Chapter 11

Chapter 11

I didn’t want to admit he was right, but he was. I needed the sleep. The strain of the day had hit me hard. Once I let myself relax into the bed, my mind didn’t even fret. Dreams didn’t shake me awake, his face wasn’t filling them this night. The exhaustion had taken over and let me fall into a deep slumber. I sunk into the surprisingly comfortable bed, swallowed by the dusty sheets.

When I awoke, I forgot where I even was. It took me several moments wiggling under the sheets before my eyes popped open in surprise. My body sat upright with my mind slowly floating up to join it in consciousness. There was a small amount of daylight still bleeding in through the slatted window shades. It wasn’t enough to illuminate the room, but it told me I slept the majority of the day away, again.

There was a pile of clothes sitting on the desk. He had been in here again without me knowing. The thought of him sneaking in while I was drooling away into the pillows spooked me. His entire existence was spooky. He was a vampire, one that fed on blood, one who fed on my blood. I knew this; it caused all of this, and yet I couldn’t stop thinking about the man.

His existence, and his behavior, went against what they tell us about vampires. They’re supposed to be cruel and ruthless. Our meeting definitely started that way, but his behavior toward me now was different. If I ignored the fact he tried to twist my wrist off, he was being more generous than most would be.

Saving me from the Lightbringers was something I wouldn’t have expected anyone to do. They were the law, and he didn’t give a damn. I thought I was the only one who couldn’t stand their existence. It would make ironic sense that I’d find solace for my rebellious spirit in the company of an undead soul. I guess I couldn’t be picky considering the tight grip they had on society.

Not only did he save me from them, but he did it again with the darkened hollow. The way he moved, and the way he fought, was impressive. He wasn’t just a vampire languishing about in sorrow as the dilapidated castle would lead me to believe. He had skills and he could fight. I always thought vampires would be sitting around, plotting the doom of humans while reading books or something.

Evil books, of course.

Instead, he was living alone in a dusty old castle and grumbling about humans. He only had the one friend, Orrin. From the small bits of conversation I picked up, it sounded like Orrin had a full household and staff. Why was Orrin living a full life and Altyr wasn’t? It was whatever tragic thing occurred here that he was avoiding talking about.

Pulling the fabric up, it unfolded and billowed down to the ground. It was an olive green dress with soft white lace accents. It was beautiful and looked to actually be my size.

Looking down at my mud and dirt-covered clothes, I couldn’t believe I fell asleep in them. I would have to change the sheets. Honestly, I’d have to change the sheets regardless. I’d have to find somewhere to wash my clothes. Shedding my filthy dress, I pulled the green one over my head. I swam through layers of fabric to find the armholes and neckline. I wiggled myself into it and pulled it down around my hips.

It was tailored to hug in all the right places before flaring out. I was unfamiliar with the cut; the style seemed incredibly dated. He probably pulled this out of some chest that was stuffed away from decades past. It surprised me it was in as good of condition as it was. The lace was a little yellowed from age but otherwise, it fit well.

Two soft-skinned shoes with small amounts of lace caught my eye as they leaned next to the chair. He even brought me shoes that also looked like they fit. How did he know what sizes I even wore? The thought of him measuring my feet in my sleep made me chuckle. As I lifted the dress to try them on I noticed the gash the hollow had left that prior evening, except it wasn’t an open wound at all.

I had forgotten all about it; the pain hadn’t bothered me. At first, I thought it could have been from the excitement of that night, but I surely would have felt something while I slept. Silvery scar tissue was already binding the flesh together. I rubbed my hands across the soft new skin and it felt like it was older, that it had been healed for years. I marveled at it for a long while, surprised at the healing ability I was showing. Was it because I was hollow myself? Touching my neck and the two healed wounds from our first encounter.

Everything around me was magical. The blood that was in my veins was infused with it, the castle I was in was guarded by it, the man who brought me here controlled some of it. I felt my eyes water at the thought of it and how I knew so little about the world. The scar on my leg was evidence that it had truly changed me, changed how I survived in the world. Swallowing hard and shaking my emotions away, I drew my attention back to the shoes, simple but elegant shoes. I knew shoes.

Slipping them over my toes, I took a few steps around the room. They were light but durable. They also were extremely fashionable. The slight heel on the back made me feel fancier than I normally would.

I was going to have to learn more about the layout of the building if he expected me to stay there with him. Where would I go to bathe, wash my clothes, or even use the restroom? If the light was out, he wasn’t. I had time before he would harass me again.

