Chapter 3
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The Kings didn't find out until after a dozen hours had passed. It didn't take much to open the door regardless of what was placed against it. Everything screeched as it was pushed aside with the door opening.
Marcus sighed, already knowing she had escaped. He saw it when the bond started to move, the ribbon becoming thinner and thiner but stayed just as vibrated as she began her journey west. He just had to tell his other mates now, and hope they didn't insist on getting her too soon. They all needed time to calm down before someone actually snapped.
Aro's throne cracked with his grip, face stone cold as his eye twitched for a second before he sighed. "I will give Carlisle a call. Our mate needs to be protected until we get there."
"How did we not see this?" Caius tried to keep his anger under control. Rather than crack his throne, Caius resorted to pacing the length of the throne room. "Aro, she isn't protected. She needs us!"
Aro rolled his eyes, an action he only did in the presence of his mates. "Regardless of her gender, she isn't weak."
"I couldn't care less about her gender," Caius spat. "She is Human and vulnerable."
"I will ask Carlisle to have one of his coven watch Erika," Aro suggested. "Edward's presence with Bella should keep her safe enough but I would think Rosalie would be happy to play Human sitter with our mate."
There was a pause as they thought.
"Even young Alice cannot see our mate's actions," Aro sighed, rubbing a hand down his face, a habit from his Human years. "I cannot even see her mind unless she lets me. This is not the first time our mate has escaped from being confined in a room."
"What do you mean? Have others tried to trap her before?"
"No, no. nothing that bad," Aro grinned in memory. "When she allowed me in, I saw that when her father grounded her, he locked her in her room. She used to escape through the front door without trouble. When she didn't have access to the door, she used to escape through the window."
The other Vampire Kinds smiled as Aro recounted one of Erika's little adventures as a teen.
Caius paused in his steps. "Did locking her away cause her to be pushed away from us?"
"Your bond with her has worsened only slightly," Marcus reassured him, placing a hand on his shoulder in comfort. "She most likely feels more betrayed than actually hurt by your actions."
"She is very resourceful," Caius admitted.
"Very much so,"
"Ruined my bedsheets in the process of escaping." Caius frowned as he sat back down in his seat.
"That's the thing you are concerned about?"
"I wonder what she could do if she had the world at her feet," He muttered. "A cruel ruler, perhaps, or a kind empress? Vindictive queen, or merciful lady?"
"We won't know until she begins to rule,"
"And her bond with young Isabella? If she were to die by our hands, would Erika be reluctant to come back to us?"
"If you were to kill Isabella, I doubt we would be able to even find our mate." Marcus stated as he took a seat. "She would hide away until she wants to come back."
"You are thinking that she needs some space. Would, say, around a week be enough?"
"That should be enough for all of us to calm down," Marcus nodded, concluding this argument without pause.
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"You've done a dangerous thing, Erika," Carlisle sighed as the Swans sisters quickly walked into the Cullen house.
All of the Cullens had congregated in the living room with the two Humans. Aice didn't look happy to be there, she was more concerned with her family's safety than the two humans in the room and their troubles.
Erika sighed as the events of the last few days washed over her in waves. "Ask me if I give a fuck, Carlise. They locked me in a goddamn room. What did you expect me to do?"
"Not jump out of the window," Rosalie muttered.
"I didn't jump, I climbed out. Get your facts right, blondie,"
"Did you have to anger the kings?"
"Yes, yes, I did," Erika smiled mockingly before slumping into the back of the sofa. "I still need to inform Micheal. I don't need him coming round if the kings will be around. Don't need him killed too."
"Good call," Bella said, crossing her arms as she sat next to her sister. "He doesn't deserve to be killed because you wanted to get laid."
"Bella!" Erika gasped in fake shock before snorting lightly and shoving her in the arm. "That was just a perk."
Esme just sighed, already knowing that the Swan sisters could not be controlled when together, not even by their father. It was just a matter of fact that they had to accept.
