Queens and Monsters: A Vampire Shifter Romance (The Blood Falls Book 1)

I dropped my bag on my bed. “Home sweet home.” Except my cute little cottage didn’t feel like home anymore.

“You ready for finals?” Gigi made herself comfortable on my pillow.

“Well enough. I already turned in my final project for one class, so it’s surviving two essay tests, an easy multiple-choice test, and a not-so-easy multiple-choice test. Oh, and my last day of interning and bookshop duty.”

I was already missing my nights at the bookshop. It was probably the one and only thing I truly cared about losing.

“I suppose I better let you get settled and ready.” She pulled herself back to standing and wavered. Her hand shot out to steady herself on my headboard.

“Whoa. What just happened?” I put up my hands in case I needed to catch her.

She forced a smile onto her lips. “It happens sometimes when I’m pinging the Plane. Just making sure all is well and good here and bam it’s suddenly like I’m in freefall.” She rubbed her temples. “Like…I’m walking along thinking I know what the Plane is and then suddenly the rug gets pulled out and I realize I’m this little speck of dust in the vastness of the universe.”

That sounded terrifying. “Does this happen often? Will it happen to me?”

“No, no.” She shook her head and pulled herself back upright. “You’ll be fine. It’s only me for some reason. Aunt Bethany even brought in specialists decades ago to make sure it wasn’t something else. But all they can see is that sometimes my connection to the Plane fritzes a little. It doesn’t hurt me.”

“Sit. Let it pass before you get behind the wheel of a car.”

She eased back down onto my bed. “Can I have some water?” Her voice was smaller than usual and it set my nurturing instinct into action.

“Flat or sparkling?”

“Sparkling, please.”

I grabbed a can from the fridge and a sleeve of crackers while I was at it. She watched as I unpacked my bag and stacked my notes on the desk beside my laptop. The color began to return to her face.

“How did you and Dray leave things?” she asked.

Definitely feeling better. “He’ll come Friday and then Saturday escort me to the House of Axl.”

She waggled her eyebrows. “I know that. I meant how did you leave things?”

It was clear I was going to have to confront this head-on if I wanted her to give us some space. “I know you think Dray and I are Fated, but it’s not going to happen right now. Maybe never. He is fundamentally opposed to pursuing our connection while there is so much hanging in the balance. And I agree. There is no need to rush into anything.”

She arched an eyebrow and folded her arms over her chest. “Said no samhain ever. We’re a deeply passionate species. When we find a mate we do not hesitate.”

“Well he is. And I am. I barely understand my connection to the Plane. I’ve never met my mother and I’m about to spend time with my grandfather for the first time. I walk between lines I can’t see. Adding an emotional roller coaster on top of all that? It’s too much.”

“Fine. I just…I haven’t seen a connection like this in ages and it’s exciting. I can feel the electricity flowing between you two, the invisible threads that bind you. It’s intoxicating.”

“Are you sure it’s Fated Mates and not some other destiny that binds us?” Now that I knew we were meant to meet for other reasons I had begun to doubt Gigi’s belief.

“Oh, it’s Fate for sure. And of course there are other destinies that bind you. We’re all threaded together in many ways we don’t yet know about. But the type of connection you and Dray have is unique to being Fated.”

“Who else was Fated?”

Her eyes unfocused. “Our parents. Even as a child I was blown away by their love. It was as if a warm bubble surrounded them at all times. I loved being near them.”

“How did they die?” I kicked myself the moment I said it. It was such an ill-advised question to ask, especially since she was reliving a good memory.

But she didn’t flinch or move away from the memory at all. “I don’t know exactly what happened. I was so young but my memories of that day never fade. Something happened. We were in the lower meadow playing and picking flowers and then there was a big flurry of activity at the house. They kissed us goodbye…and never came back.” She blinked, bringing her gaze back into focus. Back to now. “All anyone would ever tell me was that there was a great accident and they gave their lives to save others. But I know it was bad, whatever it was, because we all felt it when they died.” Her gaze snapped to mine. “Like when you awoke. It sent a shockwave throughout the entire Plane and I swear it fundamentally changed some things. Dray. Me.” Her brow furrowed. “And…I think…you.”

Me? That shook me a little. “What do you mean?”

Her eyes unfocused again and I wondered if she was retreating into her memories or to the Plane where she could pull on strings and see what it brought up. “In that moment, something inside me changed. I felt it. Dray too. But not Bo or Leena or anyone else. I always wondered why my other form is a butterfly. Why a butterfly? And Dray. Why…” She cleared her throat. “Never mind that.”

“And me?”

