*ALEX*
When we arrived at the back of the house and approached the gazebo, Norris and my family were chatting merrily around the table.
It's just like a regular dinner attended by people who have known each other for a long time.
The table was laden with delicious foods, and the atmosphere was cordial.
My family is doing their best to make Norris feel at home. Their smiles even look genuine after all. This dinner is all about the union of two families.
I saw a few guards guarding the area, but several more were hidden in the dark nearby, ready to take action if the need arose.
"Dad!" Natasha rushed to her
*ALEX*When I arrived at my room, the girls were sitting on the couch, waiting anxiously for my arrival."How's it going?" Lyn asked anxiously. "When I asked the servant, she told me that everyone had left the house. Where did you go? Where are Natasha and her father?""It's over. We went to Norris house to deliver his and his daughter's bodies to his family. Both of them died tonight of food poisoning," I explained."Whaaaaaat!?" The women gasped in shock."Why did Natasha die along with his father? I thought she would be sent to the gold mines," Lauren asked, confused by the sudden turn of events.Lyn's
*ALEX*When I woke up the next day, Lauren was still lying beside me in the bed. She was snoring softly. I kissed her cheek and covered her body with the blanket. I got up from the bed, went to the bathroom, and then left the room to get some food in the kitchen.I want to surprise Lauren with breakfast in bed this morning. After all that she has been through in the last few days, she deserves a treat from me.I descended the staircase, sporting a bright smile on my face, and met my grandmother. When I stepped into the kitchen, she was fixing herself a cup of coffee. "Good morning, Gran!" I greeted her in a cheerful manner."Morning, son," Grandma replied. "Where is that woman of yours?""You mean, Lauren? She's still sleeping in our room," I responded."So, what's her story?" she asked."Huh? Lauren?" I said, confused as to why she asked."Yeah. Who kidnapped her? We know now that Norris didn't have anything to do with her kid
*LAUREN*That night we went home, feeling tired but happy after a whole day of fun activities under the sun.After dinner, Alex and I cuddled in bed, enjoying the aftermath of our bonding under the sun with his family."Sweetheart, did you enjoy our family bonding?" He asked, busy nuzzling my earlobes."Yes, very much. We have so much fun! I enjoyed it!" I gushes happily."Glad to hear that, sweetheart. I'm happy because you and Grandma have bonded together. I'm sure you are no longer afraid of her, am I right?" He asked, peering into my eyes, seeking my honest answer to his question."Grandma is funny!" I said, laughing in amusement."She is indeed! And she likes you. That is why she reveals her true personality to you. To others, she appears intimidating, but if you know her, she is a different person. Only her family and people close to her knew her true colors," he explained."Yeah, I really thought she was snobbish and sca
*LAUREN*I'm serious when I say I won't close my eyes. I'm afraid that when I close my eyes for a few minutes, I will find myself in another place and time.Damn!I'm getting scared now. I was supposed to take an afternoon nap, but here I am, afraid to go to sleep, fearing that I'm going to be transported to another place again. It already happened twice, and is there a third time?What if I try again? Maybe this time it has already stop. The only way to know is to close my eyes and see what happens next.I began biting my fingernails, and I'm feeling nervous now.Will it happen again or not?A part of me doesn't want to close my eyes, but a major part of me wants to find out if it will happen the third time. If it occurs again, I'm going to inform Alex right away about what's happening to me.Okay, I'm gonna do it!I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and began counting from one up to one hundred.Alright, I fel
*3rd POV*In the study room.The family was having a serious discussion about what to do with Lauren after the appalling incident. Everyone was still reeling from the shock. No one expected it to happen in the middle of a family dinner.No one!Especially since everyone considers Lauren a nice and good girl. That is why everyone was shaken to the core.Thick silence hangs in the air; the atmosphere is gloomy."What are we going to do now?" Luna Alicia broke the silence. Her face was stressed out. She was severely affected emotionally by what happened tonight; she can't believe that her perfect family dinner reunion was destroyed by something so horrific that it will leave a bitter taste in her mouth for years to come."All I can say is that we are no longer safe when Lauren is in our midst. Whoever uses her for their own purposes can do the same thing again and again until we all die one by one at her hands," Grandma Flora stated grim
*3rd POV*Grandma Flora glanced at her grandson lying on his mother's lap. "Is he asleep already?" she asked.Luna Alicia nodded her head. "Yes. I already put him in a deep sleep.""Good! Let's finish this! We need to dispose of Lauren once and for all," Grandma Flora said in a calm voice.Lyn rubbed her mother's back. "Mom, everything will be alright. We will survive this," she said in a dispirited tone."I feel guilty for putting your brother to sleep. I shouldn't have done it!" Luna Alicia burst into tears."I understand how you feel, Mom. Brother Alex will understand why you did it. It's for his own good," Lyn said as she continued consoling her distraught mother."Your brother will hate me!" Luna Alicia cried harder, hugging her son's sleeping form."Alicia, nothing can be achieved if you keep crying! Get your son out of here! Now!" Grandma Flora snapped.Alpha Simon went to her wife's side and placed his hand gentl
