Chapter 65

ROSE

I woke to the sound of Phoenix gliding into the castle at twilight, her stilettos clicking on the ancient marble floor.

“What’s this? I have a long-lost human sister back to life?” she called, waking the whole castle within seconds.

Demetrius groaned by my side, Aric made a hissing noise, and I heard him flying out of his room, barreling past Phoenix, who snarled at him and slammed the castle doors in his wake.

I could very faintly smell Eleanor outside. She had stayed. I really wasn’t surprised.

From the other rooms, I heard Selene and Orion waking, James and Grace murmuring to each other, and Venus and Henry scrambling to their feet in their room.

Within seconds Venus was up the stairs in her sister’s arms.

“I suppose this is where we get ready for the onslaught of purebloods,” Demetrius grumbled, running his hand through his tousled auburn hair and giving me a small smile.

I slipped out of bed and dressed quickly in a long light blue dress with a cinched waist.

I had no idea what to expect tonight. We were waiting for over fifty purebloods to attend the wedding, most of which would be arriving tonight, including my mother-in-law.

And we had to find a safe time to turn Eleanor or hide her until the wedding was over.

Demetrius and I meandered up the stairs to see our daughters embracing tightly.

“Phoenix.” I held my arms open, and she grinned, rushing toward me. I hugged her tightly, stroking her chaotic red hair.

“Hello Mother, Father,” she greeted us, her moss-green eyes sparkling.

“How has the royal family been treating you?” Demetrius mused, stroking Phoenix’s cheek, looking concerned. She gave him a wide smile.

“Fine, Father. Truly, they’re already bowing to me,” she snickered.

“Don’t let it go to your head too fast,” Venus murmured. Henry wrapped his arm around her waist and held her tight, and she glanced up at him gratefully.

“Don’t worry, dear sister.” Phoenix smiled at her. “It gets old very fast to have so many servants around.”

She pursed her lips. “And the royal family’s general disdain toward all turned vampires is exhausting.”

“Perhaps you can change things,” I suggested. Phoenix gave me a short nod.

“I’m not convinced I want to be a princess yet,” she admitted. I nodded in understanding.

“Where’s Alexander?” Demetrius asked.

“Hmm, just outside, he fell behind,” Phoenix answered. “So, what happened with Eleanor? Why was Aric in such a huff? Tell me what I’ve been missing!” she pushed, gazing at me.

“First, what does the king want to know, and what are you going to tell him?” Venus asked, her eyes flashing. Phoenix pursed her lips.

“He wants to know who saved her, and he wants to punish that person. He doesn’t care about Eleanor.”

We were quiet for a few seconds while Phoenix looked between us. “So, is someone going to tell me?” she demanded.

At that moment, Aric, Eleanor, and Prince Alexander stepped through the castle doors, an atmosphere of testosterone and rage in the air as they filtered into the living room.

Demetrius stood by my side, his hand pressing gently against my hip.

“Lady and Lord Mcnoxnoctis!” Alexander beamed at him, his dark blue eyes sparkling. “I was just telling your children here how happy I was for the invitation.

“Where, pray tell, can I find the happy couple?”

Phoenix moved to his side, and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

“Prince Alexander.” James appeared at that moment, giving Alexander a curt smile and a shot bow. “Thank you for coming. It’s our honor. I’ll show you to your room.”

Venus quickly grabbed her twin’s arm and guided her outside the castle, promptly filling her in with the latest news. Aric stood fuming beside Eleanor, who looked severely annoyed and filthy.

She had obviously been horse-riding.

“I’m going to take a shower,” she muttered, glaring after Alexander.

“Eleanor.” Aric reached out for her, but she frowned at him.

“We’re going to talk about this after my shower,” she said, quickly pulling away and marching toward the stairs. Aric stared after her, his brow furrowing in frustration.

“What did you do?” Demetrius asked him, sniffling a laugh. Aric glared at him.

“Nothing,” he muttered, storming off to his music room. Demetrius and exchanged a curious look.

“I’ll talk to her,” I said, kissing him lightly on the cheek.

“Can you help James with Alexander and let Selene and Orion know that first guests are arriving? We have to set up the tent outside tonight. And the tables.

“The glasses are downstairs. Selene will help.”

Demetrius nodded, giving me a small smile. “Of course.” He kissed my hand.

I hesitated. “Demetrius, what Phoenix said… I’m not letting you take the blame for this alone.” Demetrius’s moss-green eyes flashed in annoyance.

