TAKEN BY THE DRAGON KING

Darkest Night

***

Elena

Everything was happening so quickly. One moment, I was sure that I was going to die, the next, Dracul was charging in and ready to fight for me.

The man who had me in his grasp had let go of me already, letting me fall to the floor.

I could have run. I could have fled, but where would I have gone? I had already gotten lost and into this mess, so where could I possibly go that would keep me safe?

I felt sick, nausea rolling in waves in my stomach until I was dizzy with the sensations. I hated this.

I hated this. I hated this place, this dead, horrible land, and the terrible people who lived here.

And then there was Dracul. Dracul who had found me and saved me, Dracul who was taking on five men to defend me.

Dracul had told me to stay here, to not run away.

So, I hid instead. I moved behind the closest tree and shielded myself from the fight.

And what a fight it was. In the dark, it was hard to see exactly what was happening, exactly what was going on.

But I knew that it was brutal. I could tell from the snarls and roars that echoed from the small clearing. I could tell, right here and now, that Dracul wasn’t someone to mess around with.

Dracul was someone who knew what he was doing in a fight. He knew how to trade blows. He knew what he was doing, and I felt dizzy just thinking about it.

He’s no figurehead.

Was that why he wasn’t the dragon king? Because a king was someone who got the title from their bloodline. A king inherited their crown.

But Dracul… Dracul had worked for this title. I could tell right now that he got this title because he was the best, plain and simple.

He was the strongest, the smartest, the best. When it came to a fight, there was no one who could take him down.

Five on one and he was holding his own. I wanted to sink to the ground again. My knees felt like they were about to give out, felt like they were about to collapse from underneath me.

I clung to the trees.

Dracul was so strong. So sure of himself, so sure of his movements. He was experienced in a fight, that much was absolutely crystal clear. He was experienced and he wasn’t about to lose.

One man was already out, and I wanted to look away, but I couldn’t.

Because yes, it was violent, but it was Dracul. And he wasn’t doing it to hunt. He was doing it to protect his name. He was doing it to keep me safe. And I couldn’t look away from that.

I had caused it, all of this.

And I could do nothing but pray that Dracul got out of this in one piece.

My heart was still racing in my chest, pounding through my veins, dulling my hearing until all I could think about was what was right in front of me.

I wanted this to end.

I wanted Dracul to be okay.

And just like that, I heard the roar tumble from his lips, a sound of pain that cut through the air.

My heart skipped a beat. My stomach twisted. I knew it was Dracul. I knew his voice. He was hurt.

I covered my mouth to stifle a shout. I didn’t want to distract him. I saw him stumble in the dark. I wanted to run to him.

I wanted to grab him, protect him, save him. But I didn’t know-how.

I couldn’t hold my own against these beasts. I couldn’t do anything but stand here and watch.

But Dracul didn’t stop. He didn’t let it stop him. He was straight back into it.

He fought with renewed energy, with energy that he pulled from the deepest recesses of his mind. I didn’t know how he was still going.

I would have given up already.

But Dracul didn’t. And one by one, the men around him went down. One by one, they were slammed into trees of kicked into the dirt.

And one by one, as my eyes adjusted to the dark, they stopped getting back up.

One by one, Dracul took every one of them down, until he was the only one left standing.

And as I looked at him, I no longer cared if he was angry. He turned to me and I didn’t fear his hatred, his anger, his fury.

“Dracul.” I cried.

He stared at me and I could see the beautiful gold of his eyes flickering in the light.

And then he collapsed.

I screamed as he fell to the ground, his body thudding onto the soft earth beneath us. I ran towards him, no longer thinking about anything but his safety.

He was hurt, he was hurt because of me and I needed to get him home. I needed to get him back. I needed to help him.

I ran to his side and slid to my knees, my heart aching and thundering in my chest, “Dracul?”

I swallowed as I lifted his head and rested it on my lap.

His hair was matted, and I pushed it out of his brow. His skin was warm and slick with sweat. His brow furrowed in pain and I felt a leap of relief.

He wasn’t dead.

“Dracul, look I’m here. I’ll get you back. It’s okay.” I said, stumbling over my words, my attempts to reassure.

I didn’t know how I was going to keep my promise. I didn’t know how I was supposed to make sure that he got back home. I didn’t know how I was supposed to move him.

But I had to try. I had to help him. I shuddered, looking him over. His eyes were shut, and his breathing was quick and ragged.

“Dracul… Dracul, I’m so sorry.” I whispered.

The tears caught in my throat and I did my best to swallow them. I couldn’t be crying, not right now. I couldn’t fall apart. I had to help him. I had to get him through this.

It’s all my fault.

I shook the pain off and focused on Dracul. My hands moved across his body until I found the damp spot.

The blood. It was soaking through his clothes, and I felt rips at the side of his torso.

I wanted to throw up. I wanted to be sick. But I had to keep going.

Tearing off my coat, I pulled at the seams until they gave. I ripped with all my strength, pulling the fabric into strips with shaking hands.

I applied pressure to the wounds gently and started to wrap them with strips of fabric.

Dracul hissed with pain, his body arching in my lap, and I shuddered with hurt. I didn’t want to hurt him. I didn’t want any of this. I didn’t want him to hurt. I wanted him to be okay.

I should never have run. I should never have been so damn stupid.

“I’m so sorry.” I whispered shakily, the words tumbling out of my mouth as I wrapped his wounds, applying pressure and doing my best to stop the bleeding.

In the dark, it was hard to tell how bad it was. It was hard to tell if he was okay, or if this was something fatal.

I shook my head and dislodged the traitorous thought.

I wouldn’t think about Dracul’s death. He was strong, he was so strong. There was no way that this was going to stop him.

There was no way that I was going to let him die here and I wasn’t even going to let myself think about it.

Not right now.

I thought I was angry at him. I thought I was hurt. But seeing him here like this made me feel nothing but fear and regret.

I never wanted Dracul to get hurt, never.

“Dracul…” I whispered, gently touching his face.

My hands were covered in his blood and I felt sick.

I didn’t know the way out of here, I didn’t know how to get back home. Even if I worked out how to move him, I had no way to know which direction was home.

Everything was so dark, and I was left all alone in the middle of the forest, with no one I could call.

Dracul was here. I owed my life to him. He’d saved me.

And I needed to save him in return.

My stomach twisted.

“Dracul, wake up,” I whispered, my voice cracking as I stared up into the unforgiving night sky.

“Dracul, I don’t know the way out of here. If you don’t wake up now-”

I choked, feeling the emotion cloud my vision and flood my eyes with tears.

“Dracul, you have to wake up. Please.” I whispered.

But he was deaf to my pleas.

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