“Marty? Nick?”
“For a short while, though it was pretty obvious you weren't going to wake. They said they will be back tonight.”
I nodded and asked nothing more, not wanting to know why William didn't come here last night. Willa placed a plate of food in front of me with a big smile and then scurried out of the room.
“Is she used to vampires yet? Considering I'm pregnant with one I don't want her screaming wampiria every time she sees the baby.”
“She will be fine. Now, open your presents.”
She gestured to them as my father walked into the room and sat beside her. I was facing my parents and a mountain of presents. There was nineteen of them and I couldn't help but think that there was one for every year they had missed. The first was a photo that must have been minutes after I was born, it was the three of us in a beautiful silver frame. I looked up at my parents who were looking a little wistful. Offering a smile, I started on the next one which was a soft teddy bear. I thought it was starting to get worse when I opened the rectangle box to a ballerina jewellery box.
As I opened it, I realised it was as bad as I feared. It was filled with small gold coins, picking one up I saw a man on one side that looked a little like my father. I was curious as to how much this was worth. Another present held a wallet, inside it was stuffed with notes that was from their home world and what resembled an ATM card for a bank that I had never heard from and struggled to pronounce. The next was an access stick to our apartment, something that was treasured. I had been given one but it was always held by Lonna. My crazy mother had given me a full set of leather armour that was almost identical to hers and a matching long blade along with a few smaller blades. Next came vouchers for clothing stores, a hairdresser and a spa, far too much money for my liking. And they were all for their own world. It was almost like it was a request disguised as a present.
The next was a camera which I knew would come in handy in a short while. I liked the next present, it was a large wood jewellery cabinet, far better than the ballerina one. Though the contents was just as expensive, that was the next present. A lot of jewellery. Not the cheap stuff, not even the moderately pricey stuff. This was the kind of jewellery that should be kept under a giant lock. There was a couple of CD's and by the time I got to the nineteenth present, I was overwhelmed.
“This is awesome, thank you.”
“It's our pleasure darling, but there is one more.”
My mother put a small rectangle box onto the table and pushed it over to me. I opened it up to what looked like a car key.
“You may drive it when you have your licence, until then Lonna drives you around, okay?”
“Uh, okay. Thanks.” I was stunned, a car.
After breakfast I was feeling a little better, deciding that I wanted to check out my new car. As always I was ordered to have my shadow with me but he was still passed out from the drug that he had been jabbed with yesterday. I huffed and flopped onto my lounge, feeling annoyed that I couldn't take my car out. Not that I was allowed to drive it. That would be my first job come Monday morning, applying for a drivers licence and then getting lessons. Whatever it was that I needed to do, I was going to do it. I looked down at the floor, the bag that Marty and Nick had brought with them had been kicked under the seat. Suddenly I remembered the note that had been in the bag. I frowned, wondering where I put it. Lifting the cushions and the pillows, I found it tucked in between two of the seat cushions. I pulled it out and read the note.
“Im-ario nock-tanla esp-an-ya”
Something caught my eye, I turned to see Willa was in my room and had stopped halfway across the room. Her hands were filled with towels. I was still struggling with the language, flicking through my notes to form the basic question to ask her if she was alright.
“Tu.” She smiled.
I looked it up in my notes, she said yes but she didn't move. I narrowed my eyes, watching as she stared across the room. Curiosity got the better of me, wondering if I could order her around.
“Esa alou myata.”
Instantly the towels fell to the floor as I had told her to do.
“Well I'll be damned.” I muttered.
Now it made sense, they wanted me to deal with William. Probably because they weren't able to, I could imagine him becoming more of a tyrant with his memory loss. I looked further down the page, there was another line.
“Eld-ran-ee obl-ee-na.”
“Oo, alou myata.”
Willa scooped the towels up, curtsied and scurried out of the room. I chuckled and stuffed the note into my pocket as I searched out a pair of shoes. Lonna or no Lonna, I was going for a drive.
Lonna was still asleep when I checked in on him, giving him one final chance to wake up. He was out cold, so I stuck a note in his hand telling him where I was going and hastily left for my car. The ride in the elevator to the basement was exciting, I was going to end my nightmare with William once and for all. Problem was, I didn't know which car would be mine. The basement was filled with dozens of cars that looked just as expensive as the one beside it. I flicked the button on the fob, seeing lights flick in the near distance. It was a gorgeous little sporty thing, clearly bought before they found out I was pregnant. I couldn't imagine fitting a baby seat easily in this thing.
The car was a dream to drive, with built in GPS I had made my way to William's house within the hour and without any issues. I parked out the front when the driveway gate didn't open for me. As I looked up at the house I wondered if he was home or if they were at the meeting. I couldn't remember what dates they were going, I had slept so much that keeping track of days and the time was a nightmare. Though, it was my birthday and they said that they would be back for it. So I could safely assume that they would be here.
