I woke up in a bed, looking at an empty hotel room wall. I sat up hastily, frantic that I had been taken or something had happened until I noticed James sitting in a chair behind me.
"It's okay," he said and smiled slightly. "We had to stop here for now. The others were delayed a bit, but everything is all right. They’ll be here soon."
I rubbed my eyes, trying to wake myself up. "Water?" My throat felt so dry and I had a headache.
James got up and crossed the room, grabbed a glass of water and two aspirin that had been on the nightstand and brought them over to me.
"I was prepared."
That made me grin. "Couldn't you just give me some of your blood and make the hangover go away?" I asked innocently, trying to make a joke.
His features clouded only for a moment before he played along. "I only use my powers for good and for serious injury. Drinking too much on your birthday doesn't constitute a good enough reason to use those powers."
"Lame," I said tipping the aspirin into my mouth and chugging the water.
James sat on the bed, leaning closer to me than he probably should have. It felt like we were right back in the position we were a few months ago when we were fighting our feelings to do what we thought was right.
"What time is it?"
"Ten in the morning. We got here a little after eleven last night, and you were out cold."
He smiled genuinely at me, and I knew for a fact he could hear my heartbeat pick up again if he had heard it in the car. He stood up and walked back over to his chair. He looked like he was tensing. I didn't know why my reactions upset him all of a sudden. I didn't remember that being the case before.
There was a knock at the door, and I looked at James in panic. He shook his head as if to tell me it was okay, and when he opened it, my friends were waiting.
"Oh, thank goodness." Caroline gave me a hug, followed by Riley.
"Are you all okay?" I asked worried.
"Yeah, yeah totally fine. These guys are seriously bad ass," Riley said bumping into Caroline as he spoke.
She smiled at him and ruffled his hair. “That may be the nicest thing you ever said to me, Riley!”
Nick and James went to the corner of the room, speaking in hushed voices. James looked all business like. I couldn't see Nick's face since his back was to me. James's eyes flicked up in my direction as if he knew I'd been watching him, and I tried to pull my gaze away as fast as I could.
"We're leaving soon," James announced as he walked over to us. "Riley, you're coming with me. Ariya, you'll go with Nick and Care."
I stared at him, not sure why he was taking Riley instead of me. Wasn't he my Protector? He noticed my reaction and his features softened. "They would expect you to be with me, Ariya. Just in case we run into any trouble, this will throw them off a bit."
"Are we expecting to run into trouble?" I asked cautiously.
"No," James said too quickly for me to feel comfortable with the answer. "We're leaving shortly though, so if you want to clean up, you should do so now."
He walked out the door of the room. Caroline snapped me out of my daze by telling me I needed a shower.
"You smell like alcohol. I made Riley take one in the room next door already. You two can't hold your liquor and it reeks," she criticized.
I hopped in the shower and it felt so magnificent. I tried letting the water erase the tension building up in my shoulders. The main question sticking in my mind was why James was acting the way he was around me. I can let my heart race all I want in here, I thought to myself smugly. Caroline might know what was going on with James. I’d try asking her to see if it was some weird Protector thing I still hadn’t learned about.
I hated stepping out of the warm water, but James said we were leaving shortly, so I needed to be fast. I threw a towel around myself and peeked out the door. Caroline was still the only one in the room.
"I grabbed clothes for you," she beamed at me.
"Oh my gosh, have I told you lately how much I love you?" Then the thought that she had extra clothes for me seemed strange. "Were you prepared for something like this to happen?"
"Yes," she said. "It's our job to be prepared, remember?" She looked at me like I should know that by now.
I smiled faintly back at her, changing the subject. "James got upset at me in the car. I almost blew my cover, since I was drunk and wasn’t really watching what I saying," I told her, needing to vent a bit about what had happened before we were back with the boys.
"What do you mean?" She furrowed her brow at me.
"He kept yelling at me to calm down. He could hear my heart beat or something and got really tense. I guess he thought I was worried about everyone, because he kept telling me you guys were fine. But, I just hadn't seen him mad at me for something like that before. It was weird. So I got worked up that he was angry and that made me remember I was frustrated he didn’t fight for us when I ended things and…"
Instead of looking like it was in fact weird, Caroline was grinning. “What are you smiling like that for?” I asked baffled.
"What have you been hiding from me, Ariya? How could you not tell me this?”
She had lost me, and I was utterly confused now. "Tell you what? I just told you what I was talking about. I’m trying to ask you what’s up."
