I had only been to the statues once and it felt like that had been decades ago. But something told me as I paced through the trees that I was going the right direction. It wasn’t the same as being pulled to Jacobi’s spirit through his powerfully addictive call, nor was it similar to the draw Clio had when I had seen her. It was similar to walking through a familiar town I had been born and raised in. The knowledge of where I needed to go was just there.

I was alone. The twins were still in that sitting room, only now alone and unprotected. A part of me felt a twinge of shame, knowing I had abandoned what trust I had been given when I was asked to watch over them, if only for a while. I could have waited for Jacobi and Darsana to finish discussing the letter Adelaide had left him. But something told me he wouldn’t be as eager for me to pursue this small adventure of curiosity. Besides, I hoped I could see what there was needed to be seen and be back at the headquarters before anybody noticed.

Quite suddenly, the trees cleared out and I was standing in front of that familiar garden of statues. For a moment, I hesitated and glanced around at the display of flowers placed around the still figures. Then I quietly moved down the pathway in the center in order to stop by the lake where I typically stood in my dreams.

I gazed at the surface of the lake for a moment, watching the reflection of the moon against it. After a second, I glanced over my shoulder to see the back of Adelaide’s statue. In my mind’s eye, I could see her watching me, pointing at the distance patiently. I slowly turned my gaze from the back of her statue to my right.

From where I was, I could only see what looked to be a small crowd of statues surrounding bushes of flowers, most of which were wilted or slightly closed while waiting for the sun to rise again. I imagined the garden would look even more breathtaking in the sunlight. Still, whatever it was that Adelaide wanted me to see had to be beyond the initial layer of the garden. So I began to step in that direction, crossing between the statues carefully.

The further I went, the sadder I felt as the number of losses only increased. Some faces were older and wiser, but many were young… too young. I knew based on what I’d witness with the vampires that appearances didn’t define a person’s age in this society, but it still bothered me to know each of these figures had been living and talking creatures at one point in time; loved by their Coterie. And now they were silent and lifeless, wooden figures forever standing in a quiet garden by an eerie lake.

The figures faded out as a small flight of cobblestone steps led down to another part of the garden. In this circle, well-trimmed bushes surrounded the area as though lining off an important section. Besides another design of flowers dancing around the clearing, there stood a single carved statue in the center. The way the figure was placed made it seem as though it were a figure to be highly cherished or worshipped. Something told me this was what I was looking for.

I stepped closer to the figure, noting the unfamiliar form. It was a woman, probably no taller than I was. But something in the way she stood made her seem like a giant. Her eyes were relaxed, almost sleepy but in a way that seemed like a dangerous animal before it’s actually seen its prey. Her hands were cupped together at her midsection innocently, only slightly extended as though half-offering something not able to be seen. There was something strange about her form that seemed almost glowing in the moonlight, despite the material she’d been carved from.

Once I was close enough, I tore my eyes from that pale face down to the plaque in front of her shrine, reading the name “Eve Raene” across the bottom. So this was what the first Royal looked like when she was living. I found my eyes glued to her face, raking over her form only briefly before memorizing those beautifully flawless features of the Eve Raene. After a moment, I raised my hand timidly towards her figure as though enthralled completely.

It was only a brush of fingertips over an inanimate object.

Suddenly, that familiar film had taken over my vision, flashing a new image across my eyes. I could see Eve from before. She had been glowing, powerful in her own right. I could see her pale blonde hair lighten over the centuries until the strands stood eerily silver, her own blue eyes following. I stumbled away from her figure in response, my heart jolting at how strange but yet beautiful she had appeared. I knew now what Jacobi had meant when he said I would understand by seeing her why she was sometimes mistaken for a witch if not abnormal. But even with those strange pale features, her beauty was astoundingly unique.

I hesitated. Then I began to circle the statue slowly. There was a reason Adelaide wanted me to see this. It had to be more than to just show me who Eve was. I knew the idea of seeing such a powerful being, the woman who had turned Jacobi and was so greatly cherished in the vampire society, was intriguing in itself. But there had to be more.

