Page 88 of Only Fangs

“No.”

“Oh, come now. I don’t mean physically.” He rolls his eyes a little. “Don’t be so…” he gropes for the right word. “Pedestrian. Yes, I think that’s a very good description of you. Pedestrian. Anyway,” he flaps a hand dismissively. “You are going to hurt him. I’m going to sit here and watch you smash his little fragile heart to smithereens.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Of course you do. Use that pretty little head of yours. That human worm is madly, deeply in love with you.” There’s such disdain in his voice, dripping poison with every syllable. “And so you are going to destroy him. Right here in front of us. What fun.”

Chapter 46

Brody

Avampire dressed in a black suit finds me in one of the tunnels. I’d made it to my room, but then realised I was a sitting duck and so needed to move on. I couldn’t find my keys, there’s a little flashlight on the chain, and so in the end I’d decided to brave the dark. But it didn’t take long before I was lost and then there was a voice, calling through the dark that he knew exactly where I was, but promising not to kill me.

“Not yet anyway,” he adds with a laugh.

It isn’t very comforting to be honest.

“How did you find me?” I ask as he appears in the gloom.

“Clara and Ari used to practically live in these tunnels when they were little. I’ve worked for Mr Hele for almost two centuries. I used to be the one assigned to keep an eye on them, even though they thought no one else knew about all the secret passages and doors.”

“Oh.” It makes sense of course.

“She was always a wild one. Even back then,” the vampire says. “Never liked to do what she was told.” He shakes his head. “Always rooting for the underdog.” The way he looks at me makes it very clear that I am the underdog in this situation. “Picking up strays.” There’s an edge to his tone, of disgust mainly. “Still, I never thought she’d actually stoop so low as to date one of you.”

“We’re not dating,” I say quickly. Or at least… well, it isn’t like we actually had “the talk”.

The vampire leads me down a corridor, turning left and then left again.

“This isn’t the way out of here,” I tell him as he takes the right hand fork by the kitchen. The smell of roasting meat makes my stomach grumble, it’s been hours since we ate and I’m starving.

“We’re not leaving.”

We make our way back into the main part of the castle and eventually find ourselves standing in front of a door. One being guarded by three other men in similar suits.

“Apparently they’re not dating,” he tells his colleagues.

One of them makes a face. “Of course not.” He sounds utterly horrified at the mere suggestion. But then he pauses and leans closer toward me, his eyes boring into mine. “Oh. My. God. Did you actually think…?” He moves backwards a few steps. “Oh Jesus Christ. She really got to you, didn’t she?” He laughs so hard that tears begin to form in the corner of his eyes. “Holy fucking shit. I can’t believe you fell for that. You poor bastard.”

“Fell for what?” I ask.

“For Ari’s bullshit. What did she tell you? That you were special? That she didn’t normally do that kind of thing?”

“That she didn’t believe in love?” one of the others adds.

“Wow. You poor sucker. And now you’re going to be the one who pays for it, eh. Sucks to be you.”

The vampire who announced the pledges earlier opens the door. Benedict, I think his name was. “In,” he demands without preamble.

We enter a study, all dark wood and leather furniture and very little in the way of lighting.

“Ari,” I exclaim and take a few steps towards her. But Benedict pulls me back.

“Not so fast, little human.”

“Are you OK?” Ari asks. “Did he hurt you?”

I shake my head. Not physically no. but I can’t shake the things those guards outside just said. About Ari lying to me. About her using me.