Chapter 5

    Harlow - 1 Year Later 

    

    The fear in my heart is real, Erik gives me a tender kiss of reassurance. He thinks I am scared to go to the King’s palace because of the dangers that lie there. 

    

    In a way he is correct but the danger is him finding out his precious Lia is still alive, the danger is me loosing his love that I have so cherished for the past year, the danger is his heart closing to me once more. 

    

    I’m fully aware of the vampire court, the opulence, the parties, the plotting and that does not phase me. A beautiful, selfless, strong woman with amber eyes does. She has haunted my dreams for the last year, the gift she unknowingly gave me at her own expense has made me the happiest vampire alive. 

    

    In the middle of the night I often wake up though wracked with guilt. It feels like it crushes me at times, she is living a lie, a life of danger so that I can curl up in bed next to her true love. There have been times that I have almost told him the truth, especially when he has holed himself up in the lab lost at how he managed to survive the bio weapon. I see the guilt in Nicholas too. 

    

    I am sadly not that good a person, too selfish to loose him. A constant battle between the angel and the devil on my shoulder. My devil always winning when it comes to Erik. 

    

    And now it has lead us here, a summons by the King himself to the Vampire Court, news has reached him of Erik’s miraculous recovery, of his research and work with the bio weapon and he wants Erik to join forces with his lab to see if they can eradicate the threat for good. 

    

    It is the only summons he would have answered, an alliance for the greater good of all vampires. I’m not a fool we are about to come face to face with his lost love, how will he react? I know when he finds out what she has done for him his heart will once more belong to her. I will be left on the sidelines with my unrequited love once more. 

    

    Taking a deep breath I prepare myself for the worst “Let’s go in shall we” I whisper back and he takes my hand squeezing tight as we exit the car and walk up the huge imposing steps into the gothic mansion that is the King’s main residence. 

    

    We are shown to the court’s meeting room and I am in awe of the opulence. Classic gothic colours and styling, huge ceilings with ornate carved woodwork, an intimidating room for an intimidating man. He sits at the head of the impossibly long table surrounded by chairs, most empty today. 

    

    His seat like a throne with a smaller empty one beside him, my eyes search the room for her and thankfully she is not there, only an impossibly handsome vampire who sits at the right hand of the King. He glares at us with a distaste that I don’t quite understand. 

    

    “Please come and join me cousin” the King drawls indicating the seats across from the glaring man. “And who is this unexpected delight you have brought to us?” 

    

    His eyes make me uncomfortable as he roams my body. I look at him properly and he is very similar to Erik, unsurprising being cousins but he is lesser somehow, in every way. 

    

    A low snarl emanates inside Erik and I stroke his arm to calm him, a face off here and now will not end well for us. “I am Erik’s wife Harlow” I speak before he can, to try and calm the situation. 

    

    The glaring vampire suddenly smiles at us and relaxes, a sly smile spreads over the King’s face “Oh marvellous! A new member to our family. It shall make finally introducing Erik to my own wife that much sweeter! It has been far too long cousin” 

    

    I feel Erik relax beside me and my breath sticks in my throat, only I know the true malicious undertone to the King’s seemingly friendly words. My worst fears confirmed we will come face to face with the Queen on this visit. My bubble of happiness burst. 

    

    We take the offered seats and a server pours us two glasses of blood red liquid. Erik eyes it suspiciously and his cousin gives a robust laugh “It’s only wine relax Erik!” And then he turns to the server “Do get someone to fetch my darling wife she has family to meet!” 

    

    We all sit in an awkward silence awaiting her arrival. Each painful tick of the clock starting to tear my heart apart. Loud heels reverberate on the marble floor and everyone’s head spins in their direction. 

    

    My breath catches, she has on red stilettos, her full lips painted a matching colour. A tight black body hugging dress that ends mid calf making her look sexy and dangerous, her amber eyes accentuated by a smokey eyeshadow and her long hair in luscious waves down her back. Even I want to take her to bed. 

    

    I don’t want to but I have to look at Erik, it’s like he is frozen in time, he just stares at her approach like there is nothing else in the world. As she reaches her chair beside her husband she can finally see who her visitors are and she also freezes for just a millisecond. 

    

    I see fear and pain flash through her eyes but then she recovers herself and puts on a mask of calm before anyone else can notice. God she is good. “Erik how lovely to see you again it has been so long” her voice is calm, polite, everything you would expect from a Queen. 

    

    He pushes out of his seat wordlessly and I see it in his face. I have lost him, every bit of love he’s ever felt for her glowing in his eyes. He belongs to her once more. The other two men are deadly silent watching every movement with malevolent intent. 

    

    Erik stops right before her and lifts his hand to touch her face a look of awe on his own. She grabs his hand before he can touch her and breaks the spell. 

    

    “Erik I know you hate me for betraying you and leaving you. I understand that you will never forgive me for what I have done.” 

    

    She glances at me and once again I owe her everything, she has just given him back to me with her compulsion. 

    

    “I know you are happy with your wife and what we had could never compare. I hope we can be civil but I understand if you hate me too much” 

    

    His eyes glaze and the love in them changes to anger and he roughly yanks his hand away from her touch like he has been burned. I feel like shit and joyous in equal measure. I see the cruel satisfied looks on the others men’s faces. I fucking hate this place already. 

    

    “Marvellous!” The King claps his hands together “This new understanding will make it much easier for you both to work together” 

    

    My brows nearly hit the impossibly high ceilings and so does Amelia’s as she turns to her own husband “Pardon?” 

    

    His smile is cold and calculating “I’ve brought Erik in to help you in the lab, it seems only his mind is as capable as yours, will that be a problem?” There’s an undertone of threat in his words. 

    

    She pulls her mask on once more “Not at all darling” 

    

    With that she takes her seat and we endure the most awkward meal of my life. What have we gotten into.