Chapter 5

By the time I was certain of the life stirring within me, Ella, too, had managed to fall pregnant.

It was almost amusing, really, how blindly confident men could be about such matters.

The prince never once questioned how she could have conceived after what was, at best, a single visit.

He showered her with gold, silver, and jewels, and for the first time, Ella finally held her head high.

She summoned me to her chambers, gestured proudly at the glittering pile before her.

"Look at this," she crowed. "You could work your entire life and never amass anything like this. So what if you got a second chance? Last time, you were just lucky. You'll never outdo me."

I nodded along mechanically, but beneath the surface, a constant thrum of worry vibrated through me for the life growing inside.

I had met the man at Dreadstone Castle, so it stood to reason he was a vampire, too.

The memory of my previous pregnancy was a nightmare still vivid in my mind. I had once been full-figured, but by the end, I had wasted away to little more than skin and bone.

Every night, I was racked with sickness and couldn't sleep a wink. That vampire baby was a tyrant, always churning inside me, stretching its limbs and wreaking havoc from within.

Whenever that happened, the pain would lance through me with such intensity that I couldn't even straighten up.

But once a witch fell pregnant, there was no turning back. To attempt to rid oneself of the child would seriously damage the very source of our magic.

I felt utterly helpless. So, I told myself to simply accept it, to make peace with the inevitable.

Who knew? Perhaps this child was, in its own way, a blessing.

Seeing me remain silent, Ella simply assumed it was jealousy.

Her smugness was written all over her face; she was practically glowing with it.

"Since you're here," she said, "and I'm pregnant and have no appetite, go and make me a glass of pomegranate juice."

I bit my lip, saying nothing. Pomegranate juice, in itself, was harmless enough.

But Ella was allergic to it. That was a secret only the two of us knew.

If I actually made it and brought it to her, the prince, who was utterly fixated on Ella's pregnancy, would likely fly into a rage. He might even have me put to death.

But if I refused, she would accuse me of jealousy and subject me to another vicious beating.

Either way, a beating was unavoidable.

Before, I could have simply weathered the blows. But now, with a child on the way, everything was different.

Even if I didn't care about myself, I had to protect my child.

I met her gaze. "Pomegranate juice isn't good for a vampire child.

"But I have an old family recipe, a brew that can help your baby grow stronger, faster. Isn't that what you truly want? The sooner you deliver that child, the sooner your position is secured. Irrevocably."

With anyone else, she might have been suspicious. But I had been at Dreadstone Castle for years; she trusted me.

She had always resented the prince's ever-changing parade of lovers.

The sooner she had the child, the sooner she could begin to enjoy all the riches and glory that would come with it.

She narrowed her eyes, giving me a long, assessing look, as if weighing the truth of my words.

Just as a thin sheen of cold sweat began to form on my forehead, she finally nodded.

"You wouldn't dare harm the royal bloodline," she said. "But if you try anything, I'll have the prince flay you alive."

I finally allowed myself a small, inward sigh of relief and hurried from her room.

What a fool. She took my word for it.

Just then, the vampire doctor who had been attending to Ella hurried past.

The moment he spoke a greeting, his voice instantly matched the one from that night.

It was him. The man who had been with Ella.

I watched his hurried figure disappear down the corridor, my expression darkening.

She had some nerve, keeping her lover so close at hand.

Was she not afraid someone would discover the truth?

I scoffed quietly and was about to turn away.

But then, a voice called out from behind me.

"Leaving in such a hurry?" The familiar voice was laced with amusement. "Afraid to see me?"