To the two men, both dressed in black, the woman exiting the car was the centre of the universe. They flocked around her, tending to her every need, which included opening the car door, holding out hands for her to grab, and taking her suitcase out. Their movements were coordinated and smooth, like they were dancing around her, predicting her next move.

I could not see her face, nor her hair – it was all hidden behind the velvet black robe and hood she had on. All I could glimpse were her hands, terribly pale, her sharp red nails, and the diamonds around her wrists and fingers.

"Who is that?" I whispered, becoming aware of my surroundings and Dorian standing behind me.

"My great-great-great aunt." The sound of his footsteps echoed along with his words as he left the room.

"What?" I followed him. "You have Elder blood?"

Dorian turned on his heel, and pointed at his silver hair, "I may be a metrosexual, but even I wouldn't go this far."

Silver hair wasn't completely uncommon in our midst, nor the reddish tint some vampires' eyes had. All of us had a trace of Elder blood in our veins, like humans had a trace of the Neanderthal. But having one in a direct family line? Only a few generations away?

My breath caught in my throat. My father must not have known. If he had, he would have made sure Dorian had already married Libby.

I wanted to ask more; I wanted him to tell me which one of his predecessors passed on the gene, and whether my father knew, and what the hell was an Elder doing in his house, but all of my thoughts quieted down when Dorian opened the front door and revealed the hooded figure on the other side.

Her two minions quickly closed the door behind her. One of them spread out his hands, waiting for her robe, and the other walked towards Dorian. I lingered behind him, feeling weirdly scared.

The minion that stopped in front of Dorian looked too regular to be hanging out with an Elder vampire. His eyes were honey-brown, and his hair mimicked the colour almost perfectly, making him look warm and smooth.

"Lady requests a windowless room, preferably underground, a separate private bathroom, three meals a night, as fresh as possible, and not to be disturbed unless she so desires."

The woman behind him took off her robe.

"Timothy, we're not in an Embassy, Lady can speak for herself."

"Pardon." Timothy bowed his head and stepped to the side, allowing his... employer to pass through.

Once my eyes landed on her face, I knew I would never stop staring.

She was exquisite. Somehow, she looked both ancient and young. Her lips were thin and colourless, her eyes sharp, elongated, and her cheekbones and jaw sharp, but her skin was smooth, wrinkle-free, making her seem just a tad younger.

Her eyes were a captivating dark red and seemed to shimmer with a hungry gleam that was always present. Her silver hair was styled in a full bun on top of her head, elongating her neck and drawing attention to the black pendant that hung between her breasts. She was dressed in a stunning black floor-length gown with long sleeves, fitted at the chest and waist, and embellished with delicate lace. The dress had a wide V-neck that sat elegantly on her shoulders.

There was a predatory beauty to her that reminded me of Dorian.

I also knew that the only thing she needed to do to make me run for my life was open those thin pale lips. But she paid no mind to me. She didn't even look at me.

"Dorian!" The woman approached him. "Este minunat să te văd. Te-am ratat foarte mult. Du-mă la fată, pot să te ajut."

Oh, great. He brought her from Romania.

"Tante, te-am ratat și eu. Vorbeste in engleza, te rog. Odette se enerveaza cand nu poate intelege oamenii." Dorian offered a wide smile, and took both of his aunt's hands in his palms.

"Ah, yes." The Elder vampiress smiled at me stiffly. "A Zaleria requesting everyone to adapt to her needs. Seen and heard already, my dear."

I opened my mouth to speak, but Dorian's arm slid to my wrist and he squeezed lightly. And perhaps it was due to the unyielding stare coming from the vampiress, or his touch, but I forced my lips shut.

Dorian cleared his throat, "Odette, this is Ecaterina, my great-great-great aunt."

"Ah, all the greats make me feel old." Ecaterina let out a pearly laugh, and I caught a glimpse of her sharp teeth hiding behind her lips. "I prefer just aunt."

"Aunt Ecaterina," Dorian's fingers left my wrist, "This is Odette Zaleria."

"Oh, I know who she is." The woman marched straight through us, making me stagger back with surprise.

I met Dorian's gaze and mouthed, "What?"

But he shook his head.

"Where is the patient?" Ecaterina walked ahead, her back turned to us. "I do wish to see her before I depart for the night."

"Dorian." I hissed silently, knowing she probably heard me anyway.

"Where are you going?" Dorian ignored me and quickly fell into step next to his aunt. "New York isn't safe for Elders, you know?"

"I have my ways of moving around, my dear." Ecaterina raised her hand without turning around, and her two minions skittered after her like puppies, "Bring me to the patient."

"Of course." Dorian gestured towards the long hallway and the stairs at the end.

"Dorian." I hissed again and rushed to his side, my heart pounding in my chest. "What. Are. You. Doing?"

He bowed his head to me, "Saving your friend."

"You brought an Elder vampire to help her?" My eyes bulged. "Are you insane? Is she a doctor? Does she have any credentials?"

Dorian shrugged, "She was a surgeon in the 19th century. It was far more difficult to be a surgeon then."

"Dorian!"

"Odette, you screaming my name does nothing except feed my ego."

I closed my mouth and pursed my lips.

"Come on." He touched my forearm and led me through one of the adjacent doors. "Shut the door."

My gaze escaped to the stairwell before I closed the door, and I hoped Lucia wouldn't freak out completely once she met an Elder vampire.

