"I came to fetch you. Your duty is at the Great Dome, taking part in deciding the fate of the kingdom's human population. That's where you're supposed to be, not in this greenhouse of yours."

"Is that all you came to say?"

I studied her, wondering if she knew what was going on in my mind even before I spoke. I never really fully grasped the extent of what my sister was capable of. I wondered if I ever would.

"You are bothered by your desire for Ashley?"

The question was rhetoric so I glared at her, hoping that she would sense my impatience. Nothing. The minutes were ticking by and she remained silent. Her focus remained on the plant she was pruning. Her disregard for me was beginning to vex me.

"I still rule over you, sister. I want your full attention when I am speaking with you."

She dropped her tools and looked straight at me. The moment those violet irises settled on me, I wished I hadn't asked to have her full attention. Her gaze was a story of despair one I wanted to unravel and make right, but felt powerless to do so.

"The one question that comes to mind, my prince, is why you're having such a dilemma over this matter." She took a step forward, closer to me. A challenge. "Why not just take her from the custody of the guard and do with her as you please? She is nothing but a slave. You have every right to bend her... break her... use her any way you see fit. She's just another human girl... I remember a time when you wouldn't have hesitated to take the life of one such as her. Why do you hesitate now?"

Tension coursed through me as I searched myself for an answer to her question. I had none but one. A bitter taste caught my tongue even as the name came out of my mouth.

"Sofia."

Ashley mattered to Sofia. That's why I don't want to touch or harm her. I resented my sister for her cunning. I forbade her to speak of Sofia and yet, without defying me, she still managed to get me to ponder the mysterious hold the exquisite redhead had on me. I expected to see triumph in Vivienne's eyes. I didn't see it. Where it was supposed to be, a defeated resignation remained.

Her challenge stayed with me as we sat through the council meeting at the Great Dome. She left me with a choice continue to find turmoil in deciding Ashley's plight or completely abandon the man I became when Sofia was around and just give in to my predatory nature. Somehow, though the latter seemed inviting, a part of me was still fighting against it. The part that was aware I had a choice, and therefore, a responsibility for the consequences of my decisions.

"Derek!" Vivienne snapped me out of my self-introspective bout. "Everyone's here. We're all waiting for you to begin."

As usual, Eli was at the stand, presiding over the session. Apparently, he was already done with the introductions and all eyes were on me to begin speaking.

I straightened in my seat, attempting to focus my mind on the meeting that I had called. "The human population of The Shade is far too great. How did it get this way?"

"With all due respect," Xavier spoke up from his seat "I don't see why this is a problem. They are not trained to fight. They don't have any weapons or any means to procure them. We can easily quell any attempt they make to defy us. The last human uprising was over four hundred years ago and that was a ma.s.sacre."

"And you would willingly have another ma.s.sacre? Do we not have enough blood on our hands?" It was Liana, Cameron's wife, who spoke up.

"We're vampires, Liana." Xavier smirked. "Human blood is shed on this island every single day. It is how our kind survives. Let's not pretend to have righteous indignation over such things, simply because we can't afford to have it."

"We cannot have another uprising." My voice was enough to silence everyone. "We are already threatened by external forces other vampire covens wanting what we have here at The Shade, the hunters still in relentless pursuit of us. Considering how many human abductions we've been doing, it won't take long until the hunters find us out. We cannot risk a rebellion from inside our own walls."

"What does the prince suggest we do then?" Eli leaned over the metal banisters lining the stand.

"For now, the abductions must stop. All scouts are going to be recalled and trained as guards. All human blood we require will come from the humans already on the island. We cannot risk the hunters finding us out." Even as the words came out, I was reminded of the risk I took when I let Sofia and her friend escape. Has she blinded me so much that I'd forgotten my duty to protect The Shade at all cost?

The noise that erupted across the round hall drowned out my thoughts as objections and defenses were thrown by practically every member of the Elite present at the dome.

"How do we survive then?!" A voice cried out. "We must feed."

An image of Ashley flashed through my mind and my gut clenched. Yes. We must, mustn't we? I shook the thought away. "Where do the gla.s.ses of blood come from?"

Ever since I woke up, I'd been given a daily ration of blood. It wasn't as succulent as fresh blood pumped straight from a beating heart, but it served well to satisfy a vampire's wanton cravings. I never thought to ask where they came from until then.

Again, like clockwork, they closed their mouths to hear me speak. It was something that'd always baffled me before how I, younger than most of them in both natural and vampire years, was able to command such respect from the Elite.

This time, however, it was different. It wasn't just me who caused their silence. It was my question. "Well? How do we have such a supply of blood?"

I noticed how Eli's knuckles grew paler from the way he was clutching the metal banister. The way Vivienne's fingers more tightly gripped the armrests of her recliner caught my attention too.

"Vivienne?"

