Alternate realities- Cressworth HC
Passages are taken from Kerri Maniscalcoâs Hunting Prince Dracula
Find my other HCs here :)
âHe and I? We were destined to meet. As we are destined to produce heirs more fearsome than their ancestors. _Destin. I had no idea the stars had so much planned! You are a minor inconvenience. One easily taken care of.â_
âBut maybe insteadâŚâ
I felt Thomasâs eyes on me, but I couldnât remove mine from Anastasia
The bang of the gun pulled me from the trance
Thomas was instantly beside me, his hands roving over me trying to find the wound
But I realized I didnât feel the flare of pain
I looked up at Thomas right when I heard the thud
Nicolae falling to the ground
Anastasia swinging the gun back at me
âListen, weâre going to move. Now. Or the next bullet will be in you, draga. So my prince, do as I say and she will live. Misstep and she will die, understand?â
Thomas backed away from me, panic flaring in his eyes
What else could I do? I followed after him as Anastasia pushed the gun into my back
We hid just when two figures stepped out
âWeâre too late, theyâre gone. The prince is gone.âÂ
Daci let out a frustrated sob and kicked at a loose bone, it rattled just in front of the dark screen we were standing behind
âLetâs move, they may have gone into one of the other rooms.â
Anastasiaâs wicked white smile was stark against the blood drying black over her skin
âI have just the place to keep you, friend. And Thomas? If you refuse any of my demands, know that where I put your dear Audrey Rose will be known only to me. Deny me and she will die a painful and slow death.â
With one last look, I saw Thomasâs heart break in his eyes the anguish at everything left unsaid
Then everything went black
Years of almost getting close enough to Thomas to tell him who I was
But time had been a brutal, painful friend
And the work I did in the bowels of the castle had distorted me so that even when he was around he didnât recognize me
Anastasia had kept me locked away for a year
Appeared at least once a day with food
Sometimes with her wicked knife
She cut my hair, saying Thomas was refusing her advances
He was slowing things down
And she had a bloodline to secure
I passed out from the pain
And cared for it the best I could
I wasnât always conscious when she entered
The cold stone room she brought me to was in the labyrinth Thomas and I had nearly died in
Then one day Anastasia came in
Belly round under her dress
Telling me about what an excellent lover Thomas was
So attentive and thorough
And how she kept my pinky on his bedside table
To remind him of what he had to lose
And after the babe was born
It was this sweet little boy who looked like Thomas
I was released to the kitchen to work
And little Vladimir began to love watching my knifework
I taught him a little English
Stories of two sleuths who hunted big bad criminals in London
He was what I imagined baby Thomas looked like
And when Thomas heard about his friend, the kitchen worker
He rushed in when I wasnât there
Asking everyone for the woman his son was so taken with in the kitchen
The girl with silver streaks in her hair with the pretty eyes and missing finger
I was moved to the laundry after that
He knew I was alive from the monthly letter I wrote to him
He wasnât allowed to write anything in return
Finally, all these years later I was brought in their throne room
And the smile on Anastasiaâs face as she realized Thomas didnât know who I was
My crime was announced, and she leaned over to whisper in his ear
The Thomas I knew was gone
The fire in his eyes was out
His face was hollow like he had eaten just enough to survive
His wit and brilliant brain
He was in survival mode for me, for Vlad, for himself
I saw the recognition flash in his eyes right as everything went black
I clutched at the mattress next to me
I flew out of bed and ran down the stairs
Sprinted down the hallway
And slammed the door to the study open
Thomas jumped and dropped his pen, ink spilling all over the page he was working on
He looked me over as I took him in
Sound and whole in front of me
That fire that made him, him blazing in his eyes
I ran around the desk and crushed him against me
I didnât care of I was drenched in sweat
I ran my hands all over him
He pulled me to him, pulled the hair off my sticky neck
The cool air tethering me to the moment with him
He kissed the top of my head
âWhich one was it, my dearest.â
âThe Romanian one, with Anastasiaâ
âDo you want to talk about it?â
I took a deep breath against his neck, inhaling the smell of his soap
âNot yet. Too fresh.â I said against his skin
Then a full sweet kiss on my lips
âLetâs go to bed, together.â
When we laid down I clung to him
Resting my head over his heart
Listening to the strong, steady beat
Letting it echo through my body
Tuning in to his frequency until I felt my heart beat almost in time with this
And he whispered our story, the happy parts
The more scandalous parts
He lingered on those details
And I drifted off to sleep with a small smile on my face at our life
