I bury my irrational feelings deep in my subconscious and wait for his response.

"I know of the perfect place. No one will disturb us there," he suggests and urges me to follow him.

After what feels like going through a maze of marble, gold filigree and hundreds of doors, we arrive at our destination. We are in an ancient part of the castle, one that is not maintained as the rest. There is not a single sound detectable but the drum of my beating heart against my chest.

I nod for approval and step into the dark room. Valentine turns on the chandelier that illuminates the room with a warm glow.

Immediately, my eyes fall on the floor ceiling window that spans the length of the wall. It was beautiful and it faced a glassy lake that reflects the moon. We are high up and looking down at the vampires strolling in the castle gardens. I find myself being drawn to it and staring into the horizon, something I tend to do when I'm emotionally unstable.

"It appears that Cassandra has added a few modern touches to this room," Valentine says in a soft voice as he lightly taps the glass with his knuckles.

I glance at him, he has taken his mask off to reveal his square jaw and handsome features. I want to touch him but he seems as if he would melt and disappear if I do. He looks longingly in the distance with a disappointed look on his face. Beyond the thick glass are the remains of a veranda that ran along the open space.

I take this moment to examine the room and its contents. There were ancient paintings on the wall and old books lying on shelves, there was no furniture of any kind but a lone chair and desk that sat by the window. "What is this place?"

"This is - was my private study," he looks at me, "I spent a lot of my time here, during my reign. The serene ambiance would calm me in times of great stress and conflict."

"I see." I acknowledge and take a few steps to get out of his peripheral vision.

"Soon after my parents died, I assumed the throne, being the next in line. The council didn't like that I didn't have a Queen so I was arranged to be married. I still remember sitting here a day before the wedding and thinking about how I would stop it all from happening."

I frown at the mention on marriage but he continues on.

"I couldn't refuse of course and I was too selfish to let Augustine to take the throne so I went through it. Thankfully for me, she ran off with one of the guards not even half a century later and I've never seen her since."

I stare at his back, trying to remember what we are here for. Datura is roaming the castle as we speak and we are both entranced in our own ways. He was telling his a vulnerable moment in his life and I just wanted to hear more.

"Half a century is a long time," I mutter.

"Not for us, it's merely a blip."

I spot a sharp object on a desk and quickly grab it without a single sound. I like sharp things. It will do little or nothing but there is nothing I hate more than feeling vulnerable and weak. I quickly stick the letter opener in my hair and joined Valentine in counting the stars.

"I need you to explain something to me." I fold my bare arms and keep a placid expression. "I think you know more about me than anyone in the underworld." I narrow my eyes at his tight lips and dark eyes. "You said I was created. What am I?"

"A weapon," was all that escaped from his mouth.

"I've had enough of you calling me a weapon or a damn instrument in your vendetta," I seethe, "What am I?" I say harshly and confidently. I push myself closer to him, to intimidate and he stares down at me with cold eyes.

He inhales deeply before his booming voice echoes through the room. "You, Saphira, are a deadly, concealed tool in your mother's vicious hands," he growls slowly and roughly and closes the gap between us.

"I don't need you to tell me what you have turned me into, Valentine."

He shoves me against the window and a screeching sound threatens to split from its surface. His cold hands wrapped around my neck and he squeezed harder by the second.

He leans in stopping just centimeters from my lips and I feel his breath on my cheeks and ear. "You came here for answers and I'm giving them to you. Stop being an ungrateful wench and listen carefully because I'm not going to repeat myself."

I flash my fangs at him but he remains in his position and dominion over me, not loosening his grip. It was hard to speak but I managed to breathe out, "I'm listening."

"Good," he drawls before he releases me from his death grip, "Oh, and I don't think you'll be needing this." The letter opener glimmers in the moonlight as I watch it drop from his fingers to the floor, creating a clear chime.

"Let me ask you this. Do you remember being a child? Do you remember life when you were still growing and learning to live?"

