Chapter Nine

Only In America


Kailani

We had crossed the borders of Mexico into America last night, we had been on the run now for a few days and it was pretty obvious that we had gotten away with running away because Eliza's family had no idea where we were and neither did my father.

I was so unbelievably happy that i was free, no more duty, no more rules, no more Maris.

I was free to do what I wanted; free to chose who I wanted to love- and to be fair I had already chosen who I wanted.

I felt slightly creepy considering she was only a year and a half old but I could now admit to myself that I was infact in love with Eliza. She was amazing, beautiful, charming, stubborn… what more could I have wanted in a mate?

The only problem was that now things were slightly awkward between us since I had kissed her, but I knew what she had being doing in Rio. She had clearly been teasing me, trying to provoke me like the other women were doing with their mates.

The way she had danced, moving her body to the beat of the music was the single most spectacular thing I had ever seen, her hair rippling around her body like a vail as she moved her hips inviting me in and then pushing me away… she knew what she was doing, she just hadn't expected me to kiss her.

"So…" Eliza said as night had fallen on the streets of San Antonio in Texas and now we needed to collect more supplies for the next few days journey.

I yawned slightly and then looked at Eliza, she could see that I was tired and needed to sleep.

"You need sleep, we have enough money to rent a room in one of the hotels, but I'll need to go rob a shop again or something." Eliza sighed, I could tell that she hated taking money from the shops, that's why she stuck to bigger chain stores when she took money because she knew they could afford it rather than small family run businesses that couldn't afford to give us money.

"Go to that hotel over there and book a room, I'll go and get us some clothes and what not." She said and then she sprinted off too fast for my eyes to see.

"Bye." I said to the empty air besides me, looking around nervously making sure nobody was around to hurt me.

In this world I was a human; defenseless, no sense of smell, no worthwhile sight, no worthwhile hearing, no worthwhile instincts what so ever.

I couldn't wait until the day I turned eighteen and Eliza was physically the same age as me because then if she was my mate, which I decided was pretty possible; I would want to be turned. Of course that meant giving up the maris throne and spending the rest of my life on land; but I had decided my fate when I had run away with Eliza- and I wouldn't have it any other way than what the current situation was.

I slung the backpack over my shoulder and then carried on forward to the hotel, the hotel looked pretty nice, expensive and classy. I was surprised we had enough money for the hotel but Eliza had been storing money just in case anyway.

"Bedroom for two please, sir." i said to the hotel manager, he looked confused as he looked at me, looking me up and down his face turned into a scowl.

"We do not allow teenagers to stop here, be on your way." He pointed to the door and I frowned at the man.

"I'm an adult." I insisted, I didn't exactly look fourteen at two meters tall.

"Of course you are sir, but you are also a teenager and we do not allow teenagers to stay in our hotel when you will not-" I cut the man off by taking the large wad of money out of my backpack.

"Not have enough? Please sir, I am from a wealthy family. Don't disrespect me. My sister will be here soon, her name is Eliza Cullen. I would like a room for two with separate beds." I handed his the large wad of money and said, "No change."

"Sir I…" The man trailed off and then straightened his back and turned around to grab a pair of keys off the back wall and handed them to a steward. "please escort this young man to the penthouse suite and when a Ms. Eliza Cullen comes escort her to the room too." The man dismissed us and I vaguely wondered how much money had been in that wad.

We walked in silence to the penthouse suit, when we got there it was an amazing room with two large king sized beds and two TVs, a hot tub on the balcony and I looked in the bathroom and there was a jacuzzi with a pressurised shower as well. This room was heaven.

"This is amazing…" I muttered to myself and then I placed the backpack on one of the beds and decided to order room service.

I ordered a Pizza, possibly my favourite human food to come to my room. As the pizza came and I ate it and a few hours passed I began to get worried that Eliza wasn't back yet.

After another two hours and at almost eleven o'clock she came up the elevator with two huge backpacks and a smile on her face.

