As it was already nearly dawn when Sean had returned to their chambers and had his break down of sorts, they did not have a lot more time to discuss his idea of possibly surrendering the throne to Thomas. The sun soon forced that upsetting conversation to an abrupt end though; leaving it unresolved for yet another day.

Upon waking, Claire moved closer to him as she propped her chin on his shoulder sadly, “do you still think giving it all up is the best option?” she asked quietly.

“I don’t know what to think, Claire” Sean sighed.

“Just don’t do anything rash. Maybe he was just testing you to see if you’d break” she offered hopefully, though her tone lacked conviction.

“I’m pretty sure I failed that test” he scoffed sadly.

“Just avoid him if you can tonight and give us some more time to think on it. At least another night” she told him softly.

“I can try. But if he’s in the mood to play games again tonight…” Sean just shook his head as he grudgingly moved from the bed and even more grudgingly from that small contact with her that he had been missing for so very long already.

Once Sean left their room, Claire sat up as she braced herself and made any attempt she could think of to at least gather more information about this new thorn in their side. She closed her eyes, concentrating deeply as it took quite a bit of effort and will for her to break into another Kindred’s mind, let alone one who was most likely preoccupied, thousands of miles away, and over 400 years old.

Please tell me you can hear me, please. She repeated her thought to him for a third or fourth time before she finally got some response at last.

Who is this? The man’s voice sounded in her mind at last.

Oh, Prince Hollister, thank you for hearing me. Claire transmitted her grateful thoughts to him with some tiny relief. This is Claire, Claire Beringer.

Claire? He responded with obvious surprise, though his tone sounded jovial at least. How’s life as the wife of a Prince?

Claire sighed heavily as she tried to find some answer, a bit stressful, she offered as she forced her thoughts forward. That’s actually why I’m contacting you. I need a bit of advice.

You? Not Sean? He returned warily.

He’s a bit preoccupied. She returned, which wasn’t exactly a lie, as Sean was quite distracted still she was sure. I actually wanted to ask you about your childe. She dared to begin that conversation.

Hollister seemed a bit surprised by that, the childe who died fourteen years ago? He asked for clarification, sadness still touching the tone his voice held in her head.

Claire braced herself again before responding, no, the other one.

Thomas? Hollister returned with further surprise. That’s a name I’ve barely heard in over a century.

You mean he hasn’t been to see you at all, before he went to see Daniel and Anastasia? Claire asked with a bit of her own surprise.

And when exactly did he see them? Hollister returned warily.

Well, he didn’t say exactly, but I imagine it was sometime in the last year; before he came here. She offered her best guess.

Well, I haven’t spoken to either of them in a few years either. He then added, but I imagine if he had seen them, he would have had to come and tell me that he was back in London. He never made his presence known to me at all; in over a century. Hollister informed with the same wariness. Then he added, and you say he’s there in America with you now?

Claire’s discomfort seemed to increase then. I guess what I really need to know, and I hope I don’t offend you by asking, but should we be worried about him?

Worried how? Hollister returned cautiously.

He’s made some troubling comments, I guess you could say. She attempted to broach the subject as carefully as she could.

Troubling how? Hollister returned.

It’s hard to say, really. Sean was the one he spoke to more than me. She sighed, but it’s apparent he doesn’t think Sean is exactly suited to this job… considering how much younger we both are than Thomas, himself; and the fact that the rest of his line have been made Princes. Claire attempted to explain as delicately as she could, considering she was not truly aware of what relationship there actually was between sire and childe.

Well, he has always been a little more jealous and eager for power than Haven. Hollister admitted with a slight sigh, That’s why I put Haven’s name forth for your current territory, rather than Thomas’.

That was when Claire swallowed a lump in her throat before sending the next rather blunt thought, what I really need to know is if he’s dangerous.

All Kindred are dangerous, aren’t they? Hollister attempted.

But do you think he would actually try and take that power from Sean? I mean, he easily could, couldn’t he? She added more worriedly.

Hollister sighed heavily before offering a response, Admittedly, he has been rather estranged from the rest of our line, and for a very long time; which does make it quite odd that he would come to see two relatives he’d never even met.

Except that he knows that of all of our line who have power, Sean is the weakest among those Princes. Claire admitted with further worry and fear. She then added the easiest prey.

He does have you rather shaken, doesn’t he? Hollister returned with concern.

That’s why I’ve come to you, Claire returned softly.

Hollister sighed once more, I’ll speak with him and let him know that he’s in my sights, and he had better behave himself around my favorite grandchilde and great grandchilde, Hollister assured with a small smile.

