BXBX NOVEL Chapter 21 - Parting Time
"This is it... time to say goodbye," Luke said softly.
There were tears in Laura\'s eyes. "Thank you for the wonderful memories," she said.
"I love you so much, that\'s all I can say for now," he said sighing heavily.
"I love you too," she replied and buried her tear stricken face on his chest.
Luke sighed deeply and rubbed her back gently with his hands.
They shared a passionate kiss that was broken by the voice of one of the drivers informing them that they finally arrived at their destination.
Laura took a peek at the window and saw the iron gate of their mansion a few meters away. Oh, God! She can\'t believe that she\'s finally back for real! She looked at Luke. "So...this is it...our final goodbye," she said dejectedly.
Luke breathed deeply and kissed her lips once more. "You go now... I\'ll watch you enter the gate of your home before we go back to my place," he said calmly trying hard to conceal the sadness and pain in his voice.
The sadness they\'re feeling right now was making them emotional.
Luke can\'t get enough of Laura as his mouth descended on her lips, they shared a heated kiss...then he hugged her tightly for the last time. "Take care of yourself, sweetheart. I\'ll be dreaming of you every waking hour. I\'ll never forget you. I\'ll always keep our memories alive in my heart, please don\'t forget me," he said in a wretched voice.
\'\'Yes, I will never forget you. I love you," she replied in a miserable voice.
A few seconds of silence passed between them.
Finally, Laura grabbed the knapsack and left Luke\'s side, she exited the carriage. She slowly walked towards the iron gate with heavy steps. With every step she was getting away from Luke, her heart was dying inside her rib cage.
Luke was watching Laura in the window until she reached the iron gate. She turned around and waved at him in the carriage, he waved back.
Finley, the guard was shocked to see Laura standing in front of him in flesh and blood. "Miss, where have you been!? What happened to you? Your parents have been looking for you everywhere," he said while opening the iron gate for her.
Laura stepped into the lawn and Finley shut off the gate. She looked over her shoulder to the location of the carriage and felt sad after discovering that the carriage was already gone. She felt upset that he didn\'t wait for her to say goodbye from afar before he went away.
She sprinted towards the mansion and went to her mother\'s flower garden. She saw her mother staring at her flowers with a blank look on her face. "Mother! I\'m back!" she exclaimed happily.
Rosa has to blink several times before finally realizing that she was not dreaming! Oh my God! Her daughter finally returns safely to their home! "Thank God you are safe, daughter!" she said bursting into tears.
"I\'m safe, Mother!" Laura stated.
The mother and daughter locked each other in an embrace.
Rosa examined her daughter\'s face. "Where have you been? What happened to you? The servants returned home crying, telling us that somebody stole the chest! Your father hired people to comb the entire area but they were not able to find you. We were already fearing the worst scenario. Who stole the chest? Do you know those people? Have they harm you?" she asked worriedly trying to check her daughter\'s body for any injury, yet she found none which she was very grateful.
"Mother, don\'t worry, I\'m okay now. Those people didn\'t harm me. They just mistook the chest filled with treasures, but find me instead, they released me eventually. Now I\'m back safe and sound," she lied.
"That\'s good! You have no idea that your father and I were racking our brains like crazy thinking what happened to you and where to find you," Rosa cried.
"Mother, please calm down. I\'m back now, my body intact! Where is my father?" she asked.
"He\'s looking for you everywhere all over the town along with the men he hired to find you. He will be back home before the sunset," Rosa replied.
"Mother, did the vampire already returned? Any news about my sister Sofia?" she inquired.
Rosa shook her head sadly. "Not yet, but tomorrow is the 10th day. I\'m sure they will be back to take you away. I dunno what to do with you anymore. I\'m confused..." she said as tears glistened in her eyes.
Laura hugged her mother to comfort her. "Mother, please don\'t worry too much about the vampires. I haven\'t changed my decision yet. As long I will go with them, they won\'t harm my sister and everyone in this house. It\'s just a marriage...there\'s nothing to be afraid of. We will still see each other again," she assured her.
"I dunno daughter... I\'m scared of what\'s going to happen tomorrow when the vampires return," Rosa said.
Laura sighed deeply. "Everything will be alright, Mother. I\'ll go upstairs to my room so that I can start packing my things and get ready for the vampire\'s arrival tomorrow," she said.
"Go ahead, daughter. I\'ll just stay here in my flower garden waiting for your father\'s arrival to tell him the good news," Rosa replied.
"Okay, Mother," Laura said and left the garden area going to the house.
When she\'s already inside her room, she began folding her clothes and putting them inside the bag.
Two hours later.
Simon finally arrived and was overjoyed after the guard told him that his daughter has finally returned home safely. He rushed inside the house, climbs the stairs in a hurry wanting to see his daughter with his two eyes.
When he entered his daughter\'s room, she was indeed back home. The father and daughter hugged each other. Huge relief washed over Simon\'s face. He inspected her daughter for any visible injury on her body. "Daughter...what happened to you? Why did you disappear from the carriage? What exactly happened? The servants can\'t remember anything when they woke up in the morning. Your mother and I were so worried about your disappearance..."
Laura sighed. "Please calm down, Father. Some thieves took the chest away expecting it was filled with treasures, but they got disappointed after seeing me inside. Good thing, they didn\'t harm me and finally released me. See...I\'m back!" she lied again.
\'"I\'m glad that you\'re finally back home. You need to travel again to South Pond to my friend\'s house and continue the marriage with Cooper," Simon said.
Laura shook her head firmly. "No, Father! I\'m sorry... but this time you have to respect my decision. I\'m willing to marry the vampire son. It\'s the only way to make sure that no one will get hurt tomorrow," she said with finality in her voice.
Simon looked at his daughter lamentably. "Why are you being so stubborn?" he whined.
"Father, please... I want to save my sister Sofia...please allow me to do the right thing. Besides I\'m an adult now, I have the right to make my own decision when it comes to my life. Please respect my wishes," she pleaded.
Simon sighed heavily and looked at his daughter with a disappointed look on his face. "Let\'s continue talking about this issue after dinner..." he said and left the room.
Laura breathed deeply and continue packing her things.