Anna had never considered herself particularly close with Victoria. A part of her despised the girl for what she had done to their family. She detested the way she had returned to Velkan and burdened him with even more danger than before. She was the love of Dracula and Anna did not see how she could be trusted. Of course, she did her best to be polite and courteous because of her brother. He adored Victoria. He would do anything for her and Anna knew that.
On the other hand, a part of Anna wanted to like Victoria. She knew that the young woman was conflicted and confused. The fact that she had come from a previous life was something that Anna didn't entirely understand, nor did she pretend to. But Victoria, in her own way, clearly loved Velkan. She had returned to him and taken her time in getting to know him. She had comforted him and she had even gone so far as to help him when she could.
She was not a bad person and Anna knew that. And now Anna had her to think of. She had to think of the babe she was carrying inside of her. It would be of Valerious blood and Anna owed her brother to help the unborn child. He would want that.
"He fell into the river. He pushed me out of the way when the werewolf attacked," Anna informed Victoria when both of them had finished shedding tears and had managed to move inside and back to the dining hall.
Victoria had slipped into a chair, sliding down as her hands held onto her stomach and she looked at the small, yet protruding, bump. Anna had taken a seat at the head of the table, a glass of rum in her fingertips as she downed it in one. She looked into the depths of the empty glass as she spoke.
Once she had said those words, Victoria found herself moving up slightly. She sat up, her hands still on her stomach as she arched a brow and looked to Anna.
"He fell into the river?" she repeated.
"Yes," Anna answered.
"Then there is hope, is there not?" Victoria enquired and Anna shook her head. "He could have made it to shore somewhere?"
"We checked," Anna said. "We followed the river and we could not find him."
"How far did you follow it?" Victoria wondered from the woman. "Perhaps he was on the opposite side? Or he travelled further downstream?"
Anna bowed her head as Victoria watched her. It was another moment before Anna moved to her feet with haste, going to refill her glass with another drink. She sipped on it before slamming the glass down.
"He is gone, Victoria," Anna said, voice harsh. "He is gone and there is nothing that I could have done."
Victoria was about to continue her protests, but she chose to keep quiet. She knew that it would do her no good to continue this argument with Anna. She remained seated where she was, closing her eyes as tears threatened to form there once more. She didn't know how much longer she could cry for. How many more tears were inside of her?
Anna took another drink before she swept from the room, her parting words to Victoria stinging even more as she went: "He might still be here if it were not for you."
Victoria blinked profusely at hearing her speak in such a manner. She left her alone and Victoria did sob then, her chest heaving as she fell into a heap on the floor, unable to remain seated. She felt her hands take hold of her stomach as she sat by the chair she had fallen from. What if Anna was right? What if Velkan was dead because of her?
…
Looking to the man strapped to the chair, Dracula felt a sense of pride and smugness take over him. The man was still wet from his time in the river, cuts marring his bare chest from where his shirt had been ripped off. His hair hung in his face and he looked dishevelled. Tied to the chair in the old dining room, Dracula paced up and down in front of him, waiting patiently for him to awake. Make no mistake, he would wait, and he would have his revenge on the man.
It didn't take long for him to stir and Dracula chuckled, the sound echoing through the empty room. He looked to the man as he peeled his eyes open, looking around and letting his eyes meet the vampire's questioning gaze.
"I had thought to kill you," the Count spoke, his voice soft and taunting. "I had contemplated ripping your throat from you, but then I realised that I had other uses for you."
Velkan did not fight the ropes keeping him constrained. He remained still, shaking his head back and forth as his gaze went to the demon.
"I will never do as you ask," Velkan responded.
"Oh, you will not want to," Dracula agreed. "But you will."
"I would rather die."
"Everyone says that," Dracula declared. "But your death will come in time. You do not need to fret. The death of your entire family is nearly upon us, is it not?"
Velkan glowered over to the monster. "You know that she carries my child."
Dracula felt his anger swell up inside of him then. He moved towards Velkan, bending slightly and hissing as he felt his fangs threaten to erupt. His face was manic as he watched the boy in front of him, wondering if he would have the respect to cower in fear of the sight he was seeing. But he did not. He remained passive, trying not to show his fear despite his rapid heartbeat.
"No," Dracula said with a shake of his head. "I will have her. I will have her and that child inside of her shall turn too. I will have both of them."
"No," Velkan snapped. "You will not do that to her."
"She will come to me," Vlad declared, the hiss to his voice shining through as he spoke. "She will come and she will be mine. She will always be mine. Do you not see? Now that you have left, things are simpler. Her feelings will be simpler to understand."
Velkan scoffed. "And when she finds out that you killed me? I am the father of her child. I am her husband."
Dracula chuckled. "And who is to say she will find out? Does she not believe that a werewolf killed you?"
Velkan could feel himself grow with anger at everything he was hearing. The man in front of him was nothing but a monster. He was a monster who was out to destroy any hope of happiness that Velkan had. He didn't know entirely how much more he could take. Velkan adored Victoria. He would do anything for her. He didn't know if Vlad felt the same. There could be no denying that he loved Victoria, but his love bordered on obsession. His love bordered on the need to control her. Velkan never sought to control her.
