"Whose car is that?" I ask Alec softly as he opens the door to a black car. I see Liam grinning at me as he jumps out.
"It's only Liam and Cam." Alec says as he hands a bag to Liam.
"Sit inside," Alec waits by the door. I take a deep breath as I walk towards the door and climb into the car.
"Hi Emily!" Cam grins at me from the front seat as Alec closes the door to me.
I smile at Cam a little as Liam sits in the front and Alec gets inside beside me.
Any sudden movements and I'm taking over. Ava promises me and I nod at her. She would not hesitate to kill anyone or use our magic to burn the world. I would not stop her anymore.
When I woke up this morning, my parents had made me a cake. A chocolate cake that dad said Oli had made but I shouldn't eat it unless I wanted food poisoning. Eliza had run to the shops and she had come back with a chocolate cake. I didn't see Miles throughout the day. Eliza had said he was having a serious chat with Amanda.
I didn't want to see him because one look and I would break down. In front of my family, I smiled as if nothing had happened. In front of Alec, I smiled as if he did not tell me anything last night. It was a new day and I wanted to get through it, without the concerned looks.
We all had breakfast together and they laughed at jokes Oli made. I hugged them silently as Alec said it was time to go home. I did not have a place to call home. Miles had mindlinked me and said I didn't wait for him. I told him maybe next time and I was in a hurry to go home. He said he was sorry for everything and I told him he had nothing to be sorry about. I couldn't face him so I had sat in a plane with Alec and shut out the world around me. We had arrived and the moment I had seen the car, it felt like the world slipped under my feet.
"Emily," Alec places his hand on my shoulder and I flinch a little as I turn to look at him. "We're here." He says and I look out the window to see we were parked outside his house.
I nod my head as he climbs out of the door. I follow him silently.
"We really missed you," Cam says behind me as he follows me inside. "It felt like something was missing," he shrugs as I nod my head.
Natalie runs down the stairs as she grins at me happily. "Emily!" She wraps her hands around me tightly.
The scars did not hurt anymore. They were visible but I was wearing a long maxi dress that covered every inch of my skin. No one would see me.
"I missed you." Natalie mumbles as she pulls away, looking me up and down.
"You look beautiful." She smiles at me.
You look beautiful.
Did I? I look down at my dress and back up at her. I smile. "Thank you." I answer her honestly.
"Alec." I hear Anna's voice and I look up to see her walking towards us.
"It's nice to see you are well," she ignores me as she looks at Alec. "I need to talk to you." She says to him and Alec nods as he follows her into his office.
I needed to go to the room.
"Are you hungry? I can get Stella and Noah to make you something? What would you like to eat?" Natalie asks me quickly.
"Are they back?" I ask her and she nods.
I walk away from Natalie and head towards the kitchen to see Stella and Noah laughing. They freeze when they see me. I smile at them. They were my first friends after Miles. Someone that did not care about what I did.
"Hey girl!" Noah grins as he walks towards me. He holds his hand out for a high five and I smile widely as I high five him.
"I brought back so many new recipes for you from my parent's pack. You are going to love the secret ingredient in our cookies," he winks at me as Stella grins.
"I'm glad you're okay." Stella says to me and I smile at her.
I will be.
"So what's with the princess look? You look like you just woke up from a deep beauty sleep in a stunning dress." Noah asks as he looks me up and down.
I was only wearing a lilac dress that fell to my ankles and it had long sleeves. Nothing else. Completely and utterly plain.
"Princess look?" I ask and he chuckles as the door opens and Natalie and Cam walk inside.
"Yes," he walks towards the counter, "I've seen plenty of princesses in movies where they wake up in a nice night gown and look royalty." He answers me.
"Princess?" Nat frowns at him.
"Come on. Are you telling me she doesn't look like a princess to you?" Noah asks, frowning at us all as they check their heads.
I was no princess.
"Imagine if the world was ruled by Emily Gray. It would be law to have chocolate cake in every house," Stella says as she blushes a little as Cam laughs at her.
World ruled by me.
You are from the Royal Crystal Pack.
I stare at the ground as my mind connects the dots ever so slowly.
My mom had found me in the Afterworld. I was one year old but we did not age on the other side. I had died when I was one and the vampire inside of me had never been awoken. I had come back and that when I was truly a vampire and I could no longer die. Sam had said I was from the Royal Crystal pack. The king and queen had magic. I have magic. Their family had been burnt to the ground but I was brought back from the dead.
"I could be the princess." I whisper in shock.
"What?"
"What are you talking about?"
I turn to look at Cam. "I want to see the castle from the Royal Crystal Pack." I tell him.
