The Vampire Princess and the mate curse

Chapter 4

-PIPPA-

"Hell no! I’m not going!"

My father’s voice detonated through the drawing room, shaking the walls as if the entire house feared his rage. He stood rigid in the center of the space, his Italian suit impeccable despite the fury radiating off him. His glare—a weapon itself—could make lesser men cower in a corner and weep.

"Just for a week, Petru. Don’t be unreasonable," Uncle Hyp said, his tone edged with frustration. He crossed his arms, planting his feet as if bracing for impact.

He wasn’t really my uncle, but my mom thinks of him as a brother, so I have called him Uncle Hyp since I was little. He was the father of the twins.

Thank Moon Goddess we were not related. Because that would make what I feel about Helios pretty gross.

It had only been a few days since my abduction, and my parents and I had come to the Silver Moon pack to discuss our next moves.

"Fifty bucks says Dad will restrain Petru’s fury with his dark power before midnight," Dawn murmured, amusement playing at the corners of her lips. Her blue eyes gleamed, the kind of glint that meant trouble.

"Dawn! That’s not right," I muttered, cutting her a side glance from my spot on the couch, wedged between her and Helios.

"Yeah, it’s not," Helios chimed in, leaning back against the cushions as if settling in for a show. "Make it a hundred."

"It's just for the council meeting, Petru. A few days, tops." Orion, Uncle Hyp's beta, tried to protest, but my father shut him down with a look so sharp it could cut steel. With no fight left in him, Orion slumped into his chair, defeated.

"And another hundred if Petru sends Orion flying—just like last Christmas," Hellios added, his wicked smirk deepened, dimples carving into his cheeks.

My father, despite being the most powerful figure in the vampire world, is calm, fun, playful. Unless he is provoked. Very few things could set him off.

One of them? My safety.

The other? His feelings for my mom.

Last Christmas was proof of that. We were hosting a party at our house for our friends. The air was light with warmth and laughter. My mom, completely oblivious, had stood beneath a mistletoe, nursing a glass of red wine. Orion had been making his way toward her—poor guy. He had a mate and wanted nothing to do with my mom, but twenty-four years ago, they’d hooked up.

Just once, but my father didn’t forget.

Before Orion even got within reach, my father swung his arm, sending him flying across the room. Orion had crashed straight into the Christmas tree, taking it down with a spectacular explosion of fairy lights and shattered ornaments.

"You’re insane if you think I’d leave—barely weeks after someone tried to kid.nap my daughter—just to attend a f.ucking council meeting in Europe!" My father’s voice lashed through the room, his jaw clenched, fangs elongating. "We still don’t know who took her. Or what they wanted."

Frustration seeped from him, thick and suffocating, washing over everyone in waves.

"They spotted some hybrid creatures wandering the mountains in Bulgaria. They asked for our help, and you know them far better than I do. Petru," Uncle Hyp said, his tone soft, almost pleading. He was desperately trying to rein my father in. "I have a gut feeling these things are connected. It’s no coincidence that we haven’t seen creatures like this in twenty years. Now, suddenly, they appear? And people have started going missing again."

My father exhaled sharply, shaking his head. His voice, while quieter now, was no less sharp. "How the hell am I supposed to leave my daughter unprotected, Hyperion?" His glare bore into Uncle Hyp, an unspoken challenge. "You should worry more about your family than other people’s packs. Like preparing your son to take your place as the next Alpha. You’re not going to live forever."

At the mention of Helios becoming Alpha, the temperature plummeted. Dawn had never wanted the title. Helios, on the other hand, was eager—hungry for it. But Uncle Hyp kept insisting he wasn’t ready.

The question was, would he ever be?

"This isn’t the time for that conversation," Uncle Hyp growled, his eyes flickering to the cerulean blue of his wolf. His edges blurred slightly—the first sign of his body teetering toward shifting. "Besides, he doesn’t even have a mate to call Luna yet."

I flinched. Does that matter so much to him? A pit opened in the bottom of my stomach, hollow and aching. I wasn’t Helios’s mate. But my naïve heart had clung to the idea that maybe—someday—he would reciprocate my feelings and make me his Luna.