Thank you, Prince Hollister. But please remember to be as subtle and careful as you can. He’s a lot nearer to us than you are right now; Claire added that final worry with another heavy sigh before they ended their mental communication.

A few hours later, Claire had gone to meet the servants at the gate that night as they brought in the day’s cargo to be sorted through before being sent on to the merchants. Only as she stepped out of the front door, she was more than a bit distraught to see Thomas moving through the fenced in yard toward the main house once more. She averted her eyes and attempted to turn back to head inside, not wanting to risk another confrontation; or another chance for him to rip any secrets from her head.

“Oh Claire” he called after her just as her fingers touched the door. He then smirked a bit as she immediately cringed at the sound of him calling to her.

She called upon as much strength as she could to turn back to him and force a polite smile to her lips, “Thomas” she managed that much of a greeting.

“You people are done, aren’t you?” he told the servants with a bit of coolness and a wave of his hand to encourage their departure as he turned that ever so insincere smile back on Claire as the servants shuffled away warily.

“Most of the time it’s only me or Sean that gives our servants orders” she told him through clenched teeth as she tried to hold her own smile.

“Well, they are servants aren’t they; here to serve?” he added curtly.

Claire just shook her head at the fact that his manner had not seemed to improve. That of course led her to the conclusion that either Hollister hadn’t contacted him yet; or worse, that he had and it had not helped the situation at all. Though, her attempt at guessing which was soon was interrupted as he supplied the answer.

“Contacting my daddy to tell him how I hurt your feelings and you’d like him to make me stop? Quite the interesting defensive tactic; for a five year old, anyway” he added coldly.

Claire had to use every bit of willpower to hold onto any of her composure at all in light of his statement. She then managed a shaky response, “is there something I can help you with, Thomas?”

“It’s interesting how every time you or Sean offer to assist me in any way, it sounds like you’re telling me to go fuck myself” he stated with even more bluntness.

Another crack in Claire’s composure, “you do have a way of coming across as a tad bit patronizing” she managed.

“Or maybe you’re just a tad bit intimidated by me; as you should be” he offered in the same biting tone.

“What is it that you want, Thomas?” Claire returned with her own attempts at politeness sorely depleted by that point.

“It is so boring to play these games with such a woefully unarmed opponent” he replied with a shake of his head.

Claire simply swallowed another lump in her throat as she tried to find another response.

It was Thomas who found his words first, “you know what? I’m just going to have to settle though, aren’t I?" He then added, “let’s see if we can come up with something fun anyway, though” he pondered a moment, then his tone changed to that hypnotic tempo that forced his will on anyone he wished “I know, why don’t you go on a very long walk and find someone else to go fuck tonight. It’s not like you and Sean are doing that much anymore. And it might make you feel better about him cheating on you” he then added, in the same tone, “I know, how about that pretty little kinfolk boy you’re so wet for. That will be awfully fun once his wife finds out I’m sure. Run along now” he added as he waved her away. And she went, as she honestly had no choice in the face of the willpower and abilities that were so much stronger than her own.

Just as it was with the blood bond, when another Kindred was compelled by one of their own kind; it was a terrible lack of will and a consciousness of that loss at the same time. Claire knew she was being controlled by him, but she just was not strong enough to use her own will to overcome his, which made it that much worse when she found herself far up the beach, over an hour later.

Nearly trembling, she forced her hand to come up to knock on the door that had the name ‘Doctor Kristofer Harris” stenciled upon it. All she could think then was that if his wife were the one to open that door, it would honestly be her last night of that long, sad life. And that she would be leaving it with Sean thinking she still hated him. And that’s what was tearing her up inside more than anything else at that very moment.

When Kristofer did finally come to open the door to her at that late hour, he looked startled by more than just the fact of having a visitor coming to his door at nearly one a.m. “C… Claire?” he stammered, nearly choking on her name as a million emotions crossed his face such as joy, fear, relief, terror, desire and shock, just to name a few.

“Is there somewhere we can talk?” Claire managed, her voice shaking as bad as her body, her eyes moving to the windows in the top floor of his home.

“Um…yeah…the pier maybe?” he offered as he turned his eyes in the proper direction.

Not waiting for any more words, Claire desperately grabbed his hand in hers, dragging him away from the home that his wife was most likely inside at that very moment. Once they moved far up the beach to that pier and found a place to speak in quiet underneath the dock, he was still wearing the expression of pure shock and disbelief as he looked down at her.

