~~
Talia
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The moment that I heard those two frantic and worried voices, I rushed to the door to unlock it. The problem is, I don't think that they were willing to wait that long. The moment that the lock slid to the side I heard a pounding on the door from the other side.
“Talia! Talia!” Alexio sounded really mad when he called for me.
“We're coming in!” I think Rudy was trying to warn me to stand back.
“I just unlocked the door. Don't do anything stupid.” I yelled out as I took a couple hurried steps back and away from the door.
.....
“Talia! Are you OK!?” Alexio called out to me again. Thankfully, though, he didn't break down the door. He had heard me about the lock and turned the handle properly.
“I'm fine, Alexio.” I tried not to laugh at him. “You don't need to be so overprotective of me. I was interviewing a couple of souls.” I was trying to calm them down while also letting them know what I had been doing. Most of the time, Rudy and Alexio were easy to get along with. However, if I were to get away from them or 'disappear' for no reason, I know that they would be more worried than anyone. I think they would forever worry about me more than my family would. They took protecting me very seriously.
“Why did you need to interview them, Talia? You are not a police officer, nor are you a detective. You are a princess that is studying to be a Goddess. This is not your job.” There Alexio goes again, being super strict with me.
“Who else could do it, Lex?” I called him by the nickname that I gave him long ago. “It's not like there are other people that can free souls that were trapped inside of bodies or speak to the dead.”
“I know others that can speak to the dead.” He glared at me with his deep red eyes. I could tell that he had run through the house to get here to me. His silver hair was disheveled and the jacket he was wearing wasn't sitting completely straight. Rudy was similar in his messy appearance. His black hair was not in its usual boyish style. He wasn't wearing a jacket, so that wasn't messed up. And his red eyes, lighter than Alexio's but still similar enough, looked worried.
“Yes, Lex, there are others who can speak to the dead, but they can't do what I can do. And besides, can you imagine the twins coming all the way over here? They would be so anxious that nothing would get done.” The bear twins, though no longer trapped in an in-between state of half human and half bear, were still not very good with people. They preferred to stay away from crowds and to stick with people that they knew. And they also vowed to follow me into the underworld when I went there. Apparently, they were going to be my personal servants or attendants while I lived in that realm. I guess that was an effective way to get away from people.
“Well, honestly, I must say that you have a point. Charlie and Chloe would not do well with these people. But that does not mean that you need to run away in the middle of the night.” Lex was definitely a lot more worried than he needed to be. “When we discovered you were missing, we thought we had failed you.”
“Lex.” I walked to his side and patted him on the arm. He was about seven and a half feet tall, so looking into his eyes was not easy for me, but I managed to get his attention and he angled his head for me. “I am sorry that you were worried about me.” My voice was soothing as I spoke to him. “But as you can see, I am just fine. You didn't fail me. You are the best guard and soldier I could ask for.”
“Thank you, Talia.”
Alexio was never this vulnerable when other people were around. When I was growing up, most of my friends were scared of him. They thought that he was a big scary monster that was going to eat them. Whenever he would guard me at their house, they would not want him to follow us around. And when they came to my house, they asked for Rudy to be my only guard.
I never saw what the others did. I never saw anyone that was scary. Even when I was just four years old, Alexio was nothing but a big teddy bear to me. I guess it could have just been me. In all honesty, I was probably the only person in the world who could look at a giant demon like him and smile happily.
I didn't know how to explain it though. I just felt safe with him around. Alexio was, in some mysterious way, comforting for me. And I would always choose him to be my guard over anyone else.
And usually, I was the only one that ever got to see when Alexio was feeling sad, worried, scared, or just emotional in any way. I counted that as a special privilege of mine though. As his boss of sorts, I had these little bonuses that the others didn't have.
“Ahem.” I heard someone clear their throat to get our attention. I knew who it was right away. And when I turned to look at Rudy, I just smiled at him.
“Hello, Rudy. I thank you for coming all the way here. We're going to be traveling with my parents for a little while, so please do your best to keep me safe.”
“Of course, Talia. I will protect you with my life.” Sometimes, I felt like Lex and Rudy watched a bodyguard movie marathon. The way that they talked sometimes, it was like they got it all from the big screen rather than being taught it. Then again, knowing Uncle Shane, he could have taught them to act like this on purpose. I definitely would not put that past him.
