23. Vesper
Ihated that vampire.
Something was off about her, and I had an inkling of suspicion she was insane.
There was something about her aura that told me to stay away from her. She was dangerous. Maybe a little unhinged. Plus, she glared at me the entire time we were together.
If this was the princess’s plan, then she must have really run out of options.
“I have no plans to start a war with your old man,” she said, leaning back in the armchair. She had a glass of blood in her hand and picked it up in the most annoyingly elegant way.
The house wasn’t as crowded that night, but Aurelia had still found us a more private room on the second floor. The music and laughter could be heard through the walls as they floated up the stairs, but not enough to impede their conversation.
“It’s not war,” Aurelia stated matter-of-factly, and took a sip of her blood as well. Well, not a sip…more like a gulp. When was the last time she had blood?
A better question was, Why am I worried about it? But since the incident with the bird, I couldn’t stop worrying about her.
The last shred of self-control I had was waning pretty fast. I’d spent all night in bed just thinking of the various exits Aurelia might be taking. Anything I could do to help.
That was the dangerous thing—I couldn’t stop myself from wanting to get involved. The only thing holding me back was her. If she even so much as asked, I would drop everything to help.
“Stealing his only blood daughter?” she asked with a raised brow. “Sounds like war to me.”
“The correct term would be kidnapping, and it wouldn’t be true because I would go willingly,” she replied, crossing her legs and giving her a pointed look.
Atlas gave her an infuriating smirk in response.
“Stealing, my love,” she corrected. “Anything his power touches is seen as his property.”
The grinding of my teeth caught Atlas’s attention, and a low growl rumbled in her chest.
“Should she even be listening to this?” she asked and placed her cup not so gently on the side table next to her. “How do you know she’s not some spy for your father?”
Aurelia let out a huff of laughter.
“Because I tried to kill her,” I answered for her.
This caused Atlas to pause. Then, slowly, she snuck back into her chair, a feral smile spreading across her face.
“Perfect!” She clapped her hands together so loudly it caused me to jump. “She can kidnap you then! No one would ever expect it!”
Aurelia’s eyes darted to me, looking me up and down before shaking her head.
“I already tried to enlist her help,” she said. “And she refused.”
Atlas gave me a look that suddenly had me wanting to defend myself.
“You wanted me to kill a vampire king instead,” I said under my breath. “That’s not helping. That’s a suicide mission.”
Atlas clicked her tongue, “Yeah, see, that probably wouldn’t work. If she couldn’t finish it with you, I doubt she’s very proficient at her job.”
I’m going to kill her.
I reached for the sword on my back, ready to unsheathe it, when Aurelia cleared her throat.
“Enough picking on her,” she said before looking straight at Atlas. “You may not want a war, but you have never given up a chance to get back at my father for what happened back then. What changed?”
I relaxed but kept my eyes on Atlas.
“She’s talking about when he went around trying to steal my clans, and when they didn’t join his family, he murdered them, if you were curious, hunter,” Atlas said and lifted her glass in an almost-toast to me. “Something I bet you understand too well.”
“I’m not a hunter,” I growled low. I hate that word. And the connotations that went with it.
“Sorry, sorry,” she said with a laugh. “What is it you call yourselves nowadays? Contractors? Semantics, really.”
“Atlas,” Aurelia warned.
She gave her a sheepish grin as an apology before her expression turned serious.
“There’s been a rogue,” she announced, her eyes locked on the leftover blood in her glass. “Well, multiple. We thought it was just one, but it turns out it’s multiple.”
“You don’t deal with rogues,” Aurelia pointed out.
“No,” Atlas said through gritted teeth. “But after getting the attention of the human police, they started investigating the clans. Once the council heard, they began imposing restrictions on us.”
I perked up at this.
“The rogue wouldn’t happen to be down in Northern California, would it?” I asked.
Both of their heads turned in my direction.
“The first.” Atlas placed her elbows on the couch and leaned forward. “Then up here. Then in Vancouver. Then all the way in Great Falls. In a matter of days, hundreds were killed. There’s no way it’s just one. Let me guess, your hunters have been notified?”
