END ROADS

CHAPTER 39:THE RETURN

Darkness swirled around hypnotizing me. I was going crazy at one go, I could feel my pain, then a bundle of emotions at one go. Fear, anxiety, uncertainty and hopelessness. I twisted around my whole body soar, the pain I was feeling inside had made me numb. I saw darkness dancing right in front of my eye. I felt nauseous I wanted to puke but I couldn’t feel my mouth or even see a thing. I struggled panting and sweating profusely. I was in so much discomfort then a pain shot through my heart as if it had been pierced by something very sharp. I howled in pain the light racing to me in a terrifying speed. The bright light swallowed me up such that all I could see was white and nothing more. Then my eyeballs moved, I could feel myself now.
I could feel my feet, hands and head. There was a mixture of scents in air and mumbles at a distance. I slowly opened my eyes, I was greeted by a dull chandelier and a grey ceiling right above my eyes. I was in daze just staring at the chandelier. Then I shifted my head looking around, I first saw a closet and a dressing table, I looked the other way. There was a bunch of grey sofas, a study table at the far end and a door. I twisted my numb body and sat up.
I was met by five figures staring at me worry written all over their faces. I looked at Sandy who had teary eyes, then at Ari who was literary crying, then Adelyn who was as white as ghost. Jayden was beside her worried as well then another lady…she was very beautiful. That must be Elia!
She looked like a mother worried about her child’s cold. She looked young, beautiful just like a model. Her brown hair was tied in a messy bun and her brows were knitted!
“What happened?” I whispered –actually my voice came in a whisper.
They stared at each other before breaking into weary smiles. Just then a young man burst into the room falling to his knees.
“Sir Jayden, they have arrived the fight has just began” he said
“Go back and please keep me updated”
“Yes sir” he answered firmly walking out actually he ran off
“Becky!” Sandy yelled jumping on me, I fell back on the bed since I wasn’t prepared “You woke up we were all very worried” I looked at Adelyn who shifted uncomfortably
“Am okay” I said.
“That is good” she nodded sitting beside me
Ari came over and hugged me as well. Adelyn stood there giving me a worried- cautious look!  Yeah, I freaked her out
“Good to see you again missy” Jayden smiled at me briefly
“Thank you Jayden”
“And am proud you were quite responsive girl. You are a fighter stronger than I thought. Welcome back”
“Thanks for your kindness Elia” I sincerely thanked her.
“No need, it is my duty” she smiled sweetly
“You scared us Becky” Sandy stated
“Surely you did” Elia sat at the edge of the bed “Two days ago you stopped breathing, your body gained colour but you were as cold as ice. Only a faint heartbeat was present. If you were in the human world…I mean hospital, they could have buried you already, thanks to our super hearing abilities and magic” she explained proudly.
“Then today from around ten, you were wiggling in bed restlessly. That gave us hope but we could not understand what was going on with you. Then a few minutes ago you begun sweating, trembling, and yelling out loud in pain. No one could get close to you or even touch you, there was a barrier surrounding you that we couldn’t break. We had no idea what was happening to you. Then you began nose bleeding…you scared us!” Sandy said crying I pulled her close patting her back gently
“The nose bleeding took a lot of time, and it was frequent then you went still before bursting into a loud scream that lifted you off the bed before falling back on the bed…then you woke up as if nothing happened!” Elia finished “I have never seen something like that!” she admitted lastly.
“Am sorry I scared you guys that much” I apologized not wanting to tell them what actually happened.
“We should be happy you are back. You hungry?” asked Ari
As if my stomach heard her it growled loudly. They looked at each other laughing silently.
“Being human is pretty tough isn’t it?” Elia teased.
“I think it is, I should clean up before eating!” I suggested getting off the bed.
“I will bring your meal” Ari suggested
“No need. I should walk around or am gonna grow roots if I keep staying on this bed” they laughed at my tiny joke walking out Jayden leading.
I sat on the stool chewing on my pork slowly. The food was amazing, if Ari was out there in the city…her bakery or restaurant would be having millions of customers daily. Sandy was seated far off staring at me Ben in her arms. Ben was growing so quickly, in a few more months am pretty sure he will be big enough to start puberty.
