LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 273: 33. Always On My Mind.
It was the morning of our first wedding day, and I felt a mix of emotions. Charles, being the perfect gentleman, helped me into my princess-like pink and golden dress. He used his magic to mold it around my body, ensuring a perfect fit.
However, I soon realized that this dress had been reserved for Mariella, not me. Damon, who was absent, was meant not to accompany me down the aisle. It wasn't surprising, though.
After all, I had always talked about this when I protected him and others from the negativity in my mind. It only took a small trigger, a visitation to that memory that Wulfe had stopped, for Damon to see me as a victim, as weak. No longer a creature he needed to control, but someone he wanted to keep safe and ensure a good time for.
For humans, this might have been perfect, but as a non-human, it made me feel like a failure. I wanted him to flank me, to threaten me, to do things as they were supposed to be done.
But that wasn't the only thing that had changed. With a flimsy excuse, our wedding was moved from a grand church to our castle. The press coverage was reduced to only 10% of what it was originally planned.
Number Nine, who had given me food the previous evening, lied to me about the harsh winter and heavy snowfall in this part of Germany. In reality, our protective bubble had kept us sheltered from the worst of it. I looked it up on the internet, and it wasn't as bad as he made it seem. Once again, I was being protected, with Damon not wanting to stress me out. It was sweet, but also incredibly frustrating.
My dress was a beautiful pink, adorned with sparkling crystals and a heavy golden satin hem that swished around my legs. I wore high-heeled pumps in a gold color, and my nails were the perfect shade of pink. Charles had done my makeup flawlessly, and Adam was working on my hair. Wulfe had been called away, and I hadn't seen much of the Salvatores either.
Adam and Charles, along with the boys, looked dashing in their expensive tuxedos. My blood-red hair was expertly styled on top of my head, with Adam incorporating two of my special strands into perfect little braids encircling my head. I wore a lot of jewelry, and I truly felt like a bride. But the important thing was that I was not drugged or controlled.
As we descended the stairs, a small smile adorned my face, filled with happiness and a hint of secrecy. My confusion had dissipated, replaced by a deep sense of smugness that I tried my best to hide. I had no intention of licking my wounds, but if this was true, I was going to have a blast.
The heavy hem of my dress swayed around me like the golden sea as I led the way down the stairs. To my surprise, I didn't see Mariella or Number One. Oh well, they would make their entrance soon enough, and that was fine by me.
The other Salvatores turned their faces towards us as Charles kept his arm in mine, his expression neutral but clearly content. My heart soared with happiness as we stood at the altar.
Suddenly, the door at the back of the room opened and Number One and Mariella walked in. Mariella's eyes were dreamy and unfocused, and she leaned heavily on Number One. Her dress had a black bodice, a dark blue hem, sleeves, and a tight neckline covering her chest. Even the dress was tight so that it hugged her body.
Number One's grip on her was possessive, and she seemed oblivious to what was happening around her. As they walked towards the altar, to my surprise, Wulfe stepped forward with a priest. Damon had always wanted an official priest, but it seemed that someone else was officiating the wedding this time.
Damon paid little attention to me, with Number Two by my side, while Number Four stood on the other side of Mariella, giving her a beastly look. Mimosa, dressed in yellow and white, and Shadow, in green and white, both wore dreamy expressions. Number Five and Number Seven stood by their side.
It was fortunate for me. I had to keep my expression tightly controlled and my bonds closed as tightly as possible. Damon didn't even speak to me in my mind. What surprised me, though, was the scent of his magic, which couldn't mask the overwhelming fear emanating from Mariella. She was terrified, heavily drugged, and Damon seemed intent on keeping her that way.
Everything changed in that moment. There were no vows to be said, just the priest asking questions. Wulfe sensed something in me and looked at me sharply, smiling ever so slightly. Little did he know.
Now, the reason why I had been so smug. Rule number one: Damon had forgotten what that memory had made him forget, that I was the strongest alpha female around.
I could see our grown children, as well as Meredith and Christina, who were both alphas and carriers of my power. Neither of them came near my caliber as an alpha female. Now, what would happen if a powerful, strong-willed, sly alpha female got the upper hand over the alpha male right at the threshold of heat?
