‘Do you intend to dance in silence, Miss Lee?’ He took my left hand in his right and again we circled, the distance between us quite apparent.

‘Forgive me, Your Majesty, but I don’t make a habit of making conversation with someone who abhors me.’

He took up my other hand, taking a step back as I also took one back until he brought us together again.

‘But, Miss Lee, what makes you so adamant in your belief that I abhor you?’ We broke, circling once more, weaving between one another and the imaginary couples surrounding us.

I almost laughed at his question, but thought better of it. I swept around, waiting until we were close to speak again. ‘Because you won’t let me near your son.’

Again he took both my hands in his, let go, and then circled me. ‘I have my reasons for that. It is by no means because I loathe you. You simply assume that to be fact, when in truth, it is not.’

I frowned, becoming lost. ‘But I slept with the heir to the throne. Your heir.’

We both took a step towards the other and a step away whilst he chuckled. ‘Do not flatter yourself, Miss Lee. My son has slept with many girls – many human girls. Your scenario is no different. But by ignoring my explicit order that neither of you should touch, you worsened your situation. As you have done yet again this night. It’s a basic instruction, Miss Lee; follow it and I will cause you no harm.’

He brushed past, sweeping in a long circle around me, his eyes constantly burning into my back. ‘It is for your own good.’

He returned to his original position and I skimmed past him, taking my turn to circle around.

‘Care to explain that?’

His grey eyes, duller than a London morning followed me around, burning holes in my skin despite the fact they lacked lustre. They lacked life.

‘That is quite a gift my son bestowed upon you.’

My hand followed his eyes and found the locket, realizing he was not going to offer an explanation, but change the subject instead.

‘Yes, it is.’ I let it rest back on my skin, cool as ever as we continued to dance.

‘It belonged to my late wife.’

‘I know.’

Repetitive as ever, he grasped my hands, rather too tightly as we turned on the spot.

‘You do, do you? So you are familiar with how Kaspar acquired it?’

She gave it to him the week before he died.

‘Because she knew she was going to her—’

He broke off. His firm grip on my hands was tightening even more, like someone who was fighting the urge to break down.

‘I’m sorry,’ I whispered, giving his hand a light squeeze back, unsure of what else to do.

‘You wouldn’t understand,’ he snapped, his face recovering; he almost threw my hands from his grip and broke away, circling me like I was prey. I didn’t take my eyes off him, feeling a moist trail run down my cheek as a few tears escaped.

When he returned to my side and took my hands I answered. ‘My brother died. I understand.’

His head snapped up to look at me and his eyes fell through to black again. ‘No, you don’t. You cannot even grasp understanding. You have no idea what it is like to have to hold back tears so as not to waste them as you do!’

We both froze and I yanked my hand from his grasp – a struggle, because his grip was unbelievably tight. His hand left white marks behind, each gloved finger leaving an imprint on my skin.

‘What?’ I whispered, hastily wiping the tears away and increasing the distance between us.

‘You take those tears for granted child. So liberally you let them fall, but look around. Look at my Kingdom. Here there are men and women who can shed so few tears. You should treasure your own, Miss Lee, before it is too late.’

I narrowed my eyes, ignoring Kaspar whose mouth was slightly agape, watching as both of us abandoned the dance.

‘It will never be too late. I will never join your sick Kingdom!’ I spat, the words out before I had time to think about what I was saying. The crowd shifted uncomfortably and I could see Kaspar cringing at its forefront.

The King took several measured steps closer, closing the distance, dwarfing me. ‘Do not insult me, Miss Lee, or you will come to regret it.’

I took a final step to close the gap between us. Just inches apart, I stood on my tiptoes to meet his glare. ‘I’m not afraid of you.’ An audible gasp swept through the watching room. Shocked, the crowd erupted, the room coming alive at once.

Yet he chuckled darkly. Bending down, he murmured into my ear. ‘No. But you are afraid of your feelings for my son.’

My heels lowered to the floor, everything else motionless. He knows. He knew and he was going to cross hell to ensure those feelings were not returned by his son, heir and Prince. He knows.