Esme felt sorry for the kings when they came. She felt even more sorry for when Erika would be turned, Esme would think that the Vampire race would lose several members within the short span of Erika's reign.
That girl was a force to be reckoned with, even as a Human.
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There was a slight problem with Micheal.
As soon as he blurted out, "You smell like Vampires!" Erika knew.
"YOU SERIOUSLY DIDN'T TELL ME YOU WERE A SHIFTER!?" Erika bellowed out.
"How was I meant to tell you?" Micheal countered. "Oh, Erika, you know those huge wolves everyone's been seeing around here, I'm one of them. Look, I can shift into one! Do you think you would have believed me?"
"You knew about the Cullens and didn't tell me. About Bella and Edward!" Erika sidestepped his question. "About my sister and her Vampire boyfriend? I'm not fucking stupid, I knew about the Shifters for years. I've been friends with Rachel and Rebecca Black since I was young, I've seen wolves change since I was little. Billy Black had to explain to me what was happening to them, regardless of my stance in society and their tribe."
"That doesn't explain why you smell of Vampires, Erika!" Micheal snapped. "Why does my girlfriend smell like those bloodsuckers, and I'm not talking about the Cullens!"
"I found my mates, Micheal," Erika said. "That's why I came to see you today. I wanted to tell you that we need to break up."
"What? Why?"
"Mates, I think you Shifters call them Imprints," Erika paced. "When I went to Italy to get Edward and his sparkly ass back here, I found out that I had mates."
"Imprint. One of them imprinted on you?
"Yes," Erika didn't correct him on the fact that it was three, not one. "I found my perfect person." people.
"Oh," Micheal said as if everything clicked. "Guess that means we aren't dating anymore…"
"That's why I want to tell you as soon as I could,"
Micheal sighed with a slight heave.
Both adults talked for a few hours, discussing their past and their wished future together before Micheal excused himself, saying it was getting late.
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That was when Erika called Rosalie.
"No," Rosalie said instantly as they stood in a store in the hair dye section. "That will never come out if you dye it that colour."
"I know," Erika grinned, holding up a box of hair dye, vastly not her natural colour. "That's the point."
"Are you sure, Erika?" Rosalie tried. "If you want to go back to your natural dirty blonde, you'll need to cut the colour off. That's a lot if you are doing just the underside of your hair this."
"I'm sure," Erika nodded.
And that is how Erika's hair went from being all dark blonde to being a strange variation of Narcissa Malfoy. The underside of her hair was a dark red with her natural dirty blonde on top. The colour started from just under her temple area, resulting in a peekaboo style.
Erika loved it.
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After feeling like shit for four days, sleeping badly every night and getting barely three hours if she was lucky, Alice called and gave her a warning about the kings. Erika had just unlocked her front door before she felt a trickle of fear over her skin and a tightening sensation in her chest. She cringed as she felt the tightening in her chest completely fall away.
Erika closed her eyes as she leaned her forehead against the door. "For fucks' sake."
Marcus gestured to the door, watching as Erika sighed and opened it. She stood to the side of it, dramatically gesturing to come in before rubbing her hands down her face in frustrations as he and Aro came in while Caius gave orders to the guards.
"You dyed your hair," Caius stated as soon as he got a proper look at her. "It looks good."
"Result of a bit too much alcohol and me breaking up with my long term boyfriend because of you three," Erika said without a pause as she put her bag and coat away, hanging them both up after closing the front door to her apartment.
"What you did was stupid, Erika. Leaving a fortress which would keep you safe? What were you thinking? Wait, you were not!"
"You will respect me in my own home or you will leave, Caius," When he opened his mouth, Erika finished with, "No arguments on this. And this dead look in your eyes, it doesn't work with me. So stop with the emotionless facade and talk. That's why you're here isn't it, to convince me to come back with you?"
Marcus sighed unneededly, knowing he needed to get this certain conversation started before anything could be done to save their possible relationship.
