The Dark Princess 19

“Hey Dad.” Bella greeted Cauis as he walked into the sitting room where Bella and Athenodora were sitting on the couch waiting for him to join them. Bella had tried to sit on the couch next to her mother but Athenodora was having none of that and now Bella was snuggled on her lap. Bella had asked why the queen wanted her to sit there and Athenodora explained that since finding out about Bella’s abuse her instincts were demanding that she protect Bella. Apparently the best way to do that was for Bella to be cuddled in her mother’s arms. Luckily for Athenodora Bella had easily given in because she knew it would make her mother happy.

“Hello my darling girls.” Cauis smiled at the sight of his mate cradling their child in her lap. He had found it hard to be away from Bella after finding out about how she had been treated by her human parents but had allowed the girl some time with her mate because she wouldn’t be seeing Jane for a few days. When Athenodora had come to him saying that Bella wanted to spend time with them he was more than willing to ignore his duties to do so.”What is it that you wanted to do?”

“Bella would like to watch Deadliest Warriors with us.” Anthenodora said accepting the kiss her mate gave her as he sat down right beside her and grabbed Bella’s legs to stretch them across his lap. Anthenodora allowed it because Bella was still closest to her. She knew she was going to have to be more lax with her daughter being around others but not only was the bond still new Bella was hurt and those who had done it had not been caught yet. That meant they were still a threat to her daughter. Not much of one of course but any threat no matter how big or small was enough to cause her instincts to take over.

“Yeah, I figured you guys could teach me what the actual warriors of those times acted like because I’m sure the show doesn’t get everything right.” Bella said.

“We can do that.” Cauis liked that his daughter seemed to have a genuine interest in warfare. It was something he and his mate took a lot of interest in and something he would take great pleasure teaching Bella about.

“First we should discuss a few things.” Seeing Bella’s concerned expression Athenodora quickly explained. “It’s nothing bad Bella. I overheard you and Jane talking and she brought up a good point. We need to get you a cell phone.”

“We should have thought about that already.” Cauis couldn’t believe they had overlooked such an obvious way for Bella to get help.

Noticing Cauis’ frown Bella knew he was probably feeling like he let her down. “I honestly didn’t think of it because we are always together. I haven’t worried about my safety since I’ve been here because I know all I have to do is yell and either one or both of you will come help me.”

“Of course we both would come right away.” Athenodora tightened her arms around Bella a little more being careful to not hug to tight and hurt the human’s arm. She was pleased that Bella had such faith that she and Cauis would protect her. It was well placed of course because Bella was never far enough away from either of them that they wouldn’t hear her calling out for them.

“We should still get you one though.”Cauis pulled out his own phone and began searching through specific models. “I want one to have a tracking device on it so we always know your location.”

“Actually you know what would be better. We should get her a piece of jewelry that has a tracker on it like we do for the guards when they go on missions.” Athenodora would feel better with Bella having the tracker on her person.

“I’m surprised you don’t want to have one imbedded in my skin.” Bella joked but stopped laughing when both of her parents looked at her.

“Is that something that can be done to humans?” Cauis asked.

“I don’t know how it exactly works but I’m sure at least some governments use them to track people.” Bella had a feeling that she was going to be the owner of a new personal tracking device very soon.

“We should look into that.” Athenodora told Cauis. She liked the idea that if Bella were to get lost or be taken they wouldn’t have to worry about her losing her tracker. Turning to Bella she asked.” Would you consider letting us put a tracker on your person like that?”

Bella took a moment to consider the request. At first she balked at the idea of having a computer chip implanted inside her body but as she took a step back and thought about her personal safety she realized that it might be a good idea. “I think it might be a good idea. Not only am I your daughter but Jane’s mate as well. That makes me a target. I know that if something happened and one of you went missing I would want to be able to get to you right away.”

“I’m glad you understand.” Cauis kissed Bella on the forehead. He smiled when he saw her blush.Although he hoped she would get used to the affection he liked that he had a physical reminder that he affected the human.