‘Everything has a consequence, Miss Lee.’

I took a few shaky steps back, staring at the floor as the music drew to a close, the violins striking one last note. I have to get out of here.

And so I curtsied and fled. Away from the room. Away from the ball. Away from the King. Away from Kaspar.

FIFTY

Kaspar

She walked away, not even lifting her eyes as she hurried right past me, so close I could reach out and touch her. I didn’t. She strode from the room, head held high but avoiding the gaze of anyone she passed. Disappearing amongst the milling and shocked network of hushed tones, I only just caught a glimpse of her sprinting up the stairs, hands over her face, crying.

‘You may think that I am heartless, my son.’ I jumped at the sound of his voice beside me, muttering in my ear as the crowd gradually dispersed back into a waltz. ‘But truthfully, I am just trying to protect you, and more importantly, her.’

I nodded, wordlessly, recognizing in his gaze a look he saved only for moments when he wished to make an impression. ‘Her feelings for you will only cause her pain.’

With that, he walked away.

Bollocks. That’s what it is. Bollocks. All of this. Duty, and responsibility and consequences. What happened to free will?

‘Feelings’. I knew what that suggested. And what one heck of an emotion that was.

It wasn’t a total surprise: I had long suspected she was attracted to me; it would be hard for her not to be. I knew she had sacrificed her friendship with Fabian for me too. Putting two-and-two together didn’t require a huge amount of effort.

But that. ‘Feelings’. For her to return the sentiment when I have been a jerk all along …

Not that secretly I wasn’t pleased. Just not shocked. No … flattered … and pleased. Beyond pleased. Ecstatic even …

‘I’ve got to tell her,’ I said aloud, as though that confirmed the matter. It didn’t. It wasn’t that easy.

You don’t want to break her heart, do you? Because you’ve been denying it for months, haven’t you, Kaspar? You like her. Always have. Always will. Prophecy or no Prophecy, you want her.

My voice was right. Of course it is right. But my duty was not to her. It had never been to her. It was to another. And it had always been to another. I just never knew.

Feeling my grip clench too tightly around the china wash-basin, I pushed away. ‘But I’ll be damned if I don’t get her,’ I told my voice and the empty bathroom. I just had to hope that the first He**ine didn’t show herself too soon.

I pushed the door open silently, shutting it behind me as quietly as possible to not wake her. She lay on top of the dishevelled covers, still wearing the white dress from the night before. It had ridden up, exposing her thighs. But unusually, that was not what my eyes were drawn to. Instead, I looked to the locket resting on her chest, rising and falling in time with her slow breathing.

FIFTY-ONE

Violet

I heard the clattering of curtains being thrown open, as loud as the wheels of a train on a crossing. The pale yellow light of dawn poured in, the darkness behind my closed eyelids becoming bright, blotchy orange. My instant reaction was to fling my arm over my eyes, the crook of my elbow sheltering me from the piercing light. I groaned, not attempting coherent speech. I had been woken up far too abruptly for that.

‘Morning to you too, Girly.’

I moaned in reply. This was not a pleasant wake-up call, however much my stomach was twisting itself into knots. ‘What are you doing here? It’s barely even light.’

He grinned, walking towards the wardrobe as I grabbed a pillow and jammed it firmly over my ears. I would much prefer it if he just treated that as a rhetorical question and left me to sleep.

‘Waking you up. And correct. It’s barely light. Which is why you need to get your arse out of bed.’

I lifted the pillow a little, feeling the bed depress as a pile of clothes landed beside my feet. I turned my head, glancing at the tiny clock that occupied the bedside table. I hadn’t even managed to catch six hours of sleep.

‘Nuh-uh. Not happening.’ I rolled over and buried my head in the mattress.

‘C’mon, Girly!’ The duvet was whipped from beneath me, almost pulling my dress with it. I spun around, sitting up.

‘What?’

He threw the clothes towards me. ‘Moody in the morning, aren’t you? But I’m asking nicely. Please, get up and get ready. We’ve only got fifteen minutes.’

