Chapter 138 - Something Wrong With Your Heart

A yawn escaped from Julie's lips as she walked to her dorm with Roman next to her. She was glad to be back, ready to drop in her bed as she couldn't keep her eyes open any longer. Roman unlocked the door, and she went to sit down on the edge of the bed. 

Roman hadn't closed the door, and she asked him, "Do you have to go somewhere?" 

"I am going to look for Evans about what he knows. Summon the Corvin if you need to, so that it can watch over you," said Roman.

"You're not going to rest?" asked Julie, and a tender look appeared in his eyes. 

Roman walked to where she was, and he sat down on the floor and in front of her on his heels. "I have some things to look after and check. Once I am done with it, I will come back to you, like always." 

Julie nodded her head, her eyes searching for something in his eyes, and when she didn't find the blood lust as potent as how it was earlier, she said, "Don't kill anyone..."

"I won't kill any undeserving ones," said Roman and Julie pursed her lips. 

"Don't get caught," Julie knew and understood that in this world in which they were part of, death was inevitable, and one had to do it to protect themselves before someone else would attack them. "Are you doing okay?" 

"Great," responded Roman, and he picked up Julie's hands in his. "How about yourself? You should drink at least one more glass of water before heading to bed. We don't know what side effects you might have tomorrow."

Julie felt Roman graze his thumb across the back of her hand, and that little action was enough to skip her heartbeat. 

She was glad to see that Roman was trying to get back to the way he was this morning and not giving in to his ripper tendency. "Everything will be alright, right?" asked Julie, somewhere worried about where Roman was planning to go. 

"Why won't it be?" asked Roman, gently squeezing her hands before bringing one of them to his lips, and he kissed her fingertips. She felt goosebumps rising on her skin, and they were the good ones, and her cheeks warmed over his actions of treating her like this. "You are here and I am here with you. Isn't that all that matters?"

Julie slid away from her bed, and she came to sit in front of him while wounding her hands around him to hug him, and he embraced her. "I cannot help but be worried. Sometimes it feels like everything around us is changing too soon and I have no control over it, as if everything is spiralling," she whispered, and Roman stroked the back of her head. "It feels like it has been years since we... wrote letters to each other."

Like a decade had passed. Since the Elders' arrival, everything had gone out of control. Her simple life had only her trying to avoid receiving detention which has been the only problem. She would gladly attend detention compared to dealing with the deaths and the Elder vampires, especially Donovan. 

"I am sorry that I pulled you into something like this," said Roman, a subtle frown appearing on his face as he continued to run his hand on her head. 

Julie shook her head. 

She couldn't imagine her life without Roman now, knowing how lost and alone she would be. It felt like they were destined to meet each other, and she pulled away from him, and their eyes met. 

"Some things were meant to be…"

"And as bitter as some things are, I wouldn't have it any other way," remarked Roman, looking at her brown eyes. "Let us go back to how things were before our lives were disrupted by the unwanted guests. Tomorrow morning when you wake up, there will be a letter waiting for you to open." He looked behind her at the window which he was used to opening and leaving her letters. "Just like before."

He brought his hand to her face and tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear, and Julie couldn't help but lean towards his touch. These little things were the ones that brought happiness to her, and she smiled. 

"I will make sure to read and write back to you," replied Julie, and Roman's lips faintly curled up. 

"I cannot wait for your response," he leaned towards her, pressing his lips on her forehead, and she instinctively closed her eyes. "Get to sleep, my love. There will be a lot of things tomorrow, but we'll try to solve it together."

They both stood up, and Julie saw Roman first make his way towards the door. Her heart softly ached because of the distance, but she assured herself it was only for a few hours so that she could rest tonight. Roman didn't step out of the room. Instead, he closed the door. She was a little surprised when she saw him turn back to look at her. 

"If we are doing things the same way as before," said Roman, looking at her while walking towards the window, "Let me get out of your dorm through the window."

