Blood Blossoms

18

Unedited.

Emilio finished tucking Rose snugly in her bed as he leaned his head over her sleeping frame, and planted a soft kiss to her forehead, silently apologizing for the position him and his peers had put upon all of the girls in the house.

What really broke his heart was the fact that his blood wasn't going to be enough to heal the coma she was going to be in from the blunt force trauma. He calculated that she would be out of it for the next four days or so. He dreaded having to tell Johnathan that.

He grit his teeth as he sensed an unwanted presence nearby. He ran to the exit to f Rose's bedroom, his speed quick in jagged movements.

"Get the bloody hell away from here." He growled down at Ophelia.

Her nostrils flared as she glared at Emilio with pleading eyes. Her pout was permanent as her shoulders slumped. "I need your help with Rhonda—"

Emilio grunted as he began to walk away.

"—Emilio! Her burns are really, really bad. I've seen some crazy shit in my day, but these wounds are nothing like anything in existence. You have to see this. This is no ordinary girl you have here." She ranted behind him.

He stopped at her words, his back still towards her. He remained silent while she said her piece.

"That girl needs to be killed before she hurts someone else in a rage like that. If she hasn't already. I've done all I can to try and heel Rhonda with all the herbs in the basement—yes, I rummaged I know, but you don't understand that—"

Emilio was in her face within seconds and her ranting was beginning to piss him off.

"How dare you say I don't understand?" He growled. "Was it not your diabolical uncle that murdered my mum? My baby sister? My dad." He seethed furiously. "You can miss me with all the bullshit about not understanding what you're going through." He dismissed her by turning his back and walking away.

Leaving the angry ancient vampire in his wake, he felt someone's wave of panic as he stopped in his tracks on the stairs and looked upward towards the level where the girls' bedrooms resided.

Bernard and Jareth walked through the corridor of the lower level of the estate speaking in sign language. The two twins learned from Johnathan along with Emilio years ago to communicate with one another when they wanted to speak privately without the extreme hearing capabilities of another bloodsucking being. The only language a vampire couldn't eavesdrop to hear.

Bernard shook his head vigorously as his shoulders dropped.

"It's going to be done, brother." Jareth said out loud placing his hand gently on the old twin's shoulder. "After dinner you just need to be safe and sound there, understood?"

Bernard pierced his wrinkled lips together in frustration. Shaking his head he shrugged Jareth's hand off of him and treaded into another direction.

Emilio appeared beside Jareth with uneasiness in his gaze. "Something isn't right," he said in a light daze as he kept his ears sharp for anything suspicious upstairs.

"How do you mean, Lio?" Jareth asked.

"Nothing, I guess. Let's get dinner together. I can't believe father is making us host these—"

"I do believe you're going to say "these oh so lovely full blooded royals." Rachel Christine said interrupting as she strolled towards them with Yvonne her older cousin.

Rachel grinned arrogantly as her dark red low cut dress flowed behind her. Her pale skin glistened in the lighting as her bright white hair was pinned elegantly atop of her head with a pearl hair comb. Her neck was decked in a diamond choker and her ears accessorized with studded large diamonds.

"We came to make sure the humans weren't cooking our dinner." Yvonne said in a flat tone as she stared bored at the both men before them.

"No. We are your chefs for the remainder of your stay." Emilio said.

"Oh, then it's even worse." Rachel gasped horrified walking past them. "Is the kitchen still the same since we were here last?"

Emilio and Jareth shared an annoyed look as the two cousins walked past them.

"I do hope you've brought us fresh food. We do not feed from tainted blood bags stolen from human hospitals. Nor do we feed on animal blood. We are not savages." Rachel said snobbishly as she scoffed looking through the refrigerator.

"Then I guess you should find a friendly restaurant catered to your preference." A voice said from the threshold of the kitchen.

Everyone turned to see Johnathan with his hands stuffed in his slacks as he glared at the two women.

"Well sure, that would be most glorious is we could actually find one in the light of day." She grinned arrogantly.

"You're welcome to try if you like." He shrugged holding his hand out for the two of them to leave.

"I think I'll pass." Yvonne deadpanned.

"Then, you will eat whatever the boys make for you and your posh clan, and leave by midnight. You will find your coffins in the cellar where you both left them." He concluded dismissing them.

Rachel scoffed in disbelief as she rolled her eyes and slowly walked out of the kitchen with her arms folded across her small chest with a careless Yvonne right behind her.

"Father—" Jareth started.

"—Leave it be." He said firmly. "You know where to get fresh blood. Emilio, you stay and cook up the girls some of their favorites, they deserve it for what they've been through today. Sir Anthony Christine and I have an agreement that they won't try what Rhonda and Ophelia did."

"What exactly is going to happen to Rhonda? Because you better get to her before I do, Rose isn't going to heal as quickly as we want her to. Not with how hard her head hit the wall, a bleeding brain is tough even for vampire blood." Emilio said venomously.

Johnathan perked an eyebrow at him. "I just had a word with Ophelia. She knows she and her sister will be beheaded and their entire bloodline will be exiled if they try another stunt like that again. They're not staying for supper." He confirmed.

Jareth and Emilio nodded in sync. Johnathan studied them for a moment before turning his back to leave.

"Ah yes. I forgot to mention... I'm giving Iris to Anthony as a truce."

Both of the boys stiffened as if drenched in ice water. Johnathan walked away and the two princes glanced at one another in horror.