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“I want you to kneel.”
Will swallowed, though all the food in his mouth was long gone.
“What?”
“Kneel.”
The word was repeated in a tone which brooked no disobedience.
“I can't kneel. My leg is broken and in a cast. It's not physically possible.”
“Get. On. The Ground.”
Will did as he was told, his legs compliantly buckling. He was not sure if he was acting out of true obedience or vampire influence, and it didn't really matter. He was obeying and that was all Maddox seemed to care about. He couldn’t kneel, but he could lie face down on the floor like a particularly loyal subject prostrating himself before a king.
“So good,” Maddox purred, looking down at Will with hooded eyes, his own gaze containing reflections of many horrors. He crouched down and let his fingers toy around the collar at Will’s neck. “This is where you belong. This is where you will always return. No matter what happens outside in the hunt, or anywhere else for that matter, this is where you will find yourself at home. Understand?”
Will thought he might understand. It was an unfamiliar sensation of being grounded and safe. When Maddox ran his fingers through Will’s hair, he felt an incredible tingling running through his scalp and down his spine. He felt a tail he did not have tucking itself between his legs, and a whimper rose to his lips.
“You will kill the next feral you encounter. Of that, I am certain. It is in your blood, Will. The need to end life is part of your flesh, and it has been far, far too long, hasn’t it?”
Will nodded slowly, licking his lips. He was hungry for blood. There was a rising darkness inside him, though that darkness didn’t feel as out of place as it once had.
“Give in to those desires and impulses. You no longer have to fear them now you have me to guide and moderate you. You don’t have to try to be something you’re not. You’re free to become exactly who you already were. Do you understand?”
Will nodded, slowly, half in trance, half basking in the glow of Maddox’s attention. He made Will feel like the only living thing in the world, the only one who mattered. It was a powerful feeling, one he sensed he would crave when it faded.
But it didn’t fade. It stayed. Maddox kept him there in that position and in that trance-like space for what felt like a small eternity. When Will regained awareness, it was dark outside and he was hungry.
“Did you keep me like that all day?”
“I like you under my power, boy.”
That was all the explanation Maddox felt the need to give. That was how things were. Maddox wanted something and he got it. For now, Will was that something.
“Let’s try another outing this evening,” Maddox announced.
“I’m still…” Will pointed to his leg cast.
“You can be exposed to your prey without having to actually hunt it. It would be good for you to become acclimated to the city again. You have spent too much time confined. I wonder if it was not the sudden lack of confinement that caused your reaction than actual fear of a feral vampire.”
“Yeah. Maybe. I don't know.”
Will was not certain. He wanted to please Maddox, at least, some part of him did. But there were other stronger, older parts that wanted to just run again. Being locked up for years had instilled a desire for open vistas and nothing in the way of obligation. The collar about his neck reminded him that would never be possible, and the cast on his leg reminded him that following his impulses only made things worse.
“Lorien! We’re going hunting! Come on!”
“Lorien is coming?”
Will had hoped he and Maddox would be alone. Lorien filled up the space between them, talked too much, looked too much, had too many expressions. Stabbing him in the throat with a fork was one of the most satisfying things Will had done in a very long time.
“Lorien can show you different ways to take out ferals. It’s best to do it before they know you’re there. A silent kill is a kind kill.”
“I can’t kill like a vampire kills.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll do it in the simple, blunt way humans do things. You should be able to follow along if you pay attention.” Lorien appeared suddenly in the way vampires often did, making Will bristle. He was pretty certain that it wasn’t actually possible for Lorien to form a sentence that wasn’t inherently smug. If only he were human, and Will had him to himself for an hour or two. It would be so satisfying to…”
“Come, boy!”