This increased the smile that was previously present on Julie's lips. She asked him, "Won't you get caught by one of the teachers?"

"They will let me off on mention of Donovan's name," answered Roman, and he pushed the window glass up. He jumped out of the dorm and then turned back to look at Julie, who now came to the window, and leaned forward to see him. 

"Goodnight, Winters," he wished her. 

"Goodnight, Rome," Julie saw Roman disappear from her sight, and she then closed the window so that she wouldn't have any unwanted visitors in her room when she was asleep. 

Roman walked on the grounds of Veteris, making his way towards the building where the counsellor's office was. When he reached the front of the office, the door was locked, and he sensed no one on the other side of the room. 

The corridor was empty as it was late in the night. It was past two in the morning, and he made his way out of the building.

"Roman," the headmistress called him from the other side, and Roman turned to see the woman walk to where he was. She stared hard at him. "You had recklessly killed a human," a sigh escaped from her lips because she knew what might have forced him to do it. 

"My apologies for it. I will take care of that matter," Roman offered her a slight bow. 

Dante frowned before she said, "You better take responsibility for it. I am not going to sit here and clean up every mess, every single one of you make. Where is Donovan?" 

"In Grimsbane's club. Drinking," replied Roman, and Dante wasn't sure if she should be happy that the Elder vampire wasn't in Veteris or worry that he could bring back more trouble. 

A few seconds of silence filled between them, and Dante finally said, "I am sorry about Piper."

"Same here," Roman was still not good when it came to handling the grief that he felt after seeing Piper's life leave her body. 

"The ceremony will be held at seven in the morning, in the cemetery of the forest," Dante informed him, giving him the option to decide if he wanted to attend it, knowing he and Piper were close. 

Roman gave a small nod. 

"I thought you were going to keep Ms. Winters away from Veteris. Do you have faith in that old bat that he won't cause any trouble?"

"He's good at keeping his words, even though most of the time he tries to wiggle his way with other methods. I can handle it," said Roman and Dante nodded her head. She didn't want any more deaths in the place, and right now, she wanted to quit working as the headmistress. "There is something I would like to talk to you about, Ms. Dante." 

"What is it?" asked the vampiress, a look of wariness appearing in her eyes. Though Donovan was crazy and unpredictable, Roman was nothing less to the person who had turned him into a vampire. 

Roman looked around the place to make sure there was no one around to listen to them before he asked her, "Do you know if there were any books or information about the witches in the past?"

"I have already told you before, everything was burnt down. I heard Castiel speak about Willow Creek, but they haven't found anything of value. Your best bet is still Donovan," replied Ms. Dante. "If I knew it I would have told you about it by now. Why do you ask?" 

Roman's lips set themselves in a thin line, where he held a grim expression, "I want you to change the address of Julie's family in the university's documents or records. Her parents, her relatives. Whatever is in there."

"You worry Donovan will go after her family," murmured Ms. Dante, which was a high possibility. 

"No, I don't want anyone backtracking her from there to here. To find her," said Roman. "Julie has now entered this side of the world, and I don't want her to get caught in the crossfire even by mistake." 

The vampiress' eyes narrowed, and she said, "I don't think I am following you." 

"Do you think she deserves to die?" Roman's question was blunt, and Ms. Dante wasn't sure why this sudden question was thrown at her. 

"I don't think any innocent soul deserves to die. It is just that sometimes we are forced to do it. What are you getting at?" 

"I need your word that you will keep her alive. That you won't let any harm come to befall on her," Roman stared at the woman. "Take her under your wing. You are old enough to sire someone on your side. You don't have to turn her. I will offer her my protection, but even though the Elder vampires saved Veteris, you are the one who runs this place."

Ms. Dante smiled, and she then said, "Are you asking me to adopt Ms. Winters, Roman?" 

"I know you are a smart woman, and you must have already figured something out about her," stated Roman, and the smile on the woman's lips faltered. "Haven't you?" 