I scrunch my eyebrows together and recoil from his question. I have no recollection of my childhood or even a family. I replied to his question with a simple purse of my lips. Which is why the mention of mother always left a bitter taste in my mouth.

"I'll take that as a no," he said smugly. "Datura is not your mother. She is your creator. She wanted to find a way to kill our race without risking her life in the process and without having us know. She created you from the very flower that she was named after. The Flower Datura is the most poisonous in the world and once mixed with dark magic, her blood and the blood of a human, she was able to have a young woman rise from the ashes." Valentine stops from his steady pace. "You, Saphira, came into this world from nothing but filthy blood and a measly plant.

All this time, you had not a single idea of your becoming. It was meant to be that way, it was never her intent to let you know. You were made to lure and seduce any vampire in sight. Have you never noticed that vampires were always attracted to you?"

By this time I was breathing hard and my heart was beating faster than a hummingbirds wings. This was completely absurd. Pulling my hair out would be less painful and piercing than this. "It can't be," I mutter. "I've been alone for centuries with nothing or no one to turn to, why am I not on her side? Why can't I remember?"

"You'll find the answers to that question sooner than you think."

I snarl at his cryptic comment, "I want to know now!"

He looks at me with a straight and grim expression. "Now is not the time. You're not ready."

"I beg to differ. What difference does it make?"

"All the difference."

I give him a glare that I could physically feel. My eyes stung at the non-existent power that I was attempting to discharge from within me. How the hell was I able to turn into a vampire if my blood could destroy his? There is so much that he is hiding from me. Every question I ask three more follow.

I feel a surge of energy course through my veins, starting from my toes to my fingers. It was a good, almost natural feeling that flowed through every fiber of my being. I pressed my fingers together trying to comprehend my bodies reaction. The ground beneath me cracked and crumbled, rotting in front of our very eyes.

"Saphira," Valentine whispers, "you need to stop."

His voice only triggered a stronger emotion within me and the cracks extended to the window. My eyes dart to my right and with my supernatural ears, I hear shards of glass grind against each other, creating lines that spread to the center.

Valentine advances to me and grabs me by my shoulders to shake me and feel erratic sparks emit from the touch. We were dangerously close to the edge, one jerk to my right and we will be flying out of here. "Bad move," I whisper menacingly and lift my own hands and curl them around his wrists.

Almost instantly, he groans in pain at the contact and curves his back to pry his hands off of me. His skin was starting to rot and turn a dark shade of gray and couldn't help but survey it in fascination. I was sucking the life out of him and multiplying my own.

I sense a buzzing in the air and realize everything was being electrified. Valentine's eyes have turned pitch black and the veins on his forehead and neck were throbbing.

With my hands still on him, an invisible force hurls us toward the awaiting barrier between us and the outside world. A crash of glass shatters in my eardrums. Everything ceased to a halt, including my breathing. It was a blur of shards, masks, and limbs as we fell through the air.

It took a second for it to register in my mind that I could potentially die at this impact and Valentine's body could shatter along with mine. My eyes widen at the ground that came closer and closer. I turn to glance at Valentine who had a look of concentration on his face.

I watch with bewildered eyes as our momentum is stopped by an unseen force, the same that threw us out of the window. My face was inches from the ground with a sea of glass surrounding us. I could see every detail of the stones beneath and feel the cold radiating from the surface.

I gasp audibly, unable to grasp it mentally. "Oh, my," I murmur, swinging my arms to feel if Valentine was still here and alive. The only thing touching the ground was the hem of my skirt, exposing my bare leg.

My fingers brush against a still figure. We were still floating in mid-air. Thankfully, no one was present and witnessed our tragic fall. We need to get up before someone sees us.

In a smooth move, we were on our feet facing each other both with hard expressions and unreadable minds. Eyes roam every inch. Surprisingly, our hair, clothes, and limbs were still intact and not a splinter of glass to be seen.

I gulped down the rock that was lodged in my throat. Valentine looked flushed and exhausted. He had used all of his energy to prevent our impact with the ground.