"A whole team of doctors is upstairs with her." Dorian said as if reading my thoughts. "Plus, Cata might seem scary, but she's nice. Lucia is safe."

I closed the door with a sigh, and faced Dorian, realising we were in an elegant dining room. Of course, I remembered the room, which was still exactly the same. Long oak table adorned with a grey velvet tablecloth, tall windows allowing lots of natural light, the open door leading to the kitchen, and a silver chandelier hanging above the table.

"Why did you call her?" I put my hands on my hips.

"Because we need all the help we can get." Dorian leaned against the table. "Look, we ran tests while you were sleeping. That baby can't survive inside Lucia. Her body just isn't made to carry a vampire baby. We need to try something drastic if we want her to live."

Something about his use of 'we' made me feel weird inside.

"How drastic, Dorian?"

"The baby isn't getting enough iron." Dorian continued. "Which is, well, expected, considering his mother cannot absorb blood like a vampire would."

My voice came out as a whisper, "His?"

"Oh, yes, Lucia's going to have a son." Dorian nodded.

For a moment, I smiled, warmth flooding my insides. I also felt awful for not even asking her about it, but figured she understood I had enough on my plate.

"Okay, so he's not getting enough iron." I repeated. "What does that mean?"

"It means his body has trouble producing hemoglobin, and therefore isn't getting enough oxygen. It's worse now because he's growing rapidly, and we need to do something before there are any developmental delays."

I sighed, "I assume Lucia can't just... drink blood?"

"The baby still wouldn't get enough iron if Lucia drank human blood, and Lucia would just die of iron poisoning, and probably bacteria and infections." Dorian murmured. "The red meat diet Martin put her own was a good idea, but it's not enough."

"Okay." I dragged. "But something can be done, right? Right?"

"Vampire blood." Dorian said.

My eyes widened, "What?"

"We can give her vampire blood." He shrugged. "Vampire blood has higher levels of iron, and everything else the baby needs. However, if we gave her our blood, it might harm Lucia, while still not being enough for the baby. There is only one type of vampire whose blood might have enough nutrients to save the baby."

"Elder blood." I whispered.

"That's where Cata comes in." Dorian continued. "Her blood is potent enough to save the baby, and if we watch Lucia closely for iron poisoning, she should be able to make it."

"So, you're not sure." I stated, feeling the lump form in my throat.

"Of course I'm not sure, Ette." Dorian's chuckle was brittle. "This has never happened before, I have no idea what's going on. Hell, I don't even know how she's going to give birth-"

"What does that mean?"

Dorian met my gaze, and pulled up a chair. The insinuation was clear enough. I might want to sit down for this one. I listened reluctantly.

"Baby bones are softer and more flexible than adult bones. It makes it easier for the baby to pass through the birth canal." Dorian spoke. "But this is a vampire baby in human body, and vampire babies are considerably stronger than human babies..."

"You think she's going to need a C-section." I concluded.

Dorian nodded, "If... the baby doesn't tear through her womb before birth."

Nausea hit me, and I was glad he made me sit down.

"Oh, my God."

"But she's in good hands." Dorian added quickly. "And I'll do whatever I can to make sure nothing happens to her or the baby."

Our eyes met, and once again I found myself unable to read him. I believed him, but I didn't trust his motives. He understood how important this was, and he wouldn't jeopardize it, but would he use it later on for his own gain?

"You should go change." Dorian's eyes flew to the too-small hot pants and t-shirt Cherry dressed me in. "Or Ecatarina will hate you even more."

"Wait, she hates me?" I frowned. "Seriously?"

Dorian pushed himself off the table, "She took me in after you banished me from NYC."

With that, he left me alone.

It was only after he'd left and I'd dragged my sorry ass upstairs that I realised I had nothing to wear, and that I never thanked him. For helping Lucia, for saving my life. That was one magic word I never thought I'd want to tell him. Another issue was the fact I truly had nothing to wear. Literally, I had no clothes, and I wasn't ready to go through Dorian's mother's closet.

I sat on the bed and stared ahead, my mind too noisy to do anything else.

Despite the contempt I felt towards Dorian, I missed his mother terribly. Sometimes I thought that the only reason Elena and I turned half-decent was because Dorian's mother was more of a mother to us than our own mother. We spent our entire childhood here, with him and his siblings. My heart broke when Elena died, and those pieces shattered into dust when Dorian's family died.

The phone on the nightstand buzzed, and reality slammed into me. I threw myself over the bed and grabbed the forgotten phone. Oh, God.

Jax.

Fifteen missed calls.

Four texts. One from the day after someone attacked me.

I know I'm being insufferably clingy right now, but you haven't responded all day and I'm worried. Just let me know if Luce is okay.

The next one the day after that.

You can call me a creep later on, but I'm coming over.

The third an hour after that.

I'm gonna try my best to find the hospital you're in.

Although a part of me was glad he went through all this trouble just to find me, I also knew exactly where his search would lead him. The last text message, sent a few seconds ago, was clear.

I'm coming to Darascu's place.

***

Este minunat să te văd. Te-am ratat foarte mult. Du-mă la fată, pot să te ajut. - It's great to see you. I missed you a lot. Take me to the girl, I can help you.

Tante, te-am ratat și eu. Vorbeste in engleza, te rog. Odette se enerveaza cand nu poate intelege oamenii. - Auntie, I missed you too. Speak in English please. Odette gets angry when she can't understand people.