“She is like a sister to me, and I thought it would be more likely that you wouldn’t ask her questions if you thought she was my sister.”
“You thought wrong,” Madame Kovacs said. “I did not survive the death of my husband and maintain his affairs by not knowing what is happening around me.”
Ruxandra could have commanded the woman, but she didn’t want to. To force a person to care for someone was almost certainly the way to make things go badly.
She bowed her head. “I am sorry, Madame Kovacs.”
“I think you had better explain yourself. Does this girl belong to Lady Bathory?”
“She did,” Ruxandra said. “Now she is my servant.”
“Who, exactly are you, my dear?” Madame Kovacs asked. “You have not given your name.”
Ruxandra smiled, in spite of herself. “My pardon. I am not used to using it.”
Madame Kovacs’ eyebrows rose, but she said nothing.
Ruxandra stood and did a formal curtsy. “I am Ruxandra Dracula, daughter of the House of Dracula, of Wallachia.”
“Dracula? As in Prince Vlad Dracula the Impaler?”
“Pardon?”
“Impaler,” Madame Kovacs said. “That is how he was known, was it not?”
Ruxandra had not heard him called that when she was alive, but nodded anyway. “Quite the heritage,” Madame Kovacs said. “You are one of the noble girls she educates, then.”
Close enough. “Yes.”
“My lady?” Jana peeked around the doorframe.
“Jana!” Ruxandra saw worry and fear in the girl’s face. “I am so sorry I didn’t return last night.”
Jana ran to her and threw her arms around Ruxandra’s neck. Jana’s breath hissed through her teeth as the movement pulled on the scabs on her back. She hugged Ruxandra tight anyway.
“It’s all right.” Ruxandra held her gently. “You’re all right.”
“I thought you’d left me.” Jana let go with one arm and reached into her shirt. She pulled out the bag of coins. “I still have all your money.”
Ruxandra took the purse, lifted Jana off her lap, and sat her down beside her. Madame Kovacs watched them, curiously.
“Jana is my servant, yes,” Ruxandra said. “She is also the closest thing I have to a sister now. Unfortunately, if she remains in my company, her life will be in danger.”
“My lady, no—”
“Jana is thirteen,” Ruxandra continued as if Jana had not spoken at all. “She cannot read. She cannot do basic mathematics. She doesn’t know how to run a household. She needs to learn all these things, and she needs a place where she can be safe while she learns.”
Ruxandra held out the purse. “This will pay for her upkeep for the next five years while she learns to be a proper young woman. What’s left will cover her dowry when she marries.”
“My lady, please—”
“Enough, Jana,” Ruxandra said.
“She is very attached to you,” Madame Kovacs said. “Why do you not stay here with her? With the money you have, you would find a place, I am sure.”
“Elizabeth,” Ruxandra said. “She will come after me. Also, I’m . . .”
The only one who can stop her.
“The only one who can keep her from coming after Jana,” Ruxandra lied. With Jana safe, I can get Elizabeth to come away with me.
Madame Kovacs nodded. “Very well. Then consider this your home, Jana. We will start you on lessons tomorrow.”
“I don’t want to,” Jana’s whispered. “I want to stay with Ruxandra.”
“Shh . . .” Ruxandra kissed her on the top of the head. “It’s better for you here.”
The farewells with Jana lasted half an hour. Jana cried the entire time. Finally, Ruxandra picked her up and carried her back to her room. She tucked the girl into her bed, kissed her, and left her crying in the dark.
I will never see her again.
The thought left a hole in her heart and brought forth the tears Ruxandra had been holding back. She cried all the way to the city gate.
Four girls waited there, each carrying a bag and wearing clothes fit for the winter. None of them spoke.
Ruxandra kept herself unnoticed and watched, uneasiness growing inside her. As the hours of the night passed, three carriages came by, dropping off three more girls. They also took places against the wall.
All of them looked scared.
Just before dawn, a train of carriages led by knights pulled up to the gate. The lead carriage was embossed with the Bathory coat of arms. Elizabeth leaned out of the window and called, “Ruxandra! It’s time to leave!”
