The Romanov Sisters

by Svetlana Ivanova

  Can vampires eat human food, too? I thought. I had only heard about their blood lust and savagery. This small innocent part of their existence confused me.

  "Sit down," A familiar voice said, but I didn't know whom it came from at first. Then I realized Alexandra was looking at me. A flicker of mischief gleamed from her golden eyes.

  "Y-yes?" I gulped.

  "I said sit down." She gestured to the chair next to her.

  Even Ana looked up from her plate to us. Her porcelain skin seemed to flush a little under the tension. I gingerly took a seat as instructed. My mistress turned her face to me and smiled kindly.

  "Have you heard about your new position from Victor?" she asked. I didn't know who Victor was, but I assumed he must be the wax-looking vampire who came to me last morning, so I nodded back.

  "Good, now you will have to stay near me," she said. "And even eat with me."

  I looked up with questions orbited around my head, but I couldn't tell if Alex was joking. Then she got up and walked towards me. Anastasia looked on from where she was with uneasy eyes. Her hand clutched the spoon, and I saw it starting to bend out of shape. Alex took another seat near my chair and pushed a glass of blood towards me. I stared at the wine glass with red liquid stirring inside and then looked back at Alex.

  "I want you to drink this," she said. My eyes went wide with shock.

  "Sister," Ana said with a heavy tone.

  "Relax, I'm just teaching her something," my mistress said then she turned to me again. "Drink it."

  "What?" I found my voice again.

  "You heard me."

  "No, I won't."

  Suddenly, her hand grabbed the back of my neck. Her cold fingers entangled my hair as she pulled my head slightly backward. Ana rose up from her seat.

  "Stay out of it!" My mistress yelled and pointed a finger at her sister. "Or I will make it worse."

  Anastasia gritted her teeth, but she didn't dare to move. Somehow I felt it had something to do with my safety than her sister's threat. Alexandra turned to me again.

  "You want to drink the blood from this glass, or you want me to drink the blood from you?" Alex hissed at my ear. Her nose traced over my hot cheek. Tears ran down my face as I shut my eyes and reached out to take the wine glass. My hand shook so bad, I almost dropped it.

  Alex released me and smiled in encouragement.

  I brought the glass lip to mine. The smell was almost unbearable, it sickened me. I tried to hold my breath and took a plunge. The red blood flowed into my mouth like poison. The coppery taste quickly enveloped my tongue and traveled down my throat. I heaved nauseously in the process, but Alexandra caught my hand and forced me to keep drinking until the glass was empty.

  I dropped the glass down on the table and clutched my throat in disgust.

  "Good girl." Alex beamed brightly.

  "Why are you doing this to me?" I asked between sobs.

  "I want you to remember this taste," she said and smiled, "because someday you will change your mind about it."

  "Enough of that!" cried Anastasia from across the table. "If you want to punish her, you already have. Just leave her alone!"

  She was breathing hard. I could see the pulse on her neck beating. Alex stood up and placed her hands on my shoulders. She kissed the top of my head before I could flinch away.

  "You’re jealous?" Alex said with a mockery leer. "Well, you should be. I've found a rare gem here. And I'll polish her up. She won’t be rough like this for long."

  My mistress tracked her cold fingertips down my cheek. The hair on my arms stood on ends.

  "Please, Alexandra," Ana turned into a pleading tone, "I beg you. She's just a child."

  "Innocent and pure," My mistress agreed. "Just the way I like it."

  Anastasia rushed forward in a flash, but my mistress grabbed me by the hand and pulled me to her. She was already behind my back when Ana reached us.

  "Oh, I wouldn't do that if I were you," My mistress said as her hand wrapped around my neck. "Step back or I'll snap her pretty little neck."

  Ana bared her white teeth and hissed like a wildcat. The way her eyes stared at her sister would have sent any human running. But as she looked at me, being helpless in Alexandra’s hand she turned away, defeated. My mistress leaned over my shoulder and whispered into my ear.

  "See? No one can touch you, my little doll," she said. "I still have another game for us, but instead of playing dress up, let's play undress."

