Chapter 262
Chapter 78: *“She’s pulling on her life chain.“*
“Life chain?” Alora asked, confused.
“Yes. A life chain is something specific to Vampires and their offspring. After a Vampire’s offspring is born, a life chain will
connect the two together. Or three if both parents are Vampire. It allows the offspring to contact their parent or parents in a time
of need. It will also transmit strong feelings of the offspring to their parent or parents.” Selena explained. “Our life chain should be
connecting us to our father.”
“This chain wasn’t visible till the spell on us was broken.” Xena said in a serious tone.
Xena’s tone had Alora looking at her, her head tilted slightly. “What’s on your mind?”
“I think the spell silenced our life chain, the same way it silenced Selena.” Xena said.
Selena looked down at the chain coming from her own chest and grabbed it. After studying it for a bit, her eyes went wide with a
kind of shocked realization. “That means...he didn’t abandon us.”
Alora hadn’t really allowed herself to think about their real father since learning who he was. Alora knew her father was told they
were dead after he had sought them out. The logical conclusion that could be drawn from that was that he at least planned to
acknowledge their existence. Unfortunately, it didn’t stop the doubts from forming. ‘Would he like them, or would he despise them
as Bettina, Allister, and Sarah had?‘
Alora looked down at the chain in her hand with a frown. There is only one way to find out if he’ll love us or hate us.‘ Alora
thought, right before she gave the chain a good yank. When she did there was a sound, like a giant gong had been struck. The
sound resonated so deeply she could feel it in her chest. Everything in their space vibrated from the sound, until it eventually
dissipated.
Xena and Selena were both looking at Alora with wide–eyed expressions of surprise. Then Selena looked down at the chain she
held and pulled hard. Another loud sound of a giant gong being struck resonated through their space. Xena looked down at her
chain as the sound once again dissipated. After studying it for a moment, she grabbed it with her teeth and pulled it. Just as it did
with Alora and Selena’s pulls, the sound of the giant gong resonated throughout their space.
They waited a moment, their gazes looking off into the distance. When nothing visible happened after that moment they all
looked at each other. With silent nods of agreement,
the three pulled the chain at the same time. This time, there was the sound of several giant gongs being struck. The sound
vibrated within their chests, and everything around them shook and trembled with the sound. This time, there was a reaction
besides the sound and resulting vibrations from the sound.
Their space was divided by a dark gray fog that appeared halfway over the walking bridge. The sun was gone, and only the
moon shone down on their space. The lake and everything else glowed with internal light. The three looked at each other with
curious gazes, before they got up and walked the path to the bridge. They stopped on the dark sand of the shoreline around the
pond and waited.
*****
King Sebastian was pacing behind the desk in his study. Back and forth he went from the end of one window to another.
Sometimes he would stop in front of one window or another and look out at the enormous garden in the Palace courtyard.
Sometimes he would stop and look at his desk, and the silent phone that rested in the center. Sometimes he would stop and look
at the swords on the wall that belonged to his lost child. Then there were times he would stop and look at the large antique clock
that sat on the large fireplace mantle.
King Sebastian knew he was being impatient, but he couldn’t help how restless he was. His call to the Alpha of Alpha’s, Alpha
Andrew Moonstar had already been returned by the Alpha’s Gamma. A time for the call back had already been arranged for that
evening. Logically, Sebastian knew that his pacing and continued glances at the clock would not make time pass faster. Nor
would it make the phone ring sooner than it should. Still, he was impatient to hear news of his daughter.
Sitting in the center of one of the couches between the desk and the fireplace, was his mate. In front of Stephanie on the table,
was a tea set and a three–tier food tray. The tray had assorted cakes, cookies and other pastries, as well as some tiny
sandwiches. The tea was a robust black tea and set out with a heavy sweet cream and sugar cubes. Although Queen Stephanie
had made herself a cup and put several items from the food tray onto a decorative dessert plate, she wasn’t paying attention to
them.
Instead, Stephanie was looking down at the folder the Kingdoms Chief Intelligence Officer had brought them. In it was a lot of
information on Bettina and her current living situation. In it, she read some of what she already knew. Bettina was married to a
male who was not her fated mate, and one of her three children had indeed died as the result of a car accident. The file included
pictures of Bettina’s two living daughters.
One of the daughters gave Stephanie the impression she was one of those fabled Succubi.
It wasn’t the blond hair, the blue–on–blue dual–colored eyes, and her milk pale skin. It was the way she carried herself in the
photos. The way the female smiled gave Stephanie a sinister feeling. While the photos of Bettina’s youngest daughter gave her a
sorrowful feeling. In most of the photos, the young female was covered head to toe. The only photo that showed more than just
her eyes peeking out from her hair, was attached to what looked like a fight program.
In the file were the reports the Moon Mountain Pack had submitted to the Vampire’s, Witch’s, Werewolf’s, and Supernatural
Councils. With each word she read, Stephanie’s expression became blacker and blacker. Stephanie was so furious and upset
over what she read, tears glistened from the corners of her eyes. From this report, Stephanie was able to determine just which of
Bettina’s daughters was born from her mate’s seed. The youngest daughter Alora had her mate’s skin tone, and her mother in–
law’s black hair.
Suddenly, her mate came to a jerking stop in his pacing, and Stephanie felt a flash of his immense surprise rush through their
bond. She looked at her mate with a worried frown. “Bas?”
Sebastian didn’t answer right away, instead he placed a hand on the center of his chest. At first, he couldn’t believe what he was
feeling, until he felt the pull again moments later. Eyes wide, he looked at his mate. She’s pulling on her life chain.”
Stephanie stood abruptly in shock, hope sparking in her eyes. The report fell to the floor, the papers inside scattering a bit. “Are
you sure?”
Sebastian nodded, then he felt a third pull. “Yes. She’s pulling on her life chain.” Then he looked around. “I need to enter my and
Deimos’s space.“.
With that he moved around his desk and rushed to sit in the center of the couch opposite the one his mate was standing in front
of. Stephanie clutched her hands to her chest and sat back down as she watched her mate enter a meditative state.
Sebastian had just enough time to join his Sprite Deimos in their space when he felt the biggest pull from his lost daughter. The
sound of a giant gong being struck was loud and powerful.
Deimos turned to face him. “Our daughter calls, we must go.”
Sebastian nodded, and they walked away from their life tree, towards their pond and the walking bridge that stretched over it.
Their life tree was an enormous white oak that towered well above a normal one. The bridge looked like something from the
ancient Nordic tribes long gone from the earth. The pond looked vaguely like a small loch from an era where the
highlands of the Northern Island Nations had been at their wildest.
There was a heavy gray mist that veiled the other side of the bridge halfway up. Side by side, Deimos and Sebastian walked
through it. Once they broke through the mist to the other side, they were met with the beautiful sight that was their daughter’s
space. Although it was dark, everything glowed with an internal light, dazzling them for a moment as they took it all in.
At the end of the bridge stood two beings, a large wolf and the humanoid form of their daughter, but her Sprite’s form was
missing. Sebastian frowned, until he noticed one of the three chains attached to all the forms of his daughter trailed off before it
went behind one of the many bookshelves that surround his daughter’s life tree.