Moonlight Denial: Shades of Moonlight Book One

“So you’re sure it was right here?” Roderick asked as he stepped off the sidewalk and onto the street. He glanced about the houses that lined the area before looking down the street both ways.

“Yes, they took him right here,” Amelia said, balancing on the very edge of the sidewalk. “Look, you can see the tire marks they made when they peeled out of here.” She pointed at two black tire treks burned into the asphalt.

“I’ll say it again, those guys had balls for doing this in broad daylight,” Hailey murmured as she, too, looked about the houses.

“From what I hear Dimitri has always been one for dramatics,” Ethan growled as his hand tightened around his umbrella handle. The sun had nearly set so he wouldn’t need it very shortly. “And this is as dramatic as you can get.”

Ethan had been chosen to be the one to go with the three Fairbrooke’s, much to Amelia’s distaste and she made that very evident. Felix was with him in his invisible form, but that didn’t stop him from feeling outnumbered.

“Hmm, so they took him here and then turned around to go that way,” Roderick mumbled to himself, using his fingers to follow the direction of the van. “So we can rule out anywhere they could have gone in the East completely.”

“How do you know that?” Felix asked, making both the women jump in surprise. They weren’t quite as used to a disembodied voice as Ethan was.

“If they had kept following this road,” Roderick said, pointing down the road the van hadn’t taken. “It would have led them straight out of town. Actually, where they were it would have been the shortest, fastest way out of Whixton. So we can eliminate their base of operations being anywhere in this direction.”

“Good reasoning, Rick,” Hailey praised.

“Hey, what’s this?” Felix asked.

The others all looked around, not really sure where his voice had come from.

“Over here you nitwits. By the tree.”

The four looked over just in time to see a backpack rising into the air beside a tree. Ethan quickly walked over and took it before anyone saw the levitating bag.

“It’s Nicoli’s backpack,” Ethan said after he had a good look at it.

“Oh, poor Nicoli,” Amelia said, seeing the bag Nicoli had held only a short time ago. “He must be so scared. I hope they’re not hurting him.”

The knot that had been writhing in Ethan’s chest only tightened more. He hoped for the same thing. If he could he would beg and plead with Dimitri not to lay a hand on Nicoli.

“We’ll get him back, Amelia, don’t worry,” he told her reassuringly.

His words had the opposite effect, however, and he was given a hateful glare. She stormed up to him and ripped the backpack from his hands.

“Shut up! We wouldn’t need to get him back if you had just stayed away from him like I told you to!” she yelled at him. “Whatever happens to him is on your head.”

Before Ethan could even kick start his brain back up and say something against the accusation Amelia was abruptly pushed back. It didn’t take a genius to know who had done that.

“Stop talking to Ethan like that! You are seriously pissing me off!” Felix screamed right back. “You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about so just shut the hell up! Everything that Nicoli has done with us has been completely voluntary. He could have walked away from us at anytime, but he didn’t. That doesn’t make it Ethan’s fault.”

“Let that jerk talk for himself you stupid spook,” Amelia snapped back. “You guys probably brainwashed Nicoli. Voluntary my foot.”

“All right, all right. It’s time for you to take a breather, little girl,” Roderick said as he lumbered over and grabbed Amelia by the back of her jacket. He then proceeded to lift the girl off her feet and set her over on his other side, away from Ethan and the invisible ghost. “Need I remind you that we’re supposed to be working together now?”

“But, Uncle Rody!”

“That’s another thing, keep your voice down. You’re going to draw the attention of the whole neighborhood.”

Amelia pouted pitifully and hugged Nicoli’s backpack to her chest.

“Sorry.”

“Don’t say sorry to me, say sorry to fang breath. He seems just as broken up about this as you are.”

“No, this is all his fault,” Amelia said stubbornly.

“Amelia,” Roderick said lowly, crossing his arms and his eyes narrowing. Coming from such a big, burly man it was quite intimidating.

Amelia let out an irritated sigh and turned to Ethan, the glare still in place.

“Sorry,” she growled out through clenched teeth.

“It’s okay,” Ethan said.

“That’s much better,” Roderick said, his smile returning as he patted Amelia on the head, who hmphed.

“I should have just told Nicoli what you were and made him believe me. Maybe then none of this would have happened,” she grumbled.

“Wow, she still believes he was that ignorant? That’s funny,” Felix said snidely.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Amelia asked.

“Felix,” Ethan said, not wanting any other problems.

“She might as well know the truth. No sense in lying anymore, is there?” Felix pointed out.

“Yes, do tell us the truth,” Hailey said, coming up beside Amelia to place a hand on her shoulder.

Ethan sighed and ran his free hand through his hair. Felix was right. There was really no reason to keep the truth from Amelia. He just hoped he didn’t get zapped again.

“Amelia, I lied that night at the Halloween party. Nicoli has known what I am, and what my family is, this whole time.”

There were simultaneous eye bulges and Amelia’s jaw dropped. Ethan was surprised it didn’t fall right off. He braced himself to spring away just in case he was attacked a second time.

“What? He’s known…this whole time?”

“Well, that just makes everything better, doesn’t it?” Hailey said, throwing her hands up in disgust.

“Wait, how is that possible? When did he know? You were able to convince him?” Amelia asked question after question.