  Upon hearing that, Anastasia's face snapped back at us. Her face was filled with shock. She wanted to do something, but she knew she couldn’t. Her eyes looked at me as if it was going to be the last time.

  "Come on, sweet girl," My mistress said to me. "We're not going to do it in this room. Someone is having trouble controlling her jealousy."

  Not until then that the terror began to seep into my consciousness. A panic coursed up from the pit of my stomach. Alexandra dragged me by my elbow. I turned to Anastasia for help, but she looked like she was lost on another planet. She just stood there like one of those a marble statue, looking dazed.

  As we were leaving that room, I felt like I was being sucked into a black hole and could never come back.

  Chapter 8

  I was in my mistress's room again. It was colder than I had remembered, or it could be just my own instinctive fear that made me shiver all over. Alexandra pulled me inside after she locked the huge heavy door.

  I glanced around in panic, but as usual, all the windows were tightly shut. No escape route anywhere. I felt like a trapped rat waiting for the cat to gut me alive. Alexandra turned her perfect figure to look at me again. She smiled with a glint of wickedness in her eyes.

  "Don't even think about —"

  I ran to the small library as fast as my feet could take me then slammed the door shut and locked it.

  "Wow, you must have been a marathon runner," Alexandra mocked from the other side of the room. I saw her slender figure through the stained glass of the door. I waited with a pounding heart. Then her hand burst right through the glass like it was made of paper. Shards of crystals flew all over the floor. I stepped back with a scream. My mistress turned the doorknob and opened it.

  Her tall figure walked in like a graceful leopard. I tried to gulp down the lump in my throat and turned to run again, but Alex was already in my face as fast as the wind. Her strong hands grabbed me by my shoulders and shoved me against the bookshelf so hard; I saw black stars dancing in my vision. My hands gripped onto the shelf so that I wouldn't fall.

  "Run all you want, but you can't hide from me," she said. "Geez, how I enjoy the game of hide-and-seek with you, Avery."

  "Kill me!" I hissed. "I can't stand this anymore. Just get it over with!"

  "It's not that easy, my lovely doll," Alex said, stepping closer until her body pressed against mine. She leaned her face towards mine. Her breath brushed faintly against my flushed cheeks.

  "Why me?" I whispered in despair.

  "Why you? I don’t know." Alex raised her hand to brush a strand of hair from my face. "Besides, I like to see the effect you have over my little sister. She seems so smitten by your human charms, doesn't she?"

  "At least, she's not horrible and cold-hearted like you!"

  Once the words flew out of my mouth, I realized I had hit her nerves. My mistress's glowing eyes flared up like molten gold. I had to flinch away from their intensity.

  "Indeed, I am far more evil and violent," she snapped in my face, "and like it or not, you're going to receive all of it!"

  I thought she was about to bite me again, but then she crashed her perfect crimson lips to mine. And less than a heartbeat, her tongue was inside my mouth, slithering around like a sleek serpent.

  My eyes went wide in confusion. Her hands started feeling all over my trembling body. My breath turned into whimpers. I tried to push her away, but she was too strong. My mistress slid her hand down and forcefully lifted my thigh up to her waist. Her other hand tore open th
e collar of my shirt, baring my shoulder and neck. The shredding sound of fine linen snapped me out of my fear.

  I just can't let her do that to me.

  With all my human strength, I shoved her hard enough to slip myself out of her hands and ran out of the library.

  I ran past the black piano by the balcony. Before I could go any farther, I felt two strong arms wrapped around my waist and lifted me off the carpeted floor. I kicked and thrust around only to find myself landed on the grand bed. My head twirled from the impact.

  "So you want to play it rough, huh?" Alex said. "Fine! I can do that."

  She got on top of me, pinning my hands to my sides.

  "Remember when I asked you if you liked my bed?"

  "I hate your bed!"

  Alexandra let out a thrilling laugh. "With the pleasure I'm about to give you, you will wish to sleep on it every night."

