However, the longer Juliet looked at the prince, with his salt-coloured hair, pink windburned cheeks, and virtuous-looking pale blue eyes, the more in awe of him she became.
Once she and Lord Capulet ascended the platform, Juliet could also see that the prince was wearing a red military-type uniform, which was similar to that of his sergeant at arms, only slimmer in the shoulders and more decorated with medals. Everything about him demanded respect, especially the brutish, scowling Sir Felix, who made no effort to conceal the long-sword at his side.
When her father bowed before the prince, Juliet lowered herself into her most reverent curtsy, her gown rippling around her like a wave of green spring leaves.
“Good evening, Prince Radu. We are delighted to have you and Sir Felix at our home,” Lord Capulet said.
“Thank you, good sir.” Prince Radu raised his eyebrows in amazement as he watched Lord Capulet levitating above the floor, right next to Juliet. “I am pleased to be here among your family and … shall I say ‘friends'?”
“Acquaintances mostly, but future allies, I hope.” Lord Capulet extended his hand to a lavishly dressed Lady Capulet and guided her to his left side. “You already met my lovely wife at the gate.”
“It is a great honour, Prince Radu,” Lady Capulet said as she delivered a perfect floating curtsy. Juliet was surprised that her mother could even get back up—the onyx choker around her neck was so gigantic, it must have weighed twenty pounds.
“And this is our precious daughter, Juliet.”
Juliet stifled a sarcastic laugh. If anyone had caught her with her father a few minutes ago, they would have questioned his use of the word “precious".
Nevertheless, Prince Radu smiled at Juliet and planted a gentle kiss on her hand.
“It is a privilege to meet you, Your Highness,” Juliet said.
“The privilege is mine, young lady,” the prince replied.
After a few moments of pleasantries, Juliet’s father gestured towards the expansive Great Hall.
“Shall I show you around the castle before I present you to the rest of our company?” Lord Capulet offered.
The prince glanced around the room, taking in the artistry of the Gothic rose windows and beautiful hand-woven, wall-hanging tapestries all around him. “Yes, I’d enjoy that.”
As Lord Capulet began to lead the prince and Sir Felix away, Juliet felt her mother’s fingers lace through her own. A cold sensation travelled up Juliet’s arm and deep into her chest. When in the presence of her mother, she usually was tense, but this feeling of dread was in a class of its own.
“Good God, I thought they would never stop talking. There is no time to waste,” Lady Capulet said, pulling her daughter down the stairs of the platform with great fervour.
Juliet tried to writhe away from her mother’s grip, but it was useless. Lady Capulet’s strength matched that of her husband’s.
“Where are you taking me?” Juliet asked.
Lady Capulet grinned, her teeth slightly stained with pig’s blood. “You will see soon enough.”
Romeo peeled back the hood of his grey cloak and gazed up at the foreboding mass of stone and brick that was Capulet Castle. Protected by a gigantic iron gate that seemed to reach into the clouds, the building stretched out for at least seven hundred yards and had four enormous towers from which a handful of guards with crossbows stood watch. Romeo was dumbstruck by its imperviousness. He could hardly believe that any Montague had ever breached these grounds, let alone launched a fully-fledged attack on the vampires inside.
A fierce wind roared through the heavy brush outside the castle’s perimeter, where Romeo, Benvolio, and Mercutio lay in wait, crouched down behind a swathe of shrubbery under the light of a half-moon. Even though the fabric of his cloak was thick wool, a frigid chill ravaged his body and he shuddered. Then again, perhaps his nerves were just getting the best of him.
For over an hour, he had been waiting for a sign from Rosaline’s maid servant, Maribel. She would turn on a gaslight in the last room to the left on the ground floor, once the secret door in the servants’ quarters was unlocked. Romeo was deeply concerned that something was wrong. Although Mercutio was quite intelligent, he was known for getting involved with women who were pretty yet dim-witted—perhaps she had forgotten all about them. Romeo felt his hands beginning to shake. He had to distract himself.
“Did I tell either of you about the dream I had last night?” he asked in a soft voice.
Mercutio scratched at his neck with the handle of his parrying knife. “No, you did not.”
“If it is about Rosaline and her half-breed bosoms, we are not interested,” Benvolio said as he canvassed the area with a studious gaze.
“Speak for yourself.” Mercutio nudged Benvolio.
Benvolio rolled his eyes and shoved Mercutio back with his elbow so hard that Mercutio fell into a pile of sticky moss.
“Take cover, Romeo. I’m about to punch Benvolio’s lights out,” Mercutio growled.
“Will you be quiet?” Romeo whispered. “You know how sensitive the vampires’ hearing is.”
Benvolio took a dagger that was hidden beneath hissleeve and stabbed the ground near Romeo’s feet, turning and twisting it until a mound of dirt and worms was wrought up from the topsoil.
“We could take them all on if we had to,” he said.
Romeo shoved his hands into the pockets of his cloak. “Remind me to have a doctor take a look at you, Cousin. You’re obviously delusional.”
“Maybe he’ll be committed to a sanatorium,” Mercutio said snidely. “We’d all be better off.”
“Actually, I could use some sanity right now,” Romeo said. “That dream of mine was terrifying.”
Benvolio’s eyes widened. “Really? Go on.”
Romeo glanced at Benvolio and Mercutio sceptically, knowing that they’d probably laugh at his story. But when he looked at the window again and saw nothing but pitch-blackness, he continued.
“I dreamed that my lady came and found me dead, impaled by Vladimir himself. Then I was brought back to life by her kisses on my lips.”
“That does not sound so awful,” Mercutio said.
“I agree, you survived in the end,” Benvolio added.
“You do not understand. I was alive again, but … as one of them.” Romeo nodded at the castle ominously.
“Don’t worry, Romeo.” Benvolio picked up a worm and let it crawl around in his open palm, then suddenly flicked it off with his finger. “If this dream came true and you were turned by one of those filthy monsters, I would put you out of your misery.
