Note: Yeah, I know. I'm getting lame about updates again. AP classes are hard, man! Give me a break! And I know the last chapter sucked, I just wanted to get it up for you guys but I suppose next time I'll delay for a few more days to edit properly. (It's been edited now).
Anyway...I'm a geek and I totally made a website dedicated to my writing... on it includes a page dedicated to this novel thing I have going here... and that page has pretty pictures of all of the characters portrayed by steamy hot models. (Yes, exactly what you wanted for breakfast, I know).
Find the link to this website as my homepage on my bio.
For the love of entities everywhere: Joaquin is not pronounced (Joe-ah-kwin). It is (Ha-keen) or (Wa-keen). J's are silent, i's are the ee sound, and qu is a k sound! Spanish, people! If you happen to be one of the people wondering 'wtf is Catalan?' More than likely, it's a mix of Spanish and French, both branching off from Latin. Imagine a more Spanish sounding accent when they speak in English.
Chapter 19 – Return
Nicolas presented me to the public as a champion. What he didn't account for was the amount of people who would recognize and want a piece of me right away. Whether it was to tell me how much of a blessing they saw my return as, or the rapid fire of questions toward why I chose now to return, or where I'd been or what I had been doing with all of the absence-
I heard all of these at once from the varied voices of my people as a large portion of the crowd came forward; and it was too much. The crowd grew fast, too fast; the bodies began to block the street as they gathered and cars in a hurry were honking furiously, people from higher places looking down were shouting at others on the ground and pointing my direction. Nicolas, who still had a firm grip on my hand, drug me up to the top of the granite stairs that went into the bank Lucy was in. He realized he needed crowd control after he started the stir, of course. Typical.
"Do not come upon that bottom stair!" He shouted at the front of the line, "Her majesty will take questions one at a time." His voice was loud, commanding; I wondered momentarily if he was training with the military force here. The people easily heard and obeyed him and the front of the crowd gathered with unrest on the bottom step. "You! In the street; move on the sidewalk and let the vehicles pass!" He pointed out over the people who gathered in the road; his hand left mine and he came in front of me, handling the growing crowd fairly nicely. Silence came over them as Nicolas commanded for that too. Ah, I remembered now; Nicolas wanted to train for the Royal Guard when we were kids so we could always be around each other, because royal duties on my part would traditionally separate us. I smiled when realizing he stuck with our "old plan," even after all of this time.
Suddenly Lucy came by my side. She asked what was happening with bewilderment on her face toward the amount of people who seemed to be looking right at her. Nicolas looked over his shoulder at her as she touched my arm; instantly he acted as a guardsman was supposed too.
"Step back, madam. Be on your way or move to the bottom step." he informed curtly in Catalan.
Lucy didn't move; she was highly confused and didn't have a clue to what was going on. "What did he say?" she asked me.
Before I had a chance to answer, Nicolas continued. "Please comply." He grabbed the blonde's arm that touched me and tried to move her to the bottom step.
Uh-oh. Not how I intended the two friends to meet. "Nicki, stop, she's with m-" I tried to say.
"Get your hands off of me, creep!" Lucy's face turned red with fury and resistance as he handled her.
The front of the crowd gasped as Lucy's clenched fist found Nicolas' nose.
"Take that."
The auburn head stumbled back with shock more than pain; his hand came up to hold his nose and he glanced with wide dark-brown eyes up to Lucy. He looked about ready to tackle and fight her- if she hadn't been a woman.
"SILENCI." I spat now. My body came between the two of them and triangle to the rest of the crowd. The mumbles from the witnesses came to a stop again and I felt a small tremor within me. The wonder and awe of returning home and not wanting to be the main of attention was passing; it was time I got a little more serious. "I thank you all for your interest and support of my return. I vow, very soon, that all questions will be made clear. For right now, please make way for Nicolas, my friend and I to travel toward the royal home." My voice was calm, even; and surprisingly my Catalan was flawless compared to earlier. I bowed my head toward all of them for a gesture of graciousness, in hopes they all would have the same trait toward myself.
