It was as if time stood still as we stared at the girl who was supposed to be dead. She was very much alive and looking into my eyes, pleading to be saved. I've been seeing her in my dreams for so long, but seeing her here, in person, was haunting. So much pain and longing hid behind her big, blue eyes. I couldn't fathom what it had been like for her to be trapped for eighteen years inside a coffin. Her life, although immortal, had been taken from her. Tristan was taken from her, and their baby was taken from them too.

Tristan.

I had feelings for him. How couldn't I when all I have seen is his aqua eyes and perfect face my entire life? He was my first kiss. I couldn't that person though—one to be that selfish. I used to be, but all it did was hurt the people I cared about, and I did care about Tristan, but Eretria is his true soulmate. It wouldn't be fair for me to hold onto him when he wasn't mine to begin with. Despite my feelings, I couldn't bring myself to be jealous either. It wasn't her fault this happened and ruined her life.

I guess fate is a little messed up sometimes.

"Oh my God! Julian, she's alive!" I cried out in disbelief. "How is this possible?"

Julian's shook his head, clearly at a loss for words. We both weren't expecting this. I don't think anyone was.

When Julian didn't answer, I shook his shoulder. "Julian?! What do we do? She's not moving. What's wrong with her?"

He finally snapped out of his daze. My eyes caught his, silently pleading him to do something—anything because I had no idea what to do.

"Blood. She needs blood. She's gone nineteen years without it, so her body is basically turning into a corpse while she is alive—desiccating," he quickly explained.

Without hesitation, I brought my wrist up to Julian's face, motioning for him to bite me. For a moment, he stared into my eyes and then hesitantly bit down into my wrist. A stinging pain erupted where his fangs pierced my skin. I quickly brought my arm down to Eretria's cracked lips, squeezing my hand so that the blood would flow quicker out of the wounds. Red droplets fell onto her lips and into her mouth, slowly giving her life.

When Eretria's lips started to move, I pulled away. Slowly, her body went from looking like a corpse to the person I've seen in my dreams so many times before. All the discoloration vanished, and she was able to lift her head inside the coffin. Julian jumped in and picked up Eretria's frail frame. He sat her down next to the hole by me and supported her so that she stayed upright. She nodded at Julian and put her hand up as if to tell him that she was fine. Julian backed away, waiting for her to talk—for an explanation.

Eretria cleared her throat before speaking, "We have to go back inside the castle." Her voice was rough from not speaking for such a long time. Mine and Julian's brows furrowed in confusion.

"Eretria, we can't. You have no idea what..." Julian tried to explain, but Eretria interrupted him.

"I do know what is happening. I've seen everything. We have to go back in there." She pointed at the castle.

"You've been using your astral projection to watch?" I asked curiously.

She nodded and looked up to meet my eyes. "We have to hurry. Tristan is in trouble. He has no idea."

"He is fighting with his father and the others. I killed Collin. He won't be able to hurt Tristan or you..."

Eretria cut him off again with rage in her eyes. "Collin isn't their leader, and he wasn't the one who killed me. You know nothing about what really is going on, Julian."

"Who was it it then?" I asked softly, not knowing if I wanted to hear the answer.

"It was the King," Eretria spat, her voice laced in anger.

"Tristan's father?!" Julian looked like he was in disbelief. He stood up and shook his head, probably wondering how he missed it this whole time.

I didn't know what to say; I wasn't expecting it to be the King. The deceit felt like being punched in the gut. He fooled all of us, and the worst part was that I trusted him. He made us believe that he was keeping me safe. What didn't make sense was why he was intent on killing us both. As a human, I couldn't be a threat to him; it made no sense. There had to be a reason why he found me so important, and why he went through all that trouble with Eretria nineteen years ago.

The silence was deafening between us. Eretria looked towards the castle with a fury I've never seen before. Despite being stuck in a literal nightmare, she held her head high like a powerful warrior. She reminded me of myself. We both were held against our will and fought to be free, though I was only stuck in the hospital for six years and at least was able to move around. I couldn't imagine what she experienced.

"We need to go. The King will kill him." Eretria broke the silence and stood up, her energy restored from my blood.

"Eretria—he wouldn't. I mean... Tristan is his son. Wouldn't he have done so by now?" Julian stuttered, still in shock.

"He would if it got in the way of what he wanted. You have no idea what that man is capable of, and I have no time to explain everything right now. We need to go," she asserted as she motioned to the castle.

Julian's lips went into a flat line, and his jaw clenched. "Okay. Let's go."

Julian led us through where we escaped from and through hallways that led up to the ballroom. Everything was dark and deserted; a heavy feeling settled around us as we approached the huge doorway. It sounded like the fighting had stopped. There were faint sounds of voices and whispers coming from inside.

It was terrifying not knowing what would commence once Eretria's presence was known. So many questions ran through my head. What would Tristan do? What would the King do? What happened so many years ago, and why was I apart of it?

Nothing made sense in my messed up world; nothing has for a long time. One thing I knew for sure was that we were going to make King Gabriel pay for what he did. He ruined Tristan's life. He almost destroyed mine. He made Eretria suffer. There was no way he was going to live to ruin someone else's life. If anyone made sure of that, it would be Eretria. The anger in her eyes told me that there was hell to pay.

Eretria slammed the doors open, ready to unleash her fury on the person who caused her so much pain.