14. Humans

**Desiree’s POV.**

I was mad, in fact, I was beyond mad- I was psychologically unstable and I had no one else to blame it on other than my father and even my own traitor of a brother. I mean, I should not have expected less from Alec but DJ, after all I had done for him could not even stick his neck out for me.

I was also mad at Harrison. He should have told me what he was in the first place so we would have been more careful, now, I blame myself for everything that was happening to him. How come my father let me stay in my chambers and made Harrison sleep in the dungeon when all this was clearly my fault. I should’ve never marked him or chosen him, it was one of the most selfish things I had ever done in my whole life and this time, I had managed to screw everything up badly.

Maybe I would feel less horrible if my father had let me stay in the dungeon too, a selfish and repulsive person like me did not deserve a bed, I deserved the cold hard floor.

When we got back, my father had all my windows replaced with glass even he could not dream of penetrating. He had also gotten my windows completely sealed with only a few holes so ventilation could enter, the most extra one yet was the fact that he had cut down the tree beside my window.

My door had been shut from the other side and all my keys were taken away from me. I take it back, cutting down the tree was not the worst thing he had done, no. It was calling my fucking school and telling them that I was dropping out- how fucking far could he go to be that petty?

The last time I had seen my mother, she gave the most disappointed look she could muster up. I mean, she had given me all sorts of looks but that one just hit differently- it somehow made me want to regret my decision but truth to be told, I did not regret it and I could do it a million times over.

My father would not kill or severely harm Harrison unless he plans to hurt and kill me so I am quite satisfied by that. I mean, it had been two days and I had not sensed any kind of danger on my mate so it was probably a good sign. The only thing my father could really do was keep us away from each other and even though I hated being away from him a lot, I knew it was my only thread of hope at the moment.

**Narrator’s POV.**

Daphne sat on her throne with a bottle of wolfsbane in her hand, she knew she was not supposed to be doing this but she needed to find a way to ease the stress off her shoulders- stress caused by her daughter and absentee mate.

Her eyes were red and blotchy, tired with fatigue and tears after arguing with her mate the night before over their daughter’s well-being. Of course, she did not agree with what Desiree had done but she had to admit that the alpha king had gone too far with everything. She loved him to bits but she also loved her pups more than anything in the world, her main objective as a mother was to protect her pups no matter what.

She huffed out a sigh and took a swing of the wolfsbane, allowing the hot liquid burn down her throat, after gulping the whole thing down, she rubbed her temples and muttered to herself, “What the hell are you doing Daphne?”, even though she was fully prepared to get drunk, she knew it was not proper, she had to lay a good example for DJ and Desiree and one bottle of wolfsbane could definitely not do the trick, “Anastacia!”, she called out for her personal maid.

The young woman with platinum blonde hair rushed into the throne room hurriedly and bowed down her head, “Yes, your majesty?”,

Daphne handed her the bottle, “Please, dispose of this carefully and place the other ones I bought in the cellar”, the woman nodded and left the room quickly, leaving Daphne to wonder how her life had turned upside down so quickly. And how was it even possible that humans still existed? And, why was she feeling so eager to meet one? She had not met the boy her daughter had claimed to love just yet but she wondered whether he was just like them- skin and flesh with vital organs inside his body.

Another reason why Daphne had put her drink away was because she knew it was time for she and her teenage daughter to have a heart to heart discussion about all that was happening and why she had never talked to her about it before.

Walking through the castle hallway was always a lonely activity for Daphne, it made her realize that all she had was in this castle and no where else. Both her parents had passed away a few years back and she could never really even consider them as hers in the first place. She had become so guarded after what had happened with Fiona almost twenty years ago and had decided that Sarah was the only friend she actually needed- Lunas could not be trusted.

