While standing in the shower, letting the water rinse away the day, I couldn’t stop my mind from going over all that I had learned, not only about myself but my family and even the world as I knew it. I would never have thought that a family could keep such secrets from each other.
I finally gave up on trying to piece the puzzle which was my life together, and sighed and got out of the shower. I put my robe on and left my hair in a towel, deciding it was best to worry about my unruly mane later. As I was going through my bags, I realized I didn’t have anything suitable to wear. Or at least I didn’t think so. I’d never been to a party with witches, warlocks, vampires, and werewolves.
I was just working up the nerve to go ask about the dress code when someone starts knocking on my door. Without waiting for an invitation, the door opened and my sister poked her head in.
“Jesus, Stevie, I’m not even dressed yet.”
“Oh please, Sissy, we’re identical twins. I see what you have every day when I look in the mirror!” She snorted at my prudishness, and I let out a huff and waved her in.
“I have nothing appropriate to wear to dinner, Stevie. I don’t think I can go in skinny jeans and a T-shirt.”
“No, you probably can’t, but you can wear this,” she said, handing me the most beautiful dress.
It’s a deep blue, with a plunging neckline. It had two slits down the sides that stopped just below your panties. When she turned the dress around, I saw that it had no back, and realized that underwear would not be an option in a dress like that.
“Stevie, there is no way in hell I can wear that. I’m not you. I can’t pull off a dress like that.”
“Shut up, Ryan! I don’t want to hear that shit come out of your mouth. You are beautiful, and you will wear this dress. Don’t knock it until you try it on. I bought it a while ago and never had a chance to wear it, so I want to give it to you.” I knew by the look in her eyes I wasn’t going to win this argument.
Sighing, I got up and took the dress from her, heading into the bathroom to change. Once I finally got the dress on, I refused to look in the mirror, knowing that if I saw what I looked like, I might take it off. When I finally emerged from the bathroom, I looked at my sister, and her mouth was hanging open. A blush started burning its way up my neck. I never wore things like this in real life—only in my dreams.
“Is it really that bad? I told you I couldn’t pull it off, Stevie.” I was about to take the damn thing off when Stevie grabbed my arm.
“Don’t you dare! You look beautiful, Ry, and I mean it. I just can’t believe you don’t see how beautiful you are.” Her words brought tears to my eyes; my mother always said I was hideous. The only time I ever felt truly beautiful was when I was in my dreams with the guys. They made me feel like a goddess. I only started to view myself as something more than trash when I started to have dreams with Kai and Nico in them. They would always tell me I’m beautiful and my beauty shined from within me.
“When you grow up hearing how ugly you are all the time, you start to believe it,” I whispered, my head hung low. Stevie grabbed me by the chin and lifted my head so we were eye to eye.
“You will never look down at yourself again, do you hear me? I will not have it. You are a fucking coven heir, Ryan! You look down to no one. –Tonight you will hold your head high and handle yourself like the royalty you are. Do you hear me? If you don’t, they will see you as weak, and you will become their prey. Always keep eye contact and never let them know how they make you feel.”
“I don’t understand what you’re saying, Stevie.”
“If they know you are scared, they will prey on that weakness. The Knox coven is the strongest in the world, and we cannot be seen as anything other than that. If you have to fake it until you make it, that’s what you will do. Randall may seem harmless, but he is not, and neither is the pack. We must show strength in the eyes of our enemies—you understand?”
It was clear there was a lot more to what she was saying than what I knew, but I was going to try the whole “fake it til you make it” thing, starting now. I gave my sister a tight smile and nodded.
“Okay, now let’s do your hair and makeup!” She said with a clap of her hands. Dear Lord, save me now.
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An hour later, we were walking out of my room to get the boys and be on our way to Randall’s little gathering.
“Yowza! Look at you two. Ryan, you look absolutely beautiful.” Chase was such a charmer, but his words gave me a small boost in confidence. I refused to let my family down. I was going to make them proud tonight.
“You both really do look great, but if we don’t hurry up, we’re going to be late, and that will be a problem,” Alex said while holding the front door open.