*3rd POV*Lauren remembers it too well; she's still in the living room with Lyn, but now she's back in the coffin. Although she can't see anything, she can feel the interior of the coffin on her back and the hardness of the walls on her sides. The cover was back too, trapping her inside.Then she felt the coffin land on a hard surface after hearing a thud. "Where am I?"Suddenly the cover was opened by someone and she inhaled fresh air and something more—the smell of plants and trees around her.What's going on?She's now in the forest? How did she arrive in the forest? She was in the mansion with Lyn."What are you waiting for, Lauren? Do you want to stay in the coffin forever?" Grandma Flora asked."Grandma? Is that you?" Lauren asked, scrambling out of the coffin. She succeeded when her feet finally landed on the ground."Yes, it's me," Grandma Flora replied."Are you going to give me the poison now?" Lauren ask
*3rd POV*"I'm still here, dear," Magnus finally replied."Okay. I thought you already left because you find my presence boring," Lauren said."Nah, don't say that. I offered you before to stay with me for good, but you chose Alex over me, so I give you your freedom back. But horrible things happened to you, and you are miserable now. I truly feel sad for you," Magnus said in a gloomy tone.Lauren sighed deeply. "It's not Alex's fault.""OK. As you say so," Magnus said, contemplating what he was about to say to her next."I just feel so lost right now. My vision is gone, and I'm now reduced to a useless human being. It's a hard pill to swallow," Lauren said, teary-eyed."I sympathize with your current condition, dear. But all is not lost yet. You still have me. You can stay in my house forever if you want. You will have Tabitha as your maid until your dying days. Or I can turn you into a vampire and you will live in this world for a l
*3rd POV*Two days later, Alex and Lauren returned to the city from their short vacation.Alex proceeded to his house while Lauren returned to Magnus' residence.Lauren opened the door, climbed the staircase, and went to her bedroom. The house was still quiet, an indication that the owner hasn't returned yet. His prolonged absence got her worried.What could have happened to him? She hopes he is alright.Lauren put her bag on the floor and saw the envelope on her pillow. Her brows knit together; what is this? She picked up the envelope and found a letter inside. It was written and signed by Magnus.~Dear, Lauren...When you read this letter, I'm already back in my kingdom because there are still a lot of things that need my attention. Peace has been restored in my kingdom. My brother and I are on good terms again. He finally let go of his woman for the sake of peace between the two kingdoms.In line with my current state of mind, I would like to let you go as well. You can go now and
*GRANNY URSULA*A while ago...When I looked out the window, I saw Alex in the car, then Lauren re-entered the house and investigate. I could have shown myself to the couple right at that very moment, saying hello to the two children that I raised like my own.The temptation to show myself to them again is very strong.I wanted to talk to them, have a conversation with them and hug them one last time but I can no longer do it. I can't look into Alex's eyes and pretend that I'm still the same old Granny Ursula that he used to know. I killed his grandparents and if he knows, he will hate me to the bone.I'm guilty of using the couple for revenge but I need to do what I have promised to my beloved queen when she lies dying in my arms in the garden.I can still recall vividly the pain of seeing her on the verge of death."Nanny, I'm dying. Please take care of my younger brothers on my behalf..." Queen Hesperia has a hard time breathing."Who did this to you?" I asked, my eyes filled with
*ALEX*I went home that morning and went straight to bed to sleep after eating a light breakfast.When I wake up in the afternoon, it's already 4:00 p.m. I texted Lauren that I'm going to her place to bring her to a place far from the city so she needs to bring some clothes with her.I haven't told her yet about what happened to my grandparents dead bodies.I need to go to a place that is quiet and relaxing to de-stress.Half an hour later, I'm already out of my house. I get into my car and drive to Lauren's place.After a few minutes of driving, I arrived at my destination and parked the car outside the gate of the vampire's residence.I texted Lauren that I'm already outside, waiting for her to come out of the house. I looked out the window on the second floor of the house and saw a silhouette. Who was that?When I looked closely, the silhouette had already disappear. Or maybe it wasn't there in the first place. Maybe my eyes just caught something that looks like the silhouette of a
