Belle groaned awake as the carriage jolted. She opened her eyes without moving her body. At first, her vision was barely clear, and she could not make out where she was until she heard a voice from above her and felt a deep vibration against her ear.
"We are here, Isa." Rohan muttered softly as he tapped her back, and then she realized she was sitting on his lap and her head was resting against his hard rock chest. She hastily moved back and fell hard to the floor of the carriage in her haste to get away from him. She grimaced as pain shot to her backside with the impact of the fall. Heavens, that hurt!
He looked down at her with his head crooked to the side, his emotionless face seeming to tell her she was stupid for rushing to get away from him and hurting herself. She noticed yet again that he wasn't meeting her eyes and was looking deep into the middle of her forehead.
She didn't know how she could have slept through the rest of the journey when a vampire had been clutching their carriage, or had it not? She thought but did not care, realizing she had not seen it and it had not attacked them. Seeing the vampire that had jumped at her from the mist might have made her pass out cold or given her a heart attack from fear. It would be like coming face to face with one's nightmare, but thankfully, Rohan had been there to hold her, something she had not expected.
She stared into his drop-dead tan-handsome face that was watching her. His stare always made her uncomfortable because, even though he wasn't meeting her eyes, she was looking into his dark ones. How could ones eye be this dark? Though he had not hurt her, she could see the wild, dangerous madness in his eyes, which he did not try to hide when looking at her. He might be handsome, but she reminded herself how dangerous he was.
He wordlessly looked away from her when she crawled back against the opposite seat facing him as if to hide away from his penetrating gaze. He turned his body to the side and suddenly kicked the carriage door open without bothering to use the door handle, and it ripped away from its frame, startling the soul out of her.
He stepped down nonchalantly, towering over the door as he stretched languidly like a cat. In fact, he looked like a black stray cat from a dark alley with his black attire and eyes. Running his fingers through his unusual blue hair, he inhaled, "It's good to be back," then turned to her.
Belle, who had been watching everything he did, instinctively recoiled backward when he turned to her. She saw his expression harden at her reaction, but then it turned blank again. He then sighed.
"You are still afraid of me, aren't you, Sweetheart? Didn't I give my word not to hurt you? Do I look like someone who could hurt anyone, hmm?" he asked, tilting his head to the side.
Yes, she wanted to say, but she bit it back. He looked every bit like someone who could hurt anyone. Though she realized he was not as cruel as the rumors had said, if he were, he would have allowed the vampire who had clutched their carriage to kill her and free himself from this dreadful marriage. But he had held her in his arms and protected her. If only she knew there was no vampire. He was strange in ways that unsettled her, but she did not want to keep fearing him.
She did not know how long this marriage would last, a year, two, or three. It could be more than that, and if she wanted to live long enough to figure out their weakness, she would have to learn to trust that her husband would not harm her. He had proved that on the way here by protecting her. Fearing him would only make her stay here more torturous than it already was.
"Now come, don't keep sitting down there if you don't want to catch a cold," he said calmly as he held out his gloved hand to her.
Belle shivered slightly, realizing she was indeed cold. Looking up at his calm face and patient expression, she slowly reached out her hand and placed it into the large, gloved one that immediately closed around hers. Feeling their warmth sent a jolt of awareness through her body, warming her from the inside. He pulled her up swiftly and gently, then began to help her down the carriage steps. However, the moment she lifted her head to see her surroundings, she halted and stood still as her heart dropped to her stomach.
"What's wrong, little bunny?" Rohan asked when he saw the horror in her eyes as she looked up at his towering castle, as if she'd seen a nightmare. Of course, his castle was a nightmare to any human, and even to some vampires. What he saw as a dream, others saw as terror. Why? He did not know. Sigh.
Belle could not believe her eyes as she stared ahead. She had not been prepared for this, no, she wasn't. This looked like a place straight out of a gothic nightmare.
