Chapter 75

ELEANOR

We were surrounded by purebloods, commenting and craning their necks to see the smashed trees and Prince Alexander languid on the ground where I threw him.

I stared at my hands. I couldn’t believe what I had just done. My fingers were tingling, my whole body warm, full of adrenaline.

I had just thrown the prince of vampires into a tree. And he looked pissed.

Mother and Father were wide-eyed, their stares alternating between the prince and me. Aric was by my side. I felt his hand on my back, comforting me.

Suddenly, Elizabeth and Damon appeared. As my gaze met theirs, the only thing that ran through my mind was the horror they had put my family through.

My body trembled with rage. I felt a warmth spreading through my limbs, and my heart beat once in my cold chest.

“What the hell are you?” I heard Prince Alexander growl from the ground. His clean clothes were filthy, his dark hair full of dirt. He was glaring at me.

I ignored him. My rage focused on my adoptive grandparents. I couldn’t turn from them.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Damon spoke. His eyes were narrowed on me, and a terrible grin spread across his face. “She’s a pureblood.”

I barely had time to compute his words. Purebloods began speaking all at once. Prince Alexander leapt up and rushed toward me, his eyes bright crimson.

Aric put himself in front of me, and I stared at Damon and his glinting eyes.

“Looks like you were always made to be part of this family,” Damon said smugly. He chuckled, and I felt my blood boiling.

I barely paid attention to Aric pushing Alexander away. Alexander hissed as Phoenix rushed over to them, her eyes darting from one to the other. Mother and Father were close behind me.

The other purebloods were pressing toward me. I focused on the one clear thing in my mind: the man kneeling at Damon’s feet. His scent rushed to my nose, and I was almost knocked away by it.

It smelled sweet, spicy, earthy. And familiar. I realized it smelled the same as the dried blood on my dress. My blood.

And when he lifted his head a little to appraise the pandemonium happening around him, his gaze locked on mine, and my breath was taken from my body.

I stared into a pair of large blue-green eyes, bright like opals, eyes that had been staring back at me from mirrors all my life. His skin was the color of dark gold, and his black hair curled against his neck.

I saw the shock in his expression. Despite his bleeding shoulder, despite his filthy clothes, despite the hand of an ancient pureblood holding him down on his knees, his focus was on me.

Then I saw him blink and squint at me, his face registering confusion.

“Mama?” he breathed.

I was not sure anyone else heard. Aric was still battling Alexander, hissing and pushing him away from me. Mother and Father were debating with Elizabeth and Damon about me being a pureblood.

I stared at the man, who was the only person I had ever seen that looked like me. My heart beat again. His gaze moved from mine.

I lunged. Swooping toward the man, I swung my fist around, and it crunched against Damon’s face.

He let out a gasp and tumbled back, felling hard to the ground, letting go of the man, his blood spraying on my torn dress and face. I grabbed the kneeling man’s arm and hauled him to his feet.

He was taller than me and looked fit, but he swayed dangerously on his feet. He was weakened by the lack of blood.

“Get out of my way,” I growled at Elizabeth, who stared at me wide-eyed and at her husband, still on the ground cupping his broken nose. I didn’t have time to be horrified.

My blood was boiling, and it felt like my whole body was burning. I stared down at the short red-headed vampire.

My rage was boiling over. The only person I ever met who looks like me, who could be my real family, and Elizabeth had already tortured him? My fingers curled into a tight fist.

Elizabeth lashed out at me suddenly. Stupid mistake. Her arm swung up to slap me. I saw her coming and batted her hand away. My other hand swung up to punch her in the face.

The impact left her sprawling on the ground, grasping her bloodied face. She looked up at me, frightened. I hissed down at her, holding the human close to me.

“Stay the fuck away from me and my family!” I snarled at her.

The crowd hushed, staring at the ancient purebloods on the ground, and me standing above them with my bloodied fist.

I met Aric’s gaze. His expression was poised, his eyes boring into mine. The smallest smile played on his lips. Beside him, Alexander gaped at me.

“What the fuck?” Phoenix was the first to break the silence.

“It wasn’t enough for you to put my whole family in danger again. You had to beat up my grandparents? What ~the fuck~ are you?” she screeched.

“Not just any pureblood,” Aric answered with a growing smile. “She is something else.”

His gaze met mine, and he nodded slightly. I knew what he meant.

I gave him a grateful look, hauled the human onto my shoulders easily, and ran in the direction we had come from, ignoring the comments and screeches behind my back.

