Betrayed By The Hero, Loved By The Lord-Chapter 237: Family talk (3)

"Get out," Xavier said, tired of Orlork already.

"Unfortunately, I am not ready to go. I am still getting to know more about your wife. Weren’t you a close friend of her mother?" Orlork questioned Josephine.

"We weren’t that close, but I was around her quite a few times," Josephine answered.

"Oh, please. You were invited to their home, and I had seen them at Blackthorn balls. We all followed to avoid them when it came out they wanted to kill the king. Their old friends won’t admit they had been close to her parents," said Camilla, having experienced this after her broken fangs.

"We had been around each other, but I don’t think she considered me a close friend. I haven’t spoken ill of her parents since I don’t know all that happened. I have never denied that I was around them," Josephine said, annoyed by Camilla. "It was Nathaniel who tried to act like we didn’t know them."

"We don’t need to go into this now. I would rather not speak about my parents or children. Xavier and I should be the only ones speaking about children. Whether we want to have them or not," Selene said, ending the conversation, or so she hoped.

"I won’t be awake for long. I was hoping to go back to sleep with some good news. Do you not plan to have one at all?" Orlork asked, hoping it wasn’t so.

"If you want great-grandchildren, tell your other children to act upon it quickly or have Jasper find someone to have a child with. Don’t bother us with what you want," Xavier said, his patience quickly slipping.

"Nonsense. Jasper doesn’t have any plans to raise children. He’s not fond of them," Orlork said, discarding that idea.

"Clumsy little creatures. They try to grab me if I am a bat," Jasper said from behind Orlork.

"You fear adults more," Xavier advised Jasper.

Jasper moved to be out of sight since he didn’t trust Xavier. It was Xavier and his attempts of feeding him to a dog which started his dislike of children.

Did the Blackthorns need another child who wanted to torture the servants?

"You should at least have one to satisfy us," Orlork suggested.

"To satisfy passing on Xavier’s talents?" Selene questioned. She was tired of hearing about this.

"No," Orlork shook his head. "For me to be a great-grandfather. I enjoyed my time with Xavier. I enjoyed helping him understand what he could do with his power. There is nothing else to do with this boring life."

"Sleep," Xavier suggested.

"I’ve done enough of that. Why am I speaking to you when I came for her? Let us speak alone," Orlork said, offering his hand for Selene to take a walk with him. "I will not harm her. If I wanted to do that, I would have done so already."

Xavier left Selene to decide if she wanted to go alone. He was certain Orlork wouldn’t take her out of the estate, but if Orlork tried something to upset Selene, Xavier would interrupt to send him out.

"Just for a moment," Selene replied, agreeing to walk with Orlork.

Up to now, Selene didn’t know what to make of Orlork. He was more relaxed and less intimidating than the stories she had heard of him.

Selene had heard enough about the war and the Blackthorns to know not to be fooled by how he acted now.

Orlork waited until they were out of sight from the others to ask, "How is my grandson treating you?"

"He treats me well. I feel very loved by Xavier," Selene answered.

"I know the boy quite well, so I know how he can be at times. My wife used to say there is someone out there for everyone, but when it came to Xavier, we thought he would take longer to find his person. Do you love him, or do you love his name?" Orlork asked.

"Since you know him so well, anyone looking to use Xavier solely for his name wouldn’t last long here, and he would see right through them," Selene replied, but his question left her thinking of how their marriage started.

Orlork chuckled. "That is true. He does have a habit of knowing when someone wants to use him. I fear he might lure them inside the estate to put them in his dungeon. You must be a special one to bear with his personality."

"I don’t think it is bad. I mean, he might try to tease me sometimes, but Xavier is kind. There has not been a moment when I thought otherwise. Anyone he has harmed deserved it," Selene said.

"Well, it sounds like I don’t need to be concerned about you running to the town guards. Again, I am not interested in ruining your marriage. I have never been interested in anyone’s marriage other than my own, so relax. You are trembling," Orlork said, placing his hand over Selene’s.

"I am sorry," Selene apologised. "I heard so many stories about you when I was younger. I cannot believe I am walking beside you, let alone that I am speaking to you. My father wouldn’t believe it."

"I’m sure the stories have made me scary. The Harrisons and Everharts fought in the war, so they must have some scary stories of their own to share. Did you hear the story of how I helped to search for holy weapons? Some of the Everharts were right there beside me," Orlork shared.

Selene tried to recount the stories her father would tell her. "I know the weapons were found in churches, but I don’t remember who found them. Did you enter a church?"

"I did. I had to bear with my flesh still burning for three days, but I managed to get what we needed. The Everharts handled it better than I did. After our time raiding the church, that was the last I saw them. Whatever sent them off to be alone happened in the church," Orlork said, turning Selene’s hand so he could see her palm.

Selene pulled her hand away from his hold. "If there is something you have to say to me, you should do it now. I know you didn’t speak of the war or my family for no reason. You know something."

"I do. I noticed something back then before they ran off. Something that they should protect, and when the time comes, I would like to protect my great-grandchild if it goes to them. I won’t share secrets that aren’t mine," said Orlork.

Orlork needed to know the child would be safe from all purebloods, the humans who sought to harm them and even from the other Blackthorns.

"There is much for me to do before I go back to sleep. I intend to sleep for a long time again, and I don’t want to be disturbed. I must sleep before my wife wakes again. She promised she would kill me," Orlork shared.

Selene had a few questions about Orlork’s wife but didn’t ask.

"Now that you have spoken to me, is your interest in me more than the Everhart name?" Selene asked, curious of what he thought about her. "Is Selene good enough?"

"Why are you asking me that? If Xavier says it, then you are enough. What anyone else says does not matter. How do you think I have lived so long? I ignore what others say," Orlork said, sharing the key to life.

Selene laughed. "It is that, and also the fact you are a powerful pureblood. No one would trouble you."