Chapter 8
Rose sat still and watched as Cornelia bowed her head to Felonious as he stepped into the room, she didn't miss how Felonious ignored Cornelia and walked right into the room, his head held high and all.
"The master asks for you," Felonious announced beside Rose's bed.
Rose remained seated, stubbornly staring at Felonious's runes and refusing to get up from the bed.
"I want to go home, please," Rose added the last part with a soft sigh.
"What's your name?" Felonious asked.
Rose looked up at Felonious's face, and she noticed that his face was neutral, he didn't look sympathetic nor neither did he look sinister, he just looked like someone who wanted to get his job done without any hitches.
"Rose," She replied, putting her fingers together on top of her thighs as she sat on the bed.
She wanted to ask him if he was the person who healed the wound on her neck but she still wasn't that comfortable around him to ask him such questions. But, surely, she was grateful to whoever it was that healed her wound, at least, she wouldn't look like walking fast food to that monster anymore.
Felonious studied her for a while, a thought suddenly coming into his mind and he decided to make the girl understand that things might not end up as she would have wanted them to.
"Rose, this is your new home," Felonious said in his deep voice.
"Never! Hm," Rose chuckled humourlessly, "I see everyone here is a renowned comedian because you all say and do things that make me laugh," Rose stood from the bed with a scoff and quickly headed to the door, she didn't care to ask where her phone or shoes were as she felt her bare feet touching the furry carpet.
What was it with vampires and carpets?
Rose threw that thought out of her head and focused on finding her way out of there.
"Rose, dear girl, if you still want that lovely heart of yours to keep beating, I'll advise you to calm down and follow the mage, he'll never hurt you," Cornelia gently grabbed Rose's arm as she was about to walk through the door.
Rose paused and stared at Cornelia, the look she saw on her face was genuine and kind, it made her believe her words at once, and thinking back to her encounters with Felonious, he didn't seem like someone who would harm anyone... Unnecessarily.
"He doesn't like to be kept waiting," Felonious spoke behind Rose.
Rose sighed, she was feeling very tired from going from one episode to the other. What did that monster want with her now?
She quietly followed Felonious out of the room and into a long passageway with torches hanging on each side of the wall.
Rose didn't quite understand the decor of the building, they seemed to have been renovated the building to new tech while still maintaining the original Victorian and Gothic style. They made sure to let everyone know that this was a vampire resident.
As they climbed up a long staircase with a red carpet, Rose noticed the paintings on the wall, it was a painting of a man and a woman, they looked like couples, and a few more with unfamiliar people but none with her captor.
They reached the top of the stairs and Felonious quietly knocked on the gothic-looking black door.
Rose stood behind him, her hands held together below her chest as she felt her heart begin to race. She didn't want to meet that devil, nothing good had ever come out of her meeting with him.
The door noiselessly opened, and Felonious turned sideways to look at Rose.
"Go in," He pointed his hand toward the open door.
Rose thought about it for a second before picking up her courage and walking in, there was no point running now, she had to stand up for herself, she was all she's got in that world and she was no pushover either.
As she stepped into the dark room, her eyes struggled to get used to the darkness, but she was instantly aware that it was either an office or a library because of the smell of old books and ink. She felt Felonious come in behind her and quietly shut the door.
She felt claustrophobic as she heard the door click behind her in a lock. She didn't like darkness, it made her hyperventilate.
With the aid of the little moonlight coming into the room her eyes adjusted to the darkness in the room, and she noticed a dark figure lurking at the far end of the square room, she didn't need to be told twice to know who it was.
It was no one else but the master of the dark himself.
"I'm here, Mr. Vampire, let's talk," Rose tried her best to sound confident.
She came to understand that this Vampire wasn't planning on killing her anytime soon, just like Cornelia had said.
So, for as long as she still lived, she would make sure to defy this dark Lord in every way possible, and when he couldn't stand her anymore, he'd have no other choice than to return her to her world.
Cassius scowled in the dark, he didn't like the way Rose spoke to him, it seemed like the little human needed to be reminded where she belonged.
Rose stood in place, just a few feet away from the locked door, watching as Cassius slowly turned to face her, the fair and radiant skin of his face becoming visible in the dark room.
