Page 73 of Blood Claims
Because he soon answered my question as to where I was now, making me realize I had just exchanged one kidnapping for another. Only this time, it wasn’t a dirty, blood-stained warehouse.
It was his…
“Home.”
27
VOLCANOS ON ICE
Home.
At his curt reply, I shuddered in his arms before he allowed his shadows to flow forward. The tentacles reaching for the large door, making it swing open as if by magic. An opening he now walked us toward as my head fell back to take it all in. Doing so as the tall building dominated the surrounding countryside, like the house was literally trying to reach the heavens. The vast darkness of fields beyond the walled gardens looked overgrown and unmanaged. The gothic stature of the wrought iron gates cast shadows against the pathway, with its twists of coiled metal.
It looked like a dark fairy tale.
Its towers loomed upward, with one in the middle being set back further from the rest. The carved stone above looked to hold an elaborate stone bell tower, with a domed roof and menacing gargoyles standing guard over all below them.
“Are we still in the US?” I asked, doubting it because there was nothing this old in a country that had only been founded two hundred and fifty years ago. This place looked like it belonged to royalty, making me wonder, just who was this guy?
“We are in England,” he stated, making me gasp.
“But how?” To which he had hit his limit, snapping,
“Enough.”
I swallowed hard and held back the urge to speak. Something even harder to do when he walked me inside as the lights illuminated the space around us. It was like stepping back in time. I honestly didn’t know where to look first.
What with its elaborate wooden paneled walls that had too many incredible details to pinpoint just one. The marble, checkered floor shone like water on a lake, and as I looked to my right, I could see a grand dining room. The floor was cast in a blue hue as the moonlight filtered in from the tall, paneled windows. That room, and all rooms like it off the main entrance hall, were still cast in darkness.
As for this imposing room, it was only lit by candlelight, illuminating the space in a warm glow from the wrought iron candelabras. These tall, gothic candle holders each stood in between the different doors against the walls. As for above, huge golden chandeliers hung, making me wonder how these had been lit. Unless they had just been made to look like candles, I didn’t know.
The tall ceilings were as impressive as the rest… they were a mixture of carved arched beams, and recessed square moldings, each with a rosette at the center.
As for the main staircase, this easily dominated the room where it stood directly in front of us, so it was the first thing you saw when you walked through the door. It was a grand Y-shape, with the wider part of the staircase sweeping out in an arch at the bottom and separated at the top, giving two directions to choose from.
But what made it stand out the most was the thick, plush red, carpet runner held there by gold bars at the run of each step. Itmade it look eerily like a river of blood against the stark white marble.
However, we didn’t go up this incredible staircase, one I envisioned princesses gracing the steps of with their big, flowing dresses and ballgowns. Nor did we enter any of the many rooms we passed, instead making our way to the lower levels. The staircase was made of pale stone and was not as highly decorated as the main one I had seen in the entrance hall.
The hallways were narrower down here, along with being void of any paintings or lavish furnishings, telling me it was likely the servant wing. I wondered why he had brought me down here, fearing for a minute that this place had a dungeon and that was where he was taking me. In fact, it was just on the tip of my tongue to ask when he stepped into a kitchen.
One that didn’t match the building itself because it had clearly been modernized, yet tastefully done. There was a huge island at the center of the room that could have fit twenty people around. The large wooden top, like a giant butcher’s block, was comprised of small wooden squares all compressed together.
It was an island he promptly sat me on, before dipping his head and lifting my arms up and over so I was no longer attached to him. He then looked down at my bound hands with a frown before making short work of freeing me of them. Although this came with its risks, because I flinched back the second I saw long, thick talons emerge from over his fingernails. Now making me question if all Vampires or demons had this ability?
Because I wasn’t even exactly sure what he was yet. But I recognized the same traits as the brothers had. Brothers that I couldn’t help but think of, hating what I was currently putting them through by leaving. By not trusting them when I should have. By letting mad panic take hold and then the foolish decisions that followed.
“Stop moving, or I could end up making this worse,” he chastised when he saw me flinch back. Then as if making his point, he grabbed the middle where my wrists were connected and yanked me closer, before he hooked a talon through the rope and cut them as easily as if they had been made from paper, not nylon.
After this he pulled the ropes free, making me hiss where they had cut into my skin, leaving more than just a red mark or imprint. Once again, this made him frown as he ran a gentle fingertip along the outside of the marks made there.
“These are a mess,” he stated tightly, as if it pissed him off. But then he didn’t need to tell me this, because I could feel it for myself. However, if I thought he was going to say anything more, I was wrong, because he turned his back to me and started to walk to the other side of the room.
“You’re desperate to ask questions, aren’t you?” he said with his back to me after long moments of silence. And he wasn’t wrong, especially as I saw him now standing in front of the wall of dark wooden cabinets. His tall frame easily reached the highest one as he pulled down a black box.
“Do you blame me? I only thought you were real in my nightmares,” I dared to admit.
He scoffed, his large shoulders lifting slightly. He then turned back to me, with the box now in hand. The sound of it dropping on the island made me jump when he reached me. But it was a reaction he ignored as he then walked over to the wide metal sink, reaching in another cabinet to grab a bowl. I wanted to ask him what he was doing but refrained because I didn’t want to make him angry.