She twisted the recliner my way, the round platform her seat stood on allowing her to look upon my face. "The human population now is a lot less than it was about half a century ago. There were rumors of rebellion and the humans were growing restless and dissatisfied by their living conditions."

I waved a hand at her, a motion for her to continue speaking.

"Father called for a culling."

It was easy to see from the expression on Vivienne's face that the incident didn't bring forth any pleasant memories. I wondered what was going through her mind. My twin sister... forever an enigma...

"A culling?"

Eli came to her rescue when he, in his usual expressionless manner, laid down the rest of the facts for me. "All humans who proved to be of no worth the weak ones, the sick ones, the ones who could not serve were slaughtered, their blood drained and preserved in chilling chambers for future consumption."

"Were so many killed that the blood lasts even to this day?"

"A great number were lost, yes," Xavier chuckled. "But we never had much use for the preserved blood when we were always brought a fresh supply from the abductions."

"Well, we have use of it now, don't we?" I challenged him. "My decision stands. There shall be no more abductions. If you must feed, feed on the blood of the dead."

"And when that runs out?" Xavier was never intimidated by me and was not afraid to show it. He was making it clear through the expression on his face and the tone of his voice that he wasn't pleased with what I was doing.

Vivienne's jaw twitched when my eyes met hers. She looked at me like she would a dying man, like she was about to lose me. I hardened myself under her disapproving glare.

"Should the blood run out, perhaps we should see to another culling."

CHAPTER 26: BEN.

I couldn't take my eyes off her.

Sofia had me spellbound the moment she walked down the stairs, looking absolutely stunning in the dress we picked out during our date. She appeared timid and reserved as my mother and father began taking pictures of us.

My mother wasn't exactly thrilled to hear that Sofia and I were going to prom together, but we explained that neither of us had been dating anyone lately and since we were best friends, it seemed like going together would take a lot less effort than scrambling for a date. My mom's shoulders sagged in surrender before she kissed me on the cheek and whispered, "If that's what makes you happy, Ben."

And it did make me happy. Sofia made me happy.

Ever since our first date, things got a lot more fun and casual. In order to avoid arguments and just enjoy each other's company, we took great lengths to avoid discussing the future with me still mulling over joining the hunters and her still greatly opposed to ruining The Shade, something I still couldn't bring myself to understand.

We spent practically every waking moment together. Due largely to the fact that Sofia and I held hands in the hallway and made out whenever we got the chance, it wasn't long before everyone at school got wind of the new "it" couple. Sofia and I were no longer just best friends. In Connor's words, we were "finally together". It felt real, or at least I hoped it did.

There were still times when we were together that I would catch Sofia staring into s.p.a.ce, lost in thought. It often started with her having this dark, broken, pensive expression and then something would lift inside her, like a light coming from within spreading through her and threatening to break out. Her cheeks would take on a rosy pink glow and her lips would form into a soft, longing smile at some distant memory I wasn't privy to.

Sometimes, I would be tempted to ask what exactly went through her mind during those moments, but I was afraid to hear the answer to that question. Something told me that those memories had something to do with a certain vampire who still robbed me of completely having her to myself.

The few days I got to spend with them at his penthouse were enough to tell me how she viewed Derek Novak. She never looked at me the way she looked at him. She never responded to my touch the way she responded to his.

That night of our escape from The Shade... in the woods... it still haunted me. Seeing his lips on hers, his arms around her... I knew Sofia well enough to know just by the look in her eyes that she wanted to stay. No words could explain how grateful and relieved I was to find her on the sh.o.r.e with me the next morning. I was fully expecting to find myself alone.

As we rode in the limousine to the venue of our prom, I was momentarily distracted from Connor's crazy antics the reason for all the loud laughter, cheers and guffaws going on inside the vehicle to find Sofia, who was sitting by my side, staring out the window. She had that distant gaze, that rosy pink glow, that smile ... I caught sight of the fingers on her left hand moving over her knees as if they were playing a tune on a piano.

She had never played an instrument her whole life. But Derek did.

I laid my hand over hers. "Hey... You alright?"

She snapped to attention and turned to face me. A flicker of guilt showed in her green eyes before she squeezed my hand and smiled. "Yes. I'm great."

"Be here with me, Sofia." Not back at The Shade. With him.

She responded to my statement with bewilderment. "I'm here, aren't I?"

Her fingers caressed the line of my jaw. I hated how I barely felt her touch. No other girl had ever made me ache with so much longing as she did. When her soft lips rested on the corner of my lips, I took advantage and twisted my neck toward her for a full kiss. If there was one thing I shared with her that I could completely feel and fully enjoy, it was the kisses.

I could sense her surprise. She meant only to give me a quick peck, but she must've already noticed over the past few days that casual smacks rarely ever satisfied me. I wanted more, demanded more, and it pleased me when she responded, just like she was doing then.

