Today, the calendar marked February 7th, the appointed date of my dreadful execution. Despite my efforts to push the thought aside, heartbreak eclipsed me into a solitary reflection during my final hours as I bide my last moments in a sketch, illustrating the imbuing melancholy I feel for my unborn babies and my dear husband. In an attempt to seek solace during my solitude, I imbued those emotions by drawing my babies on paper, as if they were already cradled in my arms, as I longed to envision their faces before I met my impending ill-fated demise.
"You've always had a talent for art," Morbius's voice slivered through the silence that enveloped the room until now.
Unstartled by his unwelcome visit, as I peered up from my sketch, he suddenly appeared outside the bars of my jail cell while the guards glanced over at him from the center of the enclosure.
"Stand outside!" Morbius's harsh, authoritative tone demanded from the guards.
By Danny's command, they weren't supposed to leave me unattended, yet there they were, turning their backs on me to leave me alone with this monster I once saw as a lovable old grandfather. Months too late, Morbius shredded his former guise as an old man with a heart condition as his true colors unveiled the evil yet youthful Superior Headmaster I discovered him to be.
"Leave me alone!" I spat rudely. "I have nothing to say to you in my final hours."
"You only have yourself to blame," Morbius sneered. "If you hadn't gone to Egypt and discovered Kai, you'd be happily married to my grandson."
Calmly putting my sketchbook aside, I rose from the bed.
"Allowing you Mills to manipulate me was the biggest mistake of my life. I'd be married to a no-good cheating scum if I hadn't found Kai in Egypt! All along, Kai was right about you, Mills! But I was too blinded by Orlando's snare on my heart to see it until now!" I yelled, and my rage reverberated throughout the walls of my cell.
Throwing his head back, Morbius burst into laughter while I scowled at his despicable behavior.
"You never would have known about Orlando's mistresses. We've been in your life all along while Kai and his family abandoned you then, just as they're abandoning you now to die alone in your darkest hours, yet Orlando and I are still here for you!" Morbius snapped as his harsh words pierced into my heart like a spear.
"The Collins didn't abandon me!" I spat as tears threatened to fall. "Kai couldn't bear the pain of waiting for my birth, and the Collins didn't know where I was at the time!"
"Where are they now?" Morbius snapped, deception dripping in his words to further manipulate me. "They know you're here, yet they've abandoned you on the day of your execution!"
My lips pursed tightly as my eyes darkened into a lethal glare aiming to strike him down as if I were an unsheathed dagger.
"She's not alone!"
Yet, I didn't have to defend myself as I heard Uncle Aaron's thunderous voice brewing through the air like a hurricane surging in.
As Aaron confidently strides inside the enclosure, Morbius hissed as his fangs bared like the venomous serpent he was.
In the tiniest voice, I mustered, "I'm not abandoned," I inaudibly whispered, happy to see Uncle Aaron to my relief.
Morbius scoffed, "Only the O'Donnell Coven came, while your mate and the Collins still left you to your fate."
"The Collins have their reasons for not being here, and we both know Kai is handling the Rebellion," Aaron retorted, shooting a sharp glare at Morbius.
Unfazed, Morbius mockingly chuckled, "You shouldn't speak so disrespectfully to me, Aaron. I still remember the day you were born."
"Don't play the Superior Headmaster elder card on me!" Aaron growled like a beast. "You'll kiss the ground, Vlad and my father, walk on."
Morbius snarled as his voice lowered more menacing. "Whether Victoria lives or dies, you, your father, and every male in your family, including your father's Coven, will be mounted on my walls like trophies! Then your mother, your wife, your brothers' wives, the wives of your sons, your brothers' sons' wives, and everyone's daughters and granddaughters in your family and Coven will be sold to the highest bidder as enslaved courtesans!"
With two clenched fists, Aaron's hands tightened at his sides as his heart drowned in anguish under Morbius's ominous threat, overcasting a looming shadow over us like a dark cloud. His words modeled the grim anticipation of what was to come before the storm initially transpired.
As emotions cracked in my voice, I questioned, "Why must you resort to such wickedness? You and Vlad arose from a Siamese twin. You may not be blood-related, but you once saw Vlad as your brother. Rising from a Siamese twin attached your bond like brothers."
During the controlled time gap Kai tranced me under, I witnessed Vlad Collin and Morbius Mill rising beneath the soil from the corpse of a Siamese twin. Two human heads somehow formed two Headmasters who, despite lacking a blood tie relation, were once inseparable like the twins they originated from. Down the road, Morbius's animosity toward Vincent O'Donnell only intensified after Emily's assault, while Vlad's relationship with Vincent united stronger. At the end of their broken bond, Vlad and Morbius became sworn enemies.
As Morbius's vile, dark eyes locked onto mine, a chill raced along my spine. "You defend those weak O'Donnells just like the Collins!" he seethed through his clenched teeth.
In a soft voice that floated as delicate as wind chimes tinkling in a gentle breeze, I uttered, "I am a Collin. When I take my last breath today, you will remember that I died as Victoria Melody Collin. Where you allowed your brotherly love for Vlad to perish, you will know my love for Kai and his family is unbreakable."
With those parting words, Morbius hissed before dissolving into thin air from where he stood. Meanwhile, Aaron's eyes remained clouded in a cloak of darkness.
"Uncle Aaron," I murmured, bringing him out of the darkness, and his eyes softened into gentle springs.
"Somebody open the cell!" he shouted.
Upon hearing his command, the guards returned, but the one holding the keys informed him sternly, "Only Headmaster Danny and Edgar are authorized to enter her cell."
"That is absurd!" Aaron bellowed. "She is my niece! You're to open this door immediately!"
"You're forbidden to enter," asserted the other guard.
An indignant rumble emanated from his chest as he scoffed at their refusal.
Before he could erupt in fury, another voice demanded, "Allow him entry."
Over by the entrance, Danny stood flanked in the center of the large opening.
Huffing in annoyance, the guard holding the keys unlocked the jail cell and allowed Aaron access.
"Shall we play a card game?" he asked, retrieving a deck of cards from his suit pocket, and a smile spread across my face.
On the bed, we played a game of Blackjack as Aaron updated me, "Mr. Collin isn't here because his wife recently gave birth, and he can't risk leaving the territories with Kai and Chester away at war with the best Coven warriors."
My eyes lit up at the wonderful news of the vamp baby's arrival into this world, but uneasiness lingered in my heart upon learning they were at war.
"Has Mr. Collin personally heard from Kai?" I whispered, sneaking a glance at the guards, who seemed fully committed to their conversation by the entrance, which left them unaware of us speaking about my husband.
"Keep your chin up." Aaron smiled, attempting to lift my spirits. "Kai is handling the Rebellion."
Before I could utter another word, a cacophony of footsteps approached the entrance.