Hi Lovelies! I am so sorry that I haven't posted in months and months. This chapter is I think the longest so far which I hope kind of makes up for it. Let me know what you think and if you'd like me to continue this story.

Much love, Liv x

Milena's Point of View –

"Do you have a gift?" We'd been driving for about 30 minutes, and I'd stopped myself asking for as long as I could. "What's that Cara Mia?" Aro said taking his eyes off the road ahead to glance at me. "You know like Marcus can see how people are connected, can you do anything like that?" He quickly turned back to the road but not before I saw his brow furrow. "If it's okay I'd rather not talk about that right now. Why do you ask?" Hmm not what I expected him to say.
"I just wondered, I guess it doesn't matter." I turned away to look out the window, trying my best to hide my concern at his answer. "I promise I'll tell you one day Milena."
"It's fine, do you mind if I try to get some sleep?"
"Of course not." Aro said, gently squeezing my hand. "I'll wake you when we get there."

I didn't know how long we'd been driving when the car came to a stop. I'd tried to fall asleep, but my mind was racing, focused solely on what Aro's gift could be and why he was being so secretive about it. Surely it couldn't be as bad as I was imagining. I think Aro knew I was awake but that didn't stop him from rubbing my knee to 'wake' me. "Milena, we're here."

I opened my eyes and saw the most gorgeous house I'd ever seen. It was practically on the beach, with almost the entire bottom floor and back made of glass. Before I'd realised, Aro was out of the car and opening my door, offering his hand to me. He was so close to the car that as I stood, I found myself pressed against him. "What do you think?" He asked looking down at me. "It, it's..." Something about the way he looked at me so earnestly and how close we were to each other had me struggling to get the words out. "Sweetheart?" His hand came up to cup my face and the sudden movement snapped me out of it. I stepped back quickly, anxious to put some space between us. He frowned at the rejection of his touch, so I spoke quickly to distract him, "It's gorgeous, how did you know I love the beach?" I smiled as brightly as I could muster. It seemed to work as he soon smiled back at me.

In the short time we'd been talking Demitri and Felix had unloaded the car and Gianna was disappearing into the house with the groceries. "There is something I need to mention." He seemed nervous suddenly and I couldn't help but frown. "It's nothing bad. I just want to prewarn you; I know it's overcast right now but when the sun is out my skin umm."
"What, do you burn or something? Are you okay?" I couldn't help my sudden worry, quickly closing the space I'd made between us. "No, no nothing like that, I'm fine Milena." He said quickly. "I, I don't know how to describe it." It was strange to see him like this, lost for words. "Milena I…" His words stopped as the clouds suddenly parted and he was glowing, no, sparkling, in the sunlight?! Without thinking I brushed my fingers across his cheek. "You, you're..." He winced unsure of what I was going to say. "You're beautiful, so beautiful." The words came out as a whisper, my throat suddenly dry.

Aro's Point of View

I couldn't help the grin that spread across my face. I had no idea how she was going to react but once again she surprised me. Her words were filled with what I could only describe as amazement. I reached up, wrapping my fingers around the ones she had brushed against my face and brought them to my lips. I heard her breath catch in her throat just before she pulled away. She pulled away again, for the third time in one day she pulled away from me. I thought we were okay, last night she'd run into my arms; she'd missed me. That's what she said, and now I had no idea what was going through her head. "Why don't you show me around?" She asked, once again trying to switch my focus, I had no choice but to follow behind her as she headed into the house.

She walked slowly through the doorway her steps faltering slightly as she took in the open-plan layout. She came to a stop once she reached the living room, staring out at the beach through the glass wall. "What do you think Sweetheart?" I asked, testing the waters by wrapping my arms around her from behind. "It's amazing." She took a step forward, out of my arms, moving to open the folding doors. "The view is breathtaking, thank you for bringing me." She didn't look at me, it was like she couldn't bring herself to. What the hell happened at the grocery store? "Why don't I make you some lunch?" I offered.
"You don't have to; I can make something." She glanced back at me briefly, avoiding my eyes.
"I brought you here to relax Cara Mia, you don't need to lift a finger." I crossed my arms focusing on her body language. "Cooking is relaxing, especially in a kitchen like that." She said pointing across the room with a grin. "Okay then." I relented. "We'll cook together." I held out my hand for her, another test to see what she would do. Surprisingly she took it and let me lead her to the kitchen, but no sooner had we stopped she let go.

