Chapter 6: Justice

My father always told me, 'There is power in blood.'

Vampire couldn't survive without the stuff. We needed it. It meant everything to us.

I'm in the lobby of this expensive hotel.

I'm already in a bad mood. I'm thirsty. So thirsty. I figured my father would react poorly to the fact that I ran away and was captured by some witch doctor. The witches starved me out. It was a mistake on my part. The fact is I was a grown ass man. Grown men didn't run away. I decided to leave. The quicker my father recognized that the better.

"What would you like to drink sir?"

"You have anything red?" I ask the bartender.

The bartender is handsome for a human. Humans were usually flawed. They were unlike us immortals. When you drank blood your skin got clear, your body got smoother. It was normal to see someone like my father or Santos walk in a room and show greatness. It wasn't really the same with humans. This bartender wasn't vampire sexy...but he would do for the night. He is clean shaven and tall. He's slim and I can see the beginnings of his pecs because his shirt is pulled down a little too much. When he turns to the side I can see his ass. It's decent. Tight and round, just the way I liked it. He was definitely fuckable. Right now I wasn't thinking about sex, though.

I was thinking about this vein he has in his neck. It's calling for me. I imagine biting down into it. The thirst is becoming so real at this moment.

"We have some Merlot, some Cabernet Sauvignon, some Pinot Noir if you're feeling a little risky for the night."

"I'm feeling really risky tonight," I tell the bartender.

I lean back in my stool and lick my licks. I grab my dick, giving it a long hard squeeze. For some reason, it's easy to tell when humans are attracted to you. It's almost like I can feel their blood pumping faster in their veins. This man was most definitely attracted to me and he is watching me the entire time I grab onto my package.

I outline my dick with my hands. I slowly trace all 9 inches so that he can see how thick it is. The bartender looks around probably making sure no one is watching before he leans over a little bit on the bar.

He doesn't need to tell me how impressed he is.

"Yo-- I got a stash of good wine at my place. I get off in about 10 minutes," the guy says getting really comfortabl, bringing out this masculine side to him.

I'm not supposed to leave the hotel. We were supposed to be headed back to Eden the next night. That was the plan at least.

Then I think about this fucking plan. My father thought I was still a teenager. I know time worked differently in Eden but I was a grown man. Regardless of if my father was over a 100 years old or not made no difference to me. I was grown. I deserved respect.

"Sounds good. I like my wine red...and thick," I let him know, "You got some of that good shit, sexy?"

"Thick?" he smiles turning around to show me his ass, "As thick as you want."

"He'll just take the Merlot," a voice says.

Just at that moment, I turn to see Count Lucca walk in. Count Lucca was a member of my father's council. He was a pale white color and seemed to get even paler over the years. That didn't take away how handsome he was though. His skin had a shimmer. The Count was handsome like a vampire. All of a sudden he makes the bartender just look average at best. He had dyed his hair a pale white color and his eyes were dark. He glides across the room in a way that causes the human to turn and notice. He is very elegant to say the least. Lucca was part of the in-crowd back in Eden. You would think he was gay or at least bisexual but that wasn't really the case. He and his wife were perhaps the two most popular vampires in Eden outside of the Royal family. They had a lot of pull in politics.

"One Merlot coming up," the hot bartender says.

He probably thinks Count Lucca is my boyfriend. He's far from correct with that. Lucca was one of the rare completely straight vampires in Eden. Lucca walks over and takes a seat next to me.

"You know your father would trip if you drink from a human right?"

"I wasn't going to kill him."

"Regardless Prince Justice---"

"Just Justice."

The Count refuses to address me informally, "Prince Justice. There are laws."

I roll my eyes: Here we go with this bullshit.

I'd heard this for years from my father. The great King Nero made it very clear. Vampires are not to bite humans. We are supposed to get second hand blood from blood banks. Fuck a donation! I wanted the real thing. It just seemed all the way unnatural.

"I know the laws," I explain to him.

Lucca smiles, "Good. But if you wanted to...you know...break them, you are the Prince of Eden. You can get away with it. Only if you wanted to, though."

Lucca gives me a slight wink. He has a suggestive glance that makes me consider it at that moment. When the bartender comes back over with wine I notice he's snuck his phone number on the other side of the napkin. I guess I still had some type of draw when it came to humans.

It was nice to know.

"I didn't know the Council came here with my father," I state.

"Only a few of us. We were very invested in making sure that you were returned from the witches," Lucca states.

Lucca is always up to something. He's just like every other vampire. They didn't just make small talk. Vampires weren't that kind of breed. If Lucca was talking to me then there was something that he wanted. He had a motive. He had an agenda. I hated the small talk. I just wanted him to spit it out already and save me the time. I could go back to flirting with the humans in my last few hours of freedom.

"They weren't all that bad," I state.

I think about the one witch. Innocent. He had treated me nicely actually. We had a lot in common. I didn't think I made a very good first impression though for the most part. I mean I had attempted to bite into his artery. Not really the best way to make friends.

"They are dangerous," Lucca states, "My wife Camilla has heard rumors in Eden is that they can live forever if they want to. Just like vampires. Could you imagine how crazy that is?"

"The one named Genesis is dangerous," I admit.

"Do you think your father knows that?"

That is when I see Lucca's face. There was definitely some intention there when it came to him. He just looked completely shocked.

"My father is a smart man."

"So I've heard. Your father has...spies..." Lucca explains to me, "Did you know that? Shadow Vampires. You barely see them. You don't hear about them. We have to speak low. They might be watching us now."

Shadow vampires?

Rumors. Bullshit lies that vampires spread in Eden to distract from the boredom of being immortal. If my father had spies in Eden I would have known about it.

I sigh at this conversation, "Council member, is there something I can help you out with?" I ask, annoyed, "Specifically?"

"The council is concerned that your father doesn't have what it takes to defeat the threat. Eden is being invaded and Nero is too...what's the word..."

"Human?"

I wasn't guessing this. I'd heard talk in Eden for years. Since I was younger. Nero was too nice. He was too human. A part of me knew that my father was doing what he thought was right to protect Eden and keep the vampires safe. Another part of me knew that vampires were not weak. We didn't need to hide in Eden from the humans.

"Yes. Human," Lucca says, "Once you marry Aiden a lot of people will be thinking it's time for your father to step down and you to take his place as King of Eden. People trust you more."

They could control Aiden more than they could control Santos.

"You want me to usurp the throne?"

"We want you to marry Aiden and gently push your father off of the throne," Lucca states before adding, "Gently..."

