Chapter 6 : The journal

Austin's POV

My breath hitched as I flipped to the next page, piecing together fragments of my father’s cryptic work.

"The seal is my only hope. I bound it with my blood, but his blood is bound too."

I read the line again.

The words seemed to confirm what Leonardo had said: my blood was the key to the vault.

But why? What was this artifact my father had been so desperate to protect?

I flipped through more pages, uncovering sketches of intricate structures—otherworldly towers and bridges glowing with an unnatural light. In the margins, scrawled notes whispered of a city: “Elio.”

My heart pounded.This wasn’t just a vault.

A chill crept down my spine as I read one haunting sentence: "Elio is beyond mortal reach."

Was my father suggesting this city wasn’t part of our world?

"A magical home, accessible only to the worthy," another note said. "The unworthy face consequences far worse than death."

I was shocked. How could someone know they were worthy?

Then I saw the final warning: "If the seal breaks, the consequences will ripple across worlds. Only my bloodbound can release it."

I clenched into fists in anger.

"Only my bloodbound can release it." I repeated.

Damn it!

“Argh!”

I slammed the book shut and threw it onto the desk. The impact wasn’t satisfying enough.

It wasn’t enough to erase the years of silence, the secrets, the "lies."

My father had spent his entire life hiding the truth.

As if I wasn’t meant to know.

Even now, after he was gone, all I had were riddles and warnings.

I grabbed the journal again.What else had he hidden from me? How much of my life had already been decided for me before I was even born?

A bitter laugh escaped me.

I should destroy this. Let it burn, let every one of his damn secrets go up in flames with it.

I yanked open a drawer, pulled out a lighter, and flicked it open.It's small flame casting flickering shadows across the journal’s pages.

"Austin, you have to understand. I only wanted to protect you."

The voice wasn’t real. It was a memory, I could almost see him.

My father, standing in the doorway of my childhood bedroom. I was just a boy then, clutching a wooden toy he had carved for me.

I had asked him why he always looked so tired.

"Because I have to keep you safe," he had said, kneeling in front of me. "One day, you’ll understand."

The memory cracked something inside me and I loosened my grip.

The flame wavered, then died as I snapped the lighter shut. I let out a shaky breath, staring at the journal.

Destroying it wouldn’t erase what he’d done. It wouldn’t undo the years of secrecy or the danger I was now in. It wouldn’t change the fact that Leonardo was hunting me.

I clenched my jaw and sat back down.

If my father wouldn’t give me answers, I would find them myself.

The next morning, sunlight filtered through the curtains. After downing a quick cup of coffee, I buried myself back in the journal.

A noise pulled me from my thoughts—a car pulling into the driveway.

I peeked through the curtains and froze. A sleek black car. The door opened, and Vanessa stepped out, her sharp orange eyes cutting through the morning light.

My heart raced as she walked to the door.

How did she find me?

The soft knock broke the silence. Shoving the journal into a drawer, I forced myself to open the door.

"What are you doing here?" My voice was steady, but my mind was anything but.

"To help," she said simply, stepping closer. "And to make sure you don’t get killed."

Her bluntness caught me off guard.

"You never told me you were a vampire."

Vanessa sighed, her expression softening. "I didn’t want to drag you into this."She hesitated, then added, "Leonardo’s after the gem. If he gets it, it’ll be catastrophic. I’m not letting that happen."

I scoffed, running a hand through my hair. "You didn’t want to drag me into this? Vanessa, we had a date and we kissed. Then, hours later, I was nearly killed by a man who told me you weren’t even human. You also left me"

"You don't understand. I left because I want to save you, I didn’t plan for any of the chaos."

"Yeah? Well, I sure as hell didn’t plan on falling for someone who.."I stopped myself. "Forget it."

I turned away, trying to process it all. How was I supposed to trust her? She was stunning, charming, and so damn easy to talk to—but she had been lying from the start. What if this was just another manipulation?

“Can I come in?” She asked.

I couldn't find myself saying no.

I had sympathy for her because I still remember the look in her eyes that night.

Her hesitation, the sadness and anger in her eyes when I was in danger.

And now, she was here willing to fight against Leonardo.

After a long silence, I exhaled and grabbed the journal from the drawer and I handed it to her. “This is my dad’s. Everything about the artifact and where he hid it is in here.”

Vanessa took it, flipping through the pages with deliberate focus. Her brow furrowed as she studied the map. Her finger paused on a section, and she pointed to it. "Cave of Eteris,"she murmured. "The portal to Elio is in a sacred cave… in Brazil."

I leaned in, my heart pounding as I scanned the map. The discovery of the location was unmistakable.

"This is the first path,"I muttered, "If this gem is as powerful as Leonardo says, it can’t fall into the wrong hands. I have to go."

"Then we go together," she said firmly. "I’ll handle the travel arrangements. You focus on your dad’s notes, we don’t have much time.

As we boarded the plane hours later, I stared out the window, my thoughts spiraling.

I was flying to another country with a vampire. A woman I had feelings for, who had also lied to me. Who had a past I knew nothing about.

And yet, I wanted to trust her.

Because deep down, I knew, if I was going to survive this, I needed her.

By the time we touched down, we immediately acquired a rugged jeep to continue our journey.

“Where do we start?” I asked, gripping the steering wheel as I adjusted to the bumpy dirt road. I wiped sweat from my brow, glancing at Vanessa, who was studying the map from the journal intently.

“We need to find someone who knows this area” she said, calm and focused “We need to meet the locals who can lead us to the Cave of Eteris,”