Roast beef with potatoes and carrots steamed on my plate. A buttery roll sat to one side along with a bowl of creamy cheese soup. Baylen was pouring me a glass of that honey mead when Blackthorn swept into the room.
I choked on the bite I had been chewing. Baylen rushed to pat me on the back as I swiped the tears from my eyes. “What are you doing here?” I bit out.
Blackthorn paused by the other chair, a hand on the back of it as he surveyed me. His jaw tightened as he took in my clothing.
“Well, this is my home. It’s dinner time and I’m starving.”
Chapter 10
I blinked at Blackthorn’s words as I realized what he meant. My hand reached up to touch my neck, my pulse fluttering under my fingers. No way did this crazy bastard think that he was feeding off of me.
He arched a brow at my reaction as he swept into his seat with ease. One of the twins came into the dining room and stood next to Blackthorn’s seat. She held her wrist out to him without emotion, staring off into the distance as he brought a small knife to her wrist. I swallowed down my cry of horror as blood trickled from her wrist and into the chalice next to his seat.
“That’s...” I swallowed, my stomach rolling at the sight. “You’re a monster. I can’t believe you force them to feed you.”
Blackthorn’s dark eyes lifted from his glass to meet mine. “I do not force anyone to feed me. This is their duty.” He lifted his thumb to his mouth, piercing it with his fang before rubbing the blood that bubbled to the surface across the woman’s wrist. “Thank you, Elise.”
Elise curtsied. “My pleasure, master.”
I watched Elise leave, the urge to chase after her barely covered up by the need to put this monster in his place. I slapped my silverware down with a scowl.
“How dare you? She’s a human being. You can’t just treat her like some pitcher you can pour from whenever you like. Just because you are the master of this castle doesn’t give you the right to do whatever you want.”
Blackthorn simply sat quietly while I ranted at him, swirling Elise’s blood around in his chalice.
“Are you quite finished?” he asked quietly when I paused to take a breath.
I sucked in a breath and then thought about it. Was I done? What else was there to say? Did he even care what I thought? Obviously not, or he would take me back to the factory already.
“Yes, I’m done.”
“Good,” he clipped, setting his chalice down. “Now, let me set a few things straight. You’re correct, I am the master of this castle. These are my servants, and I can do with them as I like.”
I opened my mouth to argue. Thick vines shot out of the ground and wrapped around my body, pinning me to the chair, and covering my mouth.
He had magic? How did I not know vampires could do magic? What else about him was he hiding.
While I tried to push down my terror, Blackthorn stood from his seat and walked toward me without a care in the world. Stopping at my side of the table, he tipped my chin up with a finger, his nail long enough that the pointed edge of it bit into my skin.
“I have been generous up until now. You’re in a new place. Everything happened so suddenly. Allowances had to be made but no more. Understood?” His dark eyes bore into mine.
I gave an imperceptible nod which seemed to be enough for him.
“You will not speak while I am talking. If you cannot behave like a civilized guest, then you can eat dinner somewhere else. Iwill not have you ruining the one moment of peace I get every evening with your vile accusations.”
My eyes narrowed, the need to counter his words stopped by the vines.
“As for my feeding habits,” Blackthorn sat on the edge of the table, his eyes skimming over my form, “I assure you, no one is being forced to feed me. They are more than happy to offer up their blood for my nourishment.”
The tip of his nail traced down the line of my throat. No doubt feeling how my pulse raced in a mix of fear and anger.
“Now,” he sighed as he withdrew his hand, “if I release you, can we enjoy our meal without all this hostility?”
I stared at him for a long moment before jerking my head with a nod.
He flicked his hand as he stood. The vines released me, and a gasp escaped my lips.
My eyes followed after his form as my fingers rubbed my cheeks. I waited until he sat down before lifting my fork to pick at the food on my plate. Blackthorn picked up his chalice and drank, his eyes locking with mine.