I don't trust Lucca. I would be a fool to trust Lucca. I knew he wasn't acting alone. The Council members sent Lucca because Lucca was good with his words. The guy has a silver tongue and he could make anything sound good. There was nothing gentle about this though. What Lucca and the council was suggesting was something harsh as fuck. It was treason.

"Who is pushing for this?" I ask, "Is it Armando?"

"Does it matter?"

That was all I needed to hear.

"Me and my father may not get along but I will never betray him. Go back to whoever is plotting to overthrow my father and let them know that if I find out who they are...they'll have to deal with me. Personally."

"Yes sir."

I get up.

"Make sure you pay for my bill too while you're at it."

I start walking away. I want to put this to bed but I have a feeling this uprising against my father was just beginning. It wasn't the first time they would try to displace my father. My father played by the rules a little too much. It went against vampire nature. I could understand why people were annoyed with him. Hell, I was annoyed with him. Still. There was no way in hell I was going to turn on him after all the shit we've been through in our past.

He needed me.

I start walking towards the stairs when all of a sudden I feel some sort of vibration. The floor is shaking. A few people in the lobby stop and turn towards me. They are human. They can feel it too. It isn't some vampire reflexes I'm experiencing.

"Is that an earthquake?" a human says.

A group of humans gather around as well. It's clear the building is shaking. All of a sudden I hear a shattering. The fucking roof is folding above us!

My heart is racing when the entire ceiling above us begins to collapse! I see a human child standing next to her parent. Neither of them see the large rubble about to crush them overhead. Luckily my vampire reflexes kick in. I feel my legs gain momentum as I run across the room as fast as I can. I dive, grabbing the child and her parent. I've never run so fast in my life. It's faster than any human could run.

They are safe but next to where they were standing is a pile of rubble. I look up to the see the gigantic hole in the grand ceilings of the expensive hotel. All of a sudden the rubble begins to shake and I realize that there is something underneath it.

"Protect the Prince," I hear my father's voice.

I'm not sure what's going on but I know very clearly that my father has taken the staircase down. The elevator seems to have been knocked out of order by the crash. He's not alone. He's with a squad of vampires. I can tell they are Eden Vampires because they are dressed like they are at casting for a Gladiator movie in the middle of Harlem for godsakes. It's really fucking embarrassing seeing them run down the steps in their heavy armor. They get all this attention. It was really unnecessary. Someone should have told them that this wasn't ancient times. This wasn't Eden.

The heavily armed vamp guards surround me as though it would make any difference to anything at this point. They push me away. They are clearly bothering the humans who have no idea what is happening right now.

"What's going on?" I ask.

They ignore me. I don't expect any different. They take their cues from my father and in this situation my father is ignoring me as well.

"Everyone get back!" my father screams.

He's screaming it to the humans. I'm confused on why. Without fail however the gravel begins to shift in the middle of the floor and something comes out. It's some sort of animal. I've seen this animal before. It's an animal known as a Thirst. The Thirst is what happens to vampires who are deprived of blood for too long. We give into our most basic nature and become a large bat-like creature with no sense of humanity and no anchor to reality.

That was the thing standing in the middle of the room right now. A monster.

"What the fuck?" I ask.

That's when my father talks to the Thirst, "Calm down Santos."

"Santos?"

That ... THING...was Santos! I'm shocked. I've seen thirsts before. We had a real problem with them not too long ago when there was a blood shortage in Eden. This was different though. This thing seemed to glow. I knew there was no way in hell Santos was deprived of blood. He had somehow become this thing in front of us willingly and that was scary as hell.

Santos, the monster, is not alone either. He has in his arms a body. The body is limp, barely conscious and bruised completely.

Santos opens his mouth ready to devour the person.

Just as he does I realize who the person is.

"It's Genesis..." Lucca states.

I don't even see Lucca sneak up behind me until he does. He is right though. The person the Thirst is holding is Genesis. Genesis is injured as well. He is barely showing signs of being consciousness. Every few seconds he flails widely trying to escape from the monster Santos has become but after a while he just settles back again.

Santos just knocked Genesis through the fucking floor! Actually he knocked him through several floors!

My father walks over to Santos. His guards seem to be trying to stop him from doing it but I know when it comes to Santos my father doesn't really care. Santos eyes glare at my father. They barely recognize him but there is some recognition there. Maybe that is why the monster doesn't attack my father. I'm scared wondering if I can do something to help as well, but I'm being held back by the guards.

Nero takes another step.

He creeps closer.

The beast looks at him. It's completely unaware of the situation but none-the-less It has to be Santos.

"Santos. Look at me. I'm going to need you to calm down."

My father is now touching the monster. I'm so confused. I'm not the only one. The guards are looking at one another dumbfounded at what my father is doing by trying to calm Santos down. Even worse there is Lucca who is standing there showing his confusion verbally.

"Why are you trying to stop Santos?" Lucca asks my father, "Let him kill Genesis."

I'm thinking the same thing honestly but I don't like the fact that Lucca is second guessing my father in front of his soldiers. I have to admit, Lucca has a point though. Santos had gotten the better hand of Genesis at this moment and he was going to kill him. Why the fuck was my father distracting Santos at this moment when he was about to end this war before it even began?

My father ignores Lucca.

My father ignores his men.

My father just continues to rub on Santos.

"Baby," my father says in a low voice, "I know you. I know you more than anyone else knows you. I know this isn't you. I don't want you to wake up regretting anything. We will deal with Genesis, but not this way. You hear me? Calm down. Ok. Come back to me Santos."

There is so much confusion. The guards have given up the idea of looking professional at this point. They are completley dumbfounded. Santos had become a monster unlike anything we had ever seen but that monster just so happened to be on our side.

Lucca looks over at me, "You going to let your father stop him?"

I don't know what to say.

I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. I agree with Lucca. I agree with the other vampires. Santos should tear Genesis apart. Genesis was way too dangerous to keep alive. At the same time I don't want to go against my father in front of his men. I don't want to do that right now.

"That is their marriage," I defend my father, "He should make the decision he feels is right."

I feel like I sound stupid defending my father by citing his marriage but I don't know how else to defend what is happening right now. It's stupidity and I look dumb for defending him.

My father has been whispering to Santos this entire time.

"Come back to me..."

"Come back to me..."

Slowly his wish becomes reality. Santos shrinks down to size. He seems weak when he does. He blacks out but luckily my father is there to catch him. My father cradles my father-in-law in his hand, scooping him up and keeping him close to him. He gives him a tender kiss on the forehead. I have to admit that the relationship they have is something so beautiful. I can't understand it. Lucca can't understand it. Armando can't understand it. All of Eden couldn't understand what my father had with Santos.

