Sins Among Royals

Noah was tired.

He had been up for two consecutive days and it was taking a toll on him. By mid morning he’d had enough.

Rogan, Lori’s mate, was recovering in the local hospital and though he was now receiving the best care he showed very few signs of improvement.

Noah knew the man’s fate was uncertain but the bigger issue there was to deal with was why. Why had Raif and Ebony locked Rogan in the basement and why had they treated him so poorly. Noah’s heart broke at the thought of it. Lori and Rogan had always been close. Ever since childhood they’d been the best of friend almost since birth. He had been told many years ago that Rogan had gone mad and died but had his sister kept him prisoner all that time?

Driving back to the castle Noah became lost in his thoughts as he tried desperately to figure out just what was going on.

He pulled up into the driveway and noticed many vehicles parked outside which made him curse loudly as he banged the steering wheel. Parking the vehicle he pushed the door open forcefully and left the engine running and the door wide open as he stormed off angrily up the stairs and in through the front door. “Sebastian!” he called for the butler.

“Sebastian where are you?!” His voice came as a growl the more he yelled and he didn’t like that he had to yell in the first place.

Noah stormed towards the formal reception room and pushed the double doors open with force. What he saw immediately set his blood boiling. Sebastian sat with Grace sipping on cups of tea, they laughed merrily along with another person he had no desire to see.

“Old man return to your duties now!” Noah yelled as Sebastian jumped in his seat.

“Oh darling that is no way to treat Sebastian!” Grace laughed and placed her hand over the butlers arm to keep him seated.

“I do not pay or employ him to laze around drinking tea and chatting about cupcakes and scones mother!” turning his attention to the old man Noah growled again, this time the rumbling in his throat terrified the butler as he put his cup down and jumped to his feet. “If you would like to return to your duties now there will be no punishment but if I ever catch you so casually sitting around again I will not be so nice or forgiving,” the look on Noah’s face spoke straight to Sebastian’s soul and even made Grace a little uneasy. She didn’t like it when her son was angry, he was volatile.

“Calm yourself Noah we have company.” Grace motioned towards Felix who sat in one of the casual seats looking rather smug.

“Why are there catering trucks outside?!” Noah ignored her words, far too bothered was he by the lack of respect shown to him by Sebastian and his mother.

“I am hosting a tea party this afternoon for that mate of yours,” the sour look that pressed against Grace’s face did not go amiss with Noah.

“Cancel it,” he demanded quickly.

“No!” Grace replied more than a little offended, “everything is set and all guests invited. It’s too late to cancel now,” she looked at her son defiantly. Wanting him to challenge her.

“Your daughter is missing, her mate has gone rogue, your dead daughter’s mate was found in their basement and you want to throw a tea party?!” Noah was having trouble wrapping his head around just what his mother was thinking. “Are you delusional?!” he yelled in astonishment.

“That is no way to speak to your mother,” Noah had entirely expected the words to come from his father but when he turned his head and saw Felix standing there trying to look staunch he lost it.

Rushing towards him quickly Noah wrapped his hand around the short man’s throat quickly. “Do not dare come into my home and tell me what to do,” he glowered at Felix who seemed to instantly regret what he’d said. “The next time you speak out of turn,” His voice lowered to a deathly cold and soulless whisper, “they will be picking pieces of you up from all over this room. Understand?” Noah loosened his grip on Felix and watched him fall to the ground clutching his throat and breathing erratically. “Cancel that tea party mother.” He spoke through gritted teeth as Grace nodded her head.

“Okay, whatever you say son.” She was absolutely petrified. She had never seen her son behave in such a way and didn’t want to ever see it again. It was as if an evilness awoke in him for a few moments but a few moments was all it took.

Storming from the room quickly he left his mother to deal with Felix. A sour taste formed in his mouth at the thought of the name. Why had his mother welcomed him into the home when it was a known fact that Felix and his family wanted the crown?

Heading off towards his office Noah arrived to see his new security team standing outside, “Master,” one of them greeted him with an extremely deep voice.

“Send someone to show Felix out please, he is not welcome here.” He nodded towards the man, “if he needs it have someone take him to the hospital for treatment.”

