Note: I am a very happy author, everyone. Seriously. You all got me one-hundred grand spankin' reviews and I could really not be more pleased! (except with a million dollars and a red hot mustang, but that's a different story). To reward you, I have written oneshots for vampires. Enjoy them. Hint: See profile for the stories under this one. Again, I wanted to thank every single one of my contributers. Seriously, without you, the story wouldn't be what it is. It would be a lesser version of the same idea, not as awesome. (Random claim: I own this plot and it's characters). Do you realize that five chapters ago, I only had about 42 reviews? 102 is so awesome compared to that! -swoons- Sexual favors for everyone.

Cheat sheet:

-regent (n) a person who exercises the ruling power in a kingdom during the minority, absence, or disability of the sovereign.

-constitutional monarchy (n) a form of national government in which the power of the monarch (the king or queen) is restrained by a parliament, by law, or by custom.

-coronation (n) the act or ceremony of crown a king, queen, or other sovereign.

-catalan (n) a Romance language closely related to Provençal, spoken in Catalonia, Valencia, the Balearic Islands, Andorra, southern France, and western Sardinia.

Definitions from dictionary(dot)com with help of wikipedia(dot)org.

Chapter 17 – Inevitable

Dreams tell us things we normally would not comprehend while conscience. Especially me, and the recent events that have changed my life into an inevitable direction, my dreams have showed me the threats and blessings to come and some that have passed. It was no coincidence that I dreamed of Courtney's face, and wolves, and Lucas, and the desires and the fears invoked in those sequences because they all ended up having some sort of significance with me later... and since it was no longer a coincidence, I would not ignore the scenario presented to me after Luke lay me to rest within these wonderful silk sheets I was in now.

At first, my tired body lingered after Luke's touch. I had felt weightless in his arms and he made me seem that way with his strength, and my favorite cold kiss was placed on the center of my forehead before his smooth skin was lost to my exhaustion. I then dreamed of pleasant things; events that had taken place, situations I remember enjoying myself in the most throughout my life. Memories like playing with one of my good friends as a child in the courtyard of our palace back in my country, graduating an American High School and the simple pleasures given to me by my peers during that time, then more recently, Lucy and Daniel and the merry days spent with them in clubs and cafes and our work office.

Then, all of it was ripped away. I felt so very...cold, and alone. I struggled to find some sort of light, or feel around for some sort of presence or object, but there was nothing. Finally I stumbled over something and fell to the ground within the dream. A light illuminated only where I was in the vast nothingness, and I was able to see the objects I'd tripped over, or more so, the bodies. I felt their warm blood on my hands when I pulled myself up and looked behind me. My sight caught my mother and Daniel, laying so lifelessly on the floor with their eyes wide open, staring up into the light. Blood soaked them both and now me.

I gasped and shook and turned to get away; I ended up falling again over myself and the darkness took me. For several moments I simply breathed, in and out, in this empty darkness. And then I heard a voice.

It was a calm, wonderful voice; the sound of a mother, the essence of how a female should sound. And I knew the demon of which it belonged. "Death will come with your reign, Allison. Running away and hiding like a scared little child as your mother did won't work anymore. Go back to your country and allow me to kill you as the Queen you've been bred to be, the Queen I want to savor in your blood, or more will die, my child." Her voice came from all around, echoed within me, filled me with dread...

Something warm had slid across my forehead. The feeling was very real, unlike the fantasy-like hypnotism my dream produced, and my eyes shot open.

Lucy's aqua eyes blinked as she loomed over me. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you." Her hand withdrew from its place on my forehead.

"No, I'm glad you did." I told her, and sighed.

"I was just checking on you. You can go back to sleep or whatever now..." She had left the room.

And that left me to swim in my dread, staring up at the ceiling of this foreign room. I'd been calling the sequence a dream, but it should be called what it was, a nightmare. A nightmare that had done it's job well by making me feel uneasy, unrest, and fearful. I stirred within the sheets and decided I wouldn't be able to go back to sleep even if a wanted to.

