Read Online The Legend of Juliet: Part One (A Vampire Dystopia) (Finding Freedom Novellas) by Alexandra Lanc - Free Book Online Page B

since it wasn’t abnormal for Masters to visit the Bright to pick out the birth parents of the slaves that they would one day have; certain traits were liked by certain vampires, and I had once been told that, previous to the destruction of the human’s reign, there had been science to pinpoint or even create the features of a human child before they were born…but the Masters had chosen to destroy this science, finding it appalling. I had only ever seen the vampires from afar though, Miss Mercy always making sure to keep me in the back where they would never find me.
    Strange, I had thought then, how one mistake had led to me staring at Sibold as he’d faced me on my level, noting how beautiful, how unlike Miss Mercy he was; Miss Mercy had been beautiful in her own right, but in a more endearing way, years of hard work apparent though she didn’t age; hard work was what was important to her, though, and that passion had added to her beauty. I had lamented in the fact that, if we hadn’t been sitting by the fire, and the dragon-man hadn’t come to the Bright, I never would have had to leave my parents—
    But then I’d remembered the fact that they were giving me up, allowing me to leave without a fight, and my resentment had returned.
    Sibold had been kinder in that instance than they had, had better understood my feelings.
    “As a consolation, it is my duty to present you with a name,” Sibold had told me then, causing my heart to beat more quickly in prospect, my hidden desire resurfacing now that I had seen my parent’s ‘betrayal’. He had taken a moment to study my face as Miss Mercy had gasped, no doubt shocked by the kind way that he was treating me, and as he’d studied me, I’d also studied him.
    I still hadn’t liked him, but I had resigned myself to the fact that I would probably be spending a lot of time with him from then on, at that moment not quite sure how to feel about my departure. And of course there had been the confusion towards my parents, the fact that I had felt like the only home I’d ever known was home no longer due to their betrayal.
    My heart had broken that day, and it would be a while until it was mended, becoming different than its original self.
    “This world is so full of darkness, but you are so bright,” Sibold had told me, his hazel gaze once again piercing mine, as if he could see everything there was about me just from looking into my eyes, searching for the real me lingering inside. He had debated a moment, and then an almost sly smile had graced his mouth, upturning it as his eyes narrowed slightly, and he chuckled. “I shall name you Juliet – as the sun,” his eyes had begun to draw me in then, the world around evaporating even further as I’d focused solely on him, the grief and anger in me quelling a bit, replaced by an odd sort of calm; humans of old had myths that vampires were capable of hypnosis or mind-control, but I knew the truth – the kind of connection that you share with someone when you’re looking directly into their gaze often calms the soul, because it's a real connection, not a false one.
    Sibold’s words had been audible only to me – and perhaps Miss Mercy – as he’d then whispered: “Will you be my guiding light, Juliet?”
    The question had hung in the air for more than a few moments as I’d debated, not fully understanding that he was giving me a choice of whether or not I wished to leave with him or stay, though really it was best that I didn’t understand, because in staying my heart would have broken even further.
    My answer had been unexpected, as I’d told him: “I’ve never seen the sun.”
    This had caused Sibold’s smile to become sad once more, his hazel eyes darkening to a shade that resembled black as he had nodded, and had then leaned forwards until his forehead matched mine, his hazel orbs closer than ever, causing a shiver to ripple through me in a way that was foreign. “Yes, I know,” he’d said sadly,