Cruel Awakenings

5. Trust

After a little bit, Celeste finally took her leave. She had work calling for updates, and I practically begged for her to go off and get back to her life and job. Not that I wasn't very much a part of it, but I was okay. Or as fine as I genuinely could be. That and as much as I longed for the company during this time, I knew it wouldn't make it easier to understand. How could I even explain this to my best friend and mother? I couldn't. Not yet, at least.

The wine I chugged to help my plaguing migraine was doing its job, but I wasn't getting as strong of a buzz as I was used to.

Ugh. What's wrong with this?

"Not liking the wine anymore, huh?" I heard his voice in the living room before seeing him myself. At this point, I wasn't as afraid of him as I once was. More so irritated.  Irritated at everything I knew and questioned because of him. But yet, I had more questions than answers, and I wouldn't jeopardize that. Though, I know how idiotic that sounds, considering I watched him hurt my clients.

I set the bottle down on the counter, exhaling a breath I'd been holding. My sleepy eyes met his piercing blue ones, and I raised a brow. The kind of face that says, 'What are you talking about' in the most excellent way I could give him at this point.

The pale man grinned. I'd typically find myself charismatic or charming if I didn't know the things I did now. "For people like us, wine is like a cigarette. It's like enough to feel a light buzz or high but nothing like it does for mortals." Derek's arm reached out for the tequila on the counter with purpose. He swirled its explicit contents around before placing it back on the counter. "Now this? Different story. We do get trashed, but we have to consume far more to maintain it properly." He muttered.

I bounced my eyes between the wine and tequila, almost considering it before losing the urge to drink almost as quickly. "Where do I fall in that category?"

Derek shrugged. "That is still unknown. See, our kind is forbidden to have children with mortals. Does it happen?" He eyed me up and down, grimacing. "Yes. Does it end very badly? Mhm." He declared as if I was supposed to know or understand why. "You're unnatural. Even more so than us. You have Royal blood tainted with what we see as our food source. That gives you a powerful advantage as a full-blooded vampire. But as you currently are...." He waved his hand toward me rudely. "You're a threat to our way of life, mockery towards our customs, and as a human, you're far more prone to exposure." Derek reminded harshly.

My brows knit together. Exposure? Exposure to their existence... "Alright. For one, I didn't ask for this rude ass." Derek rolled his eyes as if that wasn't a valid point in his demonstration bullshit.

"You're a half-breed. You possess faster healing and other capabilities than mortals and regular vampires alike. Characteristics that make your half-bred nature an easy target.  As you're getting the best of both worlds, it would be far easier to kill you off than keep you simply existing, let alone for political reasons at court.  On the other side, you also pose a risk from the bloodline you've descended from to those other families wanting rights to the throne by their bloodlines." Derek swallowed and nodded slowly, tight-lipped. I stared for a few seconds, carefully choosing my following words.

  "Right... royal blood, as in? Kings and queens? All of you haven't advanced much, huh?" I gawked, to which Derek narrowed his eyes shamefully at me. Oops. "That being said.. what you're implying is my father. I'm assuming father simply because my mother knows Jack shit about this. Somehow knocked my mother up, and now after how many years, I'm showing signs of being some half-breed thing?" Even as the words left my mouth, I felt idiotic for saying them. Did it make sense? Yes. But was it also the most ludicrous thing I've ever thought about? Also yes. I shook my head with a frown. "No. Even saying that aloud makes absolutely no sense. What you say would imply my mother, um.. yeah, I don't see that happening. You're not all that discreet." I gestured towards him.