"She will never return to you," Velkan said, his voice confident. "She will care for our child and she will move on. Do you think she will ever accept you? You sent that werewolf after me, didn't you? She will know that."
"She loves me," Dracula snapped. "Do you not understand that, you foolish boy? Victoria has always loved me. She always will."
"That might have been true once before," Velkan declared. "But now she is different. The woman I married would never return to a monster like you…a monster who would harm her child. She will keep that babe safe."
Vlad rolled his eyes and began to move around the cold and empty room, hands behind his back as Velkan kept his gaze on him. He didn't dare look away. He was scared and he could not deny it. But his anger was vaster than his fear. His anger kept him from shaking and begging for mercy.
"And what then?" Vlad demanded. "That child has Valerious blood inside of it. It will grow up with the curse. I will offer it another chance."
Velkan shook his head, a small chuckle escaping him. "You forget one thing."
"And what would that be?" Vlad demanded.
"Anna."
…
Anna felt some guilt over the way she had spoken to Victoria. She had been brash and harsh, but she felt as though she needed to be. She felt as though it was the only way the girl would understand that Velkan was not coming back. Velkan had gone and now Anna was the only one left.
The two women were different. Victoria walked around in her fine gowns with her hair perfectly coiffed. She never looked out of place. She always tended to look graceful. There was an air of naivety to her alongside an air of desperation. She always looked lost and confused. She always looked like she was in a daydream.
Anna was stronger. She did not wear gowns nor did she walk around looking graceful. She was too busy trying to break the curse. It was one morning when she heard about the stranger who had entered the town. Apparently he had been causing a lot of uproar. She had gone to investigate, but before she had left she spoke with Victoria, finding her in the library, as per usual, still trying to find a way to break the curse.
"Victoria," she spoke her name in a drawl.
The woman looked up and over to Anna, closing the book she had been reading. "Anna," she responded. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Anna said with a shake of her head. "Well, there is a stranger in town who is causing commotion. He has, apparently, been asking questions about the Valerious family. I am going to seek him out."
Victoria let her brow furrow. "Do you want me to come with you?" she wondered from her. Anna shook her head.
"No," she responded. "I will be fine. You should be resting for the babe."
Victoria instinctively let her hand move to her stomach. "I will try to help, Anna," she said. "I want to help."
"I know," Anna said, almost spitting the words out, unsure if she believed them or not. "I will try to find a way to stop this curse, Victoria. That child inside of you is a Valerious. I will try to stop the curse from spreading."
"Thank you," Victoria replied. "Thank you for everything, Anna."
"You have no need to thank me," Anna responded. "I have hardly been pleasant towards you, Victoria."
"I do not deserve your kindness," Victoria declared. "I have done nothing but ruin your family. Your brother…I…I cared for him, Anna. Truly, I did care for him. He was kind and gentle and good. I did not deserve his affection nor did I deserve his protection."
Anna shrugged. "That was Velkan," she responded. "And we will do everything we can to keep the Valerious name alive."
"Of course," Victoria responded and Anna soon left her alone, clearly not in the mood for conversation.
…
Victoria wondered if he could sense her. She wondered if he knew what she was thinking and what she wanted. At that moment in time, she wanted nothing more than to see his face and ask him if he had done it. She left the window open and perched on the edge of her bed, dressed in her gown still as candles lit the room.
"I can feel your anguish."
His voice came from behind her and Victoria moved to her feet, looking to the other side of the bed where he stood. He looked to her, his eyes narrowed and his face almost pained.
"Just tell me the truth," Victoria urged of him. "Did you kill him?"
"No," he responded. "I hear that a werewolf did that."
Victoria looked away then, nodding her head. She had feared that response. "And did the werewolf come from you?" she enquired from him.
It was another moment before he nodded his head. "I thought that you might ask this question."
"Because Velkan believed that you sent the werewolf in the first place," Victoria responded. "Vlad, please, just tell me what has happened to him."
He could hear the pleading in her voice. He could sense the pain in her motions as she moved closer to him. She watched him for a few moments before she felt his hands come to her upper arms, holding onto them.
"It is him, isn't it?" he demanded from her. "He truly does hold your affections now, doesn't he?"
Victoria shrugged from him and moved away from him, towards the fireplace as the fire roared and kept warmth in the room.
"I am not doing this," Victoria said. "I am not discussing how I feel or what I want. All I care about right now is finding out for certain if Velkan has gone and if you did it. I have a child to think about. I cannot spend time discussing the past."
Vlad saw red then. How could this be? He knew that it would take her time, but he longed for her to move on. He needed her to move on and realise that she belonged with him. He needed her to see it.
"Velkan has gone," Vlad hissed to her. "The sooner you realise that then the sooner you will understand where you belong."
Victoria scoffed, her arms folding over her stomach. "With you?" Victoria asked from him and then shook her head. "No," she responded. "I belong with this," she said, a hand going to her stomach. "I belong with my child and that is all."
"What has happened to you?" Vlad enquired of her.
"I changed," she shrugged. "I needed to change. How could I not?"
Vlad said nothing further, sweeping by Victoria and leaving the room. Victoria watched him go and held back her tears, still holding her stomach. She couldn't do anything but care for her unborn child. There was no Velkan and she could not be with Vlad. She had to be strong. She needed to be strong.
...
A/N: Do let me know what you think!