Jaden

Whew!! another chapter completed.
I like to give a shout out to mcdgoddess, glad you liked it so far. and to all the readers thanks for sticking with me this far. As always I look forward to read your comments.

we're getting closer to mass, I'm having trouble on how to work out the time frame. All of my characters are threatening to boycott me if I don't get a move on it soon. Sheesh vampires, can be so temperamental.

Anyway without further ado, hope you all enjoy this new chapter....

Chapter 33
(O Holy Night)

“Congratulations!” Adrian ran over to Jaden and hugged him so tight almost squeezing the air out of his lungs. Then he stood back as he tried to blink away the tears from his eyes looking at both Jaden and Marcus.

“I am so happy, thrilled. Look I am crying tears of joy, how silly of me.” as Adrian used his scarf to dry his eyes.

He laughed nervously and then he hugged Marcus, speaking softly to him, “I am sorry for not telling you earlier, but I am so happy for you. I am overjoyed.”

Victor also stepped forward and kissed Jaden on the cheek, making a joke about how now he is condemned to eternity with Marcus as his mate. They all laughed, and noticed that Adrian seemed to be very emotional whenever he looked at Jaden.

In his effort to turn away their attention towards him, he grabbed Jaden’s hand, “Oh let me see the ring, Victor had it sized for you. Did it fit you well?”

Jaden had hoped that Marcus’s brothers would accept him and be happy for their union, but he never expected such enthusiasm like Adrian crying. He wondered if there was more than just being happy. Although Adrian smiled, it still looked like a sad smile and it confused him a little.

He could also tell that it surprised the twin brothers as well. Jaden made a mental note to find some alone time for him and Adrian so that they could talk. In his heart, he knew something was causing sadness in his new brother.

Not wanting to make Adrian feel awkward, He showed them the ring and thanked Victor for re-sizing it for him, Adrian once again hugged Jaden and held on to him a little longer before he stepped back and stood beside his own mate.

“I am so sorry, look at me. I am gushing like a silly maiden. I did not expect to be so emotional with so much joy.” Adrian now took Victor’s hand, feeling his strength and finding comfort in his mate’s warmth.

“It is only because I hoped Marcus would find someone to love and now it has finally happened. Really, you have denied yourself for too long and I am, I am. Well there I go again being silly.” Adrian looked away for a moment, trying very hard not to break down crying. He then turned towards the newly bonded couple and smiled.

“Wow, I’m so glad you’re happy about us. It’s ok, go ahead and cry. But you gotta stop when we get to the church, otherwise people will think we beat you up.” Jaden smiled warmly at his new brother in law and patted him on the shoulder.

Victor embraced his mate; he too wondered what had Adrian so emotional. He knew that he was happy for Marcus and Jaden but he did not cry over it when they talked earlier. Perhaps seeing them together pulled at his mate’s heartstrings, after all, they did look very good together and Jaden makes an adorable mate for his brother.

Marcus smiled as he and Jaden held hands, he bowed his head respectfully towards Adrian and waived away the thought that he was being silly about crying. He placed his free hand over his own heart as he replied, “Thank you my little brother, Jaden and I are deeply touched with your heartfelt happiness for us.”

Victor clapped his hands together once, the acoustics of the cave made it sound like a loud pop, he smiled as he got everyone’s attention.

“Well shall we go? I have the car warming up.”

It began to snow again; it would definitely be a white Christmas this year. The temperatures took a nosedive down to 13 degrees and with the winds, it felt colder, ice cold, deep in your bones cold. Jaden shivered and was surprised to see Adrian shaking as he ran towards the car. His voice trembled with the cold as he pleaded with his mate.

“Oh Victor love of my life, please tell me you left the heater on?”

Victor moved so fast, he swept Adrian up in his arms and opened the door of the car. Adrian sighed in relief as soon as he felt the heat hit his face; he crawled into the passenger seat and blew kisses to his mate when he saw that Victor had placed a thick blanket to help keep him warm. At this point Adrian made cooing sounds of delight.

Jaden laughed but he sounded as if someone was shaking him, it was so cold this evening that he was sure, he could feel himself freeze into a block of ice if he did not get in the car right away. He was equally delighted to see a blanket waited for him in the back seat, as soon as Marcus got in he planted his butt on his lap taking the blanket to wrap them both up together. He also sighed once the heat soothed away the chills.

