The Vampire King's Destined Queen

ii- Bitten

Chapter Two

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*SLAP*

A booming sound of a delicate skin getting hit resonated in the four sides of the wide room.

"YOU ARE A DISGRACE!" The master of the house, head of the Valentine famiglia, was fuming in anger. Glaring disappointedly at his only daughter who dared to escape her own party and then wandered around the big city on her own. Only returning home when the skies turned dark and the surroundings pitch black.

Guerrero Valentine's shaking hands closed in a fist, gritting his teeth as his heart felt constricted. He was having a hard time breathing, yet he still looked at his daughter in a judging manner while proceeding to scold her.

"The guests were all stunned to find out you were not at the party. Do you know how humiliating it was? How embarrassed your Mother and I felt? What were you thinking?!"

Even throughout all the yelling and the blames she's receiving, the immature young lady had her lips shut and her gaze fell towards the floor. She didn’t dare to even explain her side, but only remained listening to the hurtful words her father hurled at her.

Marionette has had enough of this puppetry game. She is not an instrument to be played, nor a doll that can be controlled by strings.

Everybody sees her as the most blessed maiden. She’s got wealth, affluent family and gorgeous looks. They desire what she had but they failed to notice, behind the curtains, there in the shadows was her all alone and hurt.

While Lady Marina was by the side, watching how her husband was scolding her daughter. She couldn't help but feel apologetic in her stead.

'Oh, what an immature and troublesome young lady.'

She was calming Guerrero while giving Marionette a look of dissatisfaction.

When the household finally calmed down Nana Rasha, the maid of the Valentines, rushed to Marionette's side. Aiding her young and shattered heart.

'How can a family treat their own lovely young lady this harshly?'

"Young Miss, here is an ice pack. Put it on your swollen cheeks, it will help you heal better."

Marionette received the cloth with a solemn smile. Showing a pretense that she's fine although in truth she is not.

"Nana, thank you for always being there for me. You and butler Cain are the only ones who showed me sincere care and true love." Marionette said with misty eyes, and on the verge of crying. Nana Rasha’s worry was visible on her comforting face and this eases Marionette’s aching heart.

"You are a wonderful girl, Marionette. Your parents are despicable for treating you this way." Rasha pulled the girl to her warm embrace. Caressing her and giving her the solace, she needed. Not long after, the young and sad Marionette burst into tears. "Oh, my lovely Marionette. Shush~"

As Marionette calmed down, she suddenly remembered the reason she came home earlier than she intended. She turned to Rasha, eyes wide, in an abrupt manner.

"How is the gentleman?" She asked, her eyes were eager for an answer, her brows contorted in a curious way.

Rasha thought about young Marionette's question and the answer instantly clicked on her head. "You mean the handsome guy you brought home?" Her voice was laced with playfulness, teasing Marionette.

Marionette's swollen red right cheek turned even redder, making both cheeks unequal of the color, at the mention of her bringing a handsome gentleman, but a stranger nonetheless, home.

Rasha laughed at the young lady's flustered reaction. Grasping her hand in her own and then tugging her to stand.

"He's in an empty quarter at our house. I already checked on him when you left abruptly. There's no particular wound nor a disease that I found on him, young Miss. He was simply tired and exhausted, so you need not to worry." She explained while they were walking, on their way, to the maid and the butler's humble home.

Marionette didn't ask further. Her curiosity satisfied for now with the current information and going out of her way to check up on the guy’s condition with her own eyes.

Entering the room where the gentleman she saved was lying asleep. She felt her heart racing, without any particular reason, when the handsome man came into her view. There was an unknown emotion and strange tug in her heart.

As she was approaching him, she felt an unexplainable familiarity with this stranger. She tiptoed towards him to take a peek at his face.

"He's very good-looking." She blurted out mindlessly.

"He is, indeed young Miss. But where did you find him and what exactly happened to him?" Rasha asked.

Marionette immediately searched her mind for an answer, "I accidentally saw him on the streets when I was making a run for it. He was lying helplessly on the ground and nobody even took the initiative to help him. I thought it was a dead body at first, but I’m glad I found him before he really became one." She lied and gave a kind smile.

She knew she couldn't possibly tell her maid that in order for her to escape she impulsively entered a forbidden place, to shake off the butlers chasing after her, and met the gentleman in there. There was no way Marionette was letting herself be found out.

Rasha smiled gently, oblivious about the lie that she was told. "You're a kind hearted girl, Marionette."

"Because you taught me to be, Nana Rasha and I am forever grateful for that."

The middle-aged woman revealed a gentle smile towards Marionette.

"However, who could this gentleman be? I don't recognize him?"

Rasha wondered, scrutinizing the peacefully sleeping man, his face was truly attractive. He has good skin although they were too pale, it suited him.

"I will go change clothes, Nana Rasha?" Marionette said, not answering the question and purposely avoiding it, because even she doesn't know the answer.

"Yes, you should definitely change into a warmer dress, young lady. Go, and I will look after this stranger for you."

Marionette left after that, heading to her parent’s mansion where her room was. She didn't want to cross paths with either her mother or her father, because they will surely just raise an argument, and she's tired of hearing constant criticism and pure nagging. Even if she did right or exceeded their expectations, she never received a single praise, all that her parents knew is to point out her mistakes. And to avoid an unfortunate encounter, she circled around the mansion to where her balcony was situated. Her room is only at the second floor. As she learned kindness from their maid, butler Cain in return taught her how to live a life.

Upon standing on her feet on the window of the first floor, she lunged upwards, clutching on the recliner of the balcony. Eventually climbing up until she reached the solid floor, while still managing to land in a sophisticated manner, wiping the dust off to her dress. With a satisfied grin, she went inside her room, heading to the armoire to change.

While she was taking off her dress to wear a new one, Marionette felt a sharp pain in her neck. She touched the part where it was hurting and immediately went in front of her body mirror to check what it was. Such was her shock when she saw blood, she wiped it with the hem of the clothes she's wearing, but when the blood was cleared there was another shocking thing she discovered.

"What is this?"

She inched closer to the mirror, trying to convince herself that it was her reflection she's seeing in front, but it was hard to believe.

There were unusual tiny holes in her neck. She gulped. No, she's sure... it was...

"Bite marks." And what looked like things she only encountered in books, in someone else's imagination, would happen to her in real life.

"A Vampire's bite."

She was bitten?

But how come? Who would?

Could it be...?

Marionette fastens her pace into changing, not minding the stinging pain. She goes barefoot and runs to reach the couple's house. When she entered their home, panting and nervous, she rushed inside the room where the stranger was staying, but he remained unchanged in position, still asleep.

"What's wrong, young Miss? You look like you've seen a ghost!" Rasha said with worry.

"I-it's nothing. Can you please make a simple snack for me? I... I'm hungry." She responded with a forced smile.

"If you’ll excuse me then…"

As Rasha went out of the room to prepare food for her, Marionette on the other hand was frozen where she stood. Refusing to believe what kind of creature she brought home recklessly that might even put them in danger. She walked closer to look at the sleeping stranger and again, touched the bite marks on her neck.

"Just... Who, no," she shook her head, appalled as she muttered, "what exactly are you?"

Marionette then nursed the strange gentleman for a week, even with doubt and fear of what he might do once he wakes up, she was firm on letting him recuperate in her territory.

Come what may, as they say.

The man did not seem to do anything else rather than sleeping all those times.