His eyes widen a little as he looks me up and down. "Holy shit." He whispers.
"What am I missing?" Nat asks, confused.
"She's Rosaline and Albert's daughter!" Cam whisper shouts at Nat whose eyes widen at me.
"I knew she was a princess!" Noah grins at me.
"Let's go!" Nat smiles at me as she holds my hand and pulls me out of the kitchen. Cam follows us as we walk out of the house.
It felt different. This excitement to find out if I was truly part of the Royal Crystal Pack. Maybe I was and it would give a purpose, an explanation behind all this mess in my life.
"We're going to Lockridge Falls." Nat smiles at me.
"Where is that?" I ask her as I follow her and Cam through the forest.
"It's close by, an hour away probably. Alec has the responsibility of making sure the castle is kept cleaned. It's been passed down generations through our pack." Nat explains and I nod.
Could I be a princess?
You could be the Queen. Ava points out to me.
Would I have to rule over them? I ask her and she laughs.
We could live in the castle, alone and away from everyone else. Nobody would be able to hurt us. we could be free. She says.
I smile.
Freely living in a castle.
I like that.
***
"Anna is going to Paris," Nat says suddenly as we walk around a tree.
"Paris?" Cam asks her, confused.
"Alec is taking her. She said to him that she wants a fresh start and to start her fashion career in paris." Nat tells us.
"Nice." Cam shrugs his shoulders as he grins suddenly. "Welcome to your maybe home." He looks at me as he walks through tall bushes.
I follow him and freeze at the castle I see in front of me. It was beautiful. A golden light surrounded the whole castle. The brick wall glistened in the light as the wind danced through the trees around us.
"It's beautiful." I whisper as I stare at the castle.
A road led to the castle which was surrounded by small streets. It was a village. Lockridge Falls was beautiful but empty.
No one lived here.
"Come on. Let's see if you can get past the shield without a pass." Nat exclaims happily.
"Pass?" I ask her as I follow them down the hill and towards the village.
"Before the King and Queen died, they formed a shield around the castle. No one without their bloodline would be able to enter it. That was centuries ago, but now with a little help of witches, we've been able to create passes. They allow one person in for an hour only. Once the hour is finished, they are pulled out of the castle by magic." Nat explains to me as I see the empty markets and houses as we walk through the village.
"Would you take it?" Cam asks me and I raise an eyebrow looking at him confused. "The crown. Would you take it and rule over us all?" he asks with a smirk on his face.
"I don't know." I answer him truthfully.
That sense of power I would have over everyone as their queen made me smile. They could not hurt me or harm me anywhere. Cameron would not be able to come for me.
You would have an army beside you. Ava grins happily.
For the first time in forever, I felt a sense of peacefulness knowing if I was the lost princess, I would help the world. I would help them all but I would help myself. Live by myself in a castle all alone. I would bring Miles here.
"Come on," Nat holds my hand and we run up the street,leading to the castle. The golden shield around the place flickers the nearer I get to it.
"We could throw a Cinderella ball!" Nat says besides me happily as Cam reaches up.
We stop outside the golden shield.
"Do you think it would disappear if she touches it?" Cam whispers as I stare at the golden light as it calls out my name.
It's a whisper, barely a sound. Emily Rose Perry Gray. Welcome home.
"I think she's connecting to it." Nat whispers back to Cam.
I ignore them as I reach out my hand towards the golden light. It feels like a magnet as the golden light pulls itself closer to my hand, screaming to be set free.
My fingers touch the light and a cry of happiness shatters the shield around the castle. The ground shakes a little as Cam and Nat curse behind me. Whispers so far away yet so close fill my mind.
The queen has arrived.
Long live the Royals.
The queen is here, mommy!
It's the princess! She's here to take her crown!
Whispers of the ghosts swirl around me. I take a step forward as if their hands urge me to enter the castle grounds.
The shield is broken.
Lost in a trance, I take the next step forward.
The queen is here! The chants fill my mind as if I was walking through a crowded room filled with people happy to see me.
"Emily!" Nat calls out my name. I turn around to look at her as she stands behind me. "Alec wants us home. He's pissed." She tells me.
"I want to stay." I say, frowning at her.
Mommy! The queen is leaving!
Oh no.
The queen is leaving us.
Please don't leave, your majesty.
"We will be back. Alec is at home and he's waiting. He's angry and it's an order," Cam sighs as he runs a hand through his hair.
I sigh. "Okay." I walk towards them.
The queen is going!
She's leaving!
I turn my head to the side as if I could see the ghosts of the past. I will be back. I whisper in my mind hoping they can hear me as I follow Cam and Nat, silently.
