The Dragomir Heir (Watty Award)

The Dream

Lucius witnessed in awe as Valentina charged into his study clutching the knife that was aimed at him and her own stake. She pushed an assassin up against a wall and staked him, breaking the mirror beside him.

“Sorry…I’ll replace that”, she shouted over her shoulder as she duelled with another assassin. Lucius pulled out his own stake from his back pocket and whacked an oncoming assassin across the head and slammed him down to stake him. Sensing that Valentina was the most dangerous of the four victims, which offended Lucius deeply, the other assassins circled around her. As one behind her attempted to make a grab, Lucius twisted his neck, which could’ve killed a human. But they weren’t dealing with mortals, so Lucius staked him and allowed the man to drop to the ground.

“Break that vampire’s arm…he’s their leader; kill the rest”, Valentina commanded Vera and Dante who were duelling with the vampire leader. Vera acquiesced her friend’s wishes and broke both his arm and to be sure, his legs too.  After dispatching the others, Lucius looked down at the leader, “So who sent you?” When the vampire said nothing, Lucius angered, “Tell us or we will have to torture you out the truth”.

After searching the assassin’s pockets and removing hidden weaponry, Valentina stood up and looked are the assassin intensely. “This is your first time isn’t?” she asked.

The assassin was shocked and nodded. Lucius pulled the vampire up by the collar and menacingly repeated, “Who sent you?”

“My payer was hooded…he said he will transfer the money once you and your cousin were dead. He didn’t mention her”, the assassin nodded to Valentina, “Then I would’ve asked for more”.

 “So it was a paid job by an unknown…how much?” asked Valentina curiously.

“€15,000 for King Lucius and Lord Dante”. At this, Vera burst out laughing while Valentina pressed her lips together. Both Lucius and Dante growled at the assassin.

“Even Valentina alone gets more that”, said Vera. “€500,000 at least for her in my experience. So you were going to share €15,000 amongst twelve people? Valentina’s right…you are a first timer ”. The assassin only growled.

At Valentina’s request, they waited for Vladius who arrived at the study 30 minutes later since they notified him. He too observed the assassin and in a flash, the assassin was lifeless on the floor; staked.

“These men are too inexperience to be sent by a high player to kill you, Valentina”, concluded Vladius and then turning to Lucius, he said, “Lucius, you are in no trouble but I suggest you increase your awareness a bit more…”

Lucius nodded but was about to question the Dragomirs when Vladius turned to his daughter, “Come alone Valentina, it is late. We best returned to the palace”.

At the palace, Vladius and Valentina discussed the assassination attempt on Lucius. It was intriguing to Vladius that someone would attempt an ill-advised kill on the king and for so little money. Valentina told him that the assassins were young vampires of respectable class as she found them … too clean and pampered. They had no scars, they had clean cut hairs and on several, she smelt expensive cologne. Together, they listed a few suspects which did not limit the search. Before she retired, her grandfather warned her to not informed Lucius everything but stick to the obvious.

She was in her chambers when her phone rang, knowing who the caller was, she said, “Scared of the dark already?”

“Absolutely not”, Lucius replied. “So what do you think?” Following Vladius’ instructions, Valentina only told him what he needed to know and suggested he look out for missing vampire males from respectable families.

“I don’t understand it”, Lucius exclaimed. “Why are you getting at least €500,000 when you’re just a princess and I’m just getting €15,000 when I’m King? This is preposterous”.

“I think it’s pretty fair”, Valentina replied smugly. “Maybe you are not as fearsome as you believe. I’m properly the harder target”.

“How many have gone after you?” Lucius asked seriously. “I thought being hidden for 17 years would make it hard for an assassination attempt”.

“Many”

“It’s that why you never showed yourself to me earlier?” asked Lucius.

“That…and I was busy getting my kingdom in order”. They were silent for a minute; she knew Lucius was pondering on something.  She then heard him drop to his bed and immediately said, “Don’t you fall asleep on me now…oh it’s late; I’m going to retire”.

“Where are you spending Christmas? May I come?”

“I’m going to stay at the Winter Palace in Russian with the Romanovs and I don’t think you’re particularly welcomed…”

“Oh we’ll see”, he said smugly. “Yes, you’re right. It is late and we just had an adventurous night. Good night my love and the sweetest of dreams”.

Copying Lucius’ posh salutation, Valentina replied, “And the sweetest of nights to you my lord”.

“Oh…I’ve always had sweet nights since I became engaged to you”. Repulsed, Valentina hanged up.

In the cathedral, Lucius stood at the altar with Dante as his best man, waiting for Valentina, who was walking towards him. She was breath-taking in her pure white wedding dress and once she reached him, he took her hand and kissed it long and hard. Finally, it was the wedding and today he would be able to claim her as his own, his other half, his mate and his woman. No one will touch her…or they will suffer dire consequences.

A priest stepped in front of them and pronounced, “We have gathered here today to witness the union of Queen Valentina Dragomir and Tsar Alekzander Romanov”. It was at that moment that Lucius suddenly looked up at the priest, who was looking to Valentina’s other side. There, he saw Alek in a tuxedo and then realised that Lucius was in a normal suite; he was the guest. Outraged, he pulled Valentina out of the cathedral while she shouted at him. “We are divorced. You signed it…I demand that you let me go”.

“I signed no such thing…You are still engaged to me”, Lucius shouted back. However, it was at this moment that he saw two people who were as lifeless as the dead, sitting amongst the guest, which was logical because they were dead; the late King Lucian Dragomir and his father. They sat side by side and gave him a pointed look; a look that said, “You should’ve known”. Losing his mind now, Lucius continued to pull the screaming Valentina to the only place he thought could hold her in and keep Alek out; his castle.

Arriving in his chambers, he threw her in a chair and locked the doors. Turning around to confront her about this sham of a divorce, he found her not in the chair but in his bed; naked under the sheets and sleeping. She laid like she was Sleeping Beauty; peaceful and deep in slumber. But it was her face that scared him. They were pale, lifeless but not dead, like she has given up and her energy and zest diminished.

Then suddenly, several hands came to stroke her intimately; hands belonging to shadowed vampires. Lucius tried to shove them aside but he was chained to the floor. He cried out as one shadowed vampire lifted the sheets and screamed out at him in anger and helplessness as the vampire saddled the lifeless Valentina.

Getting up from his bed, Lucius, with sweat running down his chest, looked around his chambers. There was a low glow by the fire place, no chains on the floor and no wedding band on his hand; he wasn’t married yet.

“Father…what are you trying to tell me?”