Chapter 280 Consequences- Part 1
Madeline didn't miss the way her grandmother looked down at Calhoun and her hands holding each other. The smile on her grandmother's face faltered. When her grandmother opened her arms, waiting for Madeline to step forward and hug, Calhoun pulled Madeline behind to receive a narrow-eyed look from the old couple.
"Is there a reason why you are keeping our granddaughter away from us, my Lord," Madeline's grandfather questioned Calhoun, who was not pleased with the little action that took place in front of them.
"There's more than one, but I don't think I have to explain it when you are already aware of it," Calhoun offered them a smile, "You should be careful of what you speak."
"We don't know what you are speaking about. You should already know we are not someone who welcome vampires with open arms. King or not, we can still take our granddaughter away from you," said Madeline's grandfather.
"And I am guessing that you would be achieving it by putting her in the coffin? Or is it me?" Calhoun retorted back.
Noticing how her grandparents looked startled and taken aback that the King knew. Madeline didn't forget the way her grandfather held the knife against her throat, ready to slit it. When she and Calhoun were making their way down here, she hadn't guessed that Calhoun would be diving right at the start to get to the bottom of the situation without waiting for an opportunity.
"I don't know what you are speaking about," her grandmother tilted her head to the side and raised her eyebrows. She then shifted her gaze to look at Madeline, "Do you know what he is saying?" Her grandmother then turned to Calhoun, "If this is one of your ploys to tear away our granddaughter from our family, you are sorely mistaken that we will allow it."
"That's right. We have already heard about what you did to her. Forcing her to stay away from her family and us. It doesn't look good on the King's part," stated her grandfather who raised his hand as if quietly asking Calhoun to release Madeline's hand so that she could greet them, "We thought this was the time to spend time with the family."
Calhoun's smile broadened on his lips, "I would very much like to think so, but I doubt that is why you are here."
"Why do y-" her grandmother started only to be interrupted by Madeline.
"Why did you do that?" she asked her grandparents.
Now that she was aware of what took place years ago, she wanted to know what exactly was going on and what they were hiding from her. Her grandparents looked more shocked, their eyes narrowing down as her grandmother asked,
"What are you talking about, dearie?" her grandmother's voice was sweet and kind, the one she was used to and not the one which she had witnessed last night.
Calhoun finally released her hand which was around his, giving her the space she needed.
"I am asking why did you put me into the coffin. Why did you leave me there?" Madeline questioned.
"It's rubbish! I don't know what has gotten to you and what you are saying now. Do you hear yourself speak?" her grandmother laughed.
Calhoun rolled his eyes at the woman, "Why don't we all sit down unless you have the plan to stand the entire time?" he proposed and without waiting for anyone, Calhoun took a seat on the plush couch who was followed by the others.
"Has this vampire brainwashed you? This is why we don't allow the filthy vampires to mix with our family and people-"
"That's enough, grandma," Madeline's voice came out to be distant, "I saw what you did to me. I saw what grandpa did to me. Why did you put me in the coffin?" She repeated her question, "Do mama and papa know what you did?"
Before her grandmother could utter another word, her grandfather raised his hand, "Gemma."
"It must be very convenient to push the blame on vampires for the deeds and actions which are accountable for. Are you feeling ashamed that the truth is finally out?" Calhoun questioned without filtering his words which he didn't see the need to do as he lacked any empathy for the family who had left Madeline in the coffin.
The only reason he hadn't dragged them to the dungeon was because he wanted to hear what they knew about Madeline.
"We did it because we had to. We were only protecting our families," the truth came out from her grandfather's mouth and Madeline who had taken a seat next to Calhoun felt her hands hold each other tightly.
Now that she had the confirmation of what had happened, she didn't know how to react to it. Her grandfather didn't appear to be guilty for what he did. There was not a hint of regret in his voice, and it broke Madeline's heart.
"Are you descendant of the angels?" Calhoun hit straight at the nail making her grandmother looked extremely uncomfortable.
"Yes, we are. It seems like you know about our existence. If you do, then you should also know that Madeline cannot stay here," said her grandfather, "Our apologies but you cannot marry her as she needs to return to the coffin."
"Tough luck with that," Calhoun commented, "Why? Because she killed a girl?"
Senior Mr. and Mrs. Harris' face hardened by Calhoun's words, "You don't understand what she is capable of. It will benefit all of us if she dies because her body is turning back to its previous form and soon there will be nothing but blood."
A shuddered breath escaped from Madeline's lips. She was glad that she was sitting and not standing right now, "Why would you do that. I am like all of you," said Madeline to her grandfather, "I am your granddaughter."
