A Vampire Fairy Tale (Ronnie Radke)

A Love Like War

         Ronnie jerked awake and frowned when he saw Viktor standing at the foot of the bed. In one swift move, he was standing with boxers he left under the covers next to him. He was toe to toe with the elder as he growled, "After what you allowed your son to get away with, you have no business near my wife- much less in this room.

"Do you have any idea what you've done? You're a fool, Ronald. This is exactly why you should have been skipped—"

"Actually, Viktor, this was her idea- and it' a damn good one. Do you know why your filthy son violated and tortured her 300 years ago? I can tell you. It's because you insisted on making the whole thing a public and dragged-out affair. My father used our relationship to make a statement about our dominance, and you did it to give your son a chance to dissent and sabotage it. I'm not letting that happen to her again, and I'm sure the rest of the council of elders will understand that," Ronnie stood his ground, his eyes almost black from fury.

"That's my point," Viktor stepped forward, "You allow a woman, a weak woman whose only purpose is to produce an heir and to keep you in line to do the exact opposite."

"Oh, trust me. I know I didn't miss, Viktor. We haveour heir. We accomplished that last night, so we can carry on with things privately."

"That's not what I meant, and you know it. I meant that you allow a woman to let you make an impulsive decision. And why? Because you like things the way they are. You won't push our people to dominance," Viktor huffed. Andy, who had sensed the disturbance and woken up Vic, crept in the room slowly with a frown.

"He does it out of survival instinct. If you thought past your own hatred of humans for the loss of your wife, you'd see that. We are a minority, and since we have a male dominated race we are dying out. To declare war is suicide," Andy butted in and stepped beside Ronnie while Vic stood at the foot of the bed, watching Viktor like a hawk.

"Better to die fighting than to live submissively. What would you have us do? Grovel to the church? Wave a white flag?" Viktor scoffed and glared at Ronnie, "His blind love for her will be the death of us all. That damned cross should have been destroyed the first time."

Ronnie's tone became dangerously low, and he whispered, "You need to get out of here now, old man. I'm not sure how the rest of the elders- your king included, would feel about the fact that you've threatened the successor's wife and child. And if you breathe a word of this to that vile son of yours, I'll pull rank and lock you both down in the same clearing where I had to watch her smolder, evidently with your blessing to do so. Do. Not. Test. Me."

Viktor frowned and whispered, "You'll pay for this, Ronald. Mark my words," before turning on his heel and vanishing.

Andy sighed and looked over at Ronnie, "Something tells me we're going to have to fight for that last council seat. You may have to out Viktor anyway to kill his credibility."

Ronnie sighed and nodded before clearing his throat and looking back at Annalise, who had somehow slept through the entire exchange, "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to get back to enjoying the time I have with Annalise. We can all sit down and devise a strategy later."

Later that day, Ronnie found himself in his father's boardroom, with Annalise. The elder Radke frowned at his son and sighed, "There had better be a good explanation for what we all sensed last night. You defied me, Ronald. That makes it hard to argue that you're ready to take over."

Ronnie sighed and looked at his father imploringly, "We did what we did to keep Anna safe. 300 years ago, the entire order saw our wedding, and I wasn't allowed to touch her before I turned her. It was too public. We took it into our own hands for her safety. I'm not going to lose her again."

His father leaned back with his eyebrows raised. He couldn't deny that his son had a good point, even if it went again his own ideas of how to best assert dominance. After some time, he looked between Ronnie and Annalise and frowned, "I'll discuss this with the council. Ronald, you will come with me. Annalise will be sequestered with Vic while we discuss the issue and the best course of action. Given the present circumstances, I do agree that it would be best for the two of you to get things done privately-now that we've secured an heir, and with only your future council and the current council present."

"Except Viktor and Bert," Annalise spoke up, ignoring Ronnie's gesture to sit down and be quiet, "Bert tortured and murdered me, and Viktor protected him. They have no reason to know when or how this happens. It's a safety concern when it comes down to it, considering that Bert threatened me again. Before the last restoration session."

"Anna, that's a bold statement. Viktor is a respected leader—" Ronnie's father tried to start, but Annalise cut him off.

"Who protects a son that has threatened your race numerous times that I saw in the tiny amount of time I've spent here, and who has broken so many codes he should have been dusted ten times over. What he did to me is beside the point, given his history. That's just icing on the cake," Anna stepped forward and put both hands on her father in law's desk before Ronnie carefully set her back in her chair. Both Radke men were taken aback by this assertive side of Annalise that they'd never seen before, and frankly didn't know how to respond.

Ronnie sighed and looked at his father sadly, "She has a point. I can't put her in that danger again, and Bert knowing the when and how would make it that much easier."

The elder Radke frowned as he thought the matter over and sighed, "Ok. I can see where you guys have reasons for concern. I am behind this, but it's going to be hard to pull off. I'll get Marius on board behind closed doors, you gather your council members that you want present. We do this tonight, and you will turn her before sunrise. Act normally, and keep your barriers up, especially you, Anna. You're still mortal, and much easier to read. I can defend this action; but until it's done-and I can offer my defense to the council, it is treason."