"Here is my Queen!" Alexander Marco declared as his guard dragged Andreina towards him. The elders watched in surprise, except Wiz who was already aware of what was going to happen.
"How can this be?" A faint murmur was heard among the perplexed spectators. It would have been louder if Andreina cries had not filled the air as she was dragged to Alexander Marco.
They were surprised since Andreina, unlike them, was a Human. Never had a Vampire Mafian King gotten married to a human before. The Elders were not even allowed to. Humans were only seen as their slaves, and they worked tirelessly for these Vampires in their plantations and at their homes.
"Bring her closer to me!" Alexander Marco instructed a guard.
Andreina continued to fidget, but her willpower was too weak compared to the enormous strength the vampires possessed.
"I repeat, this is my bride! Our marriage will commence according to the traditions and laws that govern the Vampires." Alexander Marco asserted. As he spoke, he hooked Andreina by the hair to keep her from straying away from him.
Andreina was terrified and could hardly keep her gaze at a point. She was sweating profusely, and her nose was not holding in those slimy fluids.
Among those standing was Alexander's uncle, Van Basten. He was the only one who had the audacity to question the decision Alexander had just made; the decision of getting married to a human. The rest of the spectators, including the council, or Elders, as they were famously called, were scared of Alexander Marco.
Alexander was good just like the former King they knew, but his temper was way worse than his. Alexander had a rigid mind and always believed he was right. The only people who dared to correct him were those extremely close to him. People like his uncle, Van Basten Marco, and Wiz.
"You are now the new Vampire Lord, Alex. You can not just pick whatever human you love and get married to." Van Basten reprimanded Alex.
"Love?" Alexander scoffed. "You think I am doing this for love?"
Alexander Marco was not fond of humans. He always said humans do not deserve to kiss the floor that people like him and his kind step on, even if it was covered with mud. This was the extent to which Alexander disregarded the humans. He felt that they were just too weak to exist.
"Whatever reason you may have, you can't do this!" Van Basten surely meant to whisper, but those words came out with more force than he had intended.
"You can't speak to me like that, Uncle." There was a trace of rage in Alexander's voice. "If you have anything to say to me then you will have to do that privately and away from all these people."
There was something everyone knew Alexander Marco despised the most, he disliked being reprimanded in the presence of others. He hated being told what to do and when to do it. But this did not still change the fact that he had to choose a human mortal to be the next Queen of the Vampires. This has never happened before. The only thing they were known to need humans for was to work for them and also to feed them on the night of the bloodbath moon.
Alexander made a promise to his father that he would get married to Andreina. He did not want to, but a vampire's word was their bond. They never violated a promise or swore an oath without the intention of keeping it.
"Take her to my room, now!" Alexander Marco instructed the guard who had brought Andreina to him.
Andreina looked into his blue eyes and she saw them turn red in rage. She was extremely frightened and did not even try to resist this time around.
Andreina's father worked for the Marcos for over thirty years in their plantation. When Andreina's mother fell ill, he had to borrow a huge sum of money from his masters. But for that, he has to give something as collateral.
"I am a poor man, and I have nothing to offer you. But, you can have my daughter to do with as you wish if I fail to repay the money to you."
Alexander Marco remembered word for word what Andreina's father said to his father on that day. Alexander knew that Andreina's father would not be able to pay back such an amount of money. But what he did not know was that his own father would ask him to marry a human. He had thought they would probably sell Andreina off to recover the money they lost or use her for the bloodbath moon. Alexander was surprised that after Andreina's father's sudden death, his father requested that he marry Andreina
"She is special, that girl." That was the excuse Alexander's father kept giving him when he asked why he should get married to a mortal. Alexander could see nothing special about Andreina other than how exceptionally beautiful she was. Still, he did not need to get married to her to have a feeling of that beauty. He was powerful and could have her whenever he wanted, whether she agreed or not.
"Do you want me to accompany you?" Wiz stepped forward to question Alexander. He wanted to accompany Alexander to his room so he could be present when he spoke to Andreina, who was already waiting for him. Wiz knew how terrible Alexander's temper was, so he didn't want to leave him alone with Andreina.
"You don't have to. I am not going to drain her." Alexander responded to Wiz.
"Are you sure?" Wiz asked to strike a certainty.
"Of course…" Alexander paused and then continued – "if she does not get on my nerves."
Wiz was the leader of the Vampire elders, and he was a close friend of Alexander Marco's father before his demise. The late Mafia leader charged Wiz to always ensure that Alexander followed the instructions he laid down for him.
