Absolute, stunned silence.
Then, "You're what?!" Jesse asked, blatant disbelief in his tone.
The others simply stared with varied degrees of incredulity. Arthur was the only one who didn't display the slightest hint of surprise. Maybe he had already figured it out, maybe nothing surprised him anymore after the ages he's lived and the things he'd seen.
"I thought he only had one child," Irene said.
"With his current mate, yes." I said.
My father had taken a mate five years after my birth and my mother's death, he had a child with her a few years later. A fifteen year old half brother. I only knew about him after I started living with humans and looked up the fae's royal family.
"So the rumors are true," Amanda whispered. "There was a woman."
I nodded, "yes, my late mother."
"Wait a second, are you all just going to believe this?" Jesse looked around the table before his gaze settled on me, "do you realize the implications of what you're saying? This means you're the rightful heir to the fae throne."
"I don't want anything to do with it. Besides, Rion abdicated the throne," I said. This was exactly the kind of complications I wanted to avoid.
"It doesn't work that way," Harvey said, "You're the first born of the first born. The throne is rightfully yours."
"I don't want it." I said, "It doesn't matter anyway. It's not like I'm planning to go anywhere near Ireland." At least, not for the moment.
"Who put the sealing spell on you?" Charles asked.
"My mother," I replied.
Charles' sharp blue eyes didn't budge off me, "Why?"
There it was. The question that would bring it all to the surface. My magic was a torrent I could barely hold in. I opened my mouth to speak, but Arthur beat me to it.
"Was Robert sure about the attempt to open another gate?"
Everyone looked at Arthur. The sudden change of subjects took us all by surprise. My eyes met dark brown ones, and my tense body slackened. I nodded.
"Yes, he's sure. Some fae were working with a number of witches and vampires, gathering resources and making plans to open another gate. They were apprehended and punished, apparently. But it did happen."
"Did he mention when?"
"Around three decades ago, I believe." I replied. It had happened a few years before my birth, according to uncle Robert.
"Interesting," Harvey said, following Arthur's lead, "yet no one said a word."
"If it happened in their territory and the people responsible have been punished, are they still required to share it with everyone else?" Irene asked.
"They're not exactly required," Kat said, "it's just common courtesy to share information of that magnitude."
"But if it is still going on, that's a whole different matter." Jesse said.
"Either way, we won't have the full picture until we go to Europe," Arthur stood up, "you're all dismissed. Elle, stay."
Everyone filed out of the room in silence. As the door closed behind them, Arthur came to take a seat next to me. My chair turned around on its own to face him. We were so close that our knees were almost touching. His impassive mask was in place.
"What happened to Robert?" His voice lost the cold, testy edge it had during the meeting. His question brought back memories of blood and pain.
"He died."
"Does it have anything to do with Martin Malone and his mercenary group?"
It took me a second too long to nod.
"When?" he asked.
"About eleven years ago."
A muscle ticked in his jaw. He'd shaved his beard to a lighter stubble, showcasing a sharp jawline.
"You were what? Fourteen?" he asked. I nodded, and he continued, "you weren't registered in the system until you were sixteen. Where did you spend those two years?"
"What does it have to do with anything?" Those two years were probably the hardest of my life, so far. I didn't feel comfortable sharing them with anyone.
Arthur scratched his jaw, his chair moving forward until his knees were on either side of mine. "You're right. But I still want to know what happened to Malone and his people. How did they disappear?"
"They're dead." Not even a speck of ash remained of their bodies. "Uncle Robert and I killed them all. Uncle Robert didn't survive."
A heavy sigh, then, "will you tell me why Robert Walsh had to take the king's daughter away?"
I rubbed my face with both hands, then looked straight into his eyes. This was the moment of truth. Did I really have a choice, though? Like Amanda said, I had to draw a line somewhere.
Will guarding this secret be my priority? Or will I choose to trust that Arthur, like uncle Robert, wouldn't see me as the abomination that many fear.
"If I tell you that, you'll probably kill me."
Arthur's brows rose a fraction, "I don't think you're capable of doing something that will condemn you to death."
That was flattering. Unfortunately, it was not enough to assuage my fears.
"It's not what I did," I replied, "it's-"
The words stuck in my throat. They felt like heavy rocks I could not budge. Arthur looked resigned.
"Elle." Arthur nudged my knee with his, "this big secret of yours, will it affect me or my people in any way?"
"I don't know." I said, then chuckled, the sound jerky. I was such a coward. I had been kidding myself for long enough, it was time to face the music. "No, that's not true. It will affect your people."
"Do you think you should be executed?" he suddenly asked.
I frowned at him, "you can't ask me that. Of course I'll say no."
