The Vampire King Wants Me

4: The Virgin Runaway

It was finally the Runaway day and Danika had never been so nervous like she was now. She overheard Lamya’s voice at the beginning of dawn as she woke Riah up in her room downstairs, she still wasn’t able to sleep. She heard Riah grumbling as they went about whatever ritual they had, for in their heads, the king was going to choose Riah as his bride. Even though a part of Danika’s mind knew that no one will ever choose her as Papa wasn’t going to present her to the group of gentlemen or their parents, she still had this nervous feeling at the pit of her heart. 

Was it because she was going to wear the dress Faline had bought for her? Or maybe because Faline had tried to make sure her skin looked flawless too with the little skincare she knew as an old woman. She felt like a baby, certainly and was so both eager and anxious about the fact that she was going there. She went downstairs before the break of dawn as she did all the work that was assigned to her, for she wanted to have enough time in getting ready. 

She heard Papa’s voice in Riah’s room as both he and Lamya kept on complimenting her on the dress Danika had bought and somehow she wished she didn’t buy that beautiful dress for her. But the moment she set her feet into the shop, it caught her eyes and she knew she just had to get it. She rushed upstairs, knowing in about an hour now they will all be in Papa’s new car on their way to the location where the runaway took place every three months. 

She took her bath as diligently as she had always done and when she was done, with the little costumes she had, Danika made sure her face looked flawless and she stared at her broken mirror with a soft satisfied smile dangling on her lips. There wasn’t much on her, not even a single jewel or a crown but to her…she was certain she looked like a queen in all her grace. 

“Danika! We’re about to leave!” Papa called out from downstairs and while she hurriedly stood to her feet, her eyes caught the ring, and she smiled before she slid it into her finger, wondering how it fitted her perfectly as though she had been measured. 

“I’m coming, Papa!” She yelled. Closing the door to the attic, Danika rushed downstairs and found them all seated in the car. She locked the house and slid the key into her gown pocket, knowing so well she would have to come back home early to make dinner for them before they do. 

She hopped into the car with an apologetic smile on her lips and when she turned to where Riah sat with an arrogant look as she smiled having had it in mind that she was going to become the Queen of Phaya Empire in a few days, Danika couldn’t help but see how strikingly gorgeous she looked. “You look beautiful, Riah.” She mentioned with a harmless smile and only got a glare as an answer. 

They drove in silence, with only Papa’s favourite classic album booming through the speakers of his car as Lamya slightly turned to look at her before she turned her attention back to the road, “Where did you get that dress, Dan?” She mostly called her that, and Danika had concluded that it was because she hated her so much that calling her complete name would certainly irk her. And she hated it whenever she called her Dan.

“Umm…” she began, trying to find a befitting answer so none of them could roar at her or even get her a beating when they were back. And it had always been said, for a lie to be believed, one had to reveal even though a pinch of the truth. “I got it at the thrift store after I bought Riah the dress, with the remaining change.”

Riah and Lamya turned to her with a glare and with her mouth filled with venom, Lamya spoke, “How dare you do that without asking, Danika?! Why didn’t you bring the change back home?”

She was about to reply, even though with a stutter when for the first time in her life Papa came to her rescue. “I knew the money I gave her was too much, Lam. I’m glad she bought something good with the change, can’t you see that at least she looked presentable? We can’t have her be Riah’s chaperone when she’s looking like a stranded cat, do we? That won’t favour Riah.”

Lamya scoffed and turned to look through the window, she didn’t see anything beautiful here, all she saw was a pulchritudinous looking old young lady that had her breath hitched the first time she set her feet out of the house. This was looking no presentable, and even though she knew Riah looked so dashing, still most men will choose Danika over her. She shuddered at the thought, but the only thing that kept her at ease was that she knew Papa was only going to introduce Riah to the gentlemen there, and maybe if they were lucky, the king will choose her. 

When they arrived at the stadium located at the outskirts of Dewhurst, Danika sighed as she felt her palms got sweaty. They all got down from the car and entered the vast place that one could never see its end. There were tents prepared for the royal and aristocratic families and she wondered which tent belonged to that man. She would appreciate it better if he didn’t come out to everyone’s seeing. For she knew, she would never get to see him that way. 

They all walked to where family members were meant to sit and Riah was escorted by Danika to where the virgins were meant to sit and wait for their turns of the runaway. She wanted to sit beside her, but she knew Lamya would rather have herself killed than see her seated among the virgins. She came back and found a seat at the far end from where Papa and Lamya sat, her finger fondling the ring as she pondered so hard to realize what it was made of.

