Grey Eyes: Book One of the Forever Trilogy

Chapter Twenty Nine

It was my mother’s touch that brought me out of my hysterics—the kind that only a mother could give; the kind that seems to speak calmness into you.  I stood up, ignoring the shocked faces surrounding me.  “You’ve tried,” she whispered in my ear.

She led me through the crowd.  Remembering Aiden, I turned around, but it seemed he had accepted her fate long before I had.  I wasn’t sure if anyone had gone after him or not, because everyone here was focused on me.  I had made it pretty obvious as to how my mother’s “miracle” had come about and I could hear “conjurer” being whispered in people’s minds.  The unwavering support I enjoyed with them had dimmed; there was uncertainty in their eyes now. 

My mother led me up to my room and tucked me into my bed.  She kissed my forehead and left without saying a word.  Helena came in a short time later and asked if I needed anything. After she left, it was my grandmother’s turn.

“It just doesn’t seem fair that you should have to endure so much in the span of a week,” she said. 

“I haven’t endured anything,” I replied.  “My mother’s alive, I’m still alive, London’s dead.  That could have been me down there.  We’re the same; we’ve made the same choices.  That could have been me.”

My grandmother was taken aback by that comment.  “What choices have you—“

“You know what choice,” I interrupted.  “Tristan.”

And that’s when he appeared on my balcony.  He pushed open the glass door, his face worried.  “Aiden told me what happened.  You can’t stay here Ana. The pain of losing London has made him give up.  It’s just easier to separate himself from his emotions, to let the monster take back control.  He blames you Ana, for not bringing her back.  He will hunt you.”

My grandmother was speechless, but that didn’t stop him from addressing her next.

“He knows her scent.  We have to move her.  If she stays here, then he’ll return with an army of vampires to get to her.  But if she’s gone, then he’ll prefer to travel alone, he can move faster that way.  I know how his mind works.”

My grandmother looked between the both of us a couple of times before her gaze settled on Tristan.  “You killed my daughter.  Those were your bite marks on her neck—admit it once and for all.  TELL ME THE TRUTH!”

I could tell the memory had hurt him.  “They were mine.  However, if you had just let her leave, then she wouldn’t have been so desperate… How many times did she beg you?”

Her eyes were teary now.  “You know nothing!  Now you’ve come for her niece.  Why?  Because they look the same?  How dare you!”

“We don’t have time for this!” he shouted.  “He could be out there right now, making his decision.  And if he determines that he needs an army, do you think the vampires will stop once they’ve stormed this mansion?  They will keep murdering until your entire haven is dead.”

“I’ll go!” I said standing up.  I couldn’t bear the thought of that happening because of me.

Tristan made a move to pick me up and my grandmother raised her hand to him.  “Touch her and I will kill you where you stand.”

I ran into his arms and shielded his chest.  “Then you’ll have to kill me first.  Nobody else dies.  Nobody.”

My grandmother put her hand down slowly, her face wrought with emotion.  “She’s not Aleksandra!” she called as I backed Tristan onto the balcony.

“No more lies!” I shouted back.  Tears were running down my cheeks.  “You know that I am.”

And Tristan took me into the night.