“We should also think about getting some other things for our rooms. I am going to go through my closet to make room for your clothing but I think we need to have a refrigerator in here and maybe a small kitchenette. That way you don’t have to go far if you want a snack or a meal.” Athenodora figured that Bella would be safest if she stayed in their rooms. Not only could they put guards at the door but there was an escape route that only the royals knew about that was accessed through a wall in their bedroom. She was planning on showing Bella where it was as well incase of an emergency.

“Am I going to just live in your rooms then?” They had never mentioned where Bella would live in the castle and she had assumed that she would eventually move in with Jane.

“Do you not want to stay with us?” Cauis asked. He was somewhat afraid of the answer because Bella might not want to even live in the castle at all.

“It’s not that I don’t want to stay with you. I just feel like I’m taking over your space. You are a mated pair aren’t you going to want some time to spend alone with each other?” Bella figured they would at least like the option.

Athenodora felt relieved when Bella explained herself. Of course her daughter would worry about her parent’s bond. Bella really was such a caring girl. “We would both like it very much if you would stay with us. At least while you are human. When you are turned we can reevaluate but until then we want you where you would be the safest and both of us feel that would be in our rooms.”

“If we want some time to ourselves there are many places we can go. Thank you for thinking of us though.” Cauis said.

“Then staying in your rooms would be fine.” Bella would have liked to talk to Jane about her living arrangements but figured that since Jane couldn’t spend all her time with Bella then she would be safest in her parents’ rooms.

“Is there anything that you would like us to buy for you so you feel more comfortable in here?” Cauis asked.

“I wouldn’t mind something I could play music on. Jane is getting my stuff from Charlie’s house so I have an old iPod I just need something to play it on.” Bella wasn’t comfortable asking for things but Athenodora had mentioned to her before she went to hang out with Jane after her father had left that he was upset he didn’t get a chance to buy her some clothing. Once she explained it was because he felt like he was letting her down by not providing her things she needed Athenodora had asked Bella to think of a few things her father could buy for her to make him feel better.

Cauis perked up hearing Bella ask him for something. He was happy that she was comfortable enough to come to him to fulfill her needs especially when the item she wanted would be for her comfort. “We can do that. We should probably get you your own computer as well. What else can you think of that you would need? Is there anything you like to do?”

“Maybe some bubble bath.” Bella said. “I have seen the large tub in your bathroom and would really like to take a bath in it.”

“We can get you some stuff to take a bath.” Athenodora was more than happy to pick out some stuff for Bella. Hopefully Bella would be nice enough to let her wash her hair for her.It was something Athenodora’s mother had done for her while she was still human and the queen would love to share the experience with her own daughter.

“That’s all I can think about for now.” Bella hoped that was enough stuff to keep her parents happy. From the smiles on both of their faces it seemed like they were and Bella realized that she would have to come up with other things for them to get her so they didn’t feel like they weren’t providing for her. She knew that her days of not accepting gifts and not liking people to spend money on her were most likely a thing of the past and promised to remind herself that it was because they loved her so much they did things like that.

“Well if you think of anything else let us know.”Athenodora grabbed the remote and turned on the tv to start the show. She knew that Bella wasn’t comfortable accepting gifts from people but was happy that she took the talk they had about her father buying some things for her seriously. Bella doing something uncomfortable just to make her father happy just proved how much the human cared for them and knowing that Bella cared meant everything to the queen and her mate. Athenodora could feel her mate’s happiness through their bond and knew he could feel her own as well. It had only been a few days but it felt like Bella had been with them all her life. Before Jane had left Athenodora had asked her to search through Bella’s human parents’ homes and find whatever pictures or other things related Bella. She wanted to see pictures of her daughter’s life as she grew up. She figured if Bella’s parents were in the picture she could just give them to one of their tech people to alter the photo. She may have been alive for thousands of years but when it came to her daughter Anthenodora wasn’t above being petty.