Maybe it wasn't for us to understand.

Where I see beauty however, Lucca and the others see vulnerability, "Genesis! You let him go. We need to get rid of him now."

My father steps aside, "There are humans here..."

My father looks around. He's right. There are humans watching.

"Does it matter?" Lucca argues with my father, "They've already seen enough."

He was right. How were we going to describe a thirst. A couple of the humans had pulled out their phones. They were capturing this shit on tape. For generations we had kept ourselves a secret. All of that was about to change.

My father seems a little overwhelmed at this moment. He looks at Santos. He looks at the cameras. He looks at Lucca, "We will arrest Genesis.."

My father is cradling his husband and takes a step away from the drama. He seems like he is completely retreating. His only concern right now is removing Santos out of the way. He doesn't even seem to care what happens to Genesis. I understand his love for Santos but I don't understand how he can turn such a blind eye to Genesis. What the fuck was wrong with him? Hadn't he heard the threats Genesis made to everyone in Eden? Genesis had started this war...not us.

But we were required to finish it.

"Fuck imprisonment," Lucca goes rogue, "Let's end Genesis. Once and for all."

The other guards follow Lucca's lead. If Santos had given them this command they wouldn't have just blown it off like they are doing to my father. Their pupils and irises turn black as midnight. Fangs grow where there were once teeth. Slowly like predators in the night they start to circle around Genesis. Genesis is battling to get up.

"I'll dine with angels again," Genesis says.

He's giving up in a way. I can hear it in his voice but even in his dying moments Genesis is pretending as though he has achieved some greatness to his life. I feel bad for him. It's a weird thing. I look at Genesis and I see someone so desperate to find a meaning in his life that he clings to the weirdest concepts of what happiness was. What was this thing he kept talking about dining with angels? It was a weird concept that had no basis in reality and yet Genesis took pride in it.

Lucca is the one who is the first to leap at Genesis in an attempt to go for the jugular. When he runs to the left several of the other guards follow up ready to take him down with the precision of a surgeon.

For some reason they stop though.

Just.

Stop.

"What's happening?" I ask.

My father turns when he hears my concern. We are all watching Lucca and the other men just stop completely. Then all of a sudden something happens.

They burst into flames!

"Oh my god."

The guards who have been holding me back run to assist but by the time they get to Lucca and the other guards who were attacking Genesis they are burning. They attempt to put them out. I take off my shirt and run to Lucca. I attempt to take out his flames, but these are no normal flames. They aren't reacting to anything.

They continue to burn until there is absolutely nothing left.

Lucca faints on the ground. Finally the flames go out but there is nothing left to Lucca. There is nothing left but ash.

My heart is racing. I hadn't seen this before. I hadn't seen anything like this before.

"He's gone," I tell my father.

At that moment I don't know how I feel. My father seems shocked. He seems confused. He is still holding onto Santos. Santos was the only fucking thing he cared about and right now Lucca was dead because of his weakness as a leader. He could have allowed Santos to finish the fucking job if he wanted to. What the fuck was wrong with my father?

My father is confused, "How..."

Why did it matter how? I didn't understand my father. I didn't understand how he wasn't reacting more aggressively to this. This wasn't a moment to just think and ponder. This was a moment to react. He needed to drop Santos and get aggressive. He needed to be a fucking vampire right now.

"HE'S FUCKING DEAD!" I scream at my father.

My father still doesn't drop Santos. He just looks around. There are ashes in the middle of the lobby. Fucking ashes. The remaining guards look over at Genesis. Genesis is out of it. He isn't responsible for this. That is clear.

Others have arrived.

We don't see them until it's too late.

There are these people dressed in red. I can't see their faces. There are a group of them. They walk into the lobby with their faces completely covered with red hoods. They look like little Red riding hood with these old-fashioned capes that were the color of blood. Before they even reveal who they are I know they were the ones responsible for killing Lucca.

The cloaked individuals stand in a formation. Each of them are bleeding it seems from self-inflicted wounds in their wrists. I don't get it. Had they cut themselves? Yes. What was the purpose of them cutting themselves?

Soon they reveal themselves.

It's a mixture of men and two women. None of them look familiar to me. The one in the front is the best looking one. He's the tallest. He has the broadest shoulders and the most sculptured face. I can tell a mile away that he has to be the leader of this group or at least the strongest one.

"My name is Mason," he says, "And this is the Moreen Coven. We've come for Genesis."

They were witches...

"You killed a vampire. You've killed one of the most popular vampires in Eden," I scream at the top of my lungs, "THIS IS WAR!"

"Enough of that shit, Justice," my father says, "I can handle this."

I roll my eyes. I roll my eyes heavily. My father wanted to play King all he wanted but right now we still had a half a dozen guards. If he was a true king he would have ordered these people killed on the spot to avenge Count Lucca.

How would we tell his wife Camilla about him dying? How would she react? Camilla would have a full uprising against the Royal Family if we didn't kill the people responsible for her husband's death.

"Micko. Go get Genesis," the leader of the witches Mason says.

A smaller one separates from the crowd to go retreive Genesis. I stop him midway. My eyes glare at him. I bear my fangs. He stops in his tracks. He isn't stupid.

"We don't want to hurt you," the smaller one named Micko says, "We just want Genesis and we'll leave..."

"You killed Lucca."

"We wanted to stay out of this war but you ordered your men to attack us first."

"We did no such thing."

"His name was Aiden. We barely escaped his kill squad. If we weren't warned through magic my entire coven would be dead," Mason argues.

I look back at my father, "They are lying. Aiden would never do that."

My father is thinking. He does it too much. He does too much thinking.

"Let them get Genesis and go," my father finally states.

"What?" I ask.

"You heard me," my father states, "Let them get Genesis and go."

I can't believe what I'm hearing at this moment. I watch as my father ALLOWS this coven of witches to save the biggest threat to Eden that we have ever faced. He allows them to just grab him up and take him away.

It's at that moment that I realize my father isn't suited to be the King of Eden. He isn't suited to rule any longer.

He just isn't strong enough.

~

I head into a suite that my father paid for me that night. He pays hush money to the humans but I can see their faces. Centuries of secrecy had all gone down the drain. There was a silent tension. The night is passing by quickly and the sun is about to come up in a few hours. I cover my blinds making sure they are tight. Sunlight could be lethal to vampires if they hit me directly. Just as I close the blinds I notice someone knocking at my door. I'm a little confused by it but none-the-less I walk over to the door, half expecting the bartender from earlier to be there.

