My Vampire Brother Faked Dying—Mine Was Real Chapter 03
Something flickered in Alaric’s eyes. He looked away, and when he spoke, his voice sounded off.
“Of course not. You’re my only sister. I’d never lie to you.”
I swallowed hard and wheeled him out of the room before my eyes could give me away.
I finished preparing his meal and stepped out into the empty living room.
Alaric’s voice carried through the bedroom door, low and soft, the way it only did when he was talking to her.
“Be a good girl for me. I’m throwing you the biggest Blood Moon gala you’ve ever seen. Tomorrow night. For your birthday.”
On the other end, Evelina put on that worried little voice.
“But isn’t tomorrow Selene’s birthday too? Won’t she be upset if you’re not with her?”
“Don’t be silly. You’re the only sister I care about. Nothing matters more than making you happy.”
“Selene hasn’t celebrated a birthday in five years. She won’t even notice.”
Evelina squealed.
“I knew I was your favorite.”
I stood outside that door until my hands went numb.
By the time Alaric came out, I was gone.
A warmed blood pouch and a vial of crimson serum sat waiting on the table.
He knew I’d be running to my next shift by now.
But something about my hands — torn and bleeding — and the way my face had gone white, and my spine pressing sharply against my shirt while I’d stood over the stove…
Something cold slid through his chest.
He tried to picture me the way I used to look, and the image wouldn’t form.
The girl who used to race through Rosewood Estate in a red dress, laughing, calling his name — she was gone. Five years had buried her.
Something sharp and nameless caught in his chest. Unease settled in before he could name it — guilt, creeping in on quiet feet.
He grabbed his phone and dialed.
…
The next morning, I wheeled Alaric in for his follow-up.
His coven healer was practically buzzing with excitement. He’d clearly rehearsed every word.
“Miss Veyron, we’ve just received word — a private sanguine research facility in Oakhaven has developed a serum specifically for Blood Withering.”
“The clinical trials are already past the early stages, and they’re only taking two patients. I’ve already secured Mr. Veyron a spot.”
He delivered the whole thing like it was the performance of his life. I nodded.
“What are his chances?”
“Eighty percent.”
Alaric played his part beautifully.
“Selene, I can get better now. I can be with you forever.”
I forced a smile.
“If only one of us makes it, I’m glad it’s you. It was always going to be you.”
Alaric froze.
Something in my expression rattled him. When he spoke, the slur disappeared — his voice came out clean, unguarded.
“Don’t say that. We’re immortal. We’ve got forever, remember?”
“When I’m better, I’ll rebuild everything. The Veyron name, the estate, all of it. You’ll be the princess of this family again.”
But I didn’t want to be that princess anymore.
You can keep it all, Alaric. Evelina could have it all. Just the way he wanted.
The coven healer told me the exam would take a while and sent me out.
I used to believe him. Every time, I’d leave Alaric at the hospital and sprint to my next shift.
Now I knew it was all just an excuse to get me out of the room.
I stood at the end of the empty corridor and watched him. Alaric changed his clothes, walked to the elevator on perfectly steady legs, and stepped inside.
A black car was already waiting for him downstairs.
I turned away and walked into a different examination room.
“Miss Veyron, the Blood Rot has spread too far. If you’d come in for that transfusion two weeks ago, we might have had a chance.”
He sighed.
“Now… two days. Maybe less. You should say your goodbyes.”
I sat with that for a long moment. Then I nodded.
“When I’m gone, lay me in the sunlight. I want the sun on my face. Let it be the last thing I feel.”
“Send my ashes to the Veyron Estate. Give them to Alaric.”
I left every dollar I had on his desk and walked out of the hospital.
My phone buzzed.
[Come by the estate. You should see this.]
It was Evelina.
I took a car to the Veyron Estate.
Five years had passed.
The home I’d thought was long gone — mortgaged, auctioned off, stripped bare — was lit up like a palace, alive with music and movement.
Hundreds of vampires filled the grounds, glittering and loud. I stood on the other side of the iron gates, thin enough to break.
Two different worlds, separated by a gate.
Evelina stood at the center of it all in a white gown and a diamond tiara that caught every light around her. She held Alaric’s arm, beaming, a six-tier cake towering behind them.
An entire wall of gifts rose behind them.
She clasped her hands and closed her eyes.
“I wish to be Alaric’s only sister. I want to be the Veyron princess forever.”
Alaric reached into his jacket and pulled out a velvet box.
He opened it, and every drop of blood in my body went still.