A/N: Disclaimer in Chapter 1.

A longer chapter again…

Chapter 15: The One

The angry holes in the walls stood out, no matter where anyone tried to look their eyes were automatically drawn towards the holes.

The other devices had been removed from the walls and were now ling in front of the building. While they were safely out of the walls there was a niggling worry about the blast if they all were denoted together and its residual shockwave.

Erin peered out of the door, taking care not to stand in the direct sunlight. She shielded her eyes slightly as the sun was directly in her line of vision. "What are you going to do with them?"

"EM pulse to render them useless then destroy them completely." Jonno told her quietly. Erin knew they would usually either melt them down or destroy them in a controlled explosion. All she hoped was that if they decided to use an explosion that they'd do it as far away from their manor as possible.

"How many are left?" Vlad asked trying not to avert his eyes upwards to the hold that he knew was there directly in front of Jonno's head.

Jonno looked behind Vlad, looking at the wall to check. "Just the one…"

"For garlic's sake!" The curse was heard, the vampires turned as one towards Mina who blushed. She didn't curse normally, she'd clearly been around vampires too long to curse and use a vampire curse.

She gestured to the device, which was buried deeper than the rest. It couldn't be pried out at all; it remained in the wall no matter how much she pulled on it to get it out. "It won't come out."

Vlad moved across the room, "Let me try." He reached for the device; his hands were millimetres away before a cry went up.

"DON'T!" Three voiced yelled, Vlad immediately drew his hands back. Jonno stalked over to him and pressed the gloves into his chest forcefully shaking his head. Vlad had forgotten about wearing the gloves but it hadn't meant they needed to shout at him.

He glared at them all, before he forced his hands into the rubber gloves, struggling as he tried to force his fingers in and trying not to grimace at the feel.

He moved closer to the device and immediately Erin, Jonno and mina took enough steps back away from him to ensure their safety if something happened. Vlad noticed.

"Good to know you have confidence in me." He muttered, sarcasm and disgust clear for all to hear. Erin shook her head, she hadn't meant to hurt him it had just been instinctual.

Vlad placed his hands on the device and tugged letting out a hiss of pain as his shoulder was jerked awkwardly. Hoping that Erin didn't hear it but he knew she had, he could picture her shaking her head at him.

There was no way Vlad was going to have it as a wall decoration.

He pulled on the device again but it wouldn't move. He couldn't keep hold of it for much longer, he dropped his hands to his sides his entire right arms shaking from the exertion.

"Vlad you're never going to be able to pull it out." Perhaps if he was at his full strength he might have been able to do it but he couldn't and his telekinetic powers were useless.

He stepped back and Erin placed her hands on his waist, hugging him from behind.

Jonno looked at Vlad curiously. There was one way it could be removed from the wall. Vlad caught his look and immediately deflated. He just knew he wouldn't like Jonno's suggestion. "How much do you like the wall?"

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There was now a gaping hole where the wall once stood; a pile of rubble now was all that was left.

Vlad winced at the sight; one of his carefully panelled walls was completely gone. Thankfully it hadn't been important structurally but it didn't make it any better. He grimaced trying to remember what the wall looked like.

Renfield immediately darted in front of it and started sweeping it up, piling the rubble up and Vlad had to turn away. His home had successfully escaped any remodelling intentional or not even though his father had nearly succeeded four times over the years.

Bertrand looked down the room, walking towards Vlad. The bang had pretty much told him where Vlad was. He saw Ingrid and completely ignored her; instead he jostled the boxes higher and pointedly ignored her. He placed the three large boxes down next to Vlad.

Vlad had been wondering where Bertrand had gone, he wasn't surprised though. It had crossed his mind ad he was planning to find them after getting these devices out of the walls.

"These are all the defences I could find." Bertrand looked at them, he'd taken the initiative and searched through Vlad's home. Vlad trusted him enough not to look in his personal affects to search for defences.

"You have defences against vampires?" Jonno asked curiously, he never expected Vlad to have this kind of technology.

