“Drink, Avalyn.” I ordered and hoped and prayed that the power of the ring will work and she’ll have the strength to do it.
She let out a groan and shook her head but she grabbed his hand and began drinking anyways. She cried and gagged but she drank.
I saw pain and love in Javier’s eyes as he watched his daughter suck him dry.
And then he looked up at me. “She has very little blood in her body. So do I. She’ll have to drink all of mine to survive. Don’t let her stop before that.”
My eyes widened and Ava began crying and shaking her head. But she didn’t stop. She couldn’t.
“Don’t. I’ll get another vampire.” I said and Mikhail was on his feet, ready to get someone. We were on a vampire island for god sakes. And I had the Neos army at my command. Javier didn’t need to die.
He shook his head, the blue in his eyes glowing. “It’s my time.” His voice was low but strong.
“You’re a fucking vampire, Javier, you’re going to live forever.” I said. Ava will never forgive me if I do this to her. She already thinks she killed her mother. I can’t let her carry the burden of thinking she killed her father too.
“I don’t want to.” His eyes slid shut and a lone tear fell down his cheek. “I’ve heard more than I ever wish to.”
He looked up at me and his eyes watered. “I heard her, Nikolai.”
“I heard her scream and cry out for help every fucking day for the last decade.” His lower lip trembled.
“That was the only reason Emmanuel kept me alive. So I could hear the screams of my daughter when his son raped my daughter over and over, only three storeys above, while I was locked up, helpless and useless.” A tear slipped down his cheek.
“What kind of father was I that I couldn’t protect my own daughter? For thirteen years, I entrusted the wrong man with my daughter, countless times I had him babysit her, let that bastard’s son play with her. I thought he was a good man. And for a decade I did nothing while Ava’s life was an endless cycle of nightmares. And when I stopped hearing her, I thought she was dead. And you know what? I thanked God for her death. Because it meant that she escaped this cruel world. That she will finally find peace and happiness with her mother.” He heard his daughter be defiled for almost a decade. And now, he almost did again.
“I’ve seen more than these eyes can bare.”
He saw his mate die in front of his eyes.
“I’ve lost more than my soul can carry the burden of.”
And Goddess knows what else he’s went through.
“I want to be with Valerie again, Avalyn.” His eyes filled with tears as he looked at his daughter. “I love you. So much. And I tried so hard to live for you. But I failed. I can’t do it anymore. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Nikolai will take care of you. He already has more than I ever could. I trust him.”
Ava was crying hysterically now.
“I’ve lost control of my powers, Ava,” he said calmly. “This island in going to drown in ten minutes with everything and everyone on it. Give me your hands.”
He lifted his other hand and Ava immediately grasped it. And then suddenly, Avalyn’s eyes turning electric blue. And both their eyes began glowing.
“I love you, Avalyn. Your mother loved you too. Remember that. I’m giving you my powers. Use them wisely. Take everyone home with you safely. Win the war for me. Kill Adrik. Protect your people.” And then his eyes flashed a sharp blue before they began dimming.
The light in them was dying…
When one transfers their power to someone else, it takes a lot out of them. The stronger the powers, the more difficult the transfer.
Ava was shaking her head and sobbing as she sucked on his blood. She begged me through our mind link. ‘Please, Nik. Please let me stop. He’ll die.’ She tried to thrash, to move away but the power of the ring kept her in place. I felt guilty to do this to her.
“Don’t fight it, Firefly,” Javier said softly, a tear slipping down his cheek. “The powers are in transition, stopping now can be fatal for both of us. And if you stop drinking my blood, you’ll recover only half way and suffer for a long time before succumbing to your death. Let me do this for you. Please. This one last thing.”
This caused her to cry harder.
Javier only held her hands tighter and looked at his daughter calmly, a strange sense of peace in his eyes. The only way I knew he was in pain was because his jaw was clenched. He wasn’t showing it for Ava’s sake.
I’ve never met someone as strong as this man. He was the father I never had. The father I wished I always I had.
“I’ll give Viktoria your regards, son.” He told me. “Promise me that you’ll always take care of her, that you’ll never give up on her.”
Tears swam in my eyes. “I promise.” I understood his reasoning. I wouldn’t want to live in a world without Ava, my mate either. Life was worthless without my mate. But he tried to be alive for Ava. And he was ready to die to protect her too.
Slowly, I saw her body regain it’s colour. The blood in her body increased and her blood flow got stronger along with her heart beat. She’ll live now. I let out of relief.
And that’s when I noticed that Javier was growing weaker. She looked away from Javier when she watched his worsened state.
‘I hate you both. I will never forgive you for doing this.’ She told Javier and I through a common mind-link. My eyes slid shut in anguish. I know she would hate me after this. But I hoped that she would find the strength to forgive me with time. That she’ll still love me. Because she had too much love to give. And she didn’t deserve to die just yet. This world needed more of her love. I needed more of her love.
“Don’t l-let these be your last words to me, Ava. You k-know you’ll regret it.”
Avalyn was sobbing now, her eyes on her father again. His blood was dripping down from the sides of her mouth as she drank it. “Don’t cry, m-my Firefly.” The strain in his voice was palpable as it cracked. Tears grew in his eyes. Not of pain. But of finality. “I’m going to finally reunite with Valerie. I’m going to be at peace after so long. An-and you’re old enough to take c-care of yourself. You’re a strong, co-confident woman. A true Queen. I love you.” The life in his eyes dimmed further and his skin started turning green. Purple veins started popping out of his skin.
Ava’s eyes slid shut and she nodded. She understood. She had finally accepted his noble decision. “I love you, Papa. Tell Mama that I love her too.”
He managed to crack a last smile.
Mikhial, Ava and I watched as Javier took his last breath before he laid his eyes to rest and his soul finally met it’s other half on the other side of the moon.
His hands went limp and Ava remained strangely silent. Calm.
It was the calm before the storm.
I could see the hurricane churning in those electric blue eyes, the brown gone forever now.
“Avalyn?” I asked fearfully. I was worried for her mental health. She had gone through so much in the last twenty four hours. And she wasn’t letting her emotions out like she normally did. She was holding it all in, filling all her emotions in a bottle and closing the lid tight. I was worried for what will happen when it gets too much and the bottle shatters.
She might break.
And I’ll be right there to mend her.
Her eyes met mine before they grew hazy, rolled back and she fell limp in my arms. I picked her up. Her heartbeat was consistent and strong. This was a way for a body to cope. To rest. She has been through too much.
It’s my turn to take charge and bring her home.