I looked over at her sharply. "Wait, what?"
"I found my father after your grans death, or he found me. He had been waiting for her to be departed as he knew her obsession with him would ruin any chance we had of a relationship. Then in turn, he introduced me to his Father. His mother had died during child birth, a pretty gruesome tale apparently but they can explain it all to you. From what I gather your great grandfather is a very very old vampire who is very well respected, if not somewhat of a recluse."
I was sure I resembled a fish as my mouth opened and closed repeatedly at the overload of information I was receiving. I was going to meet my mothers biological father and his vampire father. Holy crap this sounded like a bad episode of Dr Phil. "And where are they?" I asked not knowing what else to say.
"They came with me sweetheart, they know of Aro and his interest in you. Your great grandfather isn't happy with him, oh wait until you meet him Bella. You'll love him. They're at the hotel now." Her hand found mine again, pressing Alice's letter into it. "Keep that safe dear, he'll want to see it."
"I'm really struggling to take this all in Mom, but i'm trying. What are their names?" She looked over at me with a sympathetic gaze.
"Of course you are sweetie, this is why I never knew how to tell you. Finding out myself was difficult enough, I had no idea how I would tell you. Your grandfather is called Vincent and your great grandfather's name is Archos. They can't wait to meet you."
"Archos?" I repeated. "That's an unusual name."
"Ancient greek apparently. That's how old he is sweetheart." Disbelief colored her tone and I was glad I wasn't the only one having a hard time digesting this and she'd had a lot longer than me to deal with it.
"Holy shit." I said as I watched the trees fly past us, I felt, rather than saw her nod in agreement.
The sun was still high in the sky as the car hurtled down the highway but that wasn't a comfort now I knew just how far Aro was willing to go to get me back to him. He most definitely knew I was gone by now, he had to. I cringed as I imagined the fury in his eyes as he looked at Dora when she told him she had lost me. I just hoped he hadn't hurt her. He had to know about my ancestry, I wasn't convinced my mother had managed to hide it from him, Aro saw everything and used it to his advantage.
I only came back to myself when the car brakes squeaked and the vehicle came to a stop. Whilst in my daze we had clearly arrived at the hotel. It was a large building, unremarkable from the outside but at least seemed to be a step up from your average motel. I followed my Mom as we entered, the woman at the main desk didn't even look up from her magazine as we began climbing the stairs.
We finally came to a stop outside of a dark wooden door with the number 439 embossed in black lettering upon its surface, the smell of wood polish and artificial lemon hung in the air. Mom turned the key in the door and ushered me inside. It seemed to be more of a suite than a room, there was a lounge space seemingly connected to one large bedroom containing 2 single beds. Of course, Archos didn't sleep.
There was a long leather sofa situated by the tall windows and upon it sat a man, though his profile was largely obscured by the paper he held in his pale hands.
"Renée you've returned!" The deep male voice came from behind me and I realized I had completely bypassed the bathroom, which was where the tall, tanned man with brown hair and blue eyes came from. I watched as this man who looked so familiar and yet was a stranger to me, embraced my mother. His hair was swept back from his forehead, longer than Carlisle's had been but not as long as Aro's, he looked so… young.
"Vincent, i'd like for you to meet my daughter and your granddaughter, Isabella." My mother held out a proud hand to gesture to me, her face lit up with pride. The man, Vincent, turned to me and I saw the same pair of blue eyes observing me. It was funny now, seeing them stood together how similar they really were.
"It is an honor to make your acquaintance little one." He held out his tanned hand and after only a moments hesitation, I took it. The warmth shocked me just as much as his skin tone had. He was so clearly alive and appeared more human than vampire and yet there was something about him, something about the way he moved perhaps or his unnatural beauty, there was clearly vampire in him. "Father." He spoke over my shoulder, exchanging a look with the man who had been sat reading the paper.
Vincent hadn't released my hand and now instead took it in both of his, his kind blue eyes swept over my features and he smiled in recognition. "I know this must all be a terrible shock for you, but allow me to introduce to you my father, Archos."
No sound had been made behind me, not even the paper had crinkled and given him away as he'd placed it down, but somehow I knew he was behind me, I could feel the power crackle around the very air in which he stood. "You know very well it is pronounced Arkos, I fear they enjoy irritating me by butchering it with their american tongue."
He had rolled the r in his name with an indecipherable accent and when I turned to face him my mouth hung open, for it was almost like being confronted with my mirror image, except male and much taller. His hair was thick and dark brown and it laid in perfect waves over his head, my eyes mapped over the widows peak that matched my own and down his forehead to the black eyes that I somehow knew in his past life were the same shade of chocolate as my own. I also recognized the shape of his nose and mouth and as if he too recognized his own features in me, he raised his hand to my chin and moved my face from side to side to examine it.
"My my, you truly do resemble me. I didn't quite believe it when your mother had spoke of such a likeness." His voice was an octave higher than Vincent's but still low, smoother where his sons was roughened and calm where his offsprings was brash. His words vaguely penetrated through the thick haze that had seemed to envelope my mind at his touch. "Nor does my power work on her. Very interesting."
