Chained - Zara Novak Page 0,26

outside. The idea came to me that I should properly start learning my surroundings and the castle’s interior layout as best I could, so I could one day use that information to my advantage when I next tried to escape.

The corridor branched off in two different directions. I looked both ways and made a note of any landmarks. Paintings that stood out or any other identifiable items. The corridor to my left carried on for about fifteen feet before turning out of sight. At the end there was a large portrait of a knight on a white horse. On the right there was a table with a Ming vase on it. Vincent exited the cell, the door closing behind him.

“Follow,” he said, quickly pacing left out of the door, towards the vase. “Eyes forward. I will get you a blindfold if necessary.”

“Yes, master,” I said, following behind him as he led the way. He was reading my mind again. That meant there was a good chance he knew that I was plotting against him, but he wasn’t doing anything about it.

Why?

We descended down a spiral staircase, one that we had used each time going back to the cell. It made me wonder how high up we were in the castle. Was I Rapunzel in the tallest tower? The staircase opened into a long corridor that also felt familiar, it was the same one that had led to the bathroom last night.

The vampire stopped halfway down the corridor, outside the bathroom, just as I expected. He waved his hand and the door, glossy and black, swung open to reveal the bathroom.

“In,” he commanded. I followed the order.

Once we were inside, he closed the door behind us. I walked forward a few paces, looking at the stage which my sin had played upon last night. The captor had promised a daily dose of his seed. Is that what he had in store for me again now?

Despite the urge to turn and fight him, I couldn’t ignore the feeling that stirred in me at the thought of touching him again. My nipples pebbled under my dirty white robe, and my smooth pussy was starting to feel wet again.

Fuck my desperation.

“Strip,” he said. “Fast. Don’t waste my time. Keep your mouth shut.”

I did as he said, sensing that he wasn’t in the mood to mess around. I opened the robe and folded it over my arms before setting it down on a chair at the edge of the room. Instinctively I covered myself, one arm over my breasts and one hand between my legs. It felt silly considering how intimate we had been last night but feeling ashamed of my body had been a lifelong habit.

“You will no longer cover yourself,” he said. “You are no longer allowed to feel ashamed of your body.”

“But I—” He shot me a look, one more powerful than any warning shot from a gun.

“If you’re going to be of any real value to me then you will have to learn confidence, fast. I’ve never had a breeder in my grasp before, so in that remark you are truly unique, but I have had slaves in my live, though I must admit I have not kept the company of one for a very long time. Human women don’t last long in my world, do you want to know why?”

“Because you kill them.”

Vincent laughed and rolled his eyes. “Some have died, though not at my hand. A vampire that kills his own servants, that is like a child torturing some ants. Such things are trivial, and below me.”

“So, what happened to the others?” I asked, sensing a real opportunity to see inside the mind of my unpredictable captor.

“Their minds are not strong enough. They have no confidence. If there is one thing you must understand about my kind, we are incredibly opportunistic. We will take advantage of those that display weakness, we will not hesitate in taking any action that will give us power. Vampires need blood to survive, but lust and power, those are the things that wake us from the crypt.”

I blinked. He hadn’t actually answered my question. Was he evading it? “You think I’m a potential weakness.”

“As things stand you are. Those other girls? The servants before you? They didn’t last long. I either sent them away or they were killed by another vampire. Yesterday was a prime example of a slave undoing herself. Draco Varsi would have killed you just for the fun of it. A