Only the same witch who cast the spell to knock his three slaves and assistant out could undo this sort of spell and Marcus didn’t need to be told so to figure out that her actions formed an ultimatum. Attend or have naught but a pile of sleeping humans to drag back across the city. The rest of them he’d willingly leave as such, but not his favourite little pet. Not Wynter. He wanted to curse and lash out at Claudine as well as his surroundings, but forced his rage aside. He would save it for the real culprit. Camilla.
“Let’s away then,” he barked, but first did not pass up the opportunity to grab Claudine by her throat and pin her to the wall behind. “And if you ever try something like this again, do rest assured that I will not hesitate to rip you to pieces and burn the remains. I care not for whom you serve. When you’re employed by me, you’re mine to command.”
She tried to loosen Marcus’s grip but he refused to relinquish his hold, squeezing tighter. He wanted her to know he meant what he’d said. It was no idle threat.
When he eventually let go it was because he’d chosen to, and nothing more. “Now, take me to your sire.”
Fourteen
When Wynter awoke, her head was pounding and it made opening her eyes almost too difficult to even bother with. It was as if she’d been hit in the head or something, because everything from the neck up seemed to hurt like a bitch. What the hell was in that coffee? And why had yet another vampire felt the need to spike hers and the others’ drinks to make them go easily? Couldn’t that bitch have simply asked?
She wondered though if the drugs hadn’t been about getting the three of them to behave, but to garner the attention of someone else. Someone tall and handsome with those icy blue eyes. Thinking of Marcus only made Wynter’s head hurt more and so she buried it in the pillow someone had thankfully placed beneath her and groaned.
“The affects will wear off soon, Wynter,” a deep and heavily accented voice told her, and she mumbled in response about how it wasn’t wearing off soon enough, making the man watching over her laugh.
She knew the voice before she even had to open her eyes. It was that strange vampire from the night of David’s death. Jakob.
“Where am I?” she asked when she was indeed beginning to feel a little better. “And where are the others?” she added, having noticed how quiet the room was.
“You are the only one Camilla is interested in, so the others were left behind to await Marcus’s return. You won’t be joining him,” a second voice told her, and it was one Wynter recognised as well, but not from any meeting. No, she knew this woman from the night she had come to her as a vision.
She jumped up and looked to where the sound had come from, blinking away the sleep from her dry eyes. Lo and behold, the woman who had appeared to her before was indeed there with them. She was whole. Flesh and blood.
Wynter looked from the woman to Jakob and back, checking that she was safe to talk openly, and breathed a sigh when the woman nodded and offered her a kind smile.
“You’re the one who came to me. You told me to follow him to you and that you’d separate us. Is that offer still on the table?”
“It is indeed,” the woman confirmed with a knowing smile, “I’m pleased you were able to refuse his advances. It speaks volumes about your strength of will, Wynter. I intend to follow through on the promise I made you, but it won’t come easily. You have to know what you’re letting yourself in for before we attempt this.”
She wanted to tell the woman a resounding yes, but then hesitated. Her feelings towards Marcus had changed over the past few days. She had changed. Him too. She wasn’t as desperate to leave him as she had been before and couldn’t actually offer the witch a definite answer. She needed to get her head straight first.
“We’ll give you some time to think about it, Wynter,” Jakob interjected, making her smile with the way he said her name as Vinter. “Marcus is busy for now so we have time to allow the details to sink in.”
The witch looked furious with him for having stalled the proceedings and Wynter frowned, thinking that if this really was all for her benefit then what did it matter if they waited just a little longer? The woman’s actions told her there had to be another motive at hand, and she wanted to know what it was before she acted out against Marcus and potentially lost her place with him forever.
“Yes, I’d like some time to think,” she answered him and then turned to the witch, “will you tell me more later when my head isn’t pounding?”
“Sure,” she replied with an icy edge to her tone that made Wynter retreat even further. The witch then stood and stormed out of the room, and Wynter half expected Jakob to join her, but he didn’t. He simply sat back in his chair and watched her with an amused smile.
“You gonna tell me what’s really going on here?” she asked him as she lay back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. Her head really was still pounding and it was irking her, making her grouchy. “Why the rush? And what does she really have to gain by separating us?”
Jakob was quiet for a moment, as though deliberating on just how much to reveal, but then he shrugged and began to speak. It was as if he didn’t care about the repercussions for telling her the truth and while she didn’t want him to get in any trouble, Wynter was glad of his candour.
“Lola works solely for the love of her mistress, like your Priestess does her master. The vampire Camilla has asked her to separate the pair of you. Of course, she intends to follow through on her promise to deliver, but cannot break his witch’s spell by force. That’s why she came to you when your soul was crying out for a way to escape Marcus’s clutches, because you have to be willing…”
Jakob leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees and Wynter felt him glaring at her, reading her reactions in exactly the same way Marcus always did. He was so intense.