Gripping the handle, I drug the door open. My heart dropped as I saw him leaning against the railing. His eyes traveled across my body, following every curve in the tight fabric. Then as he gave me a smirk, one of his sharpened fangs showed in the low light. He had changed as well and was in a tailored, dark-red vest. The shirt underneath was a simple white. He finally looked like a proper lord. One that was giving me looks like he was going to try biting down on my neck again.

“You look much better,” he said while nodding his approval.

I looked down at the green dress, noticing roses embroidered into the fabric. “Why is everything covered in roses around here?”

“It’s our house symbol. It used to be popular to put your symbol on everything. Agreed though, it’s a bit overdone.”

“I like it. It makes me think of my garden.” I looked longingly over his shoulder at the mess of a garden below.

He followed my gaze and turned around to look down at it. I took a few steps to join him and he pointed toward the fountain. “This used to be a place of relaxation. I obviously haven’t bothered with it in a long while.”

“Obviously.”

“I don’t tend to hang out in this wing so it was easy to ignore.”

I tilted my head and looked back over at him. The way he was looking down at the garden broke my heart. His eyes shook, and I saw the pain in him as he swallowed hard. Licking his lips he looked back at me and said, “you’re good with plants, correct?”

“Uh… Yes. I grew them for my trade. I would say I’m good with—“

“So you could fix this then?”

I raised my eyebrow at him and couldn’t help but let out a laugh. “You want me to fix this disaster?”

“Yes.”

“So not only am I your maid, but I’m your gardener now too?”

He rolled his eyes and pushed himself off of the railing. Turning away from me, he started marching back toward the stairwell. “I just thought you could tend to plants, excuse me for assuming you could do something you’re good at. The lavatory is on the first floor. The washrooms are down there as well. I’m sure you can find your way.”

I heard his steps as he descended down the stairwell. Soon his head appeared near the courtyard as I watched him glide away, leaving me alone in the castle. At least he told me where to find everything. The cold ache in my chest was more noticeable when he left.

The evening went by fairly quickly as I explored the surrounding rooms. Altyr didn’t bother visiting me again as I lurked around his keep. The rooms on the second floor with me were all bedrooms. I know why he picked the one he had; the rest were in much worse states. Their furniture was falling apart or the windows had broken and let in the weather to mold the clothes that covered everything.

The lower rooms were more varied. I made it my mission to find the lavatory first. There were several baths next to them, I made a mental note to visit them later after I did my exploring. The thought of a warm bath was incredibly enticing.

I continued my traversing across his keep. One room was a large study filled with books that looked like they hadn’t been touched in ages. A small closet held several gardening tools, I made a mental note for that room if I was going to tame the wilderness that was the courtyard.

I could hear the water rushing as I opened another door. There was an active stream of water running through the washroom. It was streaming through the middle of the room and shallow enough for me to wash items in it as it rushed by. An iron gate capped both sides of it, preventing any items from being lost to the pipes. It was like nothing I had seen before. The fact that the castle had running water was amazing. I could only assume it was more of that magic I had seen at the gate.

There were several stone steps placed across the small stream that allowed you to reach the other side. On that side, there was another door. Curiosity had caught me, where would the door lead? I opened it up to find a long, dark hallway. Grabbing a candle from the wall, I ventured into it.

The hall wasn’t wide but was wide enough that if you were carrying a load of laundry, you wouldn’t have issues. There were several chutes that came down near the entrance. They looked like slides. It must be where the upper floors discarded their linens to make it easier to haul to the washroom. Honestly, the slope was just steep enough that I had a distinct urge to slide down it from the second floor. I’d have to try that when Altyr wasn’t around.

I continued following the hallway for quite some time. Eventually the dark hallway led to a door. My fingers brushed the bronze handle and twisted. Nothing happened. Firming my grasp, I was able to twist the knob. I heard a metal clink. I tried to push the door but it wouldn’t budge. No one had been out it in a long time.

I pushed harder and felt it give way. I had to use all my might to push it through the overgrown grass and dirt that was peeking underneath. The door led outside to a small open area. The moon was shining above, illuminating the yard. There were posts where it looked as if laundry had once been left to dry in the air. This was just a yard for clothing to dry. An iron gate blocked it off from being accessed from the ward. I made a mental note of this hidden exit.

As I whirled around to head back in, the wind caught the door and slammed it shut. Slipping in the grass, I ran back to the heavy door and tried to pry it open. Pulling with all my strength, the door wouldn’t budge. My eyes scanned the small yard, looking for an exit. Falling on the iron gate, I pulled my dress up and trudged my way through the mess.