I didn’t run for very long, but soon I could smell the town and the humans. I stopped to put the human down. He was frail and shaking. His shoulder was bleeding.

The scent of his blood had me salivating. But the thought of hurting him turned my stomach.

I kneeled, focusing on his blood, on helping him. My rage subsided slightly as I took in his pain. I pressed my finger to my fang and drew blood.

The man’s eyes widened as I pressed my blood into his mouth. He didn’t even squirm. I watched as his wound healed and his eyes widened even more.

I could hear his heart racing in his chest. I felt a warmth blooming inside me, a rush of emotions in my mind: confusion, pain, horror, and a very strong desire to run and hide.

His emotions—I saw them in his eyes.

I sat down next to him, trying to be less imposing, remembering how I felt when the purebloods around me flashed their fangs and towered over me.

He stared at me, his eyes wide, trying to inch away from me, glancing around in confusion.

“Who are you?” I asked him in French. He blinked at me and shook his head.

“English?” he asked. I nodded with a small smile, trying not to flash my fangs.

“I asked you, who are you?” I repeated gently.

“My name is David,” he murmured, staring at me. “Are you going to eat me?” His voice was low. I realized his face was stained and streaked with tears.

I could only imagine what he had been through. It was amazing he was still alive. They probably kept him alive because his blood was so yummy.

“No,” I assured him, reaching out and gently stroking his cheek. He flinched away from me. I drew back, and he seemed to relax. He glanced around, he seemed unsure where to look, but he avoided me.

“David.” I paused. “Who am I to you?” I asked softly.

He shook his head slowly. “Where am I? Like, what country is this? Since New York, I have no idea.” He glanced around, staring at the dark trees.

“France. You’re in France, not too far from Tours.”

I paused. “Listen, I can’t imagine what they’ve done with you these last few days. I’m sorry. I am. But you are safe now, okay? I won’t let them hurt you.”

“What even are you?” he challenged, his tone aggressive. I felt his anger boiling.

“My name is Eleanor. And we are vampires. I recently turned. Tonight. David, I’m sorry you got caught up with them. Probably because your blood smells so good,” I explained, trying to stay calm.

He was shaking his head slowly, wincing at my words. “Fucking vampires,” he growled. “How is that even possible?”

“I’m not an expert on history. But apparently, they evolved alongside humans,” I explained.

He just blinked at me.

I pursed my lips. “David, who am I to you?” I asked him again. He looked at me with vehemence.

“I don’t fucking know. Aren’t you a vampire?” he snapped.

I blinked at him. “You called me Mama,” I pressed. My heart beat, hope surging inside me.

He nodded, then shook his head. “Yeah, I dunno. Just for a second, you looked just like my mom, okay? But you can’t be her.”

“I’m not your mother,” I agreed with a small smile.

“Of course, I know. I thought I was imagining you when I saw you there. She died twenty-five years ago anyway. I saw her body.”

“In Alaska?” I asked, my voice breaking. His gaze met mine in surprise.

“Yeah. How…?” He gazed at me.

“Was it in after an avalanche, the day after Christmas?” I pressed. I felt my heart skip a beat.

I had always wondered who they were, my parents driving that day. I had always wanted to know about them. The man was staring at me wide-eyed. His heart raced.

“Exactly,” he breathed. My heart froze. The whole world froze as we stared at each other. I felt his emotions reflecting mine. Disbelief, horror, hope.

“I’m the baby they had in the truck with them,” I whispered. David blinked at me, shaking his head slowly, his gaze never breaking from mine.

“You can’t be,” he whispered. “My sister,” he gulped. “She was lost in the crash.”

“And found,” I said.

“Holy fuck,” he huffed. “I can’t believe this.” He was shaking his head. “I cannot fucking believe this. How is this even happening?”

He stood up, clearly stronger after I had given him a little of my blood. He paced in front of me. I watched him, my heart thundering in my chest.

He was muttering his incomprehension. I felt his hope rising.

“You cannot be my sister. She died in the accident,” he hissed at me.

“She didn’t, David,” I said. “I was saved.”

He shook his head in disbelief. But I felt his emotions of turmoil, joy, and fear.

“David,” I murmured. He stopped pacing and looked back at me. “What’s my name?” I asked. He blinked at me.

“If you are my sister, who was only four months old when she died, then that makes you Gabriela. Gabriela Lucia Ravn. And that means we have a lot to catch up on.”

He straightened his shoulders, gazing down at me. I nodded.