“I’m sooo glad you guys are driving, if you flew we all end up frozen solid.” Jaden shivered as the last bit of cold melted away from his skin. He rested his head on Marcus shoulder and closed his eyes. Marcus kissed the top of his mate’s head and wrapped his arms around him, his hands rubbing Jaden to chase away the chill from his body.

Victor got behind the steering wheel and began to drive out of the property, the ladies followed behind as if saying good-bye and to have a nice night. Once they passed the gate, the ladies turned and ran towards the house.

“Marcus what about the ladies, whose going to take care of them until we come back?”

Marcus assured Jaden that the ladies would be fine, they had secret passages to get back into the house and plenty of food and water to hold them for a whole week, including their favorite snacks to munch on.

Always curious Jaden turned towards Adrian, “I thought the older the vampire the less you would feel the cold, how come you still feel the cold weather?”

Adrian chuckled, “That is true lovely, however not all vampires are the same. We do not truly understand how it all works, some become very powerful physically, while others remain the same for centuries. I myself have never changed when it came to the weather, I feel cold, hot, quite human actually. Then there are some, which can fly like the three of us. Our mates are very powerful and they can hear each other’s thoughts if they wanted to.”

Jaden snickered, “Yeah I just found out about that one, do you guys always talk to each other like that and can you do that if one is here in America the other is, oh I don’t know on Mars?”

“No little brother, we can only do it if we are in close proximity of each other. For example it works quite well if we are both in the same city.” Victor answered, as he smiled back at Jaden.

“At least once a year.” Marcus chimed in, “We test to see how far we can go to speak to each other in this fashion, if one is more than a few miles outside of the city then we can barely make out what the other is saying.”

“I think it’s pretty cool, you can save a bundle on phone bills.” Smiled Jaden.

As Victor drove, they continued to chat. Jaden snuggled into Marcus’s embrace and buried his nose into his mate’s neck to keep warm. Marcus turned his attention to his love and kissed his cheek. While caressing his hair, he smiled when Jaden seem to purr like a kitten in his arms.

The drive lasted about another twenty minutes, when Jaden sat up and looked out the window. The car’s movement got his attention as he watched them turn into a small private airport. Victor slowly drove over to a hanger to stop beside what looked like a small jet plane.

Jaden was in awe, as he could not believe that the aircraft they were going to board was indeed a helicopter. The Sikorsky S-76 can seat anywhere of up to six to nine passengers with all the comfort, safety and quietness of a luxury airliner.

A young man stood by the aircraft going over some last minute details and confirming his flight plan on his communicator with the airport officials. Once Victor shut off the car, the young man came over and opened the door to welcome his passengers.

“Master Victor, welcome. Master Moran has arraigned everything for Drakar` house this evening, and I will be flying your party into the city. I hope this meets with your approval, my lord.” As he gestured towards the helicopter.

Victor smiled and patted the young man on his shoulder, “This aircraft is my favorite Captain Paulo, I see that Master Moran desires for us to travel in luxury.”

The young captain beamed in pride, and respectfully bowed his head towards Victor; he then greeted Adrian with the same respect and assured him the helicopter is toasty warm inside with heated blankets waiting for him.

Captain Paulo also greeted Marcus and bowed his head towards him. “Welcome Master Marcus, Master Moran asked me to tell you that security is already in place at the penthouse as are all the other members of Drakar` house.”

Marcus thanked the young captain and then turned towards the car to offer his hand to Jaden as he stepped out. Paulo’s eyes widen when he saw the Master’s companion, and realized that the rumors were true. Some vampires had spotted Marcus walking around the city with a mysterious young man and now Paulo was seeing him up close.

The best part was that he would be the first to meet him; another benefit was that he could tell the young man was blood bonded; he looked at Marcus and knew. He was meeting Marcus’s mate here tonight.

Paulo knew because he was part of the Drakar` bloodline. He was flattered when Marcus made the introduction and Paulo bowed his head respectfully towards Jaden. He could not wait to tell his friends that he was the first to meet the master’s mate up close, and to confirm that yes, the master’s mate is indeed beautiful.

To Jaden’s surprise, he watched as the young captain place his right hand over his heart, the other behind him at the small of his back. And bowing at the waist Captain Paulo greeted his new lord.

“My Lord Jaden, I am honored to meet you and welcome you into my heart and to the House of Drakar`. For one hundred and fifty years I pledged my loyalty to the Drakar` family, I will honor you and protect you to the end of my days, congratulations my lords on your blood bond.”

Jaden was surprised with the way the pilot greeted him, and not wanting to embarrass Marcus or his family he kept his mouth shut for fear he would say something stupid. Instead, he nodded back to the pilot and smiled, he looked up at Marcus for any signs that he may have acted inappropriately.