Ruxandra made herself noticeable and climbed inside. She heard Dorotyas shouting at the girls to get into one of the carriages. Then the train started moving.
“An excellent night’s work.” Elizabeth looked pleased. “Seven new girls for the gymnaesium, over a thousand florins in fees to pay for them. Right now Lady Czobor is regretting everything she has ever done to me.”
Ruxandra glared out the window at the lightening sky.
“Whatever is the matter, darling?” Elizabeth asked. “Isn’t this what we wanted? Freedom?”
“I wanted to leave,” Ruxandra said. “I wanted to travel.”
“As do I, but one must be patient.”
Anger rose up in Ruxandra like a fire. The Beast woke and growled. “Settling your affairs means handing your lands over to your sons, not bringing in seven new girls for the school.”
“Is that what this temper is about?”
“And the brothel.”
“They were peasants.”
“So what?” Ruxandra demanded. “They were people!”
“You feed off people, remember?” Elizabeth’s voice was cold. “You drink their blood and leave them dead, so do not pretend you’re better than me. I protected us. For now, we must get back to the castle. The girls there have not been disciplined in a long time, and I have much work to do before we can go anywhere.”
“What do you mean by disciplined?”
Elizabeth’s eyes narrowed. “Exactly what I said. Whether or not I am a vampire, I will not fail those girls by leaving them as an undisciplined rabble.” She leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes. “Now please be quiet, Ruxandra. It has been a long and tedious night.”
Ruxandra stared at her. She crossed her arms and sank back into the corner.
I should leave.
Leave the castle and go out into the world and . . .
Leave Elizabeth?
I can’t. I love her. I made her. I can’t leave her.
She argued with herself until nightfall, when the carriages pulled into an inn yard. Dorotyas got the seven new girls out of the carriage and had them line up to await Elizabeth. Elizabeth took her time getting out of the carriage, took longer walking over to the girls, and longer yet looking them over. Ruxandra followed her.
“Come with me,” she said. “All of you.”
She turned her back on the girls and went to the stables behind the inn. She spoke a word to a small group of her knights and walked ahead with four of them. By the time Elizabeth reached the stables, the knights had the stable hands lined up beside the door.
“Thank you, gentlemen,” Elizabeth said. “Ladies, inside.”
The seven girls went in. Dorotyas and Elizabeth fell in behind then. Ruxandra stepped in after. Elizabeth made the girls line up in front of her.
“Cristina Czobor, step forward.”
Lady Czobor’s daughter was blonde, with fair skin and large, blue eyes. She stepped forward but didn’t look up.
“Your mother has caused me no end of trouble.” Elizabeth grabbed the girl’s jaw. Cristina winced but didn’t cry out. “Starting today, you will make amends for that trouble. Now take off your clothes and face the wall.”
“No.” Cristina tried to shake her head but couldn’t move in Elizabeth’s grip. “I won’t.”
“Defying me, girl?” Elizabeth said, her tone the same as the man who wan
ted to rape Ruxandra in the alley. “We’ll see about that. Take off your clothes.”
“Elizabeth,” Ruxandra stepped forward. “What are you doing?”
“Setting an example,” Elizabeth said. “The first thing the girls learn is that they must not defy me, and this one is defiant.”
“But—”
Elizabeth stepped closer to Ruxandra, her voice dropping low. “Do not show contempt for my authority in front of these girls. If you don’t want to watch, you can leave.”
Elizabeth released her and watched Cristina undress, the girl’s hands trembling so badly it took twice as long as it should have. When she was naked and facing the wall, Elizabeth turned to the other girls.
“All of you watch, none of you move. Dorotyas?”
Dorotyas handed Elizabeth the strap from her belt.
“Elizabeth,” Ruxandra whispered. “Please don’t.”
Elizabeth swung the strap onto Cristina’s thighs. The girl screamed and grabbed at the wall. Elizabeth swung it again and again, each time hitting a different spot. Not once did she draw blood, but Cristina wore red welts all across her back, thighs, and backside.
“Dress yourself,” Elizabeth said. “Stay here, facing the wall until I come get you.”
She looked at the other six girls. All were shaking, their eyes wide with horror.