“I revealed what I was to him a few days after we met. The reasoning behind it was because of a vampire hunter, a cliff, and a near death experience but that’s a story for a later time,” Ethan said. “It took a lot of convincing, but I was able to get him to believe me.”

“Why didn’t he tell me that he wasn’t a disbeliever anymore?” Amelia questioned to know one, sounding crushed.

“Believe me, Amelia, he didn’t do it to hurt you,” Ethan told her. “He saw you as his stability for normalcy. He had me that turned his world upside down and then he had you to make sense of everything. That’s how he wanted to hold onto you and why I never told him what you really were. For both you and him.”

“Oh, how noble of you,” Hailey drawled with a roll of her eyes.

“Hailey, now is not the time to stir the pot,” Roderick grumbled, placing a hand on Amelia’s back. The poor girl was quivering and her eyes looked like they were about to gloss over.

“Who is stirring what pot?” a voice asked.

Everyone turned to see Cecile approaching with a plastic bag. She looked at each of them with a curious expression and her brows lifted when she saw Amelia’s troubled face.

“Done with Nicoli’s parent’s eh, Cece?” Roderick asked, clearly happy for the change in subject.

“Yes, I located the video camera and a few pairs of clothing for Nicoli when we get him back. When I left I heard a commotion and found all of you. What exactly are you doing?” she asked, a wary eye still on her daughter.

“Tabby wanted us to try and see if we could figure out which way the van was heading so we can get a general idea of where they could have gone,” Hailey answered, a sour look still on her face as she side glanced at Ethan.

“Sounds like a sound course of action,” Cecile said with a nod. “But it appears you haven’t started. I believe we have gone over that every second counts.”

“Right you are, Cece,” Roderick said, giving Amelia one last pat before turning to Hailey. “You’re up, Hail. Time to flaunt what you got.”

“Which you know I do so well,” she said with a nod.

Ethan watched curiously as Hailey walked a few feet away from them. She rolled her shoulders and shook her arms, as if getting ready for a swim. When she was good and ready she stood sideways to the house directly in front of her and held out her finely manicured hand towards it. Her lips moved as she muttered indistinguishable words and Ethan’s eyes widened as the air about her hand began to vibrate.

A sonic boom punctuated the air as a shockwave erupted from the outstretched hand. It carried through the air and its waves spread over the row of houses. Before the magic even had a chance to settle she lifted her other hand and another sonic boom sounded. More waves flitted through the air and the other houses across the street received the same treatment.

When the air finally stilled there was a loud whistle from Roderick and he and the other two Fairbrooke women clapped.

“Nicely done, Hail, as always,” he congratulated.

“Did you expect anything less?” Hailey asked, but took a bow anyways.

Ethan stood still, apart from the others as he pondered over what just happened. Felix was just as befuddled.

“Okay, I must have missed something.”

“Um…not to sound ignorant, but what just happened?” Ethan asked awkwardly.

“You’re nothing but ignorant,” Amelia muttered, low enough so her family couldn’t hear, but loud enough for Ethan’s acute hearing to pick up.

“Hailey has made it so Roderick can do his part without being seen,” Cecile told him. “She has used her magic on all of the surrounding houses so that if anyone were to look out a window we would appear invisible.”

“Wow…handy,” Ethan said in genuine appreciation.

“I’m beginning to see the benefits of being a witch,” Felix said, sounding impressed.

“Now you’re about to see another benefit,” Roderick said with a grin. He puffed out his chest and made his way to the street. He stood on top of the tire marks in the road and rubbed his hands together. “Watch the master.”

He spent another few seconds warming his hands before putting his palms together as if in prayer. Silent words also passed his lips and as they did dark purple magic crackled along his hands. When his hands were fully illuminated he let out a mighty yell and his whole body was thrust behind his fist as he slammed it down on to the road.

The tire tracks erupted into purple flames and they continued on into a U shape and further down the street and disappeared on another road.

“Viola, we have a helping start,” Roderick said.

“So, this will lead us right to Nicoli?” Ethan asked, his eyes glued to the fiery tracks as hope filled him.

“Not exactly. The tracks will only go for a mile or so before stopping. This is just to lead us into the right direction,” Roderick told him. “Speaking of which its time everyone jumped into the car. They’ll only last so long and people outside of the houses Hailey bewitched will be able to see them. Let’s go! Go! Go!”

Roderick and Hailey made a bee line for the car they had arrived in. Ethan followed and noticed Amelia was about to do the same, but Cecile placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Let them go on, they’ll find the right way. It would be best if we returned to the house to help Tabitha,” she said softly.

Ethan could tell Amelia wanted to argue, but her eyes simply went downcast and she nodded.

“I trust you will help Roderick and Hailey to your full potential. Both of you,” Cecile said to Ethan, nodding to him and to the place Felix was floating, still invisible.

Ethan watched Cecile and Amelia walk towards Cecile’s car and disappear into it. When it revved up and drove away Ethan sighed and scratched his head.

“Odd woman, huh?” Felix asked.

“You’re telling me.”

“Hey! Fang breath, when I say go I mean go!” Roderick yelled from the car.

“Sorry, coming!” Ethan said, running to the others to fulfill his promise to Amelia. To find Nicoli.

************************************************************************

The car ride back to the clan’s house was silent. Amelia had not lifted her eyes and her foot tapped on the floor of the car. She still had Nicoli’s backpack in her arms and she didn’t plan on relinquishing her hold anytime soon.