She heard a soft voice beside her and when she looked up, it was Faline, prettily dressed as she sat down beside her. Her face instantly broke into a smile, “Faline! I was thinking that you wouldn’t come!”

Faline chuckled before she took her hands in hers, “Of course, I will. I promised you, didn’t I?” She nodded, her grin never fading even for a second. And now she felt that her family came, the only one that mattered. “You look so great, Danika. Look at that beautiful hair, and the dress fits you perfectly.” She chuckled and softly touched the blue silky texture of her dress. Faline knew her complexion and what would suit it better. 

The runaway started shortly after, with the virgins walking on the long carpeted pathway as they smiled innocently at the gentlemen seated before them. And whoever had a liking for one of them, would signify and went to meet up with her father. Every one of the virgins was taken to the tents with a chaperone to have a chat with the man that chose them. And even though Danika wasn’t seated beside them, she could see the tension that had built up in their souls as the runaway was about to end and Riah was yet to be chosen. The king hasn’t made his choice yet.

•

From his tent, Ezra had a better view of the runaway carpet, maybe even more than the gentlemen out there staring at them eagerly. She had caught his eyes from the way she walked up the red carpet, her eyes fixed on her fingers as she fidgeted with them. It seemed like she didn’t have the confidence to be there, or simply, she didn’t want to be chosen by the gentlemen out there. 

He called out to one of his guards, “Call her in, the lady in the red dress.” She looked like a bride already, and he loved the soft nature about her. As the chief priest said, he had to find someone so soft that she could tame down the monster in him.

It took them lesser than three minutes for him to see her walking into his tent, and from the way she had her hands clamped together, he knew she was nervous as hell. Who wouldn’t be? For all the virgins that had walked upon the red carpet, she got chosen by the king? What a lucky day for her!

She walked with a gait that got to him, the way her hair dangled and brushed her cheek, how she looked up slightly for a minute at his face before she quickly looked down at her hands until she sat down on the chair provided for her. 

“Your highness,” she said softly as she bowed her head in a ladylike manner that Ezra felt the way her voice sounded was too feminine to be ignored. 

He looked up to her and that was when he noticed her chaperone who had found a sit without been given one and from the way she had her eyes fixed on the ring she examined, she wasn’t in any way ready to acknowledge the presence of the king before her. She had her face covered with a net and even though he had no interest in who she was, he’d like to see the face behind this arrogance. Because, who the hell did she think she was?

He sipped at his juice, or better, the blood is given to him as a juice by his chef before he placed the cup beside him and nodded his head. “I was asked to come in, your highness. You want to meet me in person. I’ll like to extend my appreciation for this opportunity, your highness.” She bowed again, her sweet and tender voice gliding through his ears and he found out the even if the chief priest didn’t suggest that he got married to a human, he would have if he heard this voice and saw her beautiful face. 

“Yes, I do. So, miss…” he let his words trailed off, not knowing what her name was and being too proud to ask her directly.

Her face flushed a little, “My name is Riah Graygroove, Your highness.”

“Riah,” he repeated the name unknowingly and was aware of how it made her blush. “Will you be the Queen of Phaya empire, Riah?” He saw as her words made her blushed even harder before she bowed her head a little.

“Your highness, I dare not say no.” Slightly, Riah looked up into his face and wondered how in the world could someone be this handsome and still be alive. “So, yes, your highness; I’d like to be your Queen.” She felt as happiness filled her heart, even though she wanted to scream at Danika for not greeting him, not even looking at his face and acting oblivious to his presence. How dare she?! The whole king? She’d have to teach her a lesson later. 

“Okay, I’ll have the matter discussed with your father. And the wedding will be in four days.”

She felt as her heart lost a beat, seeing as everything unfolded like a dream and before she was able to reply to him, noises were coming from outside and in a flash, a huge white horse rushed into the tent, nearly taking it off as the horse neighed frantically in a way that sent a shiver down their spins. Dangerously, it galloped deeper into the tent and Riah was so terrified that she stood up and ran toward the king.

But surprisingly, the horse wasn’t aiming at her. He was so frantic and almost seemed like a mad horse until he stood in front of Danika that was staring at him with an unknown expression on her face. She tried to calm him down because somehow, she felt she could and while doing that, the veil she had on her face got loose and her face got revealed, which in an instant, the horse was silent and he neighed rather calmly while she fondled his face with a soft smile. 

“It’s okay, Zetta.” She didn’t know how she knew his name, but she did. And her voice sounded alien to her for she had never sounded this way before.