Bride of the Vampire Prince

CHAPTER: 9

Alex covered his other hand over Vienna's mouth stopping her mid-sentence and dragged her behind the tree. "Just stay still," he commanded.

She struggled against him, but he was unusually strong. She could barely move.

"I think they are heading back to the castle." Alex kept his voice barely audible.

As they listened to the horses galloping past the beach in the opposite direction, Vienna looked up at her captor's face. The redheaded boy was handsome but not in a conventional way. His dark red hair was thick and spiky, his high cheekbones projected from his face, and his skin was ivory white in color, save for his bright collection of freckles. He had large front teeth that projected from between his pale pink lips.

Alex caught her staring and chuckled. "Saw something that you like?"

"Are you... Are you Mien?" Vienna asked. He seemed nice enough, regardless of his yelling at her and dragging her into the woods, but she really hoped he was not.

"You know, you never change." Alex snorted, a look of disgust crossing his face. "No. I am not the one who sent you the letters. It is never me. It is always him."

Vienna nodded, for some odd reason she was feeling better.

"Don't look so relieved! My ego cannot take it." He released her and cursed again. "Every bloody time."

"Every bloody time what?" she asked.

"You ask if it is me every bloody time, then you get this look on your face when I tell you no. It seems as if you have dodged a bullet. It looks like I am so unattractive that you cannot bear it," Alex told her.

"I don't think... I don't think you are unattractive," Vienna said.

"Well, I know that." Alex pointed to himself, from his red hair to his boots. "Anyone would be lucky to get a piece of this."

Vienna coughed. "Of course they would."

Alex glared at her. "Come on, the guards are gone. Let us get you out of those rotten clothes and into a proper dress. But wait, put this on first."

He took some brown muslin out of his bag and shoved it at her. Vienna unfolded it to see it was a brown coat, something that a wizard would wear. She glared at him.

"For the sake of God, just put it on. We need to make it to the castle by noon," Alex said.

Vienna shook her head as she shrugged the stiff coat on. It smelled faintly of hay. "Castle? Where are we?" she asked Alex.

He raked a hand through his hair and looked up at the sky again. "Oh, God! Why me?"

After Vienna waited for him to calm down, she asked again, "Where are we?"

Sighing, he started moving back toward the beach and motioned for her to follow him. 

"We are in the kingdom, of Queen Anne, my lady. And we are heading to the royal family's castle to get you there in time for the competition. But you have to get there in time to be eligible," Alex said.

"Eligible for what?" Vienna yelled.

He looked back at her, shaking his head. For the competition, of course, where young maidens are offered as sacrifices to the royals. It is always the same. I wish you would remember. This gets a bit repetitive if you ask me."

Vienna stopped walking. "Why do you keep saying that you wish I would remember? What should I have remembered? I do not understand!"

"Aw, come on now. Let's hurry up," he said. He waved at her dismissively. "There is only one way for you to find out."

Vienna stood her ground, clutching the coat around her. "I am not following you until you tell me more."

Alex grunted but did not bother turning around. "Of course you will. It is not like you can climb back into the lake and go back to the other side just yet. But, you are welcome to try, of course." He shot her a backward glance, a wicked grin visible on his face. "It would not be for the first time. And I do enjoy it when you flap around like a fish."

"Why do you keep talking as if you know me? I have never seen you ever before!" Vienna told him.

He followed the path, not looking back. "Come on and find out. Besides... someone else is waiting to see you."

Vienna stayed obstinately at the same spot until he was about to disappear from her view. And then, without thinking twice, she chased after him.

They followed the path for miles, past the beach and across a valley bordered on either side by forest. She could not be certain, but it seemed as though they were on a slope. Her clothes were still stiff and wet from the pond, now became soaked with sweat instead. Her socks made a gushing sound inside her boots. When a cloud passed over the sun, she shivered and wrapped the cloak around her, grateful for it despite its smell. When the sun came back out of the clouds, she started sweating again.

Alex seemed oblivious to both the temperature changes as well as her discomfort. He merrily hummed a tune, brushing his hands over the long blades of grass.

"Can you please tell me more?" Vienna begged. "At least tell me where we are?"

"I told you, my lady. This is the kingdom of Queen Anne," he replied.

The land seemed familiar, with trees she recognized, but it had much more open space. On the other hand, where she lived in Vancouver-Canada, neighborhoods and shopping plazas and grocery stores sprawled as far as the eye could visualize, with very little undeveloped land. "Is the kingdom in America or Canada?" Vienna asked.

He looked thoughtful. "You know, you ask that so often I actually looked it up. The answer is no. It wasn't."

Wasn't. Her brain clambered. Wasn't? That made it sound as though the kingdom existed sometime in the future, not to mention somewhere other than Canada, where she had been just a few hours ago. Alex was either too confused or was a lunatic, Vienna believed.

"It was never part of the American's," he said. "We are on the other side of the ocean."

Vienna was now sure, he was not confused. He was an absolute lunatic.

At the top of the hill, Alex stopped short. "Ah, here we are."

Vienna caught up to him, and her jaw dropped. The ground dipped then rose into another large, broad hill. On top of it stood a massive castle made of dark gray and red stone, surrounded by a circular high wall. Deep blue flags flew from the towers, rising high into the sky.

Shivering, Vienna gazed at the majestic structure.

A/N: To be continued...