“What’s wrong?”

Her mother’s kind voice had been unexpected and she jumped. Red tinged her cheeks as she tried to compose herself.

“Nicoli’s been kidnapped, that’s what’s wrong,” she replied.

“No, there’s something else. Something that happened just before I arrived. You can tell me. Only if you want, of course,” Cecile said with that lovely smile that always comforted Amelia no matter what.

Amelia sighed, knowing there was no sense in fighting it, and sat up more in her seat.

“It’s scary how insightful you are, you know that?” she said.

“So I’ve been told countless times by Hailey,” Cecile said. “So what’s troubling you?”

Amelia let out another dramatic sigh as she looked out the window at the passing scenery.

“That jerk Ethan dropped a freaking bomb on me. Apparently…apparently Nicoli knew, this entire time, that Ethan was a vampire. This whole time and I never even had a suspicion that he did.”

“And you feel hurt.”

“…a little,” Amelia admitted, hugging the backpack to herself. “I just can’t believe he didn’t tell me that he knew or at least told me that he believed. Me of all people. I thought I would be the first one he’d come to if he ever knew about our side of the world. I thought he trusted me enough for that.”

Cecile was quiet as she navigated the car through the Whixton streets. When they came to a stop sign she reached out and took one of her daughter’s hands in hers.

“Do you think he didn’t tell you for the same reason you didn’t tell him you’re a witch?” she asked.

“What?” Amelia asked, not expecting that sort of question.

“It’s possible that Nicoli was afraid that if he told you what he was really involved in, or who, that you would be scared off and he would lose you completely. Nicoli cares about you, anyone can see that, and I’m sure he would be devastated if he lost your friendship.”

Amelia stared down at her feet as she contemplated the words. Out of reflex she squeezed her mother’s hand, wanting comfort.

“Do you really think that’s true?” she asked.

“I can’t say. I’m not Nicoli, but it’s quite possible. I do have a question for you, though,” Cecile said, the car still stopped as she took her eyes off the road to look at Amelia.

“What’s that?”

“Why is it that you didn’t tell us, any of us, that you knew Nicoli was involved with the vampires, no matter how vaguely you assumed?” she asked.

“Oh, um.” Amelia grounded her foot into the floor. “I’m really sorry for that it’s just…its just I didn’t want you guys to hate him,” she said. “If you found out he was hanging around vampires I was afraid you would agree with Aunt Hailey and think he’s bad.”

The hand left hers and fingers weaved through her hair. She closed her eyes as the fingers rubbed against her cheek.

“I understand and believe me; I don’t think he’s bad. He shouldn’t be blamed for the company he keeps or for that dark aura about him. Hailey will come to realize that some day,” she said softly.

“I hope so.”

“I’m just happy that you came to us so quickly after Nicoli was taken, no matter your fears. Your trust in us is all I could ever ask for.”

“Of course I trust you, Mom!” Amelia exclaimed. “Especially with something like this. I needed you. There was no way I was going to leave this to those vampires, even if it meant you and the others hated Nicoli for it.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” Cecile said.

She smiled as she placed her hand back on the wheel and the car moved again.

“You know, there is a silver lining to this whole mess.”

“What?” Amelia asked, curious as to what that could possibly be.

“When we save Nicoli from the vampires there is next to no chance that he will reject you for the fact that you’re a witch. That may even give you brownie points depending on how all of this works out.”

Amelia smiled at the thought as she looked out the window again. Her mother was right. Her being a witch was going to be the least alarming aspect of Nicoli’s life compared to what he was going through now. She just had to hope that they were able to save him in order for that to happen.

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“Ow! Son of a bitch!” Nicoli hissed as the shard of glass stabbed him in the throat for the thousandth time. “Come on, steady hands, steady hands,” he told himself, shaking his hands and fling off drops of blood that were rolling down his fingers.

In truth he was a bloody mess. He had sliced the pads of his fingers up pretty well and there were a few shallow slits in his throat that he had done by accident. His hands just refused to stop shaking. It was possibly because he had been at this for quite a while.

As soon as Dimitri had left him escape had been the only thing on his mind. His first plan had been to bust out the window and use the curtains and blankets as rope to hoist himself down. He had used what was left of the bedside table to try and break the window. His plan fell short, however, when only after two hits to the glass Seth came in, took what was left of the table and left. It had all happened so fast that Nicoli hardly had time to register that his weapon was utterly gone.

With no other way out of the room – because he certainly wasn’t going to be stupid enough to use his fist – he settled on his only other option. He had to contact Ethan. With that in mind he had taken the glass that had been left in the room into the bathroom and locked himself in. After wrapping the glass up with a towel to protect himself he smashed it in the sink. With the largest shard of glass in hand he had set to work trying to cut the collar off. It was slow going and that’s where he was, still going at it.

It was made of tougher material than he had first thought. No matter how much he rubbed the sharp glass against it, it still wasn’t even near to tearing. His eyes also must have been playing tricks on him because every time he was sure he had finally made a cut into it the next time he’d blink his progress would be gone and the collar whole. That was the last thing he needed, a shock collar that reacted to brainwaves that could also regenerate.

He wouldn’t let himself quit, no matter how frustrated he got. He had to get the collar off and get the hell out of there. So far Dimitri had left him entirely alone, but there was only so long that was going to continue. In fact, the only person that kept coming to the room was Seth. Nicoli hadn’t actually seen the man since he was locked up in the bathroom, but he knew it was Seth.

