Chapter 31

Chapter Thirty-One

Serenity

I stared mutely at the Aeternum Stone, feeling as though I stood at a terrible crossroads, both paths leading to an uncertain and perhaps perilous future. If I refused to use my power, Dracula would undoubtedly come for Angelo, possibly his entire family. Their lives hung in the balance. But if I did heal the stone, thereby restoring its power, then I would be helping the Santi family to continue their murderous reign, to keep taking human lives to sustain their own.

I swallowed hard, my throat tight with emotion. "How many people does your family kill?" My voice trembled but was insistent.

Angelo's expression grew somber, and his eyes flickered with a hint of shame. "Probably not as many as you'd suspect," he said softly. "The older we get, the less blood we need to survive. Sometimes we feed on willing hosts who offer themselves up freely. Others, we kill those who deserve it…people like Freddie."

I flinched slightly when I heard Freddie's name, my stomach churning with revulsion. It was true—he had been a monster, a sadistic creature who delighted in the suffering of others. But did that justify his death? Did that make it right for the Santi family to play judge, jury, and executioner?

If Dracula did come out of the woodwork to kill Angelo—god forbid—then what would happen to me? I already had a target on my back. All the other families wanted me for their own purposes, it seemed. At least here I was protected. I knew Angelo would never allow anyone to hurt me. That might not be true for the other families. The thought turned my blood cold.

Angelo, sensing my inner turmoil, placed the Aeternum Stone on his desk, his movements slow and deliberate. "I'm not going to force you, Serenity," he said, his voice low and earnest. "You gave yourself to me freely, and that was precious to me beyond measure. You're more special to me than any woman I've ever met in all my centuries of existence."

His words washed over me like a balm, soothing the ragged edges of my soul. I wanted to believe him, wanted to trust in the sincerity of his feelings for me. But doubt still gnawed my insides like a hungry rat, sending shooting pains through my gut and stealing the air from my lungs.

I closed my eyes, my mind racing with a thousand conflicting thoughts and emotions. I had seen the darkness that lurked within the Santi family, their casual disregard for human life. And yet I had also seen the fierce, deep-seated love, loyalty, and devotion that bound them together.

I hadn't experienced an unwavering connection like that since Mom had died. The DuPonts were extremely close, like a surrogate family to me, but I was still always an outsider. Here, I had been cherished and protected. I knew no one within these walls would hurt me.

Could I really condemn them all to death, knowing that my own inaction would be the cause? Could I live with the guilt of knowing I had let Angelo die, that I had stood by and watched as Dracula tore apart the man that had changed my life? My chest ached at the idea of losing him. And if Dracula killed Angelo, how would I even find Joy, never mind save her? I would be at a loss there.

At the same time, could I really condone their actions, could I let them keep killing, keep feeding on the innocent and the guilty alike? Wasn't there a middle ground, a way to save Angelo and his family without compromising my own morals and beliefs?

I didn't know the answer. I didn't know if there even was one. All I knew was that this decision was the most important one I would ever make; the consequences of my choice would change the course of countless lives.

I opened my eyes, my gaze locking with Angelo's. In his eyes, I saw a reflection of my own fear and uncertainty, but also a glimmer of hope.

"I don't know what to do," I whispered, my voice cracking with emotion. "I don't want to lose you, Angelo. But I don't know if I can be responsible for the deaths of innocent people either."

Angelo reached out, his fingers brushing against my cheek in a featherlight caress. "I know, Serenity." He drew in a deep, shuddering breath. "I am who I am. I'm the head of the Santi family. We're a Mafia family just like any other, except we're also vampires. The same holds true for the wolf and dark Fae Mafia families. We all do what we have to in order to survive."

I looked at him, a mixture of curiosity and apprehension swirling in my gut. "You said you're like the other Mafia families. What exactly does that mean? What are your lines of business, besides the casino?"

"I acquire magical artifacts and sell them on the black market. Some of them I keep for my own purposes."

I bowed my head. "Including me?"

He gave me a hard look. "Yes."

"Have you murdered people for hire?"

He shrugged, lifting his shoulders in a casual way that belied the gravity of the question. "Surely you know my reputation."

I thought about Freddie. How many times had he lied to me? Steven hadn't always told the truth, either, especially when it came to his illegal activities, first in the street gang and now with the Barone family.

