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As if proving me right, I watch her move as if in slow motion; she sets off at an impossible speed, running up behind Matthew and grabbing the stake out of his hand.
She had his heart in her hand before he even realized what she had done. With wide eyes, he slumps forward and falls to the floor; Katherine then drops his heart next to him.
“He had the same look in his eyes as my father; there was no coming back from this for him.” She says, there are no tears streaming down her face and her heartbeat is at a level pace when she turns around and walks toward the bathroom.
I’m not sure if I should be shocked or fucking proud of her for what she’s done.
Katherine of a year ago would never have been able to switch her emotions off like that to pull off a needed kill, especially not if that person was her supposed dead little brother.
But to switch off her emotions in a split second and to force them back the next? I have never seen a vampire do that before, not even a fucking Pureblood. What is fueling her like this? It can’t possibly only be her hatred for her father.
She walks back out of the bathroom with a hand towel, her eyes filled with disgust when she looks at his dead body, then she looks up at me. “Xenia is okay?” she asks again.
I hold up my hand and see the now visible Green Thread. “Yes; she’s one of us now,” I answer, watching as a small smile finds its way onto her lips.
Looking down at her hands, she fiddles with the towel and I hear her heartbeat pick up a little; this is the first time we’ve been together in a room since she left me. I take a step towards her and when she doesn’t cringe away from me. I close the distance between us.
I tilt up her chin and look into her conflicted eyes, watching as they brim with crimson tears. Running the pad of my thumb over her chin, it takes everything in me to not crash my lips to hers.
“Gabe…” she breathes out, her face screwing up in agony when I slip my arms around her and pull her into a much needed embrace. I feel her hot tears hitting my chest and I breathe out a month long pent-up sigh - I have my heart back.
She fits perfectly in my arms, and the emptiness I’ve felt these past few weeks slowly melts away when I inhale her familiar scent. This woman is my world. She’s my everything and I will do whatever it takes to prove it to her.
“I’m finally able to breathe again,” I murmur with my eyes closed, unwilling to let go of her. “These past few weeks have been hell, little lamb.”
She nods her head, sniffing quietly and holding tightly onto me. “I’ve missed you so much… I’m so sorry, I—”
“You’re not going to apologize when you’ve done nothing wrong,” I interject and kiss the side of her head. “Not when I was the one to cause all your pain and uncertainty.”
She pulls away from me and frowns. “No, Gabe, you don’t understand—”
I place two fingers on her lips and shake my head, then I take her by the hand and lead her out of the bedroom housing her dead brother. Coming to a stop outside my old bedroom, I pull her inside and sit her down on the bed.
“I’ve had a lot of time to think,” I start, holding her hand in mine. “As hurt as I was after you left, I am sure it doesn’t compare to how you felt about having to make that decision on your own. My choices led up to it, my choices caused you so much heartbreak and put you in a direct line of fire when all I wanted was to keep you safe.”
There’s a heavy weight bearing on my chest when she doesn’t respond to this, and I am uncertain if my words are getting through to her. A tiny frown mars her brow, and she chews on her bottom lip, as if she’s stopping herself from saying something, so I continue.
“For the last few days, I tried to rehearse what I would say when I saw you again, but nothing could convey just how miserable and unhappy I’ve been without you. Nothing I can do right now could ever take away what we’ve lost, but please believe me when I say that I will do anything to make up for what I’ve done. The apologies may all seem empty or come to mean nothing to you over time, but please—”
My heart drops when she lets go of my hand and gets to her feet. Standing with her back to me, she sighs and looks up at the ceiling, then she turns around and surprises the fuck out of me when I see a smile on her face. That smile I love so much, the smile reserved just for me.
“Will you shut the fuck up for a few minutes and let me get a word in, Priest?” she says, then stands in between my legs and takes my face in her hands. “I’ve forgiven you a long time ago, but now it’s time for you to forgive me for something.”
The touch of her skin on mine sends me on a delirious high, but my eyes shoot open when her words hit me.
“Forgive you? Why should I forgive you when I’m the one who did you wrong?”
She bites her bottom lip again, stands up straight, and takes my hands in hers…then she places both of them on her belly.
I look down at what she’s doing and only fucking then do I notice the way her belly is slightly distended.
Then I hear the thumps.
KATHERINE
Gabriel is quiet while staring at my stomach, but I can hear how his heartbeat picks up after a few seconds… then he looks up at me with wide eyes.
“W-what…? I don’t understand, how is this possible?” he asks, his voice and scent both laced thickly with confusion.