"You let James bite you! Was it when you slept with him? You still haven't even told me, by the way. I had to overhear it before retreating with Nick upstairs to distract ourselves. I didn't want to listen in on your first time, but, Ariya! Woot girl! I knew I loved you."
She was giggling on the bed. I looked at her like she was crazy and I was sure my face was beet red.
"Well, humph," I sighed. "What does that have to do with anything I was talking to you about?"
"That has everything to do with it! Vampires as old as James, and even Nick now, don't need to drink blood from a person anymore if they don’t want to. They can get it out of blood bags, and it does the same thing for them. It's no big deal once you're over a hundred or something. I wouldn’t know yet. It's not as good, but it works. When Nick first bit me during our first sexcapade, it was…intense.” She winked before continuing. “After we did, anytime I'd get flushed or nervous or anything that would cause my heart to beat faster or pulse to speed up in any way, Nick would go crazy. He said it didn't happen with people he was feeding from normally, but since we had, uh, well, who am I kidding, you know, since he had fed from me more intimately, he reacted to me differently. My heartbeat and emotions made it harder for him to control himself." She giggled. “So you’re basically a walking sex ad for him now.”
My jaw about fell to the floor. "You're telling me now James is connected to me, so when my heartbeat speeds up, he gets turned on?"
Caroline laughed again. "Sorry dear, he's a vampire and he drank from you during sex. Gosh, he's gone longer than Nick had, so he's got to be really sensitive to it. Nick was still drinking from people when we got together, and I know for a fact James hasn’t drank from someone even for food since I’ve been turned. He’s got to be feeling the effects. That’s what you get for being so dirty. I'm so proud!" She clapped her hand to her chest feigning pride.
"Ugh, hush! He thought I was worried about you guys, but honestly, I was drunk and thinking about all the things we could do since we were alone. I'm horrible. Oh my gosh, if he could read my thoughts, I’d be screwed!" I buried my face in my hands, embarrassed suddenly about what I was doing to James.
"Is it painful for him, do you think?" I remembered them telling me that vampires always had a thirst for blood, but once they learned to control the craving, it didn't bother them as much, even though it was still there.
"Pssh, I doubt pain is what is on his mind when he thinks about it. Unless it's the good kind." She threw a hotel pillow at me as she continued with her crazy woman laughter. I ducked and continued to gape at her. "It probably makes him a little thirsty and a lot horny, but he can handle it. He’s ancient. Come on, I'll help you get ready."
She could not seem to stop chuckling at my situation, which I was not finding as amusing. I was finding it quite embarrassing. Mortifying, actually. I shook my head back and forth, amazed at how silly she could be while we were on the road, on the run from werewolves. She did my hair while we waited for the boys. I thought about what she had told me. The connection was going to make things even harder between James and me. I thought about how nothing I could do, whether we were together or not, would really keep him safe.
When Caroline had finished drying and styling my hair, we sat back down on the bed. "Where did they go?" I asked. She just shrugged. "I guess it's good I'm not riding with James anymore now," I continued when she didn’t jump in with an answer.
"Ariya, I know you feel you are making the right choice, but I just, I don't agree with you on your reasoning," she said, picking at the lint on my clothes that had attached itself while they were in her bag.
"I know you don't understand, but he's a target. If we’re together, Audrey will know I’m his weakness."
"James doesn't react to weakness like a human does. Once he discovers a weakness, he's back to being indestructible. Look at our grand escape here. We shouldn't have escaped as easily as we did, but it was flawless. James is not in danger."
"It's not that. I get that he’s strong and smart. It’s that if Audrey tried to hurt me, he'd get in the way and get hurt himself. Or she'd torture him or something to get me to do what she wants. He's always going to be the one who is in danger."
Caroline smiled lovingly back at me. "I think the problem is, he’s your weakness, Ariya. Do you think that he wouldn't risk his life for you even if you weren't in love? Ariya, he has risked his life for everyone he has protected at some point. He's been attacked, tortured, everything you can think of. James has been through it all. It's literally part of the job description."
I knew she was right. I knew James would do anything to keep me safe whether we were together or not. "What about everyone thinking he's weak? What happens if they won't hire him or employ him? All he knows is being a Protector. What will happen to him? I can't hurt his reputation. I'm not worth that."