Vlad shook his head, "Coronation present from Dad." He didn't want his son losing power to anyone, not that the defences would have done much good when it happened. Vlad carefully placed a hand in the box, hesitating before touching one of the objects. "I never needed them before."

He pulled out a square sensor, the moment he touched it something else in the box was triggered. A speaker of some sort sparked into action and immediately the vampires clutched their ears doubling over. Ingrid glared at her brother. Jonno knew exactly what that was; he rummaged through the box and looked searched for the speaker. He pressed a button and immediately all the vampires straightened, obviously he'd turned it off.

Erin glared at the device in the box, it was no use if it incapacitated them as well as their enemies. "We're not using that."

Vlad tapped his ears trying to get them to stop ringing. "We need to get them installed right away, any defence is better than none."

"The need to be installed in key areas where they could enter."

"The hall, throne room, library, foyer, study and the other entrances. I can get some of the ones we have in storage." Jonno offered, when the Truce was formalised certain things had been placed in storage. "I'm not sure if all of them still work but its better than nothing."

Vlad nodded, it was a good idea. "Thanks."

Bertrand nodded, he didn't even question Vlad. He nodded to Erin before grabbing a handful of devices from the box. He didn't once look at Ingrid. Ingrid responded in kind by looking down at her feet.

He turned on his heel without so much as a word, leaving them in a stunned silence.

Jonno couldn't help himself. Judging by the scathing look that Ingrid had finally sent Bertrand's way they'd clearly had a tiff. "What's been going on?"

Erin was the one who answered the question; there was no point in anyone else finding out about any of their domestic problems. "You don't want to know."

This needed to be dealt with before it affected all of them even more. Distractions could get them all killed.

Erin looked at Vlad, Vlad slumped shaking his head. He knew what she was asking and the answer was no. She looked at him, her head craning forwards to plead with him.

She leaned forwards and whispered four very powerful words. "On your own tonight."

She'd never seen Vlad vanish so fast.

Now all she had to deal with was Ingrid while he dealt with Vlad.

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Ingrid's pained expression was still gestured in the direction Bertrand had just stood. Her eyes seemed to be glistening; she swiped at them with her hand. Jonno and Mina might not have noticed but Erin's upgraded, keen eyes saw the movement. Jonno and Mina pretended to look interested in a wall, Ingrid didn't seem to notice and for that Erin was grateful.

"I'm guessing you didn't turn him down gently." Erin mumbled, knowing Ingrid she would have done it in a brash way. Bertrand might not show his emotions often but even Erin knew Ingrid's attitude would have hurt him regardless. Bertrand had a reason for the way he was he had to be protective and guarded everything closely he didn't want to be hurt again.

Ingrid looked at Erin, slouching down against the remaining wall. "How would you turn down someone that proposed to you?"

"Both times I wasn't exactly proposed to." Erin had a grimace on her face as she thought of her illegal engagement then a grin surfaced over her face as she remembered her accidental engagement. "But I'm mated to someone I love. Vlad proposed properly again and I knew that there was nothing I wanted more than to be his wife."

Ingrid looked at the younger woman beside her as she crouched back against the wall. "How did you know he was the one?"

Erin wasn't sure how to answer, she just did. "What do you mean?"

"You betrayed the slayers to save Vlad, you knew he was the one, how did you know?" She felt jealousy that Erin was two years younger than her and had found her happiness and she hadn't.

"You just do." She shrugged, "You know that there's no one else you'd love more, you'd do anything for them even jump in front of a stake for them." Erin subconsciously traced the scar on her stomach, she'd gladly do it again if it meant saving him. "It's the way they make you feel, safe and loved, like there's no where else you want to be." Ingrid shuffled uncomfortably, Erin wasn't sure if it was because she was hitting a nerve or not. "I know you've tried to kill each other in the past and double crossed each other too but anyone can see you've put that behind you."

"I just don't know what to do or think about this."

"Is Bertrand the one for you?" Erin asked her quietly. "If he isn't don't hurt him any more than you already have."

"I didn't meant to…"

"I know you didn't but it's painful. I hurt Vlad so I know what its like. I did more than you, I betrayed him completely I didn't tell him who I was and I killed a vampire."

