Page 10 of Blood Vows
“You don’t think I’m polite?” I questioned with a raised brow.
“I’m sure you can be,” he said, his tone thoughtful now, almost curious.
“But that’s not what this is.”
“Then what do you find strange exactly?” I asked, but he didn’t answer right away. Instead, his expression hardened, as though irritated by his own hesitation. Then he said,
“Just stop thanking me for things.”
“Er…Okay,” I said, confused.
He stepped closer, closing the distance between us until I had to take a step back. His presence filled the space, dark and unyielding.
“Let’s get one thing straight,” he started firmly.
“I am not your friend. I never will be. So, this, whatever game you’re playing, whether you’re trying to soften me, to make me feel something, to lure me into lowering my guard…it won’t work.”I opened my mouth to argue, but one sharp look from him silenced me.
“The reason you’re here is for one purpose and one purpose only,” he said before getting even closer and delivering the final blow,
“One goal, little rabbit.You are a means to an end, and you will never be anything more…now, do you understand?” I swallowed hard, forcing down the strange sting of hurt that came with his words.
“I asked you a question.” He stated firmly when I didn’t reply.
“Yes, I understand. Now, can I ask a question?” he rolled his eyes at this and muttered,
“Fine but be quick about it.”
“So, this goal…” I asked softly,
“…Does it end with me dead or alive?”
For the first time, something flickered across his face. The tiniest flinch. If I hadn’t been so close, I might have missed it. But he masked it quickly, stepping even closer until his breath brushed my cheek.
“Either way…I don’t care,”he said, his voice low and cutting. I swallowed hard, asking myself why I cared so much about how those harsh words now made me feel.
He straightened then, retreating just enough to open the door wider.
“Now you have everything you need. I suggest you don’t leave this room again until I require it.”
He paused, looking at me one last time, and there was something almost human in the stillness that followed.
“Good night, Vanessa,” he said.
“Oh…
“…and feel free to lock your door.”
5
THE SHADOWS THAT CLAIM
The moment I returned to that warehouse, I knew I was trapped in a dream…no,a nightmare.One that Vasileios hadn’t shaped, but one he still ruled, if only by his presence.
Now it felt like my own mind was turning against me. My memories, raw and unmerciful, assaulted me with everything I had tried so hard to bury. The terror that had seeped into my bones that night replayed with cruel precision. Every scream, every pleading breath, every sound of flesh being torn apart from outside that office.
I thought I had known pain before. I thought I had known fear. But this…this was something else entirely.The air was thick with blood and smoke. Chains groaned overhead, swaying from the rusty beam. I looked up and saw myself hanging there, wrists bound, my body bruised and limp. The me in the dream was trapped, helpless, watching as the shadows around her twisted and came alive.
I tried to tell myself this wasn’t real, that I had survived this, that it was over. But the nightmare didn’t care. It blurred the lines between memory and madness, merging the horrors thathad been real with the ones Vasileios had once conjured in my dreams.