She cocked her head to the side. “I think…it feels like the timeline shifted. Because of what changed that day, the timeline had to shift. It had to make you…you. Now. At this moment in time. The timeline still isn’t right, but it is aligned finally.” She blinked a few times and shrugged. “Sorry. I know that sounds like a lot of pieces of information but the Universe is hard to interpret.”

“No, it’s fine.” In a weird way that explained some of my feelings. Sometimes I was baffled that I could be so strongly connected to people fifty years older than me, but feel like we were supposed to be in the same place at the same time. Maybe I needed to be human for the first part of my life to meet this moment, be the right age physically, for whatever was to come.

I was just about to leave for class when there was a knock at my door. “Olivia! What are you doing here?” I glanced at Hecta in all her armor standing in plain sight just a few feet away, then back to my mentor, wondering why she wasn’t freaking out.

“It’s finals week. I came to make sure you were ready and to give you a ride. How are you?”

I glanced at Hecta again and then let Olivia inside, fully expecting her to freak out and ask me what was going on.

That didn’t happen. She babbled on as if nothing was amiss. “Did you get enough sleep? Food? Do I need to restock your fridge?”

“I’m sleeping well and my fridge is good, but thank you.”

She pulled a breakfast sandwich out of her bag and handed it to me. And even though I had already eaten, I was still hungry, so I devoured that too. “How was your weekend?”

“Relaxing. I saw lots of nature.” All of this was technically true.

“Good. It’s probably just as useful to relax before big tests as it is to review information.”

“I feel ready.”

She smiled. “I’m going to miss seeing you at work but I’m excited for you to take some time.”

My human life seemed so inconsequential now. Would I truly finish my senior year? Yeah, probably. No matter what came I wanted my degree. But after? It felt more up in the air than ever.

“We should probably head out.” Hopefully Hecta made herself scarce.

But no. She was right where she always was with Olivia standing not three feet away from her while I locked up.

“If you need a ride home from the bookshop tonight, give me a call.”

“Thanks. I should be fine, but if something changes, I’ll call.” I gave one last glance at my guard before climbing into Olivia’s car.

Between classes I tracked down Gigi to ask her about the Hecta thing. “She probably made herself invisible to humans,” she explained with a shrug.

“That’s a thing?”

She chuckled as she changed out samples in her microscope. “It is, especially for those good with magic.”

“So I could possibly do it. Good to know.”

“I know we weren’t particularly useful in helping you learn to use your gifts, but your family should be able to teach you the things we couldn’t.”

I adjusted my backpack and checked the time. I needed to get going. “I don’t know how you would have had the time. See you tonight?”

“I’ll bring the cake.”

We celebrated my last night at the bookshop by gorging on pizza and cake while assembling a display of our all-time favorite books. “Mysteries, Murder, and Mayhem get special treatment,” I declared, positioning the first book front and center.

“When you get back we should do our own little book club. Go book by book and dissect them for fun.”

I held up a forkful of chocolate cake. “I am so down for that. We can pick a food, a dessert, and a drink to pair with each one, too.”

“Are you sure we aren’t twins separated at birth? I swear sometimes I feel closer to you than my own sisters.” She positioned a steamy paranormal in an open slot to the left.

“I think someone would have noticed that.”

“I suppose that makes us soulmates then.” She turned to me with a warm smile. “I’m going to miss you.”

I swallowed hard. “I’m going to miss you too. Expect a lot of phone calls.”

“At least once a day,” she demanded. “I hope they treat you well.” A little worry crept into her voice.

“Can you keep an eye on Olivia for me? She won’t tell me if something happens.”

“Of course.”

This wasn’t our last night together. I wouldn’t leave until Saturday. But somehow this felt like the night for goodbye. Just the two of us in our favorite place with our favorite food. “I’ll be okay.”

Gigi nodded. “I believe that. It’s just…I can’t see what happens for you next. It’s black to me. I always feel uncomfortable when something is hidden.”

“Maybe there are too many variables in play.” It certainly felt that way. Like anything could happen next.

She purposefully kept her attention on the book display. “I hope that’s all it is. But that’s why you have to check in every day. I need to know you’re okay.” Then she huffed and glanced at me only with her eyes.

“And I will. I’ll call every day. I’ll text you so much it annoys you.” I moved to her and placed my hand on hers.

She covered mine with her other hand. We stood like that for several long beats, then she threw her arms around me, squeezing me tight. “I love you, Rhysa. No matter what happens with your family or Dray, you and I are best friends for life, whether you like it or not.”

And even though the moment felt heavy, I laughed because that was the most Georgiahana Wren thing to demand. “I love you too, Gigi.”