"Ariya, James has enough money to get by for centuries without work, not that it would come to that. He never spends his money and he's loaded. He'd survive. Plus, no one would be able to prove he was weak. He is the best there is. Trust me, I know those other clowns. He's ten times better than his father even. I get that you need to figure this out on your own, but I would never lie to you. James is as safe with you as he'd be with anyone else. And stop letting Marik The Snake cloud your judgment. It’s one thing to be afraid for him, it’s another to be manipulated by his father."
"I don't know." I was hesitant because I wanted so badly to believe her, but if something happened to James, would my heart know it wasn't because of me? Or would I drown in the guilt that he would have lived longer without me in his life?
"One more thing that you should think about. If James does die tomorrow, do you really want to live knowing that you didn't spend every moment you could being happy with him? Love isn't something you get dealt all the time. When you do, you have to cherish it. I haven’t seen either of you like this before. There is something special between you. I know you feel you're protecting him, but are you doing yourselves a disservice in the process?"
Caroline touched my hand. I knew she wasn’t trying to be cruel and make me think James was going to die. She was just making sure that I had really thought it through. I stood up and walked over to the mirror, giving myself a final once over and losing myself in my thoughts of what she’d told me. A few minutes later, we heard a soft knock at the door. James poked his head in.
"Are you ready?" he inquired, raising his eyebrow. Oh, those eyebrows.
“Sure are!” Caroline said cheerfully.
She was so much better at not getting caught at things than I was. My answering glance surely gave me away.
Once the door was shut I turned to Caroline. "Do you think he heard anything?"
"I don't know,” she said, shrugging as if it didn’t matter.
I didn't want to rethink my decision to end things with James, but I knew I had made it when I had been irrational. I also knew that thinking James couldn't defend himself was a joke after seeing him in action last night.
Caroline and I left the room, and when we opened the door, James was there. Steady as ever, he held the door open as we exited. Care had taken my bag already, leaving me empty handed. Needing something to do with my hands, I simply crossed them over my chest. I tried to discreetly hold my breath when I walked by him, thinking somehow that would stop my heartbeat. I hadn't been the smartest in my biology classes, clearly.
He moved to close the door before I had really come through it all the way, causing his arm to brush my back. I looked at him, and for the first time in a while, he didn’t look away immediately. It was almost impossible to fight what was there between us.
He walked behind me and opened Nick's car door as I waved at Riley, who was already sitting in James's car. Riley nodded his head in a typical guy-move back at me.
Before I bent my head to go into the back, James grabbed my arm. The touch alone quickened my pulse, and now that I understood how he responded to me, I knew he felt it. I was thankful that it was broad daylight and we were in front of all our friends, because otherwise, I knew I would have done something I’d regret.
"Ariya, please. Please, listen to Caroline and Nick. Whatever they say you need to do. This time I need your promise to be real. I can't focus on getting Riley anywhere safely if I'm preoccupied with you doing something rash." His voice was calm, but there was an undertone of panic. What was I going to be asked to do?
I looked at him, saddened that they had to worry so much about me. Not only did they have to protect me, but they also had to worry about how many times I broke the rules to do what I thought was right. I hadn't been around doing this long enough to know what was right, and yet I always thought I knew best. I needed to stop driving myself crazy and trust them completely.
Looking at James caused me to forget everything else, though. I’d say anything to make him happy. I took a shaky breath and tried to focus on giving him the answer he wanted instead of grabbing him and kissing him silly. He was so close. I could easily reach up and touch the side of his well-defined jaw. I pulled back a little though, blinking a couple of times to clear those thoughts away.
"I swear, James. I'll do everything they say," I said, my voice more confident than I felt.
He helped me climb into the car, and I felt an electric current run through me the minute he walked away. Something felt wrong about leaving him. I was sure there was more going on during our little escape or hideaway, whatever this was. I didn’t say anything at first as Nick started the car.
Caroline turned around and handed me my sunglasses, and I put them on immediately. Leaning my head back, I watched the car drive by trees, exit signs, and other landmarks I had never seen before. I had no idea where we were. Perhaps, this was the final leg of the trip. Perhaps they would give me a hint as to what was going on.
"So, team…where to?"
Caroline grinned back at my attitude shift from lust-driven and drooling to joking. "You can’t know. Not yet,” she mused.
Hmm, perhaps not. I had no clue what was going on or why they were taking such serious precautions. Maybe we were running away, or maybe we were just looping around a million places until it was okay to go home again.
"It's so weird not knowing where we are," I said to no one in particular.
