Blood Line

A Beautiful Death

"Ah, to be young and escape the unforeseen snares of marriage and family honor." The fair haired older gentleman addressed his handsome dark haired nephew with sincere sympathy.

Michael Grant stood with his uncle William in the family's luxurious Vienna estate.  Sighing, he watched the sun set over the Danube.

"Unfortunately, it's not so easy to escape my prearranged destiny Uncle. Lady Anne wants to see me in the main hall immediately. She's enraged I broke the engagement she arranged with Amanda."

William's voice dropped to a low feral growl. His blue eyes changing to liquid pewter. "Really Michael just get out of the coven while you still can."

"Trust me, I plan to leave tonight."

William Kent had listened to his nephew describe his aunt's displeasure with equanimity. His step sister, Anne Kent, claimed ancestral ties to Maria Von Schwarzenberg the notorious vampire princess, but privately he thought Anne was an interloper and a fraud. She was not of pure blood. The marriage she'd forcibly arranged for Michael enraged William.

He found Anne's claim to royal vampire blood ludicrous. The woman was a lying, manipulating demon who was destroying the family dynasty. Euro Trash of the Immortal realm.

Michael interrupted his Uncle's troubled thoughts. "Is everyone already there? He pictured his family surrounding Anne like subservient vultures waiting for fresh carrion.

William inclined his head. "I can't say for sure, but the bulk of them have settled into your grandmother's private quarters. They're busy pledging their loyalty and support to her. Apparently, they've gone to great lengths to separate themselves from your half breed lunacy." With a wicked smile he added, "What they lack in intelligence they make up for in disciplined greed."

Michael wasn't surprised.  Yes, of course she's turned them against me. Anne controlled the money and the family's destiny with an iron will. She used fear and intimidation, wielding them with cruel precision.

Crossing the estate grounds, set back in a private forest, he wondered why his usually reserved uncle had pressed him to leave so urgently. As he entered the foyer of the main hall, he saw his father standing in the back with a strong drink in his hand. His mother, Eleanor, sat silently by his side watching the ongoings impassively. Even though he was not close to his parents he felt a twinge of guilt knowing they would suffer for his rebellious actions.

Seated in the front of a roaring fire sat his grandmother, Anne Katherine Kent. Like a royal monarch she used her elevated height combined with her dark impenetrable eyes, to intimidate visitors. Michael stopped a few feet short of her dais, just out her reach before greeting her.

"You asked to see me, Lady Anne?"

"Michael, I want to know why you've called off your marriage." She glared at him with barely concealed rage. "You not only insult your bride, you disgrace our family. Haven't you given any forethought to the repercussions of your actions. How it will affect family's future. Your inheritance?"

"Actually, I've thought a lot about my future." His grandmother shot him another frustrated, angry glance at his response.

"How can Amanda become your mate you if you won't take your position in this family?"

His fiancé stepped forward when her name was mentioned. Amanda was temptingly beautiful with hair black as night, midnight blue eyes and lush lips set in a creamy complexion. Despite her physical beauty, he felt an empty discontent when he was with her.

She was too subservient. She lacked the fiery spirit he desired in an eternal partner. They'd become engaged last summer, but when the spell of her beauty wore off, he could only feel a cold empty, hard core wedged between them like an insurmountable wall. He knew Amanda hadn't come to say goodbye, or offer her support. She was here for Anne.  

Swallowing, he willed himself to remain unmoved by his grandmother's mesmerizing voice. "Michael, I'm giving you one more chance to accept your responsibility. You need to assume your place in this family!"

Something in him chose to be brutally honest with the family matriarch. "Lady Anne. You can stuff your huge wad of cash up your wrinkly old ass!"

There was a collective hiss from the family, and his grandmother, known for her self control lost her temper. "You stupid ungrateful cur! You're dead to me now! Get out of here!"

The family closed rank around Lady Anne. He imagined sheathed claws emerging from the tips of their clenched fists.

"Well it's been a pleasure, everyone." Angry, cold faces glared at him as he took his leave.

Turning to his former fiancé he noted how unmoved she was by the drama unfolding before her. "Amanda if you ever loved me, you'll understand why I'm doing this."

Without another word, Michael stepped out of the hall. He was leaving the only family he'd ever known, but he felt no real regret. Outside his Uncle William caught up with him as he approached his Porsche.

"Wait Michael, there's something you need to know. It's your blood line that's descended from Maria Von Schwarzenberg not hers!"

Thank you for reading!👻