Blood King

Chapter One (Edited)

Chapter One

“Did you hear?”

Celina Strategos stilled from her book, and turned her head slightly towards the voices in conversation that were talking close to the stone stairs that led to the garden.

“You mean about another body being found? Yes I heard, the poor woman, to be eaten by wolves in such a gruesome way.”

“Not just that, but they say she was attacked too… you know, the other kind, not just being killed and eaten.”

There was a long pause before a heavy sigh. “Oh, dear, what is the world coming too? Why must they do this to human girls as well? It’s not right, not right at all.”

“But that’s also it- they say it’s not the wolves that do that. They say it’s some kind of demon hound who attacks and kills the women, then leaves the rest to be eaten by wolves.”

“A demon hound? That is completely ridiculous. There are no such things as demon hounds. You’ve been reading one too many fairy tales again.”

Celina put her book down and went closer to the window to observe the maids that were chattering away about the latest death from the outskirts of the town that resided near the castle. She had heard numerous accounts about men and women vanishing into the woods only to be found later dead and mutilated by some wild animal.

“Listening to the latest gossip?”

Celina jumped from the sound of a soft whisper being blown into her ear. She whirled around to see her older brother Xavier looking down at her with a sly, mischievous grin.

“Well?” He asked softly as his smile grew. “Am I right or am I wrong?”

“B-brother!” Celina stammered. “Where did you come from?”

“Why, the front door of course. Where else did you expect me to come from, the window perhaps?”

She merely looked at her brother and felt that in all likelihood he would have done something like that as if he were a thief in the night.

“So?” He prompted. “Was I right or was I wrong?”

“About what?”

“You listening in on other people’s conversations.”

When he saw that her face flushed with red, he smiled and placed a hand over her thin shoulder. “It is alright. Listening in is not a crime, so you don’t have to worry. Though I am rather intrigued as to what it was you were listening so intently on.”

Celina hesitated. “It… it was about the recent wolf attacks on young women… but I have also heard that it’s not just women, it’s men too.”

He looked at her with a puzzled expression. “What do you mean? You mean the wolves are eating men too?”

“Not just eating them…” She whispered.

Her brother was quite for a long moment, and then drew her in close to his body.  “Come, let us walk to the study. We can talk there with a little more privacy.”

“Alright.”

Xavier then led his sister back inside the castle and from hall towards the study, which also opted as a small library. Celina sat down in one of the chairs while her older brother did the same, though while she sat properly he reclined in his almost lazily.

“So, let’s continue with our conversation from before.”

Celina did not respond, she only looked at her bother, dressed like the prince that he was. His long, fair blond hair that went past his shoulders and been put into a pony tail with a ribbon tied around it to keep his hair in place; dressed like that of a high ranking noble with the colors of the royal family, blue, white and gold; boots that stopped just above his knees as he crossed his legs; ice blue eyes watching his sister with a slight smile.