I'm surprised instead when I see Aiden standing there.

My fiance...

"It's a blood bath downstairs," Aiden says, "Did you see? I heard about what happened earlier. We had to kill all the humans who saw Santos."

I wonder if my father ordered Aiden to do this but I doubted it. My father wouldn't pay the humans just to turn around and kill them all. I felt like shit. The bartender was cute...

"You came here to tell me that? What do you want?"

"That's no way to treat your fiance, is it?" Aiden asks.

I sigh again. Aiden walks in the room uninvited. You would think if we were engaged to be married that I would be comfortable with Aiden seeing me in my boxers and shirtless. That wasn't the case. As soon as he walks in the room I put on a t-shirt and start putting on some pants. I'm not comfortable with him seeing me like this. I never have been.

"We both know us getting married is a political marriage. Now more than ever."

Eden was separated into two groups. People who were loyal to my father and people who weren't. Aiden and Armando just happened to lead the group of Vampires who were not loyal to my father. Santos figured me marrying Aiden would ease a lot of the tension in Eden and really unite the city. Truth was I had no feelings for Aiden.

Aiden doesn't seem to be trying to bullshit around with this either, "No offense but you aren't really my type either, but we need to put on a front to make Santos happy."

"You are the one still in love with Santos, not me," I explain to Aiden.

Aiden gives me a hard look. The truth hurts.

"Me and you are going to be married. Regardless of if we are in love or not. Regardless of if we are two tops. It doesn't matter," Aiden explains, "We need to work together."

Aiden can't help but to throw in the fact that we aren't even sexually compatible. We'd attempted once before and it was a mess. All the smiling in public couldn't help the fact that we were both sexually frustrated. That was the main reason I left Eden in the first place. I desperately needed to get my dick wet but vampires talked too goddam much in Eden.

Now it looks like my fiance had followed me into the outside world.

"What are you even doing here?"

"Armando told me where you guys were..."

"Funny. Lucca approached me earlier talking about our marriage and saying how I needed to replace my father. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that would you?"

Aiden shakes his head, "No."

He's lying. I can look straight in his eyes and see that he's lying.

"There was also a group of witches who said that you led an attack on their island. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that either, I bet, huh?"

Aiden doesn't budge.

"If I did?"

"I met a witch. He was really fucking nice. Kind of cute too. So I'm going to ask you this once. Did you attempt to kill his family or not, Aiden?"

"Witches lie."

"Let me guess...Armando told you to tell me that too," I state.

Aiden was nothing more than Armando's puppet. Armando was using him to get into power. I was being paired with Aiden to make peace but if Armando had his way Aiden would be with Santos instead. Armando knew Santos wasn't going to go for it so I was the second best option. Looking at Aiden was almost like looking at an extension of Armando at this point. No matter how much Aiden wanted to prove he was his own man he always did exactly what Armando told him to do.

Why the fuck did my father have the witchdoctor bring Armando back?

"Your father is weak. You do realize that right?" Aiden asks, "I heard what he did. News is probably already back in Eden about how he let Genesis live."

News traveled fast, but then I had to remembered. Lucca was killed. The guards didn't respect my father. This was going to be big. Aiden knew and I knew. I had no doubt this is why Aiden was in my door. Any fantasies of peace were out of the window.

"You wanted war so bad, I guess you got it now," I state.

My father would have no choice but to attack Genesis. Now that Lucca was dead if he didn't do a full force war then he would be forced to step down. There would be riots in the streets. Lucca's wife Camilla would make sure of it.

My father was such an idiot. He played right into Armando and Aiden's hands. He'd given them exactly what they wanted.

"And we will win," Aiden says.

"You are underestimating the witchdoctors Aiden," I explain, "I was kidnapped by Genesis. I saw first hand what he is capable of. You and Armando are playing with fire forcing my father into this war. I mean that literally too. Ask Lucca."

"Oh we know. And we have a weapon..."

"A weapon?"

Aiden smiles. He turns around. He was up to something. He didn't trust me enough to tell me but my future husband was definitely up to something and I didn't fucking trust him.

"It's time we get rid of the witch threat once and for all," Aiden explains, "Just sit back and watch. We will teach Nero how it's done."

He's cocky. He's conceited. A part of me almost wants to see Genesis smack that cocky smile off his fucking face. I can't believe I had to marry this guy. Truthfully though I know this all came down to my father. This all came down to the fact that my father wasn't a capable king.

And I knew it.

~

I go to my father's suite. It's pitch black. The guards let me in. I see him standing over Santos. Santos is passed out in the bed. He's covered Santos with a black sheet as though Santos was dead but I knew it was just extra protection from any possible sunlight. He stares down at Santos with this compassion that only Nero can stare at Santos. If there was any saving grace my father had it was the love he had for Santos. If he was anywhere near as good of a king and a father as he was a husband everything would be great in Eden.

The truth was my father failed everyone except Santos.

He failed me.

He failed Eden.

"You played right into Armando's hands. You do know that right?" I ask him.

My father doesn't respond. He's just looking down at Santos. There is this eerieness to him.

I get annoyed at the fact that he is ignoring me. I walk over to my father and swing him around to face me as hard as I can. I am probably too hard, but I don't care. I'm beyond pissed right now.

"Do you hear me talking to you, Nero?" I ask, purposely not calling him my father, "We are surrounded by enemies. Do you realize they are trying to force us into a war?"

"Of course."

"Then why are you so FUCKING weak. You are pathetic," I respond to him, " Armando and Aiden are going to win this war. They have a secret weapon they are going to use against Genesis. They are going to kill Genesis and make you look even more pathetic then you already do. I didn't think that was fucking possible. I'm embarrassed to call you my father! Fuck. I wish Armando was my father..."

The words just come out of my mouth.

I don't know how to stop them.

My father turns around. At times I feel like I must be older than him. Hell. I look older than him. Maybe we look the same age. For some reason I just know I'd be a better king though. This child king was fucking clueless.

This entire time I'm not holding back. This entire time I wanted to tell my teenage-looking father how disappointed I was with him. He was so afraid of EVERYTHING. No more of that. No more trying to protect his feelings.

"Why would you say that to me?" he asks me.

"Because I mean it."

"I'm your father," Nero explains to me, "There is power in blood. Isn't that what I always taught you. Blood is source of life."