"Why do you look so smug? Did you rob a bank or something?" I asked as a joke.

"How did you know?" Her eyes widened looking a little shocked.

"What? You really robbed a bank!" I blurted.

"Well, I snuck in and melted their metal door to the safe. I got a few thousand dollars, around fifty or so." She shrugged off a black backpack and unzipped it showing me many, many wads of notes in her bag.

"You're seriously crazy." I rolled my eyes, "How did you melt their metal door?"

"With my power." She raised her eyebrow at me and I suddenly knew what she meant, she had used her control over the element of fire to melt the iron doors.

It was strange because her power was fire and I was from the water, we were opposites. Her brother and sister were also 'elementals' having control over earth (Naomi) and Air (Cory.)

"That's cool." I grinned at her and then she pulled off the other backpack.

"I got us both a few new outfits because we're going to have to stick around here for a few more days until we get our fake ID. I kind of went to look for a guy who would make us some fake passports and stuff. I told them our ages and other information, not our real ages of course and we'll get the Passports, Birth Certificates and your driving liscence in three days." Eliza sounded so pleased with herself that I couldn't help but chuckle.

"You do realise I can't drive?" I prodded her rib and I saw her smile increase.

"Then learn." she teased and she grinned at me.

"I can't just 'learn.' I need a teacher for that." I rolled my eyes and then smiled at Eliza who was looking at me with a huge smile on her face.

"I can't believe that I keep getting away with taking money from places and now we're getting illegal ID. It makes me feel like a criminal but it's such a rush." She laughed a little and then stepped forward looking at the platter on the end of my bed. "Did you really get Pizza on a platter?" She smirked.

"Yes. How did you know?" I asked a little surprised that she knew what food laid under the lid of the platter.

"I can smell it." Her face screwed up sceptically, "Just because your senses and reflexes are useless doesn't mean mine are."

"Hey, it's not my fault you're a vampire. If we were in Salt water I'd kick your ass." I stuck my tongue out at her and she smirked again.

"No you wouldn't, I'd always beat you, just maybe not at swimming fast." Eliza walked over to her bed and then placed the backpack on it, pulling out a few pairs of clothes. "I'm going to get changed." She said and then she sped off into the bathroom with a paper bag in her arms.

I shook my head as she darted off, I hated being useless like this, a simple, weak human. It was a long stretch from being prince of the seas and first in line, immortal and powerful. I vaguely wondered now that I was a human would I still stop aging at 18 like the royal maris did.

The royal maris stopped aging if they were first in line to the throne and due to this the royals only usually had one child so that they didn't have to watch their children die so I was the only child my father had.

I suddenly realised that I had signed my own death warrant. It didn't matter where I was, or if I was in human form, I would always be the first in line to the throne. I would always be the only royal who could uptake the throne from my father no matter where I was or how many other children he had, as long as I was alive I was first in line.

Eliza walked out of the bathroom and she was dressed in simple satin pyjamas with her hair in a messy bun. I was sure I had never seen anything more beautiful in my life.

With all of the women I could have had and I wanted Eliza; figures.

I watched as she crawled into her bed and picked up the remote for her TV then she looked at me for a brief second and muttered, "Your pyjamas are in your backpack." She pointed to the money backpack she had given me, and I walked over to the pack and began to rummage past the money and I found some stretch cotton pyjamas, the pants were baggy but the top was tank-top style and would be pretty tight.

I went into the bathroom and changed into the pyjamas, surprisingly they fit me perfectly and as I had suspected the tanktop hugged my body. I smiled in the mirror, my reflecting smiled back and I realised I was pretty good looking for a mere human. I knew I was good looking for a Maris, I always had been. Another trait of been royal, but the been good looking as a human? Well, that was a bonus.

I walked out of the bathroom and I could feel Eliza's eyes scanning my back as I walked over to my bed and sat on the end of it. I didn't look at her, I just waited until I felt her gaze drift off me, but after a few seconds it didn't.