"Isn't that one of the reasons why she had run away from Veteris two days ago," replied Ms. Dante, and she said, "I don't think she needs any kind of protection, Roman. You are more capable than me or the others. After all, it is Donovan's blood that courses through your veins," as she said this, there was a distant look in her eyes when she completed her sentence. 

"Everything alright?" questioned Roman, and Ms. Dante looked slightly torn. 

"There has been something bothering me for quite some time now," said Dante, her eyes looking around the place before she turned back to look at him. "Do you remember how vampires are made?" 

"Isn't it the basic subject that we are studying here? For us vampires to know about it," questioned Roman, his eyes holding mild curiosity over her words. 

"But not everything is put into the syllabus, to make us understand and give the answers to our questions," said Ms. Dante. There was something that had been bothering her since she had tried to try to understand herself when it came to vampires thoroughly, but something just didn't fit in the right. "How deep was your wound when you were a human? Do you remember it?"

"Because remembering how much your chest has been opened up is the priority when you are dying," deadpanned Roman. 

"I am serious," said the headmistress, who was looking for answers. 

"It was quite deep and Donovan never bit me, he directly poured his blood which reached my heart faster before I could pass out," responded Roman. For a moment, both of them paused speaking when one of the staff, who was making rounds, caught sight of the two people there. 

"Everything alright, Ms. Dante?" asked the person, and she nodded her head. 

"Take a look on the West side of the restricted area of the forest. Check if you see anyone roaming around near the road," ordered Ms. Dante, and the person nodded before he left the place. 

Once the person was out of sight, Dante got back to the subject, and she asked Roman, "Do you remember what Luciano said when you had completely transformed into a vampire?" 

"That I was dead. Yeah, I remember that," said Roman, remembering the old days when he and Donovan had gone hunting for food, and he had surpassed everyone's expectations. He knew somewhere Luciano regretted his decision of having to pick a weaker vampire like Griffin when compared to him.

"Luciano said he didn't feel anyone's heartbeat when he came to check the Moltenore's mansion. With the number of people who had died, he had checked every single one of them and that included you Roman," said Ms. Dante with a serious look on her face. "You didn't have a heartbeat when he was there."

"The vampire whom I fought, his blood must have probably entered and mixed in my system before I fainted. Isn't that how the transformation usually takes place?" said Roman. The night his family and the town had been massacred, one of the vampires had run his hand into his stomach, which was the reason why he had passed out in the first place. 

"No, Roman. Vampires need actual blood to be running in the right place in the body. You know about it better than anyone else," Ms. Dante had this doubt for a long time, and she had been keeping a close watch on Roman, knowing he wasn't like other vampires. "You were dead and then alive, being pulled to the building which is now the library. Fighting the human hunters who had come to kill the vampires. This dead and alive and dead.... it isn't normal." 

"Are you telling me that I am some God's child to be saved, Dante?" questioned Roman. Truthfully, that night he had been filled with nothing but pain, seeing the people he cared about die in front of his eyes, and everything else had gone non-existent. 

"I have a theory."

"Go ahead."

"What Donovan had done is probably kickstart something dormant. That you possibly consumed some kind of vampire blood or already had it in you," explained Ms. Dante, knowing it would sound absurd the first time, but if thought carefully, it was possible. 

"I am the son of Lord Malcolm Moltenore and Lena Blackburn. Neither of them were vampires, pure one hundred percent humans. And I have already verified it," explained Roman, and he put his hands in his pockets. "The Moltenore's mansion didn't serve any vampire blood in there. If they did, my family would still be alive, Dante."

"I am very much aware of it, Roman. But how you had turned and your condition of beating heart where you stand out from the rest of us, makes one question about what exactly had happened to you that night of the town's massacre," the vampiress exhaled before saying, "I believe you are much stronger than anyone else in Veteris, maybe as strong as the Elders, which you are already aware of. I can see that in your eyes...If it makes you still feel that Julianne might need me, I will talk to her." 