"I know what blood means for vampires. Do you? You need to act like a vampire. I'm not going to keep trying to teach my father who is over the age of 100 to grow some balls. There are real men---no---real vampires out here who are going to get rid of the witch threat once and for all while you stand there and watch."

I could see the media spin now. I could see how embarrassing it would be. Nero pretended over and over like this didn't effect him. I knew better.

"You think I'm afraid of Genesis?" Nero asks me.

"Yes. Nero. You're a pussy."

I was sick of beating around the bush. If I called Armando a pussy to his face he would attack me on sight, regardless. Armando had pride. Nero didn't. That was the difference. He was just a talker.

"You want me to be like Armando? You want me to walk around and be this silent killer? I like to use my words. I like to talk to my enemies but Genesis isn't the enemy," Nero responds.

I can't believe my father is saying these words. I want to walk up to him and bash his head in.

"Are you that stupid?" I ask him, "I can't wait till Santos realizes how dumb you are and cheats on you with Aiden. Hell since you guys are forcing me to get married to Aiden, I guess we will both be getting cheated on."

"Santos will never cheat on me. I don't want to argue with you. I'm tired of talking to you about things that you don't understand. I know you're upset Justice but this is a lesson you need to learn if you are going to be king of Eden one day. Sometimes as a king you need to be patient."

"Patient how?"

FUCK Patience. I was sticking up for this man. I stuck up for him with Lucca. I stuck up with him with Aiden. Back home I stuck up for my father on a daily basis because everyone thought he was fucking pathetic.

"There's more going on then you know," my father tells me, "I didn't want to start a war with Genesis for a reason."

"Well Armando forced your hand. And now the war is started whether you want one or not. Do you realize they have some secret weapon they are going to use against Genesis..."

"I know. A hybrid," he explains, "They've created a vampire/werewolf hybrid. They are hoping they can control it. I doubt that will happen though. It's only a matter of time before the hybrid escapes."

I'm confused. My mouth drops. I think I'm breaking some news to my father but Nero doesn't even seem surprised. He stares back at Santos as though he's in some sort of trance. It's so weird seeing my father like this.

"Wait, let me get this right," I stop him, "You knew Armando is plotting against you?"

"Of course."

I am so confused.

"You do have spies,. don't you?" I ask him.

My father looks over at me, "Something like that."

The Shadow Vampires were real. My father knew things. I look at him and I'm a little confused at this moment that I've never noticed them before. Why had my father kept this fact away from me. He stares out into the darkness at that moment.

Sometimes I forget how old he is. He looks like me. He looks around the same age as me. It's easy to forget how much he's lived through.

"I don't get it," I finally state, "Nero...Dad...why did you bring him back? Armando has been a thorn in your side for quite some time. Why did you have Genesis bring Armando back? He's trouble. He's always been trouble."

"He's blood. Santos wanted him back."

"There's more. There has to be more than that. Santos fucking killed him in the first place because of how disloyal he was to you. Or do you forget what happened."

I remembered. I remembered the day that Santos killed Armando for his disloyalty to my father. And like the weakling my father was he decides to bring the fucking guy back to life so he can continue to undermine him?

"Your decisions aren't worthy of a king. You let Genesis go."

"There is someone worse than Genesis we need to worry about."

"Who?"

"She's still around. If you shut up for once you could feel it. You could feel her all around us."

It doesn't take too long to realize what my father is talking about.

"Who?" I ask.

"She's up to something. You are so busy thinking we are surrounded by enemies. Genesis. The Moreen Coven. Armando. Aiden. The Council. No. We have one enemy. The same enemy we have always had."

"Lilith."

He nods.

"When the time comes...our so called enemies will be the least of our concerns."

Lilith was the first vampire. Before I was even born the story had it that Lilith hunted vampires. To get away from Lilith vampires ran to Eden. Lilith made her way into Eden. If it wasn't for her son Santos stopping her all vampires would be extinct. The woman wanted to end the race that she created.

"So you bring Armando back for what? You think he will help you defeat Lilith?"

"No. Armando will always be my enemy. Genesis is the one I may need."

I laugh.

"You think Genesis would help you? Why the fuck would HE help YOU?"

"I asked him to bring Armando back because I needed to know that he could," my father explains to me.

"He's a witchdoctor. Of course he could."

"No. Even for Genesis bringing someone back from the dead using blood magic requires something...more. My father taught me this lesson. I am going to pass this lesson down to you. I've told you it a million times but you've never listened. Listen this time."

I sigh.

Another lesson?

"What?"

"The lesson is simple: There is power in blood. There is power in blood. This is how Genesis brought Armando back."

"You're speaking in riddles. You know something don't you? The Shadow Vampires figured something out that you aren't telling me."

He was so slow. He was so patient.

My father was playing the long game. While the rest of us were moving around our pawns, my father was working on his checkmate.

Nero shakes his head as he reveals what he's discovered, "We found an old lady on an island. She gave us a diary of a woman and it was very revealing. When I say there is power in blood I'm not speaking in riddles. No. I'm actually speaking very literally. Some blood magic is impossible without a certain blood connection. I've been doing some research. When Armando was young he met a woman. Back then he didn't know who she was. It was just a one night stand. The woman was already married. He never saw her again. There is a connection in blood though. Blood always pulls you back. There is power in blood."

"Who was this woman?"

"She was a foreigner. She had two sons. When her husband died, she committed suicide. Many people thought this woman committed suicide because of a curse. It wasn't that. She felt guilty when her husband died not knowing the truth about who fathered her twins. She hadn't told her husband or Armando. She hadn't told anyone. She wrote it in a diary. This diary. Armando doesn't know he has another son. Santos doesn't know he has a brother..."

My father throws me the diary. I look at the words. Mrs. Evelyn Bah was the owner of this diary.

"What happened to the two sons?"

"One was sacrificed to make the other stronger. The entire family was gone. There was one survivor."

"Who? Who was Armando's surviving son?"

"Think about it. I couldn't have Santos kill his brother, now could I?"

What he was saying right now was fucking crazy. It was beyond anything that I could imagine.

I'm shocked, "Impossible."

"I thought so too but that wise old lady on Moreen Island shared me the secrets of Evelyn Bah. She also let me know Genesis could bring his blood relatives back through sacrifice. That's why I did it. I had him prove it. This wasn't about me wanting Armando back at all. I needed Genesis to prove that he was the son of Armando."

Just at that moment I realize I'm excited and scared all at the same time. My father wasn't an idiot. He had a reason for saving Genesis. He was playing a long game. He was wiser than I could ever imagine.

And if he was right about Genesis then he had to be right about something else too.

Something was coming. Something much worse than Genesis...

