Divine Destiny: Serendipity Saga Book Two

Chapter Nine

Lucas' face lit up as he began his tale. He spoke like a soothsayer of old, eager but obviously wanting our attention raptured, waiting anxiously for its climax.

He spoke calmly, retelling my own fuddled memories from a clearer perspective. His face held a confident but strained expression. He didn't seem to want to recount the events of those days but he made the effort.

"I entered the arena after it had already fallen into chaos," he began, the image swarming into my mind. "You had just...dispatched Henrick and were staying with Will."

Will's eyes darted to the side. He looked uncomfortable at the thought. I wondered if he remembered any of this. Or even if Lucas has told him.

"Your father and I spoke at length about what to do about Will. You were all but comatose."

The room had fallen silent, each of us recounting those moments. I had all but lost my hearing for a time, though whether from trauma or from the percussive explosions of thunder, I had never been sure.

"Your father expressed to me how much Will meant to you and how he honestly wasn't sure how you could handle such stress, especially under the heightened emotions of a baby vamp. So, I made him a deal. We would wipe out the rogue Vampyres together, and create a more solidified alliance between our races and I would try my damnedest to bring Will back."

Damien looked sheepishly into his hands. My eyes were wide, watching him. I hadn't known that. Had my father put the Magicks in jeopardy over Will and myself?

"Your father moved the earth, creating a pocket beneath the surface that I quickly retreated to after the fighting had ended. Thankfully, Will was still alive. He was paralyzed and wouldn't hold out much longer but he was alive. We think you may have impacted that, though we're unsure how."

The room fell into silence while Lucas had his glass of wine refilled and took long swigs of it. I stared at the grain of the table, unsure how to face them and not wanting to meet anyone's eyes while I puzzled through my feelings.

He cleared his throat and continued. "I fed Will my blood but instead of healing him, he immediately began to undergo the change from human to Magick which would almost certainly have killed him. The only option I was left with to save his life was to turn him. So, with my blood heavily in his veins, I killed him myself, allowing the turn to Vampyre to take him over instead. In his mostly dead state, my blood did it's work, cleansing his body of its injuries. It took days before he finally awoke and during that time, we weren't certain if he would survive it or not. Hell, we weren't certain if you'd survive or not."

I saw him look up at Will for a moment who had gone entirely stiff. Will reached up, mussing his hair with one hand. It was a nervous gesture, something he always did when he felt awkward. The only other outward indicator of his feelings had always been nervously fiddling with his wire rimmed glasses, though after his turn, he no longer needed those.

"When he did finally wake up, he had successfully completed the change to Vampyre, his body whole and well again," he finished, leaving the room in stunned silence.

We all shifted quietly, Kellic played with her food, moving it about the plate. But instead of taking a bite, she gulped an entire cup of wine down in one swig.

So that was it. I had missed all of that, being mostly dead myself at the time. I saw my father and Lucas in a new light. Yes, Lucas had leveraged saving Will's life in return for helping his people, but I still wasn't sure he wouldn't have done it anyway.

He grinned over at me, as though picking the thoughts from my mind. "Your father had no way of knowing, but I probably would have done it anyway."

Damien glared up at him. "I knew you would," he replied. My gaze darted to him. He had known that he hadn't had to wager such great stakes, but he had done it anyway?