I stretched, and every sore muscle and bone was ripped and popped back into place from the stiff position I'd been resting in on that marvelous bed... Blue and black sheets, silk this time.

I eased myself up and drifted toward the closed curtains of the large window in the bedroom. The darkness of the early morning hours of the city was respected and my unease began to melt away. The stars were starting to weaken in the sky as the night came near its end... I looked back into the foliage and suddenly a strange feeling was pressed unto me... a horrible, dreadful rush came at me like a strong wind, though nothing seemed to be there.

I shivered and retreated back to the center of the room. I concentrated on other things... What time was it exactly? What room was I in? I traveled to the kitchen where I heard noise and found Lucy sipping peacefully at some coffee while reading the latest People magazine. A bag of groceries and its packaged contents were spread over the island of the kitchen, along with the latest newspaper. I could only assume Luke had done a little grocery shopping at Lucy's whim, and this thought amused me to a point I chuckled and Lucy looked up with a smile. "Morning."

I greeted the same as my eyes slid over the paper. On the bottom of the front page was a little article about the zero-success the city was having with finding or subduing the culprit of the wolf slaughterings that occurred in weeks before, and how the city was still shaken by those deaths although they had seemed to have stopped for now. There hadn't been any for awhile now... That was because the moon was passed its gibbous Luke was talking about that Courtney needed to transform. I felt a tiny relief in that, although that didn't mean that Courtney wasn't still a threat, and that the city would ever find out who was really behind those killings. I guess Taylor could rest easier for awhile now, not having to keep vampire's identities from the public when the beast killed and humans discovered the bodies before he clean them up. Especially since I was leaving tonight, he wouldn't have to worry about Courtney in his city anymore at all. "What time is it?" I asked halfway through a yawn. Lucy gleamed.

"Around four in the morning. Luke is out on some errands. He's very efficient if you need something done at nighttime. Good thing WalMart is open 24/7..."

I was amused again. Lucy called him "efficient." Her flawless tone suggested absolutely nothing had changed in her since she learned he was not human. This worried me. "...What sort of errands, Lucy? Please don't tell me you gave him a long list of ridiculous tasks." I asked. Honestly, I didn't like the idea of Luke leaving the two of us, rather helpless females compared to the creatures of the night, alone during the time of darkness. I still felt a little bit of unease from my nightmare and wished for him to return. I felt safe with him, and without him was just an awful feeling.

"No. He offered me his services, which I think now was an empty gesture, but I took him seriously and told him I was hungry and wanted some literature." She lifted the magazine. "And he had to make arrangements of his own for this trip. Flight tickets for one, I think he mentioned we needed to take a jet that would get us to our destination in a single night with enough time for him to find a place out of the sun. He needed to give the press one last interview saying how "he's retiring in his model career to move onto bigger and better things..." He also needed to contact services to have someone take care of this place in his absence...and both of our places, for the matter. He was going to discuss hotel issues with you, but I told him you really didn't care as long as it had a roof... And I didn't know if you had suitcases so I sent him to buy pretty much everything packing wise... If you want to leave tonight I'll be packing all day!"

I mused over her long list of things and went over a few items of my own I needed done if Luke hadn't already taken care of it. This reminded me of something I needed to ask Luke when he returned. "Did you even go to sleep at all?"

"Nope. I can be efficient too. I just didn't want to go to sleep here..."

There. Finally a hint of the hidden fear within her of Luke's true nature. She didn't want to give up consciousness in a vampire home, maybe. Or perhaps she was still in a torment over Daniel and could not sleep. "Oh, okay." I would have been more concerned if she could accept his vampiric nature as easily as that. Lucy hadn't grown up around the tales of vampires being real as I had. It was only right for her to be a little edgy, scared even. But Luke would never bring harm to her and she knew that, so she was at ease on the outside. Her smile told me that.