The first visit had only been to get the bedside table out of the room. When Seth had come back a second time Nicoli had stood stalk still in the bathroom with his breath held. He heard Seth rustle around in the room for a moment and then everything had gone quiet. Just when Nicoli was about to come out to see if he was gone he had heard Seth give his spine tingling chuckle and then the door had closed. After waiting a few more minutes to make sure he was gone, Nicoli came out to see what the man was up to.

To his surprise he had found a wooden tray on the bed with a bowl of soup on top of it waiting for him. His stomach had rumbled when the smell hit his nose and his mouth had filled with saliva at just the sight of the creamy red soup. He was getting incredibly hungry and the soup looked divine to him at the moment. That was when he slammed the bathroom door closed, relocked it, and went back to work. No matter how hungry he got there was no way he was going to eat the offerings. He had to remind himself to not trust anything that was given to him unless he wanted to get poisoned or worse.

Seth had come back one other time. That time Nicoli didn’t stop what he was doing and let the man do his rummaging in the room. The glass had slipped from his fingers and cut him pretty well when fingertips abruptly tapped on the bathroom door followed by his name being called in a vile, syrupy sweet way.

Goosebumps had instantly erupted all over Nicoli’s body and every muscle had tensed. He knew that if Seth wanted to come in he could have. A simple door would be nothing but tissue paper compared to a vampires’ strength. There was a few, suffocating seconds of silence and then Seth had chuckled once more and his footsteps carried him out of the room.

Once again Nicoli waited to make sure he was gone and then slipped out of the bathroom to see what the creepy man had been up to. What he had found was a fresh bowl of soup waiting for him. His gut had twisted that time and he hurried back into the bathroom. He would not give in.

Nicoli set down the shard of glass and retrieved some toilet paper to wet. He had cut himself once again and the blood was making it hard to see what he was doing.

“Don’t give up, Nicoli, you can do this,” he said out loud and hissed when he applied the wet toilet paper to his fresh cut. Frustration was setting in and with his hunger it was making his head pound. At least he knew he wouldn’t die of thirst since he had the bathroom faucet. He was pretty sure that Dimitri wouldn’t go out of his way to poison all the pipes in the house. With that in mind he took a second to take some gulps of the rushing water. It would fill his empty stomach for a few minutes at least and hopefully help his head.

When he had replenished himself on water he checked his cut. It was still oozing, but had slowed down enough for him to continue. He really didn’t care how much he cut himself just as long as he didn’t accidentally knick an artery or something. He could just see that ending well.

He had just picked up his piece of glass when he heard the door open again.

“Jesus Christ, how many times is that freak going to come in here?” he muttered as he set to work. As long as Seth didn’t come into the bathroom Nicoli didn’t care what he did. He was shocked, however, when a new voice came through the door.

“You know, you’re going to have to eat at some point.”

It was a woman’s voice and sounded familiar, but Nicoli wasn’t sure why. All he knew was he didn’t give one wit to the woman’s opinion.

“Yeah, I’d like to see you make me,” Nicoli replied, scratching the edge of the glass against the underside of the collar. He knew it probably wasn’t the smartest thing to say, given that she could very well force him if she put her mind to it, but at that point he really couldn’t give a shit.

“No thank you, I have better things to do with my –”

Nicoli stopped what he was doing and his ears pricked when she cut herself off. He wondered what had happened and then the very next second he wished he hadn’t known.

“Why do I smell blood?”

Nicoli’s eyes widened as he looked at his bloody reflection in the mirror. He hadn’t given a single thought to the vampires smelling his blood. Was that why Seth had been chuckling? Because he knew what Nicoli was up to this whole time?

Before Nicoli could even try to wash away the evidence the bathroom door unlocked on its own and flew open. Nicoli felt he was caught in a whirlwind when the glass was smacked from his hand and he was physically thrown from the bathroom in a matter of seconds.

He landed on the bed with a grunt and before his vision had time to fully focus the woman was standing over him.

“What is the matter with you? Are you trying to kill yourself?” she asked angrily as she took in his appearance.

It took a few seconds for air to finally reach his lungs again and when it did his eyes finally stopped twirling in his head and he was able to see the woman fully. The first thing he registered was that she was pretty.

Her face was a perfect oval and her cheeks were framed by wisps of light brown hair. The rest was pulled back into a long ponytail, revealing a slim, delicate neck. What struck Nicoli most was her eyes. They were a warm, golden brown, and he felt like he was sinking into pools of honey the longer he stared into them.

He snapped himself out of his stupor. He didn’t care how pretty she was, she was working for Dimitri and that made her one of his captors too.

He put on his best glare and sat up.

“No, I’m trying everything I can to get out of here,” he growled at her. Before he could even think to pull away she grabbed one of his wrists. He was forced to watch as her teeth lengthened and she cut one of her free fingers.

“And slitting your throat is going to get you out of here any faster?” she asked as she worked on smearing her blood over his cut up fingers.

“It’s better than just sitting here with my thumb up my ass,” he bit back. He tried to scramble back when her hand went to his neck, but a different hand balling up in his shirt made sure he didn’t get far.

“Yes, self mutilation is so much better,” she said as she finished healing him. When she was done she went back into the bathroom and gathered up the glass into a towel.

