Chapter 32
The boys wash up and change for lunch, a dozen more kisses exchanged, smiling into each other’s lips.
The rest of the Al-Najim family arrive in time for lunch, followed shortly by Jackson’s parents.
Lady Eloise has politely declined the invitation but sends her regards.
It’s a surreal sight at first, all the boys’ families and even Charlie in one place.
Wendy sends her regards from what seems to be a yacht owned by her mysterious new beau.
“Any idea who he is?” Asks Hakeem. Both Eddie and Jackson shrug, Wendy wasn’t revealing much on social media and no one saw who he was at the ball.
She seemed to be enjoying herself so all’s well that ends well for now.
In fact, everybody seems to be enjoying themselves.
The staff serve lunch poolside, the sun bright in the sky, everyone enjoying the company of their partners.
Well, besides Nour and Mazen, who both complain about being single whilst congratulating their cousin for somehow finding two (crazy rich and hot) boyfriends.
It even seemed Hakeem’s uncle was enjoying himself.
Although, he seems to be avoiding Christopher and Annabella, but perhaps that’s just the boys’ imagination.
Hours were spent by the poolside. The smell of barbecue filled the air and drinks were passed around by the manor staff.
The sound of laughter filled the early afternoon sky as people splashed around the pool, lounged in the pool chairs and basked in the sun.
The LaLune siblings loaded on carbs and protein in preparation for the run that night.
(Fun Fact: Jackson tans really well thanks to his father’s genetics, yet grows pale just as fast due to vampiric magic.)
As the sun starts to set in the sky, everyone making their way back inside to change and rest before the run.
Anyone not participating in the run through the land around the estate was invited to the main living room of the manor for coffee and tea.
Janice was glad to have a group to entertain while her family let their energy out during the full moon.
Usually it was just her, Courtney and Meghan (who did join the run should the mood arise), if they were even free to join.
About an hour before the sun fully set on the horizon, prior to the full moon dominating the sky; Hakeem, Jackson and Eddie were called to Christopher’s private study. When they arrive they are greeted by Annabella Nocturne, Christopher LaLune, and most bizarrely, Shadi Al-Najim.
The tension in the room is suffocating. The expressions on their faces grim as the boys step in.
“Khalo Shadi? Is everything okay?”
“Mother? What’s this all about?” Asks Jackson. Eddie steps in behind his boyfriends, a hand on each of their shoulders.
Shadi speaks up first. “Hakeem, I’m glad you found your joy with Eddie and Jackson. I still need to speak my piece. You need to know something about our family’s connection to Houses Nocturne and LaLune.”
Jackson laces his hand through Hakeem’s, giving it a gentle squeeze in reassurance.
Eddie pulls them in closer by their shoulders.
A sense of dread fills Hakeem’s chest, grateful he wasn’t having this talk alone.
“Khalo Shadi, what are you talking about? I thought you only knew Jackson and Eddie’s families through contractor work. What connection?”
Annabella steps forward with a photo in hand, one of her and Christopher LaLune, side by side with Hiba Al-Najim.
“He means the one between myself, Eddie’s Father, and your late mother.
I am afraid we haven’t been entirely truthful with you three.
I hope you can forgive us when you learn the truth. ”
“The truth about what, mother?” Asks Jackson, annoyed by the cryptic air in the room.
Eddie furrows his brow and looks to his father, “Appa?”
Christopher clasps his hand under his chin, elbows propped on his desk where he sits and takes a deep inhale.
“The truth of how we failed to keep your mother safe, Hakeem. Annabella and I were members of the last expedition your mother was a part of. We personally brought her on as an archaeologist to assist with the search for an ancient relic.”
Hakeem shakes his head, “Are you saying you were both with her the day she…” he can’t bring himself to finish the thought.
Shadi takes the opportunity to continue. “They were. They were the ones who brought you back to me, a newborn clutching my sister’s golden necklace. Did you two want to tell my nephew how my sister was killed that day?” Shadi’s knuckles turn white as he clenches his fists by his side.
Christopher and Annabella exchange a look, the exact details of that day were classified information, neither of them had spoken of it for decades. Annabella takes it upon herself to fill the boys in, who wait with bated breath.