"You shouldn't have walked away, Erika," Marcus stated. "You wouldn't be safe in the castle alone."
"Either I walked away or I would have decked him across the face," Erika confessed, gesturing to Caius. "You were literally telling me when I was going to die. How do you think I would react? Should I be happy with knowing one of you will kill me? Where will my input go? When do I get a say in my own fucking life?"
"Language, Erika," Aro tutted. "It isn't becoming."
"Yeah?" She hummed softly before raising her voice. "Newsflash, it is the twenty-first fucking century! If I want to fucking swear, I will. I am not an object you can control so stop treating me like one. I am a human being."
"Not for long," Caius muttered but she heard.
A pulse of numbed sadness was in her chest, making the hairs on her neck and shoulders stand as a rinkle of a shiver went through her skin.
Erika shoved her fear down and stepped towards him until there was very little space between them. Her lip curved up as she warned him. "Turn me, take me away from my family, hurt any of them or my friends, or lock me up again, I will make sure to escape. It might take me a few years or decades but I will and you will never see me again."
He clasped his hand around her throat, tight enough to constrict her breathing. She didn't gasp or move, not wanting to provoke him any further. Her breathing ability was already prevented by his hand. Snarling when he realised she didn't smell of fear, he dropped his hand and began pacing again. She stepped back, her breathing heavy as she clutched her neck.
"Erika?" Marcus tried as she kept her eyes away from them. Her breath was raspy as she tried to get air into her lungs.
"She's fine," Caius spat. "I only constricted her breathing for a moment."
Aro used a hand to gently tilt her head up, running a finger down the front of her throat as he examined it. Erika stilled and breathed normally, letting Aro's presence calm her as Marcus stood behind her.
"And bruised her neck," Aro's lip curled and Erika quickly stepped away, fearing his reaction. Aro frowned, saying something to Marcus before turning to Caius.
Erika found herself tucked under Marcus' chin, her hand clasped into one of his own. She kept her eyes downcast until something strange caught her attention.
There were floating ribbons. There were two Ruby red ribbons connecting each Vampire to the other two, and golden pink ones connected her to the men. There were another two going from her to out of the apartment, two light pink ribbons.
"Is this what you see?" Erika looked up, not taking her eyes off of the ribbons. She saw that one of the golden pink ribbons was turning a rusty shade of gold on her end, failing at some points. "Why's mine gone funny?"
"What is she talking about, Marcus?" Caius turned to face them, a scowl still evident on his face.
"It is my gift, my ability to see the different relationships between people but I cannot manipulate them. However, we have a guard that can," Marcus said before gesturing to the specific ribbon she mentioned. "Watch how it is connected to you and Caius. A few minutes ago, it was simply one shade but you feel unsafe… and wary about him."
"What have I done to earn her wariness?" He stepped forward, almost glaring at her but it faltered when she stepped into Marcus some more. She felt a hot flash of fear come over her, watching the ribbon turn a shade paler and it thinned.
"It's getting late," she mumbled, quickly shrugging Marcus off. "I need my sleep. I'm sorry you came all this way, you really didn't need to…"
Erika quickly stepped into her bedroom, closing the door before leaning against it. She dropped to the group, her back scraping against the door as tears silently dropped. She knew she couldn't sob, they would hear it, so she just settled for silent sobs and tears.
It took a moment or a few minutes, she wasn't sure anymore, but she grabbed hold of herself and marched herself to the bathroom after gathering clothes. Showering without a word, the water was nice but it stung at her neck. She would have to check it out before going to bed.
The bruise was bad. The mark spanned the sides of her trachea and went slightly into the back. On one side was four dents of purple bruises where his finger tips had dug in, the other was a thicker mark where his thumb was on, but the area around the trachea was worse. It was more dangerous.
After Erika took a shower, she kept her heartbeat steady as she looked up a video for a steady heartbeat. Unlike the castle in Italy, these walls were thin and she knew they could hear her. The video was louder than she was, so they couldn't tell the difference.