Daphne walked up the stairs and rolled her eyes when she saw five guards standing in front of Desiree’s bedroom. Once they noticed their queen’s arrival, they bowed their head respectfully, “Your majesty”,

“Open the door”, she demanded, “I want to speak with the princess”, she glared at them as if daring them to say no to her request. Having witnessed how the luna queen could be when she gets defied, the men stand down and the one with the key opens the door for her and pushes it open, “Lock the door behind me, I would knock when I want you to open it”, she said before walking in.

Desiree was at her dresser, brushing her hair in front of her vanity mirror, “What do you want mother?”, she asked with a sigh, Daphne mirrored her action and went to sit on her bed, tacking off her shoes so she could put them up,

“We need to talk, come here”, she tapped the spot in front of her, hoping her daughter would want to have that conversation. Desiree placed her brush on the table and stood up, sitting where her mother had asked her to.

“If this is about Harrison, I really do not want to talk about it”, she bit her lip and wrapped her arms around her body,

“You are holding in your tears”, Daphne pointed out to her daughter who gave her a questioning look, “You might think we have nothing in common Desiree but we do. I also bite my lips when I am trying not to cry but let me tell you something, it is okay to not be strong sometimes, it is okay to just let the stream flow. Trust me, it is much better”,

“How is people seeing your weakness much better?”,

“Crying is not a weakness Dez, it proves you have a heart”, she said, placing a hand on the left side of her chest, “I used to be like you once; holding back my tears every time until one day, I just could not take it. Your dad broke the record and actually made me cry, the only reason he could do that was because I loved him”, she explained further.

After hearing this, Desiree could not hold back her tears, “I love him, mum”, Daphne pulled her daughter into a motherly hug and rubbed her head soothingly,

“I know you do, honey. Only the people we love can make us Edwards girls cry”, she joked, trying to lighten up the mood, she succeeded because Desiree let out a small chuckle. Daphne pulled out of the hug and placed her hands on her daughter’s shoulder, looking her in the eye, “Does he make you happy?”,

“Yes, he does. I never thought I would be interested in a man until I met him”, she put on a sad smile, “He is absolutely incredible and very smart”.

Daphne nodded, “I would see what I can do”, she promised before crawling to lay fully on the bed, “Lay with me?”, Desiree nodded and lay down beside her mother, placing her head on her mother’s firm stomach. Daphne’s hand went to her daughter’s soft brown locks and massaged through it. There is a moment of comfortable silence before Daphne spoke up again, “Do you know why I named you Desiree?”,

Desiree shook her head, “No”,

“Well, when you were born, you were the most beautiful creature I had ever seen. Do not tell your brother this, but you were way cuter than he was”, she joked, “Even the doctor and nurses saw the undeniable beauty that was in you, you were desired by all and so, I named you Desiree which is the French word for desired”, she concluded, “And, you are still the most desirable girl this world has to offer. You are lucky you took matters into your own hands, otherwise, choosing you would have been a blood bath for most males”.

Silence filled the room once again for a longer period until the younger woman raised her head, “Mum?”,

“Yes?”, she sat up and replied,

“Do you know what dad plans on doing to Harrison?”,

The older woman let out a sigh and placed her head back on the pillow, “Honestly sweetheart, I do not know what your father plans on doing with him but I know that he can not harm him or kill him for your sake”, she sat up again and crossed her legs, “I did not want to tell you kids this but your father and I have been going through a tough time lately, we are falling apart since we do not really talk or you know anymore. But I still love him and I know he loves me too and we will get past this, it’s just, things haven’t been really easy and…”,

“And I just made it worse, didn’t I?”, Desiree stood up from the bed, “I am just a selfish brat”, she muttered to herself.

“No Desiree, you are just a teenager”, she also stood up from the bed, “A very strong-willed teenager. Harrison has some work cut out for him if he dreams about matching your pace”, she added in a tease,

“But I still can’t believe he is human”,

“I still can’t believe you never told me. That was why I was disappointed in you, I told you I had your back no matter what and that you could always count on me but, I understand why you didn’t say anything”, she pulled her daughter in for a hug, “And he probably did not tell you because he did not want to lose you”.