When Daniel pulled over the car, I stared at the mansion, there was mostly glasswork, large windows covered with black glass, "You're rich," I giggled.
Drake shook his head smiling, "Charles shares are more expensive than our in the market." He said.
I stared at him in confusion, "Shares! I don't know what you are talking about." I reached for the door and opened it, "Ain't they rich?" I asked in a whisper when she stepped out of the car behind me.
"Our families are counted as billionaires. Relax!" Elizabeth smiled.
"You're kidding." I looked back. Charles pulled his black BMW. He got out of the car, like a regal man, he rounded the car and opened the door for my mother. She climbed down the car, first revealing her red heels, the slit on her red dress, "My mom is fire," I mused.
Silver and Elizabeth giggled. My mother gave me a shy smile. Ok! She heard me. I turned away quickly and hurried behind Drake and Daniel.
"Does your momma know we're coming?" I asked.
"She's not my mother, pumpkin." He looked deadly serious. Didn't she treat him nicely? I saw anger in his eyes when she hurt me with a cane.
"Kathy," Lance's voice was soft when he called his wife.
She uprose and glanced at her husband, her smile reaching her eyes, "Lance," She paced forward and her hand crawled over his chest to his shoulder.
"Our guests are here," He said and turned to me.
"Emersyn!" Katherine mused with her usual smile.
"Hello, Mrs. Dawson," Drake and Daniel were already by my side. There wasn't any chance she'd hurt me. The werewolf could be dangerous. She had a lot of reasons to hate me and to hurt me.
"Library is this way, Emersyn," Lance said with a soft smile.
I nodded sternly. I didn't look at her again.
"Hello, dear sister," I stumbled and my big eyes turned to Katherine and my mother.
Mom glared at her, "Katherine!" She narrowed her eyes on her.
"Are you real sisters?" My voice was loud with shock.
"Didn't she tell you? I'm curious to find out what she hasn't told you." Katherine turned her amber gaze to my mother. They shared the same colour of eyes, height, and hair colours. Why didn't I notice this?
My mother glared at her murderously, "Harm her again. I'll kill you."
I gasped at my mother's threat.
Katherine's smile flattered. She stared back at each other with hatred.
"Mom," My eyes were big.
Drake touched my arm, "We're not here for this. This can wait." He said, tugging me away from them. My gaze swiped over Lance. Was he responsible for this? The hatred between two sisters? I pursed my lips.
"Do we have to find the book?" I heard Elizabeth.
My feet halted behind them. My jaw dropped at the size of the library. The ceiling must be twenty feet above. The bookcases were touching the roof. Mostly old books greeted us.
"That's gonna take more than a month," Silver seemed shocked in disbelief.
"I hope you would have found the book," I whirled to face Lance.
"Yes, this way, please." He said walking to the large desk, which was piled with files and some books neatly arranged. He must be using the library as his office. He slipped his hand in his pocket and took out a golden key.
"Is it safe to keep the book here, openly?" I asked. Anyone could have stolen it.
"It's the safest place you'll find in the world," Drake said.
I nodded and darted my gaze around. There were only two chairs around the desk.
"Only Drake and I are allowed here," Lance said and he put the key in the hole in the wood, twisted it and opened the door.
"Now we too," Elizabeth giggled. Lance answered her with a smile and nod.
"Here," He nodded at me to come to the desk. He laid the book down. I paced ahead and stared down at the old book. The pages were dirty yellow with time. I could smell old books. It was so pleasant. He opened the last page of the book, "There," He pointed at the last sentence of the page, "Cold King could lead thee to The Dark Realm." He read the sentence.
I stared at the Italian bold letters.
"That's it?" Silver asked.
"Yes," Lance replied, "It's the last edition of the book and there's only this. He knew." He said. I waited for more, "There are four books by this author, Johnson Bidan. Each book held a secret."
"A secret revealing the mysterious world." Silver replied.
"Yes, I have heard about it too." Elizabeth said.
"Yes! Yes! Kids. Four editions. Each book is secured by four powers. Alpha, Vampire, Fairy, and Shadow hunter," Lance completed.
"Fairy means Fea, but I don't know shadow hunter." I asked.
"They killed demons or they could be demons." Drake said, "No one knows,"
I nodded, "Cold king?" I asked them, looking in his grey eyes.
