Activity in the castle reduced as most vampires retired from their duties to get some rest as the dawn stirred.

Erinna had not yet heard from Vlad following their fight at the boat. She had been angry for the better part of the night but as dawn crept closer; her anger was replaced by worry. Angry at both Alexander and her, he was bound to lash out. Someone would end up paying with their life. But no, that was the old Vlad; she had to trust he would do the right thing.

Even Alex could sense something was not right because he kept fidgeting in his corner, low rumbling sighs leaving his mouth.

“I don’t know where he is either, Alex.” She shrugged helplessly when he gave her an accusing glance.

Alex turned his head to Xander who sat on the bed with her, glaring at the scorpion.

“It wasn’t Xander’s fault.”

“I stings you, vampire. Do not set your unworthy eyes on me. Xander is elf royalty you peasant, jungle traitor, vampire kissing lion.”

Erinna could not even be shocked anymore. She had come to the conclusion that her cantankerous familiar had one goal only in life and that was making everyone around him miserable. Despite the aversion that all vampires had to scorpions, Alex had been nice to Xander, refraining from terrorizing him the way he did Alexander. But did her familiar care? Not even one bit.

Xander saw himself above everyone in the castle and in his mind, they should all bow to him. He took great joy in scaring the guards patrolling the hallways, obeyed no one and especially loved riling Vlad up. The only positive was that he actually listened to Erinna, though she didn’t think it was by choice.

Alex roared loud enough to wake up the bones in the tombs and leapt on the bed. Erinna erected a barrier between them because Xander’s stinger was already raised. Since they kept snarling at each other, she sent Xander outside to Shadow, whose company he seemed to like. Alex sauntered back to his corner, ignoring her suggestion to get some fresh air.

Erinna was about to do what she had been avoiding and contact Vlad mentally when the door opened, startling her in the dark silence where she sat, twiddling her thumbs. She rose up from the bed and immediately went to him. She wrapped her arms around his waist, embracing him with relief. He was fine, in one piece and did not have the air of death lingering over him.

“I was worried about you.”

“I was holding court with the human leaders.”

She withdrew from the hug so that she could look at him.

“Let me know next time.” She caressed his jawline with her thumb. “We had a fight and you just disappeared. I didn’t know what to think.”

“I thought you would want some space to think about what we discussed.”

He took her hand and led her to the bathroom. He set her on the counter as he undressed. Erinna’s eyes took in every inch of skin that was revealed as he shed his clothes. Her breath caught in her throat as she got the full visual of his defined chest. The rippling effect of the muscles beneath the scarred skin was enhanced by the dark tribal symbols inked there.

She watched him take a shower. When he was done, she held out her arms to him. He looked confused but walked into her arms, fitting his body between her thighs. Erinna took his face in her hands and kissed him. It was a chaste kiss and lasted no longer than a few seconds.

“What was that for?” Vlad asked.

“That was to say I forgive you.”

Her pride struggled with the idea of being the one to give in but when she had agreed to be Vlad's mate, she had agreed to be what he needed. That was a dynamic role. Sometimes it needed her to be strong and other times to forgive; right then, it needed her to submit to him. Or at least give him the illusion of it. The battle for that day would be his but if Deacon was to be believed, the war would be hers.

“You now agree with me then?” He asked, his expression softening.

“No, I don’t, angel. But a difference in opinion is no reason to fight. Let’s not repeat the mistakes of those before us.”

She kissed him again. Vlad put his hands on her waist, lifting her off the counter. Erinna’s legs wrapped around him instinctually. The bad energy of their fight faded into the background as Vlad carried her to their bed, kissing her with a ravenous intensity that sent every nerve ending in her body on overload.

Her back hit the soft blankets gently but she took no notice. She trembled in Vlad’s arms, loving his strength and ability to light her whole body on fire. When Vlad finally lifted his head to give her time to breathe, his eyes were red with a familiar hunger and Erinna’s thoughts were scattered.

