The Vampire King Wants Me

5: The Proposal

Ezra stared at how softly she spoke to the horse and how lovingly it had responded. He wondered what was going on between the two until he saw the logo on the saddle and knew why, it had the sign of the Trinnuiven dynasty and Ezra knew this horse belonged to Queen Dru 500 years ago. He immediately rose to his feet, had the horse been wandering through the earth for all those 500 years without being dead and now he felt that he had finally found his owner?

“Take the horse out!” He roared to the guards and in one swift movement, they were holding the bridle as they pulled it out. One of the guards immediately hopped on it even though the horse seemed not to welcome anyone on its back yet.

She turned with a heated expression, “You can’t ask them to take it out, where are they going to keep it?” Damnation! She sounded the same, even though he knew Dru wouldn’t have stooped so low to ask him this question, she would’ve stopped the guards from taking the horse and would certainly slay the throat of whoever dared touched it. He knew rebirths were a spitting image of each other and sounded and acted mostly the same, even though he wasn’t sure of what the rebirthed version of Dru would act like. 

He acted as though she wasn’t referring to him and turned to Riah that stood by his side, still not over the shock of seeing that horse. He managed to smile at her but instead, a scowl engulfed his expression and he knew it was only going to scare her even more than the horse had. She silently walked back to her seat and sat down, suddenly feeling embarrassed and Ezra spoke, “I’m being lenient, don’t you think, Riah?” He spoke under his breath that she found it so hard to capture what he had said. 

“Your chaperone…” she knew where it was leading to, and she felt the pounding of her heart increased. She knew Danika was doing this because she wanted to stop her from getting married to the king. And she would die if she didn’t tell this to her parents, how dare she speak to the king in the manner she did?!

“Oh,” her face flushed as she threw a warning glance toward Danika that still stood in the centre of the tent as she flashed him a heated glance, waiting for her answer. “Her name is Danika, she’s my older sister.” He acted as though he didn’t hear what she said and Riah knew there was more to what she would do now, “I’m sorry over her attitude, your highness. It’s because we’ve both never associated ourselves with an aristocrat not to even talk of a royal person and to say the king in general. I beg for your forgiveness, your highness.” 

Riah turned to Danika that wasn’t even sparing her a glance, nor do a remorseful expression took over her face. She looked confident that Riah almost found it unnerving to say what she wanted to say to her. “Danika, apologize to his highness before he has a punishment assigned to you.” She said through gritted, and feeling as her body roiled with so much anger that she wanted to stand up now and smack her so hard on the face. 

“I beg your pardon, but has it occurred to you that you haven’t answered my question or would you rather have me check that myself?”

“Danika!” Riah yelled, now agitated as this was certainly not going to be forgiven by the king.

She turned to her and it felt as though she had never seen this Danika before. She looked nothing like her old self. The Danika she knew didn’t have this much confidence nor was there this aura about her that immediately unnerved her. And if she had noticed, her aura wasn’t there this, this was a different person. A person with so much power attached to her name, but then this was her sister! The Danika she had grown up to trample upon and look down onto.

“How dare you interfere?” Her gaze was piercing right into her soul and Riah knew she wouldn’t keep up with the staring contest she was having with this powerful woman that seemed not afraid in ways Riah had never imagined Danika would ever not be. 

“Would you do me the favour of getting your father here? It’d be a pleasure to talk about this whole thing, now. I’d want the marriage in two days instead, Riah.” He didn’t talk when he said that as his eyes were fixed unwaveringly at a furious Danika that stared at him with the same heated look he had on his face. She immediately rose to her feet and bowed.

“Yes, your highness,” She said and began walking toward the door, but when she saw that Danika had no intention of following her, she stopped in her tracks. “Danika, do you wish to overstay your welcome or is it the mercy of his highness that you’re hell-bent on suffocating?” She believed that his highness was only being this forgiven because he had grown a liking in her and wouldn’t want to do something that would upset her father.

“I think your chaperone has something to discuss with me.” He began, finishing his juice in one gulp as he ordered for more to be poured into his cup. “Let us be.” He spoke to every guard in the tent and Riah believed she was among those that he ordered and she silently walked out of the tent, wondering what was wrong with Danika this evening.

He gulped down the cup too, all in an attempt to calm himself from the raging bloodthirst that seemed insatiable due to the aggressive anger he felt. When he saw that wasn’t going to work, he took the entire jug the blood had been preserved for him and emptied it in one gulp. It felt good, but certainly, he would welcome more and more blood at the moment. 

