Page 10 of Bloodstained
Both of us were still silent, and then his lips curved into the faintest smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Here you are.” His voice was low and rough as he spoke in thickly accented English.
His voice curled around me and made my heart race. But it wasn’t out of fear, and that fact terrified me on a primal level.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, not sure why I was apologizing.
“What do you have there?” he asked, gesturing to my sketchpad.
I pulled the pad away from my chest and glanced down. “I was just sketching.” He stepped toward me, his movements deliberate. My legs felt shaky, my feet taking me another step back.
I could make out his facial features more. Taking him in with a more critical eye now, I took note he was even larger than I’d realized. His frame was towering, and if I had to guess, I would have said he was six foot eight. His presence was suffocating.
I started breathing faster as I sensed the air grew colder and the sun set further, casting more darkness until the light disappeared beneath the horizon.
“It’s getting late,” he finally said. “You shouldn’t be here.” His voice was sharper now, cutting through like a blade.
“You’re right,” I whispered, clutching the sketchpad to my chest again. “I better get going.” Yet I didn’t move.
The last sliver of sunlight disappeared, plunging the clearing into shadow. God, how had I stayed out so late? Time had slipped through my fingers.
His figure blocked everything behind him as he moved away from the ruins and walked closer to me. But my feet refused to retreat and take me away from him. Maybe it was a trick of the light, but his eyes gleamed faintly, this unnatural glow flickering in their depths.
“I’m going to go,” I whispered again.
“Come here, Clara.” His command was soft, but it carried the weight of something ancient, something that demanded obedience.
I found myself walking, almost floating, to this strange man who somehow knew my name. The way he spoke to me, commanded me, wrapped around my body in a seductive embrace. I couldn’t place him, had never seen him before, yet… he was familiar.
He leaned in, his face so close to mine I could feel his warm breath brush against my skin. My neck tingled, and I lifted my hand, touching the spot where I knew the bite mark was.
A sharp, sudden sound left me as I looked into his glowing eyes. “You,” I gasped.
“Yes. Me,” he murmured, his voice low…dangerous.
I tried to get my legs to move, but it was too late. His hand shot out, catching my wrist as he pulled me close to him so my chest slammed against his.
The world tilted, the shadows swallowing me whole as he held me to him, his lips barely brushing mine as he murmured, “You’re mine, Clara. And I’ve waited long enough.”
And then he gripped my hair and tilted my head back. I felt his mouth feathering across my throat.
“I’ve been waiting ages for this…for you,” he growled, and then I felt him strike, sinking his teeth into the side of my neck.
And I didn’t fight it.
CHAPTER SIX
CLARA
Iwoke to the sound of crackling fire, the warmth of it brushing against my face. My eyes fluttered open, but I immediately squeezed them shut again. I didn’t know where I was or how I got here.
I opened my eyes again and blinked rapidly, but the world around me caused a sudden, sharp pain in my head.
However, I couldn’t pretend I was still dreaming. The rich scent of burning wood, the faint creaks coming from the distance, and the steady thrum of my own heartbeat in my ears made it impossible to ignore reality.
My neck started throbbing, reminding me why. I blinked, taking in the unfamiliar room.
It was old...like these stones had seen hundreds of years. That's the first thing I noticed. The stone walls were impossibly high. The firelight flickered along the jagged texture. The room was expansive yet suffocating, all in the same breath, and that made no sense.
I pushed up on the massive bed I was in the center of, and I swore the shadows pooled around me like an inky mess.