He looked at me with a blank expression, "Vampire King," Lance said,
"Oh," A tinge of fear crawled down my spine. They were dangerous. I was dying without him anyway, "Ok, I'd like to visit him." I said.
"It's not that easy, Em," Daniel spoke for the first time. He looked worried.
"I don't have a choice. He's my mate," My throat choked.
"No! You're not going there. It's a suicide." My mother ordered, walking into the library.
"I'm going there I need to find the path to him." I said.
"Let her go. She won't be alone," Lance said.
"Yeah! Take an army and declare war!" Drake snorted, "We can find another way to communicate with him."
"He would demand to see the queen," Lance said.
"You're crazy, Lance. How could you push your daughter into the mouth of death?" Mom yelled at him in fright. Her eyes were big, breathing heavily. She realized her mistake after a second and opened her mouth to clear, glancing at me, "I mean."
"For God's sake, mom! Stop lying!" Tears pierced in my eyes. I yanked the book from him. He didn't try to take it back, "I'm going there." I said out loud, quickening my pace out toward the garden.
I sat under the tree and rested my back against the tree trunk. I was blocking my thoughts. It was complicated. I opened the book. Desperately, I began to search the page.
"Last chapter's last line," Lance said, stopping a few steps away from me. Mom was just behind him. He pirouetted in front of me.
Tears fell. I already pushed the book away. I didn't want to spoil the rare book. It had led me to the path where I could meet him. Though, it was full of danger. I did not care. I read the sentence again. My eyes glazed with tears of joy.
Mom sat next to me and closed the book, "When did you know?" She asked.
"When I saw him," I muttered, looking up at Lance.
"You're our daughter. You, Ava, and Drake." He looked into my eyes. His expression held untold pain, "Do you hate me?" He asked, bluntly.
I didn't know what to say. Mom held my hand, "It wasn't his fault. I can't explain. He is the Alpha. It was arranged by our parents. Kathy was away among humans completing her study. "
"I do not wanna hear that you were his..." I bit hard on my lip. It started to bleed.
"I love her. For the sake of Love, I let her go. She wanted to go. " Lance said.
"She wasn't normal but a..." My throat tightened. I looked away. I was the one who had faced everything. Alone.
"I understand. But it wasn't his fault. I don't want you to hate him. Alpha's life is far different and full of duties and responsibilities if he's obedient to his father." She said the last words with sarcasm.
"Weren't you and I and Ava his responsibility? He just took your son with him."
"Kathy was his mate. We were in high school and in love. I was thinking we'd be destined mate,"
"Like Samantha and Dastien," Lance said.
"Kathy took my son away from me, not Lance." She said.
I kept my gaze down, staring at my hands. Tears continued to fall.
"It seemed too complicated." I muttered.
"Yes, it is. I have moved on from everything that I was holding in my heart. My heart, soul, and body belong to my mate." Mom hugged me.
"Mom, I don't wanna hear about your love life," I chuckled. I was feeling awkward. They're my parents. I liked the story where mom cooked and dad kissed her cheek before going to his office and dropping kids at the school.
"Alright, princess!" She kissed the side of my head.
"You don't need to protect me always. Sometimes truth is better than the fake life," I said, looking in her amber eyes.
"When you get married. I want you to hear my story. You need to know the truth." She said.
I nodded, "We should go home before your wife does something unpleasant." I chuckled looking at Lance.
He shook his head, "She won't dare to," I felt rage in his tone. I looked back at the book. It felt weird. They wanted to say a lot of things But I wasn't feeling ready to face them, "Emersyn!" I looked up at him, "Please, don't hate me." he pleaded with his gaze.
Mom swiped her hand, tucking the strands away from my eyes, "She's a sensible girl. She wouldn't hate you."
"But I saw you that day. You were looking furious, mom." I asked. Why was she acting as he did not do anything wrong?
"He should keep you safe. He let his wife hurt you." Mom presses her lips in a thin line.
"I've explained before, Carla." Lance's gaze turned to mom.
"That's why I let you around my children." Mom snapped.
"They're mine, too," He shot back.
I rolled my eyes, deflating. I looked away from them. Their anger was increasing. Charles walked toward us, "Oh! Thank goodness, Dear daddy is here. Please, make them understand their verbal fight isn't good for teenage ears." I flashed a full fake smile.
Lance turned to me, "I'll prefer if you..." He looked at Charles. His eyes flooded with pain. Was it so important for him? Then why did he leave us?