I was right.

As I circled around the statue, I froze. My eyes rose from the feet of Eve’s statue slowly, landing on her back. Her hair was wispy in life, almost see-through, and Jacobi had done a great job incorporating that into his artwork. The dress she was in dropped from her shoulders and bared her back powerfully. My hands fell uselessly beside me as I gawked at the lines striking across her back, like static from a lightning strike. The lines were near identical to mine, reaching across like the roots of a tree from her lower back in order to dominate her skin in artistic designs up to her shoulders.

Again, I reached to trace the statue with my fingers in confusion. When I touched that familiar design, I could see the mark alive in my vision, glowing supernaturally across Eve’s flesh just as the marks across Karsten’s arm had. In this vision, I knew her mark was different from mine, only because of that powerful glow whereas mine was a dull, pale design. But it couldn’t just be a coincidence. This had to be what stopped the vampires from ending me; this parallel mark to their leader.

My heart was pounding and my head was reeling as I took a couple steps back. What did this mean? Why did I have a similar mark to Eve Raene? I’d never seen her before. I’d never seen any vampire before I had been captured. It obviously wasn’t a typical vampire hunter mark, either. So what did this mean?

Before I could try to find out, a strong and cold hand clamped over my throat from behind, cutting off my oxygen abruptly. I reached quickly to claw at the hand or to try to get out of their grasp, but their grip was iron.

“Hello, Monet girl,” I heard the frighteningly low voice growl into my ear just before everything fell into darkness.

~…~

Someone was slapping me repeatedly against the side of my pulsing head. It wasn’t hard enough to do much damage, but it was enough to make me whimper in pain. I jerked my head back to avoid further blows, only to hit the back of my head against a solid wall.

“Wake up, birdy,” That chilling voice mocked me, sending a wave of terror through my veins as I recognized who it belonged to. I blinked in the dim light, my eyes meeting those black orbs which watched me without emotion. It was Vincent, Master of the Bennett Coterie, Xander’s Maker, and now my new captor.

As I realized this last fact, I scrambled to move away from him, breathing harshly as I prepared to scream for help. I noticed immediately that I couldn’t get far. My hands were bound to chains that were firmly latched against what looked like a prison wall. I gasped, my eyes darting around the dark and unfamiliar room. Where was I? Why was I here?

“Awake at last. You’ve been out for over a day. For a Monet, you’re absolutely pitiful,” Vincent’s words were dark, sparking that fear that sent a tremble through my body in response, but at the same time they lacked the anger I expected them to hold. He was empty. It was possibly even more frightening than if he had been tossing things around in a fit of rage. Still, as I continued to gain more clarity through consciousness, my fear was dimmed by a thought I was quick to cling onto.

“Jacobi will come for me,” I quickly told him, near desperately. Vincent laughed then, low and dangerously.

“He will try,” Vincent stated slowly, unimpressed. “Go on and call for him. Do it for me.” I trembled, holding back tears as I felt a building fear only continuing to rise with every word from his mouth. Still, I closed my eyes and remembered the feel of Jacobi’s spirit. I recalled that pull, that constant attraction that typically blanketed my soul. Only when I tried to reach for it, it didn’t respond. Jacobi’s spirit was quiet, only a shadow of what it was before, as if something was blocking it from me. I blinked, looking at Vincent in confusion.

“What did you do?” I whimpered. Masters couldn’t break the claim of other Masters. Only a Royal could do that… Had a Royal broken Jacobi’s claim on me to help Vincent?

“I have allies in dark places,” Vincent informed me simply before indicating to the room around me. “Witches. I had one seal off this entire place. Your Mate won’t be able to find you. Nobody will.” My fear was stalled by his choice of words, clouded now by confusion.