“I hear you, angel but I was serious about everything I said to you today. You need to be ready for whatever the future brings us.”

“I will think about what you said. Will you think about what I said?”

He looked aside then nodded reluctantly.

“Thank you.” She kissed his jaw to take the sting out of the compromise because she knew Vlad hated losing or giving in. “Can we go to sleep now? I've been on my feet for too long and they hurt.”

He clearly was not happy with the current state of affairs but he must not have wanted to fight either because he let the issue drop. As the sun rose, to bring in a new day, Vlad massaged her sore feet then held her close as they drifted off. They would have a lot to talk about when they woke up but for then, she was happy that the hostility that had been brewing between them was gone.

“Vlad,” she murmured to him as he was closing his eyes, weakened by the day.

“Hmm?”

“I want to go outside today.”

As soon as the curse was broken, they would be back on the same page again and these unnecessary fights would become a thing of the past.

His body became so tense behind her and his arms tightened around her but all he said was, “Okay.”

“You don’t mind?”

Frankly, she was surprised with his easy acquiescence. She had expected more resistance.

“You were obviously telling me, not asking me. What does it matter if I mind?”

“If I didn’t care what you thought, would I have told you?”

“Why now? Because your visit to Trevante backfired? You were certainly not telling me anything before that.”

Okay, she deserved that.

Erinna turned in his arms so that they were face to face. Vlad shifted so that he was lying on his back and facing the ceiling instead of her. The only outward sign of his tightly restrained temper was the tick in his jaw. Erinna put her palm on his chest, right above his heart.

“I didn’t do it to disrespect you, Vlad. Don’t you think I would give anything to be able to tell you? But every time I do, we end up fighting.”

“So you would rather tell Alexander.”

“No, actually. I would rather tell you. There’s no one I would rather tell but you.” She took his hand and kissed the knuckles. His jaw worked and his expression lost some of the dark, forbidding energy that had been shrouding it.

He moved to sleep on his side so that their faces were mere centimeters from each other. His solid black eyes looked into hers, their dark intensity sending shivers down her spine.

“I don’t mean to get angry about the curse. I know you think you’re helping but things are not that simple, angel.”

“There is no harm in trying, Vlad.”

“There is when you end up giving your blood to people like Trevante.”

“It was one mistake.”

“One mistake that could have killed you and/or the baby. Would you still have thought it worth it then?”

Erinna looked down. Her own life, she could forfeit but to put the baby in danger…

“If you came with me, I wouldn’t make mistakes like that.”

“Or you could listen to me for once and let this go.”

Erinna wished she could promise him that, give him her word but for the first time, there was some hope. She actually had an idea of who to see and how to fix things. A forever with Vlad without the threat of killing him hanging over her head seemed the sacrifice of having angry Vlad with her for a few days.

When her answer failed to come, Vlad moved away from her.

“Don’t go please.” She held his hand.

He said nothing but didn’t move away from the bed.

Erinna let go of his hand, to give him the space he seemed to need. He didn’t come back to her or hold her in his arms like he usually did. The distance between them seemed vast and no matter how much Erinna tried, she could not sleep. Her stomach hurt, the baby also distressed. She desperately wanted Vlad to hold her but she did not want to nag him.

Three hours passed but she still could not sleep, the air between them bitter and full of resentment. It strengthened her determination to sneak out as soon as Vlad was asleep to break this curse and restore their equilibrium.

About six hours after the sun had rose, Vlad finally reached out an arm, pulling her to him. Erinna shuddered in relief as her back was finally where it belonged, against his chest. His arm around her, the fingers splayed on her stomach was the best safety net she had ever had.

“Now get some sleep.”

She didn’t argue with him. She would get only a few hours of sleep then wake up to find the medium.

What she didn’t expect was to fall asleep first and get dragged inside Vlad’s nightmares. It was nothing that had ever happened before and for a while Erinna was disoriented, not knowing where she was or what was happening.

