We got Anastasia to the small bathroom and closed the door behind us. Lucas and Knight weren’t in the house, but I put that from my mind for the moment as Clara and I got Anastasia’s mud-stained dress off and Clara tossed it in the corner with a sigh. Anastasia had nothing on underneath, only a very expensive gold necklace. Clara removed that too and handed it to me to put on the counter. The necklace was a crest, with an outer circle of letters and an inner circle of more words with a shield and three fangs.
“What’s this?” I asked. The crest looked familiar, with the same clouded edge as my memories of the Countess’s eyes and being in the castle. Clara motioned for me to help lift Anastasia into the bath she’d already run. The water in the porcelain claw-footed tub was steaming hot with some herbs floating on the surface. Anastasia still didn’t react, but she looked less forlorn, if that was possible.
Sitting down on a stool by the tub, Clara wiped her nose a few times. “It’s the crest of Bathory. We each have one.” She reached under her blue dress to show an equally fine necklace with a different medallion and chain. She put it back under her clothes and soaped up a large sponge. “Look inside the medicine cabinet. There’s a wooden box.” I found it on the top shelf, forgotten, with a layer of dust on it. Clara grunted as I removed it from the cabinet, lifting her sister’s feet up to clean them. “It’s yours. Our mother bequeathed it to you before Balthazar took you away. She knew you couldn’t really keep it, so I’ve held onto it all these long years.”
I opened the box to find another crest of Bathory inside, set in a golden filigree pendant and a golden pearl chain. This was a necklace for royalty.
“Ana wanted to name you Erzsébet after our mother, but the Countess insisted we give you the western version to protect you. When I heard you call yourself ‘Leezbet,’ I couldn’t help but wish my mother was here. That was also her nickname. She would’ve loved you.”
I curled the necklace up in my hand. “I suppose she died like history says? She’s not a vampire?”
Clara frowned and continued cleaning Anastasia’s arm. “No, she’s dead. She protected us, helping feed Lucas and Ana human blood for decades, and took the fall for them when the time came. She may not have been a murderess as the legends say, but she is definitely dead. I buried her body myself.”
“I’m sorry,” I offered gently. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
She looked at me with surprise, smiling despite the conversation. “Oh, don’t mind me. Put the necklace on. It will look beautiful on you.” I clasped the chain around my neck and folded the pendant up to study it. “Ohh,” Clara squeaked. She grabbed Anastasia’s soapy hand and held it to her breast. “You look just like our mother. Ana,” she said with a shake of her sister’s shoulder. “Look at your Lisbeth wearing mother’s chain.” Anastasia, of course, didn’t react, but Clara paid that no mind. “I always believed you would come back to us. It’s been so hard hoping all this time with no one here…” Her eyes shining with unshed tears, she choked a bit to hold them back and smiled. “Help me clean her hair?” Anastasia’s hair was a ratty mess with leaves and all sorts of fauna inside it. I almost thought I’d find a bird’s nest somewhere. Clara handed me a bottle of oils, and strand by strand we cleaned Anastasia’s hair of all the grime.
“Clara,” I said as we rinsed the suds off. “You’re human, right? If you’re her twin, you should be dead by now.”
Clara smiled thoughtfully, running a brush over Anastasia’s fingernails. “Our mother drank blood when she was carrying us so Ana wouldn’t kill me in the womb. Something happened, some twist of science, or luck, and I gained longevity from being the twin of a vampire child. I’m not unbreakable, I can die if wounded, but I’ll live forever as a weak human. Ana, on the other hand, grew strong in our mother’s womb from the blood. Almost too strong. There now, you’re all done,” she proclaimed, ending the conversation.
Anastasia was sparkling clean and the bathwater was a cloudy pond color. Clara pulled the plug, motioning for me to lift Anastasia up. I hoisted her onto the towel covered toilet seat so Clara could dry her sister off. We dressed her in some surprisingly normal clothes, consisting of a pullover dress and some pants.
