Page 90 of Eternal Captive

My mother lived her life trying to do right by these people, and what did that get her in the end?

A disappointing daughter.A daughter who couldn’t care less about the people who had tried to save her. Some even lost their lives by standing up to my father.

Why did it take me so long to realize this?Had I been so crazed with trying to fit into the mold of a vampire king’s cruel daughter that I forgot everything else?

It didn’t matter if they had originally joined for Mother—they stayed forme.Their loyalty was tome.

It didn’t matter what Prince Icas offered them, at least not to the truly loyal ones. They would follow me. I just had to have the courage to act.

I gave up before I even tried.

The words were like a slap in the face and strong enough to cause me to stumble slightly. My mind spun. My chest ached. I wanted to cry. I wanted to scream.

If I had done anything even the slightest bit different, would this have changed?

Brushing it off with a smile, I righted myself before the stares could eat me alive. I had never felt so unnerved in my life. Never felt so weak.

Where the fuck is this coming from?I did the best that I could while trapped in my cage. Mother would have understood…wouldn’t she?Would the people?

But after that one cruel sentence flitted through my mind…I couldn’t help but notice all those who came out to see me.

Behind the rows of rich vampires and powerful humans, they were all there. I remembered them. Every single one. I could pick out the faces of those who kneeled down in front of my mother to greet me every time she and I walked through the palace grounds.

I remembered the ones who came to see me in the pouring rain after my mother died.

We weren’t allowed a funeral, but they did their best to provide me with wreaths of petrified roses, a gesture to let me know Mother would stay just like that—frozen in their memories, never to be forgotten.

I looked at them all, using their faces as my guide down the aisle. Instead of racing to my husband, I was racing to their memories.

My stomach twisted itself into a knot. So tight, it threatened to bring up whatever leftover blood I had in my stomach.Regret.An aching, all-powerful feeling that caused a sense of shame to fall over me.

As soon as my feet hit the threshold of the throne room, all those familiar faces left. There was not one person in there who was a part of the family, save for Father’s court members. The rest were from other families in the area, all of them packed into the throne room. Making a once vast space seem so crowded.

I recognized a few.

Elora and her rotten husband. She looked just as withered as the last time I saw her. But even then, she managed a smile for me.

Dalia and her husband were there, standing side by side, his father not far behind.

And then, right at the end, on his throne, sat my father. He wore his red ceremonial robe, which he usually reservedfor initiating family members. It was the same dark red I was wearing, with intricate golden designs. My stepmother and her daughter were by him in all black.

They looked down at me with smug grins. Maybe to onlookers, their expressions would have looked supportive, but I knew better. I had seen that sly smirk one too many times to be fooled by it.

They were eating it up. Their attempt to get me out of their hair angered me, but it saddened me even more to realize just how complacent I had been.

Because of me, they were able to pull it off. Because of me, they would now be in charge of all the family members I left behind.

At last, my eyes found the man of the hour. Prince Icas stood at the bottom of the steps, waiting for me. His hair was slicked back, and he wore a white robe with dark red underneath. It was so showy, I was surprised my father even allowed it. He gave me a beaming smile that, I’m sure, melted at leastsomeof the hearts in the room.

At least the ones who didn’t know just how twisted he was behind that mask of his.

I don’t want to do this.

Less than ten steps away from him, my stomach fell to my feet.

The dress felt too tight. Too itchy.

It was getting hard to breathe.

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