“Are you guys even planning on letting me go?” Nicoli asked when she came back out with towel in hand, though he knew the chances of that happening were slim.

“If you cooperate and give Dimitri what he wants then, yes, you will be let go,” she replied curtly.

“What does he even want? He’s only been in here once and it’s not like you or that creepy giant have been telling me anything.”

“I know you’re a child but don’t play stupid,” she said, her eyes becoming sharp. “You know exactly what Dimitri wants and the sooner you give it to him the better. As for why he hasn’t been here he’s giving you time to breathe and think over what little options you have. Now I suggest you actually do that instead of the fruitless endeavor you’ve been whittling your time away with.”

Nicoli shrunk back when she came towards him, but she only grabbed the old bowl of soup. Without another word she left the room, the door slamming and locking behind her. He stared after her for a few minutes, sitting in silence as he contemplated. He glanced at the new bowl of soup that was left on the tray and watched the steam rise off it carrying the heavenly aroma into the air.

With a cry of rage he picked up the bowl and hurled it across the room and it smashed against the wall. Heaving sobs of frustration left him as he bent over and dug his fingers into his hair. He stayed like that for several minutes, breathing in deeply as he tried to calm down. When he felt he had enough control he sat up and rubbed at his watery eyes with his arm.

No, he wouldn’t give up. There had to be a way to get out of his jail and back to the others. Back to home…back to Ethan. He looked around the room for any glimmer of hope it could offer. His eyes settled on the red stain the soup had left on the wall. He followed the trail downwards until he came to the shattered bowl on the floor.

He stood up. There was still a spark of hope to be found. He hurriedly went over to the broken bowl and picked up the largest, sharpest piece he could find and went back to the bathroom. The only way he was ever going to stop trying to escape is if he were dead. He just hoped that wasn’t what they had in mind.

************************************************************************

Dimitri sat in his winged back chair with his eyes closed. He was tired. Being awake during the day always drained him, no matter how many times he did it. He also had a night of dealing with the boy to look forward to and most likely no sleep come morning. Sometimes he wished his suffered the same curse of insomnia his brother did. Maybe that would make it easier.

A rub against his thigh made his eyes lower and he smiled at the long black hair that belonged to Seth. The much larger man was curled up at his feet with his head on Dimitri’s lap. It was an odd sight to behold to anyone, but Dimitri enjoyed it all the same.

People never usually saw Seth’s loving, affectionate side, because he didn’t have much of one, only Dimitri had that rare opportunity and he cherished it like a secret treasure. He delicately stroked Seth’s head then weaved his fingers into the mass of black that swallowed his legs.

He was sure he heard a purr rumble from his youngest fledgling and Seth’s faced nuzzled into his thigh more.

“Am I going to get to play with the boy at all?” Seth asked, breaking the peaceful silence. “You did say you were going to give me a big reward for finding your brother’s pathetic clan.”

“I know I did, and I’ll find you a prize worthy of your efforts, but as for the boy he is off-limits to you right now,” Dimitri replied, his cheek resting against his knuckles.

Seth lifted his head and pouted at him. He was purely irresistible sometimes.

“Not even a little?” he asked.

“No, not yet,” Dimitri said, cupping Seth’s chin with his hand. “If he proves truly combative then I may have you…scare him a little, but not until I say so.”

A truly evil grin upturned Seth’s lips.

“I’d like that. His fear is delicious. Every time I go in that room I hear his heart quicken and its so intoxicating,” he said, his eyes darkening further with lust. His tongue slipped from between his lips and caressed the pad of Dimitri’s thumb before drawing the digit fully into his mouth.

Dimitri smiled as he let Seth suckle his thumb, feeling that devilish tongue curl around him as the suction tried to draw it in further. He could feel his body pulse under the ministrations. Seth was as seductive as he was dangerous and that made for an arousing mix.

When the mouth finally released his thumb he rubbed the slick digit against Seth’s bottom lip.

“If I can’t play with the boy can we play, Master?” Seth asked, his voice having gone deep and husky. He crawled up Dimitri’s lap until he was close enough to Dimitri’s lips to run his tongue along them. “Please, Master?”

Dimitri smiled. He loved it when Seth became wanting and needy, but now was not the time to take advantage of that. He needed his head clear to deal with the situation of Nicoli, but Seth truly was tempting and his body was making the decision hard for him.

“You know I would love to, Seth, but I’m sure you realize it’s soon time to relieve Nicoli of his tortures waiting,” he said, not outwardly denying Seth because, really, he didn’t want to.

“What’s the matter with waiting just a little longer?” Seth asked as he took a seat on Dimitri’s laps and straddled him. “Maaaasteer, pleeeease?” he begged, leaning down enough to pepper heated kisses along Dimitri’s mouth.

Dimitri found himself running his hands up Seth’s sides and as he did Seth was busy unbuttoning the first few buttons of his shirt that showed underneath his suit vest. There really was no reason to fight what they both wanted. A few minutes wouldn’t get Dimitri too terribly off schedule.

He leaned up enough to claim Seth’s mouth and an appreciative growl encouraged him. He was just loosening the straps of Seth’s sleeveless, long jacket when the door opened to the sitting room and his daughter Ira walked in.

She was about to say something as soon as she came in, but her eyes landed on them before she could. She closed her mouth and shook her head in displeasure.

