"Charlie said you were her grandfather." Rogue said, eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
Pierre sighed heavily as he placed his palm over Charlie's cold hand. "It is a long story."
"We need an explanation." Christien said, moving closer to Rogue and brushing his shoulder against hers.
"We should move to the study and allow us to have some privacy. I'm sure Master Creed would like some privacy when he finds out about Charlotte." He choked on the last word and the others froze. They had forgotten about Victor and nobody wanted to be around when he was brought to her body. There were enough chairs for Rogue, Christien, and Pierre to sit. Pierre lit his pipe and took several puffs before speaking. "When I was a young man, I fell very deeply in love with a woman. As soon as I saw her, I knew we were destined for greatness."
"What was her name?"
Pierre's lips twitched upward in a ghost of a smile. "Juliet. My sweet Juliet. She lived in Italy and I was visiting when my parents and I were invited to a ball. She looked like an angel, clothed in a silver gown and her hair down around her shoulders. Juliet had hair the color of chestnuts and eyes that could see right to my core. We were married in secret and on our wedding night, we gave ourselves completely to each other." He puffed his pipe and sighed, lost in memories.
"What happened to Juliet?" Christien prompted.
"I found my mate and was forced to leave my dearest. I'm afraid that is a trait that Charlotte and I share. We follow our hearts regardless of what our instincts say." Pierre wiped a stray tear from his eye. "Juliet found me some years later and told me that she had borne a child. I fell in love with my daughter instantly and saw her in secret, giving her gifts and spoiling her. She was only three when her mother died and I took her in. Francois, being my brother and my very close friend, knew of Juliet and Charlotte and offered to claim Charlotte as his own. My mate was very jealous and would have rejected the poor girl out of spite. I found out later that Julienne had murdered Juliet. She had a knack for potions as her father had been an apothecary. Julienne was killed by her own hand."
"Lottie never knew?" Christien asked.
"I'm afraid not. And now she'll never know."
They were silenced as an enraged and mournful howl echoed in the corridors.
-0-
"What's up, Frankie?" Victor chortled as he raised the decanter of scotch to his lips, taking a long gulp. His fangs gleamed in the light. "Don't tell me that you've missed me already."
"It's Charlotte." Francois said with a clear tone. "She's in the infirmary and I believe you would like to see her."
"If she wants to see me so bad, she can come to me. Her legs ain't broken." Victor took another gulp of liquor.
"She's dead, Master Creed." Francois interrupted Victor's rambling. Victor stopped chuckling and lowered the decanter.
"What?" Victor said.
"Charlotte is dead and her body is in the infirmary." Francois repeated. "If you'd like to see her before-"
Victor had Francois by the throat before the sentence ended. "You best be lyin', Frankie."
"Let me go, Master Creed." Francois was struggling to breath but trying not to show it. He was thrown to the ground as Victor stalked to the infirmary. Death was thick in the air and when Victor saw his mate, his kitten, the hellfire he called his mate laying on the gurney, he let out a howl.
A/N: Next chapter will be all from Victor's view point and dealing with his grief. I know this chapter is short but I wanted to make his grieving all one chapter. A huge thanks to my reviewers and my followers and favoriters. I love all of you and I'm not just saying that 'cause I'm a wee bit tipsy at the moment. :)