“He is,” I go on. “Because he’s a very old, very powerful vampire. Who I love, and who loves me.”
Martha and Barb just stare at me, and I know they’re probably dying to get away from Nancy so they can fire up the gossip train. Senator Martin—who built his platform on the hatred and fear of vampires—has a daughter who’s marrying one.
With everything else going on—angels, demons
, the Grand Coven, and this mysterious pain-in-the-ass group of vampires who tried to kidnap me…none of this matters. It’s all such bullshit, and no matter what my former father does to try to bring me down, it all pales in comparison to the real powerful beings who want me dead.
“Now, like Abby said,” I start. “I have an appointment to try on dresses. So we’re going to go.”
“Well, perfect!” Martha coos. She’s got pot-stirrer written all over her, and her pink pantsuit would make Dolores Umbridge proud. “We just finished lunch and were headed back to my place for tea. Nancy, why don’t you join your girls and we can catch up later.”
I open my mouth, ready to say the things I’ve wanted to say for years. To denounce my family ties and tell her I’ve met my father—my real father—and she should be on her knees begging for forgiveness because if Dad has any say in where she’s going when she dies, she’ll be paying my Uncle Lucy a visit for the rest of eternity.
But then I see Abby’s face, twisted with anger and sadness. She has a decent relationship with Nancy, as she should. They really are related, and I know Nancy tries to be involved in Penny’s life.
I’ll go home to Thorne Hill, happy and smiling at getting the last word in. But Abby…Abby will keep living this life. She’ll see Martha and Barb again. I want the world to know that Nancy Martin is no better than crusted shit on the bottom of a worn-out shoe, but she’s still the grandmother who takes Penny to the park. Who will take her to and from school.
And now I don’t know which is worse: damning my sister and my niece to a lifetime of being associated with garbage like Nancy Martin, or letting Nancy think she got away with it.
“They only allow two people,” I blurt, still staring right into Nancy’s eyes. She’s uncomfortable with me looking at her, almost as if she’s afraid I’ll hold her spellbound like a vampire. I don’t need to make eye contact in order to get her to do my bidding. “Maybe next time.”
“We’ll give you a minute to catch up,” Martha says, looking disappointed I didn’t cause a scene. She motions to the boutique next to us. “I’m going to have a looksy. My shelves by my fourth fireplace in the den are getting tiresome.” She and Barb go in and Nancy shuffles forward.
“Thank you, Ca—”
“I didn’t do it for you,” I snap. “You are a terrible person and the world should know it. But I’m not going to make life any harder than it needs to be for my sister or my niece.”
Kristy tightens her hold on me, silently telling me she’s proud.
“I just have one question for you.” I take my arm from Kristy’s and take a step forward. Nancy slinks back. “Did you know?”
“Know what?” She quickly shakes her head back and forth.
“Don’t play dumb.” The wind blows through my hair and magic sizzles at my fingertips. “Did you know you weren’t my mother?”
Tears pool in Nancy’s eyes and she quickly blinks them away. “Yes.”
“When?”
“After…after the initial testing.”
For nearly ten years she thought of me as her own. The string of magic that’s twisting between my fingers crackles. “I was wrong. You’re not garbage. You’re worse. Pathetic. A waste of human life. If I never see you again, it would be too soon.” I let out a breath and release the magic I was holding. “Now, I have an appointment to pick out my wedding dress so I can marry an undead, cold, vampire who will drink my blood as he ravages me on our wedding night. Abby? Kristy? Let’s go.”
Holding my head high, I keep walking, not stopping until I get to the street corner. I press the button that I’m convinced doesn’t do anything at the crosswalk, and let my eyes fall shut.
“Are you okay?” Kristy asks softly, coming up next to me.
“Yeah. I am. I’ve told off Scott, my ex-father, and now my ex-mother. Other than Doctor Howard, that’s everyone on my list.”
“Who’s Doctor Howard?” Abby asks apprehensively, though I think she already knows.
“The doctor in charge at the research lab,” I answer, voice void of emotion. The Martins are monsters in their own way, but Doctor Howard is in a class of his own. He tested me, tortured me, and I swear got off on the pain. I take another deep breath and Kristy loops her arm back through mine.
“I think you should try on a black ball gown,” she says, changing the subject. God bless her. “Or red. You always wear black, but you look so good in red.”
“You do,” Abby agrees. “Though I also think you should try on something way over-the-top glam too. Like with frilly lace and sparkles. You know, just to cover all our bases.”
