The Vampire Prince's Hybrid Mate

Whispered Conversations

Kara POV

The days passed quickly in a blur of whispered conversations and sleepless nights. The food was bland and minimal, but at least it was edible, and it wasn’t us on the menu.

Norah would come by every day, checking in on us and reminding us of the rules. She would ask us simple questions like our name, our age and where we had come from. Piper didn’t seem to think much of it, but there was something strange about the woman. From what I could gather, she was the only woman here over the age of 35, something which seemed strange to me. She came every day dressed in white whereas the rest of us were dressed in identical blood-red tunics and pants.

Of course, we told her the same story we told Raven and Jo about our village just inside wolf territory. No-one could know what we were, least of all the vampires. And I got this strange feeling that we were being watched at all times.

Annysia was driving me mad though. After having been able to run free for weeks, she was frustrated at us not being able to shift so she could run, but we both had agreed the risk was too great. Just being here was risky enough. If the vampires caught whiff of our scent, the smell of our magical blood mixed with that of our wolves, we would be dead in an instant.

At night I would sometimes check that the cloaking spell was still in place by pulling on the magic connection that it drew power from and was relieved every time when i felt the same thrum of power pulsing around me. I would give Piper a look, and I knew she was regularly checking hers as she would give me a small nod and reassuring smile. We had to be careful.

Piper and I kept mostly to ourselves, and annoyingly Raven seemed to hang near us. We didn't mind Jo so much, she seemed to be a sweet girl, around Piper's age. She didn't say much, but she was always nice and polite. Raven on the other hand only seemed to care about herself and was constantly being rude and wanting to befriend us.

She seemed to try and initiate herself into every conversation Piper and I would have and wanted to know all about us. There was a moment that made my skin crawl when I witnessed her having a whispered conversation, clearly about Jo, with some other women who slept in the bunks next to ours, and not in a nice way.

She laughed loudly, the sound grating and nasally and then she looked over her shoulder at Jo who was sitting on her bed, her eyes clouded with tears. Raven whispered to the other two women whose eyes flicked to look at Jo momentarily and then snickered with each other.

"You guys good?" I asked, my tone biting.

It was one thing to be stuck in this situation, but it was another completely to make fun of those who weren't tough enough to stand up for themselves. Jo was definitely one of those people.

Raven glanced at me, her nose turned up in arrogance. She gave me a cruel smile. "Yep, we are fine."

"Well, maybe you should try not being such a b***h then," I quipped, my voice lowering in my anger.

I felt Piper's hand on my shoulder in warning as Jo glanced up at me and then to Raven who looked annoyed as hell.

"Whatever." She tossed her hair over her shoulder and turned away from me. The other women looked at me, their brows raised as if to say 'what?" I wanted to hit them all, to teach them a lesson. Oh how I wished that I could.

I turned, growing low under my breath. I could feel Annysia's hatred swirling around me and after that moment I made the effort to interact with Raven as little as possible. I didn’t trust Raven at all and was glad when Piper agreed with my thoughts.

On the fourth night, Piper and I had stayed up late after the lights had gone out, waiting until we could hear the steady of breaths of Raven and Jo sleeping deeply. We had then had a whispered conversation, barely audible even to our own highly attuned ears.

“I don’t like her”, Piper had said, her voice tinged with worry. “There is something I just can’t put my finger on about her.”

“I have the same feeling,” I replied. The worry was a knot in my stomach that seemed to grow with every passing day.

Piper’s steady breathing was the only sound for a moment, before I heard her shift slightly in her bed. We had both chosen bunks on the bottom, so we were close enough together to be able to talk without being overheard.

“What do you think is going to happen to us Kara? What do you think these games are?”

The quiver in her voice was distinct. She was scared. I hadn’t heard her sound like that since that terrible night so long ago.

It threatened to drag me back to that night, an overwhelming sense of fear and loss pressing against me. I forced them down. Now was not the time so delve into those memories. It wouldn’t change how much we had lost.