“Seth, you are an insatiable animal. Have you no sense of proper timing?” she asked.

“Don’t care. Go away,” Seth growled in between kisses, his hands now trying to get rid of the vest, but Dimitri stopped him.

“Ah, ah, I’m afraid our time is up, Seth,” he said, putting his finger to Seth’s lips and pushing against them to make him sit back.

Seth whined and chomped down on Dimitri’s finger, hard, to show he was not happy.

“Seth. Down,” Dimitri ordered, his voice now firm and commanding.

Seth growled as he slid from Dimitri’s lap back onto the floor. He glared venomously at Ira, who simply ignored him.

“So how is Nicoli?” Dimitri asked before licking the blood off his bitten finger.

“Oh, fine, if you don’t count him nearly slicing into his artery,” she said as she tossed a rolled up towel onto the floor.

“Excuse me?” Dimitri asked, him and Seth both looking at the towel oddly.

“He took that glass you left in his room, smashed it, and was trying to cut the collar off with a piece of it. Cut himself up pretty well,” Ira said, crossing her arms. “He’s resourceful, I’ll give him that much.”

“Ah, so that’s the blood I kept smelling every time I went in there,” Seth said casually as he reached out and gingerly tugged the towel towards him.

“And you didn’t once try to stop him?” Ira snapped.

“You really want me being near the boy when he’s bleeding and helpless?” Seth asked with a sickening smile as he unfolded the towel.

“Right, never mind,” Ira muttered. She wrinkled her nose when Seth picked up the bloody piece of glass Nicoli had been using and began to lick it. “Are you going to be confronting him soon?” she asked Dimitri. “I believe he’s reached his height of frustration and desperation.”

“Then I shall visit him shortly. A few more minutes will make him ripe for questioning,” Dimitri said. His ears pricked when he heard a nearby sound and he smiled. “I believe the others are coming.”

Sure enough two more people entered the room shortly after. One was his other fledgling Lillian and his second youngest. She was very similar appearing in the face to Ira, which was no surprise since the two were sisters even before their birth into the vampire world. Her hair was a darker, chestnut brown and her eyes a light, haunting green, but one could still tell she and Ira had some form of blood relation.

Then there was the man that came in with her. He was Dimitri’s only grandchild Van and because of that Van received very tender treatment from the clan leader. Van was Ira’s fledgling and was a caring man, though one wouldn’t be able to tell from his outward exterior.

If Van was out during a lightning storm there was no telling how many times he would be struck with all the metal in his face. His ears were pierced five times in each ear, both sides of his nose fitted with studs, a bolt through one eyebrow, two hoops in his bottom lip on each side and a stud directly in the middle and that was just what it was that day. Van was always upgrading and redoing the piercings, taking them out and letting the skin heal before putting the ring, stud, or bolt in a new place.

Dimitri knew Van had Ira do the piercings for him, puncturing the skin with a fang before inserting the wanted jewelry. It was a…peculiar form of bonding between them that Dimitri didn’t question.

“Look who is finally up and about,” Lillian said with a smile then put her hands in Van’s hair and ruffled it. “And before he did his hair.”

“Will you cut that out,” Van grumbled, pushing her hands away. “Jeeze, you’re so grabby.” He tried to straighten his hair, but gave up when he yawned.

Van’s hair changed just as much as his piercings. He was always dying it and styling it in any matter of ways. Dimitri wasn’t even sure what his original color was anymore, today it was all black with blue tips. Before Van had been made he had cut his hair so that the sides were very short, only an inch or two hair left, but the top was left long and now hung limply over the right side of his face and head.

When he was finished yawning he smiled at Ira and walked over to her.

“Hey, Babe,” he said and they shared a brief, intimate kiss.

“I’m glad you were able to get a few more hours of sleep,” Dimitri said when they parted. “I was still worried about letting you out like that.”

“Awe, Gramps, you worry too much,” Van said as he put his arms around Ira and hugged her and continued to place kisses on her face. “I’m not afraid of no big, bad sun.”

Van might not have been, but Dimitri was. Van was still so young and it was dangerous to let him out during the day, even in the enclosure of a van. Dimitri had fretted and worried the whole time they were gone, both about if his plan would work and they were able to get the boy and if Van would be all right. Luckily everything had worked out.

“So, what’s the update with the kid?” Lillian asked, taking a seat in one of the vacant chairs.

“I’m still letting him stew a bit,” Dimitri replied. “But apparently he went so far as to mutilate his neck in order to get the collar off.”

“Wow, feisty,” Lillian said in appreciation.

“He can cut himself up all he wants. Little punk deserves it after breaking my damn nose,” Van said, rubbing the appendage.

“Oh, it healed long ago,” Ira said, kissing his nose.

“Still.” Van looked about the room at everyone and his brows furrowed. “Hey, where’s Mr. Stick-Up-His-Ass?”

“Van, how many times have I told you not to refer to him like that?” Dimitri chided.

“Sorry, where’s Mr. Stick-Up-His-Butt?” Van corrected.

Dimitri sighed as Seth snorted in amusement.

“He’s taking some time to be alone and collect his thoughts,” Dimitri answered. “Remember, this will be the first time in a long time that he’s seen his old clan. It will be a grueling trial for him.”