The evening sky was nothing like she had expected. It was clearer than Aragonia's gloomy sky, yet the entire ground was covered in thick fog. And right in front of her stood a mansion, or, more precisely, a dark stone castle.
The towering structure loomed against the sky, its spires sharp and jagged, like fangs waiting to sink into the night. Vines crawled up its ancient walls, their twisted forms clinging to the cracks as if trying to reclaim the castle. The windows were tall and narrow, some dark, others flickering with dim candlelight, casting eerie shadows against the stone. Bats fly ominously in the evening sky.
Their carriage had stopped before a grand fountain at the center of the courtyard. Once, it might have been beautiful, but now it stood dry and lifeless, its marble figures worn and broken. Cracks ran through the basin, and the statue in the middle, a weeping angel, had half its face missing, as though time itself had been cruel to it.
How could she survive in a place like this? How long until she, too, went insane in such a lifeless castle? Couldn't the king have made other arrangements for her to stay in? From the look on her husband's face, she could tell he saw nothing wrong with his dark, ominous castle that loomed over them in shadows. He seemed to be gauging her expression, waiting for her reply.
She took a deep breath and told herself she could do this. Everything would be fine. Time would pass quickly, and she would complete her mission and return to her land and family.
"Nothing..." she muttered, carefully, yet dreadfully, stepping down from the carriage with her husband's help. Even once she was on the ground, he did not let go of her hand.
What put her at ease, however, was the sight of the servants walking down the entrance steps to greet them, and the fact that none of them had red eyes.
They were human!
But then, when they came to bow before them, her vampire husband suddenly halted as if surprised by their presence. She wondered what could cause such a reaction, but then it became clear when he called out,
"Rav! I did not send for humans, what are they doing here?" he demanded in displeasure at the cloaked man who walked out from behind their carriage.
Belle's breath caught in her lungs when the cloaked man pulled his hood down to reveal his face. He was the man who had gotten her food in the market, and she had not been able to see his face then, but now she did. He looked younger than she had thought for a coachman. He had a long, handsome face with structured cheekbones and a chiseled jawline, and thick, refined eyebrows over his light red eyes. He had dark raven hair that was tightly gathered behind his head.
His gaze moved over the crowd of men and women alike, all in uniforms that seemed to be those of servants.
The man her husband had called Rav looked back at Rohan and bowed his head curtly. "They are the human servants His Majesty sent to the castle to work along the others from now on so your bride would be more at ease in Nightbrook, my Lord."
From the corner of her eye, Belle saw her husband nod as if in understanding. Yet, his gaze did not soften, nor did the menace in his eyes fade. He did not like the changes, it was obvious. Belle could tell by the way he looked down his nose at the poor servants, as though they were nothing more than worthless ants.
If only she knew.
To him, they were nothing but food. Any human, in Rohan's eyes, was not worth his words or even a glance. He saw them as walking meals, just as humans saw their livestock, chickens roaming without purpose. That was exactly how he viewed them, and not just humans but every other lowlife vampire as well. Having someone take control of his home without his permission to bring them in did not sit well with him. But what choice did he have when his little bunny's heart felt lighter and more at ease in their presence?
He could always be better company for her, keep her busy, but it seemed humans needed their own kind around them to feel at ease. Fucking mundanes.
None of the servants dared to meet his gaze. They had been warned, never look him in the eyes, never do anything that would force him to look directly at them. If they valued their lives and wished to live longer, they knew to stay far away from the mad vampire.
He was a walking terror, even to his own kind.
Rohan smiled. To an outsider, it would seem kind, almost gentle. But those who truly knew him would never mistake it for anything but dangerous.
"Tell His Majesty that his thoughtfulness toward my wife is truly appreciated," he said, his husky voice carrying a note of warmth that masked the sharpness beneath. "And I'll be sure to see that he never has to bring in more humans."
The words might have sounded harmless to the unsuspecting humans.
But not to Rav, who knew his lordship all too well.