I wanted the ground to swallow me up there and then as shock and dread ran through my body. Serena took my arm again and, in a daze, we walked up the stairs and headed towards a room.
Darius was already being laid down on the bed, and I was guided to a chair. Her lover? No, that wasn’t right, a lie, maybe he was undercover? Perhaps he was a prisoner, and just got on Angelique’s good side?
“Drink this.”
I didn’t even know what she handed me, but I drank it and felt my body stop aching, my thoughts quieted down, and the final effects of the drug disappeared instantly.
“The ceremony will be tomorrow during the full moon. Tonight, you will rest, breakfast will be sent up in the morning, and if I were you, I’d finish the mating bond, or we will all be in some serious trouble.”
I may have heard her words, but they didn’t settle, I still felt the shock coursing through my body. Eric had been my closest and most trusted ally all my life, we had shared intimate parts of ourselves, grown up together.
She couldn’t have been right? Surely not. Not the Eric I knew.
“Get some sleep. There will be one of Angelique’s outside so don’t try to escape.”
Serena left then, the door locking behind her and I stared into nothingness. How the fuck did I end up here?
21
Darius had been out for many hours while I sat trying to take in all the information I had been hit with. My mother was a vampire, Darius’ mother, Serena, was alive, and Eric was, in fact, the mole and a traitor.
The last two years felt like they had been a total lie, the grief I felt every moment I woke or fell asleep for my parents was real but unnecessary. I felt betrayal on the highest level, and if we weren’t now locked in a room, a prison, I would have curled in on myself and shut away the world.
Surely, Jackson had his suspicions when we hadn’t reported to him today, or did he want to leave Darius and I alone to connect? To talk? No, surely not.
The small lamp on the bedside table was the only light in the room, and the rest was clouded in darkness. I hadn’t moved from the seat since Serena left, and I doubted any sleep would greet me even if my muscles ached for rest.
We had to get out of here, or at least I did, as clearly Darius was safe and wouldn’t be harmed. I wasn’t so sure about myself. I was in enemy territory, and with no weapons, so any vampire or werewolf could try and attack me. The overwhelming feeling of dread hadn’t left my veins, and I shuddered at the thought of it all.
I wasn’t weak. I was a warrior, a fighter, a leader, but here in this moment, I felt like that girl who had just lost her mom, and was thrown into a position of power and responsibility. A job I never wanted from the start.
Darius mumbled something in his sleep, and it brought my attention back into the room, and away from the darkness of my mind. Watching him as he sat up suddenly, he looked around the room and then his eyes locked onto mine.
“What happened?”
“My mom’s a vampire, and your mom isn’t as dead as we were led to believe. Oh, and Eric is Angelique’s bitch.”
He was silent then, most likely taking in my words the same way I felt them. His pain was no longer engulfing my body. It had vanished when he was healed by Serena, and I was grateful that I didn’t need to feel it anymore.
“Oh, and we are to complete the mating bond, or whatever that is, so that Serena can use our powers to make Angelique the ultimate immortal being.”
“So, I missed a lot then.”
He swung his legs around off the bed and rubbed his temples, not seeming to be in any pain.
“I don’t know how I’m meant to react.”
“Join the club.”
“Are you okay, Hayley? I’m sure seeing your mother was awkward.”
“Wait till you meet yours, and then we can discuss my feelings. She said we are to be left alone and she will return at some point tomorrow. We are supposed to finish the bond.”
“And, how are we meant to do that?”
“Well, from what I can guess, we started it by that kiss, and to complete it, I would think we have to get down and dirty.”
“Oh.”