"No worries, I was playing dress-up for about an hour with all of the dresses and costumes upstairs in the wardrobes. They're gorgeous! But I think they were more your size... I don't really have the breasts you have so the front wasn't right..."

"Lucy." I stopped her with a small grin on my face. We were not talking about my breasts. "Censorship is a great quality you seem to lack." She laughed. Blueberry muffins caught my eye in the bag of food. I pulled them out and satisfied my growling hunger. A silence came over us as I ate and she read.

"Does it bother you that he feeds on humans?" she suddenly asked.

"Hm?" The question took a moment to sink in and when it did, I didn't have a sure answer. I'd never really thought about it in the way that it should trouble me. I mean, after Luke had told me death was necessary sometimes, I tied that thought in with "It's in the nature of the vampire to drink blood" and that little detail didn't trouble my subconscious any longer. Besides, Luke didn't go out and make a blood bath each time he was peckish, and there were really few ways to change his style of living, and he didn't hunt anyone I knew... Honestly, I didn't know how Luke obtained his food. There was the one time he forced the image on me to see him attack a man through his own eyes, but was that man honorable or did he deserve the fate he received? Did Luke go out and slay innocents in the darkness? Or maybe he stalked criminals, or perhaps he went took donors on most occasions like in that club he'd brought me too. I looked more puzzled as I thought. That's probably a subject I should bring up with him next time I have the chance. "Well, Lucy, I don't really know."

"That sounds like a personal problem."

"Quiet." I shot back and bit into my muffin again.

The restlessness in me did not subside the more Lucy and I chatted and I ate to fill my empty stomach. Restlessness on top of rapid thoughts, going over checklists, contact info I needed, items to bring and tasks expected of me once I arrived. Too much for one mind to handle at one time... I needed to clear my thoughts before I developed an ulcer. Meditation was the one way I knew to do this, and besides, it gave me something to do while I waited for Luke to return.

I opened both the front and the back doors and let a cross breeze soothe my face while the sounds of the night, of nature and city, was the perfect music for this exercise. I found the top of the couch a rather comfortable place to settled my bum and cross my legs over themselves. Within moments my breaths became slow and steady, and my mind and body felt lighter the more I erased my mental palate and relaxed my physical body while keeping the stance. I wasn't sure how long I was in this trance, but sometime closer to dawn I heard the distant noise of the oak wood that was the front door close and when I opened my eyes, Luke's own were staring back with a pleasant smile on his face.

"What have you been up to?" I asked softly.

"Errands, apparently. I simply went out to grab a bite to eat and do a couple things for you while you rested... I ended up in the grocery section of WalMart around two in the morning..." He seemed a bit thrown, suddenly pondering just how he got mixed into that situation. "But besides that, if you wanted to leave tonight, we all have seats in a private jet that can get us to Europe quick enough for me not to be boxed up because of that damn sunrise."

I nodded a subtle thank you. Luke had people, I could guess. "And the interview?"

"Should be on the cover of some magazine next week... I'll be long gone by then. After all of that, I bought enough luggage for all of us. We'll have to spend all day packing, probably..." More wondering thoughts.

"Don't you have a curfew, aka the sun?"

He smirked. "If you'd close the damn curtains like I had before you messed with everything, I'd be able to walk around my own home during the day out of the sunlight." Before I had a chance to ask or be astonished, he added "Yes, I don't have to sleep during the day. Sleeping is not necessary, but it helps dwindle the thirst. For my age I only have to take one a night, twice a week."

I blinked, thinking a moment on the conversation Lucy and I had just finished in the kitchen. "So, you kill humans, huh?"

"Yes." he replied rather seriously. He glanced up at my blank expression. I was not disgusted, but I was not pleased, either. What else could he do? I justified in my head. He was a vampire. He needed blood. End of story. Why did I bring it up if he were going to look at me like that; afraid that I were going to judge him over his own nature. The stony seriousness melted and the corners of his lips tilted upward again. "But I usually get the bad guys."

