Page 46 of Obsessed in Blood
I caressed his cheek as I lifted my lips to his. My kiss was gentle, but his response wasn’t. He dragged me to him as he pushed for a deeper kiss. I had no choice but to comply and hope he wouldn’t take it any farther.
He pulled his head back and stared into my eyes. His arms wrapped around my waist, holding me close. I held his stare, my gaze unfocused, and smiled.
“You’re a beautiful woman, Cressa. Soon, you will be introduced to my friends, and then vampire society as my consort.” He ran a hand down my cheek. “One more thing I’ve taken from Trelane. He would have been better off letting the beast consume him.” He kissed my forehead then whispered in my ear. “Tonight, my dear. You’ll be mine tonight.”
He stood, and I fell back, pulling the sheet with me. “You won’t have a reason to be shy after tonight. But, until then—” He straightened his suit. “I have business off the island again. Mrs. Newbridge has work to keep you occupied.” He lifted my chin. “You might share my bed tonight, but until you’ve become trained on every aspect of running this house, I can’t introduce you to my friends. I’m planning a weekend gathering in a couple of weeks. Until then, you’ll need to focus on everything Mrs. Newbridge tells you so you’ll be ready to impress. Only the best for House Venizi.”
I nodded and held my smile.
“Very good.” He strode to the door. “Come, Stephen. I need to run through a few tasks with you. She’ll be fine on her own until Mrs. Newbridge comes for her.”
After giving them a full minute to be sure neither returned, I ran to the bathroom and immediately brushed my teeth before jumping into the shower, the water hot enough to turn my skin red. My heart didn’t stop racing until I toweled myself off.
At least I could be grateful the mesmerizing hadn’t worked, but playing Lorenzo’s charmed mistress-to-be was more difficult than I’d imagined. Even with all the scrubbing, I still felt tainted by his touch, and one thing was certain. I had to expedite my plans. Whatever it took, I had to be off this island before Lorenzo returned.
I’d barely dressedbefore Mrs. Newbridge stormed into my room, once again not bothering to give me the courtesy of knocking. Would she treat me the same way as consort to Lorenzo? Not that I planned on sticking around to find out, but I was curious about the hierarchy in the House. It seemed some of the human staff had more power than the vamps.
I shoved my hands in my pockets as I followed her to the kitchen, my fingers playing with the edges of the hand-drawn map and time schedules I’d grabbed at the last minute. I wasn’t sure if I was going to see my room again before I made my break, so I’d dressed in clothes that allowed better movement along with the lowest-heeled shoes I could find.
“Sit over there in the corner and eat your breakfast. I have several other tasks this morning and don’t have time to coddle you. You have eight hours of work before Stephen returns to take you to the salon to prepare for our master.”
I sat at the bistro table that was conveniently located next to the walk-in pantry. A bowl of oatmeal with various toppings waited for me, and I dutifully ate, not knowing when I’d eat again. Mrs. Newbridge must have been talking about me based on the pointed finger she kept flashing in my direction as she spoke to the cook. When she left, the cook went back to work, ignoring me.
While I ate, I mentally ran over the map of the island. It was too dangerous to take out my notes, but I had to confirm the dates and times of the shipments off the island. When I finished, the cook was literally elbow-deep in making dough. Keeping one eye on her, I crept to the pantry, heading straight for the delivery schedule. The dry goods only came once a week, but the fresh stuff came over daily, and I pulled out my notes to confirm the times matched.
I kept my movements subtle as I went back to the table, picked up my dishes, and shuffled to the cook, keeping my gaze down.
“What do you want, girl?”
“I wanted to go the restroom before you put me to work.”
“Down the hall. I’m sure Mrs. Newbridge showed you where. You need to be quicker of wit or face the wrath of our master. Now go, I need to finish this.”
I scurried from the room. What a dismal place to live, and I couldn’t wrap my head around why these people were so loyal to such an asshole. But maybe their harsh behaviors were for my benefit, beating the new consort down while I was being mesmerized. A lesson to never question my place or duties until all I wanted to do was please the master for any tidbit of reward. Or maybe he just paid really well.
I raced past the bathrooms and turned left to the laundry room. I strode in like I belonged there and walked right to the corkboard. Once again, I sighed with relief that the times hadn’t changed.
I ducked into the bathroom on the way back to the kitchen and took out the map, reviewing locations and the paths to the boat dock. Based on the schedule Mrs. Newbridge kept on her office wall, a boat came every afternoon at three. It left at four, which meant all the items to be loaded onto the boat would be picked up at scheduled intervals throughout the day. And I thanked the gods the schedule corresponded to the times listed on the kitchen and laundry schedules.
The dilemma I faced was how to get on the boat and keep everyone from looking for me until then. I had a few ideas but would need help from unsuspecting individuals. The first thing was to gather all the supplies I required, and I trudged back to the kitchen where the cook waited.
“It’s about time,” she huffed and led me to one of the sinks. A large basket of potatoes and a matching one filled with carrots sat on the counter. Next to them was a single vegetable peeler. I didn’t need to ask to know how my morning was going to be spent, but at the same time, I held back a grin. Step one just became easier than I could have hoped for.
I screamedas two vamps hustled me down the hall with the cook and one of her assistants trailing behind. The cook mumbled over and over, “I have no idea what that nitwit of a girl did. One simple task is all I asked.”
Blood streamed from my wrist, and it hurt like hell. The tears weren’t difficult to conjure up, and I kept them flowing as I continued to scream. I never realized how much screaming lessened the pain until I needed to breathe again.
It only took moments to reach the infirmary, and the single nurse in the room rushed over as soon as we entered. After she gave me a firm command to shut up, I clamped my lips together.
“Hold her still while I see what she did.” The nurse gripped my wrist like it was a chicken wing she was preparing to rip off the carcass. And I took mild offense that she immediately assumed I’d been the cause of my injury. She was right, but it still stung. “This is deeper than a flesh wound, but she shouldn’t require any stitches.”
“Why don’t you just give her blood?” one of the vamps asked.
The nurse looked up in horror, and even the cook and her assistant took a step back.
“You must be new to the island. One never gives blood to any of the master’s property. That is his alone to give. I’ll clean it and bandage it, then he can decide whether her actions deserve a pure healing from his blood or if she should keep the scar as a reminder of her foolishness.”
The vamp bowed his head. “A teaching moment. Thank you.”