I finished my meal and cleaned the plate, I realized it has been long since I did such things. Cleaning dishes, laundry, vacuuming the carpet, changing sheets and all those casual things. I placed the plate on the drying rack and we eft the kitchen. I was crossing the last door before the stairs when it swung open and Arthur emerged. He grinned broadly eyes fixed on my face.
“Hey…long time I see you have recovered!” he stepped closer to embrace me but I stepped back with a polite smile.
“Yeah but not so well too fragile for a hug. Am pretty sore” I lied
“I understand” he nodded stepping closer again. What was this man’s problem? He reached for my hair playing with it between his fingers with a smile…creepy!
“So… I will be leaving the day after tomorrow. You promised me a dance…so don’t forget” he spoke flirtingly.
“I remember and sure, I will do that.” I smiled politely pushing his hand away “and I believe you are a patient man!”
“Sure I am” idiot! I scolded in my mind
“I should go now, got something to do. Bye” we left hastily Ben snarling at him all the way. We were walking past the council room when I spotted Ari and Adelyn entering the room hastily. I followed. A few vampires were standing inside facing Jayden and the young man who had barged into the room some time back.
“The rogues couldn’t be killed!” the young man begun
“What happened?” Jayden inquired
“Grey and Dominic were fighting, Grey managed to overpower Dom. He was about to kill him so the fight could officially begin but there was a sudden force that forced him back. It was more of a shield protecting them from the two. Grey could not break it, so he tried to figure out what was happening then he realized there was a bond uniting them to someone. They are not stray!”
“But they are rogues!” Adelyn complained
“Yes they were, but not anymore. So we can’t kill them yet they belong to someone” the young man concluded.
My heart was going wild already, so this was what Flora did? Now I had disciples? Since I wasn’t a princess of a coven so this wasn’t the kind of a king and his people relationship. It was master servant relationship like he way Ari was always doing what Grey wants or the way the young man was to Jayden…it was scary.
“We have to find their master, the bond seems new as if created at that moment. It must be a powerful vampire if it was able to protect then even from contact” Jayden said with determination.
I almost screamed no when he said they would find their master. On the statement a powerful vampire…I almost laughed, if only he knew it was a weak human who did that.
“So what will they do?” Ari asked
“They will be brought here to check if their master is here, if not they will go check in Spikes coven then in Flames coven which I doubt” Jayden answered.
“We are expecting them tomorrow evening, since they are too many to travel in a go. They will use a portal here…there are enough powerful vampires to open a portal” Jayden’s servant explained.
Squeezing through the crowd at the door I sneaked out of the council room heading to my room. I shut the door slowly wearing a worried look. I sat on the bed staring at the closet that I barely opened. I sighed laying back on the bed staring at the chandelier dimly lighting the room.
My father was the bad guy, my mother was dead? Now I doubted everything that was happening in my life. Was my mother dead or she was somewhere out there involved as well. But if mother was part of this then why was she always fighting with dad? Did she know about vampires? Was she going against father so that was why he was always scolding and beating her?
If mom was a vampire…no we always went to the beach together, watched the sunset and sunrise together. Was dad the one who was a vampire? No…that made no sense at all, he was always out there and hunted vampires. A vampire can’t hunt a vampire!
So where did I get my abilities from? Was mother a witch? I can use the spell book right? So does it mean one of my parents was a witch? Which one of them? And besides, I never saw them do anything beyond what is normal. Or maybe one of them was not my real parent and that could possibly be…dad!
He disliked mother and I, beat me up and starved me almost all the time. Yes, that was it, he was not my real dad!
This thoughts were completely ridiculous, nothing was an open book anymore. I had billions of questions with not even a decimal of an answer.
But again, he was so kind to me sometimes…in his eyes the way he looked at me sometimes made me forget all the pain he made me go through. He smiled sweetly sometimes, when I passed in class, he brought me gifts and called me nice names.
I didn’t know what to think at all, they all were confusing me. And that day when I got an accident dad was not in the car…only blood! Vampires don’t bleed all the time no matter how hard they get hit. If only their throat is slit deeply that is when dark blood spills from them. I recall the blood on his seat was bright red…so…not a vampire. It simply meant he was something else.
I rolled in bed staring the other way staring at the bathroom door.
I turned the other way again staring at the nightstand. I have never opened this drawers. The last time I opened the bottom one drawer and hid the spell book. What about the other three?