"Usually?" I repeated in a question, my face still slightly morbid. He paused and looked over my expression, trying to sense what I was feeling about this subject.

"Yes. The rest are people who want to die or ones the world wouldn't miss." Another deafening pause. "But you don't need to worry about this right now, Allison. Concentrate on your goals."

We gazed upon each other for a moment until my sapphire eyes drew down to something he switched into his opposite hand. I made a sound of surprise when I recognized what it was; my camera. I was a photographer, after all, and besides the giant-really-nice-and-expensive-cameras the office used to supply me with for work, I had my own bulky one with a sharp lens and great digital qualities. "My camera..."

"I picked it up from your desk you never cleaned out when I was finished with the interview..." I smiled awkwardly. The boss was probably pissed about that, too. "I have the bag as well." he added, bringing up his other arm. Inside the black bag was the camera stand, and a little case full of memory cards with pictures on them. Pictures of scenery, people, events... most of them were after I'd met Daniel and Lucy, and that meant... well, I had half a dozen two-gigabyte cards with a little bit of Danny's history on them. I knew right away who deserved those... but was my angel ready to have them? In a desperate reach of sorrow, I took the bag and the camera, looked through the memory cards, and chose a navy one to put into the camera and review the pictures. I could only look at one, Daniel, Lucy and I sitting in a booth at Hard Rock Cafe, enjoying the beer and burgers. I remembered that night.

A sad smile came to my lips and Luke kissed the top of my head to comfort me. A moment after I removed the disk and put an empty one into the camera's slot, Lucy entered the room and wondered if she had interrupted something. "Sorry..." she said and turned heel, her blonde hair swirling over her shoulders like a fancy dress skirt did when a skilled dancer spun around.

"No, no... I actually have something for you."

I jumped down from the couch and met her when she spun back around, confused as I held the camera out to her. "My photography days are over...and I now entrust this tool unto you." I said kindly. She tilted her head and looked from Luke to I, then at the camera.

"What makes you think I want your camera?"

"Oh come on, you love stealing it to take pictures. And you've been wanting to "capture me on film" forever now... Here's your chance."

I said something right, because she grinned and took the device from me. "Here's the bag with all of the memories cards and the stand... Empty ones don't have initials on them in case you run out of room on that one..." I tried to explain, leaving the detail about "I have Danny on film" out. When she found them and saw them, she'd be ready to handle them without spiraling into depression. I had faith Lucy would cherish them, not become depressed. It wasn't in her nature; she only got better, never worser. But for now, she shooed me back over to Luke and held the camera in her hands.

"Oh... turn on some lights and then it'll be perfect in here. And, feel free to be as uncensored as you want with these." She winked at the two of us and I flushed mentally. I didn't even want to glance toward Luke to see his smirk.

I was grabbed from behind around the waist and I heard a deep, sultry chuckle come from Luke as he faced us toward the camera and it flashed before I was ready. "Oh, wait. Will he show up in these?" she asked, pointing to the camera.

"I will," he began. "But it'd be great if I didn't, because when I do this..." he promptly picked me up bridal style and I clung around his neck from sheer surprise. "It'd look as if she were floating."

The camera flashed again before I was ready.

Lucy giggled at my seemingly priceless expression. "Good job, Luke... Her face is great." She pointed a thumbs up and him and he laughed into my ear.

"Is this, pick-on-Allison-because-she's-making-us-all-move day?" I complained softly, pouting nicely in Luke's arms. He threw me over his shoulder and drew a thumbs up and the camera flashed again. I practically growled when they laughed.

"It is now." Lucy told me.

All of this continued until Lucy caught each one of my colorful emotions: surprise, annoyance, then finally laughter and happiness when Luke caught me in a better mood. I was mostly happy because Lucy was so happy; that signature sparkle was so bright in her eyes... She proved every theory right about her going to be okay as time went on. I knew on the inside she would mourn Daniel, that's good, I wanted her to do that; she needed to do that. She requested it was her turn to pose with me and held out the camera for Luke to handle. He took it and seemed confused on how to get back to the picture-taking screen from the review-screen.