“Yes, you are, Rose. I did what I did on my own. I will, and I can accept the consequences. You need to enjoy your time with our daughter.”

I pursed my lips and shook my head. “We’ll talk about this later,” I told him, hearing Orion and Selene making their way upstairs. Demetrius gave me a tight nod.

I made my way upstairs into the tower to Eleanor’s old bedroom and adjoining ensuite. She was standing on the balcony, still wearing her shorts and shirt, shivering slightly in the cool summer breeze.

“Hey.”

She jumped when she heard me then gave me a small smile.

“You’re still here,” I said. She nodded and wrapped her arms around me, and I hugged her tightly.

“I’m where I belong, Mother. I’m not leaving here,” she insisted, giving me a small smile.

I nodded slowly. “You are human. You belong in the human world.”

She pursed her lips, her eyes flashing. “I never have, Mother. Are you mad at us? At Aric and I?”

I leaned against the railing of the balcony and cast my gaze out at the wide landscape. In the distance, I could hear humans.

I could see the cars making their way up the winding roads toward the castle, full of pureblood vampires. I let out a deep breath.

“I’m not mad. Surprised. Somehow comforted. I’ll not deny that I wish you weren’t here,” I told her.

Her eyes widened, glinting with tears. I reached out and grasped her hand. She gazed at our fingers interlocked.

“But only because I want you to be safe.”

“Mother, why did you want me to have a human life? Why didn’t you want me to have a vampire life with you?” she asked.

I considered her question. “When I found you in the car crash, your human mother’s arms had protected you from the impact and kept you alive and somewhat warm enough.

“She died protecting your life. I suppose I felt I had to respect that sacrifice. To give you a good life, one that she would have expected you to have, where you could grow up, fall in love, have a family, eventually grow old.

“Our family can’t give you that, Eleanor. You have been able to grow up and study and travel; I’m so grateful for that.

“But, if you stay here, if you let Aric turn you tonight, you’ll become a vampire consumed with hunger, you’ll kill humans, you’ll never have a family, you’ll never grow old.

You’ll watch the world go by from the window, and you’ll no longer have your place in it. Only to come out at night to comfort your thirst.

“Most humans don’t survive the turn. Less adapt to their vampire lives with ease. Can you imagine killing someone, ripping their throat out, and drinking their blood? Enjoying it?

“It’ll be just as jarring, but you won’t be able to stop yourself. That’s not the life I want for you, sweetheart.”

She was quiet, listening to my words, her gaze fixed on the river cruising by the side of the castle.

“What if I love Aric?” she breathed. She turned to face me. “What if I can’t imagine my life without him? What if I’ve been trying to get back to you since I was abandoned?

“What if I’ve never truly felt at home in my human life? What if this is the only place I want to be? I don’t want to spend my life running from purebloods.

“I don’t want to force Aric to watch me grow old, get married, have children with another man. I want to be here with you guys, the twins, James and Aric. Am I being selfish?

“I’ve put Demetrius in danger, haven’t I?” Her gaze met mine. I stared at the opal twinkling around her neck. I reached out and grasped it. Eleanor watched me.

“Don’t worry about your father. He and I can take care of it. I just want you to think about what you want. If you want to be turned and be with Aric, well, you have my blessing. I just want you to be happy.”

I stroked the opal lightly, remembering my own mother giving it to me. Eleanor let out a deep sigh and wrapped her arms around me again. I held her tightly.

“I’m not a child anymore, Mother. You don’t need to hide anything from me. I’ve made my decision. But I understand that my coming here has endangered everyone.

“So, I want to take responsibility for that. Don’t tell anyone Demetrius saved me. I’ll tell them I escaped by myself.”

“Eleanor.” I shook my head. “They won’t believe you. That would have been impossible.” She pursed her lips.

“Demetrius can’t get in trouble because of me, Mother. I could never forgive myself.”

“Eleanor, you have bigger fish to fry. You’re on the verge of making a very big decision, and I want you to be focused on that. Your father and I will see how we can discuss with the king.

“Remember, he is family. Demetrius is his nephew. And Elizabeth would never let him hurt him. So, we have good leverage. I don’t want you to think of it anymore.”

“I’m not sure I believe you. Elizabeth almost killed me, and we were supposed to be family,” she scoffed.

“It’s different with Demetrius,” I insisted. Eleanor gave me a short nod and placed her hand over mine.

“Thank you for the opal.” She smiled, looking down at it. “It’s really beautiful.”