“Ha, grueling trial?” Seth said with the glass held between his teeth. “He’s been looking for another chance to knock those sorry suckers down a couple more pegs since the last altercation. I bet he’s just dancing his room all antsy about it.”

“Why are you sucking on glass?” Van abruptly asked.

Seth gave him a not so pleasant look before completely ignoring him. It was well known Seth didn’t like Van and instead of doing something about it like disemboweling the young bloodling he simply chose to ignore him altogether. Seth had his reasons for disliking several people, but Dimitri knew that he didn’t like Van for the simple fact that sometimes Dimitri gave more attention to Van than Seth. Dimitri had had many lengthy “talks” with Seth about that particular subject and made it quite clear that Seth had to share, whether he liked it or not.

“Be that as it may, he still wanted time alone and I hope you all respect that,” Dimitri said as he rose from the chair. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I will go see if our little guest wants some company.”

“Good luck,” Ira said as Dimitri left the room with a playful smile on his face.

************************************************************************

“God! Fuck it!” Nicoli yelled as he threw the piece of bowl into the bathtub and it broke into several more pieces.

The bowl had been more useless than the glass had been. He was done for trying to get the collar off. At least for now. He was tired, hungry, frustrated, and just wanted to go home. He placed his hands on the sink and bowed his head, fighting tears of anger and hopelessness.

He raised his head only a fraction when he heard the room door open once more. There was a possibility it was Seth again, but he hoped it was the woman. At least she didn’t give him the willies. He was wrong on both accounts when the person spoke.

“Nicoli, you really must eat something. I’m worried you’ll pass out from hunger and fatigue.”

Nicoli let his head fall again and he shook it. Dimitri. Great. That’s just who he wanted to see while he was feeling so absolutely wonderful.

“Shut up and go away!” Nicoli yelled. “I’ll eat when I’m out of here and away from you!”

“Well, if you wait for that to happen then I’m afraid you’ll be to the point you’ll never eat again.”

Nicoli knew what that meant. He’d die from hunger before that happened. God, he just wanted this day to end. His head jerked up when the bathroom door unlocked and swung open of its own accord.

Instead of dragging Nicoli out of the bathroom like the woman had done Dimitri was calmly sitting on the bed with a little smile.

“I know I’m the last person you want for dining company, but sadly I’m all you have,” Dimitri told him.

Nicoli slowly exited the bathroom. His eyes set in a hard glare that never left Dimitri’s.

“Why don’t we just stop beating around the bush and you tell me what you want right now,” he said, his jaw clenched.

“I’d rather you eat first before we talk business,” Dimitri told him, picking up another bowl of steaming soup and holding it out to Nicoli. “Come on, its tomato bisque.”

“Well, get a feeding tube and shove it down my throat because I won’t eat willingly,” Nicoli said, crossing his arms and daring Dimitri with his eyes.

Dimitri sighed but the smile never left.

“I was hoping it wasn’t going to come to this, but if you want it that way.”

Nicoli expected Dimitri to attack him, shove the contents of the bowl into his face, but instead Dimitri simply held the bowl to his own lips and slurped the soup into his mouth.

“What the hell are you doing?” Nicoli asked. “You can’t eat.”

He gasped when, instead of answering, Dimitri was abruptly in front of him. He had no time to move back before Dimitri grabbed the sides of his head and pulled him in. A muffled scream filled the air when Nicoli’s mouth was smothered by Dimitri’s. He struggled, hit, and kicked to try and get away, but Dimitri didn’t budge.

Dimitri used the same tactic Andre had used and pressed a spot on Nicoli’s jaw to force it open. Hot liquid flooded his mouth and he had to swallow before he choked. When there was no more he was released and he pulled back so fast that he fell. He coughed and fought not to throw the soup back up.

“See, now that was a lot harder than it had to be,” Dimitri said.

Nicoli looked up and watched Dimitri walk back over to the tray on the bed and pick up a napkin. He wiped and scraped the remnants of soup off his tongue.

“You sick fuck,” Nicoli spat as he sat up and wiped his mouth.

“Ah, you have a mouth just like my grandson. I’ve never seen the appeal of using such language,” Dimitri said as he picked up the bowl. “Now are you going to eat the rest of this?”

“Fuck you,” Nicoli said as he got to his feet. He wasn’t sure what pissed him off more, the fact that Dimitri had basically just kissed him or that he still couldn’t figure Dimitri out.

“Suit yourself,” Dimitri said with a shrug as he lifted the bowl back to his lips.

“Wait! Wait!” Nicoli cried out. He was not looking forward to be force fed again and he knew he wouldn’t be able to stop Dimitri if he really set his mind to it. Nicoli quickly took the bowl from Dimitri and downed the contents.

From what he was able to taste it was delicious, but it was in his mouth and down his throat before he could savor it. He was definitely going to have a stomach ache later. When the bowl was empty it was immediately discarded and clattered to the floor. He glared at Dimitri vehemently.

“There are you happy?”

Dimitri smiled softly as he sat back down on the bed.

“Quite.”

“Now fucking talk to me. What the hell do you want with me?” Nicoli demanded. Ira had been right, Nicoli pretty much knew the reason he had been taken, but he wanted to hear it from Dimitri’s own mouth.

Dimitri studied him for a moment. He said nothing and didn’t offer to give an answer to Nicoli’s question.

“Are you sure you want to talk now? You look very tired. Maybe you should sleep a little first before we talk,” he said and there was actually a note of concern in his voice.

