The Dark Gifts Birthright (40 page)

Half hearing what Gregorio said to the
others, Liz piped in, “We’ll need extra clothing on hand too. Most
of them will probably not have many, if any, belongings.”

Gregorio pointed and Callista. She nodded and
left the chambers.

Lost in brooding thought, Liz paid no
attention to what was happening around her. “And food. What are we
going to do about food? We have plenty now, but if there really are
thousands of them…good god, how do we feed that many? Livestock
maybe? I guess we could have our own animal farm. Why not? Humans
do it all the time, right?”

Gregorio nodded to Rene. He returned the nod
and left the chamber.

As she threw out each new thought, Gregorio
would point or nod to one of the remaining council members. In
turn, the selected person would leave to begin work on that
particular project.

Her last verbal thought was about finding
enough teachers to educate the new comers to Council law and
prepare them for life as a constructive member of the vampire
nation. Gregorio rose and left to make the necessary preparations
for that situation.

The room was silent. With the exception of
Michael, the entire Council had been put to work. He gazed upon her
with pride and awe.

Realizing that the room had gone quiet, she
came out of her pensive state and looked around. “Where has
everyone gone?” she asked.

“They are making the preparations you
require.” he answered quietly.

Her face clouded by confusion, she replied,
“I require? I required nothing. I was just thinking out loud.”

Michael leaned in and tenderly kissed her
lips. He stood and pulled her to her feet saying, “I love you.”

“I love you too,” she laughed as she replied.
Raising to the tip of her toes, she pressed her lips against his
and slid her arms around his waist. Her head resting against his
muscled chest, she sighed.

“You never cease to amaze me. Brogan was
right about you. Crown or no, you are our leader.”

“But—“

Michael gently pushed her away, just enough
to look into her eyes. “Like it or not, you are already our Queen.
You we will be our saving grace. Not from Monroe or the renegades,
but from the darkness within. With your leadership, we will be able
to live without guilt and shame. Somehow, for some reason, you
always know the right thing to do, and I for one, will follow you
anywhere. I believe they all will now. Baael was wrong. There is a
bright side of darkness.”

Liz gazed into his eyes, her own clouded with
doubt. “I can’t do these things. I don’t know what I’m doing.”

“You are doing what most of us have been
attempting to do for a very long time. You are being human.”

Liz sighed as she surveyed the empty room.
“There are so many, Michael. How will we ever find them all?”

“You are the new mother of the vampire
nation. You will know how to find them.” Michael smiled as he
reached up and tweaked her nose.

“My children, huh?” She said. She shook her
head, and her smile grew. “Not just mine. Ours. Our lost children
need to come home.”

“In time.”

“Not nearly enough of it, I’m afraid.”

Michael’s eyebrow arched as his lips slid
into a slow grin. “My darling, we have eternity. How much more time
do you require?”

Hand in hand they left the Council chambers.
Soft whispers followed them down the corridor.

And So It Began.

###

Author Bio

Willow Cross resides in Arkansas with her
husband, two children still young enough to live at home, an
enormous cat named Bitsy, and a wuss of a dog named Tank. Her home
has been known to host the occasional ghost and several of her
friends profess to be witches. Although she dearly loves Vampires
and Werewolves, they are never invited for dinner.

Other books by Willow Cross

The Dark Gifts: Birthright (First in the series)

The Dark Gifts: Inheritance (Second in the
series)

Oceans of Red volume one

Oceans of Red volume two

Haunted, 100% Totally True Ghost Stories

Coming Soon:

Oceans of Red volume three

The Dark Gifts: Legacy

You can connect with Willow at :
http://willowcrossbooks.weebly.com/index.html

Or join her on facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Willow-Cross/185071804869279

Twitter: @willowcross

Acknowledgements

Ken Sutton-Cover Artist

http://www.facebook.com/theworldinsidemyhead