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After a forty-five-minute drive through forest and gravel roads, we approach two massive iron gates held up by huge brick pillars. On top of the pillars sat two gargoyles whose grimaces were just plain creepy. Alex pulled up next to an intercom and hit a button. After a moment, a man’s voice came over the speaker.
“Cane Manor.”
“Alex Knox, from the Knox coven. We have been invited here this evening by Mr. Cane.” I can hear the distaste in Alex’s voice when he says Randall’s name.
“Yes, sir, please drive through.” No sooner had the man finished speaking than the gates opened and we drove through. The driveway has trees lining the drive all the way up to the house.
As we get closer, I saw a fountain in front of the house, its presence creating a roundabout for drivers. The fountain itself is a beautiful work of art. It had four horses rearing up, almost like they were fighting. The horses were shooting water from their mouths, spotlights were pointed at the fountain. It was clearly the centerpiece of the front yard.
The house—I mean, it wasn’t even a house, more like an estate— was huge; it reminded me of the White House. It had the same four big pillars out the front, windows were scattered all over the front of the mansion, there was an American flag placed on the roof as well.
The White House seemed more welcoming than Randall’s mansion though. The entrance to the home had guards stationed outside of it. Or at least I assumed they are guards. I was a bit nervous about coming here before, but now I was about to burst out of my skin from nerves. I mean, who has armed guards at the door besides pop stars and presidents?
Alex finally eased the car to a stop, and he and Chase started to climb out. I grabbed Stevie’s hand.
“Why are there guards?” I whispered.
“Because he is the vampire King, not just a king—he is the king.” My face must look like a mask of horror, as she gives my hand a reassuring squeeze.
“We’re here with you, Ry. You are not alone. No one will harm you. If they even look at you wrong, let us know, and they will be taken care of. We may be young, but we are not weak. You are not weak.”
With that said, she slipped out of the back seat to join the boys. I took one last deep breath and did the same. Chase offered me his arm, and I linked to mine through his and gave him a nervous smile. He patted my arm and gave me a wink. Alex and Stevie led the way. Aswe approached the stairs leading to the front door, I start worrying I might trip and break my ankle.I was never any good at wearing heels, but Stevie insisted I wear them because "Converse was not acceptable to wear with a dress."I felt like everything was on display: my back was bare; my breasts were just barely covered. The slits up the sides were making me worry if a gust of wind came, everyone would be able to see the G-string I had on.As we reached the top of the stairs, Alex gave the guards a curt nod. The guards opened the two massive wooden front doors, and immediately I am assaulted by classical music and voices and laughter. I don’t know what I was expecting, but t
After making our way back inside and maneuvering through the crowds of people, Stevie leads us down the hallway near where we entered. We stopped outside a large wooden door. Alex knocked and we waited to be invited in. “Enter!” a voice shouted from behind the door. Alex opened the door, and we all filed in. The room was decorated in rich browns and maroon, with oil paintings in elaborate gilded frames. The fire was lit, and above the mantle, there was a portrait of a woman in a lavender gown, with a small hat atop her head. Her face was fanned with black curls and her skin was luminescent, even in a painting. She had the richest and vibrant violet eyes. They reminded me of Nico’s. I heard someone cough and turned to see Randall standing behind a massive oak desk. Behind him were floor-to-ceiling windows that perfectly framed the view of the forest and mountains. He waved us over to the other side of the room, where there were two couches and
“Who are you?” “My name is Melakai Cane, Miss Knox. I am the head of the vampire king’s enforcers.” He had a look of regret on his beautiful face. He was being so formal. I didn’t like it. Where was my relaxed sex god, who always made me laugh? “Kai, step away from her now before you do something you will regret,” Jax warned Melakai, taking a step toward us. “You take one step closer, Jackson, and you and I will finish what we started years ago—right here, right now,” Kai growled at Jax. “Melakai, son. Step away from the girl,” the king ordered. Son? Wait, did that mean Randall was his dad? With a final look at me to make sure I was okay, he took his hands off my hips. I felt instantly cold without his touch to warm me. I didn’t want him to let me go. I wanted him to hold me forever. He was real, and I needed to know if he was really in my dre
