Royal shuffle: Vampire's mate

ANDREA

I stared at myself in the mirror, breathing in and out, trying to gather the strength and courage to talk to my sisters. I had told Leo that I wanted to speak to them today. I couldn't keep postponing it. The least I could do was tell them the truth, and console them. They needed me. I stopped my mind from thinking how confused they might have been.

Rushed out of school, and thrown into a strange territory where the residents don't even like your kind. Seeing their sister's face plastered across screens where she's screaming her guts out like a banshee. A knock sounded, and the door slowly opened. I already knew who it was.

"Are you ready?" Leo asked.

I nodded.

"Are you sure?" He asked again.

I opened my mouth to answer, and then shut it again. He entered the room, and shut the door behind him. He walked over it me, and pulled me into his arms, rubbing his hands up and down my back.

"It's okay. You'll be fine. I'll be there with you, and for you," he said.

I nodded again his chest, taking consolation in the fact that I wouldn't be doing this alone. Leo had insisted on going with me to see my sisters, as opposed to having someone drop me off, or maybe have his brother do it. Might as well meet my sisters-in-law. That was what he had said.

"I'm scared. What if they hate me?"

"They won't," He said with conviction. "They love you, and more than anything, I'm sure they would be grateful that they didn't lose two of the most important people in their lives."

I nodded. Leo wiped beads of tears from my cheeks. I wasn't even waste that I was crying.

"Let's go."

He took me by the hand, and we left. It was a short drive to the place. The building itself was a multi-story building, and the exterior was glass. The building must have been nothing less that 50 stories. I craned my neck to try seeing the beginning of the building, and almost broke it.

"Where are my sisters?" I asked.

"Top floor. Penthouse," Leo relied.

We got out of the car, and he held my hand. We walked right past security, and it didn't escape my notice that people had more or less stopped what they were doing, and were staring at us. Some had their phones out, and were taking pictures. I simply put my head down, and tried to not let it bother me. I had bigger fish to fry. We got into the elevator, and it took us to the very top floor.

We stepped out of the elevator into a lush carpeted floor. The lobby of the penthouse apartment was spacious and immaculately designed, with gleaming white marble floors and a chandelier that hung from the ceiling. The walls were adorned with tasteful paintings, and for a moment I got carried away with the beauty of the place. There was a stunning view of the city skyline through the floor-to-ceiling windows.

I took a few steps forward and entered the living room, which was furnished with comfortable sofas and chairs in shades of gray and white. A large flatscreen television hung on the wall opposite the couch where a soap opera was playing. This was definitely something the girls liked, I thought to myself.

In the distance, I could see the kitchen. It was separated by the living room by a sleek, black, marble countertop that doubled as a breakfast bar. I smiled. I was pleased.

"I take it that you like what you see?" Leo asked.

I turned around, and kissed him. "I love it. The girls must definitely love it here."

"They do," He answered, smiling, and wrapping his hands around my waist.

"Speaking of which, where are my sisters?" I asked.

"Right here!!!"

I turned around just in time to see my sisters racing to me. I opened my eyes wide as they both jumped on me, throwing us three to the ground.

"Be careful," Leo scolded sternly.

The girls flinched, and moved closer to me.

"It's okay, Leo."

"You just recovered. They'll hurt you if they keep doing that..."

"They won't."

"We won't," The twins chorused.

I smiled at him, and rubbed his leg affectionately. "It's okay."

The girls wrapped themselves around me.

"We've missed you so much, Andrea," Stacy said.

"I've missed you so much too. So much has happened..." I replied.

"We know. We've been watching the news. Something about a war...and a prince...and you..."

I sighed, and looked at Leo who was still standing over us, arms folded.

"There's a lot I need to tell you guys. It's not pretty."

Their faces immediately filled with worry, and dread calmly settled in the pit of my stomach.

"I'll excuse you guys," Leo said, turning away, and heading for the door.

"No. Stay..." I said, not wanting to dk this alone.

We held eye contact for a while, talking to each other in some sort of secret code. He nodded, and sat on the couch, picked up the remote, and began flipping through the channels. "Come on, girls. Take me to your rooms."

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Their eyes lit up again, and they began to talk about their rooms, with each of them trying to talk over the other. We got off the floor, and I let the girls drag me up a flight of stairs. "Our rooms are huge!!!"

"We could fit our whole house in there. Mommy would have loved it."

I swallowed hard, and tried my best to maintain a smile on my face. My eyes opened wide, as we entered their room. The room was painted in a bright pink color that I had no doubt that Leo had it modified for them. The ceilings were very high, and also featured floor to ceiling windows that provided a beautiful view of the skyline. They had a large queen-sized bed that sat at the center of the room, complete with a canopy. I ran my hand on the sheets and could tell that this was high quality silk. Not that I expected anything else.

"Wow..."

"I know, right!!!"

Stacy giggled, and plumped down on the bed. Tracy followed suit, taking me down with her. We lay on the bed, holding on to each other, all of us having in mind that serious conversations are to be had, but none of us ready to break the peace.

"We've missed you so much, Andy..."

"I know. I've missed you too. I'm sorry I didn't come sooner."

"It's okay," Tracy said, kissing my cheek. "You're here now."

"Are you going to be spending the night here?" Stacy asked.

"Don't ask her that," Tracy scolded her twin. Drops of saliva dropping on my face as she spoke over me. "When are you going to move in with us?"

"She has a mate, dummy," Stacy replied.

"Who told you that?" Tracy scoffed.

"A prince wouldn't fight in the streets for a random WEREWOLF nobody if she wasn't his mate."

"Ouch."

Stacy blushed. "Sorry."

At least she had the decency to look contrite.

"But that's the truth," she continued.

"Guys. I have somethings to tell you. It's not pretty..." I said, sitting up and leaning against the headboard.

The girls followed suit, sitting in front of me and it's folded legs.

opened my mouth severally to speak, but couldn't quite find the words. I took several breaths trying to calm my racing heart, but it wasn't working. The silence was deafening, and the air was filled with so much anticipation. "Is this...is this about mom?" Tracy asked quietly.

My lips quivered, and tears ran down my cheeks. I slowly nodded my head.

"What happened to her? Where is she? Is she hurt? When is she..."

"She's dead."

The words forced themselves out of my mouth. The girls looked at me and with shock registered on their faces. They froze for a while, their brains trying to process the news. The loss.

"I'm so sorry...it's all my fault..." I said quietly.

Hoping that words were enough. The floodgates opened and the girls began screaming, kicking and crying. I grabbed them both and wrapped my legs around them. Holding them as they screamed their grief. "It's not possible!!!"

"I'm so sorry..." I said, whispering to them as the tears flowed.

After some time, they calmed down enough for me to let go of them. Their eyes were red and puffy, and showed that the pain that they felt was only just beginning. Like a hollow had just formed in their chest. I know because that is exactly how I feel.

"I'm so sorry..."

I decided against telling them what exactly happened, unless they asked. I didn't need to add to their pain. I also didn't want to tell them that our house was burnt down. Or that I had asked Leo to do it. "So...is that why we're here? Because mommy is gone?" Stacy asked.

"No, sweetie. The werewolf prince is out for our blood. You're here because this is where you can be protected," I replied.

"We're in the middle of vampire territory, I'm not sure about protection," Stacy said.

"It's quite clear they don't like us very much," Tracy echoed.

"You have my word. No one is going to try to harm you."

"We believe you. I mean, the vampire prince is your mate. Who would go against him?" Stacy said

I smiled at the mild joke. It was a bit of relief given the situation.

"We'll be okay..." I smiled at the girls, and we lay back down, wrapped around each other.