The Bride He Hates-Chapter 69: Caught In The Trap

Finally, the day came. Lyanna was supposed to meet with the Council representatives along with three human delegates, but without Azrael or any other vampire. She was anxious. Helena had trained for the meeting, still she was nervous and scared.

"Don’t worry. I’ll wait here with the delegation until you send word. Two hours maximum. If I haven’t heard from you in two hours, I’m coming in regardless of diplomatic consequences." Azrael had told her.

After Lyanna dressed, Azrael walked her to the door himself, while their delegation watched them from a distance. He stopped at the entrance and cupped her face.

"I’m here." He said.

Lyanna nodded and stepped inside with the three human representatives beside her.

The chamber was smaller than she had expected, a simple room with a long table and seven people sitting on the chairs.

"You were human." A middle-aged woman, who looked like their leader, said immediately.

"For twenty four years." Lyanna replied, sitting down opposite them without waiting for an invitation.

"And you chose to become one of them."

"I chose to survive, and then I chose to stay. The first was a necessity. The second was my choice."

She narrowed her eyes.

"Do you feed on humans?"

"I feed on willing donors who are compensated fairly."

"Do you still consider yourself human?"

"No. But I remember being human. I remember what it felt like to be afraid of vampires, to believe the stories. I can assure you that most of what you’ve been told is wrong."

Their leader laughed.

"Why should we trust you? You’re a vampire queen."

"That’s exactly why you should listen to me. My marriage was forced, so I had every reason to hate vampires, but I am here telling you that peace is possible. Doesn’t that mean something?" 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

The woman exchanged looks with her colleagues and turned back to Lyanna.

"We’ll meet with the full delegation tomorrow."

She didn’t reply. She just smirked. She kept her expression neutral until she stepped outside the door, where Azrael was waiting. When she reached him, his eyes scanned her face, trying to read her.

"They’ve agreed to meet the full delegation tomorrow."

He sighed in relief. Lyanna could see the tension releasing from his shoulders.

"I knew you could do it." He said, hugging her tightly.

The next morning, the vampire delegation went to meet the Council’s official representatives. In the centre of the council chamber, at a higher elevation, sat Cardinal Matthias, the Head Councillor.

Azrael, Lyanna, Helena, and the three human delegates were led to the centre of the chamber . Adrian and the vampire security force stayed at the chamber’s entrance, held back by Order soldiers.

"King Azrael of Thornfield, you’ve come to beg for peace while you vampires feed on human blood. You prey on our people and accumulate power and wealth at our expense. Why should we listen to you?" Cardinal Matthias spoke.

"I’ve come to offer peace, not beg for it. Vampires and humans have coexisted for millennia. There have been conflicts, but also cooperation. The elimination of vampire society would cost millions of lives on both sides. That benefits no one. We believe negotiation is better than war."

Another Council member, a younger man, then stood up and spoke.

"Noble words from a creature who has murdered how many humans in four centuries? Tell us, how many innocents have died to feed your hunger?"

"None." Azrael replied. "I’ve killed in battle and in self-defense. But I’ve never killed an innocent to feed. We’re not mindless predators, we just need blood to survive."

The negotiations continued for hours, following a familiar pattern: the Council presented grievances, Azrael’s delegation countered with evidence and alternative perspectives, but the Council kept dismissing their responses.

"Vampires prey on humans." Inquisitor David said, showing testimonies from victims of vampire attacks. "You see us as food and nothing more."

"Voluntary blood donation programs exist in twelve major vampire territories. Humans exchange blood for protection, medical care, education, and economic opportunity. Many consider it a fair trade. And the attacks you’re citing come from rogue vampires rejected by vampire society. They’re criminals we hunt and execute, just as you hunt and execute human criminals." Helena replied.

"Vampires accumulate power and wealth using humans. You live forever, building fortunes while human families die and lose everything through generations. Your economic advantage is unfair."