"Your hands," I hesitantly say, "they're still -"

"Yes," he cuts me off, "I'm afraid they'll remain like this until I feed."

After a moment of silence and awkward stares. He starts to walk back to the castle with his mask back on his face. I struggle to find words to say before he disappears.

"Valentine, I'm sorry." I never knew those words could ever escape my mouth. It was hard to believe but I truly was. My heart accelerates once again and pounds in my ears.

He laughs. Not amused or joyful, but mocking, causing me to frown. "Do you realize what you have done?"

"Yes, and I take full responsibility," I declared confidently. "You saved us from. a fall that could have easily killed us."

He twists around. "No, I didn't do that." He points a dark finger towards the sky. "You did."

"I know what I did, Valentine." Why is he so difficult?

"No, you don't, I threw us out the window," he takes one step closer, "but I didn't stop us from the fall, you did."

A wave of shock drowns me from head to toe. His words glided over my head as if he never said them. "What?"

"I have telekinetic powers, but I couldn't use them once you sucked the energy and ability out of me. I believe you have just discovered your gift. You took my power and used it as your own."

"My gift," I repeat, looking down at my hands. "Is to absorb life and energy?"

"Precisely." He nods, weakly.

I return his gaze with awe and twenty more questions about what I was capable of doing or becoming. Will it happen every time I touch someone? Well, there is only one way to find out, I need to test it out.

Bending down, I picked up the mask on the ground and lifted it to my face. "Let's go get a drink, I'm parched."

We made our way back to the castle where the masquerade was still thriving. In the hallway, Valentine manages to find a wandering human girl to sink his teeth into. I feel a tinge of jealousy in me but choose to ignore it. Once done, he sets her down on the cold floor. His color back and his strength replenished.

I grimace in disappointment and make my way back to the ballroom where the party was awaiting us. I was trapped in my own mind as I walked through the cold blooded bodies. Somehow I end up being in the middle of the dance floor with Valentine standing a few meters in front of me. My eyes slowly drift over the faces that were expecting a show.

A seductive and rather aggressive song starts to play. Tango, my favorite. I sweep my dress to the side and expose my leg, earning a few sinful and suggestive calls from those around us. My actions make Valentine narrow his eyes and take his suit jacket off - accepting my challenge. He licks lips and rhythmically stalks over to me with a fever in his eyes. The song ascends and so do we. Our bodies take us to a place where heat collides with ice.

Energized from the dance, I spot a waiter carrying several wine glasses full of thick, red liquid and take one from him. Valentine notices my actions the knocks the glass out of my hands and it shatters onto the floor, spilling its contents, tainting the marble with blood.

"What is wrong with you?" I rasp. As if on cue, screams were being heard within the room. One by one, several bodies fall limply to the ground and glasses shatter against the stone. From the looks of it, they were royals from other kingdoms. She's done it again.

With horrified expressions and anger, the King and Queen rose from their seats and demanded the culprit to reveal themselves.

"Datura," Cassandra screams. "Show yourself or we will show no mercy!"

I examine the room, but could not find her. A twinkling and sickly, sweet chuckle echoes through the ballroom and heads darted in every direction. The vampires on the ceiling swoop down in an elegant fall, landing gracefully on the floor, making the population larger.

The room was buzzing with limitless powers including ours. Vampires left and right, hissed and searched around them for the unseeming fiend. The same melody from earlier reverberated through my mind and made my brain grow dull.

"There you are," I whisper as I spot Datura with my supernatural vision. She concealed herself in the crowd pretending to be shocked and overwhelmed herself. You can't hide from me anymore.

I stalk over to her but I was halted by a warm hand that curled around my upper arm. "You can't risk your life just yet."

For a moment I contemplated while I stared at the dreadful scene surrounding us and aggressively shrug his hand off. "It's a risk I'm willing to take."

With stiff shoulders, I walk over to Datura. This wasn't the way I wanted to meet my mother, or creator I should say. I always thought I would have at least a sense of belonging when I would finally meet her but I couldn't find it in me. I hear Valentine follow me with subtle steps as I weave through bodies and step over fallen ones.

