James went upstairs to Alessandra’s room. Coco, her ever-faithful dog was there beside her, looking up at him expectantly. He gave her a pat and sat down by Ally’s side, watching her for a moment. She was perfect.
His heart ached at the thought of losing her, but he knew it may come to that, if she couldn’t defeat Vincent. It was her destiny to fight him, but the outcome wasn’t written in the stars. That part was up to her, and her alone. James would stand by her until his last breath; if that was what it took, but it must be by her hand. He wiped his hand over his eyes, fighting off the despair.
James got control of his emotions. There was no time for that now, he had to get Ally to fall into a deep sleep and then get her out of here.
He leaned in close and whispered in her ear, “Sleep my little one.” She let out a deep breath and James felt her succumb. It was time to go. James scooped her up off the bed and went in search of Adele.
She was waiting for them near the front door, looking around as if to say good-bye. “I love this house,” she sighed.
“You will return here one day, Adele.”
“No, I think it’s time for me to return to the immortal way of life in my homeland, and Alessandra will need me in Scotland.”
They both knew that Alessandra’s fate was set. She was to kill or be killed by Vincent when the time came. It didn’t matter whether either of them liked it or not.
“Did you get Coco?” Adele asked, picking up her travel bags.
James opened his jacket, and Coco popped her head out and barked.
Adele couldn’t help but smile. “Ally won’t realize at first, but she is very blessed to have you as a soul mate.”
James cocked his head to the side and gave her a lazy smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Tell her that for me won’t you? Something tells me I’m going to need all the help I can get to convince her.”
“She’ll come around. I promise.”
They left the house without a backward glance. It was not the right time for nostalgia. It was time to move. James’s shiny black Mercedes was parked in the driveway.
He lowered Alessandra gently onto the back seat, then put Coco in the passenger seat. She looked up at James with her soulful brown eyes. “Everything will be alright, girl. All of us will protect her,” he whispered.
Coco continued to gaze at him for a moment then dropped her head down and went to sleep.
James threw the keys towards Adele. She caught them with reflexes so fast the human eyes would have missed it.
“Drive,” James ordered. All his softness from a moment ago gone. He was terrified for his love.
They had to get away without incident. The sooner they were at his home in the wild untamed land of Scotland the better. There, they would be surrounded by servants, who were more like friends. They would help him protect her if they had to. In Melbourne, he felt too isolated and alone. There was no-one he could turn to. No-one who fully understood the gravity of the situation…