"Four centuries and he can't even work a camera..." I whispered teasingly to Lucy. She giggled and he shot a glare at the both of us but figured it out quickly.

"That's more years than the both of you can account for. Now shut up and get ready." He said and held the camera steady. More pictures ensued.

After awhile, I could see the first rays of dawn out of a window who's curtains were not closed, and I signaled it to Luke.

"Ah, yes." he started, motioning to that window. "Be useful and close all of my curtains that I know you both opened, ladies." He playfully hissed at the two of us. Sunlight was no joke with a vampire, but I laughed more than Lucy did and we began to do what he requested together. When I wandered over to the front of the living room and Lucy went upstairs, Luke's arms slid around my waist and he stole me away from the task at hand to drag me to the study. Always the study, I thought. We might as well make it our room, for god's sake. Before I could question what his motives were, he spoke.

"There's something you must see inside the box you asked me to retrieve for you a few days ago."

What on earth did he mean, I needed to see something inside? It was my box, I knew what all was in it... Apparently he'd been snooping in my personal belongings and that angered me a tiny bit. Privacy of others didn't seem like a perceivable concept for him sometimes, for the man who could penetrate any mind and its depths. The anger passed quickly and was forgotten as my curiosity grabbed the better of me and Luke closed the door behind us. I watched intently as he traveled over to the desk, opposite of the wonderful tapestry of my family seal on the wall, where I'd written my name a few days before.

The box I'd asked him to retrieve was resting neatly on top of the wood. It simply sat there, inanimate if not anything else, yet it said something to me. Search me. Reveal everything within. Luke's hand gracefully picked the box up and removed the lid, and he presented the container to me as a waiter would serve food. "You have not fully explored everything within, Allison."

My eyes shot up from the belongings I'd reviewed inside weeks ago. Little trinkets, nothing fancy except for the locket and the diary of my mother. "How do you know what I have and haven't looked at? Stop reading my mind!" I was angry again as he told me what I had and hadn't done. To hell with that, no one was in a position to order me to look at my own possessions.

"I haven't read your mind to know that one, love. I know you haven't read all of the written pages in your mother's diary because if you had read her last entry, you wouldn't be leaving America tonight. You would have left years ago." He cocked a brow and held a serious look to his charming face. He was smiling but at the same time pressed his lips tightly together to embed his meaning into his words. His eyes did not fall from mine as I was speechless, looking over him and then the box. The diary resting so peacefully on top called to me now. Reveal my secrets...

A cautious hand reached out to pick up the leathery maroon material with our family crest charred into the cover. My fingers grasped the red binding gingerly, touches soft in fear I would ruin the stitching if I were too rough with it. Hesitantly I undid the binding on the side and paused before lifting the cover. I only looked within the pages of this personal diary when my heart needed an emotional release, some sort of sense of security over my mother's death. Even then I had never read passed the first entry of which we had come to America. I did not want to read my mothers words in response to her method of avoiding the curse that, in the end, had caught her in its clutches like the rest of my family. I did not need an emotional release right now, and yet, he wanted me to completely invade my mother's personal insight...

"You also might want to sit down."

I shot a glare to Luke. Do not interrupt my moment, I said clearly through the blade in my gaze. His smile grew and he lowered his chin a tiny bit to obey, but he took pride in knowing he was right since I moved over toward a large chair near the desk and bent to sit down. What I rested in ended up being Luke's lap, courtesy of his lightening quick vampire movements, able to trick me into something like that. I shifted to get up again and scold about him doing something sneaky like that, but the strength of a vampire held me into place as well. I was, to much dismay, defeated. I made a feeble noise as I settled more comfortably into him, my back against his chest, my legs resting over his, my shoulder a pillow to his chin. I secretly loved it, but he would never hear it from me.

