The Silver Eyed Prince (Highest Royal Coven of Europe) (40 page)

Only then, did he realize. One thing
truly meant something to her—, the very same thing he'd failed to offer.

Unconditional Love.

His heart clenched. He wanted to tell her he loved her, completely and absolutely, regardless of the circumstances, but it was too late. She'd already gone—, flown free from his grasp.

Mother and Daughter

        Colonel Alec Gunter glanced at his watch as the driver packed the last of his luggage in the trunk of the limousine. “Major Greer!” He riveted sharp eyes on the Major who stood at attention. “Did you follow all my instructions regarding Princess Elizabeth's security?”

“Yes, Sir! I have posted the men according to your directions and they are tailing her wherever she goes.”

“I want everyone on high alert,” Colonel Gunter snapped. “If the Duke so much as touches a single hair on her head, I will personally hold you responsible. Am I making myself clear?”

“Yes, Sir!”

“Excellent. General Bradford will take over from here.” Colonel Gunter proffered a hand and gave the Major a single firm handshake. “Good luck, Major.”

“Thank you, Sir,” the Major salu
ted, as the Colonel boarded his vehicle.

“Matthews,” Colonel Gunter called to the driver. “Take me to Princess Elizabeth.”

“Yes, Sir.” The driver peered at him from the rearview mirror of the limousine.

Colonel Gunter gazed out the wi
ndow and reflected on what he was about to do. He'd debated and deliberated with himself, but in the end, he was satisfied with his decision.

The men he had sent to watch Elizabeth in school had informed him of Elizabeth's departure with her friends after class and her subsequent quarrel with the Prince. Apparently, she'd discovered her true identity and that changed his plans.

Now that she knew everything, he could no longer carry on with the lies and leave without telling her who he truly was. He could not simply abandon their friendship without explaining why—, why he couldn't keep his promise, why he couldn't stay.

Most of all, he didn't want her to hate him. He wanted to see her one last time to make sure she was safe—, to part ways with her as friends. To assure her that perhaps, one of these days their paths might cross again, but until then, she would always be in his thoughts and he would miss her.

Terribly.

Colonel Gunter fixed the collar of his distinctive dress uniform. He'd played out the scene he'd imagined n
umerous times in his head about how Elizabeth would take the news. He knew it wouldn't be easy. Hell, even now he could already feel the sting of losing her. But one thing was certain—, there would be no more secrets between them.

At the yellow cottage, Elizabeth waved goodbye to her friends from the front porch, then, went inside to search for her mom. Her agitation had settled down significantly during the ride home, but as soon as her friends had left and she was alone, her ire returned. This time, it was directed towards her mom.

She found her mother packing in the bedroom.

“There you are!” Her mom glanced at her as she stood in the doorway. “I didn't expect you back so early.” She folded a pair of pants and placed them in the suitcase on top of the bed. “Where's Prince William? Did he pick you up ahead of time so you could get ready for tomorrow?”

Elizabeth stepped inside the room and closed the door. “I'm not going.” She leaned back against the doo
rframe and regarded her mom with narrowed eyes.

Mom dropped the shirt she was folding and met her gaze.

A yawning silence ensued, before her mother heaved a strenuous sigh and sat on the edge of the bed. “You found out,” she said quietly.

“Yes—, in class of all places!” Elizabeth cried, pouring out all the resentment that had been seething inside her during the last hour. “Ever
ything about me is a lie. How could you do this to me, Mom?”  

“We were on the run and I had to protect you. I had to bring you up among mortals. Being human was all you knew and I didn't want you to feel different—like an oddity, an outcast. All I wanted was for you to grow up as normal as possible.”

“And so you lied to me,” Elizabeth said through clenched teeth. “You created Elizabeth Hamilton, an average American girl, who, like many others my age, came from a broken home and was raised by a single parent.”

“Yes.” Her mother rose from the bed and looked pensively out the wi
ndow. “Your real name is Princess Elizabeth Adeline Somerset the Sixteenth and your father is King Edmund Royce Somerset the twelfth, former King of the Highest Royal Coven of Europe. You are our only child.”

“So my father wasn't aware I existed? How could you keep me from him? You made me think he aba
ndoned me! Do you know what it's like growing up knowing that your own father didn't want you?” 

“I am not proud of what I did or what I had to do for us to survive.” Her mom looked at her with pained eyes, filling with unshed tears. “Do you know what it's like to live, kno
wing you'll never see the only man you ever loved? Every single night, I yearned and cried for your father. I would rather die than never see him, touch him, or hear his voice again, and many times, I got so close to driving a dagger through my heart and throwing myself into the flames.” She stifled a sob and her shoulders began to tremble.

Elizabeth felt her anger dissipate. She could not i
magine the longing and the agony her mother had suffered. She could see herself in her shoes at the thought of never seeing William ever again.

A disheartening feeling gradually mushroomed in her belly.

Her mom wiped her tears away and collected herself. “I wanted to kill myself and end it all.” She turned from the window and walked towards her. “But I couldn't.” She framed Elizabeth's face with her hands. “I love you too much, I couldn't leave you.”

“Mom . . .” Elizabeth's voice shook and she felt tears dampen her cheeks. No matter how much hostility she felt towards her mother for deceiving her, she coul
dn't bring herself to hate her. She was compelled to do things against her will because of circumstances. 

“Let's talk.” Mom took her hand and they sat next to each other on the bed. “I want you to know ever
ything.” She took a deep breath, before she spoke again. “I was a Pure One like you and I was two months pregnant when John Drake, the Duke of Northern peninsula abducted me. He warned me that if I escaped and returned to England, he would come after me and kill my husband and unborn child.