She wondered if perhaps all vampires could read humans so easily, and decided to be more careful which of them she put her trust in. Wynter turned and looked into Jakob’s eyes, and was surprised to find warmth in the deep blue hues. Far from the iciness behind Marcus’s. He wasn’t like him at all, and it was refreshing to discover how not all vampires were devious and selfish megalomaniacs like her boss.
“And now that things are different?” she asked him as she turned onto her side and continued to watch him.
“She’s scathing. I believe she thought this was going to be easy,” Jakob answered, and Wynter frowned.
“Why are you telling me all this?”
“Because I try to be beholden to no one other than myself and I made an oath not to lie,” Jakob replied with a soft smile she was once again drawn to, “I get results, Wynter. Make no mistake about that. But, I do it with honour rather than by being devious.”
Jakob had a solemn look on his face that made her want to believe him. And to trust that he’d always be honest. She was reminded of him holding her close in an attempt to do the right thing by her once before. And of how he’d stared at her afterwards and had seemed to be peering right into her soul. Was it the truth he was seeking then too? Had he found it?
“So you’ll tell me the truth about all of this? About what Camilla wants from me and why?”
“Of course, and I’d appreciate it if you did the same in return. Tell me the truth about what Marcus is up to in his tower. I snooped around that night I found you, but I would like to know first hand what it is he’s playing at. What his end goal is,” Jakob countered, but Wynter shook her head.
“All I know is that he rules us all with an iron fist. He expects each of his slaves to behave and serve him without question. We don’t get told the gory details.”
“And yet you fight him, don’t you?” Jakob replied with a knowing smile, “everyone else tells him yes while you tell him no. Did you break his curse?”
Wynter looked away. She’d kept that a secret and wasn’t sure she wanted to confirm or deny it, regardless of Jakob’s request for honesty.
He already knew the answer though, she could tell,
and seemed to take her silence as confirmation anyway. “Why do you stay if you already have your freedom? Do you genuinely care for him?”
Wynter knew he couldn’t understand. She barely could herself and breathed a sigh.
“I don’t know. There are times when he makes me feel good and shows kindness, but there are others when he’s a monster who delights in tormenting me. I stay because I have no other choice,” she eventually answered, and was surprised to find understanding on Jakob’s face.
“Do you think he cares for you? That he could ever love you?” he asked.
“Sometimes. But if he did, surely he wouldn’t be so cruel?” Wynter replied, and it dawned on her as she spoke the words that Marcus couldn’t possibly love her.
It didn’t matter what his eyes showed her when she got too close, his actions were what spoke volumes and he didn’t treat her like someone he loved, but someone he wanted to control and have at his command. Just like all his other minions, and yet undoubtedly sweeter because she wasn’t under his spell like they were. A true prisoner, just like he’d always wanted.
“Did he threaten you to make you stay?” Jakob asked, continuing on with his interrogation, and she nodded. “Who is it? Which life is at stake if you leave?”
“Everyone I care about,” she breathed, and a tear slid down her temple. “But the first on his hit list is a another of his slaves. Someone I’ve come to care a great deal about.”
“Would this slave do the same for you?” the vampire pressed, and Wynter wanted to say yes, but she actually wasn’t convinced he would, in all honesty.
Warren had blown hot and cold too and she had told herself he would only ever sell her out because of his curse, but could never be entirely sure. He wanted out, it was clear, and Wynter wondered if he’d gladly throw her under the bus to save himself given the chance. “It strikes me,” Jakob said, breaking her reverie, “that everyone seems to care for you, Wynter. You’re likeable and kind, and of course very beautiful, but that’s where the fondness ends. You’ve held back from getting too close to anyone for so long that you’ve become nothing but a shell. Someone unlovable because you have no heart.”
His words hit her like a punch to the chest.
“Don’t say that!” she cried and sat up atop the bed. Wynter couldn’t imagine him saying anything more hurtful than he just had done and she began to cry. “I’m not that closed off and I’m certainly not heartless.”
He watched her come undone with a sad expression on his face, but Jakob didn’t take back what he’d said.
“You care, it’s true,” he agreed, “but if you stopped shutting out your emotions you’d see that real connections aren’t something you should have to work so hard for. None of these men love you, Wynter. If they did they would put you first without question. They would think of you with their every waking moment and want to spend it by your side. Not play games or leave you guessing whether or not they would make sacrifices to save you.”
“So what, I’ve got to accept that no one loves me and probably never will?” she answered despondently, and hung her head in her hands.
“You can choose. Continue on as you are and let everyone you care about walk all over you because they cannot see you for anything more than you already are. Half a person, and half a heart. Or, open your heart fully and follow it. Don’t give up on yourself and go forward in the knowledge that you’re more than good enough. That you should be loved. That you deserve to be.”
“Fool me once, shame on you.”
“Fool me twice, shame on me,” Jakob finished for her, and Wynter began to cry harder. She truly was the fool. She had been played time and again because she’d stayed too closed off to see what the people around her were doing. They were using her. Forcing her to do as they wanted by toying with her and manipulating her. And all the while she’d let them because she hadn’t wanted to get too close and let anyone hurt her again. Well, no more.
