~Rose~
I pulled the blanket closer around me. The night was cold, and since I was only half vampire I actually felt as cold as a human would while these guys barely felt anything.
I was sitting sideways in the backseat of a black car, covered in a blanket that I also used to hide the knife. Luckily I had time to retrieve it from that underground room.
Matt was being examined by Fallon himself for his unusual behavior. He just stood there as he did his job, staring at something in the distance.
Right now, Alpha Damien approached me and leaned his arm on the car roof, ducking his head so he could look at me. "A deal's a deal, Rose. I helped you, now you help me find her."
I raised my brow. "Does that involve you having to move in?"
He smiled, for the first time since I had seen him. "No. It involves you bringing anyone you interacted with recently."
I shrugged. "Sorry to say, but that only included two girls."
"Then bring them. Or call me over once you're settled. I'll give you our number."
"Are the bodyguards going to follow me?" I asked distastefully. "I can defend myself, plus with Fallon here no one is going to be able to look at me and live. He hates wolves in his home as much as you hate vampires in yours."
He sighed. "I don't 'hate' vampires, I try to encourage my pack to get over their beef with them since it clouds their judgement. It happened before." His brown eyes stared down at me. "Besides, you're not a complete vampire." He handed me a piece of paper with a number on it. "Keep in touch."
I smiled at him and as he left, it faded away. Was I really ready to kill my own friend? Am I capable of the very thing I have sworn not to do the night Penny died? I have always looked down upon the very idea of killing your own friends. This was no different.
I watched as Fallon led Matt towards the car, holding his arm around his neck for support. Matt still looked dazed.
I cleared my throat and tightened the blanket around me as he sat him in the seat next to me. He glanced up at me and smiled. "Hey."
"Hey," I whispered. I stared out the window as we drove off, watching the Alpha and his pack looking at us. We drove for a while, the whole time I was trying to gather it in me to stab him with the knife.
I mean you've only known him for like a week or two, it's not like it's going to hurt you.
But it will.
Suddenly the car jerked forward as he slammed the brakes. I wasn't wearing my seat belt, stupidly, and that caused me to be thrown forward with the car. I had only a split second to turn so that my side hit the back of the front seat instead of slamming straight into it—possibly causing me to hold my hands out in front of me to avoid my face getting injured. That would have disturbed the blanket and revealed the knife in my hand.
Matt was wearing one, so he wasn't thrown forward with as much force as me. Sitting there with that confused look on his face he almost seemed back to normal.
My gaze landed on Fallon's body half way out the car. His eyes were trained on something in front of us, and he looked angry.
I tucked the knife into my jeans pocket, covering the sheath with my shirt, before stepping out of the car after him. I followed his gaze—and froze.
One of her pawns, probably the most infuriatingly irritating one that seemed to enjoy toying with us almost as much as she did stood in front of us. And surprisingly, he wasn't smirking.
No, instead he was covered head to toe in blood. I scrunched up my nose in disgust as Fallon growled at him.
"Ken."
"...Ivailo?" A line formed between his brows and he stared at us, perplexed. "Is that you?"
My own shot up. He seemed lost and tons less of a danger to us. His pants were torn as if done by claws and the thin fabric of his shirt was hardly covering his pale chest. The red liquid oozed out of a laceration just above his temple and stained his white-blonde hair to a pink. I inwardly cringed, but refused to show any sympathy.
"I've always wondered how it was possible for one to forget a face he has been hunting down for nearly three centuries so easily," said Fallon. "Enlighten me how that's so, dear uncle."
Standing there next to me with his hands clenched into fists, his booted feet slightly apart and firmly on the ground, his muscles tensed as he waited patiently for Ken to make one wrong move and his icy black eyes that somehow possessed the look of danger narrowed—he looked like he could murder anyone who stood in his way. It would not be wise to argue with him right now.
Ken's dark eyes were raised from my face to his nephew's, seeming to ignore his threatening stance. "I did something. Something she didn't like. And I had to pay the price."
This peeked my interest and I straightened, asking him something before Fallon had the chance to throw another sarcastic remark.
"What did you do?"
