Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 97229 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97229 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
But I was right there next to them, in the same room, not screaming with waving arms from a turret in the distance.
“Don’t let Grandma win,” I said to Mum. “Because the greatest power you have is forgiveness. Don’t battle with her demons. There’s way more strength in making peace with yours.”
It wasn’t me speaking, it was Mary. It was my past. It was my heritage.
“Honestly, Mum,” I said. “Don’t let her win. Your spells are stronger than hers. Have faith in them. Have faith in yourself, like she should have had right from the start.”
I was silent, daring to hope my words would make a difference and speak to her soul, and it worked. My God, it worked.
Mum looked at me, and she nodded. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, and just like that, the tremors in the walls turned to stillness.
It was incredible. In one heartbeat the air of the house lightened in a heartbeat. Fresh, and bright, and new. Cleansed of bullshit lies.
I smiled at my grandmother. Her spell was finally broken, and she knew it.
“Mum has better control over her skills than you do, doesn’t she?” I said. “You should be proud not ashamed.”
“Curse you both to Hell and eternal damnation,” my grandmother spat, and stormed out of kitchen, out through the front door and down the garden path.
“Don’t worry,” I told Mum. “She’ll be back. She’s nothing without you.”
Mum’s eyes filled with tears. “I’m so sorry, Katherine. For all of this. I’m truly, truly sorry.”
I shook my head. “You don’t need to be. I’m fine now.”
“Maybe. But it’s because the man called Hans saved you, isn’t it? Not me. I’m the one who should have saved you. I’m your mother.”
“Hans isn’t a man,” I said. “He’s a vampire, just like Grandma said.”
Mum laughed a teary laugh.
“And you know what? I don’t care anymore. Please, just don’t make the mistake I did. If Hans is the one you’re in love with, do whatever it takes to be at his side and don’t let anyone stand in your way.”
“I won’t, don’t worry,” I assured her.
She nodded. “Good. I only wish I’d had the chance to do the same.”
Her words hit me in the gut. I wondered if she’d ever see my father again.
I hoped so.
At least the storm was passing now. My grandmother’s ultimate spell was breaking apart, and Mum was breaking her chains. Thank God, I could be part of it.
I looked up at the clock on the kitchen wall. One daytime of sunlight left before I did whatever it took to be with my vampire lover for ever.
I was going to enjoy every second before my transition. I was going to spend my final hours of sunshine with my mother, asking her about my father, and for once, finally, I knew I was going to get the truth and not the lies.
Mum smiled, and I knew she could read my thoughts. She had the same gifts I did. She’d just been denying them to herself for years.
“I have some of the same gifts you have,” she told me. “But a lot of yours are from your father’s side. And yes, I’ll tell you all about him. So how about we get you your jam on toast and have our breakfast out in the sun?”
“I’d love that, Mum,” I said.
Chapter Thirty-two
“You’re really going to do this?” Mum asked me. “Hans is going to turn you into a vampire tonight?”
I told her all about him. From how we met in the Regency bar, to how he’d pursued me in my dreams across the cobblestones. I recalled all the memories that had come back to me about the times I’d seen him in the grounds of Garway church when I was younger.
I shared with her how strongly I’d fallen for him, and how incredible it felt to be by his side. His fated mate across the centuries, returning to be his lover. This time for ever.
She finally listened to me without telling me I was a stupid girl.
It was as though a light had been flicked on inside her head, revealing her own truth to herself. But that shouldn’t have been much of a surprise to me, since I’d experienced the same thing for myself. It was just a shame she was a little bit older when the truth hit her.
So long after my father walked away…
I smiled at her, loving the closeness.
“Yeah, I’m going to become a vampire tonight, at least I hope so. Happy Halloween to me.”
I was looking through the clothes in my wardrobe for something suitable to wear. I came across one of my old white dresses – a really pretty one with a bow around the waist and a lace overskirt. I hadn’t worn it in years.
“Do you think it will still fit?” I asked Mum as I held it up to myself in front of the mirror.