20. Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty
Finn
A idan and I stood on the balcony, the cool breeze heavy with Vera's threats as we strategized to keep Amelia safe.
“We need to tighten security,” I said, leaning against the railing. “Vera’s not going to stop until she gets to Amelia. We can’t afford any mistakes.”
Aidan nodded; his jaw tight as he stared out into the darkness.
“I’ve already doubled the guards and reinforced the wards around the property. But Vera’s cunning. She’ll find a way if we’re not careful.”
I clenched my fists, frustration bubbling beneath the surface.
“We need to be proactive. Sitting here and waiting for her to make a move isn’t going to cut it. We need to find her before she finds us.”
Aidan turned to me; his eyes sharp.
“And how do you propose we do that?”
Before I could respond, the sound of the balcony door sliding open caught our attention. Amelia stepped out, her hair tousled and her eyes wide with a mix of fear and determination. She looked like she hadn’t slept, and the way she clutched her robe around her told me something was wrong.
“Amelia,” I said, stepping toward her. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
She hesitated, her gaze flickering between Aidan and me.
“I… I had a dream. About Alma.”
“What did she say?” Aidan stiffened, his expression darkening.
Amelia took a deep breath, her voice trembling as she spoke.
“She told me about a prophecy. She said we have to prevent it from coming to pass, or it will mean the end of everything. Aidan, do you know anything about this?”
“A prophecy? No, I’ve never heard of anything like that,” Aidan frowned, his brow furrowing in confusion.
My mind raced, and then it hit me, a memory I hadn’t thought about in years.
“Wait,” I said, my voice low. “I think I might know something.”
Both Aidan and Amelia turned to me, their eyes filled with questions.
“When I was younger,” I began, “I found my father’s diary after he died. There was something in it… a prophecy. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but now…”
“What did it say?” Amelia asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
I closed my eyes, trying to recall the exact words.
“It was something about the stars falling from the heavens and the night sky bleeding. It talked about a war between vampires and werewolves, a battle that would wipe out both species and leave only humans. It said the child of the dual bloodline would be the herald of destruction.”
“A dual bloodline? What does that mean?” Aidan’s eyes narrowed.
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “But it also mentioned something about a pact forged in shadows and a darkness that no one could control. My father wrote it down like it was a warning, but he never explained what it meant.”
Amelia’s face paled, and she took a step back.
“That’s what Alma was talking about. She said Vera is only the beginning, that something worse is coming. She told me the prophecy must be prevented, or it will destroy everything.”
Aidan ran a hand through his hair, his frustration evident.
“This doesn’t make sense. If this prophecy is real, why haven’t we heard about it before?”
“I’ll go to my father’s house,” I said, breaking the silence. My voice was firm, but I could see the concern flicker in Amelia’s eyes. “There might be something there, more about the prophecy, or at least clues about what it means. My father’s diary was just the beginning. There could be other records, something we missed.”
Aidan crossed his arms, his expression skeptical.
“It’s too dangerous, Finn. Vera’s already proven she’s willing to go after anyone connected to us. If she finds out you’re there, she won’t hesitate to come after you.”
I shook my head, my jaw tightening.
“I’m not some helpless pup, Aidan. I’m an alpha. I can take care of myself. Besides, I know the area better than anyone. If there’s anything left in that house, I’ll find it.”
Amelia stepped forward, her eyes wide with worry.
“Finn, I don’t like this. What if something happens to you? What if Vera’s waiting for you?”
I reached out, placing a hand on her shoulder.
“I’ll be careful, Amelia. I promise. But we need answers, and this might be the only way to get them. I won’t let Vera or this prophecy take everything from us.”
Aidan sighed, running his hand through his hair.
“Fine. But you’re not going alone. I’ll send some of my men with you. They’ll watch your back and make sure you’re not walking into a trap.”
I opened my mouth to argue, but the look in Aidan’s eyes stopped me. He was right, having backup wouldn’t hurt.
“Alright,” I said reluctantly.
The next morning, we gathered for breakfast, the tension was thick in the air. Sienna picked at her food; her usual cheer replaced by unease.
“I just got off the phone with Fergus. He’s found the witch’s location. It’s much further than we expected. I’ve called for the helicopter to take us there,” Aidan broke the silence, his voice calm but commanding.
Amelia’s eyes widened, and she set her fork down.
“Us?”
Aidan nodded.
“You and I will go to see the witch. Finn will head to his family’s house to search for more information about the prophecy. Sienna…” He turned to her, his expression softening. “You’ll stay here. It’s the safest place for you.”
Sienna’s face paled, and she shook her head.
“Stay here? Alone? What if something happens? What if Vera comes back?”
“This is the most secure location we have. You’ll be surrounded by guards and wards. Nothing will get to you. Amelia and I will only be gone for a short time. We’ll be back before you know it,” Aidan leaned forward, his voice steady.
Sienna looked at me, her eyes pleading.
“Finn, I don’t like this. What if something happens to you guys? What if I never see you again?”
I reached across the table, taking her hand in mine.
“Sienna, listen to me. You’re safe here. Aidan’s right, this is the best place for you. And we’re not going to let anything happen to you. You’re my family.”
She took a deep breath, her shoulders relaxing slightly.
“Okay. But you all better come back in one piece. I’m not ready to lose anyone.”
Amelia smiled, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes.
“We’ll be careful, Sienna. I promise.”
Aidan stood, his tone shifting to one of authority.
“The helicopter will be here in an hour. Finn, you’ll leave shortly after. Sienna, Julian will be in charge of your security while we’re gone. If you need anything, he’ll take care of it.”