He was aware of her heated gaze that was shaking unwavering on his face and his mischievousness returned as he found his calm back. This was certainly her, Queen Dru of the Trinnuinven dynasty, just that this rebirth version of her wasn’t confident enough as she used to and due to how her hands slightly shook with fear that she had them clasped together to seem fearless to him, he believed the Danika Riah mentioned had been taken over by a soul slightly different from hers. Or perhaps, a part of her soul that had never resurfaced until she saw him.

“Your majesty,” he said with utter mockery and he watched as she recoiled in anger. “May I have you sit before we speak? I believe you’d never act like a town cat, will you?”

Danika felt as her body recoiled with so much anger she had never felt before. She didn’t know how it was possible for this man she hated with every fibre of her being to be able to hit the right nerve that could have her strangling his throat if only she didn’t know that he was so powerful and could kill her in the blink of an eye. “I don’t believe you’d resort to using such foul language to lure me into doing something, your highness.” There was the same tone of mockery when she called him that. Even though she wondered where her confidence and fearlessness came from as she could never imagine herself doing all the things she was doing, but she enjoyed every bit of it and she knew that for the rest of their lives, so long as he got married to her sister and she’d have to see him occasionally, she would treat him this way. For it only seemed right for her to do so.

She sat down and watched the amusement dangled from his eyes. “About Zetta,” she said almost immediately after she sat, still wondering how in the world she knew the name of the horse she had never seen before yet felt so much attachment to. 

“I had him taken to the palace.” His answer was short and precise but Danika was sure she had more than just his answer in his voice. Dare and challenge were dripping from each word he had uttered. 

“I believe I’ll have to go there and retrieve it myself.” She was about to get to her feet when her family walked in and she was in an instant, reminding of who she was and who she had been acting this arrogant and fearless too when she saw Papa nearly going to his knees and Lamya bowed as though she was going to prostrate in from of him. She rolled her eyes exasperatedly at the sight. 

“Please have your seats, sir.” He said that a feign respect and when their eyes met with her, he flashed her a mocking look that said, ‘You see? How your parents act toward me.’ She rolled her eyes and took her gaze off his face.

She was aware of the look Lamya was flashing at her but she was in no way ever going to look her way. She wanted to keep up with this fake bravado and confidence even if it were for the meantime before they were done talking about his marriage with Riah. As she thought about herself and when she would be able to get away from these people, after she had fought her mind over the hateful thoughts of this arrogant man; she heard their voices while they spoke incessantly. She wondered why they were dragging it, everyone knew the king will certainly get what he wanted from him, want it or not; they’d have to comply.

“Danika?” She heard Papa’s voice as he called her with his voice slightly shaking, her eyes scanned Riah’s face and she saw the hurtful expression she had before she turned her attention back to Papa that was looking horrified and deeply disappointed, and if she would do justice to the look he had on his face, he even looked hurt. 

“Yes, Papa?” She answered, and just then, Danika knew she sounded like herself. The little fearful and helpless girl she had been and will always be to her family.

“His highness asks for your hand in marriage.” Abruptly, she rose to her feet and her heated and confused gaze shot at the king who had a smug look on his face.

“What?! Papa, no!” She didn’t have to even think about it, it was a blatant no and would be a no for the rest of her life. What the hell was he thinking to make such a proposal right after he had gotten her sister so excited that she was going to be his queen?

“Danika…” Papa began through gritted teeth, wondering how Danika became this outspoken at once. “Know where you are and quickly find where you’ve left your manners. You’re in the presence of the king!”

“And so what if he’s the king, Papa?” She returned a hateful stare at him, and he seemed relaxed for a queen that just heard that comment about him from a mere and helpless human, she wondered about the level of his patience. “He had just asked Riah to be his Queen and had gotten her hopes up. No, I’ll never get married to a man like him, convey my answer to him, please.” 

Sweat prickled down to her cheeks as she watched the way Papa got to his knees as he apologized vehemently over her behaviour. “Forgive her stubbornness, your highness. And yes, I’d give her hand in marriage to you and the wedding will be held in the two days you’ve mentioned, your majesty.”

“Papa!!!” She screamed stomped out of the tent, feeling pained and betrayed. She knew this man changed his mind over her for a reason, and whatever reason he had would never be favourable to her and she was certain he’d want to prove a point by doing so. 

She met Faline on her way out of the stadium and when she felt her hands on hers and turned to find out it was her, she broke into tears. But it was evident that they were tears of anger, of pain and helplessness. “I’ll so kill that man, Faline!” She said through gritted teeth amidst her tears. “I’ll kill him the very day he gets himself married to me.” Faline only pulled her to her body and gave her a comforting hug, even though she was aware of the soft smile on her face and the relieved expression she had.