I hadn't excepted them to comply; but a dividing point came between the crowd. I looked to Nicolas and Lucy and made a motion for them to follow me. The blonde and the auburn looked upon each other in slight rivalry before their steps echoed after mine, from stairs to street. The people gathered began to follow as I walked the familiar direction up the streets to the palace.
Lucy was right on my side. She was obviously uncomfortable with the large crowd right on her heels and the fact no one was speaking anything she could understand. I felt for her and gave her a warm smile.
"I punched him in the face!" She exclaimed; glancing over to Nicolas. "How do you say 'I'm sorry?' because I had no idea he was someone you knew..."
"It's fine. He understands." I eased her. Nicolas came to my other side.
"Your majesty..." he began. I stopped him.
"Nick. I'm not the queen yet. Please call me Allison."
He grinned, but seemed flustered. "I came to the city with another by horse, but I have only two. Your friend here won't have a ride." He glanced back at Lucy with shifty eyes. He was still subconscious about his nose; blood on the fine light color of his shirt would not be good. Thankfully Lucy didn't break him, but that was not what I wanted their first impression of the other to be. Lucy probably thinks Nick is a molesting creep and Nick thinks Lucy is some hardcore gossa.
"Man up, Nicki; I'm supposed to be the only woman who could beat you up." He tried to glare down at me. "Anyway, she can ride with you; my friend does not know how to handle the horses." He wanted to argue but he didn't. His steps outstretched mine and he began to lead us to a separate part of the plaza where these horses of his were kept. At least I knew my family's animals were being put to good use... Once I saw the two animals, a big black mare and a more docile chestnut, I brought Lucy and Nicolas together for a proper introduction.
"Nicolas, this is Lucy. She's responsible for my safety since I've been away and should be treated as a royal guest. She only speaks English." I told him in Catalan. "Lucy, this is Nicolas, my oldest friend."
The two of them, begrudgingly I think, shook hands. Lucy did not realize it, but Nick did not kiss her on the hand as he was supposed too for a more inviting introduction from a man toward a woman. I scolded him with my eyes. He seemed to ignore me and began to untie the animals from their post.
"Wait. I have to ride on a horse?" Lucy questioned. "I've never ridden one before!"
"There's always a first for everything." She gasped as Nick spoke to her in understandable English for the first time. I could only grin as she squealed when his strong arms lifted her around the waist unto the chestnut and he followed up in front of her. "Hold on tight or you'll slip off and fall on your head. Because we wouldn't want that." he teased.
"Bite me." she snapped at him and hugged his back tight, in fear of falling on the cobblestone below.
I laughed at the two of them as he looked at me oddly and didn't understand that the phrase 'bite me' in English was not to be taken literal.
"Still remember how to ride?" he teased me now as I turned to the big black animal. Hadn't this horse only been a little foal last time I was here? I shot a look at Nicolas before stroking the animal's nose and hoisting myself up on the saddle.
"Lead the way, Al."
Oh, he knew I hated that. Damn guy loved to tease the people he knew he could get away with it. I imagined Nicolas was the quite the entertainer... He could probably be a killer ladies man if his humor wasn't so swollen. I glanced at Nick and Lucy on the chestnut mare; she screamed and held unto him for dear life as he made the horse rear up on two legs. The crowd made room for us to pass again as he did this.
Lucy whimpered when the horse settled again and I knew that had been his little 'personal' revenge for her assault on him earlier. I simply rolled my eyes; but gasped as I realized what I'd done. Who was the only other person I rolled my eyes at when he played a prank; a man I also called my friend, a man I missed dearly because he was no longer with us?
I shook this thought from my mind as quickly as I realized it.
I would have plenty of time later to dwell on how Nicolas and everything else had changed, or not changed, over the decade. I pulled on the reigns of the black male shifting uncomfortably below me; the animal was probably just nervous about the tons of people still following us. Quickly I made a check list in my mind of proper tasks to perform in public when riding; I couldn't remember much and simply waved and smiled at them all as my steed started at a slow trot. Suddenly the journey to the palace became a parade.