"I'm sure. You always want the control, Ariya. You don't get it this time." Caroline stuck her tongue out before turning back to the front.
"How long will we be in the car?" I questioned.
"Not long," Nick said. His eyes flicked up to the rearview mirror, and he gave me a smirk.
“Keep your secrets, then,” I muttered, which made both Nick and Caroline chuckle.
We drove for about an hour and a half before the car slowed down. It really hadn’t been long at all.
"We're here," Nick said while throwing the car into park and nodding at Caroline to open to the door.
He wasn't very talkative. I wondered if they were worried about something. James had seemed worried when he left me, but then again he was probably worried I’d jump out of a moving car or something stupid in an effort to protect everyone. He knew me all too well. Wherever we were, James and Riley weren’t there yet.
"Do you think they're okay?" I asked Caroline and she put her arm around me.
"I'm sure they're fine, Ariya. Our route was shorter. Don't worry."
I looked around to take in my surroundings a bit more. It was a deserted runway that had obviously been neglected for quite some time. It would have looked utterly abandoned if there hadn’t been a sleek looking plane sitting about a football field away from us. Grass was overgrown and crawling out of the ground from the cracks in the pavement. The trees, that at one point would have had to have been trimmed back from the runway, were stalking towards it. I had a sneaking suspicion the plane was for us. Nick walked away and was on his phone.
"Caroline, get her on the plane," he called over to us in a freakishly even tone.
His voice was urgent but not fearful, so I didn't really think much of it. I wondered which one of them would be flying the jet. Caroline grabbed my hand, and we headed for the aircraft.
We were only a few feet away from the plane when she suddenly picked up the pace and started running. She made sure I stayed in front of her once she got my legs moving. When we reached the steps of the plane, she pushed me up, making me trip over my feet quite a few times. I turned about to demand why she was rushing me.
That’s when I saw James's car barreling towards the runway through the woods. The car swung by Nick, barely making a stop before he was gone from where he’d been standing. The whole thing happened in less time than it took for me to blink. Caroline shoved me again and jerked the door to the plane open, breaking the trance I’d been in watching James’s moving vehicle. She pushed past me directly into the cockpit and started flipping buttons like she knew what she was doing.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
I peeked out the side door again. She didn’t need to answer for me to see what the problem was. A fleet of vehicles were closing in behind James’s car. I watched in silent horror as his car screeched to a halt and the doors flung open. James and Nick were out in mere milliseconds, facing the fleet of moving vehicles. Riley, jumped out and paused for a moment.
“Go!” James yelled at him. Riley obeyed a moment later and started running up the stairs. As Riley made his way through the door of the plane, James’s voice sounded over the motors again.
"Caroline, go. Now," he shouted, looking at me only momentarily.
Something was definitely wrong, and I felt it the minute he looked at me like that. I expected Nick and James to be coming aboard too, but they didn't make a move to climb the stairs right away. Instead they stood, immobile, waiting for whoever was driving the group of cars to get out. Caroline started pulling the plane away from the steps just as Riley got inside. It was going to be hard for them to catch up, but not impossible given their inhuman speed.
If James could hear it over the engine, I was sure he’d know my heart was racing. I leaned out the door even as we were moving. I looked at him, but his focus was on the other cars that had now stopped.
"Shut the door, Ariya," Caroline commanded.
I jerked around to face her. Why would I shut the doors?
"Care, they haven’t even started coming towards the plane yet," I yelled back at her, thinking she must not have seen they were still standing down below.
"Ariya, shut the door! You swore to do what we said," she yelled over the noise, as she continued flipping through buttons in the cockpit.
“Nick and James are still out there. It’s not like we are leaving without them.”
“Shut the damn door, Ariya,” she bellowed. When I made no movement after she checked on me again, she just ignored me. “Riley, some help here? Shut it!” She was so stern it threw me off.
“You can't leave them!" I didn’t understand what was going on. Why would we shut the door on James and Nick? The plane began moving faster now, and a terrifying realization washed over me.
We were not waiting for Nick and James.
Turning my head back, I felt Riley behind me as he jerked the door closed. I was about to protest when I saw a figure darting towards the plane through the window.
It wasn’t who I wanted it to be. Instead, it was Tristan.
James was after him in a split second. I watched in what felt like slow motion as I saw the army of werewolves began emerging from their cars. They followed Tristan as he bolted towards us, charging at the plane. Now that I wasn’t arguing with Caroline, I could see more clearly what kind of trouble we were in. The sight of James and Nick, alone against what was pretty much a small army, was unbearably difficult to watch.