“I don’t know, but anything involving vampires and games can’t be good,” I mused. “I don’t remember ever hearing stories about the vampires hosting games involving humans though, do you?”

She was quiet a moment as she thought.

I don’t think these games are a normal occurrence Annysia spoke in my mind, worrying me further.

“Mother and father never mentioned anything much about vampires,” Piper whispered suddenly. The mention of her parents was so casual, so offhand. I wish I could bring myself to discuss them with her, but I knew if I opened up that wound, I would fall too far off the cliff of my own despair and self-hate.

“It wasn’t exactly like we needed to learn much about vampires though,” she added, clearly thinking this through more than I was. She gave a dry chuckle. “We have enough genetic material to cover us for a while without having to think about vampires.”

I smiled in the darkness. It was just like Piper to find the humour in this kind of situation. Sometimes I wondered if it was her or me that was the older one taking care of the other.

I sighed softly, chewing my lip with worry. Whatever these games were, I didn’t like the feeling that it imprinted upon me. And knowing what little we knew of vampires, if you lost the game, you wouldn’t live for long.

“I think… I think we may have to win these games,” Piper whispered suddenly, mirroring my exact thoughts. She tried to stifle a yawn. “But we won’t be able to rely on our abilities to do it.”

“I agree. Get some sleep. We will worry about it when the time comes.”

She shifted in her bed, the sound of the creaking springs echoing in the room and melting into the sounds of the other deep breaths. I listened closely until Piper’s breathing changed as she fell asleep.

The sounds of the snoring and deep breathing all around me did little to help as I closed my eyes and drifted off into a restless, nightmare filled sleep.

*****

When we awoke on the fifth morning, everything seemed different. There was a hostility in the air, almost tangible on the tongue. The tension was so thick, and I noticed the wary looks the woman gave each other. Something was happening.

Piper’s bed was empty, along with Raven’s and Jo’s so I made the assumption they had already headed over to the small tables for breakfast.

Norah stormed passed and flashed me a small smile.

“Quickly Kara, get dressed and grab yourself some food. The organisers will be here shortly.”

I pulled on the red tunic and pants and shoved my boots on my feet as quickly as I could. Winding my way through the crowd of women all getting up and dressed, I finally found Piper sitting with Raven and Jo. Piper’s blonde hair stood out against Raven’s dark black tresses and Jo’s short, spiky brown hair. They sat in silence while nibbling on the cold toast and muffins.

“Morning Kara,” Piper said, announcing my arrival. 

Jo smiled up at me and offered me the last muffin. I took it gratefully and slid into the empty seat beside Piper. Raven simply ignored me. I noted how her cheeks had started to fill out slightly with the consistent food. Looking around, it was obvious that all the women looked slightly healthier. The vampires might have been planning something sinister, but they weren’t going to do it while we all looked sickly.

“Ten minutes ladies,” Norah’s voice floated over to us. She flustered by the door which we had entered, clearing up a basket of clothing.

The chatter in the room dimmed a little, everyone clearly nervous and apprehensive of what was about to happen.

I shoved the muffin into my mouth, chewing gratefully. The ache in my stomach eased slightly, but I didn’t dare eat more for the swirling unease that churned within me.

We continued to sit in comfortable silence, Jo’s chocolate eyes flitted around, watching every movement, her anxiety making her on edge. I placed my hand over hers and gave it a quick squeeze, my lips turning up into what I hoped was a reassuring smile. She gave me a quick grin, but her eyes stayed wide and alert. I had seen that look before. It was someone who lived with PTSD. 

In our lives, Piper and I hadn’t dealt with many humans, but any that came into contact with any werewolves always had this look. They were generally traumatised by what they saw, especially if they were attacked by rogues. I felt sorry for Jo. She seemed too sweet and innocent to be stuck here.

“Ladies,” Norah announced loudly. My eyes flicked to where she stood beckoning us over to the large open spaced near the door.

Piper and I met each other gaze and I gave her a terse nod. This was it. Whatever was going to happen, we were going to face this together.