Hi everyone! We are nearing the end of the story. This chapter will continue with Alcina and Mother Miranda working on experimentations. In addition, Alcina will uncover her special ingredient for her wine, and the plot to hunt down Roderick will begin… Thanks as always for reading!

Mother Miranda arrived the next day just as she promised and with two more keys to the castle. The plan was to show Alcina each room the keys belonged to. As they got started, Mother Miranda explained how the castle had belonged to many of Alcina's ancestors. Many of the portraits were of those distant relatives; the antiques and other artifacts belonging to many of those individuals.

They then made their way upstairs where once again Alcina went straight for the Wine Room.

Mother Miranda stopped and saw what had captured Alcina's eye.

'Wine,' she thought. 'I wonder if that jogged any memories from her past. Not that it would. I made sure to erase everything to be kind…' She cleared her throat. "I see you found the Wine Room intriguing, which makes perfect sense."

"I wanted to inquire about it to you," Alcina said. "I was—" she stopped, realizing she was about to tell Mother she had snuck about last night.

Mother Miranda smiled.

"Snooping about, is that it?"

Alcina's face flushed with embarrassment.

"It is perfectly all right, Daughter. As I was saying, the Dimitrescu family has always had vineyards. Selling wine all over the globe. Perhaps you can continue the family business."

Onward they went. Alcina soaking in everything like a sponge. Even when they reached the dungeons where nasty torturing devices were kept, Alcina's attraction to the castle grew stronger.

"This will be a superb location to continue my experimentation, and I will need your help with that."

"More experiments, Mother Miranda?" Alcina said.

"Yes, I must continue my search for the right vessel," she said, speaking more to herself than Alcina. "For her…"

Alcina at first felt saddened to hear this, which then switched to anger. Was she not good enough? Was Mother simply lavishing her with all these gifts as a consolation prize? A means to split away and leave her to fend for herself?

For a split second, Alcina had the urge to slice her apart. To punish her for tossing her aside.

"I had truly hoped," Mother Miranda continued. "You would be the perfect vessel. You came so very, very close." She then took Alcina's hand and kissed the top of it. "Despite that you succeeded in many other ways. You are strong. Beautiful. Intelligent. Just like my Eva was."

Alcina's jaw dropped. Caught completely off guard by Miranda's words.

"You who is chosen by the gift of immortality. The gift does not chose just anyone. It picks those who are beyond human nature. Who have ascended to the next evolutionary stage. You, Daughter! Who has the divine blood now flowing through her veins. The very same blood that runs through mine."

Divine.

And that was exactly what she was. What they were…, but even gods and goddesses have their flaws. Emotions. Curses. Needs. Wants.

Alcina's memories may have been blocked out by Mother Miranda, but in time all things hidden eventually come to light.

And that would be Alcina's curse. Memories.

{…}

The months went by quickly for Alcina. She and Mother Miranda working tirelessly on their experimentations, the fruits of their labors proved all to end in failure. After a short while, Mother Miranda spent less and less time at the castle, which left Alcina to focus on her other interests: Wine.

But much like the experiments, the wine was proving to be just as difficult. There was something missing. A certain 'pop' if you will to give it that edge.

"Ouch!"

Alcina stopped her pacing and glared over at one of the maids. A youngster she had hired on only a few weeks ago, and she was proving to be quite the disappointment, well, until now.

Alcina watched as the blood dripped from the cut on her palm, splattering on her wooden floor. She trailed her pointer finger along her lips, gently biting down on the tip of it in thought.

'Blood, perhaps? But not just any blood. Oh, no, no. What about virgins' blood?' A spark lit up her eyes. "You," Alcina said.

The maid fearfully approached Alcina, staring down at the floor as what was expected of her.

"Let me see."

The maiden offered out her hand, gasping at the feel of Alcina's tongue swiping at the blood.

"Hm." Alcina swirled the sample around, her pupils dilated as she swallowed the delicacy. "That is divine. Yes. Perfection!"

"Lady Dimitrescu…," the maiden shuddered in horror, never having seen anything like it before.

"Hush, child, there is no need to be frightened, in fact, you should be overjoyed."

"What do you mean?"

Alcina laughed.

"I have uncovered the final ingredient for my wine." Alcina then hoisted the maiden off her feet in order to look her straight in the eye. "/You/ will make the best vintage yet!"

The maiden opened her mouth to scream, but Alcina cut her off. Literally.

Once she unlocked the key to making her wine a success, her business took flight growing and expanding. Alcina had been fully prepared for this and was relishing in the fast flow of currency. She put much of her earnings towards herself and the castle. Lavishing herself in all the grandest fashion money could buy, but as time wore on, she was starting to feel empty inside.

Something was missing in her life.

She tried to ignore the feeling. Burying herself in both the business and her experiments, but still the emptiness lingered…

Cursing at her weakness, Alcina stormed out of her room and walked down to the dungeon. Many of her victims lay dead or half dead in the cells. Though there were a few who had turned into creatures. They hissed and banged at the cell doors, gangling arms reaching out and trying to grab at her.