"It was an accident." Ingrid immediately protested.

"At the time it didn't matter. It hurt both of us, I nearly lost Vlad back then but we made it work again." She told Ingrid, "Don't' do something you'll regret, we were luck you and Bertrand might not be." Erin looked away, her voice lowering as she repeated. "Is Bertrand the one for you?"

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Vlad had made a front of attaching a device to a wall so Bertrand wouldn't be totally convinced he'd followed him deliberately, nothing ever escaped Bertrand but it was worth a try. Bertrand didn't look up at him, he knew why Vlad was there but he wasn't going to talk about anything.

Vlad looked uncomfortable, he really didn't want this conversation. Erin was the person he usually talked to about feelings and things like that. If he had to talk about them with anyone else, usually Ingrid, they usually started the conversation.

"Ingrid told us what happened." He watched Bertrand wince at that admission. Bertrand hated his personal life being discussed even more than Vlad's.

"I should have asked your permission first." Bertrand muttered as he continued to hit the punch bag.

Vlad's face scrunched up, "Why?" He didn't have to get anyone's permission to mate with Erin. He just asked her, his father had approved but he hadn't exactly asked him how he felt about mating with Erin.

"She's your sister…" Vlad forgot his role as Grand High Vampire and official head of the family made all marriages in his clan go through him. Bertrand obviously still considered him as his ruler.

Vlad shook his head, "You don't need to ask my permission. Its Ingrid's you need."

"And I'm not going to get it am I?"

"Ingrid's just afraid of losing her independence." Vlad told him with a shrug.

"I know that but I'm just tired of her not seeing me." Bertrand told him frankly. Ingrid could never see Bertrand de Fortunessa she only ever say *him*.

"She can see you." Vlad assured him, Ingrid could always see Bertrand. She'd always read him like a book. Vlad had felt the same with Erin at first but he'd quickly gotten over it. Erin knew the real him and that wouldn't change

"Just give her time." Bertrand didn't answer his gentle request. Vlad left the room slowly, his heavy footsteps dragging along the floor slightly. He glanced back at Bertrand. There was nothing more that he could do. It was up to them now.

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Ingrid knocked on the door quietly, Bertrand looked up at her from attaching the device on the former throne room wall. He saw who it was, he didn't want to talk to her so he focussed on twisting the screws into the panelling. He closed his eyes fighting to squash the fierce flare of rage that flared through him.

"I wanted to say sorry." She whispered to him. Bertrand didn't answer. "I've never been asked before and…"

"You threw it back at me Ingrid."

Ingrid looked at him angrily, she had a right to be angry. "You don't have any right to decide that I'm ready to marry you."

"I was ready Ingrid, I've never wanted to get married in four hundred years. It wasn't about deciding *you* were ready. I thought we both were ready." He slammed the screwdriver against the floor making it bounce back up into the air.

Ingrid shook her head, "After what happened with Will I don't…"

"STOP USING WILL AS AN EXCUSE!" He shouted at her angrily making her flinch. "I know I can't live up to Will and I know I never will. I'm not afraid to admit it. You are. I honestly thought we had a chance but you'll never move on will you?" Bertrand was beyond angry, his fingers sought out the discarded screwdriver again and began to bend it.

Ingrid didn't know what to say, she looked at him guilt filled her, Erin was right she hadn't considered it from his point of view. "I'm sorry."

Bertrand just shook his head and walked out. "You could have just been honest Ingrid, I went slowly for you but you should have told me that we didn't have a chance that you still don't feel anything for me. It's been three years Ingrid. I've wasted three years with you. I love you." His eyes were full of pain as he looked at her.

Ingrid's throat clenched, she knew how he felt she always sensed it but he'd never said the words out loud. She opened her mouth to repeat her own back to him, she felt the same but all that came out was: "I'm sorry."

Ingrid watched him with her eyes, feeling her heart crushing in her chest. Silent tears slipped down her face as her legs buckled underneath her. She wanted to protect herself but had only ended up hurting him more.

What had she done?

TBC

A/N: Thanks for reading.