He actually rolled his eyes, "just answer the question. Do you think you should be executed?"
"No!" I replied. I liked myself alive, thank you very much.
"Alright. You can keep your secret. But it won't last for long, sooner or later it will come out, be ready for it."
I blinked, "you're just going to take my word for it?"
He sighed, "yes, I'm going to take your word for it, Elle. You would never put an innocent in danger even at the expense of your own life. I trust your judgement that, whatever this secret is, it will not put others at risk."
My shoulders slumped. This went better than expected. I was almost ready to spill the beans. But my relief was short lived, Arthur wasn't done with his interrogation.
"Does your father know you're alive?"
"No," I replied. If he did, he would have raised hell to get me back. Uncle Robert always told me that my father was a good man, but he trusted his people blindly and that very trust was his undoing.
"Your mother? how did she die?"
"It's complicated," I said, "but the short version is that she was murdered."
Arthur leaned back, "so your mother was killed, Robert Walsh took you away from your father, and your father doesn't know you exist."
"Pretty much."
He raised his brows, "I need more than that, honey."
I ignored the nickname for the sake of my sanity. "My father knew my mother was pregnant. When he was away, she was attacked. She killed all her attackers, but she was dying by the time the fight was over. The labor of my birth was just the cherry on top. Uncle Robert arrived at the scene before she passed away. She made him promise to take me away from Ireland because the royal court wasn't safe for me."
"Someone from the court was involved in her murder." Arthur realized.
"Yes, I guess she recognized one of her attackers," I said, "at least, that's what uncle Robert thought."
Arthur linked his fingers and brought them to his lips. His silence was long and heavy.
"Someone is aware you're alive," he finally said, "and for some reason they want you dead. That's why Martin Malone was sent, right?"
"That's my guess, too." I shrugged, "uncle Robert was a soldier, a fighter, he didn't do well with the politics of the world. He wasn't a great planner, either. He told me all he knew, but his plans for our future were vague, at best."
"Mhm, I bet he wouldn't have expected you to be here."
I winced, "yeah. He wouldn't have been surprised, though. I have a way of getting myself involved in crap I have no business being in."
Arthur chuckled. "That, you do."
I glared at him. He could at least be nice and say otherwise.
"It's the truth." he said, then straightened, "now, your identity, if revealed, will make a barrage of complications. I take it that your mother wasn't very high on the social ladder, otherwise her relationship with your father and her death would have made more noise."
"She was just a regular fae." I confirmed.
"If she gave birth to you, there was nothing regular about her," he said, "but that's beside the point. Do you look a lot like your mother?"
"Yes. Uncle Robert used to say I was an exact replica of her."
"Which means someone could recognize you in Europe."
"My mother wasn't blonde, though. I got my coloring from my father. My mother's hair and eyes were darker."
"That helps," Arthur nodded, "now, how bad do you want to go to Europe?"
"I want to go." I said.
"Even if it costs you your secrets? Your life?" Arthur asked.
"If I get to find out who was behind uncle Robert's death, it will be worth it." I told him, "I can't live with myself if I don't avenge uncle Robert. He was the only family I had, he was everything to me, and he died because of me. I will find the person who ordered the hit on us, and I will end him or her, if it was the last thing I did."
Europe held the answer to all my questions, who killed my mother? Who sent mercenaries after uncle Robert? Who was the traitor in the court?
But Europe also held a great risk. I could be recognized by someone who knew my mother.
There was a chance I would have to meet the current fae king, Ronan, my uncle. If that happened and he recognized me, people would certainly try to kill me even if I was under Arthur's protection.
And there it was. I was counting on Arthur's protection even when I hadn't told him everything he needed to know. That was not fair. I would be putting him in a difficult position, and that was selfish of me.
I looked at Arthur. So far, he hadn't given me any reason to think he would be anything but fair. It was me who had difficulty trusting others.
My secret would be out, I realized. Sooner or later, Arthur would know. So it was better to do it on my own terms.
"You need to know," I told Arthur, "you have to know, before we go to Europe."
"You don't have to go."
"No, I do." I straightened up, "I will go to Europe, and before that I will tell you the reason why if anyone recognizes me there, they will probably want me dead."
Arthur coked his head, his dark eyes framed with thick lashes scanned my features leisurely, as if we had all the time in the world.
My skin heated up. My magic was behaving in an unusual way. It was probably a reaction to the sensitive conversation we were having. Yeah, that was it. It had nothing to do with the pull I felt towards the man in front of me.
"Alright, Elle. Go ahead," he nodded.
"Okay," I cleared my throat, it took me several tries to figure out how to start, "you know what happens when a vampire bites a fae."