My attention returned to the book after Luke's arm slid tenderly around my waist and he stilled, waiting for me to look over the diary. I glanced over my shoulder at his face, stern and wonderful, before lifting the cover and soaking in the memories and depression of my mother's life. "Even though I love David with all of my heart... wish that I had not married him so that my daughter would not have to suffer as I suffer. She reminds me of him more everyday... My heart's supports are weakening with each passing day... I am trying hard for my family but a woman not bred for this position can only do so much. I sometimes question why my husband appointed me regent instead of somebody else of more noble decent." I skimmed through these pages, since they were rather familiar to me, I thought. "I am trying hard to hold out until Allison is 21 and can inherit the throne, but a decade is too long for my fingers to stretch out without falling into the bleak ending my late husband has come to grasp... A quiet escape to America..."

Now came the first entry after we'd left our homeland. I recalled when this entry was written, on the plane as we came to New York and saw the Statue of Liberty and all her glory just as the immigrants from other countries did when they came to America for the first time. I recalled the amazed little girl I was, soaking in America for the first time, thinking of all of this as an extended vacation rather than an alternate life to the one back home. Luke's cold hand rubbed my side, signaling for me to go on. I hesitantly turned the page and held the book gingerly as I read. "I appointed Luis Salvador as the regent to take care of our fine country until the day my daughter, Lockett heir to the throne, will become of age and is able to sit in the seat of the land she was born to. David is in her blood, after all, and I see with every day that she is just as ambitious and talented as he was. Until that day comes, however, Allison is enthralled to be here in America. I'll just have to see how long that lasts and she wishes for home."

The next few entries went on to describe how she was able to totally recreate herself in this country; taking up simple hobbies like gardening, reading, being a part of PTA until I was "too old" and went onto high school. She described watching her one and only little girl grow up and how even though I was in a foreign country, I showed all the signs of a ruler and had traits a ruler should have. When the dates came closer to my twenty-first birthday, she began to write about getting back into contact with Luis, the man she left our country with, and asked his opinion on subjects of my return.

A couple of the letters he sent in reply to my mother, written in Catalan, were tucked safety inside the pages in between entires. I removed one and skimmed over it. "The parliament might have some issues with the crowning of a queen who has been absent for so long, but Allison will have my complete faith and support in her goals; and besides, the people will be won over by any daughter of yours, Mary." I smiled a little bit at this. Luis was always the charmer. "I've expressed the idea of Allison's return to my son, Nicolas, and he was tempted to go to America himself and bring your daughter home. He lacks a passport, however, but he is probably the most anxious for her return. Old friendships are never lost, I suppose..." Nicki, my oldest friend, was anxious for my return? I thought hard about him in my memories and tried to picture his face clearly. A cute, baby-faced twelve year old. How much had he matured and how would he react to how much I've grown? Luke's eyes met my own and I smiled at him before going back to my mother's diary.

"Allison's fateful twenty-first birthday draws nearer. I'm going to present her with a gift that I know will truly make her happy... I can see in her eyes and soul that she is homesick although the thrill of the American life has freed her from the jurisdictions of that at the royal palace. She belongs in the throne my husband left her and I can tell she is capable of accepting the responsibilities that come with it. It would be a crime to deny her that position when she is of age to inherit the throne. ... Next week, when she makes the trip out of the city, I am going to present her with the proposal. I have prepared everything with Luis. His response was a very gracious one, saying how if Allison so decided to wait for any reason, he would extend the offer until then.

I hope that she will be just as excited as I am, and I will support whatever decision she makes as long as it makes her happy and fulfills her life in every way. But I know that my daughter wants to return home, and that day will surely come." And these were the last words documented by my mother in her personal diary. She was killed shortly before my birthday, shortly after this entry.

But I suddenly felt a sense of peace different than the realization I'd experienced the morning before.

