The King's Consort Ch. 07

As reality hit her, Caitlin, in utter shock, peered up at Kalen with a deep sense of betrayal. She had no words for him, after what he'd done to her brother, to her. Had Sara really called him, 'master'? He'd never, not once, told her anything other than her brother was dead and cremated. It was all a lie, and he'd been its orchestrator.

Silently, Caitlin wrenched from his grip and turned to face Sara, who hadn't looked her in the eye but for a fleeting moment. "It really was you, out there."

He dipped his head, as if in admission.

"Why did you hurt Mia?"

Sara looked back up at her, his eyes telling more than he could say. If Kalen was a self-loathing creature, her brother was twice the repentant. She could see the pain in his thick features and wanted to go to him. So, she did.

Surprisingly enough, no one stopped her.

Caitlin knelt within reach, sitting on her shins with her hands in her lap. "I thought you were dead," she whispered, staying her hand from touching his cheek. She could feel the shadow energy, already permeating off of him as if he'd killed nearly as many as the murderer Kalen so recently dispatched. But the energy did not dissipate as it did with humans. It was stronger inside Sara.

She finally understood that strange feeling she'd had at Eamon's mansion, or the cryptic words Kalen said to her: 'I have an ally ready to receive us'. It was Sara. It had always been Sara.

"Did Kalen make you this way?"

Sara's not was barely visible as he stared at the floor.

"Why?" She turned to Kalen with the question, who appeared equally guilty. Caitlin turned slowly to face the prince. "You never said a word and even made me believe he was killed by Gabriel."

"He was." Kalen's eyes flickered to Sara, then back to her. "When a human dies, as long as their brain is not destroyed, we can revive them. There wasn't a guarantee it would work. But it did."

That same vines of betrayal chilled her core and gripped her heart, squeezing until she knew no greater pain. "Were you ever going to tell me?"

Kalen closed his eyes. "Yes. After my father's death."

Her jaw clenched all on its own. "Get him out of these shackles. Now."

Elsie was the one to protest, but Zakari made a silent gesture and began working the shackles open. When Sara's arms were freed, he merely let them slump to his lap, palms-up. His wrists were blistered by whatever material the shackles were made from, but he made no move to retaliate.

Without fear, Caitlin stared at her older brother, scooting closer than was advisable. But he wouldn't hurt her. She'd seen the look in his eyes - so long ago - when she'd commanded Nadia to kill in front of her. He detested the taking of human life, and he seemed little changed from the vampirism. "Why did you hurt Mia?"

His hands twitched slightly, then he looked up at her with mournful eyes. "An accident."

"Bullshit," Elsie said, hate seeping into her voice. "Her ribs are broken you shithead. Some useless fucking newborn, don't know your own goddamned-"

"Elsie." Zakari tilted his head toward the door. "Can I speak to you outside."

The guard straightened at the leader's request, then marched out in silence, leaving her, Kalen, and Sara alone in the room. Caitlin let the quite return, until Elsie's hateful words settled with the dust. "You've been working for the King, then?"

"On my order," Kalen took a step forward.

That was a whole other bone she would pick with Kalen later. Reviving her brother, putting him directly under the King's nose, knowing full-well Eamon would use him against them if he had the opportunity. But she could only take in one fact at a time, her mind nearly exploding with the concept of Sara's existence, even as one of them.

Against all logic, she threw her arms around her brother, doing what she'd wanted to do since the moment she'd found out in Gabriel's bunker, though she was furious at the time. Sara froze, then let his body relax. He did not return the hug, but he rested his massive head on her shoulder.

Caitlin, despite the seriousness of this moment, almost laughed aloud, realizing hugging him was like hugging a giant teddy bear. She never knew how badly she wanted an older brother until she'd gained, and lost, one. Now, she had him back, and would never let him go.

"Caitlin," Kalen warned, standing directly behind her. "He hurt Mia."

"You made him this way," she murmured into Sara's black shirt. "Then you gave him to your father? I don't blame him, Kalen."

His hand grabbed her shoulder, not admitting his guilt. That was all she'd wanted to hear from him, some measure of regret. But he had none to offer. Grudgingly, she broke the hug, smiling down at Sara's bald, bald head before letting go of her brother, his eyes heavy with shame.

