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“When you were captured, they put you out during the transport. That’s when a black witch that works with the Council placed a tracking spell on you. It only ends when you die.”
“It doesn’t make sense. Why would they care if you let me go?”
He laughs, but it’s not humorous.
“You have information about a race of people that are things of fable. If you were to escape and tell anybody, it could shine a light on us. They’ll stop you at any cost.”
It’s my turn to laugh. If only he knew how long I’ve tried to convince humans that his kind exist.
“Your kind doesn’t understand humans then. If I tried to tell people that you exist, I’d be locked up in a mental hospital,” I huff. “Humans don’t want to know the truth about what lives out there under their noses. They’d prefer to be in the dark.”
I pull my lips to the side and bite my cheek, thinking about all the times I was almost institutionalized for talking about what I would see. All the times I would wake to glowing red eyes at the end of my bed.
“Do vampires stalk victims?”
He narrows his eyes.
“Some do, but not for long. Vampires tire of the chase very quickly.”
I blow out a breath, trying to make sense of my childhood. Monsters haunted Maggie and me for years. Could it be possible that it was something else?
“Are there other things, aside from vampires?”
He nods his head, chewing on his tongue.
“Yeah, sure. There are lots of creatures. Werewolves, pixies, fairies, goblins, demons, banshees—you name something from lore, and chances are it’s real.”
This should frighten me, but at this point, I’d be surprised to hear differently.
“Do any of them have red eyes, besides vampires?”
He seems to contemplate this for a moment. “I believe demons have red eyes. Vampires do, but only right after they’ve drunk from a human. Other than that, I don’t think so.”
The list has been narrowed down to vampire or demon. Neither one makes me feel any less creeped out.
“Do demons tend to hunt victims for years?”
“Why are you asking this, Marina?”
I contemplate lying, not knowing what information I should impart to him. I’ve yet to determine whether he’s going to kill me or keep his promise and protect me. At the end of the day, I have nothing to lose but a lot to gain in the information I can obtain from him.
“Growing up, my sister and I saw monsters. Creatures with elongated canines and red eyes. They were in our rooms at night and sometimes they followed us elsewhere. They never made a move to harm us; they just scared us with their presence.”
He frowns.
“That doesn’t sound like a demon. Their sole purpose is to possess and take. They don’t play with their meals. Once you’ve been chosen by a demon, you don’t get away.”
I sigh heavily, not being any closer to the answers I seek. “Do you think it could’ve been a vampire?”
“It’s very unlikely, given you still have a pulse, but maybe.” He looks deep in thought. “If you were allowed to live without being made a blood bank, they would’ve had to be after something.”
“What could they possibly want with a human other than blood?”
“That’s the part that doesn’t make sense.”
We stare at each other for a few minutes, each trying to decode the mystery of my past. Eventually, we both seem to give up, lowering our gazes.
“You’re the king, right? Can’t you override the Council?”
