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“Then why are you crying, Daddy?”
“Because we’re safe. Because we’re together. Because I love you both so much it hurts sometimes,” I tell her, pulling her back into my arms. Zach, who sees entirely too much isn’t convinced by my words, I can tell by the look on his face. But he also doesn’t say anything. Choosing to remain silent and trusting me to tell him when the time is right. Or at least I hope that’s the reason.
“Where’s Pearl?” he asks, looking inside the house over my shoulder.
“She’s sleeping. She got hurt earlier so she needs to sleep and heal for a little while.”
“She’s okay, right?” he asks, making my smile wider and more real at his concern.
“She will be. Now come on, you guys need to at least grab some pj’s if you’re going to sleep at Ya-Ya’s.” The four of us walk through the house in relative silence, both kids shooting concerned glances toward the closed bedroom door that Pearl is sleeping behind.
After gathering some of their clothes, I walk them to the door. “You two be good for your Ya-Ya and I’ll see you in the morning. I’ll make pancakes.”
“Can we try different kinds tomorrow too?” Zach asks, seeming to see that I need normal conversation.
“If we have the ingredients,” I agree.
“We will bring some stuff when we come back in the morning,” My mom says, earning a smile from both the kids.
Amelia jumps up, wrapping her arms around my neck. “Good night, Daddy.”
“Good night, Pumpkin. I love you,” I tell her, setting her down and turning to Zach. “You too, my little man.”
Surprisingly, he rushes forward, wraps his little arms around my waist, and buries his face in my chest. “Love you, Dad.”
“And I love you.” He lingers with his arms around my waist, and I squeeze him tighter. I love both my children equally, but I’ve been separated from Zach for much longer than I was Amelia, and I don’t want to take a second of his love for granted. Especially not with what I have to tell him.
“All right,mikrés agápes. Time to go,” my mother says, and I place one last kiss on the top of each of their heads, watching as they walk hand in hand with my mother to her new home.
Thank you, I link to my mom. She glances back.
It’s my pleasure.
Knowing that they’re safe for the night, I walk back inside, climb into bed, and pull a mewling Pearl into my arms. She lets out a relaxing breath as I do, snuggling deeper into me and I follow her into sleep, hoping that her dreams are better than mine.
I wake to a small body trying to escape my grip, and I crack an eye open.
“Good morning,agapi mou.”
She blinks up at me, her eyes widening when she sees me looking down at her but only for a moment. She dips her head down, trying to hide her face from me.
“Hey. Don’t do that,” I tell her, placing my finger under her chin. Her eyes still don’t meet mine. “Talk to me,” I plead.
Her big, aquamarine eyes finally rise up to greet mine.
“I’m sorry.” The words are barely out of her mouth as the tears start flowing and sobs begin to wrack her body.
I pull her close, rubbing her back and letting her cry.
“Pearl?” I say and wait until she pulls back, using her shirt to wipe the tears from her eyes.
“I’ll understand if you want to reject me.” She sniffles.
“Reject you?” I say, leaning back. “Why would I ever do that?”
“Because I drank vampire blood. Because I got the mother of your children killed. Because instead of choosing mercy, I chose more bloodshed. Because I tried to kill one of my best friends for a single drop of her blood. Because I am now a danger to…” A sob cuts her off and I lean in to comfort her, but she puts her hand up, stopping me. “Because I am now a danger to some of the people that I love most in the entire world.” She grips my shirt. “I can’t hurt them,” she begs. “Please don’t let me hurt them.”
“Shh,” I say, pulling her to me despite her protests. “First of all, you drank the vampire blood to save me. If you hadn’t, I don’t know whether I would’ve been able to hug my children again or see your beautiful face.” I place a soft kiss on each of her cheeks. “Second, and this is very important.” I wait until she looks up at my eyes so that she can see the truth. “If Antonia lived, she would never stop hunting us. We would have to look over our shoulders for the rest of our lives. Zach and Amelia would never be safe.”