“I dress her to look normal around the humans, but without fail, she runs away wearing this disgusting dress,” Clara complained. She picked up the bundle of lace and ick, running a hand across her sweaty forehead. “I’d toss it, but the last time I tried, she ran away in naught but her skin. Lesson learned.” Clara ran a new tub of water and tossed the black dress inside to soak. “Come, Ana. Breakfast time.”
We emerged from the bathroom after over an hour of work, and our efforts showed. Anastasia looked completely normal, except for her blank expression. Clara set her down on one of the kitchen chairs and went to get some food. I grabbed a brush and started running it through… my mother’s hair. Her deep raven black locks started to curl as they dried, and the oils we used made them shine. Her hair was curly, exactly like mine, and even Kitty’s. We were so similar in appearance, it was no wonder Lucas had instantly known who I was.
Clara came with a plate of pancakes and smiled at me starting to braid Anastasia’s hair. “It’s like she’s your twin, instead of me. My hair is dull and straight, like corn husks. I’ve always envied her for that, her perfect raven locks. She even looks beautiful without makeup, curse her.” Clara’s words were bitter, but she had love on her face. Whatever she said, she loved her sister. Sighing, she pushed the plate to me. “Could you try and feed her?”
The pancakes were fresh and smelled of melted butter. I snuck bites in between offering Anastasia her share, and was pleasantly surprised that she ate every bite offered. Clara came back with a second plate for me and one for her. I ate mine and continued feeding Anastasia, Clara smiling at us with pure happiness.
“Pancakes are her favorite food. She always eats every bite. I made them special.”
I eventually ran out of pancakes and Anastasia sat with her mouth open waiting for more. “Where’s Lucas?”
Clara shrugged and sipped her coffee with a dry eye roll. “Who knows. That man is a can of crazy, make no mistake. He barges in here with my niece and her lover, and then tries to pledge his troth like we’d fought only yesterday instead of four hundred years ago.”
Oh. I guess she was the lollipop instead of Anastasia. So my parents didn’t love each other. Clara stabbed her food and sighed again to control her feelings, then she took a dainty bite of pastry.
Maybe she can forgive if she loves.
Did she? Could someone still love after so long, and after such a betrayal? My father had made the same mistakes as me, and I didn’t want to admit how alike we were in that respect. Still, I wanted to know how she felt, if love could in fact survive after being hurt like that.
“Can you forgive what he did?”
Clara’s eyebrows knit in confusion until I motioned to Anastasia and myself, but the warmth returned to her face despite my fear that it wouldn’t. “As unorthodox as his methods were, they were born from love, and I can’t fault him for that. Lucas was trying to help her. What made me angry was that they only made things worse.”
“Because of me.”
She nodded, reaching across the table for my hand. “Yes. But we all love you. Please know that.” It felt strange for someone to love me automatically. They didn’t even know me, and I didn’t know them, but I wanted to.
The door swung open like someone had kicked it. I sprang up, ready to attack and protect, but it was only Knight holding a white box that smelled like food.
“Good morning, ladies. Lisbeth. It’s time we talked.”
14. Don’t be coy
My blood ran so cold I felt nauseous and the pancakes threatened to come back up. “Talked about what?”
“Don’t be coy. You’re adorable when you’re coy. Stop it.” He plunked the box in his hands onto the kitchen counter and took his coat off slowly, watching me. I flinched when he flung the coat, and Clara’s
eyes watched him saunter over to me, her interest peaked entirely like she was watching tv.
“We,” Knight motioned between us, “are talking. Now.”
I gulped hard, swallowing down the bile in my mouth. No, no I couldn’t have this conversation. I didn’t want him to leave me. “About?”
“The Constitution. What do you think? Us. Whatever we have going on right here. I need answers.” He stepped closer, his warm breath falling onto my face, and he took my hand before I could react. “Lisbeth of the House of Bathory, I love you.”
Oh sweet lord of the vampires.
Against all of my wants, I pulled my hand away from him. “You shouldn’t.”
“Why in the hell not? You kissed me, you kissed me like you meant it. Like I was the only person in the world you ever wanted to kiss.”
It wasn’t far from the truth, but I blinked to keep the tears at bay. “I kissed you so I could have something to remember.”