We cooked a simple spaghetti carbonara and Milena insisted we make a plate for Gianna. Other than that, the cooking had been done in pretty much silence, I made a mental note to ask Gianna what had happened in the store. What had been said between them? Milena had almost finished her plate when Demitri appeared in the kitchen, phone in hand. "It's for you Master." I glared at him so hard I could have bored holes in him. "I'm sorry sir, it's Marcus, he said it's urgent." Milena glanced between the two of us, noting my annoyance. "It's fine Aro, you should take it. I might go and lay down anyway." She smiled softly.
"Okay." I sighed, defeated. "I'll take it upstairs. Demetri show Milena to her room when she's finished." I snatched the phone out of his hand, ready to give Marcus a piece of my mind.

Milena's Point of View –

No sooner had Aro gone I pushed my plate away, not able to stomach anymore. It was delicious but my appetite was practically non-existent. "Everything okay Mimi?" Demitri. I'd forgotten he was here. "Fine, I'm fine." I smiled, taking my plate to the sink.
"Are you sure? Can I get you anything?" He leant against the worktop, looking at me earnestly like I was going to break or something. "No, nothing. You can go if you'd like." I focused on rinsing my plate so I wouldn't have to look at him. "Master asked me to show you to your room." His tone seemed conflicted. Would he get in trouble if he didn't? "Right, of course. Let's go." I couldn't be bothered to argue, turning to follow behind him as he moved towards the staircase. "It's just the door on the far right." He gestured towards an open door at the end of the hall.
"Thank yo…" My words were interrupted by Aro yelling. He sounded murderous.
"I don't care Marcus, this is ludicrous. Caius is not in charge of anything, even if I dropped dead tomorrow, he would be the last person to make any decisions. We got here less than an hour ago you want me to turn around and come back to put him in his place?" I took a deep breath trying not to dwell on his words. "Thank you Demitri, you can go." He nodded before quickly disappearing from sight.

The room was stunning. Two of the walls were made completely of glass, a light wood bed in the corner between them. The other walls were a beige colour, offset by the deep green bedding and a woven throw that was strewn across an armchair opposite the bed. I could still hear Aro shouting down the phone, whatever was going on did not sound good. I'd never heard him shout like this before and I really didn't like it. He sounded terrifying, the thought of being on the receiving end sent a shiver down my spine, a further reminder of what he really was. I quickly shut the door, distancing myself from him as much as I could. The bed looked so inviting and I realised that not sleeping in the car had left me exhausted. I kicked off my shoes and curled up on my side watching the waves crash onto the beach.

Running, I was running. I had to stop him. He had to know I was still here, I hadn't gone anywhere, she hadn't done anything wrong. I crashed into The Great Hall to find Aro with a vice like grip on Gianna's arms. "Where is she?" He screamed in her face, shaking her violently.
"I don't know, I swear Master. I don't know what happened. I turned around for a second and she was gone." Gianna whimpered, desperately.
"I'm here!" I screamed. "I'm right here! She didn't do anything!"
"I warned you what would happen if she didn't come back with you." I watched Aro's grip tighten on her arms, her bones cracking under the pressure. "Stop! Please stop, I'm right here! Why can't you see me?!" I charged towards them grabbing Aro's arm, but he took no notice, it was like I didn't exist. "Please Master. Forgive me!" She was begging, pleading with him to spare her. A sick smile spread across Aro's face. "No." Before I could blink, he was sinking his teeth into her neck.

Gianna's Point of View –

I could hear Milena shouting from the kitchen. Aro had gone back to the castle to deal with Caius, Felix had travelled with him. That left me and Demitri, and upon hearing Milena's cries he looked at me with panic, I assumed from not being sure what to do. "I've got it." I reassured him before rushing upstairs.

Milena was sobbing in her sleep, struggling to catch her breath. "Please, please stop. Leave her alone. I'm here, I'm right here!" I don't know who she was talking to, but she was distraught. "Milena?" I spoke softly, climbing onto the bed next to her. "Milena? Honey? It's okay it's just a dream." I gently brushed the hair from her face trying to wake her. "Milena?" She bolted upright, grabbing my wrist. "It's okay, you were dreaming." It took her a second to register what was happening but suddenly she was hugging me. "You're here. You're okay. Are you okay?" She pulled back, her hands gripping my shoulders. "I'm fine honey." I said, confused by her concern. Was she dreaming about me? "Are you sure? You're okay, you're alright?" She cupped my face in one of her hands, it was like she wasn't sure if I was real. "I'm sure Milena, I'm okay, everyone's okay." She pulled me into another hug, bursting into a fresh round of sobs. "Shhh, it's alright. It was just a dream, everything's alright."