“The bureau had received reports of an ancient relic thought to be lost a millennium ago. A portal key that was used to seal the rift between the demonic realm and ours. It was the final piece in ending the war between the demons and fae. If the relic fell into the wrong hands it could be used as a catalyst to reignite the war, opening the rift between worlds once more. House Nocturne took the lead on forming a retrieval team. I was to lead the team along with Christopher to a lost city in the human realm, where reports led us to believe we could find the key. We had known each other for years, introduced by his father before him, his reputation as a werewolf preceding him. Hiba was a brilliant archaeologist that had gone to school with Christopher and had even won my favor in recent years. We agreed there was no one better to find the last pieces of the puzzle to lead us to the key.”
Christopher continues, “The exact location of the lost city was narrowed down to the Middle East. Hiba was able to decipher the clues leading to the ruins with ease. She was partnered with a djinn, your father, Hakeem. She had found his lamp on a dig years prior, an ornate swan shaped oil lamp. They fell in love and his knowledge of the ancient world combined with your mother’s brilliance made them a formidable duo.
They were partners, not merely master and servant.
His true name was known only to her, a sign of devotion.
“When we arrived at the location of the ruins, it seemed we were not alone. There was a leak in the bureau, a small army of cultists ambushed us at the site. Dark flames enclosed us from the rest of our party. They were skilled, organized and powerful. Even with my power as a werewolf and Annabella’s magic we were pushed to our limits.
We were exhausted, hanging on by a thread. ”
Annabella speaks once more. “It was a shameful moment for us both. It was your mother, Hakeem, who saved us. She had used a wish that day, the second of her three, to push the cultists back. We were eternally grateful to her, a true wish was more valuable than diamonds or gold. More powerful than ancient magicks lost to existence. We owed her our lives, but we were still damaged and weak. As we entered the hidden chamber, where the key was meant to be, we didn’t realize the cultist leader was poised to strike, twin arrows of dark magic ready to fire.
In our weakened states…We didn’t detect him.
“Your mother lead the way, eager to unveil the discovery, faster than we could stop her. Your father followed her lead. The arrows, surely meant for us, pierced their bodies, hearts stopping practically instantly.” Annabella’s nails dig into her arm where they lay crossed on her chest, her fangs bared in anger.
“The dark energy coursed through their bodies, we were powerless to save them. The cultist leader was,” her tongue traces her fangs, “dispatched. Using the last of her strength, hand clinging to your father, your mother made a desperate wish.”
Shadi interrupts, “After earning her PhD in archaeology and achieving renown in her field, my sister had one other dream. She longed to be a mother, to raise a family with the one she loved, something she had accepted would be impossible with the djinn she loved.” Tears well up behind his eyes, though he forces them back.
“Your father was doomed to disappear along with her, his love for her keeping his material form intact just long enough to break all the rules and grant her a final wish. She couldn’t speak, so he granted the truest wish in her heart.
Hiba wished for a child with the man she loved. She wished for you, Hakeem.”
Hakeem curls into Eddie and Jackson’s hold, hands shaking. “All their love, all their magic, it all came together to make you. You have her smile and her passion. Your father’s magic flows through you, your silvery eyes the same as his.”
Hakeem’s voice shakes as he pulls away from his boyfriends, “I don’t understand. Why was this such a big secret? I understand it’s a painful memory, but why do you seem to resent them, Khalo Shadi?”
Shadi turns his head, unable to hold his nephew’s questioning gaze, “Do either of you want to answer my nephew?” His tone is pointed as he regards Christopher and Annabella.
They both remain silent, eyes pointed to the floor. “Fine! Then allow me. Hakeem,” He regards his nephew, tears threatening to spill. “Not only did your mother find the ancient ruins and save two of the most powerful people in the realm not once, but twice. She lost her life for nothing.”
Hakeem is stunned, eyes wide, words lost to his trembling body.
Jackson pulls him back to his embrace, letting Hakeem’s head rest on his chest. Eddie steps in front of them.
“Mr. Al-Najim, what do you mean? Lady Nocturne? Appa?” He voices his questions to the room, seemingly no one dared to answer him.