I immediately took a step back at that and a dark chuckle left the man stood before me as he leveled me with an assessing gaze. "Smart child."
He turned on his heel and flicked a wrist at the chair sat opposing the couch he had previously occupied and I realized he was dressed like Frank Sinatra used to, in fact he looked like he'd just stepped out of a black and white movie. "Sit, we don't have much time before Aro arrives and you must know everything."
I did as I was told immediately and he quirked a brow at me in surprise. "Hm, so she can be somewhat compelled by me, that or she is in shock. Renée, sit with her."
My mother did as she was bid almost immediately and some part of my fogged over brain realized that he was the reason for that.
"My name is Archos." He began, pronouncing his name correctly and with emphasis on the 'K' sound. "I was born in ancient Greece to my vampire mother and father." He turned and faced me, folding his arms over his chest. "Yes, you heard correctly, how did you think the vampyre race began? That a dead human rose up from the ground one day and began turning people?" His eyes scanned my face carefully and he tutted when he saw the expression there, one of total and complete confusion. To be honest I hadn't ever really thought about where the first vampires had come from, I was having enough trouble dealing with the ones I had in the current time.
"Vampyres are as old as humans, if not older. I am descended from the very first as are you. In the beginning we didn't need to feed on humans often, our hearts still pounded within our chests, we could bear children like us, we were stronger, faster, more than humans could ever be. A superior race. Then our bloodline was polluted." He spat out the word and his eyes flashed with anger. "Our kind was being murdered by the human filth and we could not procreate fast enough to continue the line without inbreeding and so my father ordered me to find a human, to create a half vampire half human hybrid. So that our bloodline and gifts may live on, no matter how diluted it may be."
"Other pure blooded vampires decided to take the easier route, they discovered that by merely biting and injecting their venom into humans they could create more like us, but they were foolish. These weren't pure blooded vampyres, they were mere reflections of what they could be, humans that had died and become like us but were weak. They couldn't stand in the sunlight like we could, couldn't procreate to further the true bloodline, couldn't even pass for human upon close inspection as they were as cold as death and their hearts had frozen within them." His eyes flashed as he met my gaze, the power radiated from him and I realized then that his eyes were in fact a deep brown, but looked black in the shadows.
"I was the only one to do as I was bid, Vincent was created to be with a pure vampyre woman but since they are all dead and the bloodline had to continue, chose a human woman instead. And so here you are, finally one born from our line who seems to be more vampyre than human. That is why Aro wants you. Along with your gifts and beauty, your lineage means that none would dare challenge his rule were you on his arm. You are true royalty and the key to our being lies locked within your blood."
"But Aro doesn't know!" My mom piped up her hand shaking under mine again. I squeezed it tightly, trying to channel some of the unnatural calm I had going through me to her. Archos' gaze cut right to my mother and silenced her immediately, I narrowed my eyes at him as he spoke over her.
"Yes, he does. Every vampire now in existence knows the story of the true race, the pure blooded ones and whilst many believe them to be completely extinct Aro knows of my existence. He feared for a long time that I would try to take over his rule, but I have never been one for such theatrics. My gift is mostly tactile, as his is. Which is why he has never been able to use his own gift upon me, he is too afraid."
I tilted my head slightly and observed Archos. I couldn't imagine Aro being afraid of anyone and yet… I could see why any would fear this man of stone who stood before me. He seemed so ethereal and unnaturally beautiful and yet I would never have questioned that he was human, even though he was pale his skin had been warm to the touch and I knew that if I got close enough I would hear the heart beating within his chest. "What is your gift?" I asked, intrigued.
"Influence. Mostly tactile but occasionally it leaks out beyond my touch. It depends on how close I am to someone. I can reach inside a persons mind and make them do anything I wish, say anything… You understand, yes? And why Aro would be so afraid of such a gift?" I only nodded, imagining how much Aro must crave such a gift within his ranks. "I am intrigued about your own powers though Isabel. Tell me."
I didn't correct him about my name, somehow I knew that I shouldn't. He clearly knew what my name was and instead chose to call me this. I didn't question it, I didn't want to.
"I don't know that I have any powers. All I know is vampire powers don't seem to work on me." I rolled my shoulders in a shrug but he dismissed my words with a wave of his hand.
"Of course you have them, they're just waiting to be unlocked. I had hoped Renée would be the child born of vampyre but it was fairly obvious very early on that she held more human in her. Then you came along and we kept our distance. I knew that Aro had gotten to you first but that he wouldn't dare tell you or hurt you, he needed to get you to Volterra and hope I didn't reach you before he managed it." Suddenly Archos closed his eyes and a smug smile quirked the corner of his mouth. "Speak of the devil and he doth appear." He mumbled and almost immediately a knock sounded from the door to the suit echoing loudly around us.
AN: Another update for you! I'm going to try and have this finished over the Christmas period for you, my lovely readers. Please do keep the reviews coming as your insight and comments keep my muse flowing and it has been so long absent I wouldn't want it scared away again for another 6 months!