The Vampire Council

The Councils Betrayal

Aries

I walked into Erica's house with my heart filled with timidity and fear.

"How the hell did this happen?" I asked Erica as she walked me to her study, where she kept all her charms and spellbooks.

"Well, I think it has something to do with your genes and your father's. It seems you have this special ability to mate with humans and produce offspring," she said.

I stood at the entrance of her study, trying to understand what in hell's name she was saying.

"Then why can only my father and I do this? Why not Darrien or Henry?" I questioned out of curiosity. They were of the same bloodline as me, so they had to have this unique ability.

"Well, maybe it is because it only works when there is a mutual feeling of love between the human and the vampire."

"Well, that explained a lot. But it still hardly gave me a solution to this mess I had created for Natalie and me. And before you start calling me names, I am not saying this baby is a mess. It just came at a pretty bad time."

"What do I do?" I asked in a whisper.

Erica was silent as she played with some pieces of paper on her desk.

"Well, I was going to suggest you hide, but it's a little too late by now. Henry has already notified your uncle, and you know how that will turn out," I hissed in annoyance as I realised this was going to prove even more difficult.

"If your uncle intends to tell the Council, he will probably do it at the next Council seating. The one where your cousin, Darrien, might be made head of the Council," she said.

I felt like my world was crumbling down before me. Hell only knows what Darrien and his father would do if and when Darrien ascends to the title of Council leader. I did not even know how he managed to get nominated; he was never even part of the Council, and he hadn't been Lord yet. How did he get nominated as the head of the Council?

"I have information that might help you, information on Darrien that you can use," Erica was ready to listen. And I was prepared to do anything. Even if it meant going to my enemy to negotiate.

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I walked into the Palace just before sunrise. Those who had had the privilege of staying at the Palace were beginning their slumber. As I walked to my room, I was surprised to see Darrien sitting on the carpet in the hallway, leaning against his bedroom door with his head hung low. Never in my life had I seen Darrien in such a sorry state. Everything that Erica had said to me now made sense. Darrien really was a broken man. And he was a man under oppression. I walked over to him and slid down, sitting beside him on the carpet with my back leaning against the wall. We sat in silence, without acknowledging each other's presence.

"She's pregnant," he suddenly whispered as I got to him; I looked at the carpet as I fought to swallow the big lump now lodged in my throat.

"I know," I said in a voice I hardly recognised.

"Father knows," he added. Again I found myself staring at the carpet as if it were some piece of art.

"I know that too," I said.

"You're not going to let her die, are you?" I shook my head no. And it was the truth. I was not going to let anyone hurt Natalie; I was gonna protect her with my life.

"I would rather die in her place," I said.

He chuckled at my answer. I'm sure he knew how it felt to love and care for someone so deeply that you felt lost without them. However, the only thing he did not know nor understand was that loving and caring for someone sometimes wasn't enough. Sometimes you need to be willing to lay down your life for that person. You needed to be able to give up everything just so they could smile.