The Chalice (Luna Vampire Series) (9 page)

             
As if hearing my thoughts, Adrian's face filled with one of the kindest smiles.  He nodded almost imperceptibly and then, out of nowhere, the mood dissipated.  He turned his head to the side, features going stone cold, as he seemed to be listening to a nonexistent sound. 
Of course, more crazy crap.

             
"Someone's coming.  I must go," he announced in a hurry.  "Like I said earlier, when we spoke in the changing room, it's prudent for you to keep our alliance private.  Don't mention our conversations or think of me while others are around." 

             
As soon as the words finished leaving his mouth, he bent down, kissed my hand, and proceeded to disappear right in front of my eyes. 
Yeah, I'm talkin' vanished, or evaporated, or, well, some other weird ass shit.

             
Freakishly baffling.  I mean, I'd heard the same strange whooshing sound as in the pit and, well, he poofed.  How in the... 
My mind whirled as shock and confusion trampled my sanity.  Nevertheless, a knock at the door interrupted me before I got the chance to process a bit of it.

             
Shortly thereafter, an
all too memorable
voice shouted, "Princess, are you ready?"  And in that split-second of recognition, every last shred of bewilderment was replaced by hatred.
  Deep, penetrating, murderous hatred.

Chapter
7

             
"William, funny seeing you here," I growled, shooting him a hostile glare. 
I wanted nothing more than to punch the sleeze bag.  Not only had he taken me from my home, he'd lied to me for three goddamn months.
 
The piece of shit.
  And, yeah, get this.  The smug bastard stood there as if none of it'd happened, dressed to the nines in his usual black suit, white shirt, red tie ensemble with his dark hair tied neatly into a ponytail. 

             
Infuriated, I shifted my gaze onto the other guy that'd walked in with him.  "Are you as much of an asshole as he is?"

             
"Princess, um," the gigantor stammered, glancing away sheepishly.  "No, princess, I'm here to serve you in the manner in which I serve your father." 

             
In spite of having risen to my feet when they'd entered, the guy still towered above me.  His build was akin to that of a WWE wrestler and, oddly, he wore the same exact getup as William.  In fact, he would've been a mirror image if not for the extra muscles, military buzz cut, and goatee.

             
"This is Petrus," William announced, motioning toward his companion.

             
"Was I talking to you?" I sneered, immediately adopting my most haughty affectation.  "Nope, definitely not.  From now on, don't speak to me until you're spoken to, you lying snake." 

             
His demeanor abruptly changed then, as regret glistened in his eyes.  "Princess, I'm sorry..."

             
"Oh, well!  You should've thought of that before you kidnapped me!  And don't call me princess!"

             
"I didn't kidnap you.  I merely followed the king's orders, his commands."

             
"But you did!  You accosted me in front of my home and, somehow, caused me to black out.  After which, you locked me up in a cement cell."  Irritated, I crossed my arms over my chest.  "Sure sounds like a kidnapping to me.  What do you think, Petrus?"

             
"Princess, my, uh, my intention isn't to displease you.  However, William is correct.  If presented with a command from the king, we must obey."

             
"So what?  You're his puppets?  You have absolutely no free will?  For some reason, I highly doubt that."

             
"I wouldn't refer to us as puppets," William answered flatly.  "We're foot soldiers and we had a choice initially.  Nevertheless, once the king turned us, we were sworn loyal to him."

             
"Oh god!" I grumped, shaking my head in exasperation. 
More vampire nonsense. 
"So, you're basically saying that Tsedaka made you, therefore you have to be loyal to him?"

             
"Yes, princess," Petrus affirmed.  "When your maker gives you a direct order, you have no option other than compliance."

             
"Quit calling me princess!" I shouted.  "My name's Luna.  And I just don't see how that really works.  I mean, we all have free will.  No one can take that away.  Seriously, have you ever considered the possibility that you're brainwashed?  In a cult?  Maybe, in need of..."

             
"I'm sorry,
Luna
," William cut in, his condescending mood firmly back in place.  "We simply don't have the time for any more of your antics.  In the future, please take your grievances up with the king."

             
"You're such a piece of..."

             
"No more arguing," he insisted.  "You must go get dressed; the king awaits your presence."

             
"Whatever," I huffed, rolling my eyes. 
All the bullshit was driving me totally nuts.
 

             
I hesitated for several moments, before finally deciding that I might as well get on with it.  Otherwise, I'd probably be forced to see the stupid lunatic naked or, well, something worse.  So, without saying another word, I marched into my bedroom and slammed the huge door behind me. 
Fuck this shit!
 

             
After a multitude of calming breaths and a tirade of silent cussing that'd make a person's ears bleed, I eventually came to terms with my reality.  I understood that it was in my best interest to bide my time until I could manage an escape.  And, to truly be successful, I'd need intel on the layout of the facility, the number of guards, and their schedules.  Beyond that, I'd have to figure out the pass code to my door. 
Not simple tasks.

             
In the meantime, I needed to stay alive which meant playing their games and hopefully gaining a couple of sympathetic people to help me along the way.  With that in mind, I steeled my resolve and put on my stage face, just as I'd done during numerous college performances. 
Out walks Luna, rational human being  -  in walks Luna, vampire princess.

