Chapter 49

☆ ☆ Beta Morgana ☆ ☆

I arrived at the ticket counter once again and handed the staff member the electronic audio guide devices she had given us earlier. "Did you get very far?", she asked. I shook my head, "Not at all; it's much bigger than I anticipated, and there are far too many stunning details to admire." She chuckled, "That happens to everyone."

She paused and pointed toward Darius, who was standing a little distance away, still seemingly aloof, "He's a good sport; I can tell he's just here to appease you." I laughed, "It's our honeymoon; I couldn't have asked for a better life partner." She smiled, "That's so sweet; where are you guys from?" I lied, "Maine. I've wanted to see The Biltmore Estate since I was a little girl. 

She smiled again, "That's so awesome." She slipped me a piece of cardstock; it was an intricately designed coupon that read: Two for the Price of One, Red Wine & Chocolate Tasting. A smile erupted on my face. "Thank you so much." She winked at me, "I hope you have a wonderful honeymoon." I nodded and bounced happily back over to Darius. 

He looked over at me, "Still perky from the coffee?" I shook my head and showed him the coupon. "He smiled and kissed me, "I take it you want to do this?" I nodded eagerly, and he chuckled, "Alright, alright." Our tour guide interrupted us, "Are you part of the 10:30 a.m. group?" Darius nodded, "My eager wife drug me here at 8:30 a.m., though."

She cleared her throat, "I'm not surprised. I've given over a thousand tours, and I'm still captivated by this magnificent historical place; my eyes find something new each time to admire." She checked her watch, "Fifteen minutes until the tour starts."

An elderly couple approached us and asked, "Is this where we meet for the tour?" I nodded and said, "Yes." The man had Black hair with gray speckled throughout but more heavily on the sides, and his facial hair was fully grayed. He was overweight, and his belly protruded a good four inches past his waist. He was friendly, as was his wife. 

A beautiful graying blonde with medium-length hair and perfectly curled bangs with blue eyes like mine, she was petite compared to him, and I could tell she took pride in her appearance; it was apparent that she bought his clothes, too. "We come here every year during Christmas; I love the decorations that they put up, but this year we had to postpone, so Bob brought me now for our first guided tour." 

"Awww.", slipped from my lips. I could tell they had been married for a long time, and I hoped that Darius and I would still do things like this once we were retired pack members. "I'm Morgana, and this is Darius. What's your name?", I asked, after introducing ourselves. She held out her hand to shake mine, "I'm Judy. It's nice to meet you."

Bob and Judy were the cutest little couple, and I was glad to have them in the group. I asked, "Darius, what time is it?" He checked his watch and said, "10:25 a.m." I added, "Maybe we'll be the only ones.", referring to the four of us. Judy responded, "That would be nice." I looked around, and a few people were wandering about. It seemed like the first few months after Christmas was the off-season.

Our guide waited a few more moments before confirming the group size with the check-in counter and then returned to our small group. She looked at us and said, "Looks like everyone is here." Judy smiled widely and said, "Oh goody!" I added, "I like that it's more intimate."

We followed our guide as she spoke about the family who lived here, gave brief historical descriptions, and pointed out small intricate designs that you might have missed because you were overwhelmed by all the details that went into creating the home. I took more detailed pictures, this time making sure to include any security cameras that we saw.

She answered Judy and Bob's questions about the estate, and we explored additional areas that were roped off during the self-guided tour. The library alone was the best room in my opinion. There were more books in here than any one person could read in their entire lifetime.

I noticed the scent of a female but couldn't tell if she was a werewolf or not near a back corner of the library; several books were also missing from the shelves where her scent was the strongest. After documenting the room with my camera, we went to a nearby staircase on the first floor. It was ornate and filled with such beautiful details. 

The same female's scent was even more prominent on the staircase, but it was faint, as though she had been moved a few days ago. Were they on to us? Did they know that we were coming somehow? Was she killed? I mentally noted that this could be where Kara was being held. 

Unfortunately, once we reached the top of the beautiful staircase, we weren't allowed into the wing behind the large engraved mahogany door so that we could investigate further. We continued around other areas of the large home, and I continued to document with the camera.

When we arrived at an office, Darius' hair stood on the back of his neck; he emitted a low growl, forcing me to stand behind him. Luckily, the three humans weren't close enough to hear him. I could smell the pungent deceased smell, likely from an older vampire. If he wasn't hiding somewhere in this room currently, he apparently spent a lot of time in here.

I took many pictures here, including one of a scroll spread out on the desk. The room looked as though it had been recently cleaned, and it seemed sculpted busts were missing from some podiums, and a lamp was missing from the desk in the office. I asked the guide about this, and her response seemed fabricated.

Her voice broke, and she wouldn't make eye contact with me as she said, "We had a break-in four nights ago, and some vandals had wrecked this room. It was closed off and just reopened for the guided tour today." I could also detect her pheromones shift to a fight-or-flight response. I pointed to a security camera in the room and responded, "Well, I hope the camera caught them or your security was able to apprehend them before too much damage was done." 

This time, she told me the truth, looking me directly in the eyes, "We didn't discover anything was wrong until the next day." I nodded, "Well, I still hope they get caught." She nodded and smiled uncomfortably. Now, I knew the cameras were only there to deter individuals and prosecute them if needed.

We had toured almost the entire house, more than what we were allowed in the self-guided tour, but some areas were still restricted; those areas hung heavy with the smell of death, and the ornately carved doors couldn't block the scent from my heightened senses. Still, we had to walk past them to get to the other areas. The guide said, "Our last stop is the rooftop." 

The view was spectacular, and I could take pictures from a high vantage point near the estate's center. The photos mainly showed trees surrounding the property at the front of the home, but there were several gardens to the right from where we stood. The rooftop area was slightly lower than some of the elongated mansard roofs and chimneys on the estate, so the pictures were only valuable from the front of the home.

The guide asked if there were any questions and then mentioned some other attractions on-site that we should visit while we were here during our two-day pass. It was a little after noon now and my stomach was rumbling, the first thing Darius and I would be doing was grabbing a bite to eat. The group thanked her for the tour, and we went our separate ways.

I gave the coupon to Bob and Judy for the wine and chocolate pairing, as Darius and I could afford it easily, and given their age, I assumed they were on a fixed income. "Hopefully, we'll see you there at the 3:00 p.m. session, but we have to get something to eat first; I'm starving." 

Judy smiled and thanked me for the kind gesture before saying, "We'll be there!" Bob added, "If she's drinking, I'm happy. I'll tell you about one of the times we went on a date early in our relationship. She gave him a quick nudge with her bony elbow in his ribs, and he let out a dramatic "Owww!" I chuckled and said, "We'll see you both in a few hours." 

We walked to the closest restaurant on the property, The Stable Café, and were seated promptly. Darius ordered an exclusive beer produced by their own brewing company called Cedric's IPA, and I ordered the Biltmore Blackberry Lemonade. I didn't want to drink alcohol now, knowing we would be doing the wine tasting shortly after we finished eating. 

The waiter asked if we were ready to order or if we needed more time to peruse the menu. I responded, "We're actually from out of town on our honeymoon. We don't know the first thing about Southern cuisine. Could you select some of your recommendations and surprise us? Don't worry if you think it's too much food; he's a big eater." The waiter smiled and said, "I'll be right back with your drinks."