Lucette woke feeling warm, safe, and happy, but realizing something was very different. She snapped her eyes open to discover that she was lying on a long settee in the tower room, outside the glass wall. Tristan lay beside her, his arm over her waist.
He was asleep and she snuggled against the warm protection of his strong body. How long had they been lying here together? How had he gotten her out? Had he convinced her father to give him the key?
The door at the top of the tower stairs opened, and Lucette lifted her head. Had the curse ended?
“Well, isn’t this cozy.” Alex strode into the room, a scowl on his face, and at the sound of Alex’s voice, Tristan opened his eyes.
“Alex, it’s great to see you.” Lucette smiled, hopeful. “Has the curse lifted?”
He shook his head, and her heart dropped.
She turned to Tristan. “Does my dad know I’m out of the cell?”
Tristan sat up and grinned. “I convinced him I could keep you safe, and that we’d have a better chance of breaking the curse if there wasn’t a glass wall between us. Not that there has been, but he doesn’t know that.”
Alex’s eyes drifted from her to Tristan, then back again. “Lucette, I need to talk to you.”
“Sure, what’s up?”
“In private.”
Lucette sat up. “Whatever you want to say to me, you can say in front of Tristan.”
“No.” Alex stood his ground. “I can’t.”
“Alex,” she began gently, “I love Tristan. That’s not going to change.”
“You love me?” Tristan grinned ear to ear. “I love you, too!” He quickly leaned over and enveloped her in his arms.
“Excuse me! I’m right here,” Alex said. His expression conveyed his annoyance.
Seeing her in Tristan’s arms likely hurt Alex, and Lucette hated that. But she couldn’t give Tristan the cold shoulder just because Alex was back. Proving she’d found true love was too important.
Alex groaned. “This is all really sweet and everything, but since your love declarations haven’t lifted the curse, can we move on?” Alex drummed the back of one of the viewing gallery chairs and added, “I’m not going to try to get you to love me again, Lucette—believe me—but I do need to talk to you. It’s important.”
“Then talk,” she said. “I’ll tell Tristan whatever you say, anyway.”
“You might not want to tell him this.” Alex turned and started to pace around the room.
“Alex, stop wasting time. My parents’ rooms are unguarded, and other vampires might show up soon.” She was starting to worry about what Alex might say, but the situation was already so bleak that she found it hard to imagine anything worse. Still, a chill rushed through her. What if the fairy queen’s alterations hadn’t worked or had been changed? What if the curse would never lift? Maybe true love wouldn’t work.
“We’re cousins,” Alex blurted.
“What?” She waited for Alex to start laughing, but she’d never seen him look so serious. “How?” she asked. “You’re a vampire.”
He nodded. “I told you my mother converted, right? That she used to be human?”
Lucette nodded.
“Well, she’s your mother’s older sister. She hates your parents. Hates them. And I’m pretty sure the feeling is mutual, because I found out that this whole curse thing started because your mother stole her boyfriend, married him, and then didn’t invite my mother to a party.”
Lucette’s breaths came quickly, making her dizzy. Anger infiltrated her emotions. That the vampire queen was her aunt made her nauseous, but the pettiness of the motivation behind the curse was so much worse.
“How do you know this is true?”
“She told me.” Alex grimaced.“She’s proud of it and thinks it justifies all she’s done. She actually thought it would sway me to her cause.”
“I’ll give you two some time to talk.” Tristan pressed a kiss into Lucette’s hair, and she was about to object, but then realized having this talk with Tristan around wasn’t fair to Alex. He clearly wanted to talk to her about this in private, and now that she knew they were family . . . no wonder she’d felt a connection to him, but hadn’t fallen in love.
Tristan headed for the stairs.
“Wait,” she said. “Which of my parents’ rooms are you going to guard?”
He grinned. “I don’t have to choose.”
“Why not?” Her heart rate sped up. Had her mother moved to her grandfather’s estate in the country? Or worse, had something happened to one of her parents?
“Because they’re in the same room,” Tristan said.
Happiness burst inside Lucette. “How did that happen?”
“I talked them into it.” He grinned. “They were resistant, but I told them how much harder it was to keep them both safe if they were separated.”
“Oh, thank you!” Lucette flung herself into Tristan’s arms. “I know it doesn’t mean they’ll patch things up, but that they’re willing to be in the same room, even while sleeping, makes me so happy.”
He gave her a squeeze. “I’m glad. Now, let me go check on them.” Tristan winked as he left.
Lucette turned to Alex. “It really is good to see you. I missed you.” She sat down in one of the chairs, and gestured for him to sit in another.
“I missed you, too.” Alex sat down beside her. “I was angry when I left, but I was mostly hurt, and I think deep down I knew that we were never meant to fall in love.”
“Especially now that we know we’re cousins.” She grimaced.
“Yeah, there is that.” He let out a short laugh.“Of course, my mother doesn’t seem to think that’s an obstacle.”
“Really?”
“She has this warped idea that after she crushes your parents, she’ll bend you to her will, and then suddenly you’ll want to be a vampire and join our royal family.”
“Why would she think that?”
“Because she’s crazy and desperate to have everyone bow down at her feet.” He wrinkled his nose.“Once she gains control, she wants to be the sole leader of Sanguinia. She’s planning to abolish the democratic council of generals we’ve had for centuries.”
Lucette shuddered. “What does she plan to do to my parents?”
“I’m not sure.” He seemed as if he might be hiding something. Still, in spite of Tristan’s reservations, she felt sure she could trust Alex.
