Page 61 of Bound By Blood

“But he didn’t because he trusts me.”

“He didn’t because you make him weak.” He slashed a hand through the air.

Carly nearly stood up from her spot, but she didn’t want to intimidate him. Not that she’d be very intimidating. She was far shorter than him. “He is not weak,” she ground out.

“You don’t even see it. This is why your kind never mixed with our kind. You never think ten steps ahead. You follow your heart. Vampires don’t have hearts. We are incapable of love, consumed by money and power and blood.”

Carly snorted. “I beg to differ.”

He flexed his jaw but nodded at her with narrowed eyes. “We will see now, won’t we.” She knew he was talking about whose side Landon would pick. Little did he know that he would pick his father’s side because of love, not because Landon didn’t possess love. But there was no point in arguing with this man. He was so stuck on his own power that he couldn’t open his eyes and see what was before him. A vampire could love. She had proof in Landon, whether he liked it or not.

“Will I ever see him again?”

“No.” Another firm answer. It felt like the lash of a whip, and she flinched at the sting.

Tears welled in her eyes again. The thought of never seeing him again broke her heart, but there was nothing she could do about it. He would choose his father, and she would either leave without him, die, or suffer for the rest of her life. Hell, leaving without him would be suffering enough.

Drayton rolled his eyes at the sight of her tears. “Don’t cry for a monster like my son. He doesn’t deserve it. None of us do. He should have warned you of all this. He shouldn’t have pursued you. It’s his fault you’re in this mess in the first place.”

She angrily wiped away tears from her jaw and cheeks. “From where I sit, it looks like it’s your fault.”

“Landon knew my rules on the matter. The fact that he disobeyed them is on him. Not me. If you are going to be angry with anyone, it should be him. If he had listened to me in the first place, you wouldn’t be here. You’d be living your pathetic human life blissfully unaware!”

“Are you really so cold that you can’t bend the rules for your own son?”

“I bend the rules for no one. That is a weakness I cannot afford. Not that I expect you to understand.”

She laughed humorlessly. “You know, Drayton, someday you will wake up and have nothing. And I hope you rot in hell because of it.”

He chuckled darkly. “Guess I’ll be seeing you there then.” He motioned for the man behind him to come forward. The man did so and set the tray on the bed next to Carly before backing away and leaving the room.

“Eat,” Drayton said. “You’ll need your strength.” He turned to follow his vampire out of the room but paused by the door. “I’d say it was nice to meet you, but . . .” He shrugged and left.

Carly screamed, grabbed her cup full of water, and chucked it at the closing door.

Chapter 23

Landon Creed

Two Weeks Later

Landon had lost all track of time. Being locked away in a windowless cell without seeing another being, human or vampire, did not allow him to keep track of the number of days he had been held captive. He knew it had been a while though because he was extremely weak and famished. He could see his ribs through his skin, and his eyes felt as though they had sunken into his skull. His skin felt rubbery and was pulled taught over his cheekbones and jawline, and the monster inside of him was stronger than ever.

Landon could feel himself losing his grip on reality with each passing minute. He could feel the seductive pull of the darkness that swirled inside of him, just beneath the surface of his flesh. He was losing all sense of himself, though he was sure that had been his father’s intention. However, Drayton underestimated how deep his love ran for Carly. Even though he was losing his humanity, he knew that he would never choose Drayton over her. If anything, that made him even more of a threat to his father.

If he was being honest with himself though, he was beginning to lose hope of them ever getting out of there. Even after all this time, he still had no desire to side with his father, nor was he any closer to coming up with a plan to take Drayton down. At least, not without putting Carly at risk as well. The ravenous hunger didn’t help because feeding was all he could think about. He couldn’t focus or think clearly anymore.

His worry for Carly and her well-being was the only other thing that was able to get him through the ravenous hunger and fogginess of his mind. He had no idea if his father had kept true to his word and was still taking care of her; or if he had grown tired of it as he warned he would. He didn’t know if she was alive or dead, and he hated himself for getting her into this mess. However, he didn’t regret being with her in the slightest.

His love for her was the only thing that was keeping him going, the only thing that kept him from giving up and giving into the madness that lingered at the edges of his sanity. He had found himself close to losing it more than a few times. With the darkness, the hunger, the loneliness, and the crushing silence, it was all too easy for him to lose sight of things that truly mattered. But because of his attachment to her, he was able to keep some of his wits about him on the off chance that a moment presented itself where he could escape and get to the woman he loved.

Landon was sitting on the dirt floor in the corner of his cell, his head resting against the wall. He barely had any strength left, and he was trying to save it in case he ever got the chance to use it. However, a loud commotion at the other end of the basement drew his attention and had him prying his eyes open to stare at the door to his prison. He briefly wondered if he was beginning to hallucinate because it sounded like fighting, which couldn’t be right. Vampires weren’t allowed to fight one another in his father’s home.

The noises went on for several moments. He could make out the sound of bones crunching, men grunting and groaning in pain, and then the sound of tearing flesh before everything went quiet once more. Footsteps headed in his direction, and he knew that this was it for him. He was sure that Drayton was coming to kill him since it was clear that Landon would never choose to follow him again. He had probably killed the guards out of anger as he had a tendency to take his frustrations out on others.

The sound of the heavy bolt lock sliding back echoed through the room before the heavy metal door swung open. Dim light slashed through the darkness, briefly blinding him due to the sudden change and from his being kept in the dark for so long. He blinked rapidly to clear his vision, and he could just make out a black form standing in the doorway, two severed heads clasped in his hands.

Landon slowly rose to his feet, preparing himself for a fight, when the figure tossed the heads toward him. They rolled across the room, slapping against the ground before stopping at his feet. He recognized them as the two guards who had been keeping watch over the basement. His brows creased in confusion as he looked back up at the figure, who stepped into the room and was definitely not his father as he had expected.