"Yes," he narrowed his eyes, "unlike other races, the fae have a peculiar reaction to our venom. They go insane from bloodlust, and for some reason, their powers are enhanced and their pain tolerance is heightened. In other words, they become death machines."
I swallowed, fisting my hands tighter on my thighs, "my mother was attacked by a vampire when she was pregnant with me."
The silence that followed was suffocating. Arthur's entire body froze, he didn't even seem to breathe.
I continued speaking, my heart hammering in my ears.
"She had just found out she was pregnant with me. For some reason, her reaction to the venom wasn't as fast as it should've been. My father took her away to a secluded part of Ireland. Uncle Robert was present. He said that she struggled with the blood lust, but it didn't reach the point of insanity. At times, she would completely lose it, but usually she only suffered in silence."
When Arthur didn't make a move, I added, "she needed blood to function. My father fed her his. Uncle Robert said she was holding on because of me, that her protective instincts fought the craze of the venom, that she knew if she succumbed, I would die."
Arthur finally blinked, "Perhaps Robert was right. I haven't seen any case where the bitten fae was pregnant. The vampiric attacks on the fae were very limited over time."
Arthur shook his head and stood up. He paced back and forth. This was the most agitated I'd ever seen him.
The vampiric venom was in my blood. Part of the reason my mother cast the sealing spell on me was that as soon as she birthed me, she felt that my aura was different from other fae. She had been attacked early on in the pregnancy, the venom was embedded in my system, and she'd been feeding off blood the entire time I was in her womb. I was fae, but technically, I was also a vampire child.
A weird, unheard of, hybrid.
So far, my vampiric tendencies have been dormant. I had never felt blood lust, even the thought of drinking blood made me sick.
"I knew something was different," Arthur said, "during the blood vow, I knew your blood was different. I thought it was the effect of the sealing spell. But this..." he shook his head, "this is unheard of."
He paced some more while I waited for his reaction.
The moment a fae showed signs of vampiric venom poisoning, they were put down immediately. That was part of the reason my father took my mother away. He knew that if she went crazy, he would have to execute her, but he wanted to give her a chance to fight. It turned out he was right.
If they had stayed close to the court, someone would've tried to kill her regardless of her unexpected ability to withstand the blood lust. There had been too many instances when venom-infected fae had slaughtered villages and families in the past. Fear of someone like my mother, and I, was a tangible thing in our world, especially among the fae.
Arthur was suddenly in front of me. His hands on the armrests of my chair and his face inches from mine. And his eyes... his eyes were entirely black, not even a hint of white remained. My heart jumped to my throat. My hand was holding a knife before I even realized it.
"Have you ever felt bloodthirsty?" he asked, "don't lie to me, Elle."
"No." I replied.
"Not once in your life? Not even a little?"
"No!" I glared at him, "Uncle Robert was an old vampire, he raised me from my birth, so I know all about blood lust. I've never shown even the slightest hint of vampiric tendencies."
He breathed out through his nose, blinking those black, black eyes, "if you do-"
"I'll be the first to put a stake through my heart." I said, because no matter how much I wanted to live, I would never choose a life of insanity, I would never be the cause of life being lost to a fist of blood craze.
"Don't," Arthur closed his eyes, "just tell me. If you feel different, tell me first."
I had a feeling this was bigger than what it appeared to be. His jaw was clenched to a painful extent. So I nodded.
"Okay, I promise. I'll tell you as soon as I feel the need to rip someone's throat out for blood."
He breathed out, and when his eyes opened, they were back to normal.
"So," I cleared my throat, "should I prepare for my execution? You know, get my affairs in order. Write my will." prepare an escape plan. Because as soon as I was sane, I would not roll over and let anyone kill me.
He sighed and shook his head. Then he put a hand on the back of my head and pressed his lips on my forehead. I froze, my body strung tighter than a bow.
"What are you doing?" I asked, my magic was buzzing like a child on a sugar rush inside of me. My hand tightened on the knife.
Arthur only breathed in deeply then stood up. I stared at him dumbly.
"Did you really expect me to kill you for this?" he asked. So, we were just going to ignore what just happened. For the sake of my sanity, again, I ignored it.
"Yes," I replied, focusing on relaxing my muscles, "you can't tell me it's far fetched. You know at least half of the people on this island would tell you to get rid of me if they find out."
"Which is why they're not ruling," he said.
That wasn't really the reason why they weren't ruling, but whatever. I got up, "so...this is it?"
He arched a dark brow, "far from it. We will talk some more, but first I need time to process everything you just dropped on me. For the moment, this is it."
I nodded and stood up. I was about to walk away when he spoke again.
