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ChapterThree
Yesenia's entire body ached as if she'd been in a car wreck a few minutes ago and had been shaken and tossed about in ways it wasn't meant to go.
Just opening her eyes was excruciating, taking more effort than ever before. And once she managed it, she blinked against the near darkness, trying to figure out where the hell she was.
Because at first glance, it was some sort of fancy bedroom illuminated with a few candles. The bed had curtains hanging around the corners, waiting to be drawn around the frame—who did that?—and the wallpaper looked to be made out of some sort of fabric.
Various pieces of carved wooden furniture were everywhere—chairs, a desk, her bed. Those pieces alone must cost a small fortune and were a long way from the DIY furniture in her old, shitty apartment.
Had Derek and her father moved her to a hotel room? As far as she knew, they had planned to take her to Derek's mansion right after the wedding ceremony. But maybe if she'd fainted, they'd been forced to change their plans.
She sat up and groaned, holding her head in her hands. She definitely had the headache of all headaches, as if someone were using a magical hammer to smash her brains to pieces. Definitely not the best setup for her wedding night with a groom she hated with every cell in her body.
Someone knocked on the door and entered without her saying a word. Yesenia steeled herself to face an angry vampire husband—no doubt Derek would loathe a fainting wife—but she blinked at the sight of a smiling, curvy female around her own age and a male right behind her. Both had dark hair, fair skin, and some sort of light eyes, not that she could see what color.
But even in the dim lighting she noticed their small fangs poking from their lips, meaning they were vampires. Had Derek sent in his relatives to take care of her? It seemed unlike the bastard, for sure, to think about something that netted him no benefit whatsoever. Maybe they'd been sent to take her to him for the inaugural fucking.
The female spoke in a fancy English accent, like she was from some sort of historical TV drama. "My name is Nora and this is my son, Ambrose."
Yesenia glanced between the pair. They looked to be around the same age.
The male made some signs with his hands—was he deaf, perhaps?—and Nora took a step closer toward Yesenia. "Yes, it's a bit unusual. But I had him before I slipped into my frozen state. I'm actually fifteen years older than him. Once he froze as well, it became rather confusing to strangers. Sometimes I think it might just be easier to say we're siblings, but as you know, vampires can't lie."
This Nora had been fifteen when she'd birthed a child? Was that what they did in Yates's circle, use females for breeding from an early age?
Because if so, it still made no fucking sense why he'd wanted her. Yesenia was basically ancient at twenty-eight.
Ambrose touched Nora's arm and the female vampire frowned. "Oh, right, I'm rambling, aren't I?" She smiled again at Yesenia. And unlike with any of Derek's other lackeys, Yesenia didn't feel like she needed to take a shower afterward.
Ambrose garnered his mother's attention, made some more gestures, and Nora nodded. She asked Yesenia, "How about if we start at the beginning: What's your name?"
She blinked at the question. "You don't know who I am?"
"Oh, so you're American." Yesenia frowned, but Nora continued before she could say anything else, "And no, I'm afraid we aren't yet acquainted."
Nora stared at her with a patient, yet expectant look on her face.
Yesenia started to get a weird feeling about all of this, but revealing her name couldn't hurt. "Um, my name is Yesenia. But who are you, exactly? Did Derek send you? Is he mad?"
Nora frowned. "Yuh-SEN-ya, you say? An unusual name. Is it more common in America? I've never met an American before, you know." Yesenia merely blinked and Nora waved a hand in dismissal and pushed on. "But that's not important right now. However, pray tell, who's Derek?"
Why was Nora surprised at meeting an American? Even if she was British, they were in Boston. It wasn't exactly like Americans were scarce here.
And surely she'd know Yesenia's new husband, otherwise she wouldn't be in this room with her.
Maybe Derek had sent Nora because she wasn't that bright and didn't have the wits to help her escape.
As the female continued to stare at her with raised brows, she clearly wanted an answer about Derek. And as the seconds ticked by, Yesenia's stomach churned. Something wasn't right, although she couldn't quite pinpoint what it was. And since she had learned to trust her instinct over the years—it's how she'd managed to hide away her siblings before her father could trap them—her every nerve went on full alert.
Her best bet was to answer and watch the vampire closely. "Derek Yates. I think he's my husband now, although we never said our actual vows, so I'm not sure if it's official or not."
Nora shared a look with her son before saying, "Our surname is Yates, but I don't know of any Derek in London. Are you trying to flee him? Did you come from the countryside?"
Yesenia rubbed her temples. The pounding in her head was only getting worse. "I'm confused. You say your last name is Yates, but you don't know Derek? How is that possible? Every member of his family living in the US works for him. And what does London have to do with anything?"
Ambrose went to the window, opened the curtains, and gestured for her to look.
Given how he'd followed her conversation, he either could read lips in dim lighting with his super-vamp sense of sight or he must be able to hear but not speak.