I don't know how the memo spread to quickly; maybe Nicki called the palace and announced me when I wasn't looking or something, but when we arrived at the front gates of the the royal property, my home, everyone who worked and lived inside seemed to have been waiting for me.
Naturally, just because I hadn't been here didn't mean the royal home had been empty. No, there were staff and servants and such people who lived in the home or took vacancy for a certain amount of months a year. There were chefs, gardeners, maids, other servants, secretaries, some chairmen of the legislature, the regent and his family; hell, anything from the gate-keeper to the hairdresser and dress designer. (Yes the royal family had their own special person who designed clothing especially for them). Not all of them lived here, but spent a fair enough chunk of their lives here, they might as well have; and there was plenty of room in the inside, really.
I recognized so many faces as I passed them on the horse, which was now just following Nicki's horse back to the stables. Faces that hadn't seemed to change, others that had withered with age but still held features I recalled; some were new altogether... I had just as many questions for them as they did for me.
Once my horse followed the other all of the way to the left side of the grounds where the stables were built, Nicki escorted Lucy and I to the entrance of my palace. All of the people that had been outside before were gone. I still didn't know if my friend had planned this or not, but he seemed to have a certain smirk on his smooth face as he led the way to the main entrance of my home. Around the beautiful, lush grounds, up the pinkish marble steps, to the heavy wooden doors plated in iron and gold with two doormen there for the task of only opening the heavy doors that were the main entrance of the royal palace.
"Welcome home." He told me in English. The never-changing doormen of the front simply bowed before opening the heavy doors. I felt my heart flutter when the warmth of the interior washed over the three of us and we faced the giant crowd of staff members I'd seen from my horse earlier.
Many, if not all, voices declared something joyous as they recognized me immediately. Nicolas had to make a motion to them just so the people who knew me from childhood wouldn't mob me in pure excitement. He gave me a small push and I walked forward into this giant mass of bodies...
Betty, the most trusted maid and family friend; her face had aged but the loving glow of a mother was still there. Her husband, Pierre, one of the ground keepers, still had the harsh, old face of the Frenchmen he was and I respected. Their daughter Katrina I recognized, although she'd barely been out of diapers when I'd last seen her, because of her likeness to her mother; also a maid now, I noticed by the outfit. Tony came at me next, almost crying while reciting lines from his favorite Italian play; he was the dresser of the royal family and knew fashion better than anyone, maybe even Lucy. He absolutely adored the Lockett family beauty and viewed me as a canvas, and he the artist who saw it his duty to dress me and make as beautiful as possible. And there were so many others... Joaquin, still the head chef from my childhood, several other maids and butlers who had remained loyal to their duties after all of these years...
I found myself in tears, embracing and kissing each and every one of their cheeks. The people who were new or I did not recognize I made effort to introduce and try to remember the name to the face and occupation... Then I integrated Lucy into this giant reunion and introduced her as "The Number One Royal Guest" and she was taken care of immediately by the maids. As for conversation, I didn't need to explain myself right in this instant; but I promised them all I would in due time when the question came at me like rapid fire. For now, I was just overjoyed to be home, truly home, in the midst of everyone I knew and remembered and felt fondly for.
When the buzz of this collection had finally settled and the mass had dispersed, Nicolas still remained in the entrance of the enormous grand lobby. I was finally able to look around at my surroundings; drapes and carpets were different designs or colors, objects and furniture was rearranged and added, but overall it felt exactly the same as I remembered it. I was glowing with grins and tears and Nicki came to my side and directed my attention to the grand staircase the descended right into the middle of the front lobby. My eyes followed his and I quickly recognized the man standing in the median of the staircase; the man who had been taking care of my country for me until my return, the father of Nicolas, the friend of the family...
Luis Salvador. He resembled Nicolas in the auburn hair and dark eyes, but his tanned face was older, more tarnished with lines of wisdom or experience, whichever sounded better. The darker gray suit looked very classy, everything the king, or make-shift king, should look like.
