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"What do you want, Mortimer?" I ask him, my voice like ice. How dare he invade my private crypt like this? This is a new level of disrespect—even from him.
"Heard you've got my best vampire slayer in your clutches, and I came to save her," Mortimer replies while attempting to peek around my body that's currently shielding Britney from his gaze.
I move to keep him from seeing her, but of course, Britney has a mind of her own and steps out from behind me.
"Liar," she hisses at him.
I see the slight surprise on Mortimer's face at her ire. No doubt he's not used to her questioning him or addressing him in such anger.
"Thirteen years you've lied to me." Her voice is shaking with rage.
I hold my arm out to block her from walking any closer to him. I don't trust him as far as I can throw him, and she might be angry, but there's no way I'm going to let my mate advance on the man—especially knowing what he's capable of.
"Britney," he croons her name like a doting father calling out to a prodigal child. He releases Glenda and immediately snaps his fingers. I watch as my seer's body drops to the floor.
She's not dead, probably just temporarily knocked out by whatever charm he cast over her.
"Who really killed my parents?" Britney demands to know. "I know it wasn't Henry. Why did you tell me it was?"
Mortimer's eyes narrow as he glances between Britney and me. "Has the vampire seduced you already?" he sneers.
Neither Britney nor I answer. Britney just stares at him with her pretty little arms folded over her chest, while I glare at him with a look that could kill.
I don't know if it's because Mortimer believes he's lost his vampire slayer for good, but his eyes take on a slightly desperate look as he pleads with Britney. "Britney, my child, you were always like a daughter to me. You know I stepped up and treated you like one of my own after your parents passed. Listen," he speaks to her now like he's sharing a deep secret with her. "I don't care what fate says. You cannot succumb to this vampire."
Britney blinks, and then asks slowly, "What do you mean what fate says?" Her eyes flick over to me, and I see the moment realization dawns on her.
"It's true then," she sounds stunned. "I'm his fated mate."
Mortimer scoffs. "Your dad was my best friend, Britney. Collum was a good guy. Just because your mother had that affair with Angus doesn't mean that you should be cursed to a fate such as this."
Britney shakes her head, her curls bouncing softly with the movement. "What are you talking about?" She asks the question slowly as she tries to process it all, but I've already processed it. I know every vampire ever in existence, and I only know of one Angus.
It all suddenly clicks in my mind as I see what happened.
"Angus was a vampire hailing from the twelfth century," I speak for Mortimer.
I level the mage in question with a look. "Are you telling me that Britney's mother had an affair with Angus?"
Mortimer's eyes flick over to Brittany with unveiled disgust.
"Oh, I see," I say as I take a step toward Mortimer. "She not only had an affair with Angus, but she had a child with him as well."
I hear Brittany gasp behind me as she starts to connect the dots herself.
"Are you telling me my dad wasn't my real dad?" she asks, her voice shaky and shocked.
"He was your father in every way that counted," Mortimer grumbles, "even against his better judgment. I told him back then that he should have made your mother abort the fetus before anything terrible came of this, but he would hear nothing of it. For some reason he loved you like you were his own." Mortimer looks her up and down like he finds her wanting, and I feel every muscle in my body tighten in defense of her. "Even though you're the spawn of a dirty, bloodsucking vampire," he spits.
"But then, that means…" Brittany speaks slowly, glancing over at me. She gasps again before she finally sees what all this means. "I have vampire blood in me," she whispers.
"Exactly," Mortimer's eyes are now dark and evil. "And all we need is another vampire on this earth."
Mortimer shrugs and moves his staff from one hand to the other. "So, unfortunately, I had to kill my best friend and his wife."
"What took you so long?" she asks. "I was eight years old when they died. Why wait?"
Mortimer scowls. "They stayed pretty well hidden. I think they knew I would come after them and their abomination."
