The Vampire

chapter 16

Skye woke up after what felt like ages. She groaned trying to open her eyes and started rubbing them with the back of her palms.  Then she stretches out and looks around.

Her eyebrows furrow instantly when she looks at lady's room.

It's not her own room!

Memories from last night come flooding back to her and her heartbeat quickens. Her hand flies up to her neck where he bit her, scared to feel pain but her skin felt smooth under her finger tips.

Maybe this was all just a bad dream and she was too tired to be able to get a proper sleep.

In order to prove her theory, she jumped out of the bed and raced towards a wall sized mirror hanging at the wall. She bent over forward, pushing her untied hair backward just to see her neck clear.

She gasped when she looked at the two puncture marks dug inside her skin but she couldn't feel any pain.

So this was not some kind of a bad dream.

She quickly pulled hair back in front to hide that mark and looked around to look for princess Joanna but hadn't found her.

She wasn't there at night too.
Where is she?

Not caring about brushing her hair or changing into her uniform, she exited the chamber and headed outside in search of lady joanna.

Just as she was turning around from guest's chambers towards main hall, there were two maids coming from the other direction, talking with each other.

"You heard about prince Raine's confession last night?"one of them asked the other.

"You mean about his mate?who wouldn't know this after the spreading of this news in the entire castle like a fire in the jungle." Other one answered with a raised eyebrow and Skye felt a punch at her gut.

Prince Raine's mate?

"Well I heard from Sophia that he had marked his mate last night and now he's arranging to properly make her fully his in one big ceremony."

"Marked her? Well yeah knowing who he is, it isn't that surprising though," she snickered before adding,"But if he had marked her then she is already his, don't you think?"

"Yeah but you know-how" their voices trailed down behind the walls of a long hallway leaving Skye despair at the reality of a Skye dropping down on her head.

~~~

When lady Delilah, head of the maids found Skye darting around flustered, in the hallway near Queen's chamber where royal ladies used to gather around, she put her hand on Skye's shoulder from behind and squeezed it a little to get her attention.

Skye, clearly not expecting it, jumped up in surprise making lady's eyes furrow in concern. Even after finding out that it was just maid Delilah, Skye's anxious expression didn't falter from her face.

"Honey, what's wrong?" Lady Delilah asked searching her eyes and Skye instantly felt a gush of warmth filling her insides.

How was she supposed to explain everything to her. How to tell her about the events of last night and that she couldn't find princess Joanna anywhere.

But she was the only one whom she knew here. Lady Delilah felt like a motherly figure to her and infact she was her mother's friend.

Skye grabbed lady Delilah's hand and pulled her towards the far off corner where no one could hear them and blurted out everything that was gnawing at her chest since she woke up.

~~~~

"This is the only way that I can possibly think of!" Lady Delilah explained with a firm voice, looking at Skye whose eyes were down casted with freckled lines visible on her indicating millions of thoughts were running inside her mind.