Page 22 of The Mistress, the Monster and the Marquess

Both of his parents ignored him, too devastated that their easy lives and flippant way of existing had finally come to an end..

The elderly butler stepped forward. “Can I do anything for you, my lord?”

Benedict turned to him with a smile. “No, I thank you though, Reynolds. You have been a wonderful friend to me over the years. Please keep an eye on these two for me and send me a letter if they get into any real trouble.”

The butler nodded and bowed. “I will do, my lord. Safe journeys to you.”

Benedict went to bed early, his head still spinning with numbers and problems. He wouldn’t be missed by his parents, which was horrible really. He was their only son, and his parents honestly didn’t seem to mind that he was leaving forever. And he had only a few gentlemen friends that might care, but they weren’t really close enough to him to worry.

With his will finalized, and his family’s finances organized, he was free of his responsibilities; but still unsure about what he wanted to do in regard to his entanglement with Lina. Yes, he wanted her, and he certainly couldn’t be with her forever if he wasn’t turned... but what would it truly mean to be immortal?

Chapter Thirteen.

Benedict had been dozing lightly when a creak to his right caused him to sit bolt upright. Fear raced through his veins as his heart pounded and sweat broke out on his brow.

The old man from his strange visions stood in front of him.

He swallowed nervously.

The vampire smiled knowingly. His fear must have been palpable to one with such heightened senses. “You know who I am?” The vampire’s voice was deep, and rough, as though it had been used too much or not enough.

Benedict released the blankets he had clutched to his chest and relaxed his hands. “You are Lina’s maker,” he answered.

The vampire bowed and moved closer.

Benedict slipped out of bed, unable to stay seated. “I am Benedict,” he introduced himself and waited.

“You could not pronounce my real name, so you may call me Sil.”

Benedict nodded, watching the careful way the other man moved. “Sil.” Speaking the vampire’s name caused him to shiver, a strange déjà vu feeling settling in his gut as though he had already lived through this moment somehow.

“You know why I have come?”

Benedict shook his head in the negative. “I hope you haven’t come to turn me. I am not ready yet.”

The old vampire chuckled. “No, Benedict, I have not. Lina will want to change you herself; I am sure.”

Benedict frowned, his fears dissipating. Then this makes no sense. “Then why are you here?”

Sil walked up to him and inhaled through his nose, his ancient fangs extending down over his lower lip for a moment, before retracting just as quickly.

Benedict forced himself to remain perfectly still even though his instincts screamed at him to run. His palms were sweating, and his breathing turned ragged.

“I am simply curious as to who Lina had chosen.”

Benedict shivered again. Sil’s blue eyes were as deep as an ocean. Would such a vampire be jealous? Benedict knew Sil and Lina had been intimate, though the thought turned his stomach. “She told me I wasn’t a choice. She said we were destined or fated.”

The old vampire laughed again, looking pleased. He moved away toward the fire and sat in one of the chairs there.

Benedict followed, choosing the opposite seat.

“There are blood bonds between humans and vampires. These bonds mean that we are compatible mates. It doesn’t mean anything else. Lina will crave your blood and your body as she has never wanted anyone else before. That is all.”

Benedict flushed in surprise. How candid a summary. He swallowed down the nerves threatening to overpower him because he needed to ask something else. “But is it possible to have a blood bond with more than just one vampire?”

Sil’s eyes widened, and he moved forward on his chair, the wrinkles in his skin creasing with the emotions flickering on his face. “I have heard that it’s possible, though it is extremely rare.”

Benedict nodded. He had thought as much. Antony’s memories were coming back to him in his dreams, often more vivid than Lina’s.

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