I screamed when James and Tristan started fighting beneath us, disappearing from my line of sight out the window.
"Riley, get her in her seat," Caroline ordered him sternly. The plane jolted as it began barreling down the runway now.
I ran for the door.
"They can still make it. I know they can! Just slow down Care, just for a second. They need help!" I was hysterical and getting incoherent, but I had never been more scared for their lives than I was in that moment. Not even when Tristan held the stake above James’s heart in the apartment before I went with Audrey. I had control then. If I did what they said, they would stop. This time, there was no control. We were leaving, and I was the only bargaining chip that could save them.
"Ariya, get your ass in your seat right now!” Caroline had never yelled at me before this, so to hear it now frightened me.
Riley wrapped his arms around me, pulling me from the windows and holding me to him even as I fought back. He shoved me into a seat but not forcefully.
"It's going to be okay. Shhhh." He buckled me in and tried calming me down, but it was no use.
He held my head to his chest, and I let it all go. The tears began to stream down my face. The plane jerked once more and we were up in the air. They were outnumbered now, with what looked like zero chance of surviving. I hadn’t had a chance to talk about things with James. He didn’t know how I really felt.
I was trying to process what had happened. It felt like it was so fast. Too fast. After about thirty minutes of crying with Riley, Caroline called my name. The plane had leveled out, and I barely remembered we were flying.
I responded, walking towards the cockpit, but I didn't want to look at her. I didn't understand why she had gone along with this. She loved Nick. How could she leave him behind? They’d had to trick me onto the plane. I'd have stayed with James if I’d sensed danger. That was the real reason I’d gone with Caroline and Nick. Riley listened to what they told him to do, and I didn't. I sat down in the co-pilot seat.
"They were never supposed to come with us. That doesn't mean we won't see them again," she said in her soothing, motherly voice.
I started straight forward, not sure what to say. I wasn't mad at her really. I was just scared.
"You knew I wouldn't come if there was any sign of trouble. You lied to me. You all lied and said nothing was going to happen. What if they are killed and I can’t save them? They could have made it," I argued, my voice raw with emotion from the past thirty minutes spent crying.
"That wasn't the plan."
"I don't care! How are you okay with leaving Nick back there? There were wolves everywhere!" Tears pooled in my eyes again.
"Ariya, this is what we do. You've never been able to handle it, but now you don't have a choice. We lied because we had to get you on this plane. We had to get out of Mineral Point, out of the state. You have to be safe for the boys to be able to finish up and come back to us again. James can’t focus as well when he knows you’re in danger.” She looked annoyed at me.
After seeing the evident fear on my face, she calmed down. "Have a little faith." Caroline tried to smile at me. “They are staying to make sure we aren’t followed and they’ll meet up with us in a little over thirty-six hours. Trust me, Ariya. Nick and James are the best. We’re going to see them soon and be able to search for the truth. That’s what you wanted, right?”
“How are they going to make sure we aren’t followed if they’re dead?” I said scathingly.
Caroline ignored the last part of my sarcasm but addressed the question. “A wolf has been helping us, feeding us information. It’s how we knew they were closing in on your birthday, and so we staged the party.”
“You’re kidding? You all knew about this? Riley, too?” No wonder they had been so prepared with everything.
“Yes.”
“That’s so messed up!”
“Don’t start with me, Ariya. You made us act like this because you can’t be trusted. If you knew we might be attacked and that James and Nick wouldn’t stay with us, you would have done something stupid. You would have put us in more danger. This way we can control the outcome and not have to worry about your ridiculous plans.” Her tone and words hurt, but I knew she was right.
However, I was bitter and fearful, so I lashed out at her. “Is that why you told me I should spend time with James while I could? How could you say something like that knowing we were leaving them?”
“Oh be reasonable! I love you. Why would I say something to hurt you? They are coming back. I meant that comment in general terms. I realize it may have been the wrong time to say it, but I wasn’t telling you to spend time with him in the five minutes it takes to load up the car because he was dying today!” She was exasperated at the conversation.
I took a deep breath and thought back to what she had said moments before about a wolf helping us. I never went along with their plans, and maybe this time things would be fine now because I hadn’t been given the option. Talking about it would make me feel better.
“What do you mean a wolf is helping us? We trust one of them?”