His head slowly moved from side to side. "I don't know what came over me. I tried to convince her to stop all this but the darkness in her heart is too great. Too powerful to care for her anymore." His grip tightened on his other arm which I just noticed he had been holding. It looked broken. "I shouldn't have dared to erase it."
Fallon's eyes widened for a fraction of a second, then went back to narrowed. Realization hit him. "What?"
"I said—"
"I heard you. What do you mean?"
"She was born with darkness in her heart. From that day onwards it only grew larger. I've always had a thing for her but she never felt the same. I can't love her anymore." With his big hazel eyes starting to shine with unshed tears, he looked like a broken puppy. My neutral facade fell and I almost mirrored his expression. "I don't want to care for her anymore or wait for her to feel the same. The Adrianna I knew disappeared a long time ago. She's gone."
While I stood there feeling his pain, Fallon's brows drew together in confusion. I watched as they then smoothed out. It was replaced with fury, pure death-causing anger. "She's. Alive?" He spat, now speaking in a low tone. If anything it was ten times scarier than his screaming.
I slowly swallowed back a lump that formed in my throat. I faintly heard Matt stepping out of the car too, so partly as an excuse to create some distance between me and the time bomb, I rushed towards him.
"Matt, no." I pushed him back onto the seat. "You're not yourself, alright?"
"Rosie, I feel fine," he insisted, still trying to get back up. "Honestly, I'm better."
I paused and stared at him, then realized something. "Why isn't Nate looking for you?"
He seemed to freeze too, a worried expression etching it's way onto his handsome face. I raised my phone from my pocket and dialed his number. I waited, and waited.
Ignoring the raised voices from behind me, possibly a tantrum, I started tapping my foot. But then something caught my eye—movement.
My head snapped to the side, flipping my hair into my face momentarily and it caused me to miss it entirely. I groaned and hung up the phone, gathering my hair away from my face.
"Did you see that?" Matt asked quietly. I shook my head even though he couldn't see me. He started stalking into a random direction, but I stopped him.
"Matt, it's dangerous. Especially while you're in this state!"
He stared at me for a few moments, then leaned closer, dead serious. "I assure you, Rose. If something happened to my brother, I am damn well going to find him myself. That will keep me sane."
And he disappeared.
I cursed under my breath at his incorrigibility and turned back to the boys behind me. I yelped in surprise.
Fallon's eyes were in that state once again as he pinned Ken to a tree by his throat. With a start, I ran over to them.
"You do not get to decide your fate!" Fallon was telling him, angry as hell. "Nor are you allowed to just walk into the middle of the road and expect sympathy from someone you've been hounding down for centuries!"
"Fallon, what is wrong with you?" I demanded as I pulled at his arm. It still held its place like iron. Damn his strength.
Ken's eyes were still watery, his hands wrapped around Fallon's wrist. He had obviously attempted to break free, but gave up when he realized it was no use. The state he was in compromised his own strength and he just let it be as Fallon continued almost squeezing him to death.
And despite all Ken had done to us, I was trying to save him. I believed him for some reason, my instincts on who to trust were flawless so far. Must have picked that up from Nate. Maybe I can ask him about Ken for confirmation later if I succeed getting him out of this predicament.
"Go ahead," he croaked. His eyes closed as he prepared himself for the inevitable. "Just do it. Please."
His words struck a sense of familiarity through me and I clicked my tongue in disappointment. Exactly what Mark had said. But unlike him, I actually felt sympathetic towards this scarred man.
"With pleasure." My eyes widened and with one final shove, I separated them.
Standing in front of him protectively, I spoke out angrily. "Are you insane? He is your uncle, we do not kill relatives!"
"He did." His eyes flicked behind me to Ken's. "Almost twice."
"But you're better than him," I went on, almost forgetting what she had asked me to do to this very boy. "Give him another chance, please. You wouldn't dare make such a move against Joe, treat him with the same respect. He's your blood."
Fallon's snarl had disappeared and now he just stared at me. Traces of his past anger reflected in his eyes, particularly visible as they settled on Ken behind me. But despite the look of murder, he backed away.