"Oh... my." I didn't finish the phrase. My nose wrinkled with the burning, my chest heaved and my eyes welled with the overbearing emotion that would result in crying, but tears did not fall. I waited, for several moments in his arms for those tears, they were still immobile. A small humor came to my throat with the thought that I'd cried all I could the night of the funeral, and was now "empty" so to speak.

I knew then and there I made the right decision to return home. Not only because Courtney wanted me to, my mother had wanted me to, but I wanted to. I'd been homesick for far too long... It was the least I could do for my people, and for my mother's dying wish. "Thank you." I whispered to Luke as I turned to him. I probably never would have ever read that final entry, never felt this overwhelming peace that washed away all of my doubts... I bent Luke's chin my direction and he kissed me deeply for several moments.

He broke off suddenly and muttered something I didn't understand. "Say again?" I asked breathlessly with the slight tilting of my head.

"El vull." (I want you.)

"Excuse me?" My head tilted further.

"És tan atractiu quan vol saber alguna cosa." (You're cute when you want to know something.)

I paused and soaked in the foreign words and realized quickly, the language he spoke was not so foreign. He was speaking my native tongue, the language of my country! I had been fluent once but a decade in an English-speaking country took a toll at the memory. I was no longer as fluent as I should have been in my native tongue. How embarrassing for me!

I sputtered out the words with the accent meant for the vowels of the language. "Bon matí de dia... sen-senyor?" (Awkward greeting: Good morning day, s-sir.)

"Terrible." He said with a laugh. "I will not speak English with you again until you become fluent enough in your native tongue again."

I crossed my arms in a complete protest, but he only pressed a book against me that he seemingly pulled out of nowhere. The title was 'Catalan for Dummies.'

"Deixi'ns preparar-nos pel viatge." (Let us prepare for the trip.) He said and stood, causing me to stumble into a standing position as well, since I resting on his lap, and produce a chuckle from him.

I had to admit, I needed to brush up on my own country's language and that factor had slipped my mind. But he couldn't make this easy, could he?

The remainder of the day, I was going back and forth between Luke's mansion, where Luke was up all day, packing important items in the safety of the darkness of his home; and Lucy's where I mostly was packing clothes and fuzzy girly items of variety.

When I was at Luke's, I was ripping my hair out over his inability to speak English to me. Even worse, when I got the hang of understanding most of what he was saying without glancing at the book, because my first language was resurfacing quickly from the depths of my mind, he wouldn't respond to me unless I spoke in Catalan. I wanted to gouge the man's beautiful blue eyes out a couple times during that day!

The afternoon grew later. Lucy was finishing up by herself at her apartment and I was aiding Luke with the packing of books and clothes and items I wanted from his home into various trunks. All of my frustrations had already reached their peak so I was relatively calm... I struggled to ask Luke what time we were leaving.

"Quina hora ens n'anem?" (Awkward: What time we go?)

"Around nine. The jet needs us before we can leave." He replied in flawless Catalan. It made me a little jealous. "Halling arranged the private jet for us, so we have quick and safe travel."

It took me a moment to decode all he said, but I heard 'Halling' in there immediately. "Taylor? I thought you didn't trust him!" I'd forgotten my language and was angry in English. "Why would you go to him and tell him where we're going? If he knows, everyone in their coven will know and it'll leak to Courtney for sure." I wanted to keep as quiet as possible about this "move" with certain people. Certain people meaning Taylor.

"I trust him, I just don't like him." he finally said in English. This subject was too urgent for trying to argue in another language. "Taylor is intelligent, and his only motive for his actions from now on will be to destroy Courtney. He's not stupid enough to post a bulletin about where we are going, and he's been hunting Courtney for more than enough decades. If sending you to to Aldorra, an small isolated mountainous country, means luring Courtney away from this huge city into a smaller place we can apprehend her for sure this time, he will allow that with no strings attached. But to make sure we don't go off on our own and ruin his scheme for luring Courtney right where he wants her, he's coming with us." The last part was a mutter but I heard him very clearly.