“The man of the hour! The one whose sword was forged from the lifeblood of the gods. Son of the Dragon. Today he made the Wizeks eat from our hand, tomorrow he will rain this land with the blood of the beasts that terrorize our people. May fear forever be wrecked on those who hear his name!” Braxton bellowed, raising his bellow high.

The air filled first with hesitant applause then more enthusiastic shouts and whistles. That was usually the reaction when it came to Vlad. Few people ever knew how to truly react to him. In the moments after a successful war like this, his battle prowess demanded they give him respect but after everything they knew about him, it was hard to do so.

Vlad supposed he should be grateful to Braxton for trying to bring some respect to his name but truth be told, he just wished the army commander would stop attracting attention to him. He would gladly have sneaked away and gone home to be with Lisa, the one person who actually respected him.

“It’s mighty perfect to know he can work that sword as good as he does those lips, isn’t it?” Snickered Thomas through his broken teeth. His lascivious gaze made Vlad’s flesh crawl and his hand immediately went to his sword, still coated in the blood of their enemies.

“No, we have spilled enough blood tonight, brother. Thomas is an old fool, don’t listen to him,” Braxton whispered roughly in Vlad’s ear.

He was not Vlad’s brother but he treated him much better than his own family ever had. Vlad might even have considered him best friends had he not known that Braxton’s strategy was ‘keep your friends close and your enemies closer’. Vlad fought much better than him and the man realized that the only thing that could stop him from turning on him and usurping his position was loyalty.

Vlad let go of his sword, not because his anger had faded but because he knew whose side the whole army would take should a fight break out between him and Thomas. He was a good warrior but not even he could go up against more than a hundred Tepes warriors whose blood was still boiling with the adrenaline from the battlefield.

“Bring the man some beer and ripe wenches, Gimani! He deserves it.” Braxton yelled and gave Vlad’s shoulder one last pat before disappearing into the crowd.

“I will when Lisa gives him back his gonads.” Gimani laughed.

Vlad ignored him, he didn’t mind that sort of ribbing. Most of them were baffled by his faithfulness to his wife and he didn’t have the time or inclination to make them understand that they were some things more important than carnal satisfaction.

He sat down near the huge fire in the center of the clearing and drank a beer or two, talking to some of his clansmen who could stand him. It was not something he wanted to do but rather had to. Braxton would have a fit if a soldier missed the celebration that always followed their battles and raids.

As the celebration picked up, the music around them became louder, the drummers pounding their instruments with a vengeance and the flute players competing with the stompers. The air was rife with the joy of celebration and it could be heard in the sweet moans, ferocious grunts and screams of ecstasy as flesh slapped against flesh. Amongst their people, nothing could say celebration like carnal gratification.

Vlad got several offers but the offer of anyone even seeing his body made him cringe. Mostly, his father used him as his political whore, his secret card to be pulled out when he needed to seal an alliance or to sway some nobleman’s opinion. When he was feeling particularly cruel or when he felt Vlad was forgetting himself and needed to be put back in his place, he threw him at whoever was in sight.

Several of these men had seen and touched parts of him that he wished no one ever had. It was no wonder that none of them respected him no matter how much he strived to prove himself on the battlefield. Some things like trust could be earned back but respect once lost, was gone forever.

Before Lisa had gotten pregnant, she would have been there to meet him with the rest of the women. When she was there, she could make everyone else fade away and it would just be the two of them. It would be unfair to expect her to be at the Gol in her condition however. It was not like they could even honor the gods when they could not do anything sexual whilst she carried their child. They would just have to do without the blessing and mystical power that was imparted during such feasts until the baby was born.

“A word, brother.” Vlad turned his head to find his brother beside him.

By the guilt and discomfort on Jonathan’s face, he already knew what was coming. During the first days, he would feel anger but even that was gone.

He bid farewell to his two companions and followed his brother to a bush that was away from the clearing where the Gol was taking place.

“You did not need to drag me to a dark, quiet corner. It’s not like everyone doesn’t know already.”