“Obedience is expected at all times,” Elizabeth said. “No failures of respect, discipline, or behavior are allowed. Do you understand?”
The girls nodded.
“You six go inside and have dinner. Now.”
The other girls bowed their heads and went. Elizabeth watched them go, handed the strap to Dorotyas, and walked out behind them.
“Ruxandra, dear,” she said over her shoulder. “May I speak with you?”
Ruxandra followed, her feet dragging. She felt like she used to when the Mother Superior caught her misbehaving. Elizabeth led her out of the stables, but instead of going to the inn, she took Ruxandra around the back.
“Yes, Elizabeth, what—”
She didn’t get any farther. Elizabeth’s mouth landed on hers, her tongue ramming between Ruxandra’s teeth. She grabbed Ruxandra’s breasts and pushed her up against the wall. Ruxandra tried to protest, but Elizabeth wouldn’t stop kissing her, wouldn’t stop caressing her. One hand slipped from Ruxandra’s breasts and began pulling up her skirt. Ruxandra was reminded again of the man in the alley, and her skin curdled with rage. She tried to push Elizabeth away, but the other woman was as strong as she. Elizabeth’s mouth lifted off Ruxandra’s and went to her ear.
“There is nothing,” she whispered as her hand dove underneath the raised edge of Ruxandra’s skirt, “so exciting as watching a girl’s spirit break.”
“Get off me,” Ruxandra hissed. “Now.”
“No.” Elizabeth nipped Ruxandra’s earlobe. “I need to touch you.”
Her hand drove up between Ruxandra’s thighs, her fingers shoving hard inside. Ruxandra yelped and grabbed for her hand. She tried to push it back, but Elizabeth didn’t relent.
“I don’t want to,” Ruxandra whispered. “Please.”
“Oh, but I do.” Elizabeth began moving her fingers. “You are mine, pretty Ruxandra. Do you understand?”
Elizabeth’s fingers shifted and began rubbing her. Against her will, Ruxandra found her breath coming in gasps. She opened her mouth to protest, but a moan came out instead. Elizabeth tore open the front of Ruxandra’s dress with her free hand and dropped her face down to engulf one of her nipples. Ruxandra moaned again, the stimulation driving her farther and farther along until she cried out and her knees buckled.
Elizabeth stood up confidently. Ruxandra stayed on her knees, gasping.
She let Ruxandra go and stepped back. “That was excellent, my dear. Now, shall we go off and hunt? Because I, for one, am hungry.”
Ruxandra looked down at the ruined gown, at the fading red marks on her bare breast from Elizabeth’s lips and teeth.
“I didn’t want to,” Ruxandra said.
“Yes, you did. You just didn’t know it. Now come, let’s change into something suitable for hunting.”
Ruxandra rose and pulled ragged edges of the torn fabric together. Then she turned and walked away.
“Ruxandra?”
“Ruxandra!” On the second word, Elizabeth’s voice cracked like a whip. “Where are you going?”
“Away,” Ruxandra said. “I’m going away from you.”
“WHAT DO YOU MEAN going away?” Elizabeth demanded. “You’re not going anywhere.”
“You’re not going anywhere, you mean.” Ruxandra didn’t turn around. “I want to leave. I want to travel. I do not want to be cooped up in the castle again. Not anymore.”
“The castle is the one place you’re safe, Ruxandra.” Elizabeth caught her shoulder. “You know that.”
Ruxandra spun, knocking Elizabeth’s hand away. “Like Lady Czobor’s daughter is safe? Like the girls in your dungeon are safe? There was no reason to do that to her.”
“She needed to be put in her place.”
““Do I need to be put in my place, too?” Ruxandra closed the distance. “Is that why you did that to me?” She felt her fangs come out. She didn’t care.
“That?” Elizabeth didn’t move. “You liked that. You took it, didn’t you?” Elizabeth stepped so close their bodies were touching. Her fangs were showing too. “I felt you spreading for my fingers, and I felt your knees buckle.”
Her closeness unnerved Ruxandra. She could smell Elizabeth’s desire, as well as the scent of stone and ice and stars that defined the woman as a vampire. It was as appealing as ever, like a tune she would never tire of. Ruxandra tried to turn away again, but Elizabeth caught both her shoulders and held her fast.