She was thankful for Charlie making her get an apartment on the ground floor. She opened the window fully, grabbing her phone and a pair of boots before putting them on. Always keeping a motorbike helmet in her room was a god send now, otherwise she would have had to go to the living to get the other one.
Mounting the bike after shutting the window from the outside, she sped away without a regret.
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Even Carlisle was shocked at the bruising on her throat.
Erika had made the journey to the Cullen House, the second this week. Esme and Carlisle were already outside, both curious as Erika zoomed until she skidded to the bottom of the stairs. She took off the helmet before putting it on the bike, making her way up the stairs.
"What happened?" Esme said.
Erika opened her mouth just as Alice came outside.
"The kings. They're here,"
Esme was quick to huddle her inside before Erika could turn to where Alice and everyone was looking. She sat on the white couches in the living room with Esme to one side.
Erika nodded weakly as she put a hand to her throat, her voice still a little raspy on some syllables. "They came to my apartment. I made Caius angry but I didn't think he would be able to actually hurt me. I made an excuse of needing sleep, and put a steady heartbeat video on before climbing out the window."
Suddenly, the whole family was there. Rosalie quickly took a seat, making Erika tilt her head to give her a good view of the developing bruise. Emmett stood behind the three women with Jasper and Alice.
"You'll need to ice it," Carlisle said before running to get a cold compress from the freezer. "Bella stays often and you know how she is."
It was cold against her flushed skin, pleasant. She had to tilt her head up a little to cover it all but it worked. "This is the second time I've escaped them now. I doubt it'll happen a third."
Alice sighed. "They'll be here in a moment. They're angry, Erika. Beyond belief."
Erika huffed. "I threatened them."
"How did you get them that angry with a threat?" Rosalie said.
"Long story short, if I ever feel like a prisoner or they hurt my friends and family, I will find a way to hide." Erika smirked. "Alice can't see me, Edward can't read me, Demetri can't find me. I'd just live a paper trail less life."
The Kings strode into the house without a pause as soon as Carilise let them in, and Caius was quick to start talking.
"What were you thinking?!" Caius exploded. "You leave without telling us and then go to another Vampire's territory?"
"Don't yell at me," Erika mumbled, already tired of the conversation as Caius began to almost glare. The pain behind her eyes and the tightness in her chest was making her feel worse than before, and him yelling didn't help.
"You expect us to be happy?"
"No, I expect you to treat me like a fucking person and not a pet which you can lock up when they've displeased you!" Erika snapped, getting up from the couch abruptly with anger at his words. "You came into my house and all of you were angry. You hurt me. I couldn't breath. I couldn't think straight. I thought you were going to kill me there and then, screw the Mate bond."
Without a thought, Erika dropped the hand which held the cold compress. A sudden pulse to her temple caused her to hiss. The Kings froze, watching her as she scowled at them.
She knew her neck looked worse now, it had enough time to worsen and darkened. Erika was a quick healer so the bruise would be at its worst much quicker than if Bella got injured. Erika was always able to bounce back much sooner than anyone else she knew.
"Look at me, Erika," He held out a hand as he crouched to level with her.
"Please." Erika shrank back, curling her shoulders up as she leaned back into Bella. Suddenly her confident outburst ran out of adrenaline and she felt sick again. "Don't touch me."
Caius dropped his hand like it was burned, stepping back before he began to pace the length of the room. He was muttering in foreign tongues, sending cautious glances towards her as he sent words to his partners.
Marcus ran his thumb down the back of her neck, caressing the spine there. She leaned into the touch, her eyes drooping as a flush of warmth went over her. He was pleased with her reaction.
When the Submissive Mate of the pairing, or rather the two submissive mates in this quartet, were upset, the Dominants could calm them down with skin contact. It worked both ways, otherwise Marcus would have already punished Caius for harming their other mate.