The leader of the small security team nodded in the direction of two other men and they quickly disappeared. “The rest of those that brought Rogan are inside,” the security lead offered quickly.

“Thank you Darick,” Noah responded feeling a little calmer. He needed to have a serious word with his mother. While his father Victor was coming around to the idea of Indie his mother seemed to want to make her life miserable with ridiculous tea parties that we’d no doubt prove more dramatic than productive and enjoyable.

“Your father is also in there speaking to them.” Darick added quickly.

Noah frowned before entering the office that was quite literally the size of Indies new apartment. Indie. He reminded himself that he needs to call Wade and ask him how things were going.

At the thought of his mate Noah felt him take in a deep breath and exhale all the negatively he had been feeling. He shook his head and chuckled, was that all it took for him to smile now? He hoped that was the truth.

“Good of you to join us son.” He heard his father call from near Noah’s desk. “What kept you.” Victor didn’t see too bothered by his sons absence but they had planned to go through Ebony’s diary together to try and figure it all out.

“Your wife kept me. She has Sebastian and Felix sitting with her drinking tea,” Noah couldn’t help the resentment that echoed in his voice.

“Be kind to your mother,” Victor warned his son quickly.

“Father! Noah protested, “I don’t know what’s happened to her but she is not tolerable. She is erratic and unpredictable and at times her attitude borders on vile.” He didn’t want to say it but he couldn’t help it. Noah had noticed dramatic changes in his mother and it only caused suspicion.

Victor sighed and when Noah glanced at his father be noted a defeated man sitting need his desk.

“What is it?” he asked softly as he sat in his seat. “What’s the matter?”

Noah sat and observed his father as he tried and failed multiple times to say something. The words he walloping for seemed to pain him and it made Noah worry for the worst.

“I suppose it’ll do no good hiding it from you any longer,” Victor sighed. They had tried to shield their children from it but her behaviour was now so unpredictable that Victor couldn’t hide it. “Your mother is sick,” Victor admitted carefully.

“Sick?” Noah asked absent mindedly as be wondered quickly just how sick she had to be to act so strangely. “What’s wrong with her,” he felt a numbness sink in when his father grew even more grim.

“The doctors don’t know,” he admitted sadly. “It’s a disease of the brain and that’s why she’s as bad as she is. You know she wouldn’t mean to be so malice if she weren’t sick but the way things are going I don’t know how long she has left.” Victor was a broken man, he had to stand by his wife no matter what. She was his life and his biggest love and though she could die tomorrow he had no choice but to be there for her. “I can’t disagree with her on anything. If i do she’ll see it as betrayal.” He sighed again and raked his fingers down his face, “You and Indie have my blessing but your mother can’t know that.”

Noah began to see that what his father said and how he behaved was all of the benefit of his mother. It was all for Grace.

“I understand,” Noah nodded his head slowly as it finally dawned on him why his parents had changed so much. He now felt bad for having treated his mother so poorly. “I hope you also understand that Indie won’t be staying in the castle while mother is in such a state.” He would do his best to explain the situation to Indie but the impression had already been made. He wasn’t sure it could be changed or fixed.

Victor nodded in acceptance. “Well now that is said and done shall we get on with this diary?”

Nodding in agreement Noah looked at the diary sitting on his desk. Taking it in his hands he pried the cover open and looked at the first couple of pages. A look of annoyance spread across Noah’s face quickly as his father took the book from his hands.

As soon as Victor saw what was scrawled through the pages of the diary he frowned. “We’ll I haven’t seen writing like this in many years,” he flipped page after page but it seemed the entire diary was filled with strange symbols and markings that belonged to an ancient language. “I didn’t even know Ebony knew of this,” thinking quickly Victor didn’t know of anyone that still spoke or read the symbols.

“What language is it?” Noah found himself asking quickly. He had never seen it before in his life

Victor shook his head, “from memory it’s called Darvonian. It was a language used by vampires.” A thought then occurred, “do you still have that vampire in the dungeons?”

It didn’t take much for Noah to put the pieces together as he took the diary from his father’s hands. “Andrew, he should still be there. Let me take it to him and see what he has to say.”