me.

  “I wronged Claudia and I’m sorry for that, but make no mistake about it, Yuri, I will make her pay for what she has done.”

  Yuri’s eyes saddened. He’d always stood as Claudia’s protector for as long as I could remember. I always wondered if he actually held true love for Claudia. I knew him well enough, however, to be secure that his loyalty to me far outweighed whatever feelings he held for the beautiful blonde.

  “Regardless of Claudia’s reasons for betraying Derek and thereby, betraying us all, the fact still remains that we have no idea where they are,” Liana butted in. “Besides, that’s not the point. If Sofia was taken against her will, then yes, we really do have to find her, but if she went out of her own accord…”