Real Housewives of Transylvania

Dracula

Dracula

When I wake, she is gone. I roll over and inhale her scent and sigh. I'd really hoped that she would accept my offer, and that I wouldn't have to go hunt her down again. Now that I'd seen what an eternity with her could be like, I could never live without her.

I rise from bed and stretch. I decide to go by the castle and check in on my wives before heading out to find Katrina. The gondola is still docked and I row it to the other side.

The car I'd used to get Katrina is in the driveway and I cautiously examine it. The ring I'd given her is on the passenger seat. A low chuckle hums from my throat, nice try. I retrieve the ring and head inside to quickly explain to Daciana and Elisabeta what was going to happen, but once I open the door I sense that something is wrong.

"And why the hell do you have a child?" Daciana shrieks. I step into the kitchen and there she is. Katrina, perhaps she hadn't left me after all. But alas, the ring was in the car. But then what was going on? And why was there a child?

"Don't touch her!" Elisabeta cries, barreling into the room and grabbing the little girl. "She's mine!" She exclaims and then seeing me she shouts, inches from my face, "And if you touch her I will end you."

I put my hands up in defense,

"I don't even know why she's here." This relaxes her and she backs off, pulling the child into the other room.

"Care to explain this?" Daciana asks, gesturing to Katrina, her tone oozing sarcasm. I finally allow my eyes to land on Katrina. She had obviously left and returned home, her clothes were changed and her eyes had lost the faraway gleam that they held the night before. I go to her side and put my hand on her shoulder,

"This is Katrina, she'll be joining us." I explain calmly. Katrina's shoulder tenses under my hand and I hold her more firmly. I pull the ring out of my pocket and return it to her finger, she glances down at it, but remains silent.

Daciana freezes at my remark, but she still manages to spit out,

"But you haven't even bit her yet!" Katrina's hand whips to her neck where she traces the fading bite mark. "You have?" She shrieks and rushes to Katrina and examines her neck. "Only once?" She is legitimately confused, and then she grows angry and flees the room in a huff. I turn to face Katrina,

"Why did you leave?" My tone is straightforward.

"I don't love you." She says, looking me straight in the eye. It hurts when she says it, but I ignore the pain.

"But don't you see?" I ask, cupping her face in my hand, "I want you." My expression of affection isn't well received.

"You want me?" She asks, a delicate pause between her words, "So you don't love me?" She seems surprised and the anger fades from her voice and turns to amusement. She pulls away, "I don't think you can love." Her voice gains momentum, "You just steal girls that make you happy for a while, and when you get bored you find a new one!" She throws her hands in the air. "You disgust me!"

Her accusation throws me off guard. Of course I'm capable of love, perhaps I just can't identify it. But I leave that conversation for later and decide instead on,

"Be that as it may, you are mine now Katrina, whether you like it or not." I approach her and she backs into a wall, I caress her neck and lean in,

"What are you doing?" She asks, her obvious disgust evident in her voice.

"Making you immortal." I respond. I press my lips to her neck once and sink my teeth into her flesh. Nothing serious, again just enough to do it's job, no blood is shed. I scoop her up as her body collapses and we return to the cabin.

I lay her on the bed and wait for her to wake. This time it's within a matter of minutes. I don't know why I wait so long between the bites, probably because I'm still hoping that she will decide to willingly be mine.

When she wakes up, she groggily pulls herself into an upright position. When she finds my face she curses.

"So am I immortal now?" She asks.

"Not quite, there's still one bite left." I rise to administer it, but she stops me,

"Look you don't even know me that well," She scrambles to find something to say. "How would you even know if you'd like to live with me for the rest of your life?" She poses a valid point, but it's one I've already considered. I sit down on the bed next to her,

"Katrina, you are more like myself than anyone I've ever met. If anyone could make me happy, it's you." I kiss her cheek and she shies away, shifting to the other side of the bed.

"Stop." She complains. "Can't we have a conversation without kissing?" She asks and I laugh. "And what happened to silence anyway?" Her eyes light up at the new argument.

I sigh and stand up, I cross the room and sit in a chair, randomly grabbing a book of the shelf. I gesture to the chair next to me and she rises. She pulls the chair further away and curls up in it with a thick volume. I smile as I watch her. She flashes her eyes in a way to express that she doesn't want me to watch her. I try to hold up my end of the bargain, but I can't keep my eyes off of her.

"This isn't working." I admit.

"Sh!" She says and resumes the book.

"I've had quite enough reading for the day, I think." I pull her out of the chair and into my lap. I press her hand to my face while its still warm, but she quickly pulls it away and hops out of my chair.

"Stop!" She whines again. "Honestly, can't you keep your hands to yourself?" She sighs, aggravated.

"Don't you see?" I ask, picking her up and crossing the room. I press her to the bed, my fangs hanging low over her neck, "I don't have to." My fang grazes her neck and the door to the cabin bursts open.