Vampires Realm Prophecy 01 - Child of Light

she said but he continued to smile.
    He reached a hand out and ran it down her hair, his eyes following its path. She grimaced when he grabbed a fistful of it, tugging her close to him and snarling at her.
    “You dare to lecture me on the law? You have pledged your allegiance to an Aurorea, have you not? Have you pledged anything else to him?” His eyes dropped to her body.
    She swallowed noisily and hid the pain when he pulled on her hair, forcing her head backwards. She could feel his gaze boring into her neck and the marks that Valentine had placed there. She told herself that he wouldn’t claim her here, not in front of the guards. She knew Arkalus. He’d been waiting years for the moment he would claim her. He wouldn’t compromise and rush into it. Everything would have been planned, right down to the tiniest detail. He drew back and looked deep into her eyes.
    His voice dropped to a dangerously low whisper.
    “You harbour what is most forbidden. Your desire for this Valentine is a sin. I only do what is right for our family. It is said that in times of war, the bloodlines may work with each other for the greater good.”
    “That’s exactly what I’m doing,” she said and saw the anger in his eyes.
    He wrapped his hand tightly around her throat, choking her and forcing her to still her breathing. He grinned at her, raking his eyes down her body one more time before throwing her into the room.
    She landed roughly on the floor and coughed while she rubbed her throat. The door slammed behind her, leaving her in the dark. She slipped into vampire guise, using her heightened senses to guide her back across the pitch-black room to the door. She listened to the muffled voices on the other side. Arkalus was reiterating his orders to the guardsmen.
    She sighed and flicked the light switch.
    Turning around, she leaned her back against the wall and slid down it, hugging her knees to her chest and staring at her room. Her eyes moved to her bed, the same bed she’d been sleeping in when Valentine had kidnapped her and begun all this. He’d opened her eyes to the world and her purpose in it, and made her realise that no matter how much she’d wanted to, she couldn’t close them again. Everything had changed the night she’d met him. Destiny had laid out the hands they had been dealt in life and joined their paths into one just like the witches in Paris had said.
    Valentine.
    She’d thought about him so much since waking up on the train. He was nowhere to be seen and when she’d reached out with her senses, she hadn’t felt him in the vicinity. The men she’d fought had all left the square with her, so there was a chance that Arkalus had ordered his men to leave Valentine there in the open, unconscious and vulnerable to the sun when it rose. It was the kind of cruel end that would deeply satisfy her blood brother. Either that or Arkalus had left Valentine there for Kalinor to deal with.
    She could still see Valentine lying on the wet ground, his eyes closed as the rain poured down on him. The stars on her body hummed.
    Her hands flew to her pockets as she remembered her amulet and she gasped when she couldn’t find it. She stared at a spot on the carpet just in front of her and struggled to remember if she’d had it after Elena’s place. She had. She recalled feeling it in her pocket before the fight in St. Mark’s Square.
    She wondered where it was and where Valentine was. She told herself that he wasn’t dead. A day had passed since they had taken her. It had been evening when she’d awoken. Valentine would have come around before the sun had broken the horizon, she was sure of that. He wouldn’t have remained unconscious that long.
    Her eyes moved to the windows and she pressed her hand against her chest. She focused on Valentine and smiled when she felt the magic pulse around the mark over her heart. If Valentine had escaped captivity by Kalinor and the deadly rays of the sun, he would be coming for her. If he came here, Arkalus’ men would kill him. She couldn’t have that. Valentine had once told her that she was strong, and she had to be strong now.
    She searched her brain for something that could help her. He’d mentioned to Elena that they were going to St. Petersburg. Maybe she could get word to him to meet her there. Maybe she would be able to escape tonight and get to the train station before he arrived. She could easily cut him off.
    She pushed herself back up onto her feet and padded