Chapter 3 #2
There was a blur of motion. My head was forced back at an awkward angle.
I gasped, all too aware of his long fingers tangled in my hair, grasping the strands just hard enough to send a wave of arousal dumping into my body.
“You think you’re funny?” he said, tsking.
“It’s a dangerous game you’re playing, Miss Shaw.
Try me again. Find out just how much your blood is worth. ”
“Priceless, apparently,” I snapped. “Or you wouldn’t have dragged me from a party like a desperate junkie.”
“A desperate—?” His voice turned colder, harder.
“Be not mistaken, Miss Shaw. It would be so easy to drain you, right here on the front steps. It would take me less than thirty seconds to siphon your life from your frail little human body. It would certainly put an end to my troubles.” The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.
“Or better yet, I’ll simply auction you off to the highest bidder.
My enemies would find all sorts of valuable things to offer me, just so that I might be rid of you. ”
My mind went blank.
He inhaled, nostrils flaring. Like he could smell me—smell my emotions and what I was feeling. “Much better.” His fingers slipped from my hair. “Now, come.”
I swallowed, wetting my lips, then forced my feet to comply.
As long as I kept my face forward, he wouldn’t see my eyes water.
Wouldn’t see the angry tears threatening to fall.
Each breath was hollow, painful. But I couldn’t let him see how much his words burrowed beneath my skin. How much they hurt.
Snatching a few strips of paper, I plastered them over my heart, hardening myself. I’d done it so many times over the years, the entire organ ought to be a hard shell of paper mache. I shouldn’t have let his words affect me. Perhaps next time, I wouldn’t make the same mistake.
We climbed the remaining steps. I didn’t miss the hand hovering at the base of my spine. A reminder to keep me from running. Vittorio appeared at the doors, one moment nothing, the next, reaching to open them.
I blinked to clear my eyes.
We swept into a dimly lit hall.
“Sire! I just got a call from—“ The female voice broke off. A woman materialized before us. She wore an elegant sequin gown reminiscent of the twenties, her dark hair cut in a bob. Only, I noticed when it shifted briefly that her ears weren’t pointed. In fact, Vittorio’s weren’t, either.
“Sire?”
“Find Marco. My study. Now.”
So, it wasn’t just me. He was a genuine asshole to everyone. That didn’t exactly make me feel any better.
The hand at my back pressed more firmly, but I didn’t move. The female didn’t move, either. Her surprised gaze remained fixed on me. Her nostrils flared, eyes dilating, blackening, like what I’d seen in the car.
If I needed any more confirmation of what I’d gotten tangled up with, here it was.
“Zola! Now.” The sharp order made me flinch. “And keep your fangs in your mouth. Anyone that touches her, dies. Understand?”
I blinked, my brows creasing.
Zola seemed to shake herself, regaining control of her features as her teeth and eyes returned to normal. “You found an amplifier.” Her voice was breathy, riddled with disbelief.
A…what?!
“If I must ask again—“
“Right. Yes, all right.” She disappeared.
The pressure at the base of my spine increased, pushing me forward. I had only a few moments to gawk at our surroundings—checkered floor, giant stone staircase, gaslit sconces, elegant chandelier—before I was ushered upstairs.
I was vaguely aware of Vittorio’s footfalls on the marble behind us. We strode down a dimly lit hallway. I absorbed everything and nothing all at once.
We stopped before a door. A pale hand reached around me, opening it, then pushed me inside, following after. “Vittorio, have Miss Shaw’s guest room prepared—“ My captor’s soulless gaze passed over me. “The red room, I think.”
“Yes, Sire.” Vittorio, several inches shorter, backed out of the room.
We were suddenly alone. I gulped, my emotions ping-ponging between anger, fear, and defiance—
“Have a seat, Miss Shaw.” He said it like he was conducting a business interview.
I glanced around. It was an office. In the center was a desk, its surface home to a sleek laptop, small stack of papers, and a single fountain pen.
There were arched windows behind the desk, thin black mullions separating glass panes that glittered in the darkness.
In them, I saw my ow reflection, pale and frightened.
The walls of the office held rich wooden shelves, some with books, others with small items, figurines, trinkets.
“Miss Shaw!”
I scrambled into action, moving over to the nearest chair, sinking into it. He went around the desk and took a seat, facing me. I spent a few moments looking him over. In better light, he was even more striking, infuriatingly so.
“You never told me your name,” I bit out.
“I didn’t, no.” His low voice skittered over my skin.
“Well? Do you expect me to call you Sire like everyone else?”
“You may, if you wish.”
“I would never.”
He hesitated. “My name is Laurent Sarkas.”
“Laurent Sarkas,” I repeated. It was the kind of name that rolled easily off the tongue, tasting just as good spoken as it sounded.
He watched me, unmoving, not so much as breathing. It was unnatural.
I cleared my throat. “What was that about the amplifier thing—?”
“Sarkas.” A voice interrupted, entering the room. I craned my neck, turning. Another vampire. I knew it immediately, simply by looking at him. He had olive skin, black hair that curled about his head, and the same sharp features I’d seen on Laurent and Vittorio. His ears weren’t pointed, either.
“Sit, Marco.”
Their names… Italian. I’d always wanted to go to Italy. Enjoy some pasta, take a gondola ride, study the architecture. Many famous mathematicians had come from Italy—
“Zola wasn’t lying,” Marco said, taking a seat beside me.
“An amplifier? Here in Braxton? How is that possible?” He didn’t take his eyes from me.
The longer he stared, the more I itched.
His pupils blew wide, poisoned veins shooting across his skin.
My instincts kicked in. I gripped the arm rests, glancing toward the door, judging the distance.
Laurent had warned me not to flee.
The moment sharpened, the severity of my situation fully sinking in. Vampires existed. They existed—they were real. I was trapped in a room with two of them, lethal predators, and they looked ready to devour me.