Page 20 of The Ballad of the Vampire Prince

The fair lady didn’t get to finish her word when a shadow casts upon us.

Darstan lets out a dark chuckle over the startled look on our faces. Lady Siofra is way taller than me but even she is dwarfed by the mountain of a knight.

“Oh dear, you surprised me.” She touches her chest and greets him with a kiss to his jaw. He wraps her in his arms like he never wants to let go.

I am overcome with emotion as I watch them. Their love is the kind that makes even the sun and moon envious. Darstan and Siofra are not just bound by the elven marriage bond bestowed by the Goddess Arawynn. They’re mates.

It doesn’t happen that often with us Elves. We’re creatures of logic, not instinct.

“Forgive me for the wait, Your Highness,” Darstan apologizes. “I’ll escort you to your tower right away.”

He flashes his wife an endearing farewell grin. I accidentally catch the way they are looking at each other. The passion and longing in that gaze is almost palpable. A language only they speak.

Suddenly, it doesn’t feel right separating them because of some stupid protocol. The council meeting is over and I have no other formal visits for the day.

“You should go with Siofra. I can go back on my own,” I say to the knight.

A line appears between Lady Siofra’s delicate brows.

“I heard about the murders,” she signs aggressively before her husband can give me a reply.

“All the more reason he should be accompanying you to the townhouse,” I say calmly. “I’ll be safe. I won’t leave Lord Wesley’s compound.”

It is easier to persuade Darstan, but Lady Siofra needs a little more convincing. She finally releases a defeated sigh and relents to my wish. I wait until the two lovebirds are out of sight before making my way to the small wood behind the keep.

In Völundr or the Capital, Lord Wesley’s beautiful home would not have measured up as a castle. It lacks the artistic quality and the precious gemstones the Aldarelfs loved to display on their walls.

A gentle breeze whispers across my face, fluttering my hair. I run my hand over my temple where Svenn had touched me this morning. It was a small gesture from him but I’ve thought about it all day. He had been so cold before, but his hatred seems to have thawed from the moment we arrived here.

“That night was a mistake. You’re the Rhunhraefn’s vessel. I will never touch you.”

I am a curse bearer. The fact is as bitter as Lady Deirdre’s potion, but I still need to swallow it. I need to keep my distance so my heart won’t get shredded anymore than it already has been. I don’t want to feel that shattering in my chest when he rejects me again.

I steer my mind away from thoughts of him as I settle on the grass and open the giant tome in my lap. I take my time to read every single line regarding the binding of Arawynn.

Kill the Fae King.

Make me human.

Those are the terms of the agreement that bind Svenn and me through the Elven Marriage Bond. It should have been easy and simple enough. But another mysterious connection binds us. I need to find out what it is.

If the bond has anything to do with Goddess Arawynn then it should be here in this book. But there is no mention of it so far. I flip through the pages faster, frustrations building behind my eyes. Yet the Book of Bindings yields me no answer.

All the names of those who made the Arawynn contracts are listed in this magical, ancient tome. I watch as the names of the completed contracts shed themselves from the pages and new ones are constantly added. I can’t resist the urge to look at Svenn’s and mine.

My eyes find his name almost immediately, written in some archaic human language. A smile hooks the corner of my lips as I run my fingers on the letterings. I wonder what his real name would sound like.

Shock takes hold of me as I stare at the names several lines above ours.

Blaire Blackbriar along with Vayne Aeldrath Malgorth, the third Prince of Myrkheim.

Heavens above…

She made a contract.

Hot tears slide down my cheeks. My heart lurches in complete disbelieve at the words before my eyes.

Her name is here…