Roman gave her a nod, "Thanks for that." 

"No problem. It's what we got to do when it comes to handling insolent vampires," commented Dante. 

"Who are these insolent vampires?" came the question not too far away from them, and when they turned, they saw it was Castiel. 

"I should probably leave. I have other things to do," stated Roman to Dante, giving a slight nod to Castiel before leaving the place. 

Castile had a pleasant look on his face, and he stared at Roman's back, "Seems like he's in a much better condition than from what I heard." 

"So far, yes," replied Ms. Dante and Castiel's gaze shifted from Roman to look at the vampiress, who had a slightly worried look on her face. Then she asked him, "Did you find anything about Willow Creek?"

"Nothing so far. It is as blank as it was years ago with no trace. Remy and Luciano went to take a look at the place, but I doubt they know where to even begin," replied Castiel before he asked, "What were you talking to Roman about?" 

"He worries for the girl. Donovan is sly, and overbearing," replied Dante, her own eyes holding annoyance. "He wants me to take her under my wing."

"But that's not possible, is it now? The rules of the vampires clearly states that an average vampire cannot take in another vampire or human to give protection. Unless you want to do it the human way, adoption was it?" questioned Castiel, the tone of his voice calm. 

"I will figure something out," sighed Dante. "I should go get some rest. I will see you tomorrow." 

Dante took four steps when Castiel called her, "Eloise." She turned back to look at him with a questioning look. "Would you like to have a drink with me?" As warm as his features appeared to be for a vampire, the look in his eyes was cold, and it was something the vampiress noticed the first time her eyes had fallen on him. "It has been many years now, and we both are vampires. Things have changed." 

The vampires smiled, "Nothing has changed, Castiel. It's still the same. Thank you for the invite, but I am too tired today. Goodnight," saying this, she walked away from there. 

Castiel stood there in the same place, watching the woman, who once stole his heart before disappearing from his eyes, only to find her married to someone else later on. It was true, thought the Elder vampire in his mind. Eloise Dante had not changed one bit after her heart had frozen.

Hearing the sound of the vehicle, he turned his head and noticed the limousine that came to a stop in front of the building. The driver hurriedly stepped out and opened the door, and Donovan came out wearing his expensive furry coat. 

"What are you doing standing there, Castiel?" questioned Donovan, whose eyes were quick to fall on Castiel. "Did Eloise perhaps ask you to stand here to guard the place as punishment? That's one way to earn a woman's affection." 

Castiel barely seemed fazed by Donovan's teasing words, and he said, "Looks like you had quite an evening."

"Mm, I wouldn't say that. I took Roman along with me to cheer him up, but he was too intent on bringing the little one with him. Seems like a hard thing to keep away from the girl where the toy can be broken anytime," hummed Donovan, and he smiled back at Castiel. "Children these days are too hard on their parents."

Castiel shook his head, "I can tell you take being Roman's maker very seriously. His ripper side is fluctuating." 

"It is now, but it will eventually settle on one side," commented Donovan, who didn't look bothered if Roman was going to turn into a ripper or stay as a vampire. "He was built differently. Did Evans find anything from the morm yet?" questioned Donovan, the smile lowering from his face. 

"Nothing so far. The morm is still unconscious and is useless at this time," replied Castiel. "Do you think we know the person who has hands in this?"

"There aren't many who know that we were here, and if there's anyone, they are the people who once used to be our ally and have now turned into enemies," stated Donovan. He straightened his coat, and as if finding a speck of dust, he tried to dust it away with his hand. "Morms mixing with humans and vampires has always been an issue."

Away from the centre of the Veteris campus, Roman made his way through the forest before coming to the dungeon, where Evans was with Dennis. Stepping inside, he noticed Evans, who stood in front of the cell. 

"Are you here for Dennis, Roman?" questioned Evans before he turned around and asked, "Or are you here to see me?" there was a smile on his face.