“Something to remember when?” he asked in confusion.
The tears started falling unbidden down my cheeks. “When you leave. When you’re gone forever, off having your own life with a wife and children.”
“When have I ever given the impression that I wanted that?” He took my face in his hands and made me look up into his eyes. “I want you.”
I still found the strength to protest with my knees turning to jelly from his touch. “No, you can’t want me. You deserve someone who’s faithful, and that’s not me.”
“Fine. You kissed someone else.” He turned, grabbed Clara from her chair, and kissed her passionately. The sight of it made me angry and sad all at once. How could he kiss someone else like that? Like he meant it? The kiss lasted far too long for my comfort, but he eventually let her go and turned back to me, the glint in his eyes turning my stomach in an entirely different way. “There. Now we’re even.”
“You…” I pointed a finger at him. “You just kissed my aunt.”
His face went slack with fear. “Was it too much?”
“Not too much for me,” Clara commented, wiping a finger over her lips with a smile. “Glad Lucas wasn’t here to see that.”
Knight came back to me and took my face in his hands again. “Tell me you don’t love me. Tell me you don’t want to be with me.” I couldn’t say that. It wouldn’t be true.
Lucas came to mind, so I quoted my father. “Can he forgive if he loves?”
“You’re so stupid.” Knight drew me against him and kissed me with a fevered passion that was everything I wanted. He pulled away, planting small kisses around my face. “Tell me you love me, and I’ll forgive you.” He captured my lips again so I couldn’t answer. When he released me, I looked up into his eyes, stroking at his long hair with one hand, the other holding onto the back of his neck.
“I love you, Knight. I’ve never needed anyone like I need you. When I thought you were dead, I didn’t want to live in a world without you. I’ve lived for so long not knowing what love felt like, and when I lost it, I lost everything.”
“You’re never losing me again,” Knight vowed in a whisper, and he kissed me slowly, deeply, like he needed the taste of my lips to breathe. My salty tears continued falling and mixed in with our lips.
If there were any words to describe how I felt at that moment, I wouldn’t say happy, or relieved, not even bittersweet. I felt whole again, finally, after so long.
I whispered over and over that I loved him, my mantra for life. He was finally back in my arms, for good this time. It was more than I could ever, and had ever, hoped for.
When we finally surfaced for air, Clara was munching on what Knight had brought in the white box and was sharing it with Anastasia.
Custard-filled croissants.
The last time he’d brought me my favorite food, I was coming down from my blood binge, and it was very painful and agonizing. He’d been right there, making me laugh in-between throwing up and feeling like death.
“How did you find these?” I asked him in wonderment, grabbing two of the pastries. Knight cutely thought one was for him but I ate both of them and grinned with custard on my mouth. He kissed it away, and I wished to god we were alone so I could eat custard off of his succulent toned body.
“Oh,” Clara said with her mouth full. “Lisbeth, don’t you need to feed? I can grab someone, we’ll just erase their memory, it’s not a big deal.” Her nonchalance of treating humans like that was horrifying, but I tried to muster up some forgiveness for her ignorance.
“No, I’m okay. We try to not do that these days. We’re all about consent.” My words were a little harsh, but Clara still smiled back at me in understanding. Knight had a croissant in his mouth and gave me a thumbs up to drink from him. He grabbed another pastry before I reached in and sunk my teeth into his neck. His blood tasted different this time. Better than it ever had, if that was possible. It was better than the custard-filled croissants. Blasphemy, but oh so true. I wanted… I wanted to drink from him when we were both naked and filled with passion. How would it feel?
In a blood fog of ecstasy, I heard a chair fall over and Clara shouting at someone. Knight’s arms came around me to twist so I was behind him. I unlatched from his throat just in time to see Anastasia coming at us. Faster than lightning, I moved in front of Knight and hissed at my mother, baring my claws and fangs to show her how strong I was so she would back down. She hesitated, now that there was something between her and her target. Make no mistake, I knew she wasn’t after me. She’d woken up when she smelled Knight’s blood. But why? Why his blood?
