Centuries of Sin : Book IV

41(bonus chapter)

Final chapter with backstory which is from Marlene's point of view and explains her feelings for Elizabeth’s father. The only things that I think need any context are that the boyfriend she had before she met Elizabeth's father was named Theo, and that she had no idea whatsoever about Elizabeth’s grandfather being involved in sending her away, she assumed it was entirely Daniel's choice and that he arranged it alone.

I never really expected Daniel to leave.

I had seen the ticket, and Daniel had spoken to me about what I could expect when I got there.

I knew I was going to have to learn English, and that he had somehow managed to arrange for me to transfer to a university there.

I knew that he loved me at the time, but I didn’t truly understand why. 

Daniel showed me a world that I never would have known about otherwise, but he didn’t drag me too far in - all I knew for sure was that his world was brutal.

When I woke up without him I felt betrayed.

I knew he was gone - really gone - and that he had left me alone with our daughter for good.

I didn’t want to leave, but I was terrified that someone would come here to find me if I stayed and if I didn’t catch the flight he had arranged my only option would be going back to my hometown and that wasn’t an option now that Theo knew the baby wasn’t his.

He left some things for me in the kitchen; there was a file with information about where I would be living, and enough money to see me through the next few months. I flicked through the information over and over again in search of something sentimental but there was nothing like that.

It was all so meticulously organized, and I had no idea how he had managed to arrange everything without me knowing.

I realized later that it was just proof of what his kind were like; no matter what I felt about Daniel his kind were cold and calculating.

He had convinced me that he loved me, and that he was acting in the best interests of me and our daughter, but he had managed to arrange all of this and I thought he would probably have been able to find a way to stay in touch with me if that was what he wanted.

I didn’t want to think that he was a monster - I still wanted him to be there for me and our daughter, and I named her Elizabeth Artemis when she was born because part of me still believed he loved me, and that he might find us again one day.

I met Elizabeth's dad before she was born: Craig James Sloane. His advert had been the easiest, clearest, and cheapest in the first newspaper I picked up.

Experienced English tutor available - $7p/h

When he arrived for the first session and saw that I was a pregnant teenager with no friends or family in the city, he took pity on me and refused to accept my money.

I found out that he actually ran a business in the city; he tutored English for fun in his spare time, and that he didn't really need the money anyway.

He ended up coming over more often as time went on, and we developed a genuine friendship despite the fact he was in his early thirties and absolutely nothing like me.

One thing led to another, and a few weeks after Elizabeth's birth, he proposed.

I wanted her to stand a chance at a normal life; Craig was stable, and he was safe - he was a kind man, and he cared for me and Elizabeth.

He gave me the strength to keep going during those first few months without Daniel, he was the one who held us all together.

We never really spoke about it, but he didn't stop them putting his name on her birth certificate when she was born, and Elizabeth looked so much like me that nobody ever questioned whether Craig was her father.

It felt pointless to tell the truth; she was registered as Elizabeth Artemis Sloane, and she was his daughter.

I knew he loved her, and that he loved me, but...I was never really sure how I felt about him.

He was an amazing father, and he clearly adored Elizabeth; we were lucky that we had someone like him in our lives.

He used to take her camping in the summer - I could never bring myself to go with them.

It reminded me too much of the time I spent with Daniel, and I was always afraid that I would see something in Elizabeth that would make it impossible to pretend Daniel wasn't really her father.

Craig died when she was eleven, and for the first time in her life I had a chance to think about what I wanted - whether I wanted someone else, or to raise her alone now that I was established and stable.

I never found anybody else who made me feel anything like the way I felt with Daniel.

Craig had been what I needed at the time, but after he died I decided I wasn't going to settle for less than what Daniel made me feel and... that just never happened.

It almost felt like it had been a dream until Elizbeth was attacked by a wolf when she was 19.

I was sure it was more than a freak coincidence, but I didn't want that to be true and... she hadn't been killed.

I had no way of getting in touch with Daniel, or anyone else from his world, and I just had to hope that the attack really was a coincidence.

Elizabeth settled down with a guy who reminded me a lot of Theo when she was in her early twenties, and I could see she wanted something more than he was offering her, but I was afraid to tell her that she needed something more exciting than a life with a dull but tediously overbearing man in case she ended up doing something reckless.

She was heartbroken when they broke up - more than she was willing to admit - and I was afraid that she was never going to find something that would make her happy.

I was always willing to talk to her if she wanted to talk, and I noticed a change in her a couple of weeks before she admitted that she was seeing someone.

I was relieved, and I was excited for her until I actually met the guy because I knew immediately what he was.

His eyes were like pools of fire, and he was disarmingly charismatic; terrifyingly beautiful.

Daniel would probably have considered the guy a perfect match for our daughter, but it wasn't something I wanted for her and when I found out his name... I regretted hiding the truth from her.

He was a member of the Pack I had been warned about shortly after arriving - he was dangerous, and I didn't want that life for her.

It was like the universe had really fought against me keeping the truth from her; I tried to talk her out of the relationship, but she wouldn't listen - she was in love, and she thought she knew better than I did.

He had shown her this world - their world - and she thought I had no idea about any of the things she was so entranced by.

I couldn't blame her for falling in love; he was a handsome man and he seemed to love her fiercely... but, again, I was afraid he would ruin her. I was afraid that he was manipulating her, and leading her into danger, or that he knew the truth about her father and that she was a pawn in a game she had no concept of.

I couldn't imagine that she would be safe with someone like him, and her safety was all I had ever cared about.

In the brief moments I let myself believe that Daniel had been honest with me, I thought that he would have been heartbroken if she ended up with someone so dangerous.

In the end, I told her the truth about her father.

I told her that the man she loved would abandon her eventually because it was in his nature.

"What is going to happen if he gets hurt trying to defend you? Or when he takes over from his father and finds himself a proper mate? He probably already has someone arranged who is waiting for him. Are you prepared to live with the constant fear that he will not come home until that day finally comes? Or to watch another woman bear his children while you’re nothing more than a dirty secret? Or to spend your life looking over your shoulder because some of them would want to kill you for being with a future Alpha even if you weren’t human?"

Her response was simple:

"I'm not you...I am not as naïve as you were. I know he might not come back one day, and it hurts, and I hate it, but I didn’t decide to spend my life with him out of nowhere. You have to trust that I am not you, and he is not my father."

She was right, and I had no right to condemn her or to tell her that she was making the wrong decision, but it still hurt.

I just hoped that she would be happy with him. I hoped that she wouldn't end up regretting her decision and that they would be happy in his world; I hoped that she wouldn't end up like me.

She had every right to be furious with me for hiding the truth, and I knew that it would take her a long time to forgive me, but I hoped that she would forgive me in time.

I tried to get back in touch with her when I found out I was sick, because I wanted to tell her everything I knew about her father, but she made it clear she wasn't interested in speaking to me again.

I had to accept that I wasn't going to see her again, and that I couldn't keep her safe anymore.