I sucked my teeth, unsure just how much I wanted to tell them. Aurelia was staring at me with an unreadable expression.
“The police haven’t been able to keep it under control,” I managed to say after a few moments of silence.
“What restrictions?” she asked, turning her attention back to Atlas.
“No more new clan members. They’re watching us like hawks.”
“I won’t be a new clan member. I would just be?—”
“They already killed ten of my people for going against it,” she stated. For a second, it looked like there was real remorse on her face. “I really want to, but I can’t. Not until this dies down, and when that happens?—”
“It’ll be too late,” Aurelia whispered.
“Anything else,” Atlas said, her eyebrows pulling together. For a moment, it looked like she truly cared about the princess. “Money. Safe passage. But you cannot stay with us. Not when we’re already being attacked. I’m sorry, my love.”
Aurelia gave her a forced smile before standing up.
“I appreciate the offer,” she said. “Maybe one day I’ll be able to take you up on it.”
She cast me a glance and motioned for me to follow her out. That’s it? She’s just going to leave?
Panic started to rise in me. Was this all that she had planned? And since it didn’t work, now what?
I didn’t want to think of what this meant for the princess.
Atlas was up and following me as soon as I moved.
She was close. Close enough to alarm me…until her hand brushed across mine.
I shot her a look, but she motioned for me to remain quiet by putting a finger to her lips. I looked down at my hand to see a pitch-black medallion with a carving on it. Something that looked like a family crest.
I had seen it before, when my witch contact, Levana, was discussing magical relics with me. It was cool to the touch and smelled nothing like magic. If I hadn’t known what it was, I might never have guessed a witch made it.
It was a communicator. Quickly, I stuffed it in my pocket and, without casting another glance at her, followed the princess out of the room.
“Think about my offer,” she called after me. “I’ll be here whenever you need me.”
Aurelia let out a huff, not at all slowing her pace in front of me.
“That would do me no good,” she muttered.
“What’s the next plan?” I asked, speeding up to walk by her side.
“No plan, little mouse,” she replied, sending me a bitter smile. “That was my last shot.”
My hand shot out to grab her shoulder and turn her to look at me. No. There had to be something else.
The Princess Aurelia I had come to know during my short time here wouldn’t just lie down and take it.
“Ask me to help you,” I all but begged. “Anything.”
I couldn’t watch her do this to herself.
“Kill him,” she said. “That’s the only way. There are more of you, right? Use them. Whatever you need to do.”
I gritted my teeth, trying desperately to stop myself from saying what I wanted.
The prophecy made you a target, princess. If it gets out that I abandoned my duty and am not actively trying to kill you, they will send someone else in a heartbeat.
While the prophecy dictated that I would be the one to end the Castle family, the secret organization that ruled us all would overlook it if it meant that they could still get the desired outcome.
Her death.
The prophecy was merely a tool to keep our families in line. To keep us feeling important. It became clear as soon as I stepped into the palace that this wasn’t so much of a destiny as it was a spiked collar, with the organization holding the leash.
“Anything else,” I whispered. “Please.”
I would do it. Anything else. Anything that would guarantee our safety. Her life. The medallion in my pocket began to burn.
Atlas sensed it too, didn’t she? Just how far gone I was for the princess?
I couldn’t deny it anymore. Whatever delusion had kept me trying to kill her was gone.
I didn’t want to. I never wanted to. There was no joy in making the princess suffer. No joy in watching her prepare for her death.
I could lie to myself before, say that I wanted to be the one who killed her.
But that’s all it was. A lie.
The unvarnished truth was that I wished for nothing more in the world than for Princess Aurelia to live. And to live happily. With me.
She shook my hand off and cast her eyes down the hallway.
“I’ll only be safe if he’s gone,” she said. “If you can’t help me with that, you’re useless.”
And without another word, she left me there in the hall, feeling more lost than I ever felt in my life.