Chapter 17
CHAPTER 17
A lexei
Anya is fast asleep under heavy guard when I leave her for the first time in over a week. She will not miss me, I hope, for I have business to attend to that she cannot be aware of.
There are dungeons in the castle, some deeper than others. My ancestors often imprisoned their enemies. In modern times, the practice is frowned upon, but I believe there are some sins for which medieval treatments are warranted.
My footsteps echo through the long passages as I make my way to our most forsaken cell. The halls are lit, but the cell is dark until I flick a switch on the outside.
“Argh!” My prisoner shies away from the light. I know it hurts him. All the lights down here are ultraviolet, designed to replicate the sun’s rays in a place where the sun will never shine. They were originally made to help humans suffering from Vitamin D deficiency. Here, they serve a different purpose.
Dom the ancient vampire is now my prisoner, and he does not like it one bit. This is humiliating and painful for him. He stares out from behind the bars with a deep malevolence that tells me very clearly he wishes to kill me. He is hungry, of course. We are not feeding him. He will starve down here, but he will not be able to die. Usually under such circumstances, a vampire would sleep—but I have no intention of allowing him to slumber.
He already has a thin layer of skin forming. In a matter of days, he will be back to his old self. Unless, of course, he is exposed to another strong dose of radiation. That would be unfortunate, wouldn’t it.
I am not content merely to take Anya back. I intend to exact full vengeance for our suffering. I want this creature to know what pain is, and to comprehend what he has done before I end him. This is the work of an alpha. Simple pack defense is not enough. Sometimes, horrors must be unleashed on those who deserve them.
“How are you, Dom?” I ask the question cordially enough. My pleasant tone is a cover for malicious intent of the worst kind.
“You seek to execute me, alpha, but I warn you, if you do, you will be unleashing a hell upon your pack you will live to regret.”
He’s afraid for his life. Good. But he is afraid of the wrong thing.
“I’m not going to execute you, Dom. I’m going to keep you here, in UV chains for as much of eternity as I can possibly control.”
The vampire’s face shifts into a mask of horror, which, seeing as he has barely any skin, is quite horrible indeed. I am sure this would give most people nightmares. It gives me a deep sense of satisfaction. All is as it should be.
“I still have control of your mate’s mind. I can make her suffer.”
I laugh inwardly. I know very well that is not true, especially in his weakened state. Elena has been working with Anya to help remove the last vestiges of the vampire’s curse. Wolves are naturally resistant to it, and there are plenty of old remedies against vampirism.
“You insist on treating me like a villain, but I am nothing more than a natural predator, doing what I needed to do.” He tries a different approach when his first threat fails to have any impact.
“You are a creep who stole my mate. You are fortunate I have not had your limbs removed. How long would they take to regenerate, vampire? A very long time, I imagine.”
That disturbs him. I see his head jerk back, the dead tendons in his neck registering his horror.
“I didn’t have to give her back. I didn’t have to tell you precisely where to find her. I didn’t have to allow you and your feral beasts to massacre my coven. But I did. Did you ever stop to wonder why? Or did you just assume you were winning for reasons?”
“You were holding wolves hostage. You had babies in moon-silver collars. You’re a monster.”
“We’re all monsters, Alexei. Be less hysterical. It doesn’t suit you.”
He gives me the answer all true psychopaths give. He believes that his evil is actually nothing special or unique to him, that his cruelty is in everyone, and everyone would act the way he does if only they were true to themselves.
“I don’t have any baby vampires being tortured in my dungeons,” I reply. “The only reason I am keeping you alive is you may one day become useful, and because you deserve to suffer. Oblivion is too good a treatment for you. Death should come to those who deserve it, and you deserve nothing but the suffering of an existence that will not end.”
He smirks slightly. “A monstrous statement.”
“I am not here to argue for my soul with you, vampire. I have one. You do not. You care for nothing and nobody. You are incapable of softer feelings or goodness. You are a rapacious void imposed on this world.”
“Does it make you feel good to stand in judgment of me, Alexei?”
“Yes. It makes me feel good to know that the thing that caused me pain, and caused my mate pain, will suffer for as long as I live at the very least, and quite likely beyond it.”
“Idiot.” He bites the word out almost as though he is disappointed in me. “You will die. But you will bear young first. You have no doubt already impregnated her. You will do so again and again. You will produce a living chain of creatures whose future existence depends on your current fornication. And each and every one of them will be at my mercy.”
“Not if you’re dead. Not if I ensure that you end at the same time I do, or perhaps before. I intend for one of the last things I see in this world being your demise.” My tone is vicious and yes, perhaps monstrous. But this is the proper use of monstrosity, to punish those who deserve it, and to protect those who do not.
“If your forefathers had come to the same conclusion, you would not exist. I took your mate because she consumed the flesh of my son, and because you disrespected me when I paid you a visit. The pair of you are uncontrollable, impulsive, spoiled little whelps, and I know for a fact you are a disappointment to your ancestors.”
I let out a short, humorless laugh. “Trying to get me to kill you now? It won’t work. You will suffer, vampire. You will suffer the way mortals do, slowly and inescapably, fearing death and eventually begging for it. That is what happens when you take what is mine.”
“What is yours is also mine, you need to remember,” he says, repeating his vile claim to Anya. “I know you don’t believe me. I know you think you’d be better off killing me because of all of that in the basement and the rest of it, but the thing is, Alexei, you haven’t listened to me. Neither of you have.”
“What have I not listened to?”
“I am her father. Well. Not biologically, of course. I am a vampire, and we only have seeds of death to spread. But I did organize her breeding. I know who her father is. I selected him. And of course, I knew her mother. I am family in a way you cannot understand. I have your best interests at heart, believe it or not.”
“You’re a perverted freak.”
“Plenty of fathers are.” He sighs to himself. “Terrible things are going to befall you, your mate, and this pack, Alexei. I warned you. The vampires are rising, and without an ancient to command them…”
I turn and walk away, leaving the light on. No more sweet embrace of darkness for him. He will be eroded and eradicated by the very thing that gives everything else on this planet life.