“I was frightened, but I knew I must flee. If I co
nceived you in captivity, there was no doubt he would get rid of you and mate with me to fulfill his ambition to start his own Coven of Pure Bloods. In his mind, his new coven would match the giftedness of the clan of the Highest Royal Coven of Europe, and that would enable him to overthrow the hierarchy and seize the crown.

“But as the weeks turned into months and I still couldn’t find a way to elude my captors, I began to wo
rry. My pregnancy was on its last trimester and I could give birth anytime. I started to lose hope of ever escaping when the European Special Warfare Commandos raided the camp. A violent war ensued and the chance I had been waiting for, came. The moment my guards were forced to defend themselves from the attack, I fled into the woods, ran as fast and as far as I could, until I found myself on a wharf. I snuck into the first ship that was leaving, not caring where it took me. However, on the second day we were out to open sea, I began to experience labor pains.

“What did you do then?” Elizabeth asked, thinking about the dire situ
ation her mom had to go through in birthing her—, on the run, penniless, surrounded by strangers who were not her kind. She must have been so scared. 

“There was an older human couple, fellow passe
ngers, who pitied me and took care of me. You were born as we were passing Catalina Island.” Her mom smiled in remembrance. “The same couple adopted us. We lived with Danny and Lorraine in their beautiful home by the beach in California. They treated us like family. I was like their own daughter and you, their grandchild. We stayed with them until you were five.”

“Why did we have to leave?”

“I sensed that we were being watched. My suspicions were confirmed when I spotted someone who wasn't human following us on the beach. I immediately knew he was one of the Duke's men. The European Army would never spy on us. They would go to the house and pay a proper call. Knowing this, I had to bid farewell to Danny and Lorraine. I loved them so much that I did not want to endanger them. It broke my heart to say goodbye.”

“The Duke's men—, were they the reason why we were always moving?”

“Yes. They were relentless. I had to change identities multiple times and go from state to state in order to lose them. You suffered for it and I am sorry. I wish I could have done things differently.”

“Why didn't you, Mom? Why didn't you go back to England?”

“I was afraid. John Drake has a very large, powerful army that spans continents. There is a chance he could overwhelm our army. If that happens, our family members, men and women alike, including the King, your father, would be forced to go into combat.”

“But isn't our clan the most po
werful of all?”

“Supposedly—, but our clan hasn't been at its best due to the lack of Purification in two and a half cent
uries. The possibility that we could lose is quite real. I could not allow that to happen.”

“Two and half centuries? Why so long? Doesn't a Pure One come every one hundred years?”

“Yes, but in my case, after my Conversion at age eighteen in 1764, it took another 130 years before I crossed paths with your father, my Twin Flame. No other
Pure One
was born during that period because there can only be a single
Pure One
searching for her Twin Flame at a time.

“After we married, it took yet a
nother one hundred years for me to conceive you and then, I was abducted by the Duke. The Pure One after me never came, because I was carrying you. You were the next
Pure One,
Elizabeth. I had no idea until you were born holding the black pearl in your hand.”

“And you kept my identity a s
ecret.”

“I had to—, at least until the Mark of the Omni a
ppeared and you could follow your destiny. If John Drake learned you are the new Pure One, he would lose interest in me and turn his pursuit on you.”

Elizabeth gaped at her mother, realizing the impl
ication of what she had said. She was about to reply when the doorbell rang.

Confessions of an Alpha Deimon

       “Colonel Gunter!” Elizabeth's mom exclaimed as she opened the door. Right behind her, Elizabeth came up to peek over her shoulder.

“Your Grace, Your Highness” The Colonel inclined his head at both of them.

“Chad?” Elizabeth slowly took his appearance in, from his immaculate blue and black uniform adorned with medals and silver eagle epaulets on the shoulders, to his gleaming leather boots. “Why—, what on earth are you wearing?”

Colonel Gunter glanced at Elizabeth's mother. “Your Grace, may I speak in private with the Princess?”

“Of course, Colonel. Would you like to come in?” Elizabeth's mom opened the door wider.

“Thank you, but perhaps it's best if we speak on the porch. I won't take long.”

“As you wish.” Elizabeth's mother stepped aside to let Elizabeth pass. “I'm upstairs if you need me,” she said, as she closed the door.

Colonel Gunter met Elizabeth's confused eyes. He knew she would react to his uniform, which he had pu
rposely worn to make it easier to reveal his identity.

“My mom called you Colonel.” She gazed at him warily. “You lied to me.”

“Yes.” He restrained himself from going into lengthy explanations, waiting patiently for her to lead the way. She had all the right in the world to be incensed at him, rebuff him and hate him for misleading her.

“Why?” she shot back. “I thought you were my friend!” Tears pooled in her eyes and she abruptly turned away.

“Eliza—,” He paused and swallowed, reminding himself to address her formally, the way it should be. “Your Highness—,”

“Your Highness, yourself!” She sniffled angrily over her shoulder. “Don't ever call me that!”

He took a step closer behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders, turning her to face him. “What do you want me to call you, then?” he asked in a gentle voice.

She glared at him and shook off his hands. “Don't you know my name?”

His heart leaped a little. She wanted him to call her by her given name and that was a good sign. “If I do that, then, that means we're still friends. Am I still your friend, Elizabeth?”

She darted him a dark look and made an unladylike grunt, rolling her eyes heavenward.

He hid a smile.
Damn and blast,
but he loved everything about her! She was so unpredictable—, like a fragile little flower bristling with hidden thorns. One moment she was on the verge of throwing a big fit and giving him a hard time, then the next, she seemed almost ready to forgive him.