“My… Mate?” I whispered slowly. “Jacobi only claimed me…”

“Oh, your Jacobi more than claimed you,” Vincent bent down in front of me, snatching my face in his grip threateningly. My heart raced in my chest as I bit back on a scream. He bent my head to the side as if inspecting me for a moment. “I don’t know how. You’re human. But the fact remains.” I shook my head in his grip, refusing his information.

“He’s not my Mate!” I cried out, though I wasn’t sure why I had to clarify this fact to this particularly dangerous vampire, “You have to both consent. You have to have consent. I didn’t consent. He said he’d let me go. He wouldn’t… he wouldn’t do that without consent. He said…”

“Silence,” Vincent slapped me again, the pain shocking my already pulsing head. Then he grasped my face again, pulling me to look at him roughly. “I don’t care about your idiotic babbling. I don’t even care that you belong to Jacobi. This is strictly for my Xander’s benefit.” He began to pet my face mockingly, tilting his head almost curiously.

“I saw the way he stood for you. I know he claimed you before,” He told me before a slow smile began to rise on his features. It was a devious look, completely lacking the charm a smile was supposed to have. It promised so much pain. “I would normally go after his Mate, but even I wouldn’t wish that on him. As for a dead pet, taking away Jacobi’s Mate in the process? And a Monet, at that? Beautiful.” The threat was clear; he meant to kill me. But my rage was building, remembering the pain Vincent had put Xander through.

“Why can’t you leave him alone? He doesn’t want to be yours and he never will,” I spat bravely.

“He may not want to now, but he will always be mine. One day he’ll come back to me. I’m a patient man. I have eternity to wait,” Vincent said emotionlessly, releasing his grip on me abruptly. He stood away from me, looking around as if to make sure everything was where it was supposed to be. “Enjoy your containment while you’re alive. You will have an appointment with a rogue girl soon.” I hesitated, not certain what he meant.

“You’re not going to kill me?” I asked. It wasn’t like I wanted him to kill me. In fact, I very much wanted to live. But something in his words told me he had worse plans waiting for me.

“Oh yes, I forgot to mention,” Vincent said boredly, “Jacobi’s lost, little vampire came to me for help. Apparently all her bonds had been broken and she didn’t want to fix them. She told me about her old Coterie, my Xander, and Jacobi mating with you. She knew before anyone else, you see. Being the kind-hearted man I am, I agreed to hide her away until she’s succumbed to the mindless disease. In return for her information, I also agreed to grant her last wish…”

Vincent moved to leave, pausing at the door he opened partially before looking back at me.

“She’ll be rogue soon. And then I’ll feed you to her. As per her request,” He snarled, flashing teeth in a menacing way as he chuckled at the terror that flashed across my face. And then he was gone. I was left panting, his words spinning in my head as I held still.

Jacobi had mated with me, instead of claiming me? I tried to remember what the book, Social Science of Vampirism, had said about the Mate bond. The most obvious thing that came to mind was that it could only happen between two vampires. It had stated both parties had to consent on some level on their consciousness. Besides consent, it had to be spiritually compatible. What had it said about accidental bonding during intimacy? I tried to jog my memory, but I could only recall that it was a possibility… but surely I would have noticed. Wouldn’t I?

I recalled the way I could actually feel his soul, whereas it wasn’t the same for when Aveline and Xander had claimed me. Their spirits hadn’t called to me like his. Wouldn’t he have noticed, though? Why wouldn’t he tell me, if it was an accident? And more importantly, why would he make me his Mate if he agreed to eventually let me go? Even I knew Mates weren’t supposed to be a temporarily agreement.

All these thoughts were chased away as I looked around the room I was contained in. Regardless of what Jacobi had or had not done, I was alone now. I couldn’t feel him. I couldn’t reach him. He no doubt wouldn’t be able to find me. And now I was to wait for death. I was here, in some unknown place, waiting to be fed to a rogue vampire. But not just any rogue vampire.

Corentine.

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Music: Follow Me Down by The Pretty Reckless (Which is fitting, seeing as it's near Christmas time and the lead singer did play little Cindy Lou on The Grinch! haha)