"Like what you see?" I turned around and asked her. She blushed furiously at the question but held my gaze with a hard certainty, not backing down in the slightest.

"I think the pyjamas are a little small, that's all." She said and then turned back to the film she was now watching. I didn't know what film it was so I stood up and walked over to her bed to see.

"What film is this?" I asked her. i hadn't seen many films, because I was from the sea and down there we didn't have modern conveniences such as TV. I guess it was just one of the wonders of the modern world.

"It's the old version of the Mummy. It's over a hundred years old, but I like the films. They're a lot better than the numerous remakes of the films even though some of the remakes look alot better and have better graphics, the actors in this have so much chemistry." Eliza explained as she watched a walking corpse suck the life out of a man.

"It looks… interesting." I felt my face screw up in disgust at the film, why would humans want to make a film about a walking corpse? Were they sick in the head or something?

"Watch it with me if you want." She said casually, but I could see in her eyes it had taken her a lot of confidence to ask me that.

"Sure." I shrugged and I rolled onto her bed, on top of the covers while she was under them and propped myself up on the pillows as she had.

"If you like this film I'll have to show you some of my other favourite timeless films like the lord of the rings or the old harry potter films." Eliza grinned and then turned back to the film, watching the walking corpse again as I cringed every time it showed the thing.

"Jeez, stop cringing. It's not real." Eliza rolled her eyes and then she raised her hand and shoved my arm playfully.

I caught her hand and held it in mine, i knew she could have quite easily pulled away if she wanted to, but she didn't. "It's just creepy. Why would you like a film about a walking corpse?"

"Because it's a love story as well. Two unlikely people brought together by fate." She sighed happily and carried on watching the screen.

"Like us?" I blurted and I felt her whole body tense for a few seconds and then relax. She held her breath for a little longer and then without taking her eyes off the screen she nodded once, a sharp, tight nod.

"Exept we don't have to fight Imhotep." She smirked looking at me and I felt confusion cross my features. Imhotep?

"What's Imhotep?"

"Who… he's the walking corpse." she motioned to the TV and then carried on watching the unusual movie.

Isabella Cullen

What had we done to drive my little girl away? Or maybe a better question was what had that idiot Poseidon done to drive his son and my little girl away?

"Right, Cory and Naomi, your father is wanting me to join him, Poseidon and Cain so you'll have to go pack. We'll leave at first light tomorrow." I told my children after talking to Edward about what would be best for our children, we needed to find Eliza but we had two other children to think about who needed looking after.

"Wait.. we're going to the mainland?" Cory looked a little shocked.

"Yes, we have to, we need to find Eliza and we can follow more leads with me looking as well. We have literally the whole Cullen family looking for her. But I can't stand back and wait for her to be found, I have to help find Eliza myself." I told my son, I could see the fear in his eyes. Unlike Eliza and even Naomi who had followed her sister to the mainland, he had never been anywhere exept this island. This island was all he knew, and I suddenly felt stupid for sheltering him so much from the outside world.

"Cory, there is one thing you must know about the mainland. It's a dangerous place, it's not like here. It's completely different, but we're going to need you to help us find your sister. Witchbloods can always find each other, Madison is already sensing her energy as if Eddie. It won't be long until she is found, but with you and Naomi also trying to sense her we could find her that bit quicker." I touched Cory's face and made him look up at me. "Can you help me find your sister?"

"Of course I'll help you find Eliza. She's my twin sister. I love her, mom. And weirdly I miss her too, though she annoys me a lot of the time." He looked down and looked incredibly sad.

"Sometimes it's the ones we love the most that also annoy us the most." I chuckled a little and then bent down to kiss the top of my son's head.

"We will find her won't we?" Cory asked me suddenly, tears streaking his face, "I mean… alive."

"Of course she'll be alive! Eliza is a fighter and with the number of witchbloods we have sensing her energy already I'm surprised she hadn't been found yet." I touched Cory's cheek reassuringly and then walked away so that he could ready himself for our journey.