Alcina growled at them, making them cower away. She was in no mood. She wanted to cause pain, and she picked out a young girl around the age of fourteen. She was huddled in the far corner of her cell, hugging another girl who could have been no older than nine.

Alcina reached in and snatched at the girl's leg, but she had spirit left in her frail body and kicked at her. The impact did not hurt, in fact, Alcina barely felt it. Yet, it only enraged her further. Claws extended, Alcina went in for the kill.

"Leave my sister alone!" the younger one then spoke up.

"Hush, Jamie."

Alcina stopped her attack. Frozen in mid poise. The girl… her eyes…

'Mother.'

Alcina looked around, continuing to hear a little girl giggling.

"Who is that?"

"Shut up!" Josie snarled, cocking the hammer back. "I will not allow you to hurt my mother anymore! Never again!"

"Josie!" Alcina said. "Lower the gun and give it to me."

"I-I cannot," Josie said, her chin quivering. "He deserves this, does he not?"

"Josie." Alcina took a step forward. "I will see to it he is punished for everything he has done, but not this way. Not by you. Come to me, and give me the gun."

She groaned upon what felt like a knife digging through her skull and carving into her brain. What is this? She stumbled back and hit her head off part of the cold wall behind her. Were these her memories?

The room was spinning. A wave of nausea overcoming her. She vomited. More memories surfacing. Gunshot. Blood.

Her head was pounding. Pain-stricken tears blocking her sight. She had no idea how she managed to walk out of the dungeon, nor how she got to her bedchamber where she collapsed on the bed.

When next she awoke, she felt fingers stroking her forehead.

"Mother Miranda," she said weakly. Her throat bone dry.

"Shh, drink."

Alcina did as she was told. The warm blood giving her much needed energy, she slowly sat up in the bed and winced. Still feeling the same pain from earlier.

"Quite the spell you had, Daughter."

"I saw—"

"Memories. Memories of your past."

"My past?"

"Yes, I find it truly remarkable they have surfaced and so soon…"

"Did you.. did you hide them from me?" Alcina whispered.

"Indeed, because of how painful they were. I wanted to give you a new life. Free from the burden of the woman you had been."

"Josie…" Alcina said, trying to remember. "Who was Josie?"

Mother Miranda pulled her hand away, sighing.

"Do you truly wish to know? To remember everything? The pain of those memories. You must think carefully."

Alcina pondered that for a moment. Could that be the reason she felt like she had a hole in her heart? The fact she felt like something was missing? The final piece to the puzzle?

"Yes, Mother Miranda," she finally assented.

"As you wish. Hold very still."

Using one claw, Mother Miranda touched the center of Alcina's forehead and slowly stabbed into her flesh. The sensation felt like she was being poked by a needle; however, the pain started to grow. She dug her fingers into the blankets, trying to curb the discomfort.

"Breathe in," Mother Miranda directed, slowly turning her finger to the left.

'Whoosh!'

The sound of rushing water met her ears followed next by a 'creaking' sound.

Something had opened.

The crack.

Yes, the fissure that had opened in her mind. Mother Miranda had filled it, but as she continued to turn her finger, the crack had opened again and bleeding through came the memories.

Memories of joy, pleasure, sorrow and rage…

She sniffled, biting the inside of her cheek to keep the tears at bay.

"My Josie… Helena… Fredric."

The tears streamed down her cheeks.

Mother Miranda slowly stood up.

"I told you it would be painful, but opening old wounds that haven't healed properly is sometimes the only way to mend them fully."

"I know," Alcina said, wiping the tears off her face. "Which is why I must finish it. I promised to avenge Josie and I swear I will. And once I have killed Roderick, I can move on and bury the woman I had been for good. Alcina Stanislav will be laid to rest with her family."

{…}

Alcina knew finding Roderick would be a great feat. She had no clues as to where to even begin except perhaps his last known residence.

"Rednic!"

"Yes, my lady," he said, bowing his head.

"I have written here an address for you to find. Gather all the information you can about the previous owner…"

"Of course, Lady Dimitrescu," he purred.

The address she had given him was to Roderick's manor. She highly doubted he was still residing there, but perhaps if there were new owners they would hold valuable information.

Alcina drew from her cigarette, staring out her chamber window in thought. The air was growing colder indicating snow was due to arrive soon.

"Josie loved the snow," Alcina said, remembering how she would be outside for hours. Creating snowmen, women and children. She'd even attempt to create animals.

'Quite the sculptor,' Fredric had commented.

"Yes, yes she was…" Alcina turned away from the window, looking down at the papers scattered on her desk. So much work to do and no Helena to help her. No Josie barging in to give her a much needed break from her toil.

She exhaled the smoke through her nose.

He took it all away.

And now it is my turn…