Datura's lips curve into a sly smile as our eyes lock with one another. Her deep violet irises secreted a dark rhythm of death and destruction.

We were now only a few feet of distance from each other and she eyes me like a hawk eyeing their prey. Let's hope this works, I thought to myself.

"Saphira," she calls, looking straight at me with her violet eyes then letting them fall behind me, "and Valentine? Just the two people I wanted to see."

I look around me and watch as eyes turn vibrant and dark colors. Many of the vampires here had dark gifts that were itching to be released, much like mine. There is a lot of power in this room and they all want to kill her.

"You are not welcome here, Datura," Valentine says in a very authoritative and kingly voice. I shivered at his tone and demeanor and even felt like bowing before him.

"As are you." She smiles and what I thought was a mask retreated from her eyes and into her black hair revealing her face. Her pale skin looked like porcelain and her beauty was timeless. "Yet, here we are."

Whispers resonated throughout the ball room but it didn't hold for more than a few seconds. "Have you not had enough? Much blood was spilled because of your dark desires, what more can you do to our race?"

Her shrill laugh penetrated through everything, vibrating through glass and stone. "Stop with all the drama Valentine, I'm here to see my daughter."

Her eyes were locked firmly on mine as if she was speaking directly to me. At that moment, I saw nothing but red emanating from her being. Her creed was as dark as her hair and there was not a sliver of light. My estranged feelings quickly turned into hatred. She's not my mother, and she never will be. I have no connection to her other than the fact that she made me.

"I'm not your daughter," I blurt out with confidence.

Her head sharply turns to me. "I see Valentine has already filled your head with nonsense. I made you what you are." She comes closer toward us and her expression contorts to feral and malignant, "I will make sure that your kind suffers far more than mine ever did. You burned our homes and our cities. I will watch as each of you burn in lust for blood with an unquenchable thirst."

"You will not lay a hand on a single vampire here." Valentine advances to her and flashes his fangs but her gaze is still fixed solely on me. "You, of all creatures, know that you can't stand a chance against us."

She smiles devilishly and I see yet another glimpse of her nature. "I'm afraid it's late for that."

"Leave!" His voice booms loudly and I momentarily close my eyes from the impact of his manner against my skin.

She throws her head back in a laugh and in a swift move, unnoticed and unexpected, Valentine clutches his side and falls to his knees.

I observe, bewildered, as he writhes on the floor in pain. Time seemed to sluggishly creep as hell broke loose in the ballroom. "We shall see each other again, Saphira. Our future is in your hands," Datura's hushed whisper carries to my ears before she evaporates into the air. All that was left was a dark cloud of smoke in the air and an echo of her voice followed by two other clouds of smoke near her.

I rush over to Valentine, whose screams and grunts were felt by those around him. I knelt by his side and hesitated to grab onto him, afraid of more damage I could make.

I roll him over and see a thin sharp object protruding from his side. I pull it out and he screams. Lifting his shirt, I wince as a dark slit brandishes his flesh. Dark violet veins protruded from the center and gradually spread over his abdomen and from the looks of it was made to kill a vampire.

The King ordered their guests to retire for the evening and return to their homes. A blur of bodies rushed out of the ballroom and some stayed to survey the scene.

Valentine's pitch black eyes held my concerned ones, begging me to take away the pain. Could I do it? Did I want to save him?

Let him die, my conscience said. He deserves it. Contradicting thoughts and emotions fought against one another within me.

Despite my efforts to argue and insist on what I wanted, I gave in to an appetite I have been wanting to satisfy since I met the damned vampire. It was a decision that won my heart over.

A natural force woke within me once again and coursed through my veins. I rolled my shoulders at the intense feeling that was vibrating through my blood and nerves. Tingles were erupting at my fingertips, impatiently throbbing with greed.

"Sweet dreams, my Valentine," I mutter before placing my cold hands on his.

***

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