Chapter Seventy-eight
Nothing had changed about William's house, though the roses seemed to have wilted again. I pushed through the gate and walked up the path, instead of going to the front door I went to the side door that had the access panel. Taking a deep breath I punched the code into the panel. It beeped and the door opened, I stuffed the note into my pocket and slipped along the corridor. Turning to the left into the entrance hall, I could hear the sounds of a woman's giggle, her soft coercion and the grumbling of an annoyed vampire. I took a deep breath to strengthen myself, knowing that this was likely to be the end of our relationship, I didn't want this to be me being a sobbing wreck for its demise. It seemed that my life was going around in circles. Stepping to the threshold of the room, I looked at William who was on the lounge, thoroughly disinterested in the scantily clad woman. It was promising though I couldn't help but wonder why she was here if he didn't want her. She was doing her damnedest to entice him but he was almost ignoring her. Almost. He was male, she was down to her underwear and I'm not stupid. What straight man could ignore a woman in her underwear? His eyes darted up and saw me, a frown crossing his face.
“Who are you and how did you get in here?”
“Seriously?” I scoffed.
The woman looked at me coldly, instantly sensing a threat. If only she knew. I wasn't packing heat, I was packing steel. Or whatever the hell it was that my mother's gift was made of.
“Do you seriously not remember me?”
William shook his head, the confusion made it obvious he was telling the truth. I huffed and pulled the note out of my pocket.
“Im-ario nock-tanla esp-an-ya”
They both sat rigid on their seats, it was something that hadn't occurred to me. I had both of them under my spell. With a chuckle, I thought that we might have a bit of question time first.
“William, do you know who I am?”
“No.”
Well I guess the memory didn't stick for as long as he had hoped for. Shame he didn't get in the memory pool when he returned home, as he had said he would. My eyes narrowed at the scantily clad woman, wondering if this was his doing. “Who is your friend William?”
His eyes stared at me blankly, his face was p
lain as he answered. “A feeder that Elias sent here for my entertainment.”
I huffed, not surprised that Elias didn't know the meaning of monogamy.
“And have you entertained yourself with this woman or anyone since your late wife?”
William frowned, his head tilted down as he searched his mind. “I have not been with this woman. I have no recollection of any lovers but I fear it is a lie. I know that there had been someone but I cannot find her.”
“Your dragon claim won't wake up, why?”
“The only reason a protector won't wake is if its master doesn't recognise the claim.”
I guess that made sense, it made me wonder why I didn't think of that sooner. Of course the dragon won't recognise me if William doesn't know who I am.
“Were you and Eliandra lovers?”
He nodded and it felt like my world had shattered into a thousand pieces. I tried to recall our conversations about her but couldn't. If he had lied to me I wouldn't know. “Tell me about it.”
“She offered me the ability to become the most powerful vampire that would ever walk the earth. All I had to do was please her, to love her. I gave her what she wanted but it wasn't enough for her. She wanted more. She wanted to have an eternity with me but I didn't want her. She lied to me, she made me believe that my new found powers would come from magic but it came from my parents death.”
He stopped talking which was not helpful at all, my eyes narrowed at the nearly naked woman. “You, get dressed.”
She did as I told her and stood like a rigid pole, waiting for her next command. Which wasn't coming any time soon.
“You do know that Eliandra is dead, right?”
“For that I am grateful.”
“Okay, I think it's time for you to get into the memory pool William, I'm sick of hearing about the witch.”
He nodded and to my delight, did as he was told.
“You.” I looked at the woman. “Follow us.”
William was in the water, laying there so compliant it was bliss. There was no ice this time, the walls were covered in what looked like wall paper, nothing made sense. Pictures of inanimate objects, images of people some I recognised some I didn't, scenes from what I presumed was his life. It was a mess of images, some were blurry some were focused but nothing made sense. This was confusion, I could see it easily. One thing I could not see was me. If this was his mind then I was not in it.
I swished the memory salts into the water, taking a sidewards glance at the woman sitting on the chair. She sat rigid and watched with awe as William laid in the water. I looked down at him, he laid there so quietly, staring up at me.
“Who are you?”
“William Lancaster.”
I nodded with a smile, swishing more memory salts into the water.
“Who am I?”
“I do not know. You resemble Carmella, though you are different. Are you our daughter?”
“Jesus H Christ, I hope not.” I chuckled.
William frowned, his eyes lowered and then looked back up at me. “No.” He gasped. “It is not possible that you are my daughter, though I do not know the reason.”
His frown deepened as he stared at the ceiling, pictures were forming of his memories of flowers, roses specifically. Dozens of different colours, different types. I could see memories of him planting them, pacing back and forth near gardens and looking at them with dismay.
“She was pregnant with a boy but they both died in birth. It was not mine.” He whispered sadly.
I nodded and looked to the woman who even though she was a rigid pole, she looked bored.
“What's your name?”
“Nadia.”
Gesturing to the man in the water I frowned at her. “Has he entertained you in the physical sense, fed from you, anything?”
“No.” She said quietly. “Nothing at all.”
“Okay Nadia, can you go to the front garden and cut some of the roses? Bring them back quickly please.”
