MY SUGAR MUMMY IS A BEAUTIFUL VAMPIRE

The words hung in the air, heavy and ominous. Blake's face drained of all color, his eyes wide with shock and dawning horror. Reggie and Randal exchanged alarmed glances, their hands instinctively moving to their waist and then their chin.

"What do you mean, he's not dead?" Randal asked, his voice barely above a whisper. "Blake killed him."

Rose shook her head slowly, wincing at the movement. "Did he?" she challenged. "Think about it. If Mimic was there, impersonating Reggie, who's to say what really happened?"

Blake's hands were shaking now, his mind racing to process this new information. "But I remember," he insisted, though his voice lacked conviction. "I remember killing him. I felt his body go limp beneath my hands."

"Did you?" Rose pressed gently. "Or is that what Mimic wanted you to believe?"

The implications of her words settled over the room like a heavy shroud. If Damien was alive, if he had somehow survived, it changed everything.

Reggie was the first to break the stunned silence. "We need to be sure," he said, his voice tight with tension. "If there's even a chance Damien is still out there..."

"So what are you saying? Could he have something to do with this," Randal finished, his face pale. "The familial spirit, Rose's condition - it could all be part of some larger plan."

Blake sank to his knees beside Rose, his eyes never leaving her face. "How?" he asked, his voice barely audible. "I mean, Damien is dead! I made sure of it even though I'm not proud of it. So how?"

Rose reached out, her hand trembling as she touched Blake's cheek. "We saw what we expected to see," she said softly. "What Damien - and Mimic - wanted us to see."

The room fell silent once more as they all grappled with the enormity of this revelation. If Damien was truly alive, it meant they had been playing into his hands for the past two years. Every move they had made, every decision, could have been part of his grand design.

Blake's jaw clenched, a fire igniting in his eyes. 'If he's alive,' he said, his voice low and dangerous, 'we'll find him. And this time, I'll make sure he stays dead'. As much as he felt somehow about how he had lost control two years ago, a part of him resented Damien. With pure passion, he hated Damien and he knew the other felt the same way.

Even now, since the very beginning, Damien was still causing his family pain. He knew what needed to be done.

Rose's grip on his hand tightened. "Blake," she whispered, her voice urgent. "If Damien is alive, then he might be the only one who knows how to...to fix me,"

The others exchanged glances of confusion. What was she in about? How in the world was Damien going to help them now in this situation. As a matter of fact, why was Damien even brought up to begin with?

Rose took a deep, shuddering breath, her eyes flickering between the three men who stood watching her with a mixture of concern and apprehension. The weight of her revelation pressed down on her, but she knew she had to share what she had realized.

"I think I know the cause of this curse," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "It's... it's the oath I took with Damien."

Blake's brow furrowed, confusion and worry etched across his face. "What oath? Rose, what are you talking about?"

Rose closed her eyes, summoning the strength to explain. When she opened them again, they were filled with a mix of guilt and fear. "It happened years ago, while you were still imprisoned, Blake. I was... I was in a tight spot, and Damien offered to help get you out."

She paused, her gaze distant as she recalled that fateful day. "He said he would only get you out if I agreed to his terms. All I had to do was swear an oath with him. I was desperate to make sure he wouldn't harm neither me nor Celena. Blake, I ran out of options... I didn't understand the consequences."

Reggie leaned forward, his voice tense. "What kind of oath, Rose? What exactly did you promise?"

Rose's voice trembled as she continued. "I swore to be by his side after two years of Celena's birth...to be his... his companion. I thought it was just words, just a ritual. I didn't believe it would have such an effect."

Blake's face had gone pale, his hands clenched into fists at his sides. "Why didn't you tell me about this before?" he asked, his voice barely controlled.

"I forgot," Rose admitted, tears welling in her eyes. "Or... or I made myself forget. It was like a bad dream, something I pushed to the back of my mind. But now, with everything that's happening... I think the spirit that bounded the oath is after me because I went back on my words."

The room fell silent as the implications of Rose's words sank in. Blake paced back and forth, his mind racing to process this new information. Reggie and Randal exchanged worried glances, their hands instinctively moving towards their chin.

"So this familial spirit," Randal said slowly, "it could be the same spirit that bounded the oath you took with Damien?"

Rose nodded weakly. "I think so. The ritual you performed... it might only weakened the spirit hold on me a little. But I think it became vengeful and that's why it's acting out now. I think, that ritual opened a channel for this spirit to take control."

Blake stopped pacing, turning to face Rose with a mix of anger and despair in his eyes. "Why, Rose? Why would you make a deal like that? You should know better! Damien is a devil. You don't make a deal with the devil!!!"

Rose's tears spilled over, leaving tracks down her pale cheeks. "I was lost, Blake. Alone. I thought I had nothing left to lose. I never imagined... I never thought it would lead to this."

"But here we are!! Here we are Rose. Because you took an oath with your ex!!!!!" Blake yelled, barely able to restrain himself.

The tension in the room was palpable, thick enough to cut with a knife. Blake opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, Rose's body suddenly went rigid.

A low, inhuman growl emanated from her throat, and when her eyes snapped open, they were solid black. The voice that came from her mouth was not her own.

"How touching," it sneered, the sound sending chills down everyone's spine. "Such a heartwarming confession."

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