The Bride He Hates-Chapter 36: Working As Partners

The throne room erupted into chaos. Vampires shouted over one another, some grabbing their weapons while others demanded answers. The wounded messenger collapsed completely. Azrael’s voice cut through the noise.

"SILENCE."

The power in that single word was undeniable. Every vampire fell silent.

"This gathering is postponed until the crisis is resolved. But I’m not dismissing you. These attacks threaten all vampire territories, not just Thornfield."

King Damien stepped forward.

"Shadowmere will send forces. I’ll lead them myself. These human fanatics need to learn what happens when they attack vampire lands."

"Agreed." Lord Richard joined them. "Eclipse Court will provide magical support; wards, reconnaissance spells, and healing. This is a threat to us all."

But Queen Elise’s voice was skeptical.

"What assurance do we have that this isn’t a trap? How convenient that an attack happens during our gathering, just as alliances are being formed. Perhaps Thornfield created this crisis to appear strong and unified."

Several vampires murmured, wondering the same thing. Azrael turned to Elise, and the temperature seemed to drop even more.

"Question my integrity again, Elise, and you’ll leave Thornfield in pieces. Do you understand?"

Elise looked away in surrender. Azrael then addressed everyone present in the hall.

"This is exactly what the Order wants; vampires fighting among themselves. They want us to suspect each other and create division so they can slaughter our border population. We can either unite and crush them, or we can die divided while they celebrate manipulating us." He walked through the crowd.

"The choice is yours. Help us respond to this threat, or leave now and face the Order alone when they reach your borders. This isn’t about Thornfield, it’s about the extermination of vampire society."

"Eclipse Court will send magical support. But Thornfield must lead, this is your territory, your responsibility. We’ll support, not command." Lord Richard said.

The political maneuvering, even in crisis, was exhausting. But Azrael handled it smoothly, accepting help while maintaining authority, showing that Thornfield was strong enough to lead but humble enough to accept help.

"Agreed. Damien, your warriors will join Adrian’s forces. Richard, your mages will provide reconnaissance and support. We will coordinate through Victor’s intelligence network. Any vampire who wants to help is welcome. Anyone who wishes to leave may do so."

Within minutes, the chaos turned into focused action. Vampires rushed to their assigned tasks. Azrael then turned to Lyanna.

"You’re coming with me to the attack site."

She blinked in surprise. She expected he would ask her to do something lame.

"What?"

"The Order is targeting human villages on our border. You’re human. You can speak to survivors, understand their perspective better than us. They’ll trust you more than they’ll trust vampires. We need intelligence on what happened, how many attackers there were, and where they went. You’ll get better information."

Lyanna nodded.

"How reckless." Elise said with fake concern. "Taking your human wife into an active combat zone? You’ll spend more time protecting her than fighting."

"My wife has proven herself capable. Her safety is my responsibility, not yours."

Then he whispered to Lyanna.

"You have to stay within my sight all the time. You’ll follow my orders without question. If I tell you to run, you run. Understood?"

"Understood."

"Good. Get changed into travel clothes. We’ll be leaving in thirty minutes."

The preparation happened at a supernatural speed. Lyanna was given riding leathers and light armour, that could stop a blade but wouldn’t slow her down. A horse was prepared, with provisions packed.

Adrian saw her when she was checking the saddle straps.

"Your Majesty, a word?"

They stepped aside from the chaos.

"Stay close to His Majesty at all times. The Order has developed new weapons since our last encounters, silver bullets that can pierce vampire flesh, sunlight bombs that burn through our protections. Even old vampires can die if we’re not careful."

"I’ll be careful." Lyanna replied.

"It’s more than that." Adrian looked troubled. "These attacks are escalating. They are more organized, and better equipped. Someone is funding them. They’re targeting specific locations like strategic villages, supply routes, and places that hurt us politically as well as militarily."

"You think there’s a larger plan?"

"I know there is. We just don’t know what yet." He briefly gripped her shoulder. "Watch yourself out there. And watch him too. He’ll take risks to protect you, risks he wouldn’t normally take. Don’t let his protection get him killed."

He then left, leaving her alone standing there processing his words.

The force gathered in the courtyard. Two hundred vampires from multiple courts were ready. Lyanna felt small among them, the only human in a sea of predators. Azrael appeared beside her, leaping onto his horse.

"Stay close. If we get separated, head towards the northeast. Don’t try to be heroic. Your job is to get intelligence, not fighting."

They set off. The journey south took hours. Lyanna’s thighs ached from gripping the saddle, but she didn’t complain, didn’t ask them to slow down. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

As they approached the first village, they saw the smoke in the night sky. The smell of burning wood, burning flesh, and blood hit them. When they crested a hill, they saw that the village was destroyed.

Buildings were burned, bodies were scattered on the streets. The vampires spread out immediately, searching for survivors, and assessing the damage. But what made Lyanna’s blood run cold were the vampire bodies.

Five vampire bodies were staked through the heart, heads severed, displayed in the village square like trophies.

"They killed our people." Adrian said in anger. "They ambushed them, used those new weapons. This wasn’t just a massacre, it was a trap."

"Search every building. Find any survivors. I want to know exactly what happened here." Azrael ordered.

Lyanna noticed a small girl, maybe ten years old, stumbling from a collapsed house. She was covered in blood. The girl saw the crowd of vampires and screamed.

"Monsters! You did this! You killed them all!"

The vampires froze, unsure of how to react. The child was terrified, backing away from them. Lyanna dismounted before Azrael could stop her. She walked towards her slowly, with her hands raised, trying to make herself non-threatening.

"We’re here to help. I’m human, like you. See? We’re not here to hurt you."

The girl noticed Lyanna’s human features and got confused.

"You’re... with them...with the monsters."

"They’re not monsters." Lyanna said, kneeling to the girl’s level. "They came because we heard about the attack. We want to help. Can you tell me what happened? Please. We need to know how to stop it from happening again."

"The hunters came. They said they were saving us from the monsters. But then they started killing everyone. My mother, my father, my brother. They killed them all." Tears flowed down her cheeks. "They said the vampires did this. But it was the hunters."

Lyanna then heard Azrael dismount, and walk towards her. The girl’s eyes widened in fear again, but Lyanna held her hand.

"It’s okay. He won’t hurt you. I promise."

Azrael crouched beside Lyanna.

"What’s your name?" He asked gently.

The girl hesitated but then replied.

"Emma."

"Emma. I’m Azrael. This is my wife, Lyanna. We’re going to take you somewhere safe. But first, we need you to tell us everything you remember about the hunters. Can you do that?"

Emma nodded, still frightened but then decided to tell everything in detail.