Page 89 of Fratelli: Eternal Bloodlines

“My name isn’t important, but most call me the Professor.”

“Professor?” Charmaine echoed his response, her suspicion clear in her tone. She attempted to tap into his mind but met a gentle resistance. He blocked her supernatural intrusion with practiced skill and adeptness.

“Move away from her,” Charmaine demanded. Her eyes glowed faintly, a sign of the power that stirred within her. “You’re too close.”

The Professor raised his hands, a gesture of peace. “I am not here to hurt her. My life, for hers, gladly. We are family.”

“Dolly only has Russ and me. There is no other family,” Charmaine replied, her tone ice cold.

“You must trust me. No? Fine. My real name is Eric Brown, the only male descendant of Julia Brown living. We are blood. Not even the vampire Lucio, who I have worked for, for years knows this identity. And I’m here to help her and Darlene transition so she and Dolly can prevent the apocalypse.”

Charmaine’s eyes narrowed further. She tried once more to breach his mental defenses, but again, she was blocked. “Men never reach the role of power in the realm that I feel on you, unless they are servants of a deity. If not vampire, what are you? Really?”

“It will all make sense soon, Guardian. Once we arrive.” The professor nodded toward the desert. In the distance, the faint glow of the camp flickered through the darkness. Atthat moment, Dolly groaned, drawing Charmaine’s immediate attention back to her.

“Dolly? Darlene?” Charmaine called softly.

Dolly’s head turned slowly. Her face contorted with anguish, and she reached for Charmaine. “He’s dead.”

“I’m so sorry, sweetie,” Charmaine whispered, and held her tightly.

“Why would his brothers do it? Why! Why would they do it!” Dolly wailed; her voice broke between deep sobs.

“She must keep calm. She could blow us all up if she?—”

Dolly’s head snapped around, her eyes wild. She seemed to just realize her surroundings: the truck, the caravan, and the man seated with them. Without hesitation, she lunged at the professor. Despite the truck’s movement, she was incredibly fast. Her hand closed around his throat, and her nails cut into his flesh.

“Wait!” Charmaine cried. “Wait! Dolly!”

“I’m not fucking Dolly, bitch!” Darlene snarled. “And I remember you, professor!”

It was evident that their supernatural powers were spent from the events earlier, but the sisters still possessed immortal strength. Charmaine’s frown deepened, but she would not stop her guardian. If the professor was sentenced to death by either twin, she had to obey and let it happen. The professor gagged, his face shook and darkened as his tongue and eyes bulged. Charmaine knew the professor would be dead in minutes, but he still seem to have some fight left in him. With a desperate move, Eric Brown pressed a medallion against Darlene’s chest. A pulse of energy erupted, repelling her, but not with much force, just enough discomfort. Charmaine felt it, too. A barrier of hot, electric energy separated them.

“What is he using?” Darlene demanded, her voice sharp.

“You know him?” Charmaine asked, bewildered.

Darlene’s gaze flickered between Charmaine and the desert. She wiped her tears and tried to piece together the fragmented memories. “Where… what happened?”

“Something happened. You felt Lucio was in trouble. You blew out the car windows, we crashed, and then you and Dolly... exploded. This man came with this cult that called themselves the First People. They said they could help. They said Lucio wasn’t dead.”

“And you believed them?” Darlene asked.

Charmaine spoke to Darlene telepathically.I can reach Sonya now. She is on her way with the consiglieri, Tristan. That’s why I joined you in the truck, instead of back there in the van with Nzinga. Tristan helped her escape from the other consiglieri and the brothers. She doesn’t believe Lucio is dead. Tristan said he wasn’t. We can let them take us wherever. They will meet us, and then we will get the answers we need.

Darlene nodded in a slow fashion. She understood. The professor still held his medallion, his breath ragged, his throat scared and bleeding. Darlene moved to the back of the truck, curling into herself, her knees drawn to her chest as she wept quietly. Her grief echoed up from the truck and into the night, a haunting melody of loss and abandonment.

Both Charmaine and the man who called himself the professor watched her, a bit confused, equally concerned to see Darlene the pillar of strength reduced to an infantile state. Neither had understood nor even expected the depth of love shared between the vampire Lucio and the twins.

He’s not dead.The voice in Charmaine’s mind wasn’t Sonya’s this time. It was Tristan’s.

I don’t want to talk to you. Just bring my sister,Charmaine replied.

Anything for you, Liora,Tristan’s voice whispered back. That switch in the cadence of his voice stirred something deep within her.

I am Charmaine! Charmaine!She insisted. She pushed hard on his reach and forced him from her thoughts.

“Leave my sister alone.I can feel her distress,” Sonya warned.

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