“Have you come to threaten me?”
“Yes,” he said plainly.
The vampires were certainly blunt.
He unfolded his arms with grace and sauntered over to me, each step slow and deliberate. I wanted to keep my back open, but I was already cornered. I took slow steps back towards the window. If anything, I could throw myself out of it. That would be far better than the alternative. He stopped a foot away from me, far too close for comfort. At first, I had thought the draft came from the window, but the chill seeped from him as if death’s whisper perpetually ghosted around him. He towered over me. His broad shoulders swallowed up the firelight and veiled me in his shadow.
He glanced down to the book still splayed out on the floor. “I heard something quite displeasing today.” His eyes slid back to me. His words dripped with a sweet coating that covered what laid bitter inside.
“What would that be?” I tried so desperately to keep my voice even, to appear as unfazed as he was, but my voice wavered, giving me away.
He frowned dramatically. “Someone is poking around what’s mine.”
My hand brushed across the hilt of my dagger at my hip. He caught the movement and tilted his head downward, his brow darkening his eyes. “You wouldn’t dare, sweet dove. I’d have your throat before you could even manage to have that unsheathed.”
I let out a shaky breath.
He straightened and nearly rolled his eyes as if he couldn’t contain his irritation. “As I was saying”—he pinned me with a glare—“I find it quite displeasing that you have allowed another man to court you.”
“Are you really that deluded to believeyouare courting me?”
“Though, that’s not all,” he ignored me. “You two are concocting a monumentally foolish plan.” He closed the distance between us, and I reeled back, stumbling into the window, bracing my hands against the sill. He cocked his head, settling in uncomfortably close, trapping me between him and a third story drop. “I suggest you stop your plotting.” His low voice sent needles skittering across my skin.
I didn’t quite know what to say, and the first words that ran across my mind fell out. “Of course, whatever pleases you.”
He blinked slowly. “I appreciate the obedient words, though I’m not fond of the sarcastic tone.”
I nodded to the book. “You think I am to be loyal to you? That I’d even grant you such a fragile thing?”
“Of course. You’ll see in time that I am only looking out for you. I only hope the sight doesn’t break you.”
“I’d think that’s exactly what you’d want.”
My brow furrowed at what flitted across his eyes. It was enough to make me consider he might have been telling the truth. I didn’t know how to accept that possibility.
“No, that is not what I want at all. I’d like to keep you from what some couldn’t escape.”
“What do you mean?”
I flinched as he raised his hand. He caressed the side of my face, and the blood drained from that spot as if repulsed by him.
His hand fell from my face to my waist. Long, elegant fingers wrapped around the hilt of my dagger. As his hand grazed my stomach, a traitorous wave of warmth rolled through me. He slowly removed the blade from its sheath, his eyes locked with mine the entire time. He held the blade up to my face, resting the tip on the pad of his pointer finger. He twirled the hilt once, as if to taunt me with the only weapon that could kill him. My eyes flashed to the drop of scarlet on his finger. He gently placed the dagger back in its sheath at my hip.
Everything about him was slow and calculated, every move planned with careful consideration. He had the movements of a lithe cat, a graceful fluidity. So, when he moved suddenly, I barely registered it. He grabbed my throat with one hand and shoved his finger into my mouth, pressing down on my tongue. My eyes widened at the metallic taste that bloomed across it.
I gripped his hands with my own, squeezing as tightly as I could. My nails dug into him, but he was not phased in the slightest. I stomped down hard on his foot, and nothing even crossed his eyes. He kept me still at the throat, his finger still jammed inside my mouth, until I reflexively swallowed, and then he disappeared.
I stumbled forward at his sudden absence. My mouth fell open at the horrid taste. My limp tongue hung out. I grabbed a handkerchief from one of the side tables and aggressively wiped my tongue, spitting into the fabric. My stomach turned at the aftertaste. I pacedback and forth a moment reeling at the thought that he had just stuck his finger into my mouth and then disappeared. He truly was unhinged.
I had to do something.
He was right. My father would not believe me. My credibility had already been long tarnished. I had read through every book he had on the vampires, and I myself had never read about their abilities. There was so much we did not know. I was not sure he would believe the words no matter who they came from. He often only took his own word. But I had to try.
* * *
I wasn’t sure if Father was home. He could be somewhere around the manor or out on business. I pressed my ear to the cool wood of his office door, listening intently, squinting my eyes as if that would help. Nothing stirred the silence, not even a crackle from the hearth, which meant it was not lit. And with the autumn chill, he certainly would have it lit if he was in there. I knelt to the ground peeking through the golden keyhole. It didn’t offer much, just the corner of his desk and the bookshelf beside it. But sometimes I could see movement, the shadow cast from a flick of paper, his hand reaching for something. All was still.
To cover my tracks, I knocked lightly. I was never allowed to disturb him in his office, let alone even think about entering. I had never disturbed him, though I had certainly entered countless times. But just in case, I could come up with some elaborate emergency if needed. I took a breath and slowly turned the knob.
