Immortal Desire

Chapter 6 | Camillia

“What truth do I need to know, Babbo? D?”

Bernice entered the house without Ephraim knowing. She is starting to show her powers but not entirely. Lately, Ephraim noticed that Bernice could disappear. Is she aware of her powers? Her mind-reading skills are becoming more substantial than before. Ephraim’s in trouble of what the outcome will be when Bernice gains her power. He is troubled about Bernice’s transformation into a werewolf. When the time comes, he can no longer control her mind. Bernice will have her own decisions and will no longer need his guidance. The thought of his Bambina will no longer be dependent on him tormenting Ephraim.

Twenty-one days from now is the lunar eclipse. An admonition that the blood moon is fast approaching. He needs to be ready when Bernice becomes a werewolf. The war between the werewolves, vampires, and humans is about to begin.

The first howl of the chosen one, the Luna, will convey danger or peace to all werewolves, vampires, and humans. The chosen one will be either aggressive or become astray. Ephraim lived more than a thousand years and has witnessed the power of various Luna’s, but her daughter Bernice is the most distinct. Unlike the others, Bernice has a strength of a shaman. She can heal or cast illness. Bernice can call and move elements to her desire. If Gemma stone and Bernice’s become one, she will be the most powerful creature, and no one can defy her will.

Bernice doesn’t know about her powers. She doesn’t know what danger awaits her on the day of the blood moon.

“Babbo, what’s the truth?” Bernice asked again in silence.

Ephraim was lost for a moment, engulfed by the things that will happen in the coming days.

“It’s not time, mi Bambina.”

“When is the right time? I need to know, Babbo. Is it the truth of who I am?”

“Si, mi Bambina.”

“I met with Del Fierro,” Bernice states with no hesitations, knowing that she defied her father’s order.

“Have I not warned you?!” Ephraim shouted in anger.” You are putting yourself in danger, Bernice. Much worse, when you fall into his trap, you can no longer come out. Bambina, I have protected you for fifteen years, and I will not let Erasmus take everything that belongs to you.”

“What do you mean ‘take everything that belongs to me?”

“Leave us alone. I need to speak to Bernice privately.”

Dimitri and Raquel left to who knows where they were going. Ephraim motioned for Bernice to follow him. They went inside a room looking soundproof—no windows, just a door to enter the room. Then Ephraim pushed a bookshelf, and it opened to another room with stairs going to a basement.

“Babbo! Where are we going?”

“To the place where you could remember why you should not be close to Erasmus del Fierro.”

“Non capisco, Babbo,” Bernice replied.

Bernice couldn’t fathom a single word Ephraim is trying to make her understand.

Inside the basement on the right corner wall are human photos—a picture of a woman and two men. The woman with a dagger on her chest and a man has a slit on his throat. There was a little girl beside the man that looked exactly like her when she was a kid—another man hanged on a tree in front of a crowd with a dragon tattoo on his forearms. The tattoo is closer to his wrist.

“The tattoo. Who is that man with the tattoo? He looks like Erasmus. Is it him?”

“He 's Onyx del Fierro.”

“Who is he?”

“The man who murdered your mother, father, and you.”

“But I am alive!” Bernice exclaimed.

“Bernice, tell me the truth. Do you remember or not remember your past? Your memories?”

“Babbo, I don’t remember a thing . . . except for that tattoo.”

“That is not what I feel otherwise, Bernice. Don’t lie to me.”

“Babbo, I don’t remember. I swear I don’t.”

Bernice lied because the truth is she can vividly remember every single detail of what happened that night. The night of the blood moon when her parents were murdered. The day she became an orphan. She couldn’t take Ephraim and Magdalene enough to take care of her like their own daughter. There is no single moment in her fifteen years she felt without a family because they loved her truly. Bernice promised herself to protect the family she grew up with in any way she could.

She remembered everything a year ago when she traveled with Raque to Manila to attend La Quinta’s annual masquerade party. The day she met Erasmus del Fierro. A year after that, they met again at Milan’s Jewels —a European Jewelry Exhibit. Her intuition of Erasmus being related to her true identity grows fonder. When Raque offered her to be the endorser of La Quinta Jewels’, Bernice didn’t think twice. She grabbed the offer. It is her chance to get to be close and find out what’s bothering her.

