The Kings Bride

Chapter 21

Demitri

Henry falls onto the black street and holds his neck between both hands, his face is red and his blood covers Artemis. He stares at me pleading to stop the pain but I don't. Instead of ending it quick I crouch besides him and watch him struggle to get even a gasp of air into his lungs. His eyes ready to pop out of his head is the last image I remember. I can't remember anything after that, my mind just goes black. I wake up in the infirmary on the floor. Lights off and silence, nothing is making a noise, no heartbeat, no animal. Papers all over the floor, blood smeared on the walls. I ache as I push off of my knees and onto my feet, the room sounds and I quickly grab onto the arm of the couch until my balance is steady. I take a deep breath and make way for the door. Lights flickering as I walk down the eerie hallway and into the main castle hallway.
"Hello?!" I shout, the only reply was my echo. Where is everyone? I can't remember how I ended up on the floor back there and it's killing me with the blank image of time in my head. I run up the stares and see our room completely ruined, Ravens diapers thrown around the room our bed flipped against the wall. Jewelry thrown into the fire place, I run into the girls room a few doors down from ours and see the only things messed up in here is there closest, clothes are missing, they have to be okay. They have to be! I run out the castle, over my head lies a black sky and lightening casting down from it. I walk past the gates and see Henry's body still on the floor, homes are burned to the ground and still not a body in sight. I take the horse standing over Henry's body and ride him into town. A woman and a man holding a small bag each are walking into the woods.
"Wait!" I shout, their hooded faces turn in my direction and they stand still. I gallop over to them and slide down from the horses body. The woman has a burn mark on her cheek while the man has cuts across his forehead.
"Where are my people? What's happened?" I ask.
"The Queen your majesty." He says.
"The Queen what?" I asked.
"This, burned homes, killed guards, killed wolves, our people, some weren't too lucky to have made it out of the fires and if they were they were killed by her own hands. She went dark your majesty."
"How I don't understand?"
"You were there, you saved her, she fled to the woods with Princesses Mercy and Raven."
"How?"
"We don't know, after Henry died you carried her back inside and shortly after that's when everything went dark, the clouds casted over and began spitting dangerous lightening bolts that struck our houses, then the loud screams and howls from inside the castle, I couldn't see much but I saw her, her eyes, were as red as yours, her hair growing black at the roots, she held both girls hands and disappeared into the woods. It almost appeared as if she were a-"
"Vampire." I said. I watched as they both nodded their heads and stood still, the crackle of thunder was over us and spooked them both.
"we need to leave before she comes out again please let us be on our way your majesty." He begs.
"All will be fixed I promise both of you." I nod my head and rush back to the horse I tie him to the tree and run into the words near the castle as fast as I can, listening for any sound of the girls or even Artemis. I can hear the birds and nothing else. The thunder grows louder and the sky becomes darker. I run towards the old hidden house but find nothing there, it's burnt down, the shield from the barrier protector is broken, and the fire is fresh she had to have been here. I look around for any trace of them and see a small trail of blood on the trees. All leading to one place. Helena's. I run as fast as I can towards Helenas and try to step on the stairs but was pushed back by a shield. I press my hand into it again but it zaps me.
"Artemis!" I scream.
"Are you here Artemis! Please!" I scream beginning to feel hopeless with no answers coming one after another.
"You aren't real." A whisper from behind me says. I turn around but find no one there. I can feel someone around me but I can't see them.
"Art please! I'm here! What have you done?" I ask talking into the woods.
"Who's doing this! Who's acting like my dead husband!" I hear her scream. Angrily rushing from the trees. I almost couldn't even recognize her. Her tan complexion now white, her once light brown curly hair now turned dark as night, eyes as red as mine, blood stains her dress. Her hands clenched in fists as she stays 15 feet away from me.
"I'm not dead, I'm here, I'm alive, believe me, touch me!" I beg.
"I saw him, he was on the floor, they said he died! They said his heart stopped after he was done the spell! I saw my husband! Lifeless on the floor besides me!" She shouts. Lightening cracks besides me.