"WHAT." I spat with flame in my voice. That little detail was the last thing I wanted, for sure! Only a few hours away from leaving and now he decides to tell me? "I didn't want Taylor to know at all, now he's coming with us?!"

"I spoke with him about everything, and in the event should I not be able to protect you and little blondie, he'll be there."

"Lucy! And how can you trust him if he wanted to use me as bait just an entire week ago? How do you know he won't dangle me on a rope for Courtney to claw at and something happens to me in the process of her capture?"

He stopped, before rage got the better of him. Luke opened his mouth, shut it again, and looked at the floor to try and center his thoughts. I waited, anticipating, and right when I made a movement, he looked up and walked nearer to me. "He won't try anything that will bring harm to you, Allison. He understands what I will do to him if he does, therefore he will not." His tone was steady, even; he sounded as if he was forcing himself to be that way. "If for some reason I cannot protect you, he will. I can't stand to lose you, Allison."

I was momentarily speechless. Heartbreak was in his voice and swam in his eyes, more so than the last time I'd seen him like this.

However; as sweet as Luke sounded, how he spoke of Taylor did not sound like Taylor at all. Halling protect me at my whim? There had to be a catch. "Why would Taylor suddenly start doing as we want?"

"Because in the end, he will get what he wants, Courtney's head on a silver platter. She is lethal, uncontrollable... It will take both of us if you want your friend safe, too. Taylor understands this and he is willing to aid my requests, if in return, he has our complete cooperation in whatever plan he comes up with once Courtney is where he wants her. Taylor knows he needs us for any of his plans to work, the both of us. Or else he'll just keep failing in her capture as he always has... so he'll do as we say, if we do as he says when the time comes."

"This is crazy. If you think I'm going to sit in the same area as that fiend for more than ten minutes..."

"Good evening Mr. Halling." I greeted formally as I shook his cold hand.

The night was merely an infant when we borrowed a vehicle that would carry all of our trunks and luggage, and the three of us met Taylor Halling on a large landing area outside of town where a small jet waited to take us to the "Old World." Luke was very effective in his methods of persuading me to act civilized around Taylor prior to arriving here. He explained if he could tolerate him, I could too. And in turn, I stressed to Lucy about how I did not want her to ever be alone with Taylor under any circumstance. I still could not trust the man completely, after what had happened...

He greeted us in the same politeness and formality, dressed in the nice suit and still used a ridiculous amount of gel to hold that wavy black hair neatly into place. "Lucas, Allison, and..." he paused when his black eyes dripped over to Lucy. "I'm sorry, I don't believe we've met..." he began, stretching his hand out for her to shake.

I stepped in between him and her and shot a warning glare toward the dark haired swine. "And you never will." I replied cheekily, still somehow politely. I set a hand on Lucy's shoulder and motioned for her to walk toward the jet and away from him.

Taylor smirked as he saw how overly protective I was of my friend. "And here I thought we were going to be the best of friends, Allison. I guess I hoped for too much of you." As he spoke in his own cheeky, pleasant tone, it was Luke's turn to step in between the two of us before I attempted a new theory of how to kill a vampire.

"Let's all enjoy each other's company for the next few hours." Luke eased me by rubbing my shoulder. "You've made arrangements for us before sunrise tomorrow, I presume..." he began to speak with Taylor over remaining details, and I followed after Lucy to board the jet.

First class-looking on the inside. Taylor always had to have the finest, didn't he? On the other hand, Luke did too. Look at who he settled on for a woman; nothing less of a queen. Lucy was very excited and when opening the cooler to seek out the alcoholic beverages, she found white wine and blood-red wine, or blood in a bottle. Taylor's favorite. "Stick with the white bottle, Luce." I suggested to her and what I implied about the red wine she understood with a sly grin.

"So if vampires have booze of their own, you think the boys will be up for a drinking game?"

I didn't answer her and simply rolled my eyes and took a seat. The plane was compensated with heavenly chairs, fantastic for drifting away into sleep.

And I did just that.