Total pages in book: 133
Estimated words: 122946 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 615(@200wpm)___ 492(@250wpm)___ 410(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122946 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 615(@200wpm)___ 492(@250wpm)___ 410(@300wpm)
“I’m fine,” I lied, his hand was warm, very warm and still very much fixed on my inner though.
Reaching for the remote, he was able to close the doors of our first-class pod and shift the seat back.
“What are you doing?”
He didn’t stop until both of our beds were flat like a mattress, the middle divider pulling back into the pod, so there was no space between us. He tossed the remote onto the shelf by the T.V. screen in front of us before laying back. I stared down at him, and he stared up at me.
“Let your hair down, and lay beside me,” he demanded.
I wanted to think of something witty to say back or just be defiant, but I had nothing and slowly did what he asked, running my hand through my curls a bit before lying beside him. He reached over and brushed a few curls my face.
“How did you know how to operate this thing?” I whispered.
“I listened as the woman explained the directions, didn’t you?” He questioned.
No, I hadn’t. “Unlike you, I was a bit too stunned by how the rich travel to pay attention.”
He thought for a moment. “The rest of the plane is not like this?”
“Theseus…” I just laughed shaking my head. “No. No, it’s not. We are in first class. There is a difference just like there were with carriages.”
“You could have said trains; I do remember those, also,” he replied.
“Yes, and trains.” I moved closer to him, my feet touching his foot, too. “So, it seems no matter what century, country, or the innovation, the wealthy are never equal.”
“Shall this be your cause, young revolutionary,” he teased. “Making sure there is equality.”
“Nothing can ever change the advantages of being rich,” I replied, reaching over and brushing a strand of his black hair from his forehead. “That is a useless cause.”
“If only someone had told that to the French before they began their beheadings,” he muttered.
The way he said that made me wonder. “You were there? During the French Revolution?”
He nodded. “I was there with my father and elder brother, Ulrik, as wars always attract vampires. It is the perfect excuse to feast, acquire land and power, as well as grow one’s family.”
“What did you gain?”
“There are those who can listen; I shall tell you later,” he said, and I remembered the other vampires.
But I was going to his family’s home, and I knew nothing about the people there. I wanted to know while we had the chance. The desire to talk and to question without any prying ears built in me. If only we hadn’t left the butterfly wings Taelon had given us.
“Are you doing something?” he questioned, and then he sniffed. “I smelled magic.”
I did, too. It smelled like fresh air in the countryside, valleys, trees, and the smell of grass. I just didn’t realize it was coming from me until I reached up, and my hands were glowing gold.
“Silence is golden.” The voice spoke to me.
Sitting up, I touched the top of the pod, and like a drop in still water, the light rippled throughout the pod, encasing us both. The light shimmered and then just held still.
“What are you doing?” he questioned, amazed at the lights above us.
“I think…No, I’m pretty sure I just made us silent. Or what I mean is,” I thought back to Daiyu’s power. “I made it soundproof, so others can’t hear us.”
When I met his gaze, he was torn between joy and exhaustion. “I thought we agreed to be careful until we reached Ankeiros.”
“It’s not like it comes with directions,” I said, looking to my hands, the gold glow now fading, but the power still all around us.
“You seem to know how to control it very well,” he replied, laying back down and watching the golden ripples of magic above us.
“I don’t know how I know,” I muttered laying back down, too. “I hear a voice. This time it said silence is golden, and I just knew what it meant.” I shifted over onto my side to look at him. “So, are you going to tell me about your family now?”
He gave me a look.
“What?”
“You did this,” He pointed to the magic above us, “Just because you could not wait a few hours to speak of my family?”
“It wasn’t on purpose.”
“Hmm.”
“It wasn’t, but now that it is here, why not make the most of it?” I smiled.
He did not return it. “Daiyu is right, your gift is terrifying; for there is no stopping you from achieving your desire, is there?”
“I have no idea.” I shrugged not wanting to think about it. “Please tell me about your family. I’m going to meet them, and I don’t want to feel like an outsider.”
“Don’t you wish to hear it from them yourself? All of my family loves telling their story, with the exception of my mother…”