“Ben was loyal to the cause of the hunters. He never would’ve wanted you to end up with Derek.”
“Really? Is that why he chose to stay with me at The Shade instead of returning here? Is that why he agreed to give me away on my wedding day, with Derek as my groom?”
Her eyes widened. “You married Derek Novak? Your father knows this?”
I shook my head. “I am engaged to Derek. I was abducted and taken to The Oasis before we could actually get married.”
Zinnia narrowed her eyes at me, the disgust and criticism in her voice unmistakable when she said, “What is wrong with you?”
“I don’t need to explain myself to you. I want to see my father.”
“He doesn’t need to explain himself to you either. You may be Reuben’s daughter, but you’re nothing like him.”
Thank heavens for that. I grimaced. I never could quite get used to what they called my father at hunter headquarters. Reuben. I wondered what kind of a life my father had lived even before my mother went crazy and became a vampire. Aiden and Reuben—two sides of a coin, my father’s double life—both sides of him a complete mystery to me.
Zinnia left me with one final glare. I didn’t expect Aiden to arrive at all, knowing that Zinnia most likely wouldn’t deliver my message to him, but later that afternoon, he stepped into the bedroom, looking rather uncomfortable.
“So Zinnia did send you my message after all…”
“You sent me a message through Zinnia? She didn’t tell me anything… I just arrived from a business trip abroad. Has she been taking care of you?”
I was taken aback by the idea that he came to me out of his own volition. “Yeah. She’s been feeding me regularly, if that’s what you mean by taking care of me.”
“So what was your message?”
“I told her to let you know that I wanted to have a word with you.”
“Well, what do you want to talk about?”
“You have to realize that I will jump at any chance I get to find Derek. You locking me up here and keeping me from doing that only makes me want to do it more. That’s like Raising Teenagers 101.”
“You’re eighteen, Sofia. Technically, you’re already considered an adult.”
“So treat me like one. Let me make my own decisions and my own mistakes. This is my life, a life you chose not to be a part of for the past nine years. Now that I have my own mind and have been making my own decisions, you can’t just step in and call the shots.”
One corner of his lips twitched as he nodded. “I understand what you’re saying, Sofia, but I’m doing what I believe is best for you, and in that, I cannot waver. I know the vampires far more than you do, and in good conscience as your father, I cannot allow you to throw your life away because of this infatuation you have toward this creature. It doesn’t matter how much you love him, Sofia. You can love a vampire and still find that your love doesn’t keep him from being a monster.”
There was so much sadness in his voice, almost as if he was going through what he was saying himself. I wondered once again if this reaction of his had anything to do with Ingrid knowing how to get to that garden. Not quite sure if I wanted to clarify my musings, I crawled to the edge of the bed and sat over it. “Every day you keep me apart from him, you’re killing a part of me.”
He eyed me and I could swear that he somehow understood what I was trying to get through his thick, stubborn hunter skull. “I can’t give you what you want, but I can give you something close.”
He pushed the door wide open and I couldn’t help but gasp in horror when a young woman lurched into my room.
I blinked my eyes several times to make sure that I wasn’t just seeing things, but sure enough, she was standing right there in front of me, a ghost from the past, someone I held close to heart.
The Seer of The Shade herself. Vivienne Novak.
CHAPTER 22: DEREK
A lockout that eventually morphed into a riot. A siege at the port. A kingdom on the brink of civil war while still facing an ongoing threat of an attack from outside forces.
Fabulous. Just fabulous.
After Natalie so wonderfully summed up the state of The Shade, I really had no idea what to do other than to walk away.
“Where are you going?”
I didn’t even know who among the people behind me asked the question. I didn’t care anymore. I knew that if I handled the situation head-on and tried to either quell the riot or retake the port, I wasn’t going to be able to do it without bloodshed. The darkness was close to ruining me and I was aware of it.
“I am going to take a drive.”
“There’s a riot and a siege going on, Derek.” Xavier stepped forward, attempting to be the voice of reason. “Is this really the time to improve your driving skills?”
I pointed at Sam and Kyle. “You two work with Gavin and Ian to figure out how to quell this stupid riot.” I then pointed at Xavier and Cameron. “Call in all the vampires who are still with us. Those who want to remain neutral have that option. At least we’ll know who is really with us. Come up with a plan of action on what to do about the siege at the port.” I then cast a pleading look at the great witch herself. “Corrine, please escort Natalie to The Sanctuary and treat her as our esteemed guest while she is stuck here at The Shade.”
“What about me?” Ashley pointed at herself.
Of all the people present, she reminded me of Sofia the most and I knew that she was one who would never shy away from speaking her mind. “Would you like to go on a joyride with me?”