She stood and turned to Kalen, moving slowly, icily, so he knew the depth of her resentment. He reached for her, his hand upturned, appealing. Caitlin drew away from him and pushed open the metal door. "Keep away from me. And if you hurt Sara for this, I will never speak to you again." With that she turned, and marched from the room, her resolve breaking when she finally made it to the hall, her eyes filling with tears of relief and betrayal.

Out of all this fuckery, there was only one thing she knew for certain: she couldn't trust a thing he'd ever told her.

Was this Eamon's plan?

*

Caitlin woke as early as possible and, after a brief stint over the toilet bowl, made her way to Dr. Gray's offices. Before anything else, she had to see how Mia was doing, then she would check on her brother down in the basement.

So far as Caitlin could tell, Mia hadn't died from her injuries yet, or she would have heard about it through Marianne or Edmund. That was more than enough to convince her that Sara hadn't been lying, unlike Kalen.

The door to the doctor's suite was ajar but she knocked anyway. "Dr. Gray?" No one answered, so she eased the door open a little further. "Do you have a moment?"

A rustling of paperwork verified that someone was inside. "Caitlin?" Althea's voice echoed softly. "Come in but be quiet." Caitlin did so, easing the door nearly closed behind herself. Althea was seated at a low desk, seeming to have been interrupted from her paperwork. Her usually professional air was gone and she looked bedraggled. She noticed spots of blood on the doctor's sleeves as she finished up her work. "Give me a moment."

Caitlin sat carefully, gripping the chair and looking around. At the far end of the suite was a curtained area that usually held a bed. Shadow energy permeated the cotton fabric; she wondered if Mia was behind the white sheets or, perhaps, if they'd changed her to preserve her life. But she would have heard about it, wouldn't she?

Althea finished her scribbling with a flourish. "Alright," she said, straightening the sheaves of paper and setting them aside, then looked to her with a weak smile. "Are you here to inquire about my other patient?"

She returned the smile with a small one of her own. "Yes, is she..."

"Stable?" The doctor nodded, glancing to the curtains. "I did everything I could with what I had. If we'd been in a real hospital, it would have made my job much easier. But yes, Mia is stable. Six of her ribs were broken and her sternum is cracked. I still can't figure out exactly what happened out there." The doctor's gaze lowered to her documents. "Your brother certainly did a number on her."

"Yeah," Caitlin said breathlessly. She couldn't imagine what had happened between them. "Can I- I mean, may I see her?"

Dr. Gray stood, then waved her towards the sheets. "She's sleeping right now. And Elsie's with her. Just for a moment." Silently, the doctor pushed aside the white sheet, revealing a very pale Mia bundled up beneath mounds of comforters, her face serene in sleep. The vampire, Elsie, was resting atop the covers, her arm tucked under Mia's head, stroking the dark hair into place. Her other arm rested protectively over Mia's stomach and she looked up at them with pitch black eyes as if warding them off from touching the injured human.

Caitlin met the vampire's eye for a long moment, then conceded with a nod, whispering, "She's in capable hands."

The doctor answered her quietly. "Let's talk more in the hall."

Neither said a word until the door was shut behind them. Caitlin spoke first. "Do you think it was an actual attack? Has she said anything about what happened out there?"

"Mia hasn't been awake since I put her under. She was in so much pain, Caitlin, and I have no idea what the long-term consequences for her are. But she's past the worst of it, which is the best I can do." Althea's eyes cleared and she glanced to Caitlin. "How are you doing? It must have been quite a shock to see your brother again, after everything that happened."

That creeping suspicion was back and she wondered how much the doctor had been told. "Did you know about Sara, too?"

Without hesitation, she shook her head with a smile. "I heard it from Marianne this morning. I'm not much for gossip, but it clearly means a lot to you. And I'm worried that someone in your position might feel the need to take drastic action. If you ever want to just talk, I'm a pretty good listener."

"You promise you won't poke me?" Caitlin rubbed her arm at the memory of being pierced by one of her many needles.

Dr. Gray laughed lightly. "I promise."

Caitlin glanced away, feeling guilty about the emotions her brother's existence summoned. "I think I'm furious at Kalen." Althea nodded, waiting for her to continue, so she did. "He's made all the decisions leading to this and not once did he tell me the truth. I can't believe a word he's said up to this point anymore. I don't know that I can trust him."