Marcus put his arms around Jaden’s shoulder and led him up to the helicopter. Once inside and securely seated he leaned in towards Marcus and whispered into his ear.

“Marcus, why did he call me lord? I’m not royalty or anything like that. Someone should let him know.”

Marcus turned towards Jaden, smiling he reached over to caress his mates face, “You are my mate, as masters of the house we are considered to be royalty. I know it is a lot of pomp and circumstance, but it is a sign of respect. Everyone will address you as Lord Jaden because you are my mate. Victor and I usually do not stand on protocol when it comes to such things, and in time as you get to know the other members within the house you will see that we do not always act so formal with each other.”

Seeing that Jaden was not comfortable with his explanation, he shrugged his shoulders and pulled him in for a kiss. Running his fingers though Jaden’s hair he smiled and spoke softly into his ear.

“It has been this way for centuries, Victor and I run the house. Our laws and rules within the house have made it possible for those under our protection to live a life of comfort, and prosperity with peace of mind and security. We are not in the habit of sticking to old ancients laws, which by the way can be quite harsh. Only if our hands are forced do we use it. It is a title that has been earned, and within each house, everyone must know his or her place.”

He hugged Jaden closer to his chest, “I know that you are uncomfortable being addressed in such a fashion, but in time you will understand. Because you are my mate, you will be respected and protected by everyone who has pledged their loyalty to the house of Drakar`. The greeting is merely a formality, we do not insist on how it should be worded, over time we learned that the greeting is sincere from their hearts, the pledge of loyalty and protection must be given willingly or they cannot expect the same from the masters of the house and they would be asked to leave.”

Jaden did not know if he could get used to the idea of being treated like royalty, such treatment was so alien to him. Little by little, it dawned on him how important Marcus and Victor must be to the house, they carried a heavy responsibility on their shoulders. He felt proud of the brother’s achievements and was glad to be a part of Marcus’s life.

Looking up into Marcus’s eyes he smiled and kissed him, “I’m just worried that everyone will think that I’m some kind of big shot, when I know that’s not what I am. I’m just afraid of saying or doing something that will make you regret being with me. I mean I’m not very smart and they will see that.” Sighing sadly, “I just don’t want to try and pass off myself as some kind of blue blood, and I’m not very proud of my past. I’m scared of what they will say or how they will feel about calling me lord when in fact I used to be nothing more than a whore.”

Before Marcus could answer, Adrian spoke up first.

“Jaden do you believe that we all came from noble blood? Most of us struggled to live a harsh life before we became vampires. Yes, Marcus and Victor came from a noble family background and were fortunate to receive a good education in their time; however, they struggled fighting in wars. My past is not so pristine, and someday I will tell you all about it. Most vampires had started poor and some never knew what the word education meant.”

Marcus took Jaden’s hands into his own, kissing his fingers. “Do not be ashamed my love, we all come from different paths. Some not so bright, and no one within the house has any right to look down at you, without looking into their own past life first. I can honestly say we all have done at least one thing to be ashamed of, but we learn from it and move on. That is what they will see in you, a beautiful young man with a good heart and kindness to give. They will see that you do not put on airs with them, and they will come to appreciate that from you, and will respect you for it, calling you Lord Jaden will come from their hearts.”

Jaden sat there thinking about all that was said to him, he could see love and affection in Victor and Adrian’s eyes for him. He was overwhelmed with the love he knew Marcus showered him with, and when he realized that Paulo was there was well who heard it all. He could see a gentle smile cross his lips.

Paulo stepped closer to Jaden offering him a warm blanket, and bowed down before him.

“Master Marcus has chosen well for his mate, I can see the truth in you. You are a good man Lord Jaden. I hope that I will have the chance to know you better, Lord Adrian is right. Not all of us were born with a silver spoon in our mouths.”

“Well” Victor smiled at everyone, “Are we not all a fine bunch of misfits.”

Jaden sighed, feeling the tension seep away from his body as everyone else laughed at Victor’s remark. Marcus pulled Jaden closer to himself and this time spoke so only Jaden could hear him.

“You are not a whore my love, not anymore. As far as I am concerned you never where, you are precious and deserve to be valued. I value you, you are the most exquisite jewel and I am honored to call you my love, my mate.”

All Jaden could say to that was hide his face into Marcus’s shoulder and weep. It still amazed him how much Marcus loved him. As Marcus kissed away his tears, Paulo got the all clear for takeoff. He excused himself and made his way into the cockpit to begin moving the helicopter out of the hanger and then slowly take off and fly towards Manhattan.