It was rusted out. With one firm push, the lock broke off and fell to the ground, lost in the tall grass. He really kept nothing in working order around here. It surprised me that the damn roof hadn’t collapsed in on the place yet. I looked around and realized I was at the back of the castle now. A small gate sat alone. It wasn’t as illustrious as the front and castle gates. It looked like it could fit a wagon through tightly if it had to but was overall unassuming.

I heard a crack to my left, and in a blur, something was jumping at me. I threw my hands up, trying to protect my face. My body hit the ground hard and someone knocked the wind out of me. Above me perched Altyr. He let out a laugh, and that smirk greeted me once again as his silver hair draped over top of us.

“I told you to watch out for hollow in the yard.”

I sat up, bracing myself with my arms while glaring at him. “Yeah, well, you’re not a hollow are you?”

Putting his hand out for me to grab, I pushed it away as I tried to stand up. I stood proudly next to him after dusting off my clothes and in another flash he was behind me, arms wrapped around my chest. I felt his hot breath on my neck, his nose lightly brushing against my ear.

“You are so incredibly easy to attack. You mortals are just asking for us to devour you.”

An annoyed sigh fell out of me. “I think you just enjoy making me squirm.”

Moving his mouth closer to my neck, I felt his fangs graze against my skin. Tingles of heat rolled across my body. I felt his right hand caress my side, moving his fingertips lightly down my hip. The cold hole in my chest warmed, and I felt more at peace as he held my body tight.

“I could make you squirm if that’s what you want.”

My cheeks flushed with heat. He was pushing every button of mine, making me regret coming with him. “Please let me go.”

His grip slackened and he twirled me around with a laugh. I spun across the yard, dizzy and surprised. Steadying myself, I looked back at him. The long strands of silver hair dancing in the moonlight, falling over his eyes. That familiar smile was there for me to gawk at.

“That’s the rear gate. It’s enchanted so no one from the outside can see it. Here inside though, it’s our last chance of freedom if the main gate ever falls.”

I looked back at the small gate noticing it was wide enough for a carriage and that was it. “Good to know. Thank you.”

Turning back around, he was gone. He moved too quickly and too quietly for me. The man was going to give me a heart attack and he knew it. He’d probably just laugh at me falling on the floor in obvious pain from one while telling me how weak of a human I was. I rolled my shoulders and eyes at his behavior before trudging my way back around the castle to get back inside.

Once back, I got to work on throwing down all the sheets and clothes from the room into the chutes. If I was going to be stuck in the dusty castle, I might as well try to get some cleaner surroundings. It took me several trips to get them all down the chutes and was quite the workout. The stairs alone were going to give me a heart attack if I had to climb them too often. I guess I’d get used to them over time but for now, I could only wheeze my way up and down them.

I had found some old, caked soap in the washroom and used what I could to help clean the sheets. The rushing stream was extremely helpful. There were even spots in the room to place boiling vats to make sure things were extra sanitized. I wasn’t about to be boiling all my sheets so the rushing water and soap would have to do.

I even managed to find a new string nestled away in there. Several spools were falling apart, but I was able to find one that was sturdy enough to be strung out in the drying yard. After getting my sheets hung up, I took a break.

In all the work I had done for one room, I was going to have quite the time helping Altyr clean everything. I hadn’t seen him the entire evening. Of course he’d leave me alone to be his maid. He did say that was what I was going to be doing. Even though I was moving around, moving my body, I still felt the cold ache in my chest.

Looking down at my busy hands, I paused and flexed them. Turning them over, I noticed a dark swirl dance across my fingertips. My eyes widened as I watched the darkness dance and spiral across each finger before dissipating again. Was this the darkness they said would consume me? I shook out my hands, trying to fling them away.

The trickling of water was the only noise to accompany the pounding of my chest. The twisted ghouls we encountered on the way there were the only things I could think of when I thought of a hollow. I couldn’t let the darkness take over and consume me, turning me into a darkened hollow. There was definitely something missing, something deep inside me. Would my fate mirror their own? When he stole my blood, he stole parts of my soul. Did he still have it?

Picking myself back up, I wiggled and shook out my limbs. I couldn’t continue thinking about it, it was depressing me. If I stayed busy, I’d stay distracted. I made my way to the one place I had been avoiding; the garden.