I narrowed my eyes, instantly suspicious. ‘Get ready for what?’ He took a couple of calculated, cautious steps back. I crossed my arms and legs, not caring if he caught a flash of my knickers.

‘You might not like this,’ he began, to which I laughed.

‘Cut to the chase, Kaspar.’

His mouth settled on a grim expression. ‘Suit yourself. We’re hunting. You’re coming.’

I chuckled into the silence. ‘And what makes you think, Kaspar, that a vegetarian will come on a hunting trip?’

I only just had time to throw myself back onto the bed as I saw him move. In a second, he was poised above me, his legs either side of mine, not touching, hands just an inch from a few stray strands of my hair splayed on the pillow. He was close, so close that I could feel the ice cold air searing into my quickly warming skin and his eyes bore down into mine in a gaze I couldn’t break. My heart involuntarily sped up and I prayed that at that moment Kaspar couldn’t hear it.

‘Wake up, Violet Lee! Before this year is out your heart won’t beat and your blood will turn cold. You’re going to become a vampire. You’re going to have to hunt humans and animals. You’ll have to feed off them. You have no choice. You never did! Nobody chooses their fate when they get involved with dark beings. Nobody!’ He paused, gulping for breath, his eyes closing briefly before that smouldering look returned. ‘Wake up, or die dreaming, Girly! I just hope to God you wake up, because I can’t lose—’

He stopped.

His mouth was left slightly agape and I was sure mine matched his. He didn’t move. Neither did I. We were totally frozen for a full minute, the clock counting down the seconds. Sixty-three had passed before he finally moved, springing away as I scampered up to see him standing beside the window, his hands resting against the ledge, his eyes fixed on the glass. He didn’t look at me as he spoke.

‘Go get a shower. I’ll tell the others to wait.’

This time I didn’t argue. I scrambled up, grabbed the clothes and dashed from the room. I didn’t turn back. In seconds I was in the shower, thousands of cold water droplets cascading around me, not knowing whether I should let my heart leap because he had started that sentence, or fall, because he never finished it.

Barely ten minutes later, I stepped out of the bathroom to find clothes laid out for me: a thick black T-shirt, polo neck jumper and tight-fitting dark jeans for me to wear, as well as a pair of woolly socks and old battered converse. Next to them was a scarf and long, black coat – the latter mine from the night of the London Bloodbath.

When I was dressed, I met Kaspar at the bottom of the stairs.

‘How am I going to keep up with you? I’m nowhere near as fast.’

‘We’re walking. It’s a chance for us to show you what we really are.’

I scoffed. ‘Maybe I don’t want to see that.’

‘And,’ he continued. ‘It’s a chance for me to show that you don’t have to kill every time you feed.’

I stopped for a fleeting moment. ‘That’s possible?’ I breathed, more to myself than him.

He slowed so I could catch him, glancing down at me, his expression scolding, but his eyes twinkled and I felt my tense shoulders lower, realizing he wasn’t that angry with me. ‘Of course it is. Do you die every time I’ve taken blood from you?’

‘Well, no—’

‘Do you feel excruciating, crippling, heart-stopping pain when I bite you?’

‘Well, it’s a little painful—’

‘Do you walk away with only a tiny scar and an aching neck?’

‘Well, yes—’

‘Precisely,’ he finished. ‘Perfectly possible.’

I stuffed my hands into my pockets and pouted, eyes downturned but a small bubble of hope forming somewhere around my breastbone. ‘Why didn’t you tell me this before?’

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see him watching me, gauging my reaction. ‘Because I didn’t want you thinking that you’ll never have to kill an animal, or never have to hunt humans. You will have to, at some point.’

Watch me, I thought, but didn’t press the matter, knowing he would only insist the opposite.

Kaspar had been right about how cold it was: even sprinting flat out I could feel the chill of the early morning air battering my cheeks in waves, and hear the sound of frost crunching underfoot. I heard the sound of quickening footsteps behind me and stole a glance. The others were gaining on us as we raced on towards the forest, but they kept their word. They weren’t running any faster than a fit human would.