Struck (A Vampire Novel) ✔

Forty-Three

 

I had only been to the statues once and it felt like that had been decades ago. But something told me as I paced through the trees that I was going the right direction. It wasn’t the same as being pulled to Jacobi’s spirit through his powerfully addictive call, nor was it similar to the draw Clio had when I had seen her. It was similar to walking through a familiar town I had been born and raised in. The knowledge of where I needed to go was just there.

 I was alone. The twins were still in that sitting room, only now alone and unprotected. A part of me felt a twinge of shame, knowing I had abandoned what trust I had been given when I was asked to watch over them, if only for a while. I could have waited for Jacobi and Darsana to finish discussing the letter Adelaide had left him. But something told me he wouldn’t be as eager for me to pursue this small adventure of curiosity. Besides, I hoped I could see what there was needed to be seen and be back at the headquarters before anybody noticed.

Quite suddenly, the trees cleared out and I was standing in front of that familiar garden of statues. For a moment, I hesitated and glanced around at the display of flowers placed around the still figures. Then I quietly moved down the pathway in the center in order to stop by the lake where I typically stood in my dreams.

I gazed at the surface of the lake for a moment, watching the reflection of the moon against it. After a second, I glanced over my shoulder to see the back of Adelaide’s statue. In my mind’s eye, I could see her watching me, pointing at the distance patiently. I slowly turned my gaze from the back of her statue to my right.

From where I was, I could only see what looked to be a small crowd of statues surrounding bushes of flowers, most of which were wilted or slightly closed while waiting for the sun to rise again. I imagined the garden would look even more breathtaking in the sunlight. Still, whatever it was that Adelaide wanted me to see had to be beyond the initial layer of the garden. So I began to step in that direction, crossing between the statues carefully.

The further I went, the sadder I felt as the number of losses only increased. Some faces were older and wiser, but many were young… too young. I knew based on what I’d witness with the vampires that appearances didn’t define a person’s age in this society, but it still bothered me to know each of these figures had been living and talking creatures at one point in time; loved by their Coterie. And now they were silent and lifeless, wooden figures forever standing in a quiet garden by an eerie lake.

The figures faded out as a small flight of cobblestone steps led down to another part of the garden. In this circle, well-trimmed bushes surrounded the area as though lining off an important section. Besides another design of flowers dancing around the clearing, there stood a single carved statue in the center. The way the figure was placed made it seem as though it were a figure to be highly cherished or worshipped. Something told me this was what I was looking for.

I stepped closer to the figure, noting the unfamiliar form. It was a woman, probably no taller than I was. But something in the way she stood made her seem like a giant. Her eyes were relaxed, almost sleepy but in a way that seemed like a dangerous animal before it’s actually seen its prey. Her hands were cupped together at her midsection innocently, only slightly extended as though half-offering something not able to be seen. There was something strange about her form that seemed almost glowing in the moonlight, despite the material she’d been carved from.

Once I was close enough, I tore my eyes from that pale face down to the plaque in front of her shrine, reading the name “Eve Raene” across the bottom. So this was what the first Royal looked like when she was living. I found my eyes glued to her face, raking over her form only briefly before memorizing those beautifully flawless features of the Eve Raene. After a moment, I raised my hand timidly towards her figure as though enthralled completely.