My pheromones wafted out of me, unbeknownst to Damon. The other females were too drugged to sense or do anything about it. But my alpha side knew exactly what was happening.
In her eyes, Damon appeared soft, weak, and unworthy of us. We needed a firm hand to keep us under control. Adam, Charles, and the boys were too happy to notice this. They wanted me to have a good wedding.
The only problem was that no one considered the fact that I was about to enter my heat, less than a week away. This was the time when a female should be kept under the most control. And yet, here I was, fully free. One could only imagine what kind of ideas my heat had sparked in my mind.
Heat was not just a time to breed for us. We could breed without it just fine. It was a biological phenomenon, a relic from more animalistic times. It wasn't strictly necessary for us anymore, but it was sometimes nice to have it.
I had always seen heat as almost a living creature, with a mind of its own. It could be temperamental, it could knot, or if you were lucky, it could be one hell of a vacation on a paradise island.
But even though my alpha side saw her opportunity, it didn't mean that I had lost control fully. It just meant that I could do whatever I wanted during this wedding, and my mood? Well, it was pretty wild.
My voice was firm yet gentle as I affirmed to the priest my will to marry these 14 men. It felt right and proper. Sometimes, you don't need dramatic vows to make it perfect. But that wasn't all I did.
As I heard about the press being less involved, I took matters into my own hands. I made this wedding as public as it should be. Now was the perfect opportunity for me to give statements, talk to the press, be America's sweetheart, and let Mariella remain in her drugged haze, scared and unable to speak much. Let them have their one wedding like that while I used my reputation to keep myself safe.
After we were officially married and our vows were renewed, Damon's barely there kiss seemed insignificant compared to Charles' passionate embrace. I noticed the paparazzi getting ready and couldn't help but marvel at how passionately Charles kissed me.
It left my face flushed with excitement. Then it was Adam's turn, and his kiss also garnered a lot of attention. Mariela, on the other hand, struggled to kiss properly and seemed too scared to resist.
We knew it was time to mingle with the guests and the press. Charles and Adam escorted me to the next room, which was beautifully decorated by the magic house and florists. As we walked and talked with many people, I truly enjoyed engaging in conversations. During it all, I expressed some concerns to Charles about the possibility of my rooms being tampered with. But I had to tell him about what I had noticed, so maybe he would understand me.
I explained, "You see, this is why I have always kept my matters to myself. My memories, my shit, etc. It's the reason I've been so guarded." I made encompassing gestures to show the whole wedding.
Charles looked at me with a puzzled expression and responded, "So that you could have the wedding you deserve?"
I rolled my eyes, and same time I failed to notice Number Nine eavesdropping nearby.
Despite that, my voice remained calm as I looked at Charles's perfect face and felt the lingering sensation of our kiss. "You see, it only takes one moment, one frozen memory, to break Damon."
Charles glanced at Number One and grunted in confusion.
I continued to explain, "They took a lot from my mind, and I suspect Wulfe did it so that Damon wouldn't see or experience a particular memory. My mind, being who I am, instinctively protected our hive by encasing that memory with my will, my chaos, my alpha power, and my rage, ensuring that the attack wouldn't spread. It was done unconsciously, trapping me in the process. Normally, if I were awake, I could have isolated that memory in one part of my mind."
Charles nodded slowly and said, "I still fail to see how this is relevant to Damon."
I said softly, "He doesn't want to hurt me, make me suffer, or see me weak as a victim. I remember that session. It's a different place in my mind. I'm just not sure which fragment he saw, but it was enough. In that shed, being tortured and broken, I was a victim. Seeing his body, his face doing that to me, he no longer sees the strong, untamable force of nature that I am. Instead, he sees the image of my thin, bloody body on a table or in a machine. He sees it every time he looks at me. I'm not sure if he'll get over it anytime soon. In his eyes, Mariella is now the stronger one."
Charles nodded and said, "I understand now. Of course, it makes sense. But honey, there's nothing you can do. It's up to Damon himself to get his mind under control."