But if his father was against it...would Helios be, too?

Uncle Hyp hadn’t always cared about fated mates. That had changed completely when he ended up with Aunt Theia. The bond hadn’t snapped into place immediately—some witch had been feeding him a potion to suppress it—but when it finally broke through, it was undeniable.

"That’s bullsh.it!" Helios erupted, his playful stance vanishing as he shot up from the couch. "You were made Alpha when you were just a kid! I still have time to choose my Luna."

My gaze dropped. Suddenly, my knees were the most interesting thing in the room.

I wished I were anywhere but here.

The thought of Helios finding his mate—marking her, making her his Luna—coiled through my chest like an icy vine, squeezing until breathing became a struggle.

Uncle Hyp parted his lips to respond, but my mom cut in, standing abruptly. "How about we get back on track?" She turned to my father, stepping closer until she was within reach. "How about you fly to Europe and find out what’s really happening? I’ll stay back and take care of Pippa if you think your vampire soldiers aren’t enough to protect her."

My father’s glare softened, his massive frame yielding under her presence, just as it always did.

"Little eagle," he murmured, "and who’s going to protect you?"

She smirked, wicked and knowing. "You know damn well I can protect myself." She could. She was the best warrior among us.

She took another step, stopping just inches from him, and then—she did it. The puppy-eyed look. "Can you do this for me, please?"

Now I knew she was playing dirty.

Because my father would do anything she asked.

Anything.

Once, she even convinced him to dress as Santa and deliver presents to us as kids. As if anyone wouldn’t notice a towering six-foot-eight vampire in a fake beard and a ridiculous red suit.

"Okay, I’ll go." He sighed, defeated. "But you keep me informed. The moment something happens, I fly right back."

"Nothing will happen," Theia—mother of the twins—interjected from her chair, her voice steady, unwavering. "They only attacked because they thought we were an easy target. Now that we’re expecting the worst, whoever they are will refocus on something else. Someone else."

"Aunt Theia is right." I straightened, forcing conviction into my voice. "Besides, I can take care of myself. I was oblivious to the threat—overconfident. I won’t make the same mistake twice."

I wasn’t the warrior my mom was, but I trained hard. Hard enough to stand my ground when it mattered.

I was ready to take them down myself. Then Helios, ever the knight in shining armor, swooped in.

"I’ll protect her too," he said, turning those sharp green eyes on me.

I barely resisted the urge to roll mine.

Typical.

Everyone was eager to safeguard the delicate little princess.

Ugh. Cringe.

"Well, everything’s decided, and I’m beaten," my mom announced, effectively closing the discussion as she reached for my father’s hand. "I think we’ll be going. Let’s go, Pippa?"

"Actually, I’m staying tonight," I replied, keeping my voice casual. "Helios asked me to help him train some new pack members in the morning. I’ll be home by the end of the day."

My dad frowned but didn’t argue. He knew how often I stayed in the Silver Moon Pack—it had been a second home to me since childhood.

"Okay. See you tomorrow." Mom pulled my father toward the door, Orion, Uncle Hyp and Aunt Theia trailing behind.

"Looks like we both lost the bet, bro. I'm done. What a boring evening," Dawn said, stretching dramatically with a fake yawn.

"I’ll check on the guest room for you, Pippa," Helios added before disappearing down the hall.

Then, it was just Dawn and me.

I exhaled, sinking back onto the couch as the exhaustion of the past few days finally caught up to me.

Her gaze burned into the side of my cheek.

"What?" I snapped, too tired for games.

That glint in her blue eyes—excited, knowing—sent unease rippling through me. "My gram had a new vision last week."

My heart kicked.

Dawn’s grandmother was a seer. Back when my father was still searching for a way to break the mate curse he had set on himself, he sought her out.

There was talk of a sacred chalice—one my father believed could break the curse. But it had been lost in the 17th century.

"And?" My curiosity stirred despite my exhaustion. Her grandmother didn’t have as many visions these days as she used to.

Dawn licked her lips, barely containing her excitement. "She saw the sacred chalice. She saw where it was hidden."