It was the price of his freedom after all, the price of keeping Lisa.

When Draco had seen that Vlad had become too strong and too willful for him to continue to control and pawn at his will, he had changed strategies. Instead of letting him go like any person with a shred of decency would have done, he had lured him with the one thing he had known Vlad would not have refused: Lisa.

For ten years of Vlad’s service and loyalty, Draco had promised to allow him to marry Lisa and give them land where they could start their lives. Since Vlad had never expected his father to ever let him go at all, it had seemed like a good deal.

He only had five more years of the ten he had promised Draco to be his whore. After that, they would never have to deal with the bastard again. Vlad would not have believed it if the man hadn’t given them the land as a gesture of good faith.

He just had to finish his ten years then he would never have to take any other order from Draco.

“I’m sorry, Vlad. I wish-”

Vlad interrupted Jonathan. He had no wish to hear how sorry his brother was. Of all his brothers, Jonathan was the worst. At least Vlad knew where he stood with the others. Jonathan pretended to care and be sympathetic but there had never been a single day that he had stood on Vlad’s side as Draco thrashed him.

“Who this time?”

“The sculptor from the Meadowlands. He gifted father a new statue and father said you should show him our appreciation.” Jonathan grimaced.

Vlad nodded. One person, he could do that. And since he was stronger than he had been as a preadolescent, no one would be able to overpower him or make him go beyond his limits. There would be no beatings or bleeding. The only thing he would have to deal with was the eternal feeling of being dirty and soiled. And his own shame of course.

“When?”

“A week from now. You are to go to his home in the mountains.”

“Is that all?”

“Well, the Queen of the Vireni tribe will be coming in two weeks. Father said you should make yourself available for her. He needs her agreeable so that she can agree to let us dig in her territory.”

Few men existed who were as cruel as Queen Lindanie and unfortunately the trait extended to her bedroom activities. But he knew her by now, as long as the man at her feet did everything she asked and didn’t resist or question her, she was happy.

“In two weeks we are supposed to be marching East for the summer raid. I can’t miss that.”

Raids came with the opportunity to prove himself and be seen as something amongst his people. The summer raid was the most prestigious of the activities that men in the tribe could do it.

“I tried to explain. I’m sorry Vlad.”

No surprise there.

Vlad waved away his brother, not wanting to say anything more to be his Jonathan or see the pity in the man’s eyes.

He went back to the feast for appearances sake and when he deemed it safe to disappear without calling attention to himself, he sneaked away. He was after all, impatient to see his wife. They had been gone for three weeks and he did not like being away from her for so long when he did not know what stunt his father would pull in his absence. Draco had not yet touched Lisa but the implied threats had been there.

He walked down the solitary path that led to their home. It was away from everyone else at the edge of their village. Draco had done it deliberately to emphasize what an outcast Vlad was and how unwelcome he was amongst decent people but he appreciated the solitude. Being alone was better than being amongst people who held nothing but contempt for him.

Their home appeared as he drew closer. It was a rock structure that had been built from thatch grass. Sometimes it was not strong enough to withstand storms but it was the best he could come up with given what he had. His father had banned him from taking shelter in any of the caves that the rest of the village lived. But that precarious thatch hut was the best thing that had ever happened to him. It was home.

Lisa was outside on one of the logs they used as chairs, basking in the sun. When her eyes landed on him, she screamed in joy and ran towards him. Suddenly everything else didn’t matter.

“My prince, you have returned!”

Vlad took her in his arms and kissed her. His love for her overflowed and he held her tighter, marveling at the fact that she had chosen him, him of all the people to be the love of her life or the father of her children. It was a gift he would never forget and would treasure forever. It made the price he had to pay Draco for her seem bearable.

“Aye, I have. How is my beautiful wife?” He smiled at her gently, dipping his head to bite lightly at her bountiful chest.

“Happy to see you.” She grinned up at him and kissed him. “Did you conquer?”

“Don’t I always?”