I let out a breath and slowly got off of Ken. Fallon's eyes never left his as I moved stealthily, as if he were about to pounce on him as soon as I had moved away. Like a coiled spring being released. It certainly looked as such.
I risked turning around and looked at the said prey. His eyes were shut and I watched his Adam's Apple bob up and down as he swallowed. He looked nothing like the fearless Ken who attacked his nephew or threatened my friends. He looked vulnerable, baring a striking resemblance to Fallon's maskless, broken face.
"Ken." Two hazel orbs stared out at me in response. "What did you tell him?"
Fallon interrupted. "Oh nothing much, only that the leader is actually his damn girlfriend I supposedly killed centuries ago."
"What?" I spun back to Ken for confirmation. His bit his lip, staring at the ground.
"I'm so sorry for what I did." Fallon scoffed. "I couldn't stop. I'm not a bad person."
Testing his innocence, I closed in on Fallon. "I'm trusting you to tell me the truth." He stared at me, his expression telling me he wasn't willing but knew he had to be honest anyway. "Was he a good man before he crushed on this Adrianna?"
He closed his eyes, sighing in frustration through his nose. He didn't want to tell me. It seemed as if he was keen on allowing me to see only the worst of his uncle.
"Fallon..."
He cursed under his breath and looked at my stern expression. "Yes. He was a good man," he admitted, staring at me dead in the eyes.
I almost smiled, at both his honesty and Ken's purity. "Usually tigers don't change their stripes," I told Ken, who by the way looked very relieved. "But redemption is possible in one who is willing. Change your mind, even consider betrayal, and I'll end you myself."
He nodded solemnly.
*
Matt stopped running as soon as he saw what seemed like his mirror image. "Nathan," he started uneasily. His eyes were crimson, as deep and rich as the blood on his chin. A dark bead of the substance rolled down his chin and slid past the front of his neck. It was still fresh.
He growled lowly, warning him not to come closer. What made him lose control?
Matt held his hands up in surrender, showing he was not going to hurt his brother, as he slowly advanced on him. Nathan snarled, then resumed his quiet growling but nonetheless stayed in place.
"Nathaniel Andrews," he continued. "It's your twin, Matt. You have got to stay in control."
Another loud snarl directed towards him caused him to pause in his steps.
"Brother, control it," he demanded. "Don't let it control you."
Nathan paused as well, his red angry gaze faltering. He saw his real brother flicker through his eyes. "Matt?"
"It's me, I'm not going to hurt you." He took another step. "I'm just trying to help."
"Why are you always so controlled?" He suddenly demanded. Matt was taken aback and he stared at his brother with a dumbfounded expression. "You don't ever break out!"
He swallowed and let his hands fall back to his sides as Nate continued, waving his arms angrily in the air for emphasis. "Why am I the one who loses it? Why do I succumb so easily?!"
He bent down and grabbed the bottom of a car, flipping it over with enormous strength no human could muster. It landed on its roof, shattering the glass in all windows. Matt winced.
"Why can't I be like you?" He continued in a whisper, his red eyes fading to green. "Why do I kill people? Why am I even a vampire?"
"Because we're cursed," Matt answered meaningfully, closing the distance between him and his brother. "Because we're monsters. Perhaps we always will be."
Nathan's chest heaved and his eyes snapped to his bloody hands. He raised them to his face, staring angrily. His fury returned.
"I don't want to be this way," he mumbled. His voice rose, "I don't want to be this way!"
"Neither do I!" Matt shot back. "Or Diana, or Rose. None of us do, but there's nothing to be done about it."
"I want my human life back." Nate shook his head slightly and choked on a helpless sob. "I don't want to kill people. I don't want to be a monster." He raised his hands to his head, speaking in a pleading tone.
Matt's eyes softened as he saw his brother's vulnerable expression. He was ashamed of his actions, just like he always had been when he had done something bad. Except this was worse, and it pained him to see him like this.
Thunder rumbled in his ears and he looked up at the sky. A storm was coming.
He placed a hand on his shoulder. "You don't have to be. I can teach you to control it."