"Why did you leave us? I got it, Mrs. Dawson is your mate. But you abandoned us." I asked venomously.
"That was the only way to keep you all alive," He looked at me.
I needed to hear mom's love story before my wedding. "I have to find the Cold King." I pushed myself on my feet away and quickened my pace away from them.
"I have already sent a letter to him," Lance said.
I spun to face him. They were on their feet, closing the distance between us, "You must be kidding me. You could have called him. Video call, fix a meeting. Letter!" I shook my head.
"He's the king. He can talk in head and reach anywhere without a vehicle, he has a speed of ray and a lot of superpowers." Charles said, "He's the oldest Vampire," He said.
"How old? " I asked.
"No one knows exactly, but very old." He muttered.
"King! Like him?" I didn't mention his name.
Silver, Elizabeth, Drake, Daniel, and Katherine walked on the lawn when they saw us talking without any issue and drama.
"No, He's the king of all dark creatures. Goddess! There are Vampire kings, and their kings too. Cold king is king, the superior one, above all. We don't have much knowledge about the Dark realm. Night creatures. But everyone knows, the Vampire goddess is one of his allies." He said.
I nodded my head in understanding.
"She'll be safe," Silver said.
"Yes, if they don't want to be dead," Charles said,
"It seems easy." Elizabeth doubted.
"Cold ones are dangerous. It doesn't mean they wouldn't try to break the rules. Untamed creatures could never value rules and conditions or anything."
They were talking about different stories, it was reality, not a bestseller book. It annoyed me to no end.
"So you have his address. We should visit." I suggested.
"No," Mom and Silver squealed at the same time.
"No one can stop me. You can help and I can do it in my way," I simply told them.
Before they could say anything. A blast echoed in the air, jolting me to my core. My head snapped in the sound's direction. Another blast, stronger than before. Lance held me close to his body when a strong earthquake passed. My pulse spiked as I stared around for the source of the disturbance.
Daniel cursed under his breath, "Portal!" He rushed toward the academy.
My heart began to pound in fear.
Everyone followed him, including me. I couldn't match their speed. I knew the directions. What could it be? The nagging feeling troubled me.
I was gasping for air when I stopped behind them, "What happened?" I asked.
"See it yourself, Em." I heard Silver.
Breathing deeply, I paced ahead, pushing Charles and Lance back. So I could see from near.
Panic kicked in, drawing the air out of my lungs. My heart began to drum in my ears, "What's that mean?" Dried tracks were washed with new tears, "Is he in trouble?" My mother came to my side but couldn't placate the pain in my chest.
The wavy water of the portal door was replaced by burning magma. I could smell the burning in the air.
I advanced my steps. I could feel the heat against my face, skin, and warm clothes. I lifted my hand.
"No," Elizabeth held my hand, pushing me away from the burning portal.
"It could kill you, Em. It doesn't look safe." She said.
"It happened to the other portals too." Daniel said.
"How'd we go back?" Drake asked.
"My helicopter will be here soon," Charles said.
"But I can't go without talking to the vampire king," I said with tears
"He'll contact us himself. I'll update you," Lance promised, "Until then," He gestured at his home.
I shook my head, "I'll stay here."
"It could be dangerous to stay around the portal. when we don't know which Realm it is connected to." Daniel was staring at it. His concentration seemed somewhere else.
"He's saying the right thing to do. Whoever would walk out of the fire. We don't know how to deal. So, let's go home." Drake said.
I pursed my lips. A cold wave washed over me, making me shiver from the core. I inhaled sharply. Unseen ice seemed to cut through my skin. My legs wobbled and my knees hit the ground. I shrieked as the pain became unbearable. It felt like someone was squeezing me between two harsh things.
Elizabeth hurried to me. I pushed myself back, stumbled, and hit my back to the ground.
"We need to take her back to the academy. The curse will kill her." Elizabeth yelled in fear.
Tears streamed down my eyes. A sharp beep echoed in my ears, blocking every sound. I stared at green eyes. I wasn't feeling anything but immense pain. The beep sound continued in my ears. I did not want Elizabeth's help.
I tried to see clearly. My body seemed unfamiliar to me, the pain was getting worse. Elizabeth's lips were moving rapidly. A faint white glow emerged through her palm and her hand connected to my forehead.
In a slow wave, the pain began to dwindle forcing my eyes to close.