POV Kiara
The clan's estate looks wild and foreboding, making my entire body tense with unease. Ancient stone walls rise from perfectly manicured grounds like a fortress designed to keep the world out.
Or to keep secrets in.
Aleron takes my hand as we approach the main entrance. His touch calms my nerves in a way that should probably worry me more than it does.
"I said I'd be here for you," he says with a teasing smile. "I promised your puppy."
Despite my anxiety, I chuckle at his nickname for Thomen. The sound surprises me. I shouldn't be able to laugh right now, but somehow Aleron makes even the most terrifying situations feel manageable.
It strikes me how different his support is from Thomen's.
Thomen is my safe place, the person who protects and nurtures me through everything. But Aleron completely accepts my hybrid nature without question. He doesn't try to change me or fix me. He just helps me become whatever I'm meant to be.
Aleron leads me through ornate hallways lined with paintings that look centuries old. Everything screams of wealth and power accumulated over lifetimes. We reach an opulent dining room where my mother sits alone at a massive table.
The table is laden with food from exotic fruits to rare meats, but Jacqueline's own plate remains empty. She doesn't need food the way I do. Pure vampires survive on blood alone.
"Leave us," Jacqueline commands without looking up from arranging her napkin.
Aleron hesitates, his eyes finding mine. I nod my permission, though part of me wants him to stay. He reluctantly departs, closing the heavy doors behind him.
"Sit down, daughter," Jacqueline indicates the chair across from her.
I remain completely alert as I take the seat. Everything about this feels like walking into a trap, but I need answers more than I need safety.
She pours two glasses of wine with elegant movements. The liquid is dark red, almost black in the candlelight.
"I propose a toast to our acquaintance," Jacqueline says with a predatory smile, raising her glass.
She takes a delicate sip while I watch silently. I hesitate before setting my untouched glass back down. I'm not drinking anything she gives me.
"I want to know everything," I demand, letting my Alpha voice carry full authority.
Her expression sharpens like a blade. "No need for that tone with me. I am your mother and I love you. I'll tell you everything in order."
Her words hit me wrong. "You abandoned me. There's no love here."
"Maybe so," she concedes with chilling indifference, like my pain means nothing to her.
I cut straight to the point. "What great things were you talking about earlier?"
"You are special, my girl.” Jacqueline's sly smile widens as she leans back in her chair. “Your destiny is to stop the feud between vampires and werewolves by eradicating hatred."
"How exactly am I supposed to do that?"
"Hatred passes from generation to generation like a disease," she explains casually. "Children learn to hate from their parents, who learned from their parents before them. To break this cycle, it’s enough to annihilate one generation so it can't pass on its hatred."
My blood turns to ice. "Annihilate a generation?"
"We also need someone to unite the survivors afterward," she continues as if discussing the weather. "Someone who understands both species. You."
The casual way she discusses genocide horrifies me more than any battlefield I've ever seen. This woman is talking about mass murder like it's a reasonable solution to conflict.
"No." I object, standing so fast my chair tips backward. "We need to stop bloodshed, not increase it. You're insane. I won't do this!"
"Then I'll do everything myself," Jacqueline calls after me coldly as I storm toward the door.
I don't look back. I can't get out of that room fast enough.
Aleron waits in the hallway, immediately falling into step beside me as I head for the exit.
"How could you do this knowing her crazy plan?" I explode at him the moment we're outside the estate.
He looks genuinely confused, his ancient features showing real surprise. "I don't understand what you're talking about."
"The genocide! Killing an entire generation to stop the hatred between our species!"
His shock appears completely real. "That wasn't her plan. She told everyone that awakening your hybrid nature would unite vampires and werewolves peacefully. That you would bring us together through understanding."
"Well, that was only part of it," I realize, seeing his lost expression.
I believe his ignorance of the full scope. Jacqueline played everyone, including her own clan members. They think they're working toward peace while she plans mass murder.
We reach the pack territory's edge where Thomen waits anxiously with several warriors. The moment he sees me safe, he pulls me into his arms.
"You kept your word," he tells Aleron over my shoulder, acknowledgment rather than gratitude.
Aleron shrugs. "I think we should prepare for an attack. I'll try to get more information about what she's really planning."
Thomen's suspicion flares immediately. "To betray us again? You're not trustworthy."
"I'm not asking you to trust me," Aleron snaps back.
Through our vampire bond, I feel his pain and regret. Despite everything, he genuinely wants to help now.
I take his hand despite Thomen's warning growl. "Do what you must."
Aleron nods once and disappears back into the darkness between the trees.
"What happened in there?" Thomen asks as we walk toward home.
"My mother is insane," I tell him. "She wants to commit genocide and thinks I'll help her do it."
His arm tightens around me protectively. "We won't let that happen."
"She said she'll do it herself if I refuse."
"Then we stop her."
I love his simple certainty, his willingness to face impossible odds for me. But I'm not sure we can stop someone as powerful as Jacqueline Moreau.
Especially when I'm still learning to control the vampire abilities she gave me.