As I looked beyond the door and into the hall, I saw that my parents and uncles were waiting for us. Uncle Dietrich, Uncle Shawn, Uncle Vincent and Uncle Gabriel had joined us from the coroner's officer when Mom and Dad came over.
“Hello, everyone. I am glad that you are here. I have finished talking to the souls and helped them to move on. I have also asked Lucifer if he would help me out a little. He will be searching for other possible victims of this group of killers. If he finds them, he will either send them to see me or take their statements for me. Also, he will see to it that those that I send to the underworld will be taken care of.”
“That is amazing, Talia. You have accomplished all of that in just that little bit of time.” Mom came over and hugged me tightly. “Thank you so much, baby girl.”
“Mom, I'm not a kid anymore.” I pretended to complain, and it was obvious in my voice that I was not being serious at the moment. I was actually really happy that my mom was proud of me.
“I know. But you will always be my baby girl.”
“Even when I'm thirty?” I joked with her.
“Even when you're three hundred.” She joked back.
Now that my guards were calm, it was time for me to explain what I had heard from the souls to my parents. I told them everything. The benefit of having Hyperthymesia [1] was that I never forgot anything at all. I told them all, the uncles, my parents and my guards, just what happened to those two men. The looks on their faces as I spoke told me so much. And then when I was done, Lex voiced his opinion on it all.
“This is why I say you shouldn't have been the one to talk to them. You will have nightmares from all of that.”
“I will be fine, Lex.”
“You will never forget it, Talia. It will be with you forever.” He seemed like he was pleading with me.
“Yes, it will be with me. And you know what? I am going to let this make me a better person. Knowing the pain that others have suffered, learning from it, will help me to make the world a better place in the long run.”
“Talia.” Mom looked like she was going to say something but then thought better of it.
“I am fine, Mom. I promise.”
“Alright. If you are sure, then let us get ready to go. We have another Alpha to visit. And there will soon be a call about more victims. Let us make the most out of our day.”
“Agreed.”
It was a bit of a whirlwind for a little bit. My uncles and my guards gathered the bags and prepared for our departure. We were going to be taking the door to the next location, same as how I got here. It was all a little busy and hectic for a few minutes. And all I could do during that time was watch. Though, I was glad to see that Lex and Rudy had brought me some stuff as well. Though I was told that it was packed by my Nona.
“Princess Talia.” I heard someone speak from behind me. “C..can I ask you something?” It was the girl Telyn that had led me to the room earlier.
“Oh, yes, what can I do for you?”
“W..well, I noticed that you and your mom do not have attendants with you. If it is alright with all of you, can I come along with you? I will do my best to take care of you and the queen.” Mom heard her and turned to smile at her.
“Telyn, that is sweet of you, but I don't know if your father would agree to that.”
“Dad has already given his permission. A..and, well, I am already packed as well. I..I prepared my things just in case I was allowed to come with you. I will prepare your food, wash your laundry, and anything else that you need from me. Please, Queen Trinity, let me come with you.”
“Are you sure that is what you want, Telyn? I do not want to force you to do something that you don't want to do.”
“I want to, Queen Trinity. I..I want to do my part for my kingdom. And, well, I want to get out of this small village and see the world. Any other part of it that I can.” She was giving my mom such a determined look right now. I didn't know why, but I felt like I could see where she was coming from. She felt trapped and wanted out. Anyone would.
“If you have the permission to join us, Telyn, then you may.”
“Thank you.” She beamed and I could tell that she would have hugged my mom if she wasn't the queen. That was probably a scary thought to Telyn, but she still felt it.
“Welcome to the group.” I offered the girl a friendly smile and gave her the hug that she seemed desperate to have. I probably surprised her way more than she expected me to, but I was fine with that. I wasn't the queen, just a princess, so I wasn't as intimidating as my Mom was. And that meant that I was able to offer Telyn some semblance of comfort at the moment.
Now that everything was settled, we were ready to be heading out. And with four more people than who came to this place to begin with.
[1] Hyperthymesia, or highly superior autobiographical memory (HSAM), is a condition that leads people to be able to remember an abnormally large number of their life experiences in vivid detail.
