บท 13: First Meeting
Bel's stomach knotted as she stood there in a dress. She must have pulled on the ropes too hard or was it the anxiety making her chest hurt?
She would have sworn they were coming in but for some reason, they were taking their time.
The front door was cracked open but not in a way that you could see outside. All she could see was a glimpse of light. It was definitely from a torch a guard was holding. She couldn't see anything else.
The space she stood in was lit up. Her parents had gone all out. She knew in the past two days several renovations had been done. Especially to the left wing.
Her father had gotten it remodeled to keep out any ounce of sunlight and Stelian had supervised the entire process.
She still didn't know what the dhampir's role was in the situation. She knew he kept to himself and had never tried to engage her in any conversation, not once.
She shuffled on her feet, the wood was cold against it but that didn't make her uncomfortable in any way.
She leaned on the rail, putting her entire weight on it as she waited. Her throat felt dry and itchy.
She could almost hear the conversation but just before it would reach it, it disappeared.
After what felt like an eternity which was merely just two seconds the doors were flung and Bel blinked at the gust of wind.
Her hair flopped a little, and the dress shook but none of that registered as her eyes met with a pair of red eyes.
He walked in first, his shoulders slightly slouched but it was more in a bored manner than a lack of confidence.
As soon as he stepped through the door. His head jerked up, his eyes zoning in on her. She tried to break from his gaze but he had her locked in like a cage bird.
It was weird, they were at least twenty feet apart and his eyes had her frozen to her feet. She could even explain how it made her feel.
Bel heard a gasp and would have sworn it came from her lips but then he recognized the voice.
She finally broke free from his clasp and looked in the direction the gasp came from. Bel's eyes met with her mother who was looking at her in horror.
Bel's eyes took in the group. Standing next to her mother on the left was Hazel. Her father stood to the right of his wife.
Next to her father was who it was safe to assume was the King. He towered over her father easily. His pale skin and red eyes were all she could see from this distance.
They were glued to her face and she could tell he was studying her. His stare didn't make her feel the same way but it still made her uncomfortable.
On his right was a short woman, she was almost as short as Bel's mother but it was hard to tell with her husband being such a giant. It was easy to tell she was the Queen as she clung to the King.
Bel didn't think she had seen a vampire like her before but what was she saying, they were the first vampires she had ever seen.
On the Queen's right were two male vampires. The one on the end was who she had made eye contact with first.
The one next to the Queen was glaring daggers at her. His red eyes held something close to hatred. She hoped he wasn't the one she was getting married to.
Without saying anything she turned on her heel and walked in the direction of her room. Bel heard her mother gasp again and the faint sound of her father apologizing reached her ears.
She walked into her room, realizing she had left all the candles turned on. She blew them out, leaving the lamp by her bedside. She didn't have to worry about that one. Once the oil dried, the light would go out.
She tugged on the ropes, her arms bending at an awkward angle so she tried to undo them.
She finally got it and the dress fell off her shoulder, pooling at her feet as it revealed her nightdress.
Before she got into bed, she turned the lock of the door to her room. If she was going to get disturbed this night, she didn't want to make it easy for them.
She walked back to bed jumping onto it with a smile on her face. She closed her eyes as she got ready to sleep.
She wondered what excuse her parents came up with. She was sure she put them in an awkward position.
She felt bad for them but didn't regret her actions. If it was bad enough to make the vampires change their minds that would be great.
She was worried about the alliance though but that would take care of itself, she thought as her brain started to shut down. She fell asleep easily this time.
Bel woke up with a jerk, a knock ringing in the confines of her room. She half expected it to be her mother but when she opened it to see her maids she couldn't hide her disappointment.
What was even more disappointing was finding out that only she and Hazel were at the dinner table.
"What's going on here?" Bel asked as she sat opposite her sister.
"Mother and father didn't get to bed until the wee hours of the morning. I doubt any of them will be awake anytime soon."
"How come you're awake early?" Bel asked.
"I didn't join them, I excused myself as soon as they were shown to their section." Hazel yawned at the end of her sentence, she clearly didn't get enough sleep.
"Okay," Bel said and dug into her food.
"You look like you slept well," Hazel said.
"Shockingly, I did," Bel replied with a bright smile.
"Good," Hazel responded. She looked like she was about to say more but changed her mind.
"Out with it. You clearly have comments."
Hazel sighed, dropping her cutlery onto her plates. Bel didn't think she had ever seen her sister this worried.
"Father and Mother are beyond angry. You clearly embarrassed them. You had to do that only seconds after Mother gushed about how resourceful you were and how that made you a little sick. I was surprised she didn't drop to the floors when we saw you on the landing of the grand staircase. Just what were you thinking?"
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