"Allison Lockett. You're every bit as beautiful as your mother promised you'd be." he greeted benevolently with a smooth tone. Nicki got that from his father too; the ability to smooth talk anybody and everybody. That was a Salvador signature.
Regent Salvador stepped down from the steps and walked toward me with open arms. An informal hug first, because he'd been like a father to me after my father had passed away when I was young. His embrace was secure, fond; like I remembered and wished it would be. "I'm so happy to be home." I whispered faintly to him with my head buried in his shoulder.
"It's good to have you home." he replied enjoyably. His embrace loosened and I stepped back next to Nicki. "You have missed much. My son and I will fill you in with the days to come- that is, if you are planning to take your place on the throne." His kindness paused for a moment as he waited for my reply. That's what I liked about Luis; he didn't try to force one to make a decision, but when he got to business, his entire smooth side could harden until he got the answer he knew was the truth.
"Yes, sir." I replied formally, completely seriously. "Absolutely. You've been covering for me long enough; I want you to retire sometime!" I added humorously. His laughter was a bellow; loud and genuine. He placed a strong hand on my shoulder.
"Just what I wanted to hear. If that's the case, then we have plenty of time for details later. You already know you'll need to attend some sort of public conference for clarification of your absence, and you'll have to meet with the legislature and the new Prime Minister..."
"For Al to meet and catch up with everyone she'll need to know in the future, we could hold a formal event here, at the palace; put the half a dozen ballrooms to use." Nicolas suggested brightly.
"Good idea, son." his father piped. "Still on a nickname basis... I knew true friendship never died." Luis seemed to almost jump with a sudden spurt of joy. "Yes yes, a ball or party of some sort..." I looked too bewildered to say or do anything to these requests. Luis noticed. "But as I mentioned before, we will worry about details later. For right now, I wouldn't doubt if you just want to explore the castle, Allison. You should see what they've done to the queen's chambers; your chambers, now..." His voice trailed and left me open for nothing but raw excitement. My face lit up.
"Yes, I would love that! Today had been a bit... overwhelming, already. Could I do that until dinner?" I asked him permission as if I didn't have it already. He laughed at that.
"Understandable. And yes, do as you please. I imagine the cooks are going to prepare a feast for you. Dinner is six o'clock sharp; be formal." He tapped his wrist watch curtly. "And your petite friend that the maids escorted away... they assumed you would be staying in the queen's quarters so they've given her to a room near there and might be trying to dress her in an outfit for dinner right about now..."
"Oh dear... Lucy might not like that..." I muttered quietly and began to wander toward the stairs.
Luis looked at his son and jerked his head toward me. "Be a gentleman. Make sure she doesn't get lost." I wasn't offended because I knew he was kidding and simply meant for Nicolas and I to spend time together. Nicolas complied without much authority in his father's voice and followed me. Which took effort; I was practically sprinting when I reached the stairs.
I wanted to search inside each room, admire each tapestry and painting on the walls, look outside of each window at the familiar view, run through the mazes in the garden on the grounds and admire the spring time scenery... Of course, after I saved Lucy from the French maids who wanted to turn her into a Barbie doll. She and Nicolas kept up with me on my adventure of discovering the home of my childhood all over again. The entire estate was too huge to cover in just a few hours! By the time dinner came around, I had worked up a huge appetite.
Good thing, because Joaquin the chief had put the entire kitchen into the feast they presented the house at dinner. The maids insisted everyone dress nicely and formally, including myself, and once everyone was gathered I invited every member of the staff and help to sit at the table- you know, the extremely long ones, so long you can hardly see the person on the other end if you were sitting at the head as I was. Nicolas to my right, Lucy to his, then Luis across from me, way down the way. I felt it only right to give a small speech and lead the prayer; about how happy I was to be home, how blessed I felt to receive such kindness from the household, and how thankful I was to God for presenting this table with this amazing feast.
"A toast," Nicki announced once everyone had muttered 'Amen' and lifted their bowed heads. He cleared his throat and stood, wine glass raised. "To the return of our beautiful, true queen; and hopes of a bright, prosperous future for Aldorra." He spoke in English for Lucy's sake, and his native, Catalan accent clung to each of his words. I shivered a little bit under his dark, genuine gaze that never left me as the rest of the table rose with their own glasses.
