Page 53 of Nyte

“I’m sorry,” Haven whimpered.

“Shhh…” the vampyre hushed him, gently stroking his lips. “I hate to see their harsh treatment. It brings me no pleasure. Surely it doesn’t bring you any either.”

“Serving my master brings me pleasure.” The words tumbled from Haven’s tongue like ash.

The red-haired vampyre shook his head. “You can fool my abomination of a progeny, but you cannot fool me, love. You hate what he subjects you to. You hate yourself.”

Tears began to fall from Haven’s eyes as he shook his head, spluttering.

“I know what you want, sweet one. I know you want the Cure. And I know why you want it.”

Cy caught his breath. The Cure. This vampyre mentioned the Cure. What did that mean? Did he mean thevampyreCure? Was this what Thorne had wanted Cy to discover when he had sent him on this mission? And more than that, what could this information mean for the Veritas and the human liberation movement? His heart pounded so loudly he was afraid the vampyre might stir, realize his presence. But perhaps in his own arrogance, he thought nothing of the mere human pet crouching in the corner.

“You want to end it all, don’t you?”

Cy’s heart clenched. He knew it was true, knew Haven wanted to die. He’d seen that for himself, in Haven’s eyes, in he set of his jaw and the tightness of his shoulders. Haven was in pain. He hated himself. He did want to end it and that thought made Cy ache.

“I won’t allow it, Haven. Do you hear me? I won’t allow you access to the Cure if you mean to terminate your own existence. If I share the secret with you, I will do so only if you give yourself to me. As a vampyre, as a human. I won’t allow you to hurt yourself. Nor will I allow anyone else to hurt you. Ever again. Do you understand?”

“Gaius, please…” Haven reached out, eyes still clouded by the aftermath of the drug. “It hurts. Please. Make it stop.”

Gaius gathered Haven in his arms, holding him while he sobbed. Slowly, red eyes turned to Cy as the auburn-headed vampyre noticed him for the first time. “You keep pets now, love?”

“He’s not a pet,” Haven whispered into Gaius’s neck. “He’s a reminder.”

“A reminder?”

Haven nodded, his eyelids drooping closed. “Of Tobin.”

Tobin.There was the name Cy had been looking for. He committed it to memory and held it deep within his heart. Finally a name to go with the face he’d found in Haven’s sketchbook. The boy who looked so like Cy himself.Tobin. Who was Tobin to you, Haven?

Haven drifted then, melting into Gaius’s chest as the red-haired vampyre narrowed his eyes at Cy. Before long, Haven’s breathing deepened, asleep like the dead.

“You. Pet. Does that name mean anything to you? Tobin?”

Cy shook his head, averting his eyes. But it was a lie. Though Cy didn’t know him, Tobin meant everything. Tobin was the reason for it all.

“And you?” Gaius addressed Sirene. She raised her head to stare at him. “Sirene, was it? Do you know of this Tobin?”

“No, my Lord.”

Cy could tell by her pinched brow and tight expression that she lied. She lied for Haven. She knew more than she said, but for whatever reason, she remained silent.

Gaius nodded. “You’re excused then. I’ll take over from here.”

Sirene twitched as if she wanted to disobey, to stride across the room and gather Haven to herself. But instead, she bowed her head and turned to leave.

As the door shut, Gaius stood, with Haven’s prone body in his arms. Holding him against his broad chest, Gaius crossed the room, guided by instinct towards Haven’s sleeping place. Cy watched, his heart in his throat. Gaius. That was the name at the bottom of the letter he’d found. Surely Thorne would want to know this information...if for nothing more than to protect Haven from his ultimate goal.

Haven couldn’t die.

Cy wasn’t sure why the thought upset him so. Why did he care for a vampyre that had shown him nothing more than disdain?

Because there had been moments, moments of tenderness, where Cy had seen and felt something more. He was sure they both had.

Gaius returned, his arms now empty. His gaze settled again on Cy, narrowed and cold. “You’ll say nothing of what you saw and heard here today, pet. Do you understand?”

Again, Cy nodded. God, he could drown in the power this vampyre emitted. It was unlike anything he’d ever felt before. As the vampyre turned to go, Cy caught his breath, speaking before he could stop himself. “What happened to him?”

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