  Then her lips and frenzy tongue found their ways into my mouth again. I struggled but then began to feel helpless. It didn't matter how hard I fought, she would always get what she wanted. Tears streamed down the corner of my eyes as my body started to go limp with exhaustion. Alex released my lips and proceeded to nuzzle my throat and went down to my breasts. I lay panting while her hands slithered over my legs and slipped inside my skirt. I could feel her razor-edged teeth brushed lightly over my skin. Then I heard myself sobbing louder.

  "Shhh!" Alex hushed. She turned my face to hers and looked into my eyes. "Don't cry. It's going to be fine. It will be the most wonderful thing you've ever experienced, I promise."

  With her golden eyes bore deeply into mine, I felt my heartbeat slow down. Her cold musky breath calmed my raging nerves for some reasons. It seemed like something about her soothing tone had softened me. My mistress smiled a dazzling smile as she noticed my body's reaction. She kissed my forehead, my lips, and trailing to my throat. She lingered there. I knew deep in my heart that she would feed on me again. Her canines slide out longer and sharper like the claws of a cat. They traced over my neck for the right vein.

  A shiver shot through my spine. Then there was a sting like the jab of two needles. But the pain was over quickly and replaced by indescribable bliss. The vampire’s venom could heighten a victim if chose to. And I felt a strange sensual feeling rushed into my system. My back arched with an unidentified pleasure.

  I felt a hot stirring between my legs. My body began to melt like lava as she started grinding herself against me. A moan issued from my trembling lips. I felt confused and embarrassed to like the sensation. I wished I could have let myself go and given in to this newfound lust. I wished I could have forgotten everything, yet a soft gentle voice in the back of my head broke out like a burst of bubbles, 'Don't let her control you.'

  Then I remembered Ana's caring face. Her soft moistened lips and deep sad eyes. The thought of her brought me a new surge of strength. My drowsy eyelids flew open again, and I pushed Alex's heavy form off of me. With a quick glance, I could see her face marred with a surprise. I desperately rolled myself out of bed and dropped to the floor.

  "Avery!" my mistress cried.

  My mind was still heavily intoxicated, but I forced my body to move.

  Staggering to my feet again, I stumbled and rushed towards the door. The chance of me escaping from her was as slim as the chance to stay alive in a world full of new bloodthirsty species, but I didn't care anymore.

  My legs dragged me as far as the main room until I felt a hand pulled me back by the hair. Another hand gripped me by my jaw hard.

  "What is wrong with you?!" Alexandra hissed furiously. "Nobody has ever rejected me!"

  "Because I'm a human!" I spat back. "And I hate everything about you!"

  With a surge of anger, I grabbed her hand that held my face and bit into it as hard as I could. My mistress cried out in pain. She drew her hand back and then slapped me across the face.

  I fell on the floor and tasted blood in my mouth.

  Suddenly, I heard a loud bang on the door, making the hinges rattled by the force. Another bang and the door flung open. Anastasia marched into the room.

  One glance at me on the floor with blood dripping from the corner of my mouth, she darted out like a lightning towards her sister. They both rammed into each other and flew across the room, smashing into the walls and glass windows.

  Alexandra pushed back and they went deadlock, hurling themselves onto the piano. There were chaotic noises echoed up the ceiling. But it seemed my mistress was a lot stronger than her sister.

  After a few minutes of struggling, she managed to throw Anastasia through the air. Her sister’s back smashed into the far wall, and she collapsed onto the floor again. White plasters fell like snowflakes all around her lying form.

  "Anastasia!" I cried and staggered back to my feet.

  "You're not the golden child in the family anymore, Anastasia," Alex said. She raised her hand, her fingernails flashed into claws, aiming at her sister. "I'll teach you a few lessons about respect."

  I reached Anastasia at the same time Alex did.

  Before she could lash out at her sister, I threw myself and shielded her body from the deadly hand. Alex's nails slashed through the thin layer of my cotton shirt like a lioness’s. They sliced the skin on my back open like knives.

  I let out a painful cry.

