Page 20 of Blood Bound

“If not now, then when, Georgia?” Dad looks at her. “We’ve put this off for long enough.”

Oh boy. Here we go.

“It’s okay, Mom.” I smile tersely at my mother. “Dad’s right.” I take a deep breath, bracing myself. Dad clears his throat, his fork clattering against the plate as he sets it down.

“Rowan,” he begins, his voice stern but controlled, “I need you to understand the gravity of the situation. Word has spread through the witch community about your…involvement with Darick Drake. Since he’s clearly not dead, some are now convinced this is some sort of…lovers’ quarrel.”

I make a choking sound. “A lovers’ quarrel? Dad, I swear, I saw him die!”

“We’ve been over that a dozen times. It appears you were mistaken. That doesn’t stop people from talking.”

I wince, feeling the weight of his words. The silence that follows is broken only by the soft clink of Gran’s fork against her plate as she continues eating, seemingly unfazed.

“How bad is it?” I ask, my voice low.

Dad sighs, running a hand through his silver-gray hair. “Bad enough. There are rumors, speculations. Some are questioning your loyalty to our kind.”

Mom reaches out, placing her hand gently on mine. “Sweetheart,” she says, “we’re worried about you. Getting involved with a vampire, especially one as powerful as Lord Drake…it’s dangerous.”

I can see the struggle in her eyes, trying to balance her maternal instinct to protect me with her disappointment in my choices.

“We raised you better than this,” she continues, her voice softening. “We taught you about the history between our kinds, the risks involved. I just…I don’t understand how you could let this happen.”

The hurt in her voice makes me flinch. I want to explain, to make them understand that it wasn’t something I chose, that the connection with Darick was unexpected and beyond my control. But the words stick in my throat.

I take a deep breath to steady my nerves. “It’s not that simple,” I begin. “The connection with Darick…it wasn’t something I chose. It just happened.”

Dad’s eyebrows pull together, his frown deepening. “What do you mean, ‘it just happened’? These things don’t just happen, Rowan.”

“But it did!” I insist, my voice rising. “One day, I started hearing his voice in my head. I didn’t ask for it; I thought it was nuts…that I was nuts. Then we met, and…it was like a pull I couldn’t resist.”

Kara makes a little humming sound. “A psychic connection? That’s…actually kind of cool.”

“Kara!” Dad snaps, shooting her a warning glance before turning back to me. “Do you have any idea how dangerous this is? Vampires are not to be trusted, especially not one like Darick Drake.”

I feel a flare of defiance. “You don’t even know him!”

Really, Rowan? You’re defending him now?

“I don’t need to know him!” Dad’s voice booms, making me flinch. He slams his hand on the table, causing the dishes to rattle. “Vampires have been our enemies for centuries. They’ve hunted us, used us, betrayed us time and time again. And now you’re telling me you have some sort of mystical bond with one of their leaders?”

“Lake,” Mom interjects, her gentle voice edged with steel. “Please, calm down.”

But Dad is on a roll now, his face flushed with anger. “Do you have any idea what they’re capable of? The atrocities they’ve committed against our kind? And now, with Mia missing… How can you even consider being with one of them?”

“I wasn’t with him, Dad!” I say sharply, guilt prodding me because, if I’m honest, I was.

“Really?” Dad scoffs. “That’s not what it looked like from where we were standing.”

Heat hits my cheeks, and I bite back a retort. “It wasn’t the way things were supposed to go,” I mutter. “I thought it would help.”

“The only thing vampires help with is draining witches dry. Don’t fool yourself, Rowan! This isn’t some fairy tale romance. This is real, and it’s dangerous.”

“Go easy on her, Lake.” Gran sets her fork down and dabs her lips with a crisp linen napkin. “She’s already punished herself enough.”

“I’m not trying to punish her, Mother. I’m trying to make her see the foolishness of her actions. We already lost one daughter!” His expression has grown anguished, and I swallow a lump in my throat as I realize how much I’ve put them through.

“Nobody says we’re going to lose Rowan, Dad,” Kara says. I glance at her gratefully as she interrupts Dad’s tirade. “Tell us about these powers,” she asks, turning to me. “You said they’ve gotten stronger since this connection with Darick started, right?”

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