Anastasia hissed at me, pleading and whining, disappointed at being denied what she wanted. Her mouth opened around her fangs and she grunted a few times. It took her a painful amount of effort until she managed to speak.
“Nicolas,” she finally said, her throat scratchy and strained. How long had it been since she’d spoken?
“Who dat?” Knight whispered. My hand was on his side to keep him safer, and I lifted it to smack him as a warning to stay silent.
“Nicolas was her lover, the werewolf,” Clara explained. She had run to the kitchen in the hurry and was holding a large knife in her hand.
“Nicolas,” Anastasia said again with a whine. Her eyes darted from Knight’s face to mine, and back. “I smell him. You.” She pointed a claw at Knight, making me hiss a little as a warning. “You smell like Nicolas.”
“I’m not him, sorry, mom,” Knight explained, shaking his head. Mom.
Anastasia was disappointed. She looked around, confused, like she didn’t know where she was. She sniffed the air a few times, and whatever she smelled led her to me. I hissed in warning when she stepped closer to me. Her hand came up slowly, testing my reactions until she placed it on my cheek.
“You’re not a baby,” she said, her confusion deepening. “You smell like my baby.”
With extreme caution, I put my hand up to her cheek too. Her skin was soft and warm. “I’m here, mother. Erzsébet is here.”
She smiled a gentle smile and stroked my cheek. Then her face changed. She frowned and shoved me hard into Knight’s chest. “You’re not my baby. My baby...” She wailed and sank to the floor. “Where is my baby?” Her shrieks tore at me. She rocked back and forth on the floor. “Nicolas, come back to me. I need my baby. Bring her back. Why did you take her from me?”
Clara dropped the knife and came running. She smoothed Anastasia’s hair and cooed to her in Romanian. Anastasia folded herself into her twin’s arms and sobbed brokenly.
My mother was broken. I couldn’t fix her.
“I’m sorry, Clara. I tried. I’m so sorry.” Clara looked up from her sister and reached out to me, but I turned and left the house, and I wasn’t going to stop until I couldn’t smell them anymore.
15. First impressions
My feet ran, never stopping. I couldn’t stop, I didn’t want to stop. If I stopped I would remember that woman back in Clara’s arms, and how I couldn’t fix her. My mother would always be an empty shel
l. She’d never feel love for me.
Run. Keep fucking running. Run, girl. Run.
And I did. Over fields, and across the plains, I ran as fast as I could. At that speed, I sensed everything around me, all the animals and smells, and even a few humans hiking without a care in the world. Eventually, even at my top speed, I felt something enter my radar.
It was Knight.
His breathing was normal like this was a light stroll. I looked behind me and he grinned, the sight of him catching up to me making my pulse race even faster. I slowed down just enough for him to pass me with a laugh, and I chased my mate through the forest. Having him by my side, running as fast as I could, I felt happier than I had in a long time. The weight of all that we had going on, and all that was going to happen, it all fell away.
Neither of us could feel the effects of the run, so it was really a matter of when we decided to stop, and I didn’t want to stop. I bobbed and weaved around Knight, catapulting off trees and showing off my perfect balance. He grabbed at me and we tumbled into a pile of leaves. Pinning me underneath him, he kissed a scorching path along my collarbone.
“The last time we were in a pile of leaves, you were naked,” I said with a gasp. My legs curled around his waist to bring his lips closer to me.
“I seem to recall having a very inappropriate boner at the time. Not exactly the best thing to have when you’re being captured.” I laughed against him and he grabbed me tighter to keep me in place. “You’re not getting away this time.” Even in a pile of leaves, my body was molten lava underneath his fingers, especially when his hands reached inside my dress and he found one of my nipples. I moaned loudly and rubbed against him like a cat in heat. “I seem to recall you saying something about making you come?” he teased, tweaking my nipple at just the right moment, causing a stream of wet to escape me. “God, fuck, I can’t control myself when you smell like this.”
The Born Vampire series: A Reverse Harem Paranormal Romance (The Complete Series, NSFW Edition) Page 45