"That's why I took the responsibility to put you in your grave. I would prefer you in the coffin than go rampant and destroy everything which will cause our kind's destruction," the tone her grandfather used had changed and so did the look in his eyes. He looked at her similar to how he did when he looked at vampires. Her grandfather then said, "Many years ago, our ancestors fell from the sky, losing many of their abilities and only a few were able to retain it. Because of one angel's fault, they were punished. We have been living like the humans, but some go bad, just like the one who caused disruption, turning to the dark side."
"What does that have anything to do with me?" Madeline asked, "I was a child when you put me in the coffin to sleep."
"Sleep?" her grandfather turned his gaze away, "We hoped it would put you to rest for good. Because it worked for other's, but we didn't expect you to wake up."
Calhoun murmured, "Wake up?"
"Our methods might be harsh, but we did what we thought was right. You killed not one but an entire family," her grandfather gritted his teeth as he said this, "Do you know what you are capable of? You are just like a walking destructive weapon."
"There must have been a reason why that happened," Madeline tried to reason, her eyebrows furrowing. She refused to believe that she had hurt someone. "I saw what you did to the girl. Jennine. How can she die twice? I saw it in my eyes and Beth remembers it too-"
"Beth knows nothing about it," her grandmother cut in, "And we would prefer that you don't taint her with the darkness that resides in your heart." All these years, Madeline believed that she was a dotted granddaughter, but the truth finally came out that it was because she held volatile abilities.
Her grandmother continued, "We wanted to kill you for what you did. Once an angel turns to the dark side, they never returns to their normal self. It is an irreversible process."
"Madeline was small that time. How can someone so small turn to the dark side?" Calhoun was trying to understand and get answers from the old couple because they were the ones who held the key of answers and not Madeline's parents.
Even Madeline was curious to know about it. For someone who was scared of lizards and spiders, it was hard for her to believe that she had killed people before.
Her grandfather then started, "When an angel falls and turns to a human, there's a possibility for their heart to change and let darkness enter them. The village we live in, there are a few of them, the angels. We do not associate with the vampires and other creatures who have their hands and mouth covered in blood."
"I must say that being an angel doesn't look good. It makes you angels look like a weakling," Calhoun commented without holding back, and Madeline's grandparents glared at him.
"How dare you talk in such tone!" Madeline saw her grandfather stand up from his seat, raising his hand, he directed it to where Calhoun was. But the King raised his fingers and waved it to the side. Whatever her grandfather had tried to use on Calhoun, to attack him was directed to the wall. A loud sound was heard, and the wall cracked.
"You should be careful while using those hands of yours. In this old age, it is easy to break your bones," Calhoun's eyes brightened while the older couple looked at him in shock at how he deflected the attack.
"Y-you are not a vampire!" exclaimed the older man, the hate brewing further in his eyes, "You are a demon."
"No offence, but we all are demons in this room: some who killed, some who want to kill. So tell me what happened to Madeline that she caught the darkness," hummed Calhoun, "As angels, I would think that you have the ability to heal people. Ah, I forgot. You are the fallen one."
"We don't know what happened to her! Everything was alright, but one day she went missing for a few hours," Madeline's grandfather answered, "Me, my wife, and my son and his wife went looking for her only to find her standing in front of the dead bodies. We couldn't hide the death that took place, therefore we took the little girl to another grave to create an alibi, to make it look like vampires attacked them."
"Why?" Calhoun asked, still not understanding the motive, "To save your own ass?" He was pouring oil to the fire, and Madeline's grandparents continued to glare at the vampire who was impudently rude.
Madeline was in shock that her grandparents possessed some abilities. She now understood how her grandmother was able to keep the room soundproof. An angel's whispered spell.
"I chose to protect the others while sacrificing my granddaughter before your so-called High House comes to know about us. They have been tailing for generations, trying to find out more about our kind and use it for their own knowledge."
"How did I come out of the grave?" Madeline asked her grandparents, her eyebrows furrowing. The last thing she remembered was being suffocated in the coffin and not being helped to get out of it. How long was she in there?"
Her grandfather pursed his lips, "We hoped you wouldn't return. At least that is the notion we had when we placed you in there. We don't know how you came to turn to a dark angel. Because we have been protecting you since you were a baby. When Elizabeth was born, we had to take extra precaution to check and make sure that she hadn't turned to a dark angel. Your parents even thought to return to live in the village, telling Elizabeth was their only child. It was during the same time you decided to show up, covered in dirt that was accumulated over the years."
"How old was Beth then?" Madeline asked, holding her breath.