Number nine walked softly, pondering Mimi's words. She was surely right. Number one was becoming soft and mushy, but that didn't mean he had to be as well. Hmm, it would be good to keep an eye on the baby. If she's too wild, maybe she should calm down too.
I was standing near the cocktail table, trying to decide what to take, when Wulfe walked up to me. He was now wearing a tuxedo and looked dashing. He leaned in, smelling my neck. Oh, he could sense my heat and he was getting ready.
That was fine by me. I was free to do what I wanted, so I let my pheromones and my feline side be a little more open.
It made Wulfe lean in even closer, whispering in my ear, "Quite a punch, my unicorn. How about we go and talk a bit? Come on, you have time to eat."
I smiled, grabbed a plate, and piled on lots of little pastries and treats for myself, as well as some cans of Coke.
We entered a small table, and I sat down wearing my huge gown to begin eating. Of course, Wulfe, being Wulfe, sat beside me and wanted to share half of each pastry.
We were joking half-heartedly when a few press people noticed us and approached. They started asking questions, and one of them directed their question to Wulfe.
"What is your relationship with America's sweetheart?" they asked.
Wulfe replied, "She is my best friend, the other half of my soul, my vampire protégé, my everything. And since I am telepathic, I don't have to answer why I am not marrying her."
He raised his hand, revealing a deep red scar, and then he took hold of my hand and continued, "We are linked by a magic older than this castle. I am a 2500+ year old vampire wizard, so I made sure she is mine, far beyond what any Christian ritual could achieve."
The press was intrigued by this revelation. To my surprise, I then heard the soft footsteps of Number Nine approaching. He sat next to me and kissed me passionately, but as his lips tasted like passionfruit, my mind became confused, my vision blurred, and I slumped slightly in his embrace.
Number Nine said, "Yes, Wulfe is Mimi's 'second' husband, according to vampire customs, when her true husband, King Salvatore, is unable to be with her. But baby, being who she was, you have no idea how much she initially resented being called 'baby'."
The press became even more interested in how we first met. Number Nine explained the whole reason behind the existence of ten of them and at what point he had become his own version, but he was the one who had met me. He had not been separated back then yet.
The Damons are all excellent storytellers, and the press, now captivated by his story, eagerly recorded every detail. I was completely drugged, leaning against him, as his substance was exceptionally strong and long-lasting. It would take some time for my mind to regain coherence.
Wulfe joined the conversation at the table and shared how he had been my enemy at first, but with a few divine hints given by cats sent by God, he had completely turned his life around.
The poor Wulfe would likely be harassed by the press for the rest of the wedding, considering he was quite the talker. Once the press had moved on to bother others, such as number four, number five, and the wolves, number nine left me sitting there alone. My mind was clearing, but his little warning still echoed in my head.
"Just because number one isn't paying attention to you, don't think someone isn't watching you," he smirked.
Well, at least during the wedding, I had been sedated once. I thought sarcastically to myself.
The grandeur of this castle was almost otherworldly. Paintings lined the walls, causing guests to stop and comment on them, speculating if they were real. The parquet floor echoed with the sound of women's heels clicking. The catering had covered the tables with pristine white tablecloths, and unintrusive waiters walked professionally among the guests, holding trays of treats or flutes of wine, including champagne.
The air was filled with the scent of expensive perfumes and aftershave. I allowed my pheromones to be more open, so my pack could get a good dose of my heat-inducing pheromones, as it was what would happen after this.
I walked among the guests, engaging in conversation and laughter. I noticed that number nine was now walking behind number one and Mariella. Was he jealous, or was he protecting me? Or perhaps Mariella had cleared her mind enough to express her jealousy.
Either way, it would be interesting to see what the next day would bring. I felt quite smug, knowing that this wedding night would be peaceful, without pain or terror. It was all Mariella's turn this time.
Perhaps this was not solely because of my memory, but because she was now his vampire wife. Time would reveal the truth to me. Oh, tomorrow, more press would be coming, providing even more opportunities for my reputation to grow as America's sweetheart.