“
How did you—”
“
The members of the Guard, as well as all of our protectors, have powers, or gifts as we call them. Calpurnia is a mind reader.”
“
Protectors?” I asked.
“
Yes, all vampires that are born with a
gift are bred from birth to be a protector. We,” he waved his hand to those sitting at the table, “the Guard, are the personal protectors of the royal family, or the royal blood—”
“
Sangre Real,” I gasped.
He nodded. “The other protectors exist to keep our secret from the outside world and to keep the peace in the human and vampire worlds.”
“
But, I haven’t been burned alive from the sun…
.
”
They all laughed now, even Alex.
“
Most of these stories are false. Garlic, crosses, holy water, coffins—all myth. It makes vampires more
interesting
to the humans I suppose,” he smiled.
“
And sunlight?”
“
Well, full bloods cannot live in it. It will not kill us, but it is painful. With the exception of the day walker like my son,
Alexander,” he pointed to Alex.
I jumped up from my seat and dropped his hands. I backed away from him.
“
Chris, wait—”
“
You
knew
?” I whispered. “And you’re one of them? A sadistic, blood thirsty freak!” I yelled at him. He walked toward me with his hands up. “Don’t! Stay away from me.”
“
Princess,” Demitri said, “Alex was assigned as your protector of the human world, as he is a day walker. Your father wanted you to be protected just in case anyone ever… found you. We could only watch you from a distance.”
“
Enough,” I said. I looked back into Alex’s eyes. They were filled with sadness and humility. “I trusted you,” I was crying now. “I loved you.” He winced, “And you were the biggest liar of all!” I yelled.
“
I’m sorry, Princess—”
“
No
!
You don’t get to be sorry. This is all crazy. You are all crazy!”
I leapt out of my seat and ran for the door.
“
Alexander, don’t. Let her go,” I heard Demitri say.
I ran through the cave and out and pushed my legs as fast as they would go. It was dark outside now. I left the same way we came in, up the hill and back to the path.
As much as I didn’t want to, I had to think about everything they had said. Maybe some of the things he said were true, but not all of them. I am not a monster. This place was impossible. It couldn’t exist. The only place I felt I ever fit in couldn’t be more wrong. It didn’t make any sense.
My mother though, she was beautiful. It scared me to think of my other mother as a stranger; an adopted mom, a hired mom, and I wished I never knew.
Quicker than I had expected, the tunnel made its appearance in the darkness. As I reentered the church, a realization hit. Alex had driven me here. There was no way I could walk—it was like 200 miles or something. I’d have to find a hotel close by and get home tomorrow.
Before I could solidify my plans, I saw Alex leaning against his car door. I don’t know which overpowered the other, anger or relief. As I walked past him, I stated, “If you think I’m getting in that car with you, you’re even crazier than I thought.”
“
And if you think I’m going to leave your side, you’re sadly mistaken.” His voice had changed. It wasn’t the voice I was used to. It was hard and unrepentant. The Alex I knew was gone.
Before he could see my tears, I stomped to his car and slammed the door shut as hard as I could. I knew I was being childish, but I felt so hurt and betrayed. Even more than that though, I was torn. I wanted so
badly for his arms to be around me, to rock me and tell me everything was going to be okay and that the last year wasn’t all a lie, that the past fourteen years hadn’t been a lie.
But he was just doing his
job
. An actor playing a part. I stared out the window with my arms crossed the whole way, and he never said a word.
When we arrived at my apartment, I got out and walked to my door. As I unlocked it, Alex sat on the ground next to the door and looked up at me. I made a face at him.
“
I’m not leaving. You may not want to see me ever again, but I still have a job to do.”
Just as I thought, a job. I was a job. Nothing more. The man I loved sat beside me unrepentant as my heart felt like it would stop beating. I was not going to let him watch me die from the inside out, so I walked in without meeting his eyes and slammed the door so hard the frame shook.
I stood there for a moment, too stunned to think, then I opened the door all the way and turned and walked to my room and locked the door. I fell to my knees, then dropped my body to the floor.
This was a good place to die.
Seven
I was only acutely aware of the outside world. I didn’t feel anything. No hunger, no sadness, no fear. I never once cried. I never slept. The only movement that assured me that I was still alive was the shadows in my
room revolving as the sun rose and fell and rose and fell half a dozen times. This was okay for me though. I didn’t know what my intentions were, but I lay there, not a thought in my mind or a fight in my body as I awaited the pain. Death surely wouldn’t hurt this badly. I no longer had any family, and the man I loved had lied to me for my entire life. What did I have to live for? Yes, death surely wouldn’t hurt this badly.
A loud crack opened my eyes and a gust of wind swept over my body. I closed my eyes again. This isn’t how I expected death to find me, through my bedroom door, I thought.