She was going to love with everything she had, and was going to start by learning to love herself again.
Jakob stayed with Wynter for hours. They talked through her past with her ex, Dominic, and how she’d ended up at the club that night when David had approached her. She told him how Marcus had lured her in and then put her under his spell, but how she’d managed to get out of it again.
It felt incredible to finally tell someone. She felt she could trust him and knew that while her admissions weren’t secrets he’d keep safe, Jakob seemed to understand her motives. He also appeared to want her to come out of this different and in one strong piece, and it was refreshing being open and completely honest with someone about what she’d been through and how it’d all made her feel.
She wanted to stay there all night, thanks to how comfortable and refreshing it was in his presence. But of course, thanks to the time that’d passed, it wasn’t long before her stomach began rumbling and Wynter stood, heading for the doorway.
“I need some food, and quick. Are you taking me for something to eat or shall I see if Lola can bring room service?” she joked, making him laugh. With a smile, Jakob climbed to his feet, opened the door, and then ushered her forward with a wave of his hand.
“Please, after you,” he said and then led her out into a dark hallway.
There, Wynter stopped dead thanks to the stark coldness outside. It was far from welcoming. There were doors all the way down the hall they were now in, but each was closed, presumably locked tight. All Wynter could see was the stream of moonlight coming in from the window at the end, and in its cool rays was the path to an exit.
The door she and Jakob had just left through closed with a bang behind them and she jumped, moving closer to him for safety. It was odd how after just a short period of time together she already trusted him so much. But really, she figured why not. He’d been the first person to truly be honest with her and not lie or cheat his way into her good graces, and he certainly hadn’t manipulated his way in either. He was strong and seemed to know how to use that strength wisely, and she felt safer by his side.
She peered up into his face and took him in, and watched as the shadows clung to his strong, square jaw and prominent cheekbones. He was looking right back at her, his pale blue eyes roving over her face curiously too. For a few seconds, they simply stood there, taking one another in, and Wynter couldn’t deny feeling warmed from the inside out thanks to his closeness. Jakob truly was a handsome, powerful man. His blond hair and blue eyes might make anyone else think of him as a pretty-boy, but she knew differently. She could see the strength behind those eyes and the fierceness in his stance. He was old and wise, and had seen his share of both good and bad. But unlike Marcus, he hadn’t sought power or riches. He seemed to want nothing more than balance and peace, hence his openness and ready honesty. A true conundrum.
A shiver then swept down her spine. It was eerily quiet wherever they were and Wynter realised then how she’d quickly gotten used to the sounds of the nightclub around her day and night. She wasn’t used to the silence any more and wasn’t all that sure she particularly liked it.
“Where to?” Wynter quickly asked and Jakob shrugged.
“Where do humans like to eat?”
She giggled and shook her head.
“There must be a kitchen or something around here? Doesn’t Camilla keep human slaves?” she asked, and then paled when Jakob shook his head no.
“She feeds and then gives the scraps to her hordes. Needless to say we don’t entertain much…”
“Whoa,” Wynter replied, and it was hard to shake off the realisation of what Jakob had just said. Maybe there was such a thing as being too honest, after all.
She’d heard that term used back at the club too. Hordes. What did the vampires mean by that? She wanted to ask him, but was actually scared to hear his answer. Whatever a horde was, it couldn’t be good. She guessed it had to be a group of vampires that weren’t as refined as the likes of Marcus, but perhaps wilder. Maybe it was a term for collections of bl
oodthirsty vampires who lacked the sensibilities those others had? Those missing a conscience or a soul that couldn’t be trusted to feed out in the human world, so had to be fed scraps from vampires like Camilla?
Wynter had the suspicion she’d just answered her own question. “So she doesn’t have any qualms about killing? And what about the laws?” she asked Jakob, hoping she might be wrong.
“She thinks nothing of killing. Most of our kind don’t, but there are rules,” Jakob told her, leading Wynter down the hallway towards what she could see was a fire door at the end.
She followed, wandering slowly beside him as he continued to chat with her, and was drawn to him once again thanks to his openness and decency. “Contrary to myth and fiction, we do not shy away from sunlight or can be deterred by garlic or crosses. We cannot be killed with wooden stakes or holy water. Our deaths are administered by decapitation or by us being burned alive.”
Wynter wrinkled her nose at the gruesome information, but still nodded in understanding. She was getting a lesson she hadn’t even realised she’d needed and listened intently as Jakob continued. It was fascinating to hear, and she still wholeheartedly appreciated the way he spoke with such refreshing honesty.
They went through the doorway and, like at the club, Wynter expected to find more corridors there to ensure they couldn’t just escape, but was stunned to instead find themselves going straight out into the cool night air. She looked around and discovered that they were outside a service exit of some kind of stately home, and turned back to look up at the huge house in the darkness.
“What is this place?” she asked, impulsively changing the subject.
“Camilla’s residence. She lives at the front of the mansion while those such as Lola and myself live at the back. She much prefers the prettier side,” he replied with a playful roll of his eyes.
Round Two Page 12