She nodded and scurried out of the room. I turned back to the lucky vampire, his future with me was hanging by a thread but at least he had behaved himself.
“Do you know how many of your followers you have left?”
“Two, Nicolas and Martine.”
“Where are they?”
He smiled at me, one that was so sweet it was soul crushing. “Nick and Marty are resting, they are going to a birthday celebration tonight.”
“Oh really, aren't you going with them?”
The smile faded as he frowned again, I sprinkled more salts into the water. “I would like to, though there is something that holds me back and I do not understand what it is. Something I have to let go of but I do not want to.”
“Why would you want to let go of something that you want?”
His eyes filled with pain as he looked up at me, it felt like my heart had stopped beating as I waited for him to respond. “It's for the best. I don't know why but that's what is echoing through my mind. Let it go, it's for the best. What is it? Do you know what it is?”
Tears rolled out of my eyes as I nodded.
“Tell me, please.”
“I can't.” I whispered.
I sprinkled more salts into the water, he was taking forever and it was becoming too much for me to handle.
“Don't let go of it William, fight to remember what it is.”
He frowned, I could see him wincing as the pain surged through his body. This would be hell on him, I knew from experience as to how bad the pain was.
Nadia stepped into the room with a bunch of flowers. “Thank you Nadia, you may wait in the parlour for us.”
She nodded and scampered out of the room. I turned back to William who was staring at the roses.
“Do you like roses?”
He nodded and I lowered them so that he could smell them.
“You've seen roses like these before, haven't you?”
He nodded again, the images on the wall near his feet shifted and changed into the rose filled vase that he left for me in my bitch week.
“Where are they from?”
“They were a gift.” He frowned. “For someone who was suffering pain. I wanted to help but feared to go near…”
His body stiffened with the pain, his face crinkled as he closed his eyes.
“Her. It was a gift for a woman.”
“Who William?”
Both eyes bolted open fast as he stared at me. “You.” He whispered. “You…. It was you. You stayed here, but why?”
The pictures on the wall changed, becoming a little more clearer. I smiled when I finally appeared on the wall, he remembered our first dinner together. Well, me eating and him watching.
“What's going on there William?”
“You're eating human food, you aren't human.” He frowned as he looked at me. “I can see you are fae but this…”
His hand tentatively reached out toward my heart. “Glows gold which means you are the child of an elven royal. I was not aware of another child being born to the king.”
“Maybe it's not the king.”
He grinned broadly at me. “Hemoi? You are Hemoi's daughter? You do kind of look like him.” He frowned as he looked at me. “Though I sense another familiarity about you, someone that it should not be possible to be your mother. You are fae so it must be possible. Is your mother Alvarie?”
I nodded with a smile, William smiled back at me. As my hand lifted more salts into the water, William grabbed my wrist and looked at the dragons and the vines.
“What is this?” He whispered. “I was not aware that I had made a claim. How long have you had this?”
“I cannot answer that William. You need to remember it for yourself.”
His fingers caressed the vines, looking upon the claim intensely. “We are lovers, there are flowers and they are young flowers so this is new but this isn't the first claim. You've got interlocking weaves that are tight. Who claimed you before I did?”
He looked up at m
e and gasped, widening his eyes momentarily. “It was me. I claimed you out of anger because….”
I sprinkled more salts, he was getting closer and closer. William whimpered with the pain as his hands gripped the sides of the pool. “Nicolas likes you, I feared I would lose you to him.”
That was a little startling. Okay, so I thought that Nick liked to pretend and act like a fool but not once did I think that it was a mask for an underlying truth.
“Your name was wrong, your life was a lie.”
“Keep going. What was my name when you met me?”
“Mother… mother of…” He frowned. “Priest, frozen… cold, so cold.”
I nodded again and sprinkled more salts in, this time it was a large handful. William groaned, his eyes shut tight as he whispered painfully.
“Arnold…. Mary Arnold.”
“And what is my real name?”
His eyes opened and looked at me, water lapped around him as I swished the salts through it.
“You've taken your father's surname so that you can ascend to the throne but you don't want it, do you?”
I shook my head.
“But you don't have any choice. That's why I have to let you go, I have to let you go and be with your people. It's the right thing to do. I remember that now. I remember thinking that as I walked home from your place. So young.”
William reached out and held my hand, lacing our fingers together. “You asked me to get into this pool but I couldn't do it, I didn't want the pain of remembering you and watching you walk away from me. Why are you making me remember you?”
“It is really important that you do. I can't tell you why just yet but you have to remember me. What's my name?”
“Trimaine…” He frowned. “I know that much.”
I huffed and picked up the tub of salts and tipped the whole thing in. The water fizzled with bubbles, William's grip on my hand tightened, the other gripped the edge of the pool so tight it cracked a long line along the top edge.
“Eliria.” He cried out. “Eliria Trimaine.”
“About bloody time.” I grumbled.
Chapter Seventy-nine
Deadly Beasts (The Curse of the Rose Book 1) Page 49