*ALEX*When I arrived at the funeral parlor and went to the second floor of the building to join my sister and parents, I was shocked to find an empty room—no coffins or whatever—just flowers and candles on the floor. Instead, what I saw were my family members looking at each other with a shocked expression on their faces.I rushed to their sides. "What's wrong, guys?" I inquired."Son, the coffins were gone! It happened so fast! It's like a blink of an eye. I felt like I was frozen in time and I don't know what happened during those moments. But the moment we were unfrozen, we were surprised to see the two caskets gone!" Mom said it in a rattled tone.My brows snapped together. "What is going on?" I asked in disbelief. "Who would steal a coffin with dead bodies in it?" I said it in bewilderment."Brother, believe us when we say that someone has frozen us and stolen the coffins!" Lyn explained in an agitated tone."We got to find the coffins!" Dad exclaimed anxiously."Alright, calm d
~MAGNUS~"So, is this your good news to me?" I asked the silhouette standing near the window, my eyes blazing with anger. "I'm in the middle of a negotiation with the opposing kingdom to obtain peace and you just whisked me away just to show me this good news?"I feel like my heart is about to explode due to jealousy. "I tell you now that seeing Lauren with Alex is making my blood boil. I don't like it! And the fact that you tolerated them and did nothing to prevent them from seeing each other makes me feel like the person I trusted the most has betrayed me!"I looked at her, feeling upset. "You disappointed me! I left you behind to watch over Lauren on my behalf! Not to tolerate the couple's reunion! You didn't even try to do anything to separate them!"I no longer hide my displeasure. I felt annoyed that my precious woman was now getting back together with her ex."Your highness, this is not the good news that I'm talking about," Granny Ursula responded. "I'm sorry if you didn't lik
*ALEX*I haven't slept yet and the time was already past 2:00 in the morning. Lauren was sleeping soundly beside me on the bed. I've been wide awake the whole night, and I want to make sure that this night will go well without any mysterious occurrences on Lauren's part based on my mother's instruction.I even put a CCTV camera inside our bedroom as evidence that Lauren was with me the whole night, just in case something went wrong.I think the party has already ended by now.When my phone rang at 2:40 in the morning, my heart beat so fast.Damn!They will never call me at this hour unless something happens!I quickly grabbed my phone and read the message. It was from my mother and the contents of her message broke my heart into pieces.'Son, when I wrote this message, I'm still in the hospital. Your sister is fine, but both grandpa and grandma didn't make it. They died in the party venue; the guards found them dead after all the guests had gone home safely. The reason for their death
*ALEX* On the day of the masquerade ball, I was with my family the whole afternoon, chatting with everyone. The atmosphere in the house is fantastic, filled with lively chatter. We are in good spirits, riding the wave of excitement for tonight's event. It will be the first time that our family is complete and we will be attending the masquerade ball together. In the previous ball, it's always been me who is missing and my grandparents, so today is very special because it will be a family affair and everyone will be present on the festive occasion. Everyone is excited. I can see the shimmering excitement on their faces. By 5:00 in the afternoon, I made my exit and informed everyone that I'm going home and that I would see them at the party later. I left our family home, and part of me felt sad that I couldn't attend the party. I got into my car, drove into the heavy traffic and dropped by at the vampire's place. Lauren exited the gate and waved at me. I opened the door and she qu
*LAUREN* One week had passed already. I was waiting for Magnus' return every day, yet there was still no sign of him. What could happen to him? I hope he is alright and his kingdom didn't go to war. I'm worried about his safety. I was pacing back and forth in the living room. I glanced at the clock on the wall. Alex would come anytime soon. I agreed to sleep in his house every night as part of my commitment to our relationship. I already wrote a letter for Magnus and put it in his bed just in case he would arrive at an empty house. I explained in my letter that I'm going to sleep at my friend's house. I'll be back tomorrow morning and all he needs to do is text me and I'll reply right away. My phone rang and Alex sent me a message informing me that his car was already parked outside the gate. I grabbed my shoulder bag and exited the house. After locking the gate, I quickly get into the passenger seat of Alex's car. "Hi, sweetheart." Alex greeted me cheerily. "I hope I didn't make
*ALEX* The following day, me and Lauren woke up late. After having a glorious night, we welcome the morning with fresh perspective and refreshed energy. I kissed Lauren's cheeks. Her eyelids stirred on the verge of waking up. "Good morning, sweetheart!" I greeted her jovially. "Morning!" She replied in a sweet tone, caressing my jaw. I patted her arms lovingly. "I'm going to work today. If you want, you can accompany me in my office," I offered. "No, thanks. I should go home." She refused my offer politely, getting off the bed and going to the bathroom. A few moments later, she emerged from the bathroom, returned to bed, and said, "Can you drop me off at the house on your way to your office?" "Sure! That's what I have planned in my mind already. I will send you home after we have breakfast," I answered. "Thank you," she murmured. "We can also teleport, right?" "Yes, we can do that as well. But I prefer that we use the car so that we can talk along the way," I said, gazing at