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Calliope walked out of her room upon hearing her parents yell. She saw Apollo sitting at the top, listening. She tapped her brother on the shoulder, silently asking what was happening. He shrugged his shoulders, making space for Calliope to sit.
“Jack! Please!” Talia begged her husband. “Don’t do this.”
“It’s the Guild decision, Talia. I have no choice,” he told her.
Talia scoffed. “You do have a choice! You choose to obey the Guild! He’s our son, Jack! You can’t do-”
“My son!” yelled Jack. “He’s, my son. I know he’d want this. He-”
“He may not be my blood, but I’ve been with him since he was a child. I raised him. He is my son whether you say so or not. And he will always be my baby boy, human or not.” She stated. “Please. I am begging you. Don’t do this. You know he won’t fight back,” Talia pleaded.
“I am sorry, Talia,” said Jack. “But I can’t defy the Guild. Theo will die tonight.”
Jack left the house, Talia inking to her knees, her body shaking with sobs. Cal and Apollo ran down the stairs to help their mother. They’ve never seen her like this before. Apollo carried her to the sofa while Calliope got a glass of water. Talia looked so broken. Cal and Apollo looked at each other. They knew there was one thing they could do.
Cal and Apollo gathered some stuff and helped Talia to the car. They drove to Oliver’s house, the older vampire confused. Cal quickly explained the situation, yelling Theo’s name so they can get him out.
“Theo’s not here. He’s at the graveyard.” Oliver told them. “Juliette’s with him.”
Cal felt like her breath was just knocked out of her. They needed to get to the cemetery quickly.
“I’ll take care of Talia. You go and bring them back.”
Cal hugged Oliver, whispering a thank you before she and Apollo hurried to the car, speedily driving to the graveyard. When they got there, they immediately spotted Juliette and Theo, looking as if they’d been training. The car skidded to a stop, catching the vampires attention.
“Cal?” asked Juliette.
“Apollo...” whispered Theo. He hasn’t seen his brother in months. Apollo walked past Calliope and wrapped his arms around his brother. Theo wasn’t expecting it.
Apollo pulled back. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.
“Sorry for what?” Theo asked him.
“For everything,” he replied. “You almost died because of me. And then I was going to let dad kill you when I should have stopped him, I’m sorry.”
Theo pulled his brother in for another hug, the younger Burns brother in tears. “It’s all in the past,” he told Apollo, pulling away. “Burns brothers for life, remember?” he said, looking at his brother.
“Burns brothers for life,” said Apollo.
“Ahem.” Calliope pretended to clear her throat, looking at her brothers.
“Get in here, lil’ sis,” said Theo. The Burns siblings finally reunited.
Juliette smiled at the sight before her. She wished that she and her siblings had this kind of relationship. She wiped a stray tear that escaped her eyes discreetly, or so she thought. Theo caught it, opening his arm, silently telling Juliette to come here. She didn’t want to intrude, so she waved her hand as if saying that she was okay.
When they separated themselves from the hug, Calliope walked over to Juliette, suddenly remembering why they were there.
“We need to leave now. Dad is on his way with Guild members, ready to kill you,” Calliope explained.
They didn’t need to be told twice. They hurried to the car, Cal and Jules in the back, Apollo in the diver’s seat, and Theo next to him. the car wouldn’t start. Apollo hit the steering wheel multiple times and jiggled the key until finally, the car gave in and started, the headlights turned on, revealing their father standing in front of the vehicle, with at least fifteen Guild members with him.
“Get out of the. All of you,” he said a little too calmly.
Theo and Apollo exchanged glances as did Cal and Jules. The four of them slowly got out of the car, coming to a stand facing the Guild.
“You betrayed the Guild Apollo,” said one of the Guild members. Apollo looked at the man.
“When it comes to my family, nothing else matters.” He shouted. “Unlike some people, I always put them first. No matter what.” Apollo looked straight into his father’s eyes.
“So, if you want to kill one of us,” yelled Calliope, “you kill all of us. But we’re not going down without a fight.”
Another of the Guild member spoke up. “With pleasure,” he said, running toward Calliope, weapon raised high.