"I’m human. My kingdom has traded with vampires for two centuries. Yes, they accumulate wealth over time. But they also provide stability, and institutional knowledge. The roads in my territory were built by vampires who will maintain them for centuries. Their medical knowledge is saving human lives. Their longevity is an asset to human society, not a threat." Lord Edgar said.

Lyanna, speaking as someone who had been both human and vampire, provided a unique perspective.

"I understand your fears, I had them too. But vampires aren’t monsters. They’re just people with different biology. Most of them just want to live in peace, like humans.

I’m not asking you to love vampires. I just want you to understand that the genocide you’re proposing is wrong, no matter which species you’re targeting."

"Beautiful words." One of the council members said. "But words don’t mean anything, Your Majesty. Let me show you reality."

She gestured, and soldiers brought in documents, physical evidence, and three human survivors; villagers in torn clothes, with scars, and looking traumatized.

"These are from the villages attacked three months ago. And the attackers? Vampires. Every single witness confirms it."

She spread photographs on the table. They had gruesome images of destroyed villages and human bodies drained of blood.

"These are false." Azrael replied immediately. "Your own Leader carried out these attacks. We have her in custody. She has confessed to organizing them, using them as propaganda to turn humans against vampires."

"But we have human survivors who were attacked by vampires with fangs, strength and speed that no human possesses." She gestured to the three survivors. "Tell everyone what you saw."

The first survivor, a middle-aged woman, spoke in a shaking voice.

"They came at night. They destroyed our village like demons. My husband tried to fight, and one of them cut his throat in front of me. Then drank his blood while he was still dying. I’ll never forget it."

The second survivor was a young man without an arm.

"They were very fast, and strong. We tried to defend ourselves, but they just laughed at us."

The third was an elderly man.

"I’ve lived seventy years in that village. We never had problems with vampires before. But those creatures destroyed everything."

The testimony was devastating. But they knew these people had been attacked by Order soldiers disguised as vampires.

"The Order has the resources to fake vampire attacks. They have..." Helena began.

"Are you calling the survivors foolish? Are you implying that they can’t distinguish between vampires and humans?" One of the members didn’t let her finish.

Azrael looked dangerous now.

"We didn’t do this. Your Leader organized these attacks. We can prove..."

"You can prove nothing." Cardinal Matthias interrupted him. "You have a prisoner, and we have human survivors. Who should we believe?

Did you really think we’d negotiate in good faith with monsters? Did you think we’d allow creatures like you to dictate terms of coexistence?"

He stood up.

"You’ll face trial for the attacks on the villages and hundreds more across centuries. And when you’re found guilty, you’ll be executed publicly to show the world that vampires can be defeated."

The other Council members stood up as well, looking happy and triumphant. This had never been about negotiation. This was a trap to capture the vampire leadership, parade them as prisoners, and use their execution as propaganda.

Dozens of guards entered the chambers with silver weapons, holy water, stakes, and everything else made to kill vampires.

Adrian, along with the vampire security team at the chamber entrance moved to defend them, but they were immediately blocked by an overwhelming number of the Order’s soldiers.

"Don’t." Azrael ordered, raising his hand to stop his security force from attacking.

Adrian looked confused but obeyed.

"You’ve violated diplomatic protocols. We came under a white flag, and in good faith. Killing us makes you war criminals according to laws." Azrael said, looking at Cardinal Matthias.

He laughed.

"Laws don’t apply to monsters. You have no legal protections because you’re not legal entities." He gestured to the Order soldiers.

"Take them to the dungeons. Separate the king and queen. Remove all weapons and magical items, and put them in cells made specifically for vampires with silver bars, consecrated ground, and holy water moats. Make sure they can’t escape or use any supernatural abilities."

The soldiers stepped forward, surrounding Azrael and Lyanna. They grabbed them, pulling them apart despite their attempts to stay together.

"Azrael!" Lyanna called out as she was dragged backwards.

"Don’t worry. He responded, fighting against the soldiers holding him but unable to break free. "I’m right here."

"And the human delegates? The traitors who chose to side with monsters over their own species? Execute them immediately." Cardinal Matthias ordered.