Daybreak, BK 4 of the Lightwalkers

II - Christina

A touch on my shoulder brought me awake all at once. I sat up, my body complaining about the hunched over position I'd chosen to sleep in. Alexander stood at my side, a carrier envelope in his hand.

"Madam, this has arrived for you."

He held the flat envelope out to me and I took it with a sigh. As I'd expected, it was sent from home. I pried it open and unfolded the parchment that was inside, quickly skimming my mother's scrolling handwriting.

I'd been summoned home.

Setting the orders aside, my eyes fell on Sin. His coloring was much improved, his breathing easier. It'd taken nearly ten bags of blood to get him to this point, but he still had yet to regain consciousness.

What was I doing? I'd spent the better part of my life planning for this, training for this. And it'd gone wrong from step one. I couldn't have known about the silver-

I looked at Alexander, still beside me. "You knew he had a weakness to silver."

He met my gaze briefly. "Yes, madam."

"You never warned me."

Turning away from Sin, he faced me, looking down at me from his tall stature. "I never thought you would actually find him."

His voice had a bitter tone, and it caught me by surprise. Alexander was one of Mother's prize creatures. One who followed the rules, the protocols perfectly, and yet, in these past few weeks with Sin, he'd regressed. Stealing the blood, and the manner in which he seemed almost protective of the older vampire, it bothered me.

"It's almost dawn. You should retire," I said.

Alexander bowed and left the room without another word.

I should have reinforced the training, scolded him for not being completely truthful, for the tone of his reply. But, I was exhausted and the thought of using more power just made me feel worse.

With a sigh, I glanced over at the letter my mother had sent.

Time had run out. I had budgeted two and a half weeks to instill the basics and get Sin to a manageable point, to prove that we could take older vampires. That with a little extra effort, they could be tamed as well.

Instead, I'd spent the time trying to keep him alive. Now I would have to return home with not only a forbidden older vampire but one that was untamed. This was not going to go over well. 

----------

Thanks for reading! The next chapter will be posted on 5/11. :)