She put her hand on Alex’s arm. “Well, whatever it is, we’ve got to stop her. You’ll help, won’t you? I mean, I can understand if you don’t want to. She is your mother.”
“And your aunt.”
Lucette raised an eyebrow and shook her head as she pondered that unwanted reality. To think her own aunt had cursed her to torture her sister and ex-boyfriend. It made the curse so much worse knowing it had started over nothing but petty jealousy and a desire for revenge.
Three nights later, Lucette and Tristan were sitting next to a vase of roses and guarding her parents’ room when Alex sauntered down the corridor toward them. Lucette sprang to her feet to hug him.
Tristan shook Alex’s hand. “Hey, thanks for coming. Any news from the other side?”
Her joy at seeing the two of them on friendly terms faded quickly. Alex looked grim.
“My mother’s gaining support. More and more vampires consider Xandra the enemy now, and she’s impatient. She might not need to wait for your dad to declare war. She can’t believe that Xandra’s”—he turned to Lucette—“that you’ve held out so long. Given all the slayings, more vampires are now out for Xandran blood and she doesn’t even need to pay some to risk their lives.” He looked down. “Her lust for vengeance scares me.”
“It’s been quiet tonight,” Tristan said. “I know it’s early, but not a peep.”
“I’ll take a walk around the roof to see if I can spot any vampires,” Alex said.
“No, I’ll go.” Tristan reached for his hood.
“No.” Lucette took Tristan’s hand. “You guard my parents.” Because of Alex’s no-fighting rule, she felt more comfortable leaving Tristan in charge of protecting her parents. “I’ll go with Alex. I could use the fresh air.”
Tristan’s jaw twitched. He was clearly not happy with the idea.
“I’ll be fine,” she told him. “Alex and I haven’t had much time to talk since he came back and we found out we’re cousins.”
Tristan paused for a moment, then bent down to kiss her. “Be careful.” He looked over to Alex. “Keep her safe.”
Alex stepped forward. “I kept her safe for weeks before you even showed up.”
Lucette feared they’d start another fight, but Tristan raised his palm toward Alex. “I know. Thank you.”
Alex seemed tense. “Are you okay?” she asked. Neither of her parents was perfect by any means, but she couldn’t imagine how Alex felt. Even though she sometimes got mad at her parents, she loved them and would be devastated to learn so many horrible things about them. What they’d done paled in comparison to the vampire queen’s crimes.
Alex looked around the next corner to check for vampires and then motioned her forward. “I always knew my mom hated Xandra—it’s why I snuck over here a few times as a kid. I wanted to see for myself what it was she found so despicable.”
“And what was your assessment?” She opened the door that led to the stairs to the roof.
“Other than the fact that you wanted to kill me with a twig?” He grinned and knocked her hip with his. “Seriously, I didn’t know what to think. I saw vampires being killed by your slayer army nearly every night.” He shook his head. “Even if they were feeding from humans, they didn’t deserve that.”
“I see that now.” She was ashamed at how her country had reacted to the vampires. “But really, it was your mother who started it all.”
Alex reached the top of the stairs and turned toward her. “Your mother, too. If she’d just invited her sister to the party.” His jaw hardened.
“Do you really think that would have changed things?”
Alex shook his head and squeezed his lips together. “I don’t know.”
They stepped onto the roof, and the night air felt fabulous on Lucette’s skin and in her lungs, and even if it was dangerous to be outside, she was glad she’d joined Alex. She needed to get fresh air more often.
“So, how goes the curse-breaking?” Alex asked.
She shrugged. “I don’t get it, I really don’t. The fairy queen told me I’d know how to prove my love when the time came, but I don’t. I have no idea.”
“Maybe you don’t really love him,” Alex said softly, his eyes trained on the village around them.
She grabbed his wrist. “I do love Tristan! I really do, with all my heart. I’ve loved him since I was thirteen.”
Alex backed away, but he didn’t look hurt or angry, just thoughtful and uncomfortable. He jammed both hands into the pockets of his hooded jacket. “Lucette, I hate to suggest this, but maybe it’s Tristan who doesn’t love you.”
She shook her head sharply. “No, he does. I’m sure.” But doubt prickled inside her.
Alex tipped his head to the side, and one of his fangs scraped along his lower lip in the way it did when he was deep in thought or not sure what to say. “Has he mentioned marriage?”
She took a step back, dangerously close to the roof’s edge. “I’m only sixteen!”
“That’s when your mom got married, though, right?” He pulled her away from the edge and put his hand on her shoulder. “What if that’s how you’re supposed to prove your love?”
Every nerve in Lucette’s body tingled, but she wasn’t sure if it was in fear or anticipation. Marry Tristan? She wanted that someday, sure, but didn’t feel ready right now. She was way too young.
But if Alex was right and marriage was the key to proving her love, it might lift the curse and save her kingdom. Maybe it was her duty to marry young. But the fairy queen had said she’d know how to prove her love. If marriage was the answer, why wasn’t she certain? Instead, the suggestion made her uncomfortable and nervous.
Her throat closed up and her heart ached. What if she didn’t love Tristan enough? What if their love wasn’t true?
Alex squeezed her arm. “Listen. I don’t see any vampires approaching. Why don’t you go back up to your room in the tower? I’ll relieve Tristan and tell him where you are. I promise I won’t let any harm come to your parents. You should talk to Tristan, at least see what he thinks.”
Lucette’s cheeks burned. But if marriage was the way to prove her love, Alex was right. She had to at least discuss it with Tristan, and maybe as they talked, what she should do would become clear.