Staring at it with my hands on my hips, I tried to assess where to start. The moon shone above, already waning. It still gave plenty of light for me to see the horrifying garden he let exist here. My eyes scanned over the green disaster. Weeds and vines wrapped their way around the stone of the intricate fountain. I felt that would be a good place to start.

After digging through the tool room, I had enough tools and gloves to help my new venture. Chopping and hacking away at the overgrowth, I was cutting and hauling vines and debris into a pile all while grumbling about the state of the garden. How dare he let it get this bad. There weren’t enough excuses in the world to let a garden get this overgrown. Sure he didn’t have a staff, but I didn’t have one and I managed to have a functional greenhouse.

My thoughts kept bouncing back and forth in my head, the frustration of my task, my frustration at the vampire for putting me in such a situation in the first place, and then my frustrations at Bazak. The man was always haunting my thoughts. I could still feel his hands wrapped around my wrists, pinning me to the bed. Altyr’s actions earlier caused that specific feeling of distress to resurface.

I shook my head, trying to chase the thoughts back into the dark corners of my mind where they belonged. Tossing my head back, I tried to focus on the moon, the life-giver. The tears were pooling in my eyes as I swallowed hard. This time, the moon had given me my life back. I wasn’t left alone to pick up the pieces. I couldn’t let it see me hurt like this. Wiping away my tears, I stood proudly for the moon.

Standing there, in an overgrown garden, I was trying to look like I was put together for the moon. The moon! I was trying to appeal to the moon of all things. A laugh bubbled up and took over me. Collapsing to the ground, I flopped my arms out and lay there on my back as I continued chuckling at the moon hanging over me.

Altyr’s silver head popped over me, peering down at my laughing self. “What is happening?”

I shook my head and said, “Just laughing at the moon.”

He turned his head to look at the moon and then back at me. “Is this another human thing I don’t understand?”

Pulling myself back up to a sitting position, I looked around to see a cart sitting near the largest archway. It was full of plants. I tilted my head at the sight. Turning back to him I motioned to it. “What’s with the cart?”

“I found some things for you.”

“You found?”

“I procured.”

I was the one to smirk this time. “Did you steal these things?”

He laughed and offered his hand out to help me off the ground. This time I took it. His large hand grabbed mine, and I felt a spark of warmth crawl between us. I lost my balance by focusing on it as I was trying to pull my weight up. I felt his other hand press softly on my lower back as he helped steady me. The embarrassed heat flushed my cheeks again as he snapped them both back.

Walking toward the cart, he said, “There are a few rose bushes in here and various seedlings. I don’t know what they are but the flowers looked interesting.”

“Did you just dig up flowers?” I couldn’t help but snicker at the thought of him digging up plants for me out in the wilderness.

The shifting of eyes showed me he was nervous when talking to me without barbed insults. “I also found some ingredients for you. Honestly, I don’t know what you can do with it, but I am assuming it is something. I’ll have to show you the kitchens.”

Pushing around the various plants, I saw several sacks of flour and sugar. There was even a stack of eggs. He managed to not only find chickens but also get their eggs. I had no idea where he went to get any of this. It couldn’t have been my city, that was too far away for him to go to and make it back since the last time I saw him.

“You probably should get some rest. Human bodies are weaker and need more of it, I’m told. Twilight is coming. You won’t be able to do much in the daytime.”

I raised my eyebrow. “Why wouldn’t I be able to do anything in the daytime? I thought that it was only vampires that had an aversion to the sun.”

“You can survive in the sunlight, you just won’t like it. Your life is now straddling the day and night. The sun has a power neither of us cares for. It would be in your best interest to stay in the dark. But go on, don’t listen to me. I’m just a centuries-old vampire with a vast amount of experience in such matters.”

He didn’t wait for me to reply before he turned away and walked off. I watched his long legs carry him quickly across the courtyard. As he reached the archway he came through, he stopped and turned back to me. He saw I was still watching him, our eyes meeting.

Holding my gaze, he said, “try not to do yard work in the nicer dresses, I only have so many.”

I let out a scoff and shook my head. Looking down, I saw how filthy the green dress had gotten. Mud, grass, and soap scum decorated the fabric. It was a disaster. I was truly looking the part of maid and gardener.

The cart sat there as a gift. It surprised me that he got me anything, much less a cart full of plants. Not only that, but he even bothered to find me ingredients for food. At least I wouldn’t starve anytime soon.

He continued to surprise me with his behavior. Maybe eternity with Altyr wasn’t going to be as bad as I thought.