The Dark Heroine: Dinner with a Vampire. Abigail Gibbs

      ‘What happened to the Queen?’

      I instantly regretted asking, because whatever it was, it had stirred some deep, forgotten emotion in him. He sank back into the chair and his blue eyes flashed to black, and then to grey, where they remained. They were pitiful, lost of all the life they usually contained. If colour could drain from his face, it would.

      ‘I-I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked,’ I stammered. His eyes glazed over and he didn’t move. ‘Fabian?’

      His head snapped up and the greyness in his eyes seemed to melt away, returning to their usual sky blue. His stiff body loosened and he ran a hand down the back of his head.

      ‘I’m sorry, but when you know someone that long … you …’ he trailed off. ‘I will tell you on the condition that you never speak a word of it to anyone but me.’

      I didn’t hesitate. ‘I won’t say a thing.’

      ‘I will start from the very beginning. It’s a long story.’

      I shifted a little, trying to make myself as comfortable as possible, never taking my eyes off his saddened face.

      ‘Vampires have been around for millions of years, roaming the Earth millennia before humans. Nobody knows how we came about. There are no theories. But we were a peaceful species, and for many centuries, we lived alongside nature without any conflict. We drank the blood of any animal we could lay our hands on, and in turn we were respected as the ultimate predator. We were primitive – but still far more advanced than any other animal at the time.’

      He paused for a moment, thinking.

      ‘If the theory of evolution is indeed correct, then about two million years ago, the first ape-type creatures appeared and, for the first time, the vampires met an animal similar to themselves. But vampires treated them like they did any other: they continued to hunt them. But it all changed when you lot arrived.’

      He stopped, looking me in the eye. You lot. Us.

      ‘These creatures were clever, resourceful and, most importantly, were able to adapt. For the first time ever, vampires had met their match. But they continued to feed from them as they had done with every other animal and quickly developed a taste for their blood. Within a couple of centuries, the only acceptable blood was human; the only blood that would quench their thirst. Most vampires still hunted animals, but it wasn’t the same. But what our ancestors didn’t realize is that they were creating a situation that would cause problems forever more.’

      He stopped once more, allowing that to sink in.

      ‘How can you know this if it was so long ago?’ I asked.

      ‘Like I said, the oldest vampire is, well, old. He remembers a lot of our history and what he doesn’t know was passed down through his family,’ he answered, before carrying on. ‘As I was saying, the early humans eventually learnt to fight back, and the vampires realized their mistake. The most powerful vampire clan at the time ordered all vampires to go into hiding. They were told to try not to kill a human when they fed, and to hunt at night wherever possible. It was a drastic last minute attempt to prevent the destruction of both species. This powerful family continued to govern the vampires and they eventually became the first royal family. That family was the Varns.’

      I nodded. ‘But I don’t get what this has to do with the Queen?’

      ‘It will all make sense in a moment. Humanity was growing, and fast. Forced by the humans’ relentless fighting, the Varns and a few hundred others fled to Romania – what is modern day Transylvania. The vampires – only a few hundred in number by this point, followed them. They hid in the mountains, ruling from there. They took advantage of the unsuspecting people of Eastern Europe, unaware of the threat living in their lands. Around the same time, it was discovered that humans could be turned and the Varns’ ancestors ordered a mass turning. Thousands became vampires in just one night. Stronger, more confident, they branched out.’

      He paused for a breathy sigh, which I realized he hadn’t been taking.

      ‘But the old rules still stood and no vampire would dare hunt during the day; most rarely went out into the daylight. Unseen, the vampires were gradually forgotten, and stories told by fathers to sons turned into myths and legends. Vampires graced by the old, original ways, remained the top predator on Earth. No other creature lived as long, or possessed the same qualities, not even the...’ He stopped, seeing my panicked eyes, which were screaming for him not to tell me about what else was out there. He seemed flustered himself.

      ‘But there were always those who never forgot. Those who refused to stop believing. These are the humans who became the hunters and the slayers, and they vowed to protect humanity; to take revenge on vampires for their ruthless hunting, hundreds of thousands of years before. Indeed, they managed to drive most of the vampires from Transylvania about three hundred years ago. Most settled here, in England. A lot went to the Americas too, in search of the wealth it promised. Not that most of the vampires needed it,’ he muttered.

      ‘King Vladimir, the current king, has ruled for millennia now. But when he was just a Prince, he met a young vampire who lived in what is now Spain. She was called Carmen Eztli. Over time, they fell in love and with the blessing of both families, they married a century later. The match was perfect and together they ruled for almost ten thousand years and had six children.’

      He rested his chin in his hands. ‘She was the perfect antidote to the King’s pessimism and temper and, in turn, he tamed her sharp tongue. You don’t find love like that every day.’

      I couldn’t help but notice that he kept using ‘was’, but it seemed as though he was about to explain that.

      ‘Just over three years ago, a new human government came to power. Outwardly, they seemed more sympathetic to our cause, so the Queen, seeing an opportunity, quickly sought the passing of a new treaty to update what had already been signed. The government agreed on the condition that their slayer allies, the Pierre clan, would also sign it.’

      He didn’t seem to notice me slipping onto the coffee table as I tried to catch his hushed words, which were becoming quieter and quieter.

      ‘The Queen went on a state visit to Romania to open up discussions. She went to the Pierre’s ancestral home in Romania, and before she could even … they had leapt on her …’ He was choking up, sobs escaping his lips but no tears falling. ‘They leapt on her, and pushed a stake through her heart!’

      My hands flew to my mouth and I took in a sharp breath. ‘She was murdered?’ I didn’t know what I had expected, but it wasn’t that. I felt something wet drop into my lap and, astonished, found tears falling from my own eyes. I glided to his side and hovered beside the arm of the chair, hardly knowing what I was doing.

      ‘I’m so sorry,’ I whispered. ‘I shouldn’t have brought it up.’ He wrapped his arms around my waist and rested his head against my stomach. I tensed at the sudden contact but he didn’t seem to notice how uncomfortable he was making me.

      ‘It’s okay,’ he murmured back, ‘You couldn’t have known. It was two-and-a-half years ago now but for us that feels like yesterday. It ruined us. She was so loved. Thousands went to her funeral.’ His sentences were disjointed and clipped, his pain at recounting what had happened clear. ‘It was the worst day of my life. So many people cried and, Violet, vampires don’t give up their tears easily. But they did. It was awful. I’m used to people dying, but this … this was different. It was like I had lost a part of me, like half my heart had died.’

      I nodded, knowing the exact feeling.

      ‘Afterwards, everything changed. Nobody was ever the same. The King moved out of the main bedroom and Kaspar had it instead. The King never smiles any more and locks himself up in his study most of the time. He hates royal events, and he will avoid them as much as he can. He died along with his wife.’

      His eyes filled with more remorse; more pain; more regret.

      ‘There were mass killings