Page 28 of Dark Night Golden Dawn
Aurelia’s fingers stopped. “What do you mean?”
“Somewhere along the way I stopped believing I was worthy of my own love.”
Aurelia took a sharp breath in and held it, as though she were afraid she’d say the wrong thing. But she continued to stroke Harlow’s honey-gold hair, letting her speak.
“I need time to sort all of this out. I know all the ways he made me feel were a ploy to find out Order secrets. You all were right about him. But the stuff he said to me about myself—it felt real. It still does. I have to find a way to get the inside of my head back under my control. Being alone gives me the space to do that.”
“Okay, bun. You know Mama and I will help you, don’t you? Whatever you need.”
“I know. Thank you. You and Mama are so good to us…” she hesitated, not wanting to ruin the tender moment, but as long as they were discussing the hard stuff, she might as well ask. “What do the McKaysreallywant from us? Why are you and Mama so worried?”
Aurelia’s brow furrowed and Harlow thought she might not answer. But then Aurelia let go of whatever was holding her back. “Things are bad with the Order of Night. The humans’ fascination with them is causing problems. We need strong alliances to get them back in line.”
“Are they making more vampires?”
Aurelia nodded, her face grave. “And it’s not just that, though that is bad enough. They are killing more indiscriminately, though we’ve managed to keep it quiet so far.”
Harlow thought of the vampire in the Grove and how open she’d been about draining a UNT co-ed. The thought of the Order of Night being out of control was chilling. Aurelia continued, “The Illuminated haven’t been doing much to stop them, and you know the Order of Masks… The shifters hate to take a side without all the evidence, so that’s left the council trying to form alliances with the Illuminated.
“But the Illuminated have been too busy creating more wealth to be interested in the Order of Night, perhaps to compensate for how clear it is that they’re no longer reproducing the way they once did. They’re consolidating power, which means we should be too.”
Finally, Harlow understood the scope of her family’s worries about her relationship with Mark, given his fascination with the lower Orders, and the push towards having all five girls in the season. She was sickened to know the Order of Night was being so reckless and that the Illuminated didn’t care, but she wasn’t surprised. The lower Orders existed in a delicate balance between the unrivaled power of the Illuminated and the massive numbers of humans. The vampires’ callous indiscretion could be the end of the lower Orders if they weren’t more careful.
“What are we going to do?” Harlow breathed, head reeling with the information.
Aurelia sat back in her chair, shaking her head. “Many things we won’t like, I suspect.”
The answer was vague, but Harlow didn’t get the sense that her mother was being evasive, only frustrated. She wouldn’t be this worried about the season and alliances with the Illuminated if this was all there was to the problem. The Order of Mysteries was always navigating power struggles like these.
“What does all this have to do with all of us participating in the season?”
Her mother’s head fell to the side, resting on her fist as she frowned. She was contemplating how much to tell Harlow, that much was clear. Harlow’s stomach turned. The worry in her eyes was telling. “Mother, what does this have to do with the McKays and Finn? What aren’t you telling us?”
Aurelia’s chin quivered. Harlow’s chest tightened to see her typically serene mother in such consternation. She swallowed hard and drew courage up from some unknown spot inside her. It was better to know than not. “What have they offered?”
“They’re offering to back off from buying up the Row, and they’ll support us with the Order of Night, get the other high families of the Illuminated Order to force them to fall in line.”
They wouldn’t offer so much if there wasn’t something they wanted in return. “In exchange for what?”
“An heir. They seem certain that you, in particular, could produce one with Finn. I’m not sure why, but they’re utterly convinced.”
Harlow felt dizzy, suddenly sick to her stomach. “Does he know? Finn, I mean. Is he a part of this?”
Aurelia shook her head, distressed. “I don’t know, my darling. I won’t ask you to do anything you don’t want to, but I don’t see how we’ll avoid a true disaster with the humans if they don’t help us. We’ll lose everything.Everything.”
“Oh,” Harlow sighed, sinking onto Aurelia’s footstool. Her proud mother wept in front of her, thin shoulders shaking with furious grief. There was no sign of the flickering aether now, just Aurelia’s surrender to her helplessness against the Illuminated’s machinations. Harlow’s chest constricted sharply with each sob that wracked her mother’s frame.
“Mommy,” she whispered as her arms went around Aurelia. “Mommy, don’t cry.”
“I can’t help it, my girl. It’s shameful to ask you to even consider this, especially after everything you just told me about Mark. I can’t ask you to do this. The McKays are hideous, vulgar. Cruel.”
“Shhhh,” Harlow soothed. “They are, but Finn isn’t like that. I’ll talk to him.”
“No,” Aurelia sobbed. “No, Harlow. Don’t do it. Oh, my darling, I’m so sorry.”
“Mommy,” Harlow pleaded. “Mommy, please don’t cry. I’ll fix things, I promise.”
She looked up to see Selene in the doorway, face white as a sheet, clutching her chest, tears streaming down her face at the sight of her strong, proud wife breaking down in her second-eldest’s arms.