"Touch. Me." I whisper. I step forward and watch her stand angrily by the tree. I take small steps until I'm in front of her.
"Artemis, it's me, I promise you." I whisper putting my hand in her now black hair and feeling it between my fingers.
"I don't believe you." She whispers and grabs ahold of my hand pushing it away from her.
"Where are the girls Artemis? Did you hurt them? Are they inside?" I ask next.
"My children? You're here from them aren't you just like my parents, do you believe you can take them from me?" She asks turning her head on an angle.
"Art it's Demitri! I'm alive dammit!" I scream. I hear the sound of the front door open and blonde curls stick out from the door. Little Mercy's head pops out as she calls foe Artemis.
"Mommy, Raven threw up again!" She shouts.
"Mercy!" I shout. Walking towards the house my back to Artemis. Mercy opens the door wide and smiles at me.
"Daddy!" Mercy shouts running down the steps pasted the shield.
"Mercy no!" Artemis shouts running behind me. Mercy runs into my arms and hugs me tightly. She takes a deep breath and tells Artemis.
"Daddy found us." She whispers. Artemis stands behind me facing Mercy and cries.
"Mercy, it isn't daddy. He died, I told you." She falls to her knees behind me. I turn around with Mercy in my hands and see her on her knees crying into the palms of her hands. Mercy watched from above her mom collapse onto the floor, pain rushing through her. Her cries grow louder and her breathing becomes a gasp for air. I put down mercy and sit in front of Artemis.
"You did exactly what I would have done Art. You fought, you have done more than anyone could ask of you, you kept them safe, you're changing, you aren't just a witch anymore, you're also a vampire. I didn't wipe your tears all these years for you to give up. I'm alive, why would you think I'm dead?" Her hands still covering her face but her cries go quite with every second I talk.
"I can't remember everything, just flashes. Henry dying. You stood above him smiling, victorious. I was proud of you. Then once he stopped moving I shut my eyes, I regained consciousness while in your arms, you didn't notice. But the look in your eyes, they were black and huge, spit was shooting from your mouth as you shouted orders, you called for Davina, I looked down at my chest. An-and saw the baby red and purple in my hands. He was so cold and little, then I blacked out again. The next time I woke up you were on the ground shaking dangerously fast. The baby was gone and Davina was with you while doctors held me down. My throat was burning, like fire was in the pit of my throat. I could hear everything, all the heart beats, the whispering, the breathing, all I wanted was to save you, but they wouldn't let me up. I fought them, but they locked my hands down in chains. Davina tried saving you, but you wouldn't stop shaking." She cried.
"That's when I felt the teeth ripping out from my gums, and the sudden strength, I broke the chains and snapped each doctors neck, after snapping the last doctors neck there was a mirror in front of me, my eyes were red, and my hair slowly turned black, the fangs were small and sharp, I cut my tongue. I could hear Davina's heart pumping rapidly in my ear, I didn't want to hurt her Demitri, I fought that urge, I fought it. I ran besides you, holding your hand trying to save you, at-least stop you from shaking, Davina kept whispering Latin and it wasn't working, then you stopped shaking, I was screaming at her to tell me what she did, but she wouldn't tell me, instead she started coughing blood, and I could smell it, the fresh blood that I hated for years was now all I craved. I could feel the hunger racing inside me, but my morals. I couldn't kill her, she saved me, but let you die at the same time, once you were gone, same went with my humanity. I dropped your hand and drank her till she collapsed, she was pale, and her eyes stuck open, I moved her into the bathroom so no one could see what I did. More people came in, they saw the doctors and tried to grab me, but I did what I kept doing, killing, I kissed your lips and left the room. Many of your men tried to stop me but all I did was kill them, I-I snapped my fingers and necks just snapped. I ran up to the girls room. Both sleeping soundly, I grabbed clothes and put it in a backpack and woke them up. Then a knock was at the door. It was Pearl. The fear in her eyes Demitri, she held Lenora tightly as tears fell from her eyes. She kept asking me what happened but all I could smell was the blood. It was killing me, I was so hungry Demitri, I still am. But I know my rights and wrongs, I couldn't kill my best friend I couldn't. But she worked my last nerve. She didn't want to let me leave in my "condition" she brought up the war, the baby, and then you." She looks at me and continues her story as she wipes her tears.