"Of course," the doctor said. "You were deceived by someone you care a lot about. You have every right to feel that way."

She heard the words and a strange knot of tension released in her core. Caitlin didn't realize she'd been holding it all in until she'd just come out and said it. "But- what should I do? I can't keep this up for three years. And Kalen is set to confront his father within the week. I'm just so... angry, but at the same time, frightened. What if he doesn't win?" Her hands began to shake. "Eamon will do what he wants. To me. To Amandine. To everyone I care about. I couldn't-" Caitlin's face contorted as she tried unsuccessfully to keep the tears at bay.

The doctor put a hand on her shoulder, disrupting the well of self-pity that had arisen. "Just worry about one day at a time. You're trying to read the future and, as far as I know, no one is capable of that. Not even them." Althea watched her with a melancholic smile, but there was something else beneath, something she couldn't quite place. "Hang in there, Caitlin."

She swiped away the stray tears, angry at her poor reaction.

There were expectations of her now that she didn't seem to be able to live up to. A Queen, she thought to herself. Amandine was a Queen, with all the airs of a Grecian goddess in her fine silks. Caitlin, however, was quite the opposite, and she didn't think it had much to do with the pregnancy. She did not make a room pause with her entrance, the way her mother-in-law had at Eamon's residence. She did not hold herself quite the way one should in such a station, and often found herself spreading her knees irreverently wide like the farmer she was. Or had been.

She touched the bump of her stomach, realizing the doctor was still waiting for a response from her. "Sorry. You're right, I just... I have no role in what's coming next, other than to curl up in a corner and clutch at my belly for dear life." Caitlin threw up her hand, then glanced at the doctor. "I'm useless."

Althea smiled in earnest, a little laugh in the back of her throat. "No. Far from it. But your charge does require you to rest and take care of yourself. Leave Kalen to deal with his father. You need to reduce your stress, kick your feet up, and relax." The doctor offered her a brisk, professional hug, then released her. "Go visit your brother. I'm sure you two have quite a lot to catch up on."

Caitlin glanced at her feet and nodded. "Thank you, doctor."

"Please," she said, "Just Althea."

"Right." She snuck a glance and smiled up at the doctor. "Thank you, Althea."

*

Caitlin didn't know what she'd find in the basement. Last she knew, Sara had been unshackled from the awful contraption the guards had put him in, but there was no guarantee he was still there.

When she got to the bottom step, she saw guards posted at the entrance to the whitewash room. One of them happened to be Zakari. "Is my brother still in there?" She stood squarely in front of the guard, doing her best to maintain eye contact.

His green eyes flickered to her with some measure of amusement. "I was ordered not to let anyone in or out. Sorry, princess."

The way he said it reminded her far too much of Micah, which caused a lump to form in her throat. "Don't call me that. And he's my brother. I'd like to see him... please."

Zakaria glanced down at her, the amusement gone. "Your brother is in league with the enemy. Kalen expressly told us to-"

"I don't care what he said." She felt a slight rise in her energy, though it paled in comparison to even a newborn vampire's. A swirl of darkness formed in her stomach, and she realized with amazement that the child was emulating her emotions. She smiled internally, then let her energies increase with the added shadow stuffs, her voice growing deadly, "Let me see him."

Despite being a vampire, she thought she saw Zakari startle, just a little. He righted himself before she had a chance to be certain. "So, it is true."

Her eyes only narrowed.

Zakari glanced to his companion, who shared with him a look of discomfort. Then, he relinquished by stepping to one side. "Third cell. Make it quick."

Caitlin mimicked the easy smile of Amandine. "I won't, thanks." She opened the door before they could change their mind and shut it firmly behind herself. She took a breath before turning around to face the cell blocks. Though Sara's energies were less voluminous than Kalen's, she could still feel it seeping into the stone behind her.

"You shouldn't have come."

Her eyes grew wide as she whipped around, surprised - even though she expected it - to hear Sara's voice again. She'd convinced herself for so long that he was dead and gone, that she hardly believed her ears, even after last night. In the third cell nearest the rear door, sat Sara, slumped against the reinforced wall, sitting cross legged. "And why's that?"

