Chapter 38 - All Fall Down

Luci heard Xavier telling her to stop, but she couldn't. When she got to her dad in the back of the SUV, she had a hold of him and was going to rip his head off when Xavier stopped her.

Xavier grabbed her hands before she could cause any damage and pulled her into his arms. He felt her relax and start crying against his chest.

"Dad, how could you let Joel use that potion on Amelia? You killed my sister." Luci looked at her father like she was seeing him for the first time.

"You don't understand. He wanted your sister as a mate. Who was I to stop love?" Damien tried to explain, even though he knew he was lying.

"That's not true because he already had his chosen mate. He made it clear that he didn't want Amelia. So why did you do it?" Luci felt the rage building up in her again. If it weren't for Xavier holding on to her, she would have attacked her dad again.

"Okay, fine. Joel only wanted to use your sister to make his mate jealous. She was his fated mate, not his chosen. Once she came back to him, he didn't want Amelia anymore. I thought once the potion wore off, she would be okay. I killed Joel and his mate after Amelia killed herself. Despite what you think, I was upset over what happened to her." Damien couldn't meet his daughter's anger-filled eyes.

"Well, I hope you see him in hell. I'm going to ask the king to set you on fire as soon as we get to the palace." Luci slammed the door before her dad could say another word.

Xavier told everyone to take what they had and load it into the SUVs. They all headed to the airport, including Damien. Three guards held him in his seat to keep him from trying anything on the flight.

Once they landed in Maine and got to the palace, Xavier had the guards throw Damien into the dungeon until the king was ready to deal with him. He and Luci then headed to their room to shower. When they were done and had fresh clothes on, they went next door to talk to Alessandra.

"Luci, dear, what's wrong?" Alessandra could see the anguish in her daughter's face. Xavier was with her and had his arm around her shoulders, so she knew it wasn't something to do with him.

"We need to talk to you. We just got back from Vancouver, and we found some disturbing information. Can we come in?" Alessandra nodded and opened her door.

"When we went through Dad's office, we found a sales receipt. He had sold Joel the same potion that was used on Janie. Dad knew Joel was going to use it on Amelia, not because he wanted her as a mate. He used it to get his mate back. Dad ultimately caused Amelia's death."

Alessandra gasped at what Luci said. Of everything her mate had done, she never dreamed he had been involved in the death of their daughter. She felt a rage like never before and wanted to kill him with her own two hands.

"Where is Damien right now?" Luci saw her mom was about to lose it, and she understood; it was how she felt as well.

"He's in the dungeon waiting for the king to sentence him. I'm sure he will be condemned to death, but I want you to reject him before that happens. I know you've already marked each other, but I'm afraid of what will happen to you when he dies." Luci hugged her mother as the realization of her words hit her.

"I never thought of that. I had come to peace knowing that he would die, but I never thought about how it would affect me. Can the mate bond be broken after we have marked each other? I'm part of him, and he's part of me. What if his death kills me?" Alessandra didn't want Damien's evil deeds to kill her.

"That's why I want you to reject him immediately. Let's see how that affects you. I don't know what else to do, Mom, but this may be the only way to save yourself. We'll take you to the dungeons if you're ready to do it now." Luci didn't want her mom anywhere near her dad, but she needed her to reject him in hopes his death wouldn't have as big of an impact.

"Alright, let's get it over with." Alessandra walked between Xavier and Luci, holding each of their arms. She needed their support to get through this.

As they approached the dungeon, Alessandra felt a heaviness in her chest. She had loved Damien for centuries, so this was no easy task for her. When they arrived at the cell he was held in, she felt nothing but disdain for her mate. He walked over to the cell door when he saw the trio approach.

"Alessandra, my love, please beg the king to let me go. I can change. I don't need that other stuff; all I need is you." Damien tried to reach for his mate's hand, but she moved out of his reach.

"Luci told me what you did to Amelia. I can't forgive you for being responsible for our daughter's death. I'm here to reject you, Damien, because I am not going to let you take me down with you." Alessandra watched him, and she almost felt bad when his face fell. All it took was for one thought of Amelia to cross her mind for that feeling to pass.

"You can't do that. We're mates; your rejection alone could kill me. Do you want to be responsible for my death?" Damien couldn't believe she was going to throw away all their years together for a few dead people.

"I don't care. You're no longer my mate; you're a monster. I, Alessandra Carmine, reject you, Damien Carmine, as my mate." She waited for the pain to hit her chest, but nothing happened. Damien fell to the ground screaming.

As Damien continued to roll on the ground in pain, Xavier and Luci led Alessandra out of the dungeon. She was surprised that she didn't feel anything at all. The only thing that changed was that she felt free, like she was no longer tied to Damien.

"Are you okay?" Luci looked at her mother in concern as they returned to the palace.

"Yes, actually. I think preparing myself for what was coming helped me reject him in my heart. So, saying the words just finalized it. I'm going to go lie down for a while. I feel free like I can move on now." Alessandra hugged both Luci and Xavier before going into her room.

"It looks like maybe your mom is going to be okay. How are you?" Xavier led Luci over to their room with his arm around her shoulders.

"I'm okay. I'm glad that she wasn't affected by him." Just as Luci was going to say something else, there was a knock on the door. Xavier opened it, and Waylen was on the other side.

"I'm sorry to bother you, but the king has asked that I come and get you. He said he has something to discuss with you."

"Did he want just me or both of us?" Xavier asked, knowing Luci was probably exhausted.

"The king only said you; he didn't mention Luci," Waylen answered.

"Why don't you stay here and lay down? I won't be long." Luci nodded as Xavier kissed her before walking out the door.

She was getting ready to change her clothes when there was another knock on the door. She thought it might be Janie since Waylen was with Xavier. As she opened the door, she saw a tall man standing in front of her. He looked familiar, but she couldn't think of his name.

"Hello, can I help you?" Luci asked politely.

The man didn't say anything but stepped forward and produced the syringe Sam had been holding when he came to the palace. When Luci tried to turn and run, he grabbed her arm to stop her.

"Where are you going, bloodsucker? If you try that again, I will inject this in your neck and kill you instantly." Luci remembered who the man was now. He was Belinda's father.