“You’re alive?” he breathed the words more than spoke them, as he couldn’t hide any of those emotions at all as he just let his eyes take her in with amazement.

She swallowed hard as she forced back the urge to correct him, but she knew that was a conversation that would not be easy, and being less than a mile from the home his wife resided at with him was all the stress she could take for one night. Instead of answering his words with her own, Thomas’ will once again pierced her psyche. With no choice of her own, she simply moved wordlessly to pull Kristofer to her, covering his mouth with hers in some combination of the passion she had always had for him, the deep despair that this was not truly her choice at all, even if it may have been at one time, and the terror that at any moment that woman could come looking for them, and end her life so completely; just as Kristofer had spent over two years believing it already had been ended by his own brother.

More than a bit shocked by the kiss, and experiencing quite a bit of his own fear, Kristofer still had spent so long pining for this woman who he believed had forever been lost to death. And on that thought, he moved to kiss her back with an intensity that hadn’t even been present on the one other night they had shared kisses with one another so long ago. It was only moments later when Claire and he both found themselves tearing at each other’s clothes there on that sandy beach under the dock that night, both compelled by separate but equally intense emotions.

When they’re lovemaking ended at last, Claire looked just as shaken as Kristofer had been upon her arrival at his door that night. Once they were finally dressed once more, he had to speak, “I admit, I got a bit distracted, but I need to ask, how are you even still…?” he began with a shake of his head.

“It was a friend of mine at the tavern that night” she offered as she easily guessed at the rest of his sentence.

“So, are you really a…” Kristofer began, not even sure he could force himself to ask that question once and for all.

“You should get home Kristofer” Claire told him sadly as she finished sliding on her boots and began moving away.

He caught her wrist, “You can’t just show up at my door after over two years of me thinking you were dead, and just drag me away and… do that with me… and then tell me to go home” he pleaded with her to explain any of that night’s encounter to him at all.

“I can’t explain any of it right now, Kristofer. I have to get as far away from here as I can, right this second” she told him with the same desperation in her own voice.

Kristofer swallowed a bit with an obvious sadness, as well as a growing need to know, once and for all, “at least tell me if you really are… what he said you were.”

“I can’t. I can’t do this right here and right now, Kristofer…I have to go, now” she told him with more force as she pulled free from his grip, as much as it pained her to leave him with so much more confusion than he had already had since their last meeting before this night.

Kristofer just looked after her with disbelief, sadness, and exasperation as he debated on chasing her down that beach and demanding she give him any kind of explanation at all. That was when he let his eyes turn to his house, where a candle had now been lit in the upstairs window. He swallowed another lump in his throat as he looked after Claire who was still rushing away in what almost seemed like terror at the thought of being there one more moment. Then again, if she truly were what Kaleb had said her friend at the tavern was… then her terror would be quite well founded.

On that thought, he looked back at his house and decided to let Claire have her secrets for one more night. After all, he had already waited over two years wondering about the truth of those secrets; so what was just that one more night? With a sad sigh and a deep breath he started back toward the house again.

That was when Rose made her way to the door and looked at him with a more than questioning look, “what the hell are you doing out here on the beach in the middle of the night, Kristofer?” she asked him with a shake of those flame colored locks.

“Um… I thought I heard…” he began, only to have his voice falter as she moved down the beach toward him.

As she got nearer, something seemed to make her halt as she looked around, suddenly alerted by something. She then brought her eyes back to Kristofer, centering a suspicious look on him. He swallowed another lump in his throat as she moved closer still.

That was when her entire body tensed as she looked at him even more coldly, “A vampire was here?” she nearly growled the accusation.

That was when Kristofer immediately tensed, his hand moving to the gun that he had always kept tucked into the back of his pants, just like he had been instructed to. “That’s ridiculous, Rose…”

“I can smell its blood” she told him in the same near growl as her eyes immediately moved to the footprints that Claire had left when she had hurried down the beach only moments earlier.

As her eyes fell on those footprints, she glared back at him once more before her body began to contort as the change began. Kristofer’s breath caught once more as her eyes now remained fixed on those footprints and began to turn from blue to yellow, her bones beginning to shift under her skin. He swallowed hard as he forced back a sob, and moved to bring the gun quickly up from behind his back. He then couldn’t help another loud sob as he forced himself to bring the gun up to point towards her head and pulled the trigger.

As she fell to the sand in a bloody heap, that silver slug having firmly pierced her skull; Kristofer bit back another sob only to have his soul torn at once more when he heard their one month old twins’ cries from inside the house.