Chapter 4

King Bryans POV

It was that time of year again that the carnivals came to town. I enjoyed this time of year because beautiful women come every year. I especially enjoyed the Romani people, commonly known as gypsys. Their dances were excellent to watch. I especially liked watching the young girls belly dance. I needed to go hunting. Then I went to their camp to see if they had finished setting up camp and when their performance would occur.

I was hunting for food when I encountered a young lady in a grove. She was picking flowers. She looked pretty, but I was not after a date tonight. I was trying to find dinner. The castle usually has blood, but I wanted something fresh tonight. I walked over to her.

" Miss, what are you doing out here by yourself."

" I'm enjoying the night air and picking some flowers."

I then motioned for her to come closer. She was hesitant at first, but then with my power of persuasion. She walked over to me. I then wrapped my arms around her and kissed her. I hate doing this because it makes them think it is more than it is. She doesn't know that she is going to die. I do not do it where they get scared and run. I then started to kiss her cheek and down to her neck. She let out a gasp as I licked her neck, where the juiciest vein is what I call the sweet spot. I have a numbing agent in my tongue so that way the victim does not feel it.

I then let my fangs out and drag my teeth along her neck where I intend to bite. It does not phase her, which tells me that the numbing agent has taken effect. I then bit down, and I felt the hot liquid splash onto my tongue. I let out a gasp. It tasted so good. I was sucking her blood from her neck. Then there was a strange scent in the wind. It was the smell of lilacs. I looked up and saw a young girl standing on a small hill. Then, when our eyes met, I knew instantly that she was my mate.

I then heard someone shouting for her. I couldn't quite make out her name, but I quickly vanished. Now that I have found my mate. I am not going to lose her. I knew the Romani camp was not far from where I was at. I will visit her and see if she is among those people. I then heard screaming from the direction of the camp. Then it sounded like a young lady screaming no. Then, the smell of blood filled the air. Then I got this terrible feeling that my mate was in trouble.

I returned to the castle and called for my second command, Brent. When Brent got to my office, I explained that I had found my mate.

"She is among the Romani people."

" Oh really."

" I can sense she is in trouble."

" We need to find her immediately and bring her back here."

We then followed the screams. To my horror, my mate was tied to the post and being whipped. I immediately ran over and yanked the whip out of the man's hand.

" Take him into custody, return to the castle, and lock him up in jail."

A woman ran up to Blake and yelled at him to leave the man, her husband, alone.

" Take her as well."

They were going to pay for what they had done to my mate. There was a young girl whose hair was blonde who had been trying to stop the man from whipping my mate. I immediately had Brooke take her with us. She must be a friend of my mate, and I wanted my mate to be comfortable when she woke up. I then cut her arms free, and they fell to her side. I tried to reassure her as much as I could. She said.

" Please don't hurt me."

She then lost consciousness. I picked her up as gently as I could. I could see and feel the blood running down my arms. I then took my mate to the castle. When we got there, I called my physician, William. He examined her and said she would be okay in a day or two. But she needed rest. He also figured out that she was half human, half vampire. I put her in my bed, hoping she would get my scent from the sheets and understand that she was safe and that nothing would happen to her. I sat there watching her sleep. I could tell that her skin was pale like mine from what little I could see of her skin. I had Broke put one of her dresses on her after William had examined her.

After William left the room, I started thinking about what he had said. I wish I could see on her thigh that she was half human and half vampire. Every vampire prince and princess had a royal birthmark. Could she be the lost princess? The previous king had been murdered along with his wife. Two of the siblings escaped, but the baby did not. The baby was never found. I needed to see if she was the lost princess. But that had to be done, and I needed to see her right thigh. Could this be her after all these years? I have always helped her brother and sister search for her. But we never did find any trace of her.

At the same time, we were looking for their sister. I was also searching for my mate, and this girl is my mate. Could you imagine that this girl is a lost princess? If she is, I have never sensed her before. The Romani people came to our little village. They come every year for the carnival. Maybe because I couldn't find her until she turned eighteen. That's when most vampires find their mate. It's when we turn eighteen.

Her mother was human, and her father was a vampire, but they were still royalty. Even though they were half human, half vampire, it didn't matter. Vampires can mate with humans. Whoever decides our mates for us sometimes mates us with humans. There were a lot of half-vampire, half-human people among us. It did not bother us. We were just happy to find our mates. Nobody I knew wanted to go through life without a mate.

She finally started to wake up. I sat on the bed, staring at her. I had to leave to attend to some business. I lit a fire in the fireplace to keep her warm. I was in the room's shadows when she jumped out of bed. She must have felt dizzy or weak because she sat back on the bed. She took several steps the second time she got up and almost fell. I rushed to her side and picked her up. At first, she tried to fight me. Then she looked into my eyes and stopped fighting. I carried her back to bed.

When I placed her on the bed, I took one arm and scooted her up to the top of the bed where the pillows were. Touching her was sending little shockwaves up and down my body. It was then that I knew she was my mate.