“Tell me you didn’t like it.”
“That’s . . .” Ruxandra’s hands made fists in her hair. How can I love someone who thinks like this? “That has nothing to do with it. I didn’t want to!”
“I did.”
Tears welled up in Ruxandra’s eyes. “What I want doesn’t matter?”
“Of course it does.”
“Then stop this!” Ruxandra yelled. “Stop this and come away with me!”
Elizabeth’s eyes glowed. “We have everything we need at the castle. We will be able to feed, to rule, and to gain more and more power until we are unstoppable.”
Ruxandra’s lips pressed hard together. When she spoke again, the words came out in harsh, clipped syllables. “I. Don’t. Want. To. Rule.”
“I do. I want you with me. You belong to me, Ruxandra, and I won’t let you go.”
The Beast growled, long, low, and menacing. The sound slipped passed Ruxandra’s lips before she could stop it. Elizabeth stepped back, her self-assurance faltering.
“Control that animal,” Elizabeth said, “before you kill everyone here.”
“I do not belong to anyone.” Ruxandra pushed the Beast back into its cage. “I will not be your pet!” Ruxandra heard the desperation in her own voice and hated it. “Come travel with me. You said we would travel together! Was it all lies?”
Elizabeth said nothing. Her face was perfectly blank but Ruxandra could smell it. Self-satisfaction. She lied and is so glad it worked.
Ruxandra turned and walked toward the woods.
“You will come back to me,” Elizabeth called after her. “You will come crawling back to me!”
Ruxandra didn’t look back. She kept walking, her back straight, her head high, and tears rolling down her face.
I won’t let her see me crying, I won’t.
The woods enveloped her like a ragged cloak. The winter had left the trees barren and the grass brown. Ruxandra moved silently through it, disappearing into the woods like a ghost. She listened for pursuit, but none came.
Why did she lie to me?
Her stomach felt like a hollow pit.
I don’t need her. I can see the world by myself.
She changed direction, walking pa
rallel to the road to Vienna. With the return of her memories came all her skills at navigating the forest. She kept on direction without trouble.
She would not go back into Vienna, though. It was too risky. She would take the road outside the city. The one heading west.
Maybe Rome. Or Venice. Or maybe I can go to France . . .
The thought excited her in a way she hadn’t felt since first seeing Vienna. There were things she could do that she had never done before, places she could see.
I’ll need money for that.
Maybe I can find work.
Ruxandra laughed at the idea. She had never worked a day in her life.
I could only work at night, anyway.
No, I’ll command people to give me money. Rich people. They won’t miss it.
Ruxandra looked down at her exposed breast. I can’t walk around in the cities like this. I’ll buy some plain dresses for hunting and for walking about and some fancy dresses so I can be beautiful at concerts and . . .
She remembered the times Elizabeth had called her beautiful, their laughter and conversation, and the hollow feeling in her stomach grew worse and worse. She started crying again.
No, I won’t cry about her. She dashed the tears away with her sleeve. She doesn’t care about me anyway. She wants to rule over people. So I don’t have to worry about her at all.
Even so, the tears kept coming. Her entire body began shaking with grief and loneliness. She leaned against a tree and then fell to the ground, curling her arms around her knees and burying her face between them.
I should go back to her.
The thought came unbidden, unwanted. She shoved it away. With an angry push against the tree she got back on her feet and started walking again.
I won’t cry about her. Not anymore. I won’t go back to her. Ever.
I won’t.
For the first time in months, she spent the night in the forest. She made a small, tight den and crawled inside. The dirt got all over her clothes and skin and into her hair. It was at once comforting and miserable.
When morning came, the hollow in her stomach was worse. She spent an hour crying before she managed to get moving again. She headed for the road, determined to put as much space between her and Elizabeth as possible. It took less than an hour to reach it. She started running, the speed faster than a galloping horse. By the time the night was half gone, Vienna was ahead of her, the torches in the walls glowing in the distance. A quarter hour later, she reached the crossroads and turned west.