I awoke on the edge of the lake. Sitting up, I looked to my side, and sure enough, Kai was sitting next to me. This was our other dreamland. The lake was so beautiful and calm. It was my favorite place to be, surrounded by trees and mountains. Knowing Kai is now a real person and not a figment of my imagination, I felt shy and unsure. “Where are we?” I asked. “At Lake William, mi amor.” “I got that part, Kai; I mean is this place even real?” “Yes.” “Are you going to tell me where this place is located?” “You can find Lake William hidden in the mountains in Alaska. I found this place many years ago, with my brothers.” I was determined to find Lake William now. I didn’t want to waste any more time talk
I felt someone shaking me, and heard my name being called. I didn’t want to wake up. I was having the best dream ever. Then I realized it wasn’t a dream; Melakai was here and I wanted to jump his bones again in my dream. Holy fuck! I was acting like a hussy. I got so turned on in my dream that I could feel the pool of liquid between my thighs. I had to find a way to not dream anymore—to block him out somehow. I snapped my eyes open to see Stevie leaning over me with worry lines marring her face. “Thank fuck, Sissy. I was about to stake his vampire ass if he didn’t bring you back from wherever the fuck he took you,” she said. I’m a terrible person. Here’s my sister, worried about me, and I’m in a dream trying to screw Kai. “I’m okay, Stevie, I swear.” Well, except for the fact that I was feeling needy and hot, thanks to Kai. “You smell like you’re more than okay to me,” Tyler retorted, a look of disgust promin
We finally arrived at the cabin. I was too exhausted to worry about answers to my questions. I decided to get a good night’s rest and drill the others in the morning. With a final bid goodnight to my sister and cousins, I retired to my room. After a quick shower, I slipped into a pair of sleep shorts and an old T-shirt. I climb into bed with a heavy feeling on my chest. When I wake up tomorrow, more shit in my life was going to change. I decided right there, at that moment, that I was not going to throw myself a pity party any longer. I was free from my mother and her abuse. I may not have gotten to see my father before he passed, but none of that would hold me back any longer. I was stronger than that. Come tomorrow, I would take whatever came at me and demand the answers I needed to make sense of my life. I hated not having control of things in my life. I lived too long with no control, and I would never, never have that taken from me again. I was a grown-ass woman
“Okay, Ryan, we owe you that much. What would you like to know, squirt?” Alex asked, while leaning his elbows on the table. “How am I like this? Like, how did I get this power or gift or whatever you call it? Why did you all freak out when I had that dream, in the car ride up here?” Kai gave my hand another reassuring squeeze. I felt better just with him touching me like he would protect me from all the bad in the world. I was still pissed that he lied to me, but right now I needed his support while I dealt with this conversation. Stevie cleared her throat and leaned forward to rest her forearms on the table. “I don’t know how else to say this, so I’m just going to say what I think, okay? All the fairy tales about witches, vampires, werewolves, fae, and so on are true. Our grandfather was the one that founded the treaty with Randall Cane and Jackson’s father, to keep peace among the races. You’re a born witch from the
He was growling, and his eyes were changing color. They weren’t chocolate brown anymore—they were yellow. Holy shit, I think Jax might be changing into a wolf right in front of me. “You son of a bitch. She’s right, isn’t she? That fucker was trying to con us by using your gifts to get us to agree!” he roared. Tyler put a hand on Jackson’s shoulder to calm him, but he just shook it off. Kai stood and leaned over the table so he and Jackson were nearly nose to nose. “I have to follow orders and what my king wants, whether I think it’s wrong or not. I must do as he asks.” Okay, that’s a bit weird. So Kai didn’t like doing what Randall wanted all the time? That’s good to know. “Bullshit, Melakai. The enforcer is back in full swing now, ladies and gentlemen. You would have tried to kill us last night if we didn’t agree, wouldn’t you? That’s why all those guards were nearby—in case all hell broke loose when you tried to tak