Anything For Rachel

Chapter Twenty Nine.

Calvin looked down at the floor, then turned to look at me. "Ok." He whispered and Cromley took out earpieces for us to wear and he backed up to hold the camera up in front of his face.

"Ready?" He asked and I sighed then nodded with Calvin.

"Hello?" A voice popped into my ear. "Majesties, can you hear me?"

"Yes." Calvin and I both responded.

The woman cleared her throat, then you could hear shouts and screams in the background. "As I am sure you already know, the people of Castrum de Petra are very eager to hear what you have to say about the disaster that we are currently all stuck in." She said icily and I recognized her voice as the snooty red headed news anchor who was always a big one of my criticizers.

"Yes," Calvin said firmly. "I am well aware of the situation here, and I am doing everything I can to do the right thing not only for my people here in the capitol, but also for all of my people worldwide." He said confidently. "It is for that reason that I will be enforcing a full scale lockdown until the situation has ended."

"So we are all to be trapped here until we die?" The woman snapped. "Is that what you're telling us?"

Calvin sighed, his façade weakening ever so slightly, and I reached out to hold his hand.

"As I am sure most have come to realize by now," He said. "The Lamia Mortem was put into our home as a cruel act of rebel forces who have disregard for all of the lives here." Calvin spoke slowly, emphasizing each word. "It was a callous act, that will not go unpunished, and the individuals responsible will die the most painful deaths imaginable. They poisoned our blood supply, and it will take some time to get a new shipment that can be trusted, but I am doing everything in my power to get us all through this."

"Oh, really?" The woman asked cruelly. "I see on this council agenda that I have in front of me that our blood shortage was on task to be discussed at a meeting many days ago." She said. "How is it, Your Highness, that you let these rebels as you called it get away with such a thing? Did you simply not care what the council had to say about it? Did you even attend the meeting to discuss why our blood supply was so low and what reasons there could have been?" She demanded. "The way I see it, and I think many would agree, is that you were too busy with your new queen, to be bothered with the issues of your people. The council saw this coming, yet you didn't. What kind of a ruler are you?" She laughed. "Your father was a rambling fool, but you, Majesty, you are something else altogether. What kind of king leaves his people to suffer? What do you expect us to do here?"

"Enough!" I snapped, making Logan and Cromley both jump, but Calvin stood expressionless and frozen like a statue. "I won't hear any more of this." I said lowly. "All that you're doing is spreading more fear and hate, which is exactly what the people who did this wanted." I shook my head. "We need to be coming together right now, in this, which may just be the biggest and scariest thing we will ever have to endure. How we chose to react to these monsters who put us here, is how we will all be remembered when the histories for this time are written." I was so angry I had to let go of Calvin's hand so that I could run my hands through my hair to calm myself down. "Also, this council that you're so quick to defend, were the first ones to flee while the people fell ill." I pointed out. "Meanwhile, your king...Your very susceptible king, is still here with you, fighting the same battle as you are, feeling the same amount of fear and distrust as you are. It's time to stand up and stop being cowards. Don't let the rebels attempts to drag the king's name through the mud be a success. This man beside me has so much love for his people, and I won't stand by and listen to anyone trying to tear him down."

The woman laughed, and started to say something, but Calvin cut her off.

"I'm sorry you find everything so amusing, Miss Krystal." He said firmly. "Maybe you yourself are one of the rebels, or at least a sympathizer." He shrugged.

"Of course I'm not, Majesty, I-I-."

"I won't hear anything else from you." Calvin snapped. "My message to my people is this." He sighed. "We are all in this." He said. "I am here, fighting beside you, just as I always have, and together we will see the other side of this, and we will watch the people responsible burn. But for now, we must stand our ground. I know that it's scary, but remain in your rooms, stay away from other people so that you don't risk contamination. Guards who have been trained will be responsible for the disposal of the ill, do not touch them yourselves." He warned. "The blood slaves are the only sources we have now, but there aren't nearly enough for everyone, plus there is no guarantee that they are all uninfected themselves." He explained. "The best course of action is going to be to bunker down in your rooms, and let the illness run its course. If everyone remains calm, and holds off on feeding as long as possible, we will be triumphant over these vile creatures."

Cromley raised his brows, and Calvin nodded, letting him know he was done.

Cromley had barely had time to lower the camera before Calvin collapsed on the floor.

Octavia and I both fell down at his sides, checking on him, but he tried to wave us away. "I'm alright." He muttered. "I'm just tired." He whispered, his head falling over to one side.

Cromley helped him from the floor and over to the bed, and he groaned as he stretched out, lying his head back on the pillow. I was at his side, holding his hand. The sight of Calvin so weak, when all I've ever known him as was the strongest person I'd ever know, was physically painful. "Calvin, please, let me help you." I whispered and he fluttered his eyes open.

"I promise, Rachel, I'll be alright." He said shakily.

I turned back to look at Octavia. "What happens if he doesn't eat?" I asked her and she frowned, shaking her head at him.

"The desire to have any blood will become stronger and stronger, making you and Logan being near him an issue." She said softly. "But we will keep him away from you both." She assured us. "After a while, probably not too much longer actually, he will start to shut down. It won't kill him, but he'll certainly feel like he's dying. He'll go into a coma-like state until he feeds and is strong enough to pull out of it."

I felt the tears in my eyes as I imagined it, then turned back to Calvin, shaking his shoulders. "No," I told him. "I won't watch you go through that, Calvin."

He lifted his hand slowly and placed it on my cheek. "I'll be alright, Rachel." He told me again.

"Drink from me, Calvin, then you'll have your strength back." I said quickly, my cheeks flushing slightly since we weren't alone.

His eyes hardened as he looked at me. "No." He said simply and I leaned back out of his grasp.

"What do you mean no?" I asked, my voice coming off slightly offended. "I'm your wife, Calvin. I love you, I need you to be ok, and I'm human, which means I can help you for once." I rambled quickly. "Let me help you."

He shook his head, looking up at the ceiling. "No, Rachel." He said firmly. "I've already told you before, and I still have the same answer." He told me. "I won't drink from you."