Even in Death
Page 19
Wynter smiled and climbed down to greet her, and she marvelled at how well the Priestess looked. She’d given birth in secret just days before and yet looked radiant. It was the first time Wynter had seen her since their return home, and the first time she had laid eyes on the twins, and so she glided down to greet her, grinning from ear to ear. The two newest additions to their household were fast asleep in their mother’s arms and Wynter ran her hand over each of their heads. The tiny witches had bright red hair like their mother, already growing in abundance, and seemed utterly at ease with the world.
“What are their names?” she asked, and Marcella smiled.
“Well, you know the tradition,” she reminded her, and Wynter nodded. Each witch in their powerful line had Marcus’s name in theirs, and the two new arrivals would be no exception. “Marlee and Marceline.”
“Beautiful,” she replied with a warm and genuine smile, and then frowned. “You’re going to help me keep everyone here safe?” Wynter added, thinking back to the reason Marcella had apparently come to find her in the first place.
“Of course. It’s what family does…”
“Where do we start?” she asked.
“By giving him an army,” the Priestess answered cryptically, and Wynter went to answer that Marcus already had one. He had entire hordes of soldier vampires that she had taken command of for him. And that was when Marcella’s eyes dropped to the three babies they were holding between them. She didn’t need to say another word.
“No,” Wynter whispered.
“Yes,” Marcella countered, turning serious. “I’ve seen them all grown up. These girls of ours will be loyal to their master and beyond powerful. They will become the first in his legion, his army of unique and formidable progeny, and he will never be thwarted again. He will reign supreme with you at his side and his family at his back. It will be beautiful, my love.”
“And the alternative?” Wynter tried, but Marcella shook her head.
“There isn’t one. You know my visions are true, but can be brutally so, and there is no future for our children other than in his keep, and his command. They can never leave him, just like you cannot. Like Rosa, my children now bear his name and were born to serve his cause. There is no other way. You need to know this now, and remember it every time you decide to defy him. Because it’s not a decision you make solely for yourself, but for them too,” she warned, and an icy shudder went down Wynter’s spine. She knew all too well what that meant, and how she could not let it happen. They couldn’t lose another child, not after Mara’s sacrifice, and she couldn’t let another soul die because of her selfishness.
It would hurt her to follow him without question, but at the same time, Wynter knew it was already too late for second-guessing the decisions she had made and the influence she’d exerted over the others. She had returned to Marcus willingly and had brought with her a trio of new additions to her husband’s pack of unsuspecting comrades. She was already doing what he wanted, already stopping with her own defiance because she was scared of the repercussions for those same people. He had already won her over.
And now, she would have to keep it that way, because the alternative didn’t even bear thinking about.
***
Marcus watched as Wynter walked back into the house, and then he intercepted Marcella before she could do the same.
“Did you do it?” he asked, and his Priestess nodded.
“Yes, my lord,” she replied with a soft smile, “I gave her what you asked. She will not defy you again.”
“Good,” he answered, and then stroked her twins’ foreheads with his fingertips. “How did you do it?”
“I lied,” she replied with a frown, “I told her there was only one vision for both her own future, and the future of the next generations being born into this family of yours. She’d do anything to save the life of her new adopted child, and I think she feels the same about these two,” Marcella added, and looked down at her babies and smiled.
Marcus knew then and there that he’d been right. Wynter was coming around. She was finally bending to his will, and when she did, she was going to realise just how much they were capable of together. Marcella had indeed seen a vision of their future, but of course it wasn’t just about the children they were bringing into their world, but also about the two figureheads who were to run his empire—him and Wynter. They were going to conquer the world, and there would be no one who could stop them.
It was going to be magnificent.
The end of book four in the Blood Slave series…
About the Author
Eden Wildblood is setting out on a journey to tell these dark stories to the world. She devours horror movies and books, and listens to heavy metal, and yet always wonders why people are still surprised when she reveals her dark side.
But now, she’s using that part of herself to bring that darkness to life. To share her soul with the world…
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