In response, he said nothing, his eyes never departed from his hands laced in his lap.

She approached the cage, sadness and injustice mingling to create a stone in her gut that sat atop the speck of darkness inside her. Caitlin knelt, holding the bars and peering closely at Sara. "Why didn't you ever tell me that we were siblings?"

His bald head shook, but no other answer came.

She sighed, remembering how quiet he'd been in life, and vampirism had hardly changed that. "If you're not going to talk, then I am." Caitlin waited. When he didn't respond, she continued. "What I don't understand is why you were working beneath Gabriel. You were Abraham's son, you should have been his successor, not... him.

"But I have to also wonder if it wasn't you that was complicit in my kidnapping. Did you play a part in it? If so, then you killed Micah, too."

"No." His deep blue eyes finally looked up in shock. "Never."

"Why didn't you fight for us then? You did whatever Gabriel told you to do, until the very end." Her gaze flitted to his chest, where she remembered three bullets entering. "What changed?"

His eyes flickered past her for a brief moment, and she thought she'd get more silence. But that was when he finally, finally spoke. "You didn't know our father like I did."

Caitlin blinked, then leaned in closer. "From what my mom says, he was manipulative, charming and able to make people believe anything. I think I have a pretty good idea."

Sara shook his head again, then stood up. She chose to stand, too, or be entirely dwarfed by his height and girth. Her brother was a formidable human, and even more formidable as a vampire. Kalen, she thought, must have taken great pride in acquiring him, a thought that made her ill.

Sara looked down his nose at her, his eyes troubled. "I was just another soldier. But Gabriel? He wanted revenge. So, father taught him, instead."

Caitlin had never heard so much come from the big man, but she kept her mouth closed, hoping he'd continue. This is what she'd wanted to know ever since Gabriel stepped into their lives.

"'Too sympathetic', he called me. 'Too weak'. He still made me kill."

Her heart ached for him. "I'm so sorry. How did you ever get wrapped up in Kalen's business, then?"

"Father died. I was released." Sara wrapped his hands around the bars, pressing his forehead to one and closing his eyes. "There was an opening. I took it. Met Micah and found... belonging. Kalen never asked me to kill. Then, he found you." His eyes were open again, staring straight through her soul. "I almost quit. Couldn't stand watching you become one of them. Took a week off. Then Gabriel found you and-" He swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing heavily. "-I wouldn't let them hurt you. I returned to Gabriel."

"You went back... for me?"

"Yes," he said without hesitation. "You're family."

"Is there... anyone else?"

He shook his head. "Only us."

Caitlin stood there, stunned, realizing the two remaining heirs to Abraham's lineage were in this room. She almost laughed at the thought of the great hunter finding out that both his children were either a vampire or on their way to becoming one. "Our father must be turning in his grave."

The first sign of a smile reached his lips as he nodded, then it disappeared and the silence continued. She didn't object to it, both coming to some understanding. Caitlin wanted to know much more about their father, but not today. Today, she was content to sit in the quiet companionship of her reclaimed brother. "Kalen didn't... punish you, did he?"

Sara shook his head again.

"Good." She shifted from one foot to the other, realizing she needed to sit down. She'd been on her feet too long already. "Did he say when he was going to let you out again?"

His eyes flickered with regret, but he didn't answer.

Caitlin fondled the lock, wishing she'd kept the key Kalen had given her. "I'm sorry you had to-" She choked, realizing if she hadn't told her mother about Kalen - even by accident - and hadn't run to the priest and confessed, Sara might have still been human. Gabriel only struck because of their grand egress from her old hometown. But maybe it didn't matter. "You shouldn't have come back for me."

A hand slid through the bars and cupped hers holding the lock. Sara's eyes held a twinkle of a smile as he spoke. "It's ok." He squeezed comfortingly, gently.

The door to the hall opened abruptly, sending shock coursing through her limbs as they both looked to the source of the disturbance. There, in the doorway, was Kalen's lean, stern figure. He glanced at Caitlin fleetingly, his guards flanking him to create a somber assembly.

Sara removed his hand from hers and stepped back, straightening his stance. "Master."

Caitlin was too enshrouded in her emotions to step aside, though his presence demanded it. Like an idiot, she remained, turning to the prince with her shoulders set. "Let him out of here."