The Dark Secret of the CEO by Sofia de Orellana

Chapter 19

“…I thought we weren’t expecting everyone?” I mutter, a bit worried now.

“We weren’t, but when Richard summons us, most at least give a reply, even to decline. We haven’t heard from Quentin.”

“What about Viktor?” Asks Cata. “And Elijah?”

“Viktor just texted back in the group chat,” Cecily says. “He’s fine, just sulking as usual.”

“Vivian said she was coming, she might just be late. Susan hasn’t texted in a while though…”

“So Quentin, Susan and Elijah are also missing?” Mutters Benedict. “…What the heck is going on?”

All eyes go to the patriarch… Is that the real reason he summoned them all here, and forbade them from leaving London? His dark expression tells me that’s right, but there might also be more than that. Greyson looks a bit out of breath, and he smells like gasoline. A biker?

“…I understand,” Richard mutters after a while. “Thank you, Greyson.”

Greyson nods, then glances my way. To my surprise, he walks up to me, and before I can utter a word, he pats my head, his huge hand easily covering my scalp, and then walks past us, towards the kitchen. I let out a faint sigh, while Cecily leans against the door frame, grabbing her phone. I bet she’s texting the missing vampires. Behind us, I spot Felicia, standing on the stairs with a sad expression. Bart glances at her too, and they silently exchange looks. I don’t know what to say… He then puts an arm around my waist, and without a word, I’m pushed back upstairs, Cecily following us. We all leave Richard alone in the living room.

“What the hell could have happened?” Bart groans after we’ve reached the second floor. “Atticus was no newborn and he always kept to himself. Who could have tried to attack him…?”

“You think someone attacked him?” I ask, shocked.

“That’s the only explanation,” whispers Felicia. “We don’t die from disease, and it’s unlikely a human could kill us. Atticus was the most quiet, calm vampire you could imagine. He spent four centuries living in the same area, guarding the cemetery his family was buried in. He would come to London or see one of us once in a while, but he wouldn’t have gone somewhere without at least telling one of us.”

“If it had been an accident, Greyson would have found him,” adds Cecily. “Vampires don’t simply disappear like that.”

I can’t help but shiver. Who could have been strong and mad enough to attack a three-centuries-old vampire? Do the Heartgraves have enemies I have yet to hear about? From what I’ve seen and heard, they all have their own lives, so who the heck would choose to attack one of them, and why? They seem worried it’s someone who’s after all of them, seeing how they were disturbed about the ones missing earlier…

ask. “…That one of

head. “There were more of us before, but like we said, we lost a lot of our siblings during the wars. The thing is, wars were also a good way for enemy vampires to kill some of us without getting Richard’s attention. They are all trying to get to him, to our Overlord, through us. Richard’s a very, very powerful and old vampire, so they target us in order to

why we keep the newbies close to

for my sake… I have a bad feeling about this. I’m

me towards my door. “Leave this to the grown-ups to

back to lying on the bed. I listen to everyone going back to their own, and the house gets quiet again. I

sheets, more for comfort than for warmth. It seems like this life as a Heartgraves won’t be without danger either. For now, I should just trust Richard and the others… Seems like I’ll be safe as long as I obey their rules. Plus, I

determined, and full of ideas. According to an app Cecily set up on my phone, the sun just went down, and it’s still early in the evening. I quickly get up, but then, my enthusiasm is cut short again. Crap, I really need to get some clothes… Instead, I just go downstairs in my pajamas. As expected, Cata is

with a big smile. “Did you

doesn’t look like she heard one of her siblings went missing, or worse. She changed clothes, and is now wearing black leather pants and a simple white blouse, but it looks like they are all brand new, and perfectly flattering her impressive figure. She clearly puts the accent on her

“Yes, thanks,” I nod.

she says, clapping her hands together. “It’s not often that I get to take one of my little sisters shopping, so today’s

coming too!” Suddenly shouts Cecily

me a knit dress she bought and never wore for some reason, with high boots. Not my style, but it will do for tonight. When I go back downstairs, Swithin is up, and

National Identity Card, and my business card, for emergencies. Though I really hope you won’t need to use

you,” I mutter,

subtracting 25 years… I guess that makes me a Libra now? Everything looks absolutely genuine. I don’t dare to ask what the

now, I’ve also sent you the details we’ve set as your life as Hera, so make sure you learn it all by heart, and do not make

“Yes, Sir,” I nod.

“We have to shop for your passport protection and a proper

favorite season. We take Rebecca’s car, and rush to the nearest shopping mall before it closes. I’m genuinely impressed at how efficient they are at picking which shops we still have time to shop

of shopping for clothes for myself is just one thing I had been missing for a long while. Plus, I’m Hera now. Hera’s body is different from June’s, and I don’t need to wear flashy, sexy clothes to get the photographers’ attention. In fact, I find that I tend to naturally gravitate towards the basics, and pick simple designs but with higher-quality fabrics, in dark or simple tones. In just two hours, I buy four different denim jeans, two pairs of leather pants, some short skirts to show off my legs, a few bodysuits with long sleeves, three strap tops, a couple of turtlenecks, and two dresses. Following Rebecca’s advice, I also buy a couple of accessories for jewelry, like a layered necklace, a few gold rings, and little hoop earrings. When it comes to shoes though, Cecily is a real tyrant. She forces me to try eighteen different pairs, each more impossible than the last, and half of them I couldn’t possibly have worn with my human legs without breaking an ankle. While I love being able to wear high heels, I’m just not ready yet for the snake skin or big red pumps. Luckily, I manage to settle for some boots, low and high, relatively normal heels, and even a pair of Nike Air Max, just so I look human from time to time… The last stop is the Dior makeup stand, and this time, I’m more than happy to try and get the latest colors I saw last night into my shopping bag. Rebecca and Cecily have literally dozens of decades of knowledge on makeup, and happily advise me on which colors to get. Right after I pay for it all, still impressed at how the credit card doesn’t flinch at the impressive expenses of the day, we get back to the middle of the shopping mall, with all the shops around us closing or about to. I feel satisfied, and of

a bit hungry, ladies.

like going with them. In fact, those three long hours of shopping have rendered me kind of overwhelmed, and I feel the need to be… alone, for a bit. We keep walking back to the parking lot, and they already have their eyes set on some high-end

home instead?” I ask. “I just…

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