“And very old. My mother gave it to me. It made me think of you.”

“Aric told me, and about her. Dahlia. I never thought about you having a mother for some reason.”

I chuckled and glanced down. A car had driven up. From it slipped the Chen family, Grace and Henry’s parents, and cousin Lace.

Lace was only two hundred years old. Her dark eyes swiveled up to the tower and met mine. She grinned, her eyes flashing. Eleanor peered down.

“Who’s that?” she asked.

“The Chens,” I answered. “I’ll go down to greet them.”

“Mother, do you think anyone coming here tonight will want to kill me?” she asked, her voice suddenly high-pitched.

She was staring wide-eyed at the other car, winding down the path toward the castle.

“Eleanor,” I breathed out heavily. “Since Eloise saw you and Aric in Toulouse, most purebloods around the planet became aware that you will be still alive.

“Most will just be curious, perhaps dismissive. I doubt many will have any desire to kill you except for a few, Elizabeth and Damon. Alexander, though, I’m not sure.

“You should stay by Aric’s side, don’t stray away from him.”

“I won’t.” She nodded solemnly. “I’m not sure Alexander wants to kill me either. He was talking about turning me.” She made a face.

“He’s a piece of work,” I muttered. “But he and Phoenix seem to be getting along fairly well. I’m afraid he’ll soon be a close member of our family.

“The royal family is fickle. We generally like to keep our distance.”

“Mother, do you truly think Aric can keep me safe? You said that evening at the bar that you didn’t think he could.”

“I’m getting the feeling he would die trying, Eleanor,” I answered. “I have never seen him so devoted to anyone before. Except, well, when you were a child, and he would watch out for you.

“Realistically, he cannot fight off every pureblood. But he won’t have to. Everyone here in this castle will do the same to keep you safe.”

She shook her head lightly. “Ironically, this is now the safest place for you tonight. Stay up here.”

“I can’t believe I’m back here. I can’t believe that they will all lay down their lives or reputations or relationships for me. I don’t want them to. If I let Aric turn me, I could fight my own battles,” she declared.

“Eleanor, I’m sure Aric has talked to you about this, but most humans don’t survive the turn. It’s a terrible pain, and it literally kills them.

“I don’t know how else to tell you that I don’t want you to have to go through that,” I insisted.

She gazed at me, her expression grave.

“I have made my decision, mother. At this point, it’s here and Aric, or running, afraid and alone for the rest of my life. I have chosen. Aric said he could try healing me while I turned. I’m ready to take that chance.”

She was just as stubborn as she’d been as a child. A comfort to see the child as an adult but frightening as a mother.

“I’m tired of being the weak one that you guys always have to look out for. I want to be part of this family. It’s time. I love you, Mother,” she breathed.

“I love you too, my darling.” I paused and stroked her dark hair. “Now, get in the shower, and I’ll bring some clothes up for you. Does that work? You stay here.”

Eleanor nodded with a small smile and headed to her shower. I stayed on the balcony gazing at the line of cars winding toward us.

I could hear voices below, humans being herded into the kitchen, drinks being served, and Grace’s loud laughter. Eleanor was humming in her shower.

I heard Aric walking up the stairs. He moved into the room, noticing me on the balcony, and approached. He looked sheepish.

“Hey, Mother.”

“Aric.” I gazed at him as he leaned against the railing. “So, what did you do to make her mad?” I asked. He ran his fingers through his hair and let out a small groan.

“I think it was because I claimed her,” he muttered.

I arched my brows in surprise. Vampires claimed humans all the time to reserve them for sex and blood. It wasn’t a romantic move.

“Why did you do that? It’s not very flattering for her,” I replied. He rolled his eyes.

“Because his royal highness was all over her, and it was the only way to get him to let her go,” he answered darkly.

“I see.” I frowned. “Aric, she wants to be turned very soon. Are you certain that this is what you want as well?” Aric placed his sapphire-blue gaze on mine and nodded solemnly.

“Definitely. I can’t live without her,” I blinked at him and nodded.

“Fine. When do you want to turn her?”

“Ideally, this evening. But I want to leave that decision up to her.”

“Of course,” I nodded slowly and breathed out heavily.

Eleanor had shut off the shower, and I could hear her drying herself with a towel, still humming.

“Just don’t forget she’s my daughter, and I love her too, Aric.” I placed my hand on his shoulder and squeezed it.

He nodded once. “I know, Mother.”