Blood on the Crown

Prologue:

WARNING: THIS CONTAINS 18+, SEXUAL & VIOLENT CONTENT

Amara’s POV

“Yes… Daddy, fuck me harder. Ugh, yes, just like that.”

Hilda’s moans were as irritating as a rooster crowing at the break of dawn.

“Spread your legs wider, you slut.” Master Valeth commanded. His voice was loud enough that you could hear it from outside the room.

I shook my head wondering what my bestie saw in the master. Master Valeth was known for his predatory desires on women.

He'd fuck anything, as long as it had a skirt and a pussy.

Yesterday, he tried convincing me to have sex with him but I refused. He probably would have forced himself on me but luckily a guest, a vampire noble had come so he had to attend to them.

I knew the only reason he placed me in front of his room to watch for passersby was so that I could hear him devour my bestie.

He thought I'd feel jealous or I'd become frustrated and start begging him for it.

I spat on the ground. All I felt was disgust.

Most days in Valeths estate were like this. It was filled with filth all through.

I'd long gotten used to the creaking bed frames and moans that echoed through the halls.

My role was simple. Clean, obey and keep quiet.

I tightened my grip on the broom. I'd been sweeping the same spot for over twenty minutes.

The floor was already spotless but Master Valeth always found dust even if there was none.

Once, I had finished cleaning up the living room. Master Valeth came in and called it filthy then slapped me across the face.

Before I could even respond, he kicked me on the ribs then ordered the guards to lock me up while I knelt on the rice and if I ever stood they could do anything they liked to me.

Fortunately enough though, it never got to the point where it was sexual.

But it was still disgraceful and dehumanizing.

“Amara…”

I turned to see Hilda, half-naked, walk out of the room. I was about to reply her when Master Valeth followed her from behind.

I bowed my head and greeted the master. But he just ignored me and walked away, leaving Hilda there, like the object he saw her to be.

When he was finally gone, Hilda turned to me with a grin. I rolled my eyes and walked into the bedroom to clean it up.

The scent of semen and raw sex filled the air, I was already used to it though. Anytime Valeth finished his filthy work, he'd always call for me to clean it up.

I sighed. At least I was never one of his sex toys.

Valeth had called me a whore once just because I refused his advances. He'd insult and load me with work.

Hilda leaned on the bed frame, brushing her hair from her flushed face. “You should try it sometime, Ama,” she purred, her voice thick with misplaced satisfaction. “He’s rough, but he knows how to make you feel things.”

I didn't reply. I just went back to sweeping the room. While she just laughed like she hadn't just given her body to a man who saw her as nothing more than a vessel.

My silence was enough.

She rolled her eyes then muttered something under her breath before strolling off to the servants quarter, still reeking of sex and cheap perfume.

When the hallway finally fell quiet, I allowed myself to breathe. The wooden broom handle pressed into my calloused palms, grounding me. Pain was easier to bear than helplessness. And over time, I'd learned to find a strange comfort in routine. In silence. In invisibility.

I wasn’t here to be noticed. I was here to survive.

My thoughts drifted before I could stop myself. I only had one problem now, the dreams I kept on having.

Flashes of a kingdom torn apart by war. Blood in the streets and skies thick with smoke. A once-glorious castle crumbling under fire and steel, and in the heart of it all was a broken throne.

It wasn’t just a vision. It felt real and even familiar.

Sometimes, I stood at the edge of the battlefield and cloaked in shadows. Other times, I wore armor soaked in blood… my own or someone else’s, I could never tell. A sword in my hand and a crown shattered at my feet.

And always… the whisper.

“Come back.”

A voice I couldn’t place. It wasn't male or female…. It was just ancient.

I blinked, realizing I had stopped sweeping again. The stone floor blurred beneath me. My chest tightened.

Was I losing my mind? Or was there something more to these dreams?

What did it mean?

I wasn’t special. I was just a maid in a cursed house in the Rendall kingdom run by vampires. My hands were made for scrubbing floors, not holding swords.

I was barely managing to survive, talk less of fighting in glory.

Yet the dreams wouldn’t stop.

Maybe it was madness. Or maybe… They were memories.

Of another life. Of another me.

I shook my head, pushing the thoughts away. Yeah right…. Like I was some reincarnated hero.

“I told you, arrangements would be made to serve Prince Lucien.” Master Valeth's desperate voice dragged me back to reality.

“You've been saying that for over a week now, Valeth” A voice responded coldly. “This week's supply of blood is already overdue.”

Supply of blood? I leaned closer to the door from inside the room.

“I know, it's just…..”

The stranger cut Valeth off. “The agreement was you'd provide villagers as food for the vampires and in return, we wouldn't attack.”

Master Valeth tried explaining but it followed with a loud thud. I assumed the guest had thrown Valeth on the floor.

“No more time, Valeth.” The voice snapped. “We'll strike the village tonight.”

My blood ran cold. No, no, no, no….. no. How would I survive if the vampires raided the village tonight?

I could run away…. But where to?

Before I could process the thought, the door swung open. I swayed a bit then hit a hard surface.

I quickly stepped back and when I looked at who it was.

Holy God… he was hot.

The man was ripped, the white hairfalling over the face, barely covering the crimson eyes that seemed to pierce into my soul.

“Who are you?” He asked, his voice deep, sending chills down my body. I'd never felt this way just by hearing someone speak.

But then I noticed the fangs.

Oh shit.

Before I could react, the man's hand closed around my neck. I gasped for air as he lifted me from the ground effortlessly.

My vision began to blur.

Then he tossed me aside with a brutal force. I hit the floor hard, the impact knocking the breath from me. I curled up, coughing, blood trailing from the corner of my mouth.

“I won't ask again.” he growled, stepping closer. “Who are you?”