There would need to be power in blood.

Maybe it wasn't for us to understand.

Where I see beauty however, Lucca and the others see vulnerability, "Genesis! You let him go. We need to get rid of him now."

My father steps aside, "There are humans here..."

My father looks around. He's right. There are humans watching.

"Does it matter?" Lucca argues with my father, "They've already seen enough."

He was right. How were we going to describe a thirst. A couple of the humans had pulled out their phones. They were capturing this shit on tape. For generations we had kept ourselves a secret. All of that was about to change.

My father seems a little overwhelmed at this moment. He looks at Santos. He looks at the cameras. He looks at Lucca, "We will arrest Genesis.."

My father is cradling his husband and takes a step away from the drama. He seems like he is completely retreating. His only concern right now is removing Santos out of the way. He doesn't even seem to care what happens to Genesis. I understand his love for Santos but I don't understand how he can turn such a blind eye to Genesis. What the fuck was wrong with him? Hadn't he heard the threats Genesis made to everyone in Eden? Genesis had started this war...not us.

But we were required to finish it.

"Fuck imprisonment," Lucca goes rogue, "Let's end Genesis. Once and for all."

The other guards follow Lucca's lead. If Santos had given them this command they wouldn't have just blown it off like they are doing to my father. Their pupils and irises turn black as midnight. Fangs grow where there were once teeth. Slowly like predators in the night they start to circle around Genesis. Genesis is battling to get up.

"I'll dine with angels again," Genesis says.

He's giving up in a way. I can hear it in his voice but even in his dying moments Genesis is pretending as though he has achieved some greatness to his life. I feel bad for him. It's a weird thing. I look at Genesis and I see someone so desperate to find a meaning in his life that he clings to the weirdest concepts of what happiness was. What was this thing he kept talking about dining with angels? It was a weird concept that had no basis in reality and yet Genesis took pride in it.

Lucca is the one who is the first to leap at Genesis in an attempt to go for the jugular. When he runs to the left several of the other guards follow up ready to take him down with the precision of a surgeon.

For some reason they stop though.

Just.

Stop.

"What's happening?" I ask.

My father turns when he hears my concern. We are all watching Lucca and the other men just stop completely. Then all of a sudden something happens.

They burst into flames!

"Oh my god."

The guards who have been holding me back run to assist but by the time they get to Lucca and the other guards who were attacking Genesis they are burning. They attempt to put them out. I take off my shirt and run to Lucca. I attempt to take out his flames, but these are no normal flames. They aren't reacting to anything.

They continue to burn until there is absolutely nothing left.

Lucca faints on the ground. Finally the flames go out but there is nothing left to Lucca. There is nothing left but ash.

My heart is racing. I hadn't seen this before. I hadn't seen anything like this before.

"He's gone," I tell my father.

At that moment I don't know how I feel. My father seems shocked. He seems confused. He is still holding onto Santos. Santos was the only fucking thing he cared about and right now Lucca was dead because of his weakness as a leader. He could have allowed Santos to finish the fucking job if he wanted to. What the fuck was wrong with my father?

My father is confused, "How..."

Why did it matter how? I didn't understand my father. I didn't understand how he wasn't reacting more aggressively to this. This wasn't a moment to just think and ponder. This was a moment to react. He needed to drop Santos and get aggressive. He needed to be a fucking vampire right now.

"HE'S FUCKING DEAD!" I scream at my father.

My father still doesn't drop Santos. He just looks around. There are ashes in the middle of the lobby. Fucking ashes. The remaining guards look over at Genesis. Genesis is out of it. He isn't responsible for this. That is clear.

Others have arrived.

We don't see them until it's too late.

There are these people dressed in red. I can't see their faces. There are a group of them. They walk into the lobby with their faces completely covered with red hoods. They look like little Red riding hood with these old-fashioned capes that were the color of blood. Before they even reveal who they are I know they were the ones responsible for killing Lucca.

The cloaked individuals stand in a formation. Each of them are bleeding it seems from self-inflicted wounds in their wrists. I don't get it. Had they cut themselves? Yes. What was the purpose of them cutting themselves?

Soon they reveal themselves.

It's a mixture of men and two women. None of them look familiar to me. The one in the front is the best looking one. He's the tallest. He has the broadest shoulders and the most sculptured face. I can tell a mile away that he has to be the leader of this group or at least the strongest one.

"My name is Mason," he says, "And this is the Moreen Coven. We've come for Genesis."

They were witches...

"You killed a vampire. You've killed one of the most popular vampires in Eden," I scream at the top of my lungs, "THIS IS WAR!"

"Enough of that shit, Justice," my father says, "I can handle this."

I roll my eyes. I roll my eyes heavily. My father wanted to play King all he wanted but right now we still had a half a dozen guards. If he was a true king he would have ordered these people killed on the spot to avenge Count Lucca.

How would we tell his wife Camilla about him dying? How would she react? Camilla would have a full uprising against the Royal Family if we didn't kill the people responsible for her husband's death.

"Micko. Go get Genesis," the leader of the witches Mason says.

A smaller one separates from the crowd to go retreive Genesis. I stop him midway. My eyes glare at him. I bear my fangs. He stops in his tracks. He isn't stupid.

"We don't want to hurt you," the smaller one named Micko says, "We just want Genesis and we'll leave..."

"You killed Lucca."

"We wanted to stay out of this war but you ordered your men to attack us first."

"We did no such thing."

"His name was Aiden. We barely escaped his kill squad. If we weren't warned through magic my entire coven would be dead," Mason argues.

I look back at my father, "They are lying. Aiden would never do that."

My father is thinking. He does it too much. He does too much thinking.

"Let them get Genesis and go," my father finally states.

"What?" I ask.

"You heard me," my father states, "Let them get Genesis and go."

I can't believe what I'm hearing at this moment. I watch as my father ALLOWS this coven of witches to save the biggest threat to Eden that we have ever faced. He allows them to just grab him up and take him away.

It's at that moment that I realize my father isn't suited to be the King of Eden. He isn't suited to rule any longer.

He just isn't strong enough.

~

I head into a suite that my father paid for me that night. He pays hush money to the humans but I can see their faces. Centuries of secrecy had all gone down the drain. There was a silent tension. The night is passing by quickly and the sun is about to come up in a few hours. I cover my blinds making sure they are tight. Sunlight could be lethal to vampires if they hit me directly. Just as I close the blinds I notice someone knocking at my door. I'm a little confused by it but none-the-less I walk over to the door, half expecting the bartender from earlier to be there.