“During the first attack, James was approached and led away by a younger wolf. He said you saved him, and he wanted to return the favor. He said Audrey shot him, and you brought him back.”
I remembered the boy who Audrey had shot to prove my gift was real to the rest of them. He had noticed I kept a knife, not that it ever served a purpose or helped much, but he had let me keep my secret. Still, I was shocked they would trust one of them.
“He was turned unwillingly. He has family he wants to make sure stays safe. James told him he’d help hide him in exchange for his help getting you out of Mineral Point, and he agreed. We trust him. That’s where James went when you first came back. He was setting things up. James and Nick are making sure the coast is clear, helping the wolf, and then meeting us. Everything is going according to plan, okay?”
She touched my arm reassuringly. I wouldn’t truly feel reassured until James and Nick were reunited with us. This was what they had wanted, though. I just bobbed my head at her and headed back to Riley.
"You okay?" he asked. I looked at him without responding and crawled into a seat. "They're going to be fine, Ariya. They always are."
He didn't even sound worried. He sounded so sure, just like Caroline. Why was I the only one full of dread and fear?
We flew for only a few hours before I felt our descent. Caroline let us know that she was refueling to get across the ocean. I tried sleeping, but ended up staring blankly out the window, watching the scenery pass. Once we took off again, I watched the clouds, clearing my mind. Eventually, I must have fallen into a restless sleep. I fell into a pattern of waking, restless sleeping, and waking again for hours. I didn't think we'd ever land.
We had to refuel again, but I didn’t even ask where this time. I had a hunch that we were headed to Germany to find the information Ingrid said we needed to stop Audrey. James had said we would go, and this thing, this plan they had in motion right now, had definitely been thought out. I wondered if Audrey would be able to put the pieces together this time.
"Care, how do we know we’re safe, if we are out of Mineral Point?” I yelled up to the cockpit.
“Ingrid convinced James that once we were out of the area, we'd be safer. We're trusting her," was all she said back.
I don’t know why we trusted Ingrid so completely. We barely knew her. There was something about her, though. The way she was able to heal me after Audrey's house, the fact that she’d saved me, her faith that I could stop Audrey.
I had no doubt she was good, just like I had no doubt Audrey was evil. It felt like the Wizard of Oz with the two witches. We had a good witch and a bad witch. I smiled at the analogy, wondering if that would make me Dorothy.
After a couple more hours of flying, the plane tilted downward. We landed smoothly, and when the door opened, we were on another remote runway. I didn't even see an air traffic control tower. Given Caroline's vampire vision, I figured she didn't need one to direct her while she was flying.
"I had no idea you could fly a plane, Caroline. What else can you do?" I asked in awe, my mood lighter as I tried to truly believe that the boys were all right. My selfish miserable attitude had to go. I could barely stand myself, and I was sure my companions couldn’t either.
"More than you'd think. We have to be ready for everything. And I always am." She grinned at me.
If the runway we had come from was deserted, I’m not even sure how to describe this one. I was surprised Caroline landed so efficiently without hitting the potholes all over the faded concrete. It reminded me of a Minesweeper game.
We made our way over to a silver unmarked car parked off at the edge of the small runway. We’d be inconspicuous in it. Caroline hopped in the driver’s seat and I took shotgun. Riley was in the back and passed out in about three minutes tops.
"When are they supposed to meet us?" I asked Caroline after sitting in silence at first.
"Soon. They shouldn't have left too long after we did. Remember, about thirty-six hours or so, okay?" She still had no fear in her voice at all. She was confident in them and so I would need to be confident, too.
“Where are we?” I asked. “Can you tell me now?”
“Germany,” she smiled. “Obviously, we have some work to do here, right?”
I beamed back at her. I was excited that this thing with Audrey was one step closer to being over. We were where Ingrid intended us to go. I felt relieved that I would be able to do what she thought I was meant to do.
“You know, I thought James was Polish, not German,” I commented hoping to pull more information out of her, still confused about the history and how these two places were truly related to my bloodline.
“He is,” Caroline said. “Oh, right, the story. Christiane was thought to have lived in a self-imposed exile in Germany. The Protectors were from Poland, since that is where the King was, but they were sent here when she was exiled.” She made finger quotes around the word. “Hence, Germany is the place that the bloodline began, even though the Protectors are originally from Poland.” She smiled at the conclusion of her history lesson and I nestled into the seat, watching the sights of the German landscape pass by as we drove towards our destination.