"To Her Royal Majesty the Queen." They all said in intervals. I noticed Luis way down the way; he raised a brow while holding out his glass to me. I picked up mine and pretended to chime them together, then lifted the delicious liquid to my lips and everyone seemed to mirror. Nicolas, the lush, downed all of his like a damn shot glass. The trace amount of alcohol in the wine seemed to give him the courage to finally say what he'd been wanting to say since he lay eyes upon me.
"You are gorgeous, Al."
I fully grinned and ordered him to sit down. He obeyed without a second thought, then silently cursed under his breath. "You're going to be my royal guard, I presume?" I asked him. He had been trained to follow the command of royal blood, and trained well. The rest of the table had taken up conversation of their own.
"Yes; That is my official occupation, although I've had nobody to guard until now." he replied with his own easy-going smile. "The people had begun to lose hope of your return, or if you were even alive after the death of the queen," he spoke of this carefully because he didn't know if it was a touchy subject for me. I simply nodded and he continued. "So, I've also been tutored in the ways of the monarch, in the event that my father retired or chose to pass the crown to the new ruling family heir, which by your mothers orders, would be me and the family I would create with a bride after I was crowned."
"Guess I ruined that 'King Nicolas' dream, huh?" I teased. He laughed and gazed at his plate.
"Has a nice ring, doesn't it?" He touched his food with the golden fork. "But, in all seriousness, I would give up my position if you'd come any later. Your blood is the true blood for the throne."
My blood was true for many things, and wanted by more than just my country. I thought of Courtney, of Luke.
A moment later another person sitting near me had drawn me out of my thoughts with the question I'd heard over a million times that day: "Would you tell us where you've been prior to your return, Lady Allison?" The question came from a shy, unfamiliar-looking maid. She was probably pressured into asking me from the others around her who wanted to know the same thing.
I glanced at Nicki, who had the same curiosity for the question in his eyes. Then at Lucy, who held all of the answers with me. She nodded her delicate heard toward me, telling me silently that they deserved to know. Now, when everyone was gathered, was a good of a time as ever.
I rose again, almost awkwardly, and lightly tapped my fork against the wine glass to request attention. I kept my head high, even though I felt like melting when all of the eyes centered on me.
"A lot of you..." I began in English, then switched to the native language in an attempt to impress them. "All of you have been wondering where I've been for the passed two years." I began. Yeah, this was harder than it looked. I formed my words very carefully. "Luis might have informed you about the plans that were organized for my return when I became of age for the throne, some two years ago..." I looked to him, he nodded his head in encouragement. "But when my mother was murdered on American soil shortly after, these plans stopped. The answer to the question "Where have I been?" is America. More specifically, about the reasons why, is because I have been searching for the killer of my mother. Yes, that is the job of the authority there, but they gave no effort in their job to putting the culprit to justice, and I took matters into my own hands." I paused. Many mumbles had stirred from the people further away.
"I have found out a great deal while investigating this cause. You all know the legend about the curse over my family, and how very much a reality the deaths of Lockett males are. I found a connection between the killer of my mother and the relevance of the curse; there is a killer out there responsible for my mother's death as well as my family. Unfortunately, I am not in a position yet to discuss the details or tell you how that is possible, you may think what you will, but I tell you all this because I put my trust in you as you put loyalty into me. I tell you this because I wish you warn you should this killer ever show their face within the borders of this land. I do not wish to trick you or scare you; my only interest will be your and all of my people's safety." I cleared my throat again as a resolute silence had washed over the table. "I ask you not to repeat this subject to anyone outside of the castle until I present it to the public myself. Thank you." I finished, sitting again.
Within moments, a quieter conversation returned to the table. I tuned out all gossip and focused on enjoying my meal. Lucy rubbed my arm and smiled at me; the sparkle of her eyes made the knot in my stomach evenly go away.