I'm surprised instead when I see Aiden standing there.

My fiance...

"It's a blood bath downstairs," Aiden says, "Did you see? I heard about what happened earlier. We had to kill all the humans who saw Santos."

I wonder if my father ordered Aiden to do this but I doubted it. My father wouldn't pay the humans just to turn around and kill them all. I felt like shit. The bartender was cute...

"You came here to tell me that? What do you want?"

"That's no way to treat your fiance, is it?" Aiden asks.

I sigh again. Aiden walks in the room uninvited. You would think if we were engaged to be married that I would be comfortable with Aiden seeing me in my boxers and shirtless. That wasn't the case. As soon as he walks in the room I put on a t-shirt and start putting on some pants. I'm not comfortable with him seeing me like this. I never have been.

"We both know us getting married is a political marriage. Now more than ever."

Eden was separated into two groups. People who were loyal to my father and people who weren't. Aiden and Armando just happened to lead the group of Vampires who were not loyal to my father. Santos figured me marrying Aiden would ease a lot of the tension in Eden and really unite the city. Truth was I had no feelings for Aiden.

Aiden doesn't seem to be trying to bullshit around with this either, "No offense but you aren't really my type either, but we need to put on a front to make Santos happy."

"You are the one still in love with Santos, not me," I explain to Aiden.

Aiden gives me a hard look. The truth hurts.

"Me and you are going to be married. Regardless of if we are in love or not. Regardless of if we are two tops. It doesn't matter," Aiden explains, "We need to work together."

Aiden can't help but to throw in the fact that we aren't even sexually compatible. We'd attempted once before and it was a mess. All the smiling in public couldn't help the fact that we were both sexually frustrated. That was the main reason I left Eden in the first place. I desperately needed to get my dick wet but vampires talked too goddam much in Eden.

Now it looks like my fiance had followed me into the outside world.

"What are you even doing here?"

"Armando told me where you guys were..."

"Funny. Lucca approached me earlier talking about our marriage and saying how I needed to replace my father. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that would you?"

Aiden shakes his head, "No."

He's lying. I can look straight in his eyes and see that he's lying.

"There was also a group of witches who said that you led an attack on their island. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that either, I bet, huh?"

Aiden doesn't budge.

"If I did?"

"I met a witch. He was really fucking nice. Kind of cute too. So I'm going to ask you this once. Did you attempt to kill his family or not, Aiden?"

"Witches lie."

"Let me guess...Armando told you to tell me that too," I state.

Aiden was nothing more than Armando's puppet. Armando was using him to get into power. I was being paired with Aiden to make peace but if Armando had his way Aiden would be with Santos instead. Armando knew Santos wasn't going to go for it so I was the second best option. Looking at Aiden was almost like looking at an extension of Armando at this point. No matter how much Aiden wanted to prove he was his own man he always did exactly what Armando told him to do.

Why the fuck did my father have the witchdoctor bring Armando back?

"Your father is weak. You do realize that right?" Aiden asks, "I heard what he did. News is probably already back in Eden about how he let Genesis live."

News traveled fast, but then I had to remembered. Lucca was killed. The guards didn't respect my father. This was going to be big. Aiden knew and I knew. I had no doubt this is why Aiden was in my door. Any fantasies of peace were out of the window.

"You wanted war so bad, I guess you got it now," I state.

My father would have no choice but to attack Genesis. Now that Lucca was dead if he didn't do a full force war then he would be forced to step down. There would be riots in the streets. Lucca's wife Camilla would make sure of it.

My father was such an idiot. He played right into Armando and Aiden's hands. He'd given them exactly what they wanted.

"And we will win," Aiden says.

"You are underestimating the witchdoctors Aiden," I explain, "I was kidnapped by Genesis. I saw first hand what he is capable of. You and Armando are playing with fire forcing my father into this war. I mean that literally too. Ask Lucca."

"Oh we know. And we have a weapon..."

"A weapon?"

Aiden smiles. He turns around. He was up to something. He didn't trust me enough to tell me but my future husband was definitely up to something and I didn't fucking trust him.

"It's time we get rid of the witch threat once and for all," Aiden explains, "Just sit back and watch. We will teach Nero how it's done."

He's cocky. He's conceited. A part of me almost wants to see Genesis smack that cocky smile off his fucking face. I can't believe I had to marry this guy. Truthfully though I know this all came down to my father. This all came down to the fact that my father wasn't a capable king.

And I knew it.

~

I go to my father's suite. It's pitch black. The guards let me in. I see him standing over Santos. Santos is passed out in the bed. He's covered Santos with a black sheet as though Santos was dead but I knew it was just extra protection from any possible sunlight. He stares down at Santos with this compassion that only Nero can stare at Santos. If there was any saving grace my father had it was the love he had for Santos. If he was anywhere near as good of a king and a father as he was a husband everything would be great in Eden.

The truth was my father failed everyone except Santos.

He failed me.

He failed Eden.

"You played right into Armando's hands. You do know that right?" I ask him.

My father doesn't respond. He's just looking down at Santos. There is this eerieness to him.

I get annoyed at the fact that he is ignoring me. I walk over to my father and swing him around to face me as hard as I can. I am probably too hard, but I don't care. I'm beyond pissed right now.

"Do you hear me talking to you, Nero?" I ask, purposely not calling him my father, "We are surrounded by enemies. Do you realize they are trying to force us into a war?"

"Of course."

"Then why are you so FUCKING weak. You are pathetic," I respond to him, " Armando and Aiden are going to win this war. They have a secret weapon they are going to use against Genesis. They are going to kill Genesis and make you look even more pathetic then you already do. I didn't think that was fucking possible. I'm embarrassed to call you my father! Fuck. I wish Armando was my father..."

The words just come out of my mouth.

I don't know how to stop them.

My father turns around. At times I feel like I must be older than him. Hell. I look older than him. Maybe we look the same age. For some reason I just know I'd be a better king though. This child king was fucking clueless.

This entire time I'm not holding back. This entire time I wanted to tell my teenage-looking father how disappointed I was with him. He was so afraid of EVERYTHING. No more of that. No more trying to protect his feelings.

"Why would you say that to me?" he asks me.

"Because I mean it."

"I'm your father," Nero explains to me, "There is power in blood. Isn't that what I always taught you. Blood is source of life."

"I know what blood means for vampires. Do you? You need to act like a vampire. I'm not going to keep trying to teach my father who is over the age of 100 to grow some balls. There are real men---no---real vampires out here who are going to get rid of the witch threat once and for all while you stand there and watch."