"You've tried to for half a century," he said dryly, shrugging his hand off. "It never worked."
"Maybe you should try a different teacher."
They both turned at the new voice. A man emerged from the trees, his posture suggesting an offer of friendship. Matt recognized him immediately while Nate's gaze darkened.
"Why are you here?" Matt demanded.
Stoyan gave him a small smile. "I'm here to apologize for my initial attitude towards you. It was mean, I'll admit." His smile grew.
They refused to trust him. "What's the catch?" He couldn't have come to them, genuinely sincere about it. He seemed to care for only one person and it wasn't either of them.
"The catch is if you don't accept my apology I will have to decapitate you."
"Are you sure?" Now it was Matt's turn to smile. A cruel, haughty smile. "Rose would only hate you more if you dared to lay a finger on us. What did she say when saw you again?" He pretended to think hard, tapping a finger against his jaw while crossing his other arm in a position of deep thought. "Hmm, it was something along the lines of "I won't make the mistake of falling for you again"? No, I must have been—"
Immediately Stoyan was in front of him, grabbing his shirt to make him face him. Matt almost lost his balance in the process, but his face remained smug, daring him to strike.
Stoyan realized the truth in his words, also what Matt had been trying to do and that it almost succeeded, and hid his anger with his own smug look. He let go of him, brushing off non-existent dust from Matt's shoulder. "Hmm, maybe you're right. Wouldn't want to lose her again, now do I?"
This time, Matt stood taller to get closer to his face. "I don't know what the hell you two meant to each other for you to be this determined to win her back, and frankly I don't care. But you will stay away from her, or I'll help you." He gave him a malicious grin, savoring the priceless look on Stoyan's face as he walked away from him, grabbing his brother's arm in the process to lead him away.
Nate looked back at him too, scowling. To them, Rose was like the sister they never had. Diana too. They were family.
And they'd do anything for family.
*
~Rose~
I twirled the knife in around in my fingers, gazing at the reflective steel. I held it to my face, spotting sad brown eyes staring back at me. They showed just how unwilling I was.
I couldn't do this. This wasn't me.
Right as I moved to put the sheath back on, Fallon arrived. He walked through the gate, turning his head to the left to spot me sitting on the wooden swing in the park.
I don't know why I chose this location, it was pretty creepy to make a fresh grave in the middle of a park, where people often go jogging in the morning.
I gulped and hid the knife behind me, standing up. I cleared my throat. "Thank you for meeting me here."
He gave me a quick smirk, walking closer. My grip on the hilt of the blade faltered. Why does he have to make this so hard?
Once he was in front of me he stopped and looked around. The moon was hidden by the clouds and the only source of light was a few street lamps scattered across the road. Shadows were thrown about, hiding half of Fallon's face from view. The contrast seemed to make his pale skin look even paler. "So why did you call?"
So I could kill you.
I cleared my throat again, suddenly feeling nervous. I'm a selfish murderer. I'm going to kill my own friend just to get my family back...But he deserves it, doesn't he?
No. Yes, no. Yes!
I forced my body to relax, displaying a calm demeanor as my arm muscles prepared to strike. He went on, "I did wonder though, why of all people did you call me over to help you?"
No!
"Nate was busy taking care of his brother, so he was out of the question. Diana, being Diana, would have overreacted and angered the Alpha and Joe wouldn't let Abby out of the house even if it was urgent. Neither would he remove his watchful eye from her. You were the only one left."
His gaze suddenly turned cold and those familiar orbs of black ice replaced his soft expression. "I'm surprised you didn't call out to your husband."
Yes!
"He's not my—"
"Forgive me, ex-husband."
"Fallon, you're not being fair."
He smirked again, this time it was a cruel, taunting one. "Darling, I don't have to be."
Think of all the terrible things he did before you met him—he said when he turned to a vampire hybrid his demonic half lost control. Undoubtedly he massacred people's brothers, sisters, parents in the process.
Yes, he deserves it.
Without thinking, my hand shot from behind my back and—faster than he could realize—I plunged it into his stomach.
~~~~~~~~
Special thanks to JS-1998 for the awesome covers she made! I love you buddy!