However, today, she felt disenchanted by how Erasmus treated her. She is deeply puzzled on how her body reacts whenever their skin touches.

“Babbo. Am I—I . . . Am I related to Erasmus? Have we met before? Why does it feel like I have known him for so long?”

Bernice walked closer to the picture frames paying more attention to the man with the dragon tattoo. Ephraim was shell-shocked as he did not envision Bernice will ask about the man he is trying to prevent from getting close to his daughter.

”Babbo, I have this strange emotional attachment towards Erasmus. Why is that so? Is it because I am beginning to foresee the future? My mother was a shaman. Isn’t she?”

“Yes, your mother was a Shaman in Senadosa,” before she died.”The most powerful sorcerer during that time.”

“Does it mean I have the ability and the power like my mother?”

“More powerful than her, Bambina. You must not get closer to Erasmus, he will take everything from you.”

“Babbo, non capisco. Please, tell me what Erasmus will be taking from me? Father, you have said that a couple times but you haven’t told me what is. I don’t understand. Non Capisco, Babbo.”

“Bambina, please, listen to me. You can not be close to Erasmus. You will be in good grief and will suffer so much pain if you do. Remember to stop what you are feeling right now. It would be best if you could control the physical desire you are feeling towards him. Your mind should take control of what happens, not your heart. Capire?”

“But why would I control my emotional response to him? My body is betraying me. I know my heart loves Raque, my mind says it too. But my body, my body is contradicting what my heart and mind dictates.”

“Oh, mi Bambina. You should have listened to me. Why did you defy me? I am starting to think you already regained your memories but you keep it to yourself. Am I right?”

Ephraim worries that the same faith will happen to Bernice as Dimitri’s mother.

Bernice is showing signs of physical attraction towards her Alpha. It is inevitable for an Alpha and a Luna to mate. Their bond will be solidified when their bodies become one. Nobody and no one knows when will be the day of their mating. It will happen and Ephraim knows Erasmus and Bernice will meet and the physical desires and the emotional attachment they have for each other can’t be forbidden.

Fierro might end up making a horrifying decision if he finds out Bernice is in love with Raquel Santillan. Would his fate end up like the last Luna? Would Erasmus lose his mind like how Dimitri’s mother did? Ephraim was left no choice but to lock up Camillia after giving birth to Dimitri. Before Elfego and Camillia wedding, Ephraim had a night affair with her. She was already pregnant with Dimitri. Camillia, the previous Luna, was fated to be Elfego’s mate. But, Elfego fell in love with a human and Camillia cheated on the Alpha.

The last Luna defied the moon goddess. The reason why Gemma stone lost its power. Only the new chosen with a pure heart and has not been touched by an Alpha can unleashed and revived the power of the Gemma stone. The reason why Ephraim forbids Bernice on being close to Erasmus. Bernice is in love with Raque. She might not have told Ephraim the truth of what she feels, but he knows his daughter very well, especially when she’s lying.

Ephraim made Elfego believe Camillia was dead. But, Ephraim couldn’t kill her. She’s the mother of his child and he had fallen in love with a half-human and a half-werewolf. Camillia did not know about her fate when they met. She was ready to be one of his kind. Like Bernice, Camillia’s parents were killed. They were murdered by Ephraim forefathers. Camillia found out the day of her wedding with Elfego. Emmeline told Camillia everything that she saw about her past and what will be her future. Afraid to die on the day of the blood moon. Camillia came back a few days after running off. She started killing creatures in the forest along with her own kind. Quinta’s assumed she felt betrayed by Elfego when she saw him with Emmeline.

But, Camillia did not felt betrayed. She offered herself to Ephraim to transform her to be one of his kind. The blood of a werewolf mixed with a vampire may turn into a beast. Camillia became a beast almost killing Dimitri. Her own son. It was painful for Dimitri to lockup his beloved Camillia like a prisoner but it’s the only way he could do to stop her from killing.

Ephraim knows Bernice is lying—with no doubt, she knows who she is. She already found out her roots. Bernice, too eager to come back to the Philippines, makes him think she is up to finding everything about her past. He needs to be ahead of Erasmus before it’s too late. She’s putting herself in danger, or is she planting a trap for del Fierro? He can longer read her mind. She learned to block him from entering her thoughts. Does Bernice suspect Erasmus murdered her parents?