"I pushed her out of the way and held both girls. I could hear more people running up the stairs. God dammit Demitri, everyone's dead, I killed them, all of them, the look on Lincoln's face Demitri, he lost all hope, he thought I killed them, I tried telling him I didn't, I tried telling him I locked them in our room but he wouldn't believe me, he kept fighting me, I thrashed with him, I didn't want to kill him, he was so kind, killing him would kill any part of my human side I had left. So I choked him, and threw him inside the room too. I sealed it shut with a spell, then the rest came and they went, I grabbed the girls again and fled the castle, the clouds were turning black and the wind was dangerous, lightening was falling from the sky and I don't know why, but the towns people kept staring and coming to watch the show it seemed I felt like everyone was watching me, I hated them staring at me like they did. So I burnt down a few houses and killed a couple dozen of them, after I fled to the woods. I had ended up back at the old house, it smelled like us, and the girls kept asking for you, especially Mercy, she's a daddy's girl, and it hurt, all she wanted was you, and I couldn't tell her what I saw. How could I? Tell our seven year old daughter that her mother killed her father?"
"You didn't kill me though." I whisper.
"Almost! And that was too much for me, so I burnt the house down, and everything inside it, Mercy held Raven while I casted fire upon fire down on the house, and it felt good for a few seconds till it didn't. That's when I came here, I put a barrier up with the girls inside so no one could hurt them while I was gone."
"Where were you going?"
"I needed blood, for all three of us, Ravens sick, Mercy is actually hungry for blood, and me? I'm a freaking vampire witch!" She shouts standing to her feet, her red eyes large and fangs showing while small zaps appeared from her hands.
"Everything will be okay, I'm here now." I tell her.
"How? Everyone's dead Demitri! I killed them!" She cries.
"It wasn't you, you thought I was dead Art, you're still good, you're still the nice, charismatic woman I fell in love with. So what, you turned into a vampire, hello, so is your husband and not to mention your two beautiful children." I tell her brushing my finger across her lip.
"How do we fix this?" She asks.
"Take one day at a time, we teach you how to feed properly, to control your emotions, we bring back our people who left, we make amends to the creatures who were harmed, but for right now, I want to go inside the house and calm you down okay?" I ask. I hold out my hand and wait for her to take it, she leads us towards the house and I cringe slightly as we walk through the shield. Opening the door Mercy and Raven sit on the floor looking through old photo albums. I let go of Artemis's hand and fall to my knees in front of them, grabbing a hold of each of them and hugging them tightly, kissing each head repeatedly and give my unconditional love. I reach up for Arts hand and pull her down in my lap too. She brings her arm over my shoulders and holds onto Raven. She lays her head against my cheek and takes a deep breath.
"With every beating breath I take I'll truly never understand how my life changed to this. I was a human on earth, poor and alone, to a servant to making you an heir, to becoming your lover, to being your wife. It was like you were made for me, everything that happened lead to this. I love you, so much Demitri." She says. I caress her head softly listening to hear breathing slow down and slide all three of my sleeping beauties from above me. I quietly step outside and look towards my palace. Everything's ruined, centuries that spent creating my home, ruined within seconds, I've lived with no regrets in my life, but watching the flames burn homes and the life bodies on the ground. Maybe it's time to change how the others ruled and make this different. Starting with my own family. To my dear Artemis, know that without you I am nothing but a man and with you, I am a man with a purpose.

The End
I truly hope my readers enjoy this ending, I thought it would make everyone happy, I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and hope you are surrounded by those who love you. Thank you for being a part of my life through this small story, and I wish to talk to all of you again, filling smiles on my face, i hope to see you in more of my comments through my other books. Thank you to my dear readers who pushed me to finish a book I wanted to give up on, then you for never giving up on me. Love, Haley.