Hunting For Love ~ Book 6 ~ The Royal Blood Collection

Chapter 1

Cold metal permeated through my palm as I gripped the balcony, looking out over the city. It was teeming with life, the hustle and bustle of people rushing to get through their tasks filled the night air. The city was a glittering beacon, stunning in its beauty.

It was deadly too.

I was a vampire, and we were now the top species on this dying planet. My cousin was the king of the vampires, he'd done all that he could to protect his people, and so far, it had worked. There was one little blight upon his record as our ruler, and they were the slayers.

A small group of humans was born out of hatred, funded by the human government and told to end their enslavement. I wouldn't call it that. I preferred forced captivity to ensure they survived.

The walls around the human settlement were high and went for miles. I'd never been all the way around, it would take a very long time to do that. Many said that it was the size of a small country. It wasn't crowded, but there were a lot of humans in one area.

The vampire territories surrounded the human settlement to ensure that we had complete control over them. They didn't like it, but we didn't care anymore. We gave them a chance at peace, an opportunity to live in harmony together, and they were the ones that struck first.

As a member of the royal family, I was entitled to a territory of my own. It didn't interest me, I'd rather be out in the world hunting the slayers. The great king Alaric said that I was too much like my mother. She didn't want to be queen, but she held firm, just to annoy him.

Their love-hate relationship came from a time before I was born. It was back when the land was split into provinces, and each of those areas was ruled by a royal family. Alaric's father was the king, and he was murdered by those who wanted to make the monarchy fall. Their mother was close to death when she turned up on my father's doorstep, pregnant with Alaric and my other cousin Nisha. Dad helped her through the labor and then watched her die in his arms.

As for my mother, she remained true to a gentleman's agreement between my maternal grandfather and Alaric's father. When Alaric tried to consume her province, she took him on and won. It was a tale that she loved to tell, and she always had a wicked glint in her eye. She loved that Alaric had to back down.

When it came time to the provinces being renegotiated, my mother was ready to strangle him. She refused to give in, stating that they had a new agreement and Alaric had to honor it. Our area was the only province that didn't have the borders altered.

The fact that I was stubborn like her was an annoyance for Alaric. My father found it amusing, merely shrugging when his nephew shot him a glare. Almost the same kind of glare he was giving me now.

"What do you want from me, Alaric?"

"To adhere to the rules, Claudia. It's not that hard, you know."

"In time I will give you what you want, but for now, I'd rather be free."

"And I'd rather not be blamed when something bad happens to you."

"I'll be fine."

Alaric sighed heavily, filled with frustration because he was dealing with another version of my mother.

"Well, I could say that I told you so when the inevitable happens, but that's probably pointless seeing as you'll be dead."

"I won't be."

"Do your parents know what you're doing?"

"They know certain aspects of it."

Alaric scoffed his laugh.

"Alright, Claudia, do as you please. I have voiced my displeasure, and it's now out of my hands."

Turning to follow him into the meeting room, I ignored the stares. It wasn't a princess's job to chase the slayers. She should be sitting on the throne, waiting for her suitor to stride in on his horse, to save the day or whatever the hell it was that they thought happened in their magical fantasies. That was never going to happen.

Moving around the table, I pulled the file notes from the General's hands. He'd been most vocal about who should be the one for this mission, and I wasn't it. Even though I had a flawless track record for chasing and capturing slayers, he thought this little girl couldn't do it.

Shooting him a smarmy smile, I read through the notes of where I could find this particular slayer. He was one of the few who had avoided the army when they swept through the territories. Eluding the army was a feat in itself, remaining hidden from the vampires was an even bigger job.

To find the humans, the vampires closed the doors to all grocery stores. If anyone wanted to eat food, it had to be done in a restaurant. Consume it and walk away, ensuring that the humans didn't get their hands on it. They didn't want to starve them; a better life was waiting for them in the settlement. The problem was, someone was feeding the slayers. They survive, and I think it's driving Alaric crazy.

As I sat down, I opened the file on Henley Davenport and looked at the mug shot of the one that they wanted caught. It was an old picture, taken when he was arrested by the human police for starting a fight in a bar. He was rough around the edges, black eye and scruffy. The defiant smirk on his face was infuriating.

That cocky attitude is probably what kept him alive. I'll gladly punch it off his pretty face.

"Well?"

I looked up at Alaric, handing the file back to him.

"She doesn't want it." The General responded. "Your highness, why are we wasting our time with this? I have a dozen good men that can get the job done within the week."

"General Lockhart, your men have had that week and several more. If they are as good as you claim then we would not be here, would we?"

I tilted my head, offering the good General another endearing smile. Then I stood, tall and proud, looking at my insufferable cousin.

"I will take the job, and I will get it done."