Thankfully, within the hour, the troubling atmosphere I had cast over the table had mostly dispersed and a more pleasant, informative subject of conversation came my direction. Hours bled away into sunset and then nighttime, but time had no real sense when one was enjoying themselves. Once it had actually begun to grow late, one by one the table slowly retreated. Either to retire, or return to duties and attend to business. Mostly everyone had left, but Nicolas, Luis and Lucy remained with me on my end of the table. Lucy was barely holding her head up at this point, because of all the wine. I could tell Nicolas was nearly at a buzz by the volume of his voice; I had taken the sober road with Luis and we laughed at the both of them.
"I think, before Nicolas does anything else to embarrass himself, we will retire. You probably want your rest, don't you Allison?" Luis offered. I nodded my head thankfully, because I was tired, and moved out of the way as a staff member came around and took my plate. I thanked him and then stood to properly bid Nicki and his father goodnight.
"Ready for bed, Luce?" I asked her when I turned around. Her head had found the tablecloth and I knew the answer to my question. With some effort, I manage to draw her up and we made our way to the room I had rescued her from earlier on the second story.
The royal family had their very own section of the castle, located in the east wing on the second story. Lucy's room was grand, in her opinion. Tall ceilings, beautiful artwork on the walls, a balcony, then a big screen TV complete with it's own living room that was separate from the bedroom with a huge wardrobe and the bathroom big enough to have a small party in. Simply put, one 'bedroom' was bigger and better than the tiny, trashy apartment that I had in New York.
"The boys were here already I see." I voiced this to address the fact all of Lucy's items and cases from the plane had made their way to the room. She noticed too, but was too enthralled with the room and had made her way over to the balcony, eager to see how high up she was. She leaned against the railing outside the French doors on the balcony and looked down at first, but when she looked up, her entire figure froze.
Alarmed, I came to her side and looked up as well. I was then equally stunned by the spectacular and beautiful design of the night sky, full of a million visible dancing, playing stars winking at the two of us. There was only a tiny moon, which made the scene even brighter.
"You don't get a view like this in New York." I told her. I placed my hand on her shoulder.
"It's beautiful." she replied in a soft voice. "I'd forgotten how many stars there were up there."
"Yeah. Pretty nice for a little country on the other side of the world, hm?" I withdrew and leaned against the door.
Lucy turned around and smiled at me, and it was the most beautiful and melancholic smiles I'd seen formed on her face. She was so sad, and so young, and sweet and innocent. In her oceanic eyes, I saw revelation and mourning, bewilderment and confusion. She didn't deserve the fate that had come upon her; her first love to be taken from her the way he had, to be reminded of why he was taken every time she looked at me or I was mentioned. How much torment had she been put through at dinner tonight, I wonder?
Soon, my angel on earth. I will avenge Daniel for us soon. Lucy had told me herself back in America, "I will leave the hatred for someone who can do something about this murderess, and they can channel their rage into her destruction." That person was me, along with Luke and Taylor. I had been harboring hatred for a long time now, and it wasn't the greatest feeling to keep within one self. Unless I wanted to end up like Courtney in Luke's story, the woman who was twisted into a beast from hatred and vengeance, I had to channel this hatred and not let it consume me.
"I'm going to head to my room now. I'm down the hall, take a right." I made a quick motion with my arm. "My personal quarters and family library is all that's in that corridor."
"Gotcha."
"Sleep well. If you get lonely you can sneak down to my room and we'll have a sleepover... kinda." I told her with vague reassurance.
"Won't Luke be... occupying the sleepover position?"
My cheeks flushed. I wasn't going to answer but we both already knew. "Just knock and I'll kick him out for you. "Bros over hoes," or...something like that applying to women."
The blonde laughed and nodded. She hugged me tight before I was allowed to leave.
"If you need anything, anything at all, call me or grab a maid. Don't be shy."
"Pssh. You know I'm not." she replied. I grinned and finally exited. Call me lingering... I just wanted to make sure she was completely accommodated and there was no confusion for such a new setting for her. But all was well, I suppose.
I traveled down the hall to my own room and was eager to fall asleep in my bed. My true bed with a pillow that was meant for me! Not many people were excited about going to sleep in their own sheets, I suddenly was.