Captain Paulo smiled, he just knew that Lord Jaden will be welcomed with open arms into the house and that everyone will be happy for their blood bond. It was about time Master Marcus settled down. He liked Lord Jaden, he liked him a lot and will help protect his master’s mate even if it cost him his life.

Jaden braced himself as the helicopter slowly taxied out of the hanger; he held his breath once it began to take off. He expected the aircraft to start picking up speed and then take off as any other plane would. He was surprised as it lifted off the ground and went straight up into the air, and then the helicopter made a slow turn as it flew towards the city.

After a few minutes in the air, Jaden scooted himself back on his mate’s lap. Marcus smiled as his love rested his head on his shoulder; he loved being so close to him. Jaden could not help notice that Victor and Adrian had their foreheads together as they spoke to each other, realizing that they all shared the same habit, of speaking lovingly to one another while being so close to each other.

Marcus closed his eyes as he rested his chin on top of Jaden’s head, as usual he breathed in deeply his loves vanilla scented hair. While he rested, it occurred to Marcus how happy he truly was, for the first time in his entire existence, he felt so complete. Marcus loved and cherished Jaden so much, his heart, his soul; in fact, his whole body tingled with the love and happiness Jaden has brought into his life.

A sound caught Marcus’s attention and slowly brought him out of his thoughts, the sound was sweet, a melody. In fact, it was a familiar tune that he was sure he heard not too long ago. He realized it was singing and it was coming from Jaden. It also caught Victor and Adrian’s attention and all three vampires stopped to listen, mesmerized by the sweet little voice.

Jaden stopped; he realized that everyone was looking at him, as if seeing him for the very first time. He blushed and looked down at his hands, his voice sounding like a small child, thinking he did something wrong.

“Um sorry everyone didn’t mean to disturb you.”

It was Adrian who sat up and spoke first, “Lovely do you sing?”

Jaden smiled and nodded bashfully, “Yeah” he whispered.

Marcus brushed his fingers though Jaden’s hair; getting him to look up at him.

“My love the tune sounds very familiar, what are you singing?”

Jaden smiled up at him, suddenly feeling very shy. He shrugged his shoulders and answered with heated cheeks.

“It’s a Christmas song, one of Lizzie’s favorite. I’m not very good, but she always wanted me to sing it to her. She decided that is was her Christmas gift from me to her if I would sing the song for her.”

Marcus smiled down at his mate, and held him closer. He whispered in his ear, “What is the song called, and will you sing it for us?”

“Please Jaden, please sing for us. Adrian and I would love to hear you.” Pleaded Victor.

Jaden sat up and smiled at them all, “Ok, but I’m not very good, and well, it’s the only song I know. Oh, and the song? It’s called Oh Holy Night.”

Jaden cleared his throat and took in a deep breath, he was used to just singing for Lizzie, but now, it seemed he has found a new captive audience.

He started out slow, his voice low as if he sang to himself. Feeling nervous his voice trembled a little and then as he continued he felt a little surer of himself. Closing his eyes, he let himself get lost in the lyrics and soon his voice lifted filling the space with the sound of his voice. In his mind, he could hear the music as he sang along letting his emotions pour out of him.

Marcus was impressed with Jaden’s voice, it sounded pure, raw, full of innocence with a tender emotion that seemed to wrap itself deep within his soul. Through Jaden, he was getting to know Lizzie, because he realized what she learned about Jaden.

His love had great potential; it was as if Lizzie whispered in his ear. Listen to him sing Marcus, with proper training he can become famous. That voice and his mind is his ticket out of the hell he had to live. Indeed Marcus told himself that if Jaden had half a chance, he would have been able to perfect his raw talent and become a singer.

He was in fact a singing prodigy, and it saddened Marcus that Jaden has been cheated as well as the rest of the human world. No one outside of Marcus’s world will ever get the chance to experience the beauty of his love’s voice. He wanted to be angry, to rage against all those that hurt his love, but as he listened, Jaden’s sweet voice calmed and soothed away the thunderous storm in his heart.

When Jaden finished his song, everyone remained silent. Each one lost in their own thoughts, Jaden was a little surprised to see Adrian dap tears away from his eyes and even Victor made a small choking sound, as if trying to hold back his emotions. He looked back to Marcus and he was not sure how he felt.

Almost too afraid to ask, he lightly caressed Marcus’s face to gauge out any thoughts he may have on his singing.