I sat up opening the top one, empty. The next one had a few photograph of Grey and Dermot…wait. This guy was beautiful! He had orange hair, bright eyes brown in colour almost golden. His smile was beautiful and enchanting. He looked lively unlike other vampires. Other vampires wore dark huge clothes while Dermot was in a white t-shirt and a blue sweat pant a bracelet on his wrist a golden watch accompanying it. His hair was combed back neat and short. No one could ever think he was a vampire in any way.
Grey who was beside him with his aloof face, had his hand draped around Dermot’s shoulder. He was wearing a black shirt hugging him perfectly. He was in black pants too. His hair was long dark as coal. On the front short hairs hovered over his forehead. His green eyes were dangerous and piercing. His lips were pulled on one side into a dangerous smirk. Who could get close to such a guy? I scoffed knowing my feelings were stuck with him despite the fact.
They were standing in front of an old looking wall filled with lichens. I smiled at the photo and toasted it aside. I pulled the second drawer a green glow spilling from it. I panicked pulling it slowly and carefully.
There was a silver ring inside, its green gem was the one that was glowing brightly. Afraid of what will happen if I touch it, I used a handkerchief and picked it up. I studied it silently, the patterns on it were of vines resembling the ones covering the Vines coven. A small flower was encrypted on it with the small green gem stone at the middle. It was small but it was glowing so brightly!
What did this mean?
I returned it back in the drawer not ready to go numb on the bed for another lifetime. I returned the photos as well and lay back drifting to sleep.


“Wake up you sleepy head, come and welcome that asshole of a lover you can’t get over!” I groaned sitting up tired. Why was I so tired?
“Sandy?”
“Don’t scowl at me, am only waking you to attend to your duty. I eavesdropped when he whispered to your ear six days ago. Wake up so you can embrace me when I come back. That sounded a little too intimate you know!” she smiled playfully
“What are you saying?” I slapped her shoulder going up to the closet to get dressed “he was only pampering me so I can wake up” 
“And which vampire do you think will do that to just a human?”
“Maybe am not just a human, I might be some wonderful human with some little super powers, mmh?”
I pulled on the black leather jacket swaying to the door, Sandy followed behind playfully swinging her hands.
“So are you going to hug him?” she poked my shoulder
“No way in hell. Am not hugging that egoistic prince of yours” I scowled pushing her aside
“Oho, you are so red, why are you blushing?”
“Am not blushing! It is anger” I lied bluntly
“Oh, I think you forgot, when you are angry, your ears are the ones that become pepper red!” she explained knowingly
“And where the hell did you get to observe all those things?” I asked turning right taking another flight of stairs.
“It is quite simple, you have been angry most of the time in this coven. It is something quite easy to observe. Even a blind fool can see that” I said nothing to that I crossed the last door heading to the massive door of the exit. The guards pushed it open a wide driveway with luxurious cars packed in corners all black as coal. It was morning time, cold and dull. Winter would be here soon and it brought a sense of Deja vu from Regina’s memory. This was the problem of having to stay in someone else’s body. You get confused with it sometimes.
Looking around, I spotted a few vampires here and there with humans living in the coven as well. Steel, Jayden and many others were present standing in a strategic manner. The guards made the front line. The place was cold, everyone dressed in black cloaks, expensive shoes and many were in leather. In addition every damn vampire was attractive. Were all vampires made of handsome and beautiful people? The men were more amazing even the elders!
But…Grey was not here or anyone who seems to have come from war. We stood at the back with Sandy just as the others were standing. No one spoke so I kept all the questions to myself. Everyone was quiet standing still like a police parade. I looked around, except from the clearing where the drive way was located the remaining was just forest. A thin path enough to accommodate a car left the area disappearing beyond the eye can see. I looked back at the building, it was tall old looking with vines covering it all over the place, and no one could think it is beautiful in the inside as per the look on the outside. It looked like an abandoned building that was about to collapse any time.
I was getting bored with the waiting, looking around it seemed like everyone was okay with the waiting. For me, I was damn bored with it. I poked Sandy on the side, she glared at me.
“I think I will go back inside. Am getting bored standing here doing nothing”
“Wait a bit longer, it is only for five minutes” she urged silently.
