Hunting For Love ~ Book 6 ~ The Royal Blood Collection

Chapter 16

Henlese Dalievinpo was no ordinary human. He was the descendant of a very long line of kings. He was the only descendant until he had a son. He was heir to the throne of mankind.

The age of scattered principalities across the land ended a thousand years ago when the great kings began marrying their sons and daughters to other royal families to create larger powerhouses. With the unification of royal families came a greater sense of strength, safety in numbers.

The House of Dalievinpo was a mighty house. It was a line that was the strongest, all the kings wanted to marry their daughters to the sons of this ruler. Many were given that chance. As the years went on, the royal families began to dwindle in numbers until there was all but one left.

If this website is correct, it said that those who remained in this family abandoned their ruling when the great migration occurred. They hid within the masses and pretended to be common folk, pretending that the royal family was gone. It was rumored that danger was always present but someone wanted the royal family dead. This website believed it was the vampires that wanted them gone. The notion of it made me want to roll my eyes but somewhere in the depths of my mind, a quiet voice whispered that it was highly likely.

"Would it be wise to connect Henley to his family? Return him to the birth rite of ruling humanity?"

"It is a dangerous path."

"We all live on that path, your highness."

I looked at Asa, wide eyed and filled with fear. It was a rare moment.

"But at what consequence to the vampire's way of life?"

"Ah, yes, what to do about the outspoken one who tells his people that being trapped in a cage is not fair."

"This would be giving him even more reason to protest. He could blame vampires for the fall of his family."

"He could but would you want to keep this from him?"

I shook my head.

"No, I could not do such a thing."

"Then you should sit him down and present him with the facts. Perhaps if you state that as a political refugee, he can remain in these grounds but not within this house as that would be a security risk for your mother. As a side note, you might want to advise your mother first, let her decide the path for Henley's future here at the estate before you go offering things that might not be pleasing to her."

"Sure."

With a heavy sigh, I leaned back against the chair.

"He's a king, Asa."

I closed my eyes and began thinking about who might be involved in bringing down the leaders of the humans. Royalty or democratic government, it didn't matter what shape they formed, they were all brought down.

"What's left of the human monarchy?"

"Nothing as far as I know but then, I never studied it due to a lack of interest. It was covered when I was in university but nothing more than a brief mention that the humans once had something. The term dead in the water was used and never to be revived was another. It was taught as history and nothing more."

"Well scholars can be wrong on occasions, I suppose. What are we going to do?"

"Start with your mother first, then the man that would be king."

Asa moved to get up, then stopped.

"It certainly makes sense, don't you agree?"

"What, that Alaric is taking down the humans for a crime they didn't commit? Sure, can we agree that he's mad?"

He chuckled, shaking his head.

"Alaric is not mad, he's a king with a mission, one that happens to be rather deadly for some. No, what I mean is why they want Henley dead. If he is heir to a royal family then a certain king might have to share the land or God forbid, let the humans go."

The devious words were whispered before Asa stood and walked out of the room. It was a statement that left me stunned. How far would Alaric go to get what he wanted?

As mom walked into the room, I stood and stared at her.

"What if Lockhart was ordered not to take Henley out of the guest house but the reverse? If they want Henley dead then Alaric would know that I'd stand in the way of that. Remove me by making me think that I'm in danger and he's free to take down an opposing king."

"Hang on," She interrupted. "What opposing king?"

I turned the laptop so that mom could read about the Dalievinpo royal family. She looked up at me.

"Henley?"

I nodded.

"Either Alaric wanted me out of the house so that he could kill Henley obstruction free or he wanted Lockhart to do it in the forest. When he realized that Lockhart didn't do as he was ordered, and Henley was missing, he had to go into damage control. Alaric knew that I'd go after Henley so he had to make sure that I'd be distracted which, here I am, distracted. The only thing he didn't factor in was Lockhart actually having a heart and telling Henley to get into this province. It's possible that Lockhart knows the truth about Henley's family and wants a little equality between the two races."

"Henley will never be safe. No matter how hard we try, he will always be targeted."

"That is why we must give him safety. He's invoked sanctuary, you know the laws regarding this. We cannot hand him over; we have to ensure that he is always safe and well cared for."

"I know the rules. I know what I can and cannot do, I know the expectations. This is not a straight forward case of sanctuary. We are going against our family."

"You've done this before, mom. You do not fear the king of the vampires; you stand up to him proudly."

"I know," She breathed out softly. "But a human king Claudia,"

My mother's eyes lifted with surprise, I turned to the door and saw Henley standing at the threshold. How much had he heard?