THE VAMPIRE KING'S PET

SOPHIA TYRIAN Twenty thousand dollars. My stepfather sold me to an underground organization that trades humans as donors for elite vampires. “Dad… no. Please… for everything that is sacred, don’t do this to me.” I fall to my knees on the living room carpet, clutching the legs of the man who was supposed to protect me. I beg, but I know there’s nothing I can do or say to change it. He takes the suitcase of money with a smile. “Get up now. Don’t make this ridiculous scene. It’s already done.” “I’m your daughter!” I scream, my throat burning. “You’re going to sell me like I’m just a thing?” “You should have died instead of your mother,” he spits with disgust, kicking his leg away to make me fall on the floor. I gasp, as if I’d been punched in the stomach. But he doesn’t stop. “Since the day you were born, you’ve only caused pain. Only destruction. Your mother died because of you. You took everything from me. Now it’s time to pay for what you stole.” The door bursts open violently. Two tall men walk in, dressed in black. Vampires. I feel it before I even see them — the sweet, metallic scent, the suffocating presence. “Take her. The payment has been received.” “No! Dad, please!” I scream, clawing at the floor as the guards drag me by the arms. “Forgive me! Forgive me if I did something wrong! I beg you!” He doesn’t answer. Doesn’t even look at me. He just lights a cigarette and walks to the window as if he were alone in the house. “Move, girl!” I sob quietly as I’m shoved into the black van marked with the symbol of the vampire elite. My wrists are tied, and I’m trembling with fear. I try to understand how everything came to this. Sold. Handed over. Thrown away. The car stops. They drag me out like a bag of trash. I can barely stand. I see an old-style mansion. Everything here looks dead and frightening. The doors open. We go inside and I’m led down a hallway before they shove me onto the floor. “My lord, we brought the girl as you ordered…” Someone approaches, slowly. I need to breathe, but something inside me has already died. I try to keep my head lowered, but my curiosity wins. I make a mistake by looking at the vampire king. Lord Kael. He is exactly how I imagined. Tall, pale as snow, with red eyes. Kael is known as the worst and strongest vampire of them all. “It’s her,” one of the guards says. “She’s clean. Blood type O negative. No diseases. Virgin.” Kael doesn’t answer. He just stares at me for long seconds before beginning to walk toward me. “You’re smaller than I imagined,” he murmurs. I freeze. Paralyzed. He bends down. Grabs my chin with two fingers, forcing my gaze to meet his. “Leave us.” The guards exit, leaving us alone. “Raise your head.” “Name.” “S-Sophia…” He smirks faintly. Emotionless. “Sophia… far too pretty a name for something so broken.” I tremble as I feel his cold fingers gripping my face, forcing me to look at him. “From now on, you have no last name. No rights. No will. You are my pet. My donor. My property.” I try to pull away, but he holds me tighter. “And do you know what I do with the things that are mine, Sophia? I mark them.” He walks to a nearby drawer. The king returns holding something that makes my stomach turn: a black leather collar with a small ruby pendant. “No… please…” “Silence,” he growls. “You will wear it every day. And if you ever take it off without my permission, I will punish you. Understood?” I nod with my mouth trembling. “Answer me,” he demands. “Y-yes…” “Yes, what?” “Yes, sir…?” He moves behind me. Yanks my hair back, forcing my head upright. With a sharp snap, the collar locks around my neck. Tight. Heavy. Humiliating. I feel like I’m suffocating. The physical pain is nothing compared to the shame. “Kneel properly,” he orders. I’m already on the floor, but not the way he wants. He pushes down my shoulders until I’m in the perfect position: back straight, hands on thighs, eyes lowered. “Good girl,” he whispers, his cold fingers brushing the nape of my neck. “You’ll learn to enjoy obeying.” He steps away, walking toward the fireplace. The flames glow in his eyes like reflections of hell. “The rules are simple. Disobey, and you suffer punishment. Obey, and nothing happens to you. Can you understand that?” “Yes, sir.” I feel his gaze on me, but I don’t look up. “You will adapt here. I’m sure of it. Just be careful with your words.” He approaches again, touching my face. My eyes meet his, and he smirks, analyzing my body. “You’re prettier than the others. Maybe you’ll last longer than they did.” My eyes widen as his smile grows. I shiver as his fingers slide down to my neck before he whispers in my ear: “I’m dying to taste your blood, but unfortunately, I have matters to attend to. Tonight, you’ll feed me.” “Yes, sir.” “I see you’re learning fast, my pet.” I close my eyes, sighing in relief when I hear him leave the room, finally alone. Minutes later the door opens again, and this time a vampire woman enters. “Stand up,” she says coldly. “You’re filthy.” I freeze in the corner, hugging my knees. She rolls