“Um Marcus, was it ok?” big green eyes looked at him; Jaden was wondering how bad could it really be if it left Marcus in a strange trance.

Jaden was beginning to feel a little rejection when Marcus remained silent, but then he was gathered up in his arms as Marcus embraced Jaden, holding him close and burying his face into Jaden’s neck.

Marcus wept silently, and when he was able to get some control back, he kissed Jaden’s lips tenderly. He kissed his eyes, his nose, forehead, and all over his face to end back on his lips. His fingers tenderly caressed his face and hair as if he was re-discovering Jaden all over again. Ice blue eyes looked deeply into green gems as if seeing him again for the first time.

Before Jaden could say anything, he was fiercely hugged and held for what seemed like hours only it was indeed a few minutes. Marcus kissed his left earlobe and then spoke lovingly into his ear.

“My sweet precious darling, you worried that you had no gift to give me for Christmas, and here now, tonight you have given me yet another priceless gift. Your voice is the voice of an angel from heaven. Promise me that you will continue to sing, sing for me for yourself, but please honor me with your beautiful voice.”

Jaden was at loss for words, he hugged his mate back peppering his face with kisses as he promised him repeatedly between kisses that he would learn more songs and sing for him. Jaden and Marcus laughed when both Victor and Adrian offered to help Jaden learn all the songs he wanted as long as they too were part of the deal to hear him sing.

The aircraft was abuzz when all four talked at the same time, excited over Jaden’s natural talent. We love music Adrian told him, and chatted on about how much fun they can all have to accompany Jaden as he played the piano or Victor on the violin. Jaden turned his attention to Marcus and asked, “Marcus do you play any instruments?”

Marcus actually blushed and smiled, “Yes” he answered softly “I play the violin and a few other instruments as well.”

Victor smiled proudly at his brother Marcus, “Actually my little brother, Marcus is far more of a music lover than all of us put together. In fact, I believe he can play any musical instrument he puts his mind too. We have a music room with a beautiful grand piano and the finest instruments from all over the world that he has collected over the years and he plays them all so well that he puts the true musician to shame.”

Jaden looked at Marcus with new eyes, “Really, which one is your favorite to play?”

Again, Marcus blushed, not used to so much attention turned his way. He smiled down at Jaden pulling him closer to rest his head back on his shoulders, “I enjoy playing the piano and the Spanish guitar is my second favorite, I will be happy to play for you when we return home tomorrow night.”

Jaden’s eyes looked up at Marcus, and he smiled proudly at him. “I can’t wait to hear you play, hey you know what? We can start a band, how does the rocking Vamps sound?”

“Vamps” they all asked Jaden.

Jaden looked back at his mate and family, “Yeah” he laughed, “We can be like a gothic rock and roll Vamps”

Everyone arched their eyebrows at him as if to question his mental state, and then they laughed and continued to talk more about music and asking Jaden what kind of songs he would like to sing.

Everyone was having a good time talking and making jokes about starting a band, happy to lose themselves in idle chitchat. It felt good to act silly and happy, a brief escape from their recent real life problems.

It was clear to everyone that they wanted this evening to be carefree, at the stroke of midnight it will be Christmas Day, and Jaden’s birthday. The family was determined to enjoy the holidays and the older vampires wanted to make sure that Jaden enjoyed his first birthday together in peace.

Afterwards they will deal with the loss of their friend’s fallen house, and then try to discover the identity of the mysterious vampire who had been lurking around their house.

In addition, when it became possible both Marcus and Victor had another matter they wanted to attend too, finding the men who hurt Jaden.

For now, house matters was not the priority, what mattered to them now was being together enjoying each other’s company, family, love and respect for each other.

The helicopter filled with the sounds of laughter, and lively conversations. Jaden rested on Marcus’s lap, smiling as he listened to his new family carry on. He watched Marcus laugh; he seemed like a happy child.

The pilot’s voice came over the intercom. “My Lords, we will be landing in 5 minutes. As for the Gothic Vamps, I would pay any price to see that. Oh and by the way Lord Jaden your singing was exquisite, I hope to hear you sing again in the near future?”

Jaden sniffed back tears as he looked up at Marcus. “Aw Marcus, that’s so sweet.”

Then he grinned and shouted, “Gothic Vamps! Now that’s a cool name for a band.”

Everyone groaned and rolled their eyes at him; Jaden giggled when Adrian took his little traveling pillow and threw it at him.

“Gothic Vamps indeed” Adrian scoffed.