Page 18 of Plug and Tame

“I hope not,” Nathaniel said.

“You’re not,” she insisted, realising that she believed it. She changed the subject. “So…your father had a lot of supporters,” Kira finally said. “Other vampires who wanted to see my family dead.”

“Yes, that’s correct. Some were vampires he had made himself with the witches’ help. He had been amassing an army for some time, and he used that army to annihilate the very witches who had brought them into existence.”

“Does he still have his armies?”

“Most of the made vampires perished that night, but my father was victorious, and he climbed their carcasses to ascend the throne.”

“Why didn’t Mary and Byron ever tell me any of this?”

They have a lot of explaining to do.

“They were forbidden from telling you until you came of age at eighteen. It was for your own protection, and theirs; children aren’t the most reliable at keeping secrets. They feared you would confide in the wrong person and alert the authorities to your existence.”

“But I’m nineteen now, and they still didn’t tell me.”

“Mary and Byron deviated from the plan. I was meant to take you away when you were eighteen to join the academy. Except when I arrived at the cottage, it was empty. They had whisked you away to safety in an attempt to change your mind.”

“We travelled,” Kira murmured as the memories came back. “Byron took us on an extended hunting expedition to see the countryside.”

“Not far enough. I eventually found you, intent on bringing you to the academy. After all, Byron and Mary had agreed to the plan. But then I saw how happy you were, and I couldn’t do it. Your happiness meant more to me than our plan, so I left. I thought, if you wanted to lead a normal life, then I would not interfere. You deserved it more than anyone.”

“Byron kept trying to talk me out of going to the academy,” she confessed. “He said there was no reason we couldn’t lie low and live in the forest indefinitely.”

“Now that I’ve met you, I doubt you would have been satisfied with living a life on the run.”

“I suppose not,” she agreed.

“There’s something else you should know.”

“Another secret?”

“A confession. Over the years, I’ve visited you a few times to check in on you. Barbara made a portal at my request—”

“So, you’ve been spying on me all these years?”

“At first, I wanted to ensure you were safe. That no vampires had discovered you. But after a while…I admit, I was curious. I couldn’t stay away.”

“So, spying.”

“Yes.”

She let out a low whistle. It was strange to think he’d been watching her while she’d gone about her simple life, unaware of his existence.

“This explains why your scent was so familiar when you came to the cottage.”

“I tried to keep my distance. I wandered through the woods in the hope of seeing you. As time went by, I ventured closer to the cottage.”

“Too shy to say hello?”

“I was in awe of you.”

A shiver ran down her spine, and her voice grew soft. “Is that your confession?”

“Not quite. You need to know how it was that I was able to track you down. After the Revolution, I spent years trying to find you. And it was only possible because of your blood. That night, after Mary and Byron took you away from Wintermaw, I returned to where your other seven selves had been killed. Knowing it would help me locate you, I tasted your blood. Only a drop, but it connected me to you forever. I did it so I could find you, but even so…it felt wrong to do such a thing. Kirabelle, please forgive me.”

Kira bit her cheek. She could almost taste the metal in her mouth. “Why track me down at all?”