her eyes. “Come on. You were lucky enough to become King Kael’s personal blood donor. Don’t act like this is a tragedy.” “I don’t want this,” I whisper. “You don’t have to want it,” she replies with a dry laugh. “You just have to obey.” She tosses something on the floor near me. It’s a simple black tunic, sleeveless, with thin fabric that feels too light. When I pick it up, I realize it’s almost transparent under certain lights. “Put this on. From now on, it’s all you’ll wear inside the mansion. Here, you have no name. No will. Only one purpose: to please the King.” She folds her arms, staring at me impatiently. “Are you going to keep crying, or will you take off those dirty clothes already?” I turn my back. I change clothes, my eyes burning with shame. The tunic covers what’s necessary, but protects nothing. “Good girl,” she says with disdain. “Kael will like seeing you like this.” “Please… let me go. I’m nothing. I don’t have special blood. I don’t want to be here.” She steps closer, her heels echoing on the stone floor. “You think wanting matters? You think any of the girls downstairs want to be here? You were chosen. That’s more than most get. And if I were you, I’d be grateful. The King could have killed you the first night. But no. He wants to play with you.” “You’ll stay here until nightfall. When he wants you, they’ll come for you. I’ll bring something for you to eat. Better keep up your strength.” She leaves, the door cracked just enough to remind me I’m being watched. The tears come again, but this time I don’t try to stop them. I spend the whole afternoon crying and thinking of a way to go home, but I no longer have one. I turn my head when I hear laughter in the hallway. The door opens, and two vampire guards look at me. “The King is waiting for you,” one of them says. I obey. Not because I want to. But because I no longer have a choice. I follow them through the halls, the scent of fresh blood in the air. The double doors open. And then I see it. A hall full of vampires. All beautiful. Dangerous. Sitting on velvet thrones or lounging on luxurious cushions, with humans on their laps, on the floor, in their arms. They all drink. They all touch. They all laugh. It’s an orgy of power and blood. I feel nausea rise in my throat. And then, in the center of the hall, on the elevated throne, there he is. Kael. “I want to present to you my newest toy,” he announces, with a mocking smile. The laughter that erupts in the hall feels like shattered glass inside my chest. I feel smaller than dust. “Come, pet,” he says in a low voice that slices through the air. My legs hesitate. I look at him, and then… I see something else. A man stands beside the throne, wearing armor with a sword strapped to his back. He’s not like the others. Not pale. Not cold. His body is bigger. Golden eyes. He is a werewolf. He looks at me without laughing. Without mocking. As if he truly sees me. As if he feels what I feel. My gaze falters. “Kneel,” Kael commands firmly. I kneel, my heart pounding wildly in my chest. I’m sure the king can hear it too. More laughter. More insults. “Look at her. She’s quite alluring for such a fragile she-wolf.” This time I hold back my tears. “Feed me,” he says. My eyes widen. But I obey. I walk to him. Climb onto his lap, trembling. My body doesn’t want to be here. He pulls my head to the side, exposing my neck. I feel like I’ll run at any second, but his hands keep me trapped. “Your blood smells so sweet, I’ll have to control myself not to kill you, my pet.” He brushes my hair away, and I squeeze my eyes shut when I feel his bite. I whimper through sobs. Kael laughs against my neck before groaning as he drinks deeper. I bite my lip to keep from screaming. But tears fall. I feel the blood being drained from me. The dizziness comes quickly. I open my eyes and see the werewolf. He’s still there. Still watching me. But his eyes are narrowed now. As if he hates what he sees. As if… he doesn’t want to be there either. “Stop, please… please stop,” I beg, crying, weak. Kael doesn’t stop. He grips me tighter. I struggle. But it’s useless. Until he lets go. I collapse to the floor, weak, drenched in blood. The hall erupts in laughter. I clutch the bite on my neck. “She still has much to learn,” Kael mocks. He raises his arm and points. “Take my toy back to the room. I plan to have much more fun tonight.” The werewolf steps closer. He grabs my arm, pulling me toward the corridors. When we’re alone, I turn my face to him. “You’re a werewolf… I thought they were all dead…” He looks at me for a moment. “If you want to survive, never do that again. The King shows no mercy.” “I can’t stay here.” “Your home is here now.” “Please… help me. Get me out of here. Please.” He stops. Opens the door slowly and gestures for me to go in. He steps closer, and I shiver as I feel his hands on my face, drying my tears. “You can’t feel so much here. It’ll be easier if you don’t let your emotions control you, Sophia.” “How do you know my name?” He doesn’t answer. He just walks to the door and leaves.