The Vampire King’s Captive

BRAN

“You called for me.”

Bran’s eyes flitted to the oracle.

Unlike the last time when she’d just appeared in the room like she owned the fucking place, she walked in this time, her obscenely long gown trailing a long line behind her.

He turned his eyes to the cup in his hand and shook it, watching the red liquid swirl inside. “I did,” he told her and, in a flash, emptied the content of the cup in his mouth and slammed it down on the coffee table in front of him, rising. “Why didn’t you tell me that she’s my mate?”

The room turned silent. So silent that if a pin were to drop to the ground, they would have been able to hear and locate the exact spot where it fell. It was a loaded silence, filled with unsaid words.

Words that were going to change Bran’s life completely.

If they hadn’t already.

When Bran had woken up that day-after Maria had killed him and miraculously brought him back to life-an alien feeling of power had filled him. It had been almost too much for him to contain and it was like it possessed his body and his movements weren’t his own anymore.

It had forced his eyes open and when they opened, he’d been greeted to the sight of an angel.

White flowing gown that reached her ankles, black long hair, beautiful golden skin and a devastatingly beautiful face with a heartbroken expression on it, tears streaming down her cheeks. The tears had hurt him and he’d wanted to do everything he could to get her to stop crying. An angel as lovely as her shouldn’t be crying. She deserved to have all the good things in the world.

There had been a halo of light around her, making her appear brighter and lovelier in his eyes and he’d been so certain that she was an angel. His vampire instincts had suddenly come alive, screaming to him that she was his mate and for the first time in his two-hundred-and-fifty-six years of life, Bran had felt his heart beat a new rhythm in excitement.

He’d found his mate!This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

He was pretty sure he’d even whispered it.

But then the angel had taken a step closer to him and Bran had seen that it was Maria.

Then the ever welcome hands of unconsciousness had pulled him back in.

“What would have been the fun in that?” The oracle finally responded, amusement in her voice and words.

Bran stood with his back to her but on hearing those words, he turned and faced her. There was a small vacant smile stretching her lips, a light of amusement in her eyes. Did she think that it was funny?

She thought that this was a game?

“You think this is fucking funny?” He snapped.

Her smile vanished and her eyes flashed. “Watch your tone, Your Majesty,” she warned as dark, violent magic swirled around her, giving Bran pause. “Do not raise your voice at me.”

Shit.

Shit.

Fucking shit.

“Amelia,” Bran hissed, using the oracle’s given name, something he didn’t usually do. “You must understand why this new discovery has me reeling.”

“I do and it’s fun to watch.” The oracle said breezily, the angry expression on her face disappearing in a flash and giving way to a cunning smile. The woman’s mood changed like whiplash and it was impossible to keep up with it if one tried.

Seeing that she was laughing when he was going through crisis, had Bran’s anger spiking again and he turned away from her, plowing his fingers through his hair, yanking on them.

He paced the length of the big room, kicking a wooden chair and sending it flying into the wall when it came into his line of view. “Fuck!” He roared, pouring his pent-up frustration into that one word.

“Now, now, Your Majesty.” The oracle crooned as though she was talking to a child. “It is not that bad, is it?”

He was not going to take the bait and look at her. If he did and saw that annoying smile on her face, it would only piss him the hell off even more and right now, Bran was having a hard time putting a lid on his anger.

“She’s very beautiful, easily one of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen and trust me, I’ve seen a lot.” The oracle went on, “And she’s taken with you too from what I saw the other d-”

“Why didn’t you tell me that she is my mate?” He cut her off, spinning on his heel to face her as he yanked his hair harder, welcoming the pain. “Why didn’t you just fucking tell me?”

The oracle cocked her brow. “But I did, didn’t I?”

What the hell was she on about? “You never did.”

“I did. Think again.”

Bran frowned, running his finger along his lower lip as he tried to recall the oracle telling him that Maria was his mate. Had they even had any conversation that would lead to such discussion?

He couldn’t remember them having any conversation like that.

He thought back to every single encounter they’d had. At his castle and here in Corey’s home, replaying everything they’d said, ever single fucking thing.

And that was how he got it.

His breaths shallowed as he thought back to the day when he’d asked the oracle to break into Maria’s head. When he’d been about to leave, she’d said some things that Bran had considered to be insignificant.

You might want to be careful with her.

Don’t do anything you’ll regret later.

You’re going to need her.

Fuck.

He’d assumed that she was only talking about how Maria would be useful to him in getting his sister back. Bloody hell, how was he supposed to know that was what she meant at the time?

“But why didn’t I feel it before?” He was so terribly confused. “How could I not feel that she was my mate? Why didn’t I feel it before now?”

“You took her powers away, Your Majesty, which meant you took a part of her soul away.” The oracle frowned. “She wasn’t whole and the vampire inside you couldn’t recognise her as its mate.”