Fulgent bright rays of light were overcasting the horizon for today's sunny Friday morning, which had dissolved the gray clouds. Not a cloud existed in the sky, and I felt as fulgent as the day because Kai would be home sometime today. Instead of pacing a trail along the carpet from waiting for his arrival, I decided to get ready for college.
"Have a good day, Victoria," the vampire butler greeted me at the main front entrance as he held the door open for me, like he does every day.
"You have a wonderful day too. I'll see you in a few hours." I smiled at him, and then I proceeded my way to my car.
In no time, I was off to college and started my morning classes after I arrived.
Nora was sick with the flu, so I didn't see her in Mrs. Nasberry's class. Yesterday, Stella texted me to say her little brother flew into town for a surprise visit, so that's why she had to cancel our plans on Wednesday, and she skipped college to be with him yesterday and today. Even though there was no one else for me to talk to for the rest of the day, the hours ticked by, and all my classes were over that fast. Aside from noticing that weird trench coat guy who worked for Mr. Whitlock was watching me on my lunch break, the day wasn't too bad. None of the Collin's Coven enemies showed up today, which made my day even better.
I smiled to myself at those thoughts as I went to my car to leave. Disappointment faded my smile because Kai wasn't at my car. Occasionally, he meets me by my car, especially if I haven't seen him in a while, but he wasn't there. I pushed the gloomy feeling aside and got in my car to drive home.
"Has Kai returned?" I asked the Butler once he let me inside.
"Sir Kai isn't here yet, but I'm sure he's coming," he smiled.
"He better be here tonight! We have a gender reveal party tomorrow!" I huffed, and the Butler chuckled softly at my irascible mood swings as he shut the front doors.
Time ticked away on the hand clock in the living room near the kitchen. To keep ourselves occupied, I played a card game with Mia to take my mind off the fact that he hadn't shown up.
"You should get some rest," Mia warmly smiled at me once we finished our last game. Midnight rolled away, and they still weren't here.
"I'm going to take a warm bubble bath," I declared. Regardless that it was late, my achy body needed pampering.
"I think I'll do the same," Mia cheerfully giggled, though I could tell she was getting nervous like me because Ivan was with Kai. But I knew if I questioned her about it, she'd deny it. After a long soothing bath, I went to bed for the night.
~~~
The next day, the hours passed into Saturday afternoon, and Kai and part of his clan still hadn't returned home. Back inside Mrs. Collin's fancy indoor lanai tea party room, I gazed out the glass door windows. Devastation and dread filled my heart and mind. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was direly wrong.
"Something went wrong," I uttered to Kai's older sister when I noticed her reflection coming towards me through the glass door.
Veronica soothed me, "We mustn't assume the worst."
I veered, facing her as I differed from her assumption. "Kai never breaks his promises. He knew this day was important." I peered back outside. "Something bad happened— Ouch!"
I cringed from the painful twinge that gouged inside my round pregnant belly.
"Easy," Veronica crooned and stepped closer to rub my stomach. "Try to stay calm. The vamp babies feel whatever you feel."
I took a few calming breaths, and the pain eased up while my unborn babies kicked against our hands.
"I need to talk to Mr. Collin," I insisted.
Veronica offered. "I'll take you."
In a snap, she leaped us to her father's office. His five advisors were present. Even Chester, Veronica's and Kai's older brother was here with his advisors too. They were mulling about Kai over by Mr. Collin's desk, but once we appeared, the chattering stopped.
"Something isn't right," I spoke through their abnormal silence as they blinked at me.
"I'm sure everything is fine," Chester controverted the reality of the truth as he tried soothing me, but it failed.
"You know I'm right. I can see it in your eyes," I confuted because none of them could hide it from me.
Mr. Collin sighed from the seat behind his desk. "We don't want to assume the worst," he replied as if he was implying that we wait and not panic.
"Somebody needs to go out there and search for them!" I bluntly countered, and Chester gently smiled at me.
He clarified. "It's like finding a needle in a haystack. There are billions of dimensional worlds out there. I'd have to know which ones he went through to get his scent."
I suggested, coming up with a solution, "He went through the one he had opened up into the sky from in the front driveway. Couldn't you try from there?"
After briefly thinking, Chester confirmed, "I could try."
"Will you try?" I begged him.
Giving in, Chester delicately smiles. "I'll leave now, but I can't guarantee it will work."
With that being confirmed, I followed everyone to the front door. In the main living room, Chester kissed his wife Zoey and their three offspring Joshua, Colton, and Coraline goodbye, while the vampires who were going with him all kissed and hugged their wives and offspring goodbye before they went outside.
Veronica, Mia, Zoey, Sharlene, and the other vampiresses, including me, stayed outside the doorway from the front doors. We watched Chester open a few portals, but he kept closing each one because he couldn't find a scent.
Mia and the other vampiresses were as worried as me because their husbands were with Kai. Alphas were the only ones who could open these otherworldly gateways. So if anything happened to Kai, everybody else who went with him is also trapped wherever they would be.
Each time a portal opened, the wind thrashed extremely violently, so the vampiresses, including me, went inside, and then the butler closed the doors. From the long windows, we watched Chester and his clan while the wind thrashed wickedly against the glass windows and siding.
Dark clouds twisted into a scarier-looking funnel. An untouched tornado swirled in the sky, and I was getting worried for my horse and her two foals. Right when I assumed the tornado was going to touch the ground, Chester opened another portal. He nodded to his friends to go up, and they all sailed into the ominous clouds, disappearing. Cloudless skies returned the weather into a clement winter after the portal had closed from on the other side.
"They'll find them," Veronica reassured us. "Chester wouldn't have left without first finding a scent."