Sienna nodded, though she still looked uneasy.
“Alright. Just… hurry back, okay?”
“We will,” I said, giving her a reassuring smile.
After breakfast, the helicopter arrived.
I went to where Amelia was and held her hands.
“Amelia, I’m going to miss you.”
“I’ll miss you more,” she said as she bit her lower lip.
“I know that Aidan will definitely take care of you but if things get out of hand don’t hesitate to call me,” I said as I gave her a kiss on her forehead.
“I definitely will,” she said as she kissed my lower lip.
Aidan and Amelia boarded, their faces a mix of determination and apprehension, and my stomach twisted with unease.
“Be careful,” I said, my voice barely audible over the noise of the helicopter.
Aidan turned, his eyes meeting mine.
“You too, Finn.”
I nodded; my throat tight.
“I will.”
As the helicopter lifted into the sky, I turned and headed toward the garage, where a group of Aidan’s vampires waited to accompany me.
“Let’s go,” I ordered.
The drive was quiet, the prophecy weighing on me. I dialed Damon, and he answered groggily on the second ring.
“Finn? What’s going on? It’s early.”
“I need your help,” I said, cutting straight to the point. “Meet me at my family’s house. There’s something I need to find, and I can’t do it alone.”
There was a pause on the other end, and then Damon’s tone shifted, serious now.
“What’s this about?”
“I’ll explain when you get here,” I said, my grip tightening on the steering wheel. “Just hurry.”
I hung up, focused on the road, my mind racing with memories of the house I hadn’t visited in years. Where everything changed after my father’s death.
I just hope you left some kind of clue, dad, I thought.
The house looked unchanged; I unlocked the door.
The familiar scent of old wood and dust filled the air as I stepped inside.
“I can’t believe no one has been here since Dad died…” I muttered as I walked around the house.
Damon arrived about an hour later, his presence reassuring.
“Finn,” he said, his voice steady as he approached. “What’s going on?”
“Come on. I’ll explain inside.”
We entered the house thick with dust and memories. Damon’s eyes scanned the room, his expression unreadable.
“This place… it’s been years,” he said, his voice soft.
I nodded, my chest tightening as I took in the familiar surroundings.
“Yeah. After my father died, none of us could bring ourselves to come back. It felt… wrong. Like the house died with him.”
Damon placed a hand on my shoulder, his grip firm.
“I get it. But why now? What are we looking for?”
I took a deep breath, stealing myself.
“There’s a prophecy. Something my father wrote about in his diary. It’s tied to Vera, to Amelia, to everything that’s happening. If we can find out more about it, we might be able to stop what’s coming.
Damon’s eyes narrowed, but he didn’t argue.
“Alright. Where do we start?”
“My father’s study,” I said, leading the way down the hall. “If there’s anything here, it’ll be there.”
As we walked, I found myself talking, the words spilling out before I could stop them.
“You know, Damon, this house used to feel so alive. My father would sit in his study for hours, working on who knows what. My mother would be in the kitchen, baking something that always smelled amazing. And my sister… we’d run through these halls like we owned the place. But after my father died, it all just… stopped.”
Damon listened quietly, his presence a steady anchor as I poured out memories I hadn’t thought about in years.
“I remember the last time we were all here,” I continued, my voice cracking slightly. “It was right before he died. He seemed… off. Like he knew something was coming. But he never said anything. And then he was gone.”
We entered the study, unchanged with dusty bookshelves, an oak desk, and the faint scent of my father’s cologne.
“Alright,” I said, shaking off the memories. “Let’s get to work.”
We started with the desk, pulling open drawers and sifting through papers. Most of it was mundane—old bills, correspondence, notes on pack business. But after an hour of searching, Damon found something.
“Finn,” he said, his voice tense. “Look at this.”
He handed me a folded piece of paper, yellowed with age. I unfolded it carefully, my heart pounding as I read the words scrawled in my father’s handwriting.
“The prophecy is real. The child of the dual bloodline will bring about the end of our kind. The only hope lies in the union of wolf alpha, a vampire leader and the blood of the chosen one, but even that may not be enough. The darkness is coming, and it will consume us all. The cursed child will be our doom.”
My hands trembled as I read the words, the weight of them settling over me like a shroud. Damon leaned over my shoulder, his breath catching as he read along.
“What does it mean?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
“I don’t know,” I said, my mind racing. “But we need to find more. There must be something else here, something that explains what this means.”
We kept searching, pulling books off the shelves and flipping through pages, but nothing else stood out. Just as I was about to give up, I looked at the wall and noticed that something was weird about the wall.
“Why does this paint look darker over here?” I asked as I used my hand to hit it, and it made an echoing sound.
“There’s definitely something behind that wall,” Damon said.
Damon and I channeled our werewolf strength as we kept on punching the wall and it fell revealing a hidden room.
“What the hell? So, there’s a hidden room in my family house…” I said as I paced around the room.
I saw pictures of my mother, my sister and myself and then saw a picture of a little boy my father was carrying.
“Who’s this baby?” I turned to Damon.
“Isn’t that you?”
“No, it isn’t, I’m blonde and the hair here is dark this isn’t me and it’s not my sister either.”
Then Damon stumbled on something that stunned me.
“Wait what are these documents? Are these birth records?”
I immediately took the documents from Damon and read the name on it.
“Lucifer Hale Solan? These are birth records of the child my dad was carrying in this picture. Wait do I have a brother?” I asked as I looked at Damon, confused.