The only man I felt had been honest with me had been Louis DuPont. He was a good man and had done the best he could to protect me. I knew Louis would tell me to walk away, to let the Santi family be destroyed.

I hesitated, my heart torn between my feelings for Angelo and my own moral code. Could I actually walk away, knowing he'd be murdered, maybe even tortured before he died? My heart hurt at the thought and a lump formed in the back of my throat.

And what would Dracula do to Enzo, Gianna, Elena, Dimitri, and even Lorenzo? I doubt that he would spare their lives. Would they end up like Jacques?

Icy fear slipped up my spine as I thought of Jacques's horrible death. "You…you have to behead a vampire to kill them, right? Isn't that what you said?"

"Yes and no. Born vampires, like Dimitri, will someday die of old age, but made vampires are immortal. The only way to kill us is through beheading."

I swallowed hard, my mouth suddenly dry. "So that's what Dracula would do to you?"

"Eventually." The implication made me feel sick. He meant Dracula would torture him.

Angelo left me and walked over to the window to gaze down upon Bourbon Street. He wasn't a hero, not like Captain America. And yet… he wasn't all bad either.

In the end, I knew there was no easy answer. My brain said to walk away, to leave Angelo to his fate and wash my hands of the whole sordid affair.

But my heart...my heart couldn't bear the thought that I would be responsible for his death, that I would have as good as stood by and watched as Dracula tore him apart, along with the others.

With closed eyes, my thoughts drifted. Jacques' brutal, senseless murder filled my mind. The countless other lives lost to the Santi family's thirst came next - their hunger not just for blood, but for power and control. The weight of these deaths pressed heavily upon me.

I also thought about the man standing before me, the man who had shown such depth of feeling for me. He'd demonstrated a devotion I had never known before. My deadbeat supernatural dad couldn't leave Mom and me fast enough. He taught me not to trust men, just as Freddie taught me to fear them. Meanwhile, my own romantic history teetered on the brink of you're-better-off-without-him. I had steered away from men, never wanting to end up like my mom.

But Angelo had changed all of that. He'd shown me something I never dreamed existed, except for in the movies or books.

In that moment, I knew my heart had made its choice. I couldn't walk away from Angelo, couldn't abandon him to a fate worse than death. I cared for him more than any other man in my life, even though I wasn't sure if it was love. I couldn't even bring myself to utter that word to myself, never mind to him.

I reached for the Aeternum Stone with a trembling hand, my fingers closing around its hard, angular surface like a vice. The moment I made contact, a searing pain burst inside my heart, as if a white-hot dagger had been plunged deep into my chest. I gasped, my breath catching in my throat as agony spread through my body like wildfire.

Every muscle in my body tensed up, and I felt as though my entire body was being pulled inside out. My skin prickled with a thousand needles, and a fiery heat coursed through my veins, leaving me breathless and dizzy. I squeezed my eyes shut, but even behind the closed lids, I could see a blinding light emanating from the very core of my being. How was this possible?

I tried to cry out, but no sound escaped my lips. The pain was all-consuming, to the point that I could feel my grip on reality slipping away. The room around me melted into a distant blur, until all that existed was the stone gripped tightly in my hand and the excruciating sensations that wracked my body.

Just as the pain reached such a crescendo that I thought I couldn't bear it any longer, my eyes snapped open and the light that had been building inside me burst forth, bathing the room in an eerie, otherworldly glow. I felt a sudden release, as if something had been unlocked deep within me, and the stone grew warm in my palm, pulsing with strange, ancient power.

My head jerked back, a guttural scream tearing from my throat as the agony began to intensify again, making my muscles spasm uncontrollably.

"Serenity!" Angelo's voice was distant and barely audible over the roaring in my ears.

The Aeternum Stone seemed to come alive, and I could feel the stone's insatiable hunger as it greedily drained every ounce of power from my being, determined to survive at any cost. It latched onto my energy like a parasite, siphoning off my life force with relentless determination. My legs buckled beneath me, and my teeth chattered so violently I feared they might shatter. The pain was all-consuming, a raging inferno that threatened to incinerate me from the inside out.

I cried out in agony, my voice raw and desperate. The darkness closed in on me as the stone's hunger for me proved too much to bear. My vision faded, the darkness slowly replaced with a dizziness that made my stomach topsy-turvy. With a final, shuddering gasp, I crashed to the floor, my body limp as I felt the energy continue to drain from me.