They Rise at Dusk (Book #1) ✔️

Chapter 10: Down the Memory Lane

Up until I made Lucia ask me about it, I wasn't aware how desperately I needed to say it out loud. An image plagued my mind – Elena in an open coffin; pale, motionless, and too young. There was something surgical about the funeral, something that had been so focused on keeping our family's image pristine, untouched by tragedy. The only person crying had been Dorian's mother.

And me – quietly, tears sliding down my cheeks like waterfalls, but not a sound leaving my lips. I still remembered the ache in my throat; angry, painful, vengeful.

My father had used the opportunity to gain sympathy points from his friends and rivals alike, and I remembered him shaking hands in the dark corners, making decisions and plans about his kingdom, while my sister's body rotted in the coffin.

Lucia shifted on the bed; the laptop forgotten in front of her.

"Edmond mentioned the sixth Zaleria sibling." She whispered. "Elena."

Tears burned in my eyes at the mention of her name. I slid on the floor, the bottle of whiskey the only comfort I had.

"What happened?" Lucia prompted. "How did Dorian... get her killed?"

My head bumped against the wall behind me, "They were... involved, I guess."

"Isn't he engaged to Libby now?" She asked. "Why does he have a thing for your sisters?"

A harsh chuckle fell off my lips, "I don't know what he's doing with Libby, but his relationship with Elena had been, well, arranged."

"Oh?" Lucia pushed herself forward on the bed, and I wondered if she was just here for the drama.

I rolled the words on my tongue, not even sure where to begin.

"The Darascus were an old vampire line, with strong Romanian roots, and even though they lost their wealth along the way, their blood was still precious, at least according to my father. He wanted some of it in his family tree. So, ever since we were born, we knew Dorian would marry Elena."

"We?" Lucia echoed.

I glanced at her, "Dorian, Elena and I were friends. Best friends. Or they were best friends and I was the younger sister they dragged along wherever they went."

That day, I hadn't only lost my sister, but also my best friend. All that has been left behind was this seething hatred towards Dorian – and myself – for what had happened before Elena's death.

"How old were you when she died?" Lucia asked, like she remembered this wasn't just about what happened, but also about the consequences it has left behind.

"Fifteen." A sigh. "Dorian and Elena were two years older than me."

"Shit." Lucia murmured. "I'm sorry."

"Elena was different, for a seventeen-year-old." I continued, needing to get the story out of me. "She didn't like partying, or drinking. She didn't even like blood all that much. She used to say she was a human stuck in a vampire body. But she loved Dorian, or was in love with him."

"For real?" Lucia asked, her voice quieter with each question. "What about... him?"

I will try to fall in love with her. My eyelids closed the moment those words resurfaced in my head. He had said it a few days before Elena's death.

"He loved her." My voice quivered. "Just not romantically. He also loved partying and drinking, so she did it to please him, make him fall in love with her-"

I choked on my words, and had to wash the lump down with more whiskey. But it wasn't sadness, but resentment that which gathered in my throat, so strong not even the whiskey passed through it.