“The blood of your queen?” I muttered wondering if they had this wrong, was it something to do with my mother…was she the rose, the only human that Lucius had turned?
“So, what you’re saying is that this Venom of God is poisoning the tree…wait, so the rogues, we were right, they are turning.” They all started nodding enthusiastically and in truth, it looked painful. Then they told me,
“Each leaf is a soul collected.”
“And a soul collected turns black when the infection takes hold.”
“Mnmmham”
“And what about that one there…” I pointed to yet another leaf that fell and crumbled away to ashes before it hit the floor.
“Ah, they destroyed another one.”
“Yes, another soul lost.”
“Mnonnem.” They sounded sad as they shook their heads all at the same time, making the big body sway. But this was when I started to get it.
“So, each leaf is a vampire Lucius turned and when they turn black that means they are rogue but when they fall…”
“Then they die.”
“They are no more.”
“Mubbfubm”
I raised a brow questioning the mumbler, when the first one to speak every time told me,
“He agrees.”
“Right…okay, so there must be a way to stop it?” I questioned thinking that if this was an infection we just had to find a way to cut it off before it had more chance to spread. That was the only way we would save the Vampires and with it my mother.
“A solution there is…”
“But travel to where it all begun you must go.”
“Mellmen.” The Keepers told me nodding as if they were happy they had finally got through to me.
“And where is that…is it…through there?” I asked as I nodded towards the doorway at the core of the tree.
“It is and hurry you must.”
“Time is the key, and we have been waiting for you.”
“Mhaanm.” I held my hands up and started shaking my head,
“Now just wait a second, I think you have the wrong girl, or sex for that matter as it’s Lucius that you need, it’s his blood that…?” I was suddenly cut off, and in a way where their words started to make my heart pound.
“That he stole from you.”
“For his sacrifice can only be undone by the sacrifice of the blood of the pure born.”
“Mmhamum.” I frowned at this in a questioning way before pointing out the obvious,
“But I am just human.” The two that were able gave me a smile and it definitely was more creepy that the comforting one I think they were aiming for. Because they then told me,
“No, you are the rose that blooms.”
“The blood stolen will set us free,”
“Muah.”
“I don’t understand…what are you trying to tell me!” I said now looking up towards that single flower and asking myself,
“Is that not my mother’s soul?” They tilted their heads at my question the way a dog would when hearing a new sound. Then they dropped a bombshell on me and said,
“No, it is yours.”
“The pieces of soul he stole from you.”
“Mnmnhm” I gasped as my hands flew to my mouth at the same time I was shaking my head. Because no, it was impossible…he would never…he wouldn’t. So, I told them,
“Lucius!? No…No that…that can’t be…I am just a human! I was born this way,” I said stumbling back as I said this, unable to keep my eyes from that fucking flower.
“The Venom of God left you human.”
“It took from you our Queen born.”
“Mhh.”
I shook my head again, trying to make sense of what they were telling me. All that time wondering, asking myself how could I possibly be human? How not a single piece of my father had made it through into my life? That surely it was wrong. Surely a mistake had been made. Feeling all my years as if something was missing and now…now as I stared up at the blood red rose, I was starting to feel it. The river of blood in my veins. The one I had somehow managed to call forth that day in the vault.
How had I done that?
How had I fucking done that if I was nothing but human?!
Which meant that I had only one last question left to ask,
“What am I? What part of my soul did Lucius steal?” The question left my lips and my gaze went to the thief in question, knowing in the depth of my heart that he had known. All this time, since when I was born, the first time he ever saw me, not as a teenager but as a baby. He had somehow stolen that part of me, making me human!
And he knew.
He fucking knew!
It was why he had walked away. Putting the life he had put at risk at arms-length.
So now, as I repeated the question, I did so with my own Venom,
“What am I!?” I screamed it this time, having the power to rock the Temple floor, forcing Lucius to begin to waken from the force of my furious question. I could feel this place start to seep into my veins as anger started to shake my body as I trembled, awaiting what I knew was my stolen destiny and all from the man I loved.
And he knew.
All this time, he had lied.
“Amelia?” he said my name, shaking off the effect of our separation as I had done before him.
“What part of me did he steal?” I asked more calmly now, seeing as he was rising from the floor. He quickly took in the sight of me, but he froze as he heard that question.
“Amelia…what are you…?” His question was cut off quickly when he took in the sight of the Tree of Souls and the Keepers. He scanned the whole space in seconds and that was when it hit him.
“NO!” he roared making me close my eyes against his cry of anger,
“No, Amelia look at me! Look at me, don’t listen to them and I will explain.”
“I don’t need you to explain, Lucius, I just need you to tell me what part of my soul it is you stole from me,” I said, looking down at my feet as the tears started to cloud my gaze, making the patterns on the floor merge as one. I swallowed hard and finally looked back up at him, seeing for myself the face of the guilty staring back at me. But despite this, the first part of my answer came from the Keepers, making me suck in a startled breath when they told me, all at the same time, speaking as one…
“The Angel in you, is what he stole.”
At this my legs gave way and my knees hit the floor as if with that truth everything in me came crashing down all at once.
But the truth was far from done as Lucius was then the one to add to his list of crimes against me,
“I stole the soul of an Angel and that of…
“A first born Vampire.”
To be continued in…
Kingdoms of Hell
Transfusion Book 7