I sighed looking around, any vampire that my gage fell on flinched or simply looked the other way ignoring me. Well that is what you get if you beat up a vampire to the point of begging mercy. I thought I would like to have people scowling away from me, but now I hated it, they treat you as a plague. But again having people hanging on your neck, abusing you, bullying you and seeing you as a puppet isn’t cool either. Non out of them was comforting for even a second. So I guess having people comfortable around you, respecting you and giving you space is way better.
Like Grey, I envied him a lot, people respected him though not all of them loved him, they behaved around him and that was way better than having people disrespecting you, and harming you. You feel like a walking dead or a transparent human. As I was deep in thoughts a light breeze blew around us suddenly.  Looked around frantically, I noticed I was the only one who was freaking out everyone else was staring forward. I forced myself to look at the same direction.
A few seconds later the dry leaves on the drive way begun moving in circles like a whirl wind. Then the grey clouds above darkened swirling as well. The wind became stronger, the breeze was colder than before. The long cloaks floated in the wind enchantingly. I squinted my eyes avoiding the wind blowing into them. Dust gathered swirling around in cyclonical manner, the trees waved and thunder rumbled shaking the ground below.
Moments later a figure emerged from the swirling wind from the centre, stepping out majestically. Aimee, Abi, Ethan, Xavier, Roy….and many others. More and more people emerged around five hundred then finally came Angelica her mate and finally Grey. His eyes were blazing bright red and as glorious as he is he looked more and more amazing in the wind with his dark hair flowing with the current. He balled his hands squeezed his eyes shut inhaling sharply, Angelica, her mate and Dom joined him. They united their hands in front of the portal their eyes shut.
The strong wind slowly calmed down and the portal closed instantly. The four members turned around and the remaining members fell on their knees in respect. Grey waved his hand in air and we rose…I was actually dragged along by Sandy.
“Good to see you again Master Dermot” spoke Jayden “It is such a pleasure to see you whole and alive”
“Thank you Jayden, I hope you also had a peaceful stay back here”
Jayden nodded in response. I felt like I was in an ancient movie where the leaders are exchanging pleasantries.
“Welcome back master of Vines coven, it is such a pleasure” Steel smiled widely but his smile didn’t reach his eyes. Grey offered a small smile and a nod to it.
“Welcome brother” Adelyn rushed into his arms, Grey smiled broadly patting her back.
“Thanks little siz” he responded as they disengaged from the hug.
Adelyn smiled widely patting his shoulders.
“Welcome Angelica and Thompson, nice to see you both” Jayden spoke.
“Thank you Jayden”
The pleasantries took long, then the guards surrounded the group that were once rogues allowing the others to embrace each other. I stood at the far end watching as the vampires chat, hugged and joked around with each other. It was so heart-warming, a family –it looked like family. Together happy and satisfied with one another’s presence. All of them looked happy except the isolated group that stood quietly watching in awe.
Well, there was no one to miss me so…I hug myself…
“Hey you cutie, I missed you!” Abi approached throwing her arms around me into a tight hug. At least someone missed me.
“I missed you too” I rubbed her back not sure if I was lying.
“Good to see your gorgeous skin, the blue made you look like god Krishna!” she teased
“Who the hell is that?” I inquired my brows furrowed.
“An Indian god who is blue in colour, I would say he is the god of love because of the story between him and his wife” she explained proudly.
“Fascinating! How the hell do you know all this?”
“I was very much interested in such stuff for the last century, studying about the gods and goddesses people believe in” she flipped her hair proudly.
“Wow, I guess you are great!” I gave her a thumbs up
“So what…
“Hey Abi, come over!” Lisa waved at her, she smiled at me apologetically running off to her friends.
Yeah, bored again! I leaned against the wall watching with a bored expression. Then the smell of rain wafted my nose, I lifted my eyes looking around but Grey was nowhere to be seen. He was not here so why was his scent all around me. Before I could conclude a very urgent growl roared within me it was more of a call. I tried ignoring it keeping my eyes busy around but the more urgent the call was then a whisper caught my ear
…Becky!”
I gasped in shock looking at my side, but there was absolutely no one there. The call came again and again and again. Before I knew it I was walking back to the coven, then jogging and running the hell towards the seventh floor. I had no specific destination in mind but I found myself pushing on Grey’s door!