             
I promptly went over to the bed, unzipped the garment bag, and proceeded to pull out the most beautiful scarlet dress I'd ever seen.  When I read the tag and saw that
it was a Versace, I almost fainted. 
A Versace, a freaking Versace?  Wow.
  I guess Tsedaka wanted the
princess
to be dressed to impress.  Sadly, there weren't any bras or panties, but screw it. 
A girl can't have everything, right?

             
Feeling like I was playing dress up for the prom, I shed my robe and slipped the delicate silk over my skin.  The gown fit flawlessly, seeming to have been tailored specifically for me.  Its v-line neck plunged to my waist, showing off the area in between my breasts, while its long length floated around my ankles. 
An ideal combination of sex appeal and elegance.

             
The shoes were next.  And, as I opened the box, I was astounded yet again.  It held a pair of strappy Jimmy Choo's and, of course, they were in my size.  They complemented the dress perfectly, giving me the appearance of an actress ready for a stroll down the red carpet.  Truthfully, I'd never worn anything so expensive in my entire life. 
And I luxuriated in it.

             
I rushed to the mirror in the bathroom, my emotions giddy with excitement, and was met by an absolutely gorgeous reflection, well, disregarding my hair, that is.  It remained neatly wrapped in the towel from earlier.
  Logically, I knew if I was gonna play the part, I'd better go all out. 
So, I grabbed a blow dryer and worked a bit of magic.  Then found some makeup and added a light layer to my face. 

             
When I finally sauntered into the living room, William and Petrus were visibly awed by my transformation.  In short, they started drooling like I was a dog in heat which led to a few minutes of uncomfortable fidgeting on my part and, ultimately, a nervous chuckle or two.  Luckily, it didn't take long before recognition sparked in Petrus's eyes and his cheeks flushed a bright crimson.  William, on the other hand, kept his attention trained solidly on my boobs. 
The bastard. 

             
Apparently, the son of a bitch had no shame.  I wondered if
the king
knew how up close and personal he'd gotten with
the princess
.  Considering Tsedaka believes he's
my father, you'd think the guy wouldn't want one of his lackeys to have been groping me at the club. 
Perhaps I'd get a little retribution if dear old daddy suddenly became aware of William's activities...

             
"Come, Luna, we must go," William grunted, abruptly about-facing and entering the pass code.  Despite his body's expert blocking of my view, I heard him press five keys. 
A lot of combinations, too many to guess.  Damn.

             
And with that, William exited first, glanced down the hall from right to left, then motioned for me to follow while Petrus brought up the rear.  Resigned to my mission, I didn't fight them as we made our way through the series of pipes, or tunnels, or whatever.  Although, after orienting myself and realizing we were in the main passageway, I began rethinking my strategy in a hurry. 
We were headed straight for the large room with the pit.  Bad news, very bad news.

             
"You're, um, you're not putting me back in that cell are you?" I asked, eyes anxiously darting around.  Without a weapon, I'd have to stick with biting, scratching, and kicking.
  Still, no matter the consequences, they weren't returning me to that dark, horrible place.  I wouldn't let 'em.

             
Petrus reached forward and patted my shoulder gently.  "No need to worry, princess.  The changing room isn't even a remote possibility.  The families have gathered for the ceremony, that's all."

             
"Ceremony?  What..."

             
"You'll see soon enough," William interjected and, as his words trailed off, I started hearing the hum of a large crowd.

             
And classical music? 
Oh, that's appropriate!  Vampires, how cliché! 
I giggled under my breath, yet covered it up at the last moment with a hasty bout of coughing. 
Not a
very princess thing to do, making fun of her devotees.  C'mon, Luna, stay in character.

             
So, with my mind recentered, we rounded the last curve and stepped into the cavernous room.  Immediately, I was accosted by the sheer number of people.  There must've been two hundred, or maybe three hundred, and they were all immaculately dressed.  A wedding style string quartet played music in the far corner while attendees chatted with each other in muted voices.  However, as soon as the crowd became aware of my arrival, their idle chit-chat quieted.

             
And, of course, Tsedaka loomed over everyone.  He sat, center stage, on the wooden throne I'd gawked at during my post-pit haze.  Unsurprisingly, it was now accompanied by a slightly smaller chair, a new addition probably reserved for
the princess
. 

             
As one would expect of a
king
, Tsedaka wore a glittering gold crown that appeared to be encrusted with thousands of diamonds and rubies. 
If the monstrosity of a headpiece was real, it had to be worth at least a million bucks.
  He also sported a penguin-esque tux, complete with long tails and a red bow tie.

             
Behind him stood a mass of William and Petrus look-a-likes, different faces all wearing the same black suits.  The group shared an identical stance and inspected their surroundings as if they were a bunch of secret service types.  And, once we'd climbed the steps of the platform, my companions took their places with the rest.  Nonetheless, they positioned themselves at the front with William directly to the king's right and Petrus to his left. 

             
I remained in middle of the stage, not knowing whether to face Tsedaka or the crowd, and felt awkward as hell.  He must've enjoyed my discomfort because he let me sweat it for several never-ending minutes, before eventually rising to his feet.  "It's time we officially welcomed you to the family," he explained, his voice clearly meant for my ears
alone.  "There's no reason to be nervous, child, the ceremony will be over shortly."  Then he paused and nodded in the direction of the smaller throne.  "Take your rightful place, daughter."