Milena's Point of View –

I'd been sat on the beach for I think hours. Having apologized profusely to Gianna for my outburst I needed some time alone. My nightmare was so real. I watched Aro kill her, and he did it with a smile, it made me sick to my stomach. Would he really do that to her? For something beyond her control, would he kill her for that? I couldn't reconcile the idea of him doing that with the man I'd gotten to know.

Aro's Point of View

The sun was setting by the time I got back. I didn't bother going into the house, instead letting the sound of Milena's heartbeat lead me to the beach. She was sat on the sand, her knees drawn up to her chest, she looked so small. "Hi Sweetheart." I said softly, sitting down beside her. I thought my sudden presence might make her jump, but she didn't even move. We sat for a few minutes in silence before she suddenly spoke. "I love the beach. It's where I go when I need to think, happy or sad I go to the beach. Even when I was looking at colleges, I only looked at ones that were near the coast, it was a dealbreaker for me." She spoke like she was on another planet, a million miles away. "I hope that you're out here now because you're happy." I said it, but I didn't think it was true. "Milena?" I practically whispered, rubbing my hand down her back.
"Why did you let me go to the store?" The question came from nowhere, but she still didn't look at me. I wasn't sure where she was going with it, so I answered simply. "So you could get whatever you wanted Sweetheart."
"I could have done that by giving Gianna a list, why let me actually go to the store?" With that follow up I knew this conversation wasn't going to end well. "Because I knew you wouldn't go anywhere."
"How?" I couldn't help my sigh, why did it matter?
"I just knew."
"How, how did you just know?" She was firing her questions at me now; I got the feeling she was working her way up to the one she really wanted to ask. "I knew Gianna wouldn't let you."
"And how was she supposed to stop me? She is human after all." Her tone was cold, indignant.
"I knew she'd tell you about Demetri, about what would happen if you left." Clearly, Gianna had told her about his gift, I'd hope she wouldn't have to, but Milena must have tried something at the store. "What would happen with Demetri you mean?"
"Yes."
"And what would happen to her?" Her face was expressionless, her eyes never moving from the waves in front of us.
"Yes."
"That you'd kill her?" There it was, the question she really wanted to ask me, the reason she'd been pulling away from me all day. I took a deep breath, bracing myself for what my response would do to her. "Yes."

Milena's Point of View –

I forgot to breathe. My next question rushing from my mouth hoping he wasn't saying what I thought he was. "And would you have?"
"Would I have what?" I think he was being deliberately obtuse, delaying the inevitable.
"Killed her?" I closed my eyes, bracing for his answer.
"Yes." I wanted to cry.
"Why?"
"Why what?" His answer made me want to scream.
"Why would you kill her? If there was no possible way that Demetri wouldn't find me and bring me back, why kill her?" I needed to know. I don't think there was an answer that would make me feel better, but I had to know. "Because." Apparently, he could no longer form full sentences.
"Because what?! Because she deserved it or just because you can?"
"The latter." I balled my hands into fists to stop them shaking, trying to keep a hold of myself.
"You say you love me." The idea made me feel sick.
"I don't just say it Milena, I do." He sounded almost fearful. I finally turned to look at him, needing to see his face when I made my request. "Then swear to me that she will never come to harm." His eyes locked on mine. "Milena…" I didn't give him chance to finish whatever he was going to say. "Swear to me that she will be looked after, cared for, that no one will ever cause her any harm for as long as she lives." I hated how desperate I sounded.
"Why would I do that?" I couldn't think of a reason that he would buy, so I settled on the truth. "Because I need to know that you have some kind of even the tiniest semblance of humanity inside of you. That you are not as cruel and hateful as you seem to me right now in this moment." He did seem hateful, and I hated myself for getting so close to him. "Milena…"
"Swear to me. Swear to me on something meaningful, something I know you actually care about. Please. Swear to me that she will be safe. I need to know that you are more than you've shown me today. I need you to swear. Please." I was begging him. Begging for him to show me that he could be good, that he hadn't lost all of his humanity, that I wasn't being held captive by a monster. I forced myself to look into his eyes hoping that would somehow convince him. "I swear on you and my throne that Gianna will never come to any harm."

I sobbed. I didn't mean to; it came out of nowhere. "Sweetheart, please don't cry." His words sounded pained which only made me cry harder. He tried to put his arms around me, and I lost it, I couldn't bare the thought of him touching me. "I want to be alone." He didn't move. "Leave me alone, please." I screamed, shoving at his chest. He grabbed my hands, holding them tightly as he studied my face. Before I took my next breath he was gone.