"And Elle."
I stared at him, he looked as uncomfortable as a being of his power could manage. Then he spoke the words that would slightly change the dynamics of our relationship.
"I apologize for my behavior. Now that I know, I understand why you were hesitant to share your past."
Well, strike me down with a feather. "Apology accepted."
"So, we're good?" he asked.
"Yes," I pointed at him with the knife still in my hand, "as long as you learn how to say please."
He blinked, unamused.
"You know,. Please. One syllable, six letter word. Rhymes with cheese. Very easy to remember, even easier to say. And it does wonders." my eyes widened and I smiled, "hey, that sort of rhymed."
His lips twitched up, his eyes strayed down to my lips for a second, "that smart mouth will land you in trouble someday."
"It already has." I saluted him and walked out of the room to his low chuckle, not believing that I had just shared the secret I'd been guarding all my life with one of the most powerful men in our world.
The rest of the day went by like a hazy dream.
I felt so light, as if a huge burden was lifted off my chest. I didn't even realize how under I'd been feeling the past few days until I walked out of that meeting room with my heart floating.
Over the next couple of days, the juniors' training sessions went by as expected. There was still no sign of Vanessa, and Corbin said he only spoke with her briefly over the phone. So after the training was over, I went to find Amanda. She would know where Vanessa was.
"Have you seen Amanda?" I asked Jesse, who was speaking with a few people near Arthur's house.
He scowled, "No."
Grumpy cat.
"Thanks." I called out and walked to the house. Maybe Thomas would know. I really needed a cell phone. I didn't even know if these people used them. Some immortals were weird about technology.
"What do you want her for?"
I looked over my shoulder at Jesse. He still had an impressive scowl on. What a waste of a handsome face.
"I want to ask her about Vanessa."
He grumbled something under his breath. I was about to flip him off when he added. "Arthur is in the backyard, he'll know." Then he turned to his staring friends. Idiot.
Wes was laying on the back porch with his head on his paws, staring at Arthur. The lush garden was painted in the colors of sunset, and the ancient vampire was holding a sword, his upper body bare and his legs clad in black gi pants. Arthur's toned body was silhouetted against the glowing sky and ocean, a beautiful and deadly shadow.
Wes only spared me a glance before he went back to watching Arthur.
I didn't blame him. It was a hypnotizing sight. A sword never looked so much at home as it did in Arthur's hands.
Uncle Robert was the same. When he held a sword, it was like his entire being shifted. I could no longer see the man who rocked me to sleep or tickled me until my breath ran out, but a soldier who made the battle ground his home and fought with merciless elegance.
Unlike the force of uncle Robert's movements, though, Arthur's sword glided from one position to the next with unbelievable fluidity. It made me want to touch the sword's edge, make sure it was truly as sharp and deadly as I knew it was.
I sat next to Wes and watched Arthur like I'd done weeks ago, before he knew all my secrets.
As soon as the sun completely set, Arthur ended his routine with a graceful arch of his blade.
He moved toward us, not even winded after the long, continuous workout. Stopping in front of me, heput the flat of the sword on his shoulder.
"You haven't been using your sword."
"How would you know?" I asked, he was rarely present when I trained in the mornings. He simply raised a brow. Right. This was his island. There was no doubt he could find out anything he wanted to.
"I have other weapons." I said.
"We'll be in hostile territory in a week," Arthur said, his dark eyes seeing way too much, "a sword will give you better range, and it does well in intimidating others."
I pursed my lips. I couldn't argue. Swords are good to have around. In many ways, they were better than daggers.
"I know." I replied.
"Mhm," he nodded, then he changed the subject, "What can I do for you?"
"I was wondering if you have news on Vanessa?"
"Vanessa," he looked down at Wes, "she's doing well. It will take time, but I'm sure she will be in control of herself when the process is over."
I bit my lip, "is there a way I can contact her?"
"Why?" he asked.
"I just want to check on her."
"Why do you care?" he clarified, "you have enough on your plate, already. Why do you care about a vampire you've only known for a couple of months."
"I just... care. Do I need a reason? She's a good girl, I want to know if she'll be fine. I'm sure anyone in my position would do the same."
"No, not everyone would," he stared for a long moment, "Vanessa is fine, I'm limiting her contact with people here on purpose. Don't worry."
I blew a breath through my nose. "Fine."
"Tomorrow morning, you and I, bring your sword," he said, then walked past me.
I looked at his back. "what? No!"
"Yes!" he called back already inside the house and up the stairs, "please!"
Damn him.
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How do you like the chapter? Arthur and Elle's relationship is evolving into something else. Stay tuned for future developments!
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Love,
Mia <3