What a day... I wanted to sleep.
I opened the heavy, dungeon-style iron plated wooden door to the room and shouldn't have been as surprised as I was to see Taylor and Luke both within, both carrying my trunks into the room through the open door to the balcony. They were efficient moving men, and I wasn't going to complain. When Luke finally turned and took notice of me, he seemed ecstatic to see me and I welcomed him into my arms. His cool frame lifted my figure and a quick kiss was placed on my neck. "How do you like being home?" he asked, a little too excitedly.
"I love it." I replied. He seemed very pleased. His touch left me as Taylor made his way for the balcony again.
"We have one more trunk left. I'll be quick." he told me and followed Taylor into the darkness of the night.
"No rush." I whispered and made my way to the private part of my room, if you could even call something so huge that, so I could change out of the long emerald green dress the maids insisted I wear for dinner. The area that was classified as 'my room' was more like an entire house in itself. There was a sitting area full of chairs in the first part of the room, a larger balcony, entertainment room equipped with all of the modern technology like TV and stereo system and DVD player, a huge bathroom with a marble design, then a bedroom complete with a closet so big, full of clothing, Lucy wouldn't mind living in. Don't forget the fancy four poster bed with antique design and dark purple sheets.
I traveled over to the giant walk-in closet and found the nightgown section, yes, a section for only nightwear, and pulled out a simple black gown made of a very smooth material I would enjoy against my skin.
Once I was changed and walking around barefoot, I returned to the front area where the two males were now quarreling over something trivial, from the little I heard, it was placement of the trunks at Luke's feet. Luke seemed fed up and turned to me to ask me my opinion, but when he saw what I wore he paused for a moment to admire before continuing.
"We brought everything up from the plane, but Halling insists that your private library would be a better place for my items, vampire relics included," he made a motion to the trunks nearest to him, "because it's a more private location for vampire items not to be discovered by anyone we would rather not have to silence."
I glanced up and Taylor. His face didn't change; he simply glanced at me, pleasantly emotionless. And, unfortunately for Luke, Taylor's mindset was more acceptable for this little disagreement. "The private library is only cleaned once every two weeks, and only the maids enter there. No one else but the family is allowed and, well, I'm the only family left... In this bed chamber, maids come twice a week to change sheets, and then once again to clean, so... Taylor is right." My voice trailed. Luke seemed to pout, about not being right, and he lifted the trunk over his shoulder and disappeared. Sometimes he acted like a small child when he didn't get his way.
I glanced at Taylor once Luke was gone. "Did you do something to him?" I asked Taylor. Luke wasn't acting strangely, just differently than normal.
Taylor shook his head. "He wouldn't stop thinking of you all day... Almost annoying, actually." the dark-haired man admitted quietly.
"I thought you weren't a mind reader." I shot back at him nicely.
"I didn't think so either. Traditionally my powers are envisioning by scent, as you guessed so long ago..." His voice trailed and a tiny smirk came to his lips. I fully glared at him when I recalled the vampire's ball I had been kidnapped and forced into by him and his little orange-haired accomplice. "But as a vampire ages, sometimes their special ability magnifies in power, sometimes they develop more. I've, very recently, been picking up on the thoughts of others. Only ones directed at me or ones of beings very close to me. It's mostly the humans mind, because I hear nothing from Lucas except when he sleeps and is more vulnerable to penetration."
"You'll just have to explain it to me another time." I cut in, though I showed interest. "I wish to retire, if you don't mind..."
"One more request." He added easily. I hesitated before nodding my head for him to continue. "Your private library... The blonde friend will only be a few walls away, I would be able to hear her and check on her to your liking and commence my research in the safety and privacy from other mortals whom you wish to keep my and Lucas' presence unknown from. I wish to know if I have permission to occupy that room for research during day or night so I might excavate my planning."
I paused and found it quite... odd, for lack of a better word, to see the slight bow in Taylor's stance and hear the humble request for permission in his voice. And just what would he be planning?