  "No! Avery, oh no, no!" I heard Ana's voice scream. She crawled to my side as I fell to the floor. Alex's eyes widened as if she couldn't comprehend what she just did. My mistress stood staring at us with my blood dripping from her fingers.

  Ana lifted my limp body off the floor and rested my head on her chest.

  "Alex, how could you do this? You're a monster!" she yelled. For a moment, I saw my mistress flinched. I couldn’t speak due to the pain and shock. Then as if it was natural, Anastasia bit her own wrist and brought it to my lips.

  "Please, please, drink it, Avery, it'll help you," she insisted when I turned my head away with a wince. "I'm so sorry."

  She pressed the bleeding gash to my mouth. I expected to taste the metallic taste again, but her vampire blood was rich and different from the human blood. Its distinct taste was unbelievably addictive.

  I drank and drank until my vision went black.

  Chapter 9

  Alexandra

  That's funny.

  Why do I even bother to think about it? It's not like I have never killed before. Avery Pierce is just an inferior and stubborn human girl. She deserved to be punished. I don't see why I shouldn't torture her. The sound of her screams delights me. Her blood whispers to me. But then there is something I couldn't wrap my mind around. Why did I feel like there were insects crawling inside my stomach when I saw her and my sister together? And why of all the whys, why do I want to have Avery more than anything now?

  ~*~

  Avery

  I woke up to the bright sunlight shining through an open window. Silk curtains flickered in the morning breeze. There was a breathtaking view of the mountain outside. This wasn't my little room in the mansion. The walls were wooden and polished smooth. There were paintings hanging around the place. I could see flowers blossoming in tiny buckets on every sill of the windows.

  "Oh, you're awake," a familiar voice said. I turned around to see Anastasia smiling at me. She was holding a plate of sandwich and a glass of milk.

  "What is this place?" I sat up and looked around myself.

  "My house."

  "Your house?"

  "It's my vacation house actually," she said. "I like to come here whenever I want to be alone."

  "It's so beautiful," I said. My eyes wandered out the window. A pristine lake with green forest stretched far into the distance.

  "I'm glad you like it here," Ana said and put the food down on a small wooden table next to my bed.

  “What happened? Why did you bring me here?”

  "Now you eat first, questions later,” she just said. “You're still recovering."

  My back felt fine. I turned my head over my sh
oulder, trying to see my injury and feel it with my hands, but the wound was gone. I didn't know how I could heal so fast, but then I remembered when Ana let me drink her blood.

  "Your blood cured me?" I said.

  She nodded.

  I had heard about it in legend, but I never thought it was true. With a sigh, I reached out for the glass of fresh milk and took a sip. I realized how hungry I was until then. Ana watched me with steady eyes. For a moment, I started to worry about how I looked. Ana, as usual, was immaculate without an effort. Her silky blonde hair almost looked like strands of woven gold. It framed her perfect angular face and cascaded down her lithe form. Anastasia was undoubtedly more beautiful than any other vampires I’d met— aside from her cruel sister, of course.

  "You're very brave, Avary," she said. "I’ve never seen anyone who stood against my sister like that."

  "No wonder why I was rewarded with her claws," I said, glancing over to my back again. Anastasia let out a melodious laugh. I had to stop chewing on my sandwich just to listen to it. Her face became serious again.

  "I'm sorry, Avery," she said. "It was my fault. I shouldn't have let you go with her."

  "So why did you come back for me then?" I said, trying not to be upset with her.

  "I just couldn't stop thinking about you," she said. "It's killing me."

  "It's killing me too, literally," I found myself speaking louder than I had meant to.

  "I know." Ana looked down. "I am so sorry for all of that happened."

  "No, please, it's not your fault. Anyway, how come you brought me here?" I asked to change the subject. "How about your sister?"

  "Don't worry, Alex doesn’t know this place," she said. “You’re safe with me.”

  "Really?"

  She nodded.

  Then a thought popped into my mind. "Ana, I mean...Anastasia..."

  "Call me Ana," she said. "I like the way you call me that."