Nicoli stared at him in pure disbelief. What was going on? Was Dimitri for real?

“What is your deal!?” Nicoli yelled. He was at his absolute wits end and his head was ready to explode. “You put me in some huge, luxurious room, give me food, want me rested, and speak to my all nicey-nice…what kind of bad guy are you!?”

“Now, now, I wouldn’t like to use the term “bad guy.” Makes me sound horrible.”

“You are horrible! Now tell me what you fucking want or get out!” Nicoli yelled at the top of his lungs. When he was done his chest was heaving and his breathing labored. He was getting worked up much more than he had anticipated being.

Dimitri still only smiled at his outburst and Nicoli wanted to punch him in the face to make it go away.

“All right, I’ll do what you ask and tell you why I have brought you here,” he said, leaning back on his hands. “I would like you to tell me what my little brother is up to. Either why he is in Whixton, why he dragged the whole family there, why he has allowed you to be with them, or what they have found out about the Hearts. Answer just one of those questions and you are free to go.” He lifted up one finger to show his point.

“Just one…that’s it?” Nicoli muttered. It couldn’t have been that easy. “What’s the catch?”

“No catch. You just tell me anything, one little thing, that Conrad is doing and why and I will release you and you can go home.”

Answer just one, simple question and he could go home. It was music to his ears, but then reality set in. If he answered any of those questions then he would be betraying the clan of their trust. He had almost done that once and he wasn’t prepared to do it again. Plus there was no guarantee that Dimitri would keep his word. He had killed three people of his own family. What was stopping Dimitri from tearing Nicoli limb from limb after he gave up that information?

“No way, no deal,” Nicoli said, crossing his arms. “What makes you think I know anything anyways?” There was no harm in playing the ignorant card. He was good at it by now.

Dimitri just laughed, showing his pearly teeth.

“Really now? You’re going to say that to me?” he asked. “For one you have the mind link, why would that have been applied to you unless there was something very interesting in your mind that needed to be protected? And two my child Seth overheard you and Ethan talking about the Hearts, so I know their involved in all of this somehow. Oh, I must commend you for your noble wanting of bringing that boy Felix back to life with the Hearts. That’s just so touching.”

“He…overheard us?” Nicoli wanted to ask when or how, but then he thought back to that day and when Ethan said he thought he “felt” something. It must have been Seth stalking them. He wanted to kick himself for being so careless and talking so freely about the Hearts. How had he been so stupid? But anger also flared at Dimitri’s words.

“Don’t you ever say Felix’s name. You have absolutely no right to. Ever,” he snarled at the man who he saw as Felix’s murderer.

“Ah, yes, I suppose I don’t, though I’ll say I never intended for that poor boy to die. It was simply inevitable in the grander scheme of things,” he said, but there was no remorse in his words. “Now are you going to tell me anything?”

“I already told you no,” Nicoli snapped. “You’re not getting anything out of me. I wouldn’t even tell you how many times one of them scratched their asses and you can take that and choke on it.”

He had expected Dimitri to get angery and start yelling at him, but as Nicoli was coming to realize Dimitri did nothing that was to be expected. He still sat on the bed as patient as ever. The smile had dialed down some, but it was still there.

“Tell me, how does Conrad treat you?” he asked.

“What? What does that have to do with anything?” Nicoli asked back in confusion.

“Nothing much,” Dimitri replied, picking at his nails. “I just know that my brother has a certain…disdain for most humans. It takes a very special kind of human to make him see past his prejudices and, with no offense whatsoever, you don’t appear to fill any of the requirements.”

“And?” Nicoli asked impatiently.

“You seem to be such a lovely, sensible boy,” Dimitri said as he stood. “My brother probably doesn’t see any of your good qualities at all, does he?”

“Uh, well…”

“He most likely speaks to you harshly and without remorse for anything hurtful he says to you. He makes you feel small and inferior to everyone, like you’re nothing.”

“That’s not – stop it,” Nicoli said, taking a step back as Dimitri drew closer. His head was throbbing and it was getting worse. It was even making his eye start to burn.

“He doesn’t appreciate you or anything you do for the clan. No matter how hard you try, no matter how hard you work, nothing is good enough for him and he snubs you and all of your efforts.”

“Stop it. Please, just stop,” Nicoli begged. It felt like sludge hammers were pounding against his skull and there was a great blinding pressure in his eye. It was unbearable.

“He makes it very clear that every time you’re around he doesn’t want you there, wishes you were far away from him and his family. He makes you feel that he doesn’t want you around, that he doesn’t need you.”

“No, no, no, no!” Nicoli was screaming now and grabbing at the sides of his head. His skull was going to explode, combust into a million pieces and his eye was now on fire.

A great buzzing noise was replacing Dimitri’s voice and another rose from the horrendous droning to take its place.

“No one wants you. No one needs you. No one loves you. No one wants you. No one needs you. No one will ever love you.”

“Stop it! Stop!” Nicoli screamed into the vortex of voices, but they just kept barraging him, attacking him from all sides. He could distantly hear Dimitri calling to him, trying to draw him out of the chaos, but he was too far gone. The voices swallowed him and he was drowning in them. He couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t scream.

He was saved by a merciful darkness that came and wrapped him in its sweet embrace. There was no more pain or voices. There was just blissful darkness.

======================Ch. 48 End