I could see the media spin now. I could see how embarrassing it would be. Nero pretended over and over like this didn't effect him. I knew better.

"You think I'm afraid of Genesis?" Nero asks me.

"Yes. Nero. You're a pussy."

I was sick of beating around the bush. If I called Armando a pussy to his face he would attack me on sight, regardless. Armando had pride. Nero didn't. That was the difference. He was just a talker.

"You want me to be like Armando? You want me to walk around and be this silent killer? I like to use my words. I like to talk to my enemies but Genesis isn't the enemy," Nero responds.

I can't believe my father is saying these words. I want to walk up to him and bash his head in.

"Are you that stupid?" I ask him, "I can't wait till Santos realizes how dumb you are and cheats on you with Aiden. Hell since you guys are forcing me to get married to Aiden, I guess we will both be getting cheated on."

"Santos will never cheat on me. I don't want to argue with you. I'm tired of talking to you about things that you don't understand. I know you're upset Justice but this is a lesson you need to learn if you are going to be king of Eden one day. Sometimes as a king you need to be patient."

"Patient how?"

FUCK Patience. I was sticking up for this man. I stuck up for him with Lucca. I stuck up with him with Aiden. Back home I stuck up for my father on a daily basis because everyone thought he was fucking pathetic.

"There's more going on then you know," my father tells me, "I didn't want to start a war with Genesis for a reason."

"Well Armando forced your hand. And now the war is started whether you want one or not. Do you realize they have some secret weapon they are going to use against Genesis..."

"I know. A hybrid," he explains, "They've created a vampire/werewolf hybrid. They are hoping they can control it. I doubt that will happen though. It's only a matter of time before the hybrid escapes."

I'm confused. My mouth drops. I think I'm breaking some news to my father but Nero doesn't even seem surprised. He stares back at Santos as though he's in some sort of trance. It's so weird seeing my father like this.

"Wait, let me get this right," I stop him, "You knew Armando is plotting against you?"

"Of course."

I am so confused.

"You do have spies,. don't you?" I ask him.

My father looks over at me, "Something like that."

The Shadow Vampires were real. My father knew things. I look at him and I'm a little confused at this moment that I've never noticed them before. Why had my father kept this fact away from me. He stares out into the darkness at that moment.

Sometimes I forget how old he is. He looks like me. He looks around the same age as me. It's easy to forget how much he's lived through.

"I don't get it," I finally state, "Nero...Dad...why did you bring him back? Armando has been a thorn in your side for quite some time. Why did you have Genesis bring Armando back? He's trouble. He's always been trouble."

"He's blood. Santos wanted him back."

"There's more. There has to be more than that. Santos fucking killed him in the first place because of how disloyal he was to you. Or do you forget what happened."

I remembered. I remembered the day that Santos killed Armando for his disloyalty to my father. And like the weakling my father was he decides to bring the fucking guy back to life so he can continue to undermine him?

"Your decisions aren't worthy of a king. You let Genesis go."

"There is someone worse than Genesis we need to worry about."

"Who?"

"She's still around. If you shut up for once you could feel it. You could feel her all around us."

It doesn't take too long to realize what my father is talking about.

"Who?" I ask.

"She's up to something. You are so busy thinking we are surrounded by enemies. Genesis. The Moreen Coven. Armando. Aiden. The Council. No. We have one enemy. The same enemy we have always had."

"Lilith."

He nods.

"When the time comes...our so called enemies will be the least of our concerns."

Lilith was the first vampire. Before I was even born the story had it that Lilith hunted vampires. To get away from Lilith vampires ran to Eden. Lilith made her way into Eden. If it wasn't for her son Santos stopping her all vampires would be extinct. The woman wanted to end the race that she created.

"So you bring Armando back for what? You think he will help you defeat Lilith?"

"No. Armando will always be my enemy. Genesis is the one I may need."

I laugh.

"You think Genesis would help you? Why the fuck would HE help YOU?"

"I asked him to bring Armando back because I needed to know that he could," my father explains to me.

"He's a witchdoctor. Of course he could."

"No. Even for Genesis bringing someone back from the dead using blood magic requires something...more. My father taught me this lesson. I am going to pass this lesson down to you. I've told you it a million times but you've never listened. Listen this time."

I sigh.

Another lesson?

"What?"

"The lesson is simple: There is power in blood. There is power in blood. This is how Genesis brought Armando back."

"You're speaking in riddles. You know something don't you? The Shadow Vampires figured something out that you aren't telling me."

He was so slow. He was so patient.

My father was playing the long game. While the rest of us were moving around our pawns, my father was working on his checkmate.

Nero shakes his head as he reveals what he's discovered, "We found an old lady on an island. She gave us a diary of a woman and it was very revealing. When I say there is power in blood I'm not speaking in riddles. No. I'm actually speaking very literally. Some blood magic is impossible without a certain blood connection. I've been doing some research. When Armando was young he met a woman. Back then he didn't know who she was. It was just a one night stand. The woman was already married. He never saw her again. There is a connection in blood though. Blood always pulls you back. There is power in blood."

"Who was this woman?"

"She was a foreigner. She had two sons. When her husband died, she committed suicide. Many people thought this woman committed suicide because of a curse. It wasn't that. She felt guilty when her husband died not knowing the truth about who fathered her twins. She hadn't told her husband or Armando. She hadn't told anyone. She wrote it in a diary. This diary. Armando doesn't know he has another son. Santos doesn't know he has a brother..."

My father throws me the diary. I look at the words. Mrs. Evelyn Bah was the owner of this diary.

"What happened to the two sons?"

"One was sacrificed to make the other stronger. The entire family was gone. There was one survivor."

"Who? Who was Armando's surviving son?"

"Think about it. I couldn't have Santos kill his brother, now could I?"

What he was saying right now was fucking crazy. It was beyond anything that I could imagine.

I'm shocked, "Impossible."

"I thought so too but that wise old lady on Moreen Island shared me the secrets of Evelyn Bah. She also let me know Genesis could bring his blood relatives back through sacrifice. That's why I did it. I had him prove it. This wasn't about me wanting Armando back at all. I needed Genesis to prove that he was the son of Armando."

Just at that moment I realize I'm excited and scared all at the same time. My father wasn't an idiot. He had a reason for saving Genesis. He was playing a long game. He was wiser than I could ever imagine.

And if he was right about Genesis then he had to be right about something else too.

Something was coming. Something much worse than Genesis...

There would need to be power in blood.

To read the next chapter in advance go to www.crushedcrown.com