In the blink of an eye, Rose saw something like a blurry figure move toward her at an unimaginable speed and before she knew it, she felt the cold fingers grip her neck and lift her off the floor, her back instantly colliding with the thick wooden door.
"Uh!!" Rose grunted from pain, using her fists to hit Cassius's hand that was holding her up by the neck and flying her legs around in an unsuccessful attempt to kick Cassius.
"I can suck you dry in the next second, little human," Cassius spoke menacingly as he brought his emotionless face close to Rose's reddening one.
"N-no," Cough "Please, let me go," Rose choked out her words.
She was already losing oxygen supply to her brain and she felt her head getting lighter and lighter, she knew she was going to die if he kept pressing her neck the way he did. She had no other option than to plead with him.
"As you wish," Cassius replied and instantly removed his hand from Rose's neck, causing her to fall to the floor like a sack of potatoes.
"Ouch!" Rose winced in pain, rubbing her tailbone which had grown very sore from all the brutal falls she'd been subjected to.
Cassius easily went and leaned his back against a shelf in the corner, staring meaningfully at Rose as she struggled to get on her feet.
He's been wondering why and how this little human managed to still have fight left in her after all she's been through, he didn't associate with humans, but, the little he knew about them was that they cowered in the face of the slightest danger or discomfort.
But, this little human before him proved that thesis wrong, she's been trying her best to fight him with any little opportunity she got, and that confirmed that she must have gotten a backup from Elliot's mage, which would be the only reason that could delude her into thinking that she could act fearlessly in the presence of the Prince of darkness.
"What the fuck do you want from me?!" Rose asked with agitation as she stood up from the floor, tears threatening to fall from her eyes but she held them back.
Felonious slowly turned his head to Rose, pitying her for thinking her guts and audacity would get her anywhere with the Prince.
Cassius hissed, scaring Rose with the reptilian sound and causing her to take a cautious step backwards.
"Your insolence is unacceptable! Felonious?" Cassius called with a very disturbing calm voice.
"Yes, master," Felonious came forward, bowing his head to Cassius.
"Prepare an auction, and make sure she gets sold out," Cassius slowly circled Rose, seeing the fear growing in her blue eyes.
'Good' Cassius slanted the corner of his lips up in a cold smile. It was about time she started to see him for who he really was.
"As you command, master," Felonious replied and subtly left the room.
Rose was silent, she twisted her fingers together behind her in desperation for help, hearing what Cassius had just ordered Felonious to do made her panic.
She wasn't about to let herself become some object for the vampires to use and toss as they wished. She didn't want to get auctioned off to some bloodsucking idiot, but she didn't have any plan to stop them from auctioning her.
The devil you know is better than the angel you don't know, and that was why she would have preferred to remain in this dark castle until she found a way to return home.
Rose started moving back as Cassius started to walk toward her, she kept moving faster away from him but he unhurriedly moved towards her at a calculated pace, creeping Rose out with his stealthy and sharp approach.
Rose reached a dead end when she felt her heel bone touch the cold wall.
She slowly looked up into those sea-green eyes, bracing her hands flat on the wall on each of her sides.
Cassius walked up to her, put a finger below her chin, and tilted up her face to look into her eyes.
Cassius saw her blue eyes turning misty from withheld tears, but he didn't care one bit. He lowered his head beside Rose's face and whispered into her ear, "From now on, human, you are my slave."
Rose turned her face away from him, feeling a cold shiver run down her spine from his touch and proximity.
"I'll never serve you, monster! Ptui!" Rose spat on his face, regretting it immediately as she saw his eyes slowly darken till they turned red.
'Oh no! I'm in trouble!' Rose thought as she quickly tried to find a way to slip away from him.
"Foolish!" Cassius raised his hand and hit Rose hard on her cheek, the force pushing her down to the floor.
"Ughh!!" Rose cried out as she fell far away from Cassius's forceful slap.
She knew she was in big trouble this time as she felt the roar of thunder outside, followed by the pitter-patter of raindrops on the roof like tiny footsteps. It felt like the weather was in resonance with his mood.
Cassius used his hand to wipe away the spit from his face, glaring deathly at Rose.
"No, no, no, no,no, no! Stay back!" Rose panicked on the floor as Cassius flew toward her at an inhuman speed, his sharp claws extended and ready to cause harm.
"Brother!" A voice suddenly spoke from the door.