Punishment

Bel grimaced as she took a spoonful of her food, displeased to be seated next to the dhampir. Catching her glance, he turned, locking eyes with her, and for a brief moment, Bel was frozen.

His presence was intimidating, marked by a scar on his face and the dark look in his eyes—whether one was more menacing than the other, she couldn't tell.

Now that she was close, she noticed he was larger than she had thought. He wasn't just tall, he was huge and his arms looked to be the size of her head.

His dark blond hair was cropped so short that the strands spiked up, and a scar on his scalp masqueraded as a deliberate part of his hairstyle.

Bel forced herself to look away, vowing to avoid any further eye contact. She couldn't wait for dinner to be over.

Her eyes scanned the table, briefly resting on her father. He was sitting at his usual seat, the head of the table. His wife—her mother sat next to him on his right side, while she sat next to him on his left side.

Hazel was seated next to their mother. Bel was sitting in Hazel's seat, and had been for years. One day, she had made a fuss that she was the only one not seated next to her father.

Hazel had forfeited her seat without any argument or cajoling. Bel had been beyond happy at the time but right now she hated it.

Hazel smiled as Bel's gaze met hers but Bel merely looked away. She locked her gaze on her meal and didn't look up again until she was sure Hazel wasn't looking in her direction.

The dining room was modest for a royal family. Two chandeliers hung off the ceiling. They were the major source of light in the room. They held a dozen candles each, Bel would know, she had spent a lot of time counting them.

On the table laid three candelabras, they only held three candles and were placed at equal distance from each other.

Servants lingered a few feet away, watching carefully as they waited to be summoned.

Conversations dried up quickly and the dining room was filled with sounds of the cutlery hitting the plates.

Bel counted the seconds as she forced herself to eat. The food tasted like ash as she forced it down her throat and if she wasn't starving she would have stopped.

Halfway through her meal, she turned to see her father's gaze on her. He was almost done with his meal and by the look on his face, he wanted her to eat faster.

Bel tore her gaze away. If her father wanted that conversation he should be willing to wait. She knew she was eating slowly as her mother and sister were nearly done with their meals but she couldn't be bothered to eat any faster.

Bel winced as a loud sound broke the silence. It was the sound of a chair being dragged on the wooden floor.

She turned to see the dhampir on his feet, his head bent forward slightly. "I apologize but I would have to retire for the night, the journey here wasn't the easiest and I am due some rest."

"Of course, Stelian," her father replied a little too eagerly. "Get some rest, the servants will provide anything you may need."

"Thank you for your warm hospitality," he nodded and glanced at Bel before he started for the door.

"Bel," King Aaron called and she jerked. "Your food grows cold."

She narrowed her eyes at him and looked at her plate. She didn't increase her pace. At this point, she was the only one left eating.

Unable to stall any longer, Bel ate the last of her meal. The last swallow left a bitter taste in her mouth which she tried to wash down with some water.

"Shall we?" Her father asked before she could even drop the cup back on the table. She could tell his patience had run out.

She glanced at her mother, her face was hard to read. She moved to Hazel who looked sympathetic.

Bel stood to her feet and without a response to her father's words, she started for the door.

"Young lady!" He called.

"I'd rather not have the conversation here," she replied without turning around. "I will be in the drawing room upstairs.

***

Bel sat down in the drawing room, the room was slowly warming up. The fire crackled as it caught the wood. The servant bowed and rushed out the door.

Autumn was drawing to a close but there was still time to prepare for winter. She couldn't believe she wouldn't be spending winter here according to her parents' plan but she wasn't going to let that happen.

Bel didn't turn to the sound of the door opening. She was slightly disappointed that he was here already, she had assumed she would get at least a few more minutes to brace herself.

"That's quite the attitude you've picked up," he said as he walked closer, she could hear the soft sound of the door closing behind him. "I would think my daughter would have more respect for me."

"Respect is reciprocal," Bel retorted, her tone sharp. "You disregarded my wishes first."

"Disregarded your wishes?" he questioned, settling into a chair. "That's hardly possible."

"What do you mean?" She asked in horror, feeling herself getting agitated. "You're marrying me off to a vampire!"

"You've never expressed a dislike for vampires. I would have considered that," her father gently explained. His soft tone was pissing her off more than his words.

"He is a stranger!" She yelled.

"So? Your mother was a stranger when I first met her. We were betrothed two days later."

"That's different," she said.

"I don't see how it is," he said softly. "Had you found someone yourself, we wouldn't be having this conversation."

Bel's eyes widened slightly. "You're punishing me for not falling in love with someone like Hazel did," Bel whispered, her voice breaking with emotion.