I turn my head to her and see her smiling. Emotion tugs at my heart, and I try hard to let go of the anger. It’s not worth it anymore…right? I need to learn from and let go of the past. Nancy is a terrible human being, but she’s the least of my problems right now.
I smile at both Abby and Kristy, thankful that despite it all, I have such fucking good friends.
“I can do that.”
Nancy might be the least of my worries, but I know I’m not the least of hers. Her hoity-toity friends know I’m marrying a vampire. It’s going to put a damper on William Martin’s political stance, I’m sure.
I can move on. Forget her. But I know she’s not going to forget this, and I get the feeling this exchange is going to come back to haunt me.
“Oh!” Kristy’s hands fly to her mouth. “I think this is my new favorite!”
“You said that about the last five I’ve tried on,” I laugh and step up onto the little platform in front of the mirror. “Though I might agree with you.”
We’re at the second bridal store of the day and I never considered myself picky in terms of fashion until I started looking for my wedding dress. I turn, looking at myself in the mirror. Then I close my eyes and imagine Lucas, standing at the altar. He’s wearing a black suit and looks amazing, of course. And then I see myself, in this very dress, slowly walking down to him.
“This is it,” I announce to my friends. “This is my dress.”
“Did I just hear what I think I heard?” Bryan, the very enthusiastic consultant peeks his head into the room. “Are you saying yes to the dress?”
My eyes go back to the mirror, back to the see-through lace and hand-beaded details on the long, flowing skirt. The dress has a deep v-neckline and an open back. It shows the perfect amount of skin without being trashy, though with the five-figure price tag, it’s anything but. Lucas gave me his credit card and told me he expected me to spend at least ten grand today. It still boggles my mind to have that much money. I’ve never gone without, but Kristy and I both scraped and saved the first year we opened the bookshop, that’s for sure.
The next was better, and when the last big chain bookstore closed in the area, business really picked up for us. We’ve lived comfortably, though it’s not like either of us went into this business to get rich.
Lucas, on the other hand, has spent the last sixteen hundred years doing all he can to accumulate wealth. I don’t know exactly how much money he has stashed in different bank accounts, or buried in Mason jars in the dirt for all I know, but I wouldn’t be surprised to find out he was a billionaire.
“What about a veil?” Bryan asks. “I have one that will go perfectly.”
“I’m not sure,” I tell him. “But I’ll try one on.”
Bryan brings in a few options, and while I’m pretty sure I’m not going to wear one—it’s not traditional for witches to cover their faces—I get one anyway. There’s nothing traditional, witch or non, about this wedding anyway.
I’m all giddy with excitement when I purchase the dress. Mine will take two months to arrive, and then I should give myself a few weeks for alterations, just in case.
“That was much easier than I thought,” I say as we leave the shop. “And now that I know I’ll for sure have my dress by the end of October, we can pick a date.”
Kristy opens the door for me and smiles, but I catch the look in her eye,
and it causes the lump I’ve been shoving down all day to rise in my throat.
There’s a good chance I’m spending all this money, getting all excited, and taking all this time for a wedding that’s never going to happen.
“We’re going to make it work,” she promises. “One way or another.”
We step out onto the busy Chicago street and Abby looks from Kristy to me. “Am I missing something?” she asks.
I nod and blink back the tears that suddenly well in my eyes. I’m not one to cry, but I’m so fucking pissed and it’s either cry or start telekinetically throwing shit around.
“Vampires and witches are forbidden to be together,” I blurt. “If the Vampire Council finds out that Lucas proposed to me, they could sentence him to death. And…and the same goes for me. I’ve already been found guilty of associating with vampires back when Hell’s royalty came straight through the gates, sent demons after our coven, and then tried to kill me, but since Lucas killed the demons and helped me defeat Vara—the demon—I was pardoned.”
Abby looks at me unblinking for several seconds. “What?” She slowly shakes her head.
I let out a sigh. “I’m not even supposed to be telling you this, since you’re a non, but a long time ago, witches and vampires waged war against each other. To make a long story short, vampires were jealous that we could walk in the light and the dark. They wanted our powers and attempted to drain and turn as many witches as they could, but it didn’t give them powers. Our magic dies with us, and isn’t present in our blood. Like I said before, biologically, witches are totally human.”
We pause at a crosswalk and I take another deep breath. “The witches won, and almost killed every single vampire on the face of the earth. But we haven’t forgotten what the vampires tried to do to us, and the vampires certainly haven’t forgotten what we did—and are still capable of doing. The VC might seem progressive, but they still hold the same view on witches. It’s been over a thousand years and most new vampires don’t even know the history between us, but the grudge still stands.”