That was what he and Aro were trying to do. Aro grabbed Caius by the hand, stopping his rapid pacing and getting his thoughts. Caius sent him a dark look, though no one but they saw the hurt look in it.
Erika began to bounce her knee, anxiety deep within her chest. She knew that Jasper was trying to help her but it wouldn't work, physical shield and all.
"Erika's not alright," Jasper managed to say, looking at Erika and Bella on the couch. "She's an argument away from either a panic attack or attacking us all."
Alice just gave her husband a slight glare, almost agreeing with what he said.
"I don't want to die yet, do you not understand that?" Erika whispered as she stood up. "And Jasper's right. I am on the verge of snapping all of your necks, regardless of my Human status. So sit the fuck down and let me speak, or I swear to the fucking gods, I will permanently leave."
"We will leave you to it then," Carliise said, gesturing for his children to leave. "We need to hunt anyway."
The three kings sat on the couch as their eyes traced Erika's every moment as she vigorously strutted and paced in front of them. They couldn't help but listen as Erika gave them the dirtiest looks ever imaginable when they opened their mouths to speak or even sigh.
Erika made some good points, the Kings realised, she was a good speaker. Her verbal dictation was brilliant from years of telling lies and weaving tales for the younger children. Her physical cues indicated she was not at all uncomfortable standing in front of them, ranting as she counted points off her fingers.
They just realised that her nail polish matched her hair colour.
"...There is so much I haven't tried, places I haven't visited. Sunsets and sunrises I have yet to see, and I want to be able to feel each sun beam without becoming a fucking disco ball," Erika finished off her long rant. "I don't mind being turned in a few years, but give me the fucking time to mature before condeming me to eternity.
"Give me time to explore myself as Human with human limitations before giving me eternity to explore myself with you. Being a Vampire would enhance me, my mind, my physique, but I'd like to get to know you all before I decide to live with you forever.
"I'll stay at the castle if it means that I get to keep my humanity for a few years before I am changed. But I need the time to grow into myself before I can give myself fully into a relationship with you three." She finished. "And the one thing that I won't put up with is abuse. Looking at you, Caius!" She snapped a finger to her neck with a pointed look.
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The inside of the private jet was mainly dark polished wood and white leather sofas and chairs. To one wall, her mates sat on three separate chairs with another chair being occupied with Alec. There was a table between them, covered with several documents that they slowly worked through. Erika sat with her legs up on the long L-shaped couch that laid against the other wall and back wall, staring outside to keep her unhappy eyes away from them.
Erika curled up on the sofa, a little numb and confused on how to feel at the moment. She ran her long nail against the bottom of her lip, nibbling on it for a moment before curling even deeper into the seat as the men spoke in Italian. She didn't care for what they were discussing.
Her headphones were blaring music loud enough to make a person deaf. She silently muttered the lyrics, letting her music consume her for a few hours.
Luckily the three men gave her enough time to pack and tell her dad that everything was going to be fine but Erika had a career opportunity in Italy and she couldn't just not take it. But now Erika had to spend the next few years in Italy, alone, separated from her sister and father.
She had already tucked her shoes under the white leather sofa, bringing her feet and tucking them under her. The plane was cold, colder than even Erika was used to but she didn't want to complain. Usually she would have complained many times by now but she wasn't feeling like using her energy to simply complain. it wouldn't help anyway.
So she just tucked herself into the corner and decided to suffer in silence until the plane ride was finished.
Erika shivered to a certain degree, flinching when one of the Vampires moved too quickly and sent a gush of cold air towards her. She kept her gaze outside, her face blank as she was in deep thought. She watched as the dark clouds moved away and the private plane soared through the night sky.
She almost gasped in shock when a thick black cloak was gently chucked onto her. Erika looked up, Caius had taken it off before giving it to her with a scowl. The hard scowl stopped when he saw the almost defeated and tired look in her eyes.
It was a sad look that he had only seen in people who had given up a lot and yet felt like there were several more hardships to deal with before they were done.