"You will be as great as your father if you follow his instructions!" Those were the last words Wiz said to Alexander before departing just like the rest of the crowd had done.
Andreina was shivering in Alexander's room. She was fear stricken and did not know what to expect. Then suddenly, the door broke down. It was Alexander who walked in.
"Leave us now!" Alexander yelled at the guards inside the room. The door he pulled down was damaged beyond repair. One of the guards he ordered out of his room knew what he had to do. He quickly sent for some humans to come fix a new door. This was not the first time Alexander had ripped a door off. He exhibited such character during wild rage.
"Look at you. You look so pitiful and weak." Alexander walked round Andreina as he spoke. This made her tremble since for every second that he was behind her, she felt he was going to strike. There was absolutely no one who was not scared of Alexander's anger.
"Just let me go, please." Andreina spoke under her breath as she trembled. When Alexander stood in front of her, she could only stare at the floor.
"Yes, that is it. You humans are not worthy of looking at creatures like us! My father used to say you are special, but all I see is a girl who was sold off by her father because she is worth nothing!" Alexander spoke harshly to Andreina.
"Plea- please." Andreina stuttered. She was shedding silent tears.
"All of this, your beauty and that red liquid that keeps you weak humans alive; I can have all of it without your permission." Alexander stated.
Now, this made Andreina even more terrified. But how could her father have done something like this to her?
Andreina's father loved her so much. Even though he used the money to try and save her mother's life, Andreina still felt betrayed and somehow worthless. If anyone had told her that her father would ever leave her at the mercy of the Marcos, she would never have believed it. Andreina did not know if she should miss her dad or despise him for ruining the rest of her life. As if working for the Marcos was not enough, now she had to get married to one.
"Do you want me to let you go?" Alexander asked Andreina.
"Yes, please. Let me go!" Andreina cried.
"You are free to go only if you can give back the thousand of dollars your father borrowed from mine!" A red color flickered in Alexander's eyes as he screamed at Andreina.
Andreina knew it would be in her own best interest if she did not provoke him again. She was scared of what he might do to her.
Alexander Marco looked upon Andreina like someone staring down at filth. He disliked her outfit.
"Come with me!" Alexander pulled Andreina by her hand. His fist was so strong, and his grip was firmer than that of a bear.
Alexander took her to the Royal dressing room:
"Here, put this on!" He instructed Andreina after throwing a cloth at her. Alexander wanted her to change from the clothes she used for work in the plantation to something luxurious and royal.
"I - I - I don't think I can." Andreina stuttered. She realized she should not make Alexander any more angry than he already was.
"I said, put it on! And I mean now!" Andreina could see his fingers grow longer and sharper than the claws of a bear as he yelled.
Andreina was too shy to put on the cloth in front of Alexander Marco. Even if Alexander did not say she should, Andreina was smart enough to have figured out that she would have to dress in front of him since he was not showing any sign of leaving the room.
Andreina was saved by a knock at the door just as soon as she was about to take off her clothes. Jeez! She could sigh softly in relief. Alexander Marco was asking her to do something that she had never done before. Sometimes, Andreina wondered what happened to the caring Alexander she knew when she was growing up in the plantation. Although he had always looked the same, never aging, since when she was little, Alexander changed drastically towards her. It was said that he only loved human kids.
"Alex," a voice accompanied another knock at the door. That voice was easily detected by Alexander to belong to Wiz.
Andreina knew just what to do. She was going to make sure that she was done putting on the cloth before Alexander gets back.
"Wiz, what brings you here?" Alexander questioned, shutting the door behind him.
"Is the girl okay?" Wiz asked, trying to peep in before Alexander completely shut the door.
Without waiting for a response from Alexander, Wiz continued:
"You need to make sure that she is comfortable at all times."
"Why? Because she is special?" Alexander scoffed. He could not wrap his fingers around that ideology. Moreover, this was the umpteenth time that Wiz was saying that to him.
"Come on, Alexander. Do you think your father was wrong?" Wiz asked, still trying to listen if he would hear a sound coming from the room. He wanted to be certain that Andreina was alright.
"Maybe my father was just overstating her potential. The only thing special about her is her ability to work in the fields." Alexander spoke harshly.
"Just listen to me, I want you to"
"Is this why you came here, Wiz?" Alexander interrupted him before he could finish. "Because if that is the reason why you are here, then you must know that I am busy."
"That's not why I came looking for you." Wiz sounded a bit serious now.
"So tell me why." Alexander inquired.
"The knife which was used to stab your father has been found, and right here in the palace." Wiz broke the news to Alexander.