Chapter 19
Gabriel PoV
Rhea is the very meaning behind natural beauty, she has an elegance rarely seen in these perilous days. And I want her to hold onto it for as long as she can. No matter what others may say about her.
She is my Queen, and as such I will ensure she is treated with the utmost respect, a wife of the king should be lavished with good and jewels, she should not have to worry about her life. It is my job to protect her, and thus far I have failed. Someone got into the castle, past all the guards and made it into her personal room. That should not happen.
Have my people truly come to despise this choice I made?
The treaty is beneficial to all those involved, the vampire race is dying, generations after generation of children are not surviving birth. We need the she wolves, otherwise my race will die out. I cannot allow that to happen.
“I ordered you pancakes, bacon and egg.” I tell Rhea, gently lifting her into my arms.
She smiles, leaning her head against my shoulder, “I like all of those things, thank you.”
Perhaps I shouldn’t get any closer to her, in fifty years she will be old, and I will live on. She will eventually die, and there will be nothing I can do to change that. Nothing at all.
When that time comes, I will be left to raise our children alone, and she will return to the dust in which she was born.
“You are most welcome.” I say, distracted by my own thoughts.
Getting close to her can only mean one thing, heartbreak. And I have had enough of that to last several lifetimes. I don’t want more.
And yet, it is as though her soul calls to mine, and our hearts beat as if they were made to be one. How can I resist her when she is already under my skin?
I carry her to the dining hall, and place her at the head of the table, choosing the seat to her left. Eating human food does nothing to satisfy my urges, but it does make my little she wolf more comfortable, and so I shall dine with her as often as I can.
The human servants bring out the food, Rhea watching them closely, do they disgust her? If they do, I will make sure that none of them are permitted to be seen any longer. I wish cast them into the shadows if that is what she wants.
“Do they bother you?” I ask, noticing she hasn’t touched her food.
Do they repulse her? Does she not want them to handle her meals? If that is the case I will have to find a wolf who will cook for her. My Rhea cannot simply starve.
“No. They do not disgust me.” she quickly says. “I just often wonder if I would have been met with the same safe had I been born human.”
“But you are not human. You are an alpha female, destined for greatness.” I say, confused by the sad tone of her voice. “Do you wish to be one of them?”
She shakes her head, “I do not, but I just wonder if they deserve to be slaves, shouldn’t they have a say in life as we do?”
“Humans are the very bottom of the food chain.” I say, leaning back in my chair, “I need their blood to survive, as do all vampires. They were made to be used by us, nothing more.”
Does she question all things ok this way?
Does she want things to be different? It’s impossible. Humans have always been slaves to both of our people. They cannot even defend themselves, how would they fair in the world should we set them free?
Rhea nervously picks at her food, “I wouldn’t expect you to understand, Gabriel, you are a long way away from the bottom of the food chain.”
“I want to understand.” I say, perplexed by her sudden sadness. “But why all the disgust? Either of us could have easily been born as low as them.”
“It won’t disgust.” She argues softly, “I worry for them, they are much too thin, and they look sick.”
Then does she worry she will catch an illness from them? Is that where her concern lies?
I do not understand, I want to, but I don’t. She should feel grateful that she was not born as one of them. Her life would have been much worse if she were born a human.
Some live free far to the north, amongst monsters that hunt them. Surely it is better to live as a servant than face the possibility of being eaten alive?
Rayan walks into the dining hall, taking a close look at my queen before choosing the seat beside me, “ I come with news of the traitor.” He says, watching the she wolf.
He doesn’t like her, not one bit, but he doesn’t have to, not so long as he follows the rules. Rayan has been my second in command for a long time. Almost five hundred years, and he has never once let me down.
I don’t expect he ever will, so long as he keeps his opinions on Rhea to himself.
“Spit it out.” I say, pleased to see Rhea eating more of her food.
She needs to regain her strength, and food will certainly help her to do that.
I must remember to ask about her wolf once we are alone, there are so many questions I need to ask, and so many answers that I expect her to give me.
A yellow wolf, I’d never heard of such a phenomenon, she certainly is something else, something rather special.
But others may see her as a threat. Not a beauty, and I must silent those people as fast as I can.
She is the vampire Queen, and I will not allow anyone to harm her.
“It’s the rebellions guild.” Rayan says, his voice cold, “they do not wish her to be a queen. They will come for her again.”
Fuck. I knew I should have squashed the rebellion before it got too large to handle. But a good disagreement never hurt anyone and so I let them live, so long as they remained peaceful.
It looks like they have no abandoned that peace.
If they want war. Then I will give them war.
“Ready all the available men you can.” I tell my second, my eyes on Rhea who looks nervous, “and destroy the rebellion. Leave no one alive. Let everyone know what happens when you mess with the queen.”
Rayan bows, standing from his seat and heading for the door. “I will personally make sure the word is spread.”
I turn to my wolf, “they will not harm you Again, you have my word.”
She smiles. “I believe you.”
Anyone who tries to take her from me will be met with a violent end to their existence, there will be no exception.