Erika didn't move when he stood up and came closer, she only curled deeper into the warm cloak. The cloak had Caius' scent, calming her a little bit more. It was something she needed, the last few days were tiring for her mental and emotional health and she was ready to put these days behind her. But she didn't know if the three Vampires were willing to do the same.
Caius was careful when he brought his hand closer to her, there was an ache within his chest as he saw her subconsciously cringe as he came closer. Even Erika could feel some sort of tightness in her chest, so she tried her best to keep still and let him touch her.
His touch was feather light, barely registered on her skin but something inside her said everything about this was right. After a moment, she leaned into his hand as he rubbed his hand down the side of her head, tracing his thumb down the shell of her ear. He watched her yawn, still groggy from lack of sleep.
He carefully took a seat to the side of her, letting her to curl into his side without a word. She didn't struggle when he put his arm over her shoulder and hugged her closer. With a low purr from deep within his chest, Erika decided to allow him to try and regain her trust. She might not trust them with her emotional or physical wellbeing at the moment, but even she knew she was causing a rift between all of them.
She couldn't be petty, she needed to at least try.
Caius was surprisingly warm against her side. He had the sudden desire to grab her and their other two mates, take them into the bedroom, lock the door, and keep them there for eternity to keep them safe. There was already strain on all of their mating bonds due to the fact that Erika was not a pushover. It wasn't surprising, he himself was not someone to be pushed over.
"There is a bed in the back room if you desire to sleep," Marcus said after a moment of watching her almost falling asleep on Caius. "Don't give me that look, Caius. I believe Erika would sleep better with all of us present but we have work to finish. How have you slept since meeting us?"
"Like shit…" Erika asked regretfully. "I haven't slept well in three days, nor have I had an appetite for more than an apple at a time. How long is left of the flight?"
"We have about another eight hours before we land,"
"I might take the offer on the bed then,"
"If you decide to sleep, one of us will wake you before we start descending,"
"Thank you,"
Erika had grabbed a bag, knowing this bag had all of her night products and clothes, and went to sleep in the back room where an absolutely huge bed was. Erika didn't think she had seen such a large bed in her life, but she assumed all the kings had shared it. She guessed that all four of them could easily fit in it and still have a bit of space.
She awkwardly stood by the door in her Thumper pajamas. The kings had large scowls on their faces but they softened as Erika came back into the main area.
"Is there a way to turn the heating on back there?" Erika asked, her hands in the hoodie pocket of the top. "I can't seem to find any of the blankets or other such things."
Aro was gone within a moment, coming back with a maroon blanket that had to be folded and was going to be huge when she undid it.
"Perfect, thank you," She nodded in thanks, taking the thick, velvety blanket.
She was self conscious for one reason or another, she didn't know why. Erika went to one side of the bed and chucked the pillows to the other side of the bed. She undid the bedding, throwing it so there was enough room for her to get in and then pulled the blanket over her. She cuddled into the blanket with a blank face, a single tear dripping down from her eyes before she wiped it away and closed her eyes.
"For fucks sake!" Erika grumbled, getting up from the bed and throwing the blanket over her shoulders. She quickly strutted back into the main area with a pout as her mates looked at her confused. "I can't sleep in there."
She felt like a child going to her parent's bed when she had a bad dream.
"Why is that? Is something wrong with the room?"
"The Matebond keeps pulling at my chest, it was happy to let me fall asleep in here but not in there,"
"We did not allow the bond to solidify before you scurried back to the US. It is trying to make sure that we all spend time together before we are forced away for any reason."
"Don't remind me," Erika whispered under her breath, shuffling her feet. "Can I sleep in here with you three?"
"What of a pillow?"
"I don't like pillows," Erika said. "They make my back go funny…"
For now, Erika cuddled into Caius' side, and eventually she used his thigh as a pillow. He weaved a hand into her blonde and red hair, slowly petting her like a cat as she yawned and closed her eyes.
She had never slept that well before.
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