Vampiric speed raced through my veins, but at the last moment, my limbs seized as one of my uncle’s many commands took over.
Forcing myself to move slower, I righted myself to stop us from touching, then smiled pleasantly. “Royden’s on his way back to the Council, so I told him you could accompany me to see my parents.”
I didn’t wait for his reply and instead began to saunter down the hall at a normal pace, trying to act as though I didn’t have a care in the realm.
Xaven fell into stride behind me, his throwing stars flashing in the fairy lights. He did it easily, his demeanor normal.
Consciously, I continued to control my speed so he didn’t suspect anything. But it felt strange to move so slowly. It would be so easy to blur down the hall, reappearing at my parents’ chambers in mere seconds.
I took more deep breaths, forcing those too.Act normal. Act normal.
My Maker’s commands buzzed through me until I felt like a puppet, even though my puppet master was hundreds of miles away.
Gritting my teeth, I pumped my hands into fists. Tension strummed along every nerve inside me. I wanted to scream in frustration, but since that would also look bizarre, my uncle’s command again took root.
Stiffly, I arrived at my parents’ chambers on wooden legs, and the two guards standing at the double doors bowed.
“You can wait out here,” I told Xaven. “That’s what my parents usually prefer.”
He dipped his head, and the only solace I took was seeing that both he and my parents’ guards were acting as they always did. They had no idea that I could hear their steady heartbeats, or that I could smell the blood whooshing through their veins, or that a slight ache had again formed in my jaw as horror filled me that I wanted toconsumeagain, even though a month had not yet passed.
I stumbled over the threshold, and both of my parents looked up from where they were sitting at the dining table. Steaming plates filled the table’s surface, but it was only the two of them as my sisters weren’t there.
“Primelle!” My mother pushed to standing and rushed over to me. She held her hands out, and a terrifying realization struck me that I would have to touch her. “You’ve returned! Come sit with us and join us for lunch. There’s plenty of food.”
I plastered a smile on my face, dread coiling up inside me the second her hands gripped mine.
Her smile faltered, even more so when she brushed her lips against my cheek in a kiss. “Oh, darling, you feel so cold. Come, sit by the fire.”
She released me, and relief filled me that she simply thought me chilled and nothing more.
Obligingly, I followed her to their table.
My father stood and embraced me too, but since none of our skin directly touched, he hadn’t sensed what my mother had.
“How was your time with my brother?” he asked pleasantly and moved over one seat so I could take his chair nearest the fire.
My uncle’s command had a response coming out of me before I even knew what I was going to say. “It was lovely, quite enlightening in fact. Uncle Arnel was a gracious host, and we enjoyed our time together in his library. I had no idea he was such a scholar.”
My father chuckled, and the innocent sound made my insides wither. “He’s a bit like you in that sense. He’s always had an affinity for the unknown.” His smile broadened. “Growing up, he was either in the library or infirmary, either studying or learning from the healers. Lucky bastard. He didn’t have to attend council meetings like I did or learn how to rule a kingdom. He was free to spend his time as he chose.”
A sad smile lifted my lips. Even though my father’s words could be construed as resentful, his tone was anything but. A note of affection filled his voice, and my smile dimmed as I stared at him. The king of Mistvale Kingdom was totally unaware that his twin brother had been plotting against him and his family for many full seasons, and there was absolutely nothing I could do to warn him about it.
I sat stiffly and stared at the food around us. I wasn’t hungry for food, but my uncle said vampires could eat if they chose to. However, it wasn’t necessary to survive. Only blood was.
Automatically, I took each plate that was passed to me and gave myself a small portion, and I took some comfort in the fact that the smell still appealed to me.
“Here, Prim, don’t forget this.” My mother handed me one of the vials from their potion masters.
I automatically took it, being careful not to let our fingers touch again, and spread it over my plate. Unsurprisingly, the foggy magic lit up with a green hue.
“Tell us more about what you learned at your uncle’s.” My mother lifted her fork, her aura relaxed.
“Uncle Arnel found a book that could explain my magic.” The words flowed out of me as if another were speaking.
My parents gasped. “Truly?”
“Indeed.” I lifted a bite of food to my lips. When the hen met my tongue, it tasted as it always had, and a part of me wanted to weep in relief. I swallowed it quickly and added, “What he foundisn’t a new concept, though. It spoke of the gods blessing a few fae with their power. Uncle Arnel speculated that I’m a recipient of a goddess’s lineage.”