"You're the princess. We have the princess in our house. Holy fuck, Cam!" Nat laughs as she walks ahead with him.
We will protect you, your majesty. You have set us free.
A little girl's voice floats around me as I smile.
Trapped. That's what they were. The souls of the pack members of Royal Crystal Pack. They would help me rebuild the castle and I would heal here, in this castle.
***
"Let's all take a deep breath," Cam says as he stands in front of the door. Nat and I follow his instructions just as he opens the door.
"I'm going to fucking kill you!" I hear Alec growling as we walk inside.
"What's wrong?" Nat asks, feigning confusion.
"What's wrong?" Alec questions as he walks out of the living room and stares at us all. "You left with my mate!" He glares at Cam.
"I'm fine," I say to Alec as I stand in front of Nat and Cam. Liam walks behind me to hug Nat, muttering he missed her.
"Where did you go? I couldn't even mindlink you." Alec takes a step towards me.
I had marked Alec, but Alec had not marked me. I didn't know how a mindlink would open with your mate.
"We went to see the castle."I smile at him as I hear the voices around me.
They followed me here.
This house is so small.
Is this the King?
You have to be nice, Luisa.
Luisa. The first name I had heard. It felt strange to say but I could feel Luisa following me around as if she was in awe of me. She followed me all the way here telling me what had happened that night.
The King and Queen had sensed the danger but they were late and all they could do was save our souls and trap us in the castle. They vowed the castle would rise again and with every drop of their magic going into the shield, they faded to the Afterworld. As did I. Until I had arrived back on the world and I had just set them all free. Centuries of being trapped, they were finally free and if it was possible to see, I knew they would be dancing around the world.
"I thought I was going to show you that," Alec frowns as he stares at me.
"Can I tell him?" Cam whispers to Nat excitedly.
"You were taking Anna to Paris.." I reply to him.
"She's the fucking princess!" Cam exclaims.
Alec freezes.
"What the fuck are you on about?" He turns to look at Cam.
I don't like this one.
I smile as I ignore Luisa's voice.
"Holy fuck Alec, you should have been there," Cam sighs dramatically. "It was like I was in a movie and the moment was unmissable. She touched the shield and it disappeared," Cam's eyes were wide as he tried to explain it to Alec. "She's the dead princess well alive but still!" He corrects himself.
Alec turns to look at me. "Is this true?" He asks and I nod my head.
"I, Emily Rose Perry Gray am the dead princess of the Royal Crystal Pack." It felt like a declaration.
You are a Queen.
"Queen," I correct myself.
"Is that your name?" Alec asks me with a raised eyebrow.
Did he not know my name?
"Yes." I answer him, feeling a little confused.
"Queen Rosaline was called Rose and King Albert middle name was Perry.." he mumbles a little."No one really knew unless you were part of their pack. I have the books from their library."
Traitorous bastard, stealing from our library.
Luisa! Behave! Another voice demands from her.
"You are our Queen." Alec mutters.
Feel that? Ava asks me as I feel my magic rise up inside of me. That is power. She grins at me.
"She's a fucking Queen," Nat squeals as she looks at Liam. "Imagine the royal sleepovers we could have!"
Suddenly it felt too much to process. I was the queen of the supernatural world and I could feel the burden slowly piling up on my shoulders.
Nat and Cam start talking to Liam about how magical it looked. Silently I take a step back and walk away from them. I hear Alec following me as I head upstairs to the room I was staying in. It wasn't ever my room.
"What's wrong?" Alec questions as I walk inside the room.
"It's a big responsibility."
I sit down on the bed and I let out a sigh. "What if they don't want me as their queen? I have killed people, Alec. Innocent people, I have slaughtered them with my magic without thinking twice. What if they see me as a murderer?"
Alec walks towards me silently. He kneels in front of me and smiles at me. "You don't have to tell anyone anything yet. We can check out the castle tomorrow, if you would like. I can guard it up,and no one will know the shield is broken. It can be our secret." He tells me.
Don't hide away from this. You are a Queen to the world and they will follow you no matter what you have done. Ava says to me, completely dismissing what Alec says.
"Emily," he holds my hand and raises it towards his lips. I feel him kiss my hands softly. "We have all killed people in the past but who you are now? They will love you no matter what happens. If you take your crown, they will accept you. If you leave your crown behind, they will accept you. You are their Queen and no one can stop you." He stands up slowly.
"Will they accept everything that has happened to me? All the torture, the pain, the nightmares, the magic explosions. Will they accept it all?"
He grins at me. "They will accept every part of you."
I smile at him softly. "I want to explore it tomorrow." I say to him and he nods his head.
●●●●●
This was the part where I had another story idea about a vampire queen...