"Taylor, you don't need to ask me."
"Luke made it apparent that you did not trust me, so I was obligated to ask your permission." he replied politely.
"Luke's been gone over sixty seconds and you haven't attacked me. I guess I'm going to have to trust you; not like I have any other easy choice... But you can dwell in my library all you please. It's a room, meant to be occupied. Now please, let me retire!" I half pleaded. Taylor recognized the urgency in my voice and picked up the final trunk of Luke's and disappeared as well.
I returned to the private bedroom, turned out the light and I went straight for the comfort of the bed. A few moments later, there were noises outside of this 'official' bedroom, then I heard the door quietly open and close, and a moment later Luke slipped next to me gently, as if he were sneaking into bed and trying not to wake me because he was home late, or something like that. I surprised him when I rolled over and nestled close to his chest, but pulled the covers tight around me since he was cold and I eventually would get chills from him.
"How was your first day?" he whispered teasingly, treating me as a child and he was the parent asking his daughter about her first day of school. His fingers ran gently through my hair and I shifted further into him.
"Just look in my mind and find out." I replied, smiling against the stone of his chest.
"I could..." he started, voice quieter. "But I'd rather you tell me yourself."
"How about tomorrow..." I offered now, letting the exhaustion reach my voice with a small yawn. I closed my eyes and settled more comfortably into him, the bed, the pillow...
"Sweet dreams, your majesty." he cooed in tender Catalan. Like a lullaby, his voice delivered me into the land of dreams.
I only wish he could somehow follow me into my dream world as my protector, because, like Taylor mentioned earlier, when one slept, their mind was more vulnerable to penetration. I didn't know if my own mind was producing the nightmares, or if Courtney was somehow pushing them into my mind much like Luke had the ability to; but the hellish visions that had plagued my sleep didn't subside tonight, and the nightmare tonight was much like the one I received on the plane. I was left in dread, terror, all because of her...
And when I awoke in the early hours of the morning, much too early, Luke was as worried as ever. I was screaming when my eyes opened and reality released me from the hell of my dreams. Luke's hands were secured on my shoulders, pure concern and curiosity on his face.
"Allison, it's only a dream..." He told me, trying to ease me with comfort in his voice.
"No," I replied sharply in a hoarse tone. I pushed out of his gasp and rolled over out of the bed to get water from the bathroom and take a moment to calm myself. "It's a sign of some sort. All of my dreams, after I met you, have had significance and given me clues about my current situation. These nightmares are not simply a figment of my imagination to be ignored..."
Luke waited for me to return on the edge of the bed from the bathroom. My heart thumped loudly within my chest; I held my head in hopes to center my thoughts. Luke pulled me back over the bed and into his chest; that helped tremendously.
"You don't have to worry, Allison. I will take care of everything." I listened to his words, which sounded more like a noble vow to protect me no matter what. "I just want you to concentrate on your life and duties here. Don't worry about anything you don't need too..."
There was just one problem with that. Even though Courtney wasn't here yet, or, she hadn't made her presence known, what she was capable of was always going to be something I would worry about from now on, after everything she's done... And since the development of Luke and I, I would now always worry about him as well.
"It's my burden too, Luke." I told him quietly, my lips touching the curve of his collar bone. He shivered slightly.
"But it's my mistake to correct. You've done nothing wrong... nothing... and you suffer for it because of me."
"That is true." I replied quietly. It hurt him for me to admit it, and yet I still touched my lips to his skin. "But we have to defeat her together. So you can redeem yourself to yourself, and so I can be at peace with my own hatred." I propped myself up on my knees and saw him face to face now. He wrapped his arms around my body and kissed my lips. In the darkness I couldn't see his face, but I could guess it was one of guilt, mixed with affection, or some ironic twist of the two.
"Go back to sleep; I'll take over what your mind sees."
I kissed him again and then returned gently into the pillows. "Keep it clean, please." I tried to tease. He chuckled and returned to my side.
I closed my eyes, and the first image Luke decided to test from my mind was a colorful sunrise I had witnessed from a rooftop photo shoot back in NY.