It happened so fast. No one saw it coming. The man’s body dropped with a thud, holding his neck as his blood splayed everywhere. Juliette spat the foul-tasting blood from her mouth, wiping it against her sleeve. The other Guild members yelled, like a war cry for their fallen brethren, running toward the Juliette. The Burns siblings were immediately at her side, ready to fight. Jack stood still, watching the battle unfold right before his eyes.
The Guild is bigger in numbers but weak against the fight. Juliette showed no mercy. Anyone that would hurt Calliope and Theo, even Apollo would never live to see another day. She broke their bones and ripped their throats from their bodies. Calliope and Apollo worked on disarming them of their weapons, either knocking them unconscious or throwing them toward Juliette. Theo learned how to control his newfound powers the past few months, so throwing them against a tree or toward the sky was no problem for him. All fifteen Guild members were taken out by the four of them.
No one heard or saw Jack move from his spot, the older hunter running toward Theo with a spear. The same spear is used to stake the legacy vampires on the night of Juliette’s consecration. Calliope caught the movement in time, running to stand in front of her brother, Apollo joining her. But it was too late to stop. The spear was already coming down toward the siblings. They closed their eyes, waiting. They heard the spear piercing someone, but they didn’t feel anything. Nothing happened. At least not to them.
Their eyes opened and Calliope let out a scream. Jack ripped the spear from Juliette’s chest, dropping it to the ground as the vampire fell to her knees, coughing up blood. Cal ran to Juliette’s side, holding her face.
“Juliette? Jules?” Calliope whispered.
Juliette smiled, blood dripping from her mouth. “It’s okay. I’ll heal in a minute,” she laughed.
Something was wrong. She should have started healing instantly. Calliope picked up the spear. It was different.
“What the hell is this?” she yelled at her father.
“We’ve been testing different ways on how to kill a legacy vampire. Using leaves from the Tree of Life and silver. This the closest we’ve come to creating something to rid the world of them.” Jack explained. “It didn’t go exactly like I thought it would have but it’s a start. With a little more work, we could create the weapon to end their lives. Apollo, this is what we’ve been working to do our whole lives. Rid the world of all monsters.”
Apollo looked at his father. “The consequences of using the sacred tree without its blessing and for your own gain is severe,” he told his father. “What the hell did the Guild do to you?” he asked. “Juliette just risked her life to protect us. Someone who is supposed to be a monster. She kept Theo alive. Your son. My brother.”
Theo helped Calliope get Juliette safely inside the car.
“The only monster here is you,” said Calliope, venom laced in her voice.
“Come on. Let’s go,” said Theo, keeping an eye on his father and making sure Cal and Apollo got in safely. They left without as so much as a word from their father, heading to Oliver’s.
Juliette started healing a little into the drive home, but slowly. She groaned in pain when the car rounded a corner. She eventually fell asleep with the help of Cal, the vampire’s head on her girlfriend’s shoulder. Apollo looked at them from the rearview mirror, can’t help but smile at his sister kissing Juliette on her forehead. Calliope caught him, her brother making a sound of a whip, using his hands to create the action. Cal rolled her eye, not denying the fact.
……………..
They finally made it to Oliver’s house, Talia and Oliver already waiting as if they knew the four of them were on the way. Oliver rushed to the car upon seeing Juliette, and Talia hugging all three of her children.
“What the hell happened to my sister?” Oliver questioned angrily. The Burns siblings explained everything, while Carmen came over and did a spell to help Juliette with her pain.
Oliver, Talia, and Carmen went into the kitchen to discuss their next move, Cal and her brothers remained in the living room, with Juliette’s head on Cal’s lap. The hunter stroked her girlfriend’s hair, her brothers deciding to leave them.
“Come on. I’ll show you the training room,” said Theo. “And maybe I’ll kick your ass.” He added.
“Oh, not even in your dreams,” Apollo scoffed.
Calliope gazed down at Juliette, waiting patiently for the vampire to wake up. She wasn’t sure about a lot of things, but she was sure about Juliette. She made a promise that she would never be apart from the girl again, and she meant it. No one, not the Guild or her father could ever take Juliette away from her. She would make sure no one ever hurts Juliette again. That is her promise she’ll keep until her very last breath.