Unlike the kisses I had shared with Tanya, Sofia's kiss didn't bring about visions of Claudia and her appet.i.te for breaking and humiliating me.

"Rose Red and Prince Charming are at it again!" Connor announced with a soft chuckle. He was the first person I had confided in about how I felt for Sofia. That was way back in our freshman year of high school.

I laughed, pulling my lips away from Sofia's. We both realized that the other two couples in the limo had their eyes on us. "Sorry about that," I grinned. I eyed Sofia, noting how her cheeks took on a crimson blush. "I couldn't help myself."

"Don't worry..." Connor casually waved a hand at us. "After all these years of trying to convince yourselves and the rest of us that you two are just friends, we can't really blame you for not being able to help making out whenever you get the chance. You have a lot of time to make up for."

"Didn't Snow White end up with Prince Charming?" Alyssa, Connor's date, asked. She gave Sofia a quick glance before looking at me. "Not Rose Red?"

I couldn't blame her if she detested me. She and Tanya were pretty close friends. What I didn't like was her taking her animosity out on Sofia. I shrugged. "No idea."

"Rose Red ends up with the brother of Prince Charming actually," Sofia informed us, her teasing eyes set on me. "Do you have a brother hidden somewhere?"

Before I could come up with a proper response, Alyssa crossed her arms over her chest. This time, her disdainful glare was fixed on Sofia. "I think there's a variation of the story where Rose Red ends up with the Beast."

Alyssa couldn't have possibly known how close to home her jibes were coming. Annoyed at her, I kept my eyes on Sofia. I tucked strands of her auburn hair behind her ear before responding. "I can be Prince Charming or his brother... or even the beast. I'll be whoever I have to be for Sofia to end up with me."

I watched the rosy pink glow drain out of Sofia's cheeks as her emerald eyes met mine. Questioning. Hesitant. Afraid. I had no idea how to a.s.sure her, how to let her know that I was serious about her. Hopefully, after tonight, she'll know...

I was relieved when we finally reached the venue, eager to get away from the others and have Sofia to myself. Prom went on just as well as anyone would expect. I was crowned prom king and had to pry myself away from Sofia for a quick dance with Tanya, who won prom queen.

When I returned for Sofia, I found her sitting at one of the tables, absent-mindedly sketching something on a paper napkin. Connor b.u.mped into me before I could reach her.

"Looks like Rose Red has eyes only for you. A bunch of guys already asked her to dance and she declined them all."

I reached her table and extended my hand toward her.

"One last dance, Sofia?"

She covered her sketch with her palm, crumpled the paper napkin and stuffed it in the small purse she was carrying. She took my hand and I led her to the dance floor. She rested her hands over my shoulders and my hands found their way to her waist. I never could quite get over how small her waist was. My hands came nearly fully around it.

"Having a good time?"

"Yes." She nodded.

"Right..." I rolled my eyes. "You're lying."

She laughed. "Okay, fine... I never even imagined myself attending prom. You know me. This isn't exactly my scene. Too many people, too much noise..."

"Then why'd you come?"

The rosy pink glow returned to her pale freckled cheeks. "Because you wanted to be here..." She then looked down at her outfit and gave me a pout. "And this dress is too pretty to waste."

"Wanna get out of here?" I suggested.

Her brows furrowed at me in question. "You sure you want to go home this early?"

"Who said anything about going home?" I held her hand. "Come on. I have a surprise for you."

We left the hall and made our way to the parking lot where my black pick-up was waiting. I asked one of the soph.o.m.ores on the football team to drive it there after we left the house to go to prom.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

"You'll see." It took about half an hour to reach Los Angeles. From there, we drove another few miles up the Angeles Crest Highway to a spot overlooking the Los Angeles basin. "This place would actually be better if we came before sunset, but I guess the starry night will have to do."

She chuckled. "I just hope we can still see stars past the smog."

I parked the pick-up so that the tail was facing the view of the city. I removed the canopy covering the back and switched on a flashlight to reveal a blanket, a bunch of pillows and a picnic basket. Just seeing that radiant smile on her face made all the effort worth it.

She began fixing the pillows over the edge of the truck so that we could both find a comfortable position. "We're so overdressed for something like this," she commented.

"Who cares? We both look incredible."

"I'll never get used to how modest you are, Ben."

"People who look like me have no need of modesty." I opened the picnic basket and brought out the candles, spreading them along the edge of the truck. I tossed her the matches. "Light them up, beautiful."

By the time she was done lighting the candles, I had already taken out the champagne, the bowl of strawberries and the melted chocolate. She started giggling about something.

When I gave her a questioning look, she explained, "Look at all these candles. I'm just wondering when fire hazards like this started to become romantic."

"So you find this romantic?" I raised a brow at her.