I smiled as I pictured Alex’s face in my mind. Not the new Alex that didn’t love me, but the old Alex that used to make my heart skip a beat at his sight. If I was dying, he would be the last thing I saw. Now with his face in my mind, it would stop all together.
“
I love you,” I whispered.
Suddenly I was shaking. Violently
shaking. Pain in my arms.
My eyes flitted open. Again I stared into Alex’s perfect face. This couldn’t be death. He looked too sad, too afraid.
Maybe it’s hell. I am a vampire, maybe I’m damned. This is my version of hell, seeing Alex’s face every day, tormented, and never being able to have him. No, his hands were warm on my face now. I could feel him, this couldn’t be hell. Was I dreaming?
He was mouthing words I couldn’t hear. Suddenly, I felt a fierce blow on the side of my face and my head bobbed to the right. Ouch. Did he just
slap
me? My eyes closed and my head fell back, my mouth open.
A moment later, a warm, wet feeling dripped onto my lips. I closed my mouth. Blood. A sudden overpowering thirst pumped into my body. I popped my eyes open and hissed at Alex.
“
Christina! Snap out of it,” he demanded. “You have been catatonic for
nearly a solid week. You have to get a hold of yourself.”
He looked angry. Why couldn’t he just let me die? I was happy with my memory of him. Now this creature was back and he had taken over the face, body, and mind that I loved.
“
Why couldn’t you just let me die? At least in death my false memories of you loving me were believable and would follow me into the blackness.”
His face was expressionless. His eyes were dead, as dead as my heart.
“
I have a job to do,” he said flatly. “It doesn’t include me carrying a corpse back to my father. Not yours at least.”
“
So quit,” I spat and lay back down on the floor.
“
Or I could call your mother and she could come over and get you up.”
“
My mother is dead.”
“
Oh grow up, Christina. Your mother loves you and hasn’t stopped calling since you came back.” He waited, but I didn’t move. “Okay then.” He flipped open his phone and began dialing. Before he finished, I jumped up and grabbed his phone, flipped it shut, and threw it over my shoulder.
“
Not now. Not yet.” I stared at the wall in a daze. “It would kill her to see me like this.”
I walked into the living room and sat on my couch and turned on the TV. I would play along.
I just didn’t understand why he had to be here still. I could handle everything that I was. The fact that I would never know my real parents. The fact that I was a vampire princess that was supposed to take over a world of blood-thirsty creatures, half of which wanted to kill me. Piece of cake.
But losing Alex,
that
was unbearable.
And now he was here, hovering over me. Doing his…. job.
“
Princess,” he said softly. “I need you to know something.” He kept his eyes away from my eyes. “I never meant to hurt you, and I truly do hate to see you this way.” For a minute he sounded like the old Alex. “But things are different now. I have a job to do. And so do you.” A
job
, there it was again. I was a freaking job to him.
I got off the couch and stood glaring at him with my fists clenched.
“
And what is your job now, Alex?” I spat the words to him, “Now that living your lie is over? I don’t need your protection anymore,
thank you
. I know what I am.”
“
And you think that is enough?” he spun around. “You think that will protect you?” He shot across the room and back again. “You really think you are safe? There are others out there that want to kill you just for what you are.” He darted across the room
and around me and then back again. “You are the strongest and most powerful of our kind, the
only
one of your kind, and they will stop at nothing to kill you.” He was in front of my face now. “And without training and protection, they
will
succeed.”
His hand was on my throat and he jumped forward, slamming me into the wall. What terrified me most was watching as he exposed his fangs.
I had never been that into fantasy and the unbelievable worlds that people created, but this was unlike anything I had ever imagined. He was both the most beautiful and frightening thing I had even seen. He truly looked like a monster.
“
Alex,” I whimpered and closed my eyes. He was hurting me.
My
Alex was hurting me. This wasn’t possible.
Get away from me!
I shouted internally.
Suddenly his hand was off of my throat and I could breathe again.
“
How did you do that?” he asked bewildered. I opened my eyes and I was on the other side of the room. His expression was astonishment. “You’re a jumper!” he gasped.
“
I’m a
what
?”
“
Impossible,” he continued, paying no intention to me. “I have heard of vampires that can teleport, but I have never seen or even heard anyone speak of
knowing
one.”
He started walking toward me, and I hissed at him. He frowned at me.
“
I’m not going to hurt you, Christina. I was trying to make a point. I just wasn’t expecting quite that reaction.”
I eyed him suspiciously for a minute. He may have been a lot of things, but he was still Alex
,
and I knew he wouldn’t really hurt me. I had to get control of my emotions.
“
Please don’t do that again,” I asked.
“
I won’t. But you needed the motivation. How did you do it?”
“
I have no idea. I just,” I shook my head, “I was scared, and I closed my eyes and, I dunno, I just wanted to be away from you.”
“
Can you try it again?”
“
Can you stay on your side of the room?” I asked sarcastically.