Command My Heart ~ Book 2 - The Royal Blood Collection

Chapter 16

I never set out to alter the world or even the world around me. Oliver Beaumont was a man that looked after himself first. Jos would be proud, that is if she was talking to me at the moment. We had our ups and downs, like a lot of siblings. She didn't agree with my decision to hide; she was enamored by one of Caplan's goons. Hearing that there had been a war between the new king and a few of the gangsters of this city, I wondered if Jos was still alive.

I don't know what to think of it. Jos was a strong woman, and I hoped that she was smart enough to see the writing on the wall. Caplan was a sexist pig; it was likely that women would not have been invited to a showdown so there was hope to be had. Maybe Jos was still alive.

As for this moment, it was interesting. Violet drank the rest of the blood and then joined us in the family room to watch a movie. I didn't believe that I was the one that pushed her out of the shell, preferring to believe that I'd given her an open door to walk through, disguised as a gentle talking to. I'm sure that it wasn't the end of her issues, but for today, it was a step forward.

Otanawa was laying on my lap, her legs smacking against my chest. Every time something loud happened in the movie, she tried to turn to see what was going on. Emmeline produced a bouncer, setting Otanawa up on the floor with the other kids.

"This is fun, right?" She whispered.

Watching cartoon animals pretending they're humans, yeah sure, why not?

"Yeah." I offered.

I'd not had much of a childhood after my mother died. Dad struggled to pay for our lives, so he was always working. Jos and I were at school; we'd make our way home and wait for dad to finish work. In that time, we were expected to do our homework, ensure that everything was tidy and start preparing dinner. Depending on how long it took for dad to get home, we sometimes made the entire meal.

I liked the days when dad managed to get home early. Even though we didn't have to, Jos and I stayed in the kitchen with him. We helped, not because he asked or demanded but because he was tired. Our lives were not perfect but, in those times, it felt like they were.

When he died, it was surreal. It felt like a blur; I could barely remember the cops knocking on the door, child services coming to take us away. We were allowed to pack our things, but the man from child services said that it was pointless, our first night in the home and they'd be taken by the staff. The items would be sold to pay for our food. If there was something sentimental, then we had to find somewhere safe to stash them or somehow figure out how to pay for a locker at the bus station.

So, I asked the guy to take us to the bus station to price a long term locker. When he turned his back on us, Jos and I hid. We watched as he searched the remaining buses, then took off. Like I said to Violet earlier, it wasn't the wisest of decisions, and I didn't regret it. Jos and I hid until the man left and then went in search of a place to hide from the sun.

Becoming cold and indifferent to the world around me was necessary. Watching lives descend into their own addicted darkness or worse, death, wasn't easy and if I didn't switch off, then I'd be one of them. Jos and I spent years on the street. Finding a meal was easy most of the time, that was until the humans decided to hide of a night.

I wanted to see Jos again, just to make sure she was okay but I knew that I couldn't. Aside from the fact that it was no longer safe or that I was bound to this property, I knew that she'd picked her side. When I left, she called me a coward. Jos would not be happy if she knew that I was here with what they saw as the enemy.

Something snapped in my mind, I sat up, frowning as I thought about it.

"Everything okay?" Emmeline asked.