Why Are You Helping Him?

Why Are You Helping Him?
Layla 

My eyes were unfocused, my vision blurry as I blinked through the darkness.

Varynth’s hold on my arm was harsh, but I couldn’t feel the pain anymore, not as much as before.

He’d taken my blood, so much blood.

My feet were numb beneath me, and it was a wonder that I could keep up with Varynth’s strides. I refused to call him Lord anymore. Dad would strip him of his title, strip him of his life when he and Kai came to save me.

The underground walls were damp around me, still windowless, still only lit by torches on the dirt. Fear encapsulated my heart, squeezing it until it beat fast beneath my skin.

What if they never found me?

What if Varynth was right?

I closed my eyes, trying to reach for Kai one more, but just like the thousand other times I tried, there was no pull, no response.

We stopped in front of a locked gate that led deeper into the cavernous tunnels. Varynth reached into his pockets to dig for the keys. They jingled as he moved, struggling to grasp them.

I lowered my eyes, dragging them to other side of the tunnel, to where the witch stood beside him. She always trailed a few feet behind him, always keeping her eyes lowered. She hadn’t looked in my direction once, and since she severed my bond to Kai, I had not heard her speak another word.

The gate clanked open, and I was hit with the putrid smell of bodies and decay. I gagged low in my throat, tears filling my eyes. It took time for my vision to focus, to see the different cells, both locked and open, that lined the walls.

Chains were hooked to the walls, cuffs hanging on the edges. And people, humans were tied to them, bodies small and skinny from abuse.

My eyes widened, horror making my heart seize in my chest.

“It’s you,” I whispered.

Varynth looked at me over his shoulder, a creepy smile lining his lips.

“You’re leading the underground cult?”

He looked back to the front, still walking past the bodies that piled up on the floor. I saw them, some unmoving, and I wondered if they were even alive.

“How could you be so cruel?”

Varynth stopped, turning to me with a scowl. “Cruel? No, no, no, my little human princess. I am freeing them.”

I frowned.

“Freeing them of the expectation to be more than what they are capable of. What you are capable of. “ 

He smiled, reaching over to me and grasping my chin. Tears spilled down my cheeks but I had no energy, no strength to pull away from him.

“I’ve watched you all these years. How you like to hide in the corners of the castle and keep to yourself. Somewhere deep down inside, you know that life is too much for you. You are human, simply a bleeder.”

I ripped my chin from his grasp, my tears drying and replaced by anger. “How dare you?”

He smiled, softly, as if he was speaking to a child. “That was why I am not cruel. I know the capabilities of your short, meager life. Your father is delusional to think that humans could be equals to those of us that have walked the earth for hundreds of years.”

He straightened, his hold still on my arm as he began to walk again.

My shoulders fell, my entire body deflated as hopelessness shot through me. Dad and Draven have been looking for this underground cult for months, and they have made no progress. 

They won’t find me, not without my bond to Kai. 

With Varynth moving, I got a clear look at the witch. She was watching me, apt eyes wide with curiosity. Her eyes looked me over in the same way people do when they realize that I am not just a human. 

I’m Sebastian’s daughter.

Our revery was cut short as Varynth walked us up the stairs. I could see the light coming down. My skin craved exposure to the sun, my mind needing a break from the depression of darkness. 

We made it all the way up to what looked like servants’ quarters, but there were no servants running around getting the daily work done. No, it was crawling with older vampires, some that I recognized and some that I didn’t.

They were standing around, talking to each other, some with blood still in their teeth and other actively drinking from human necks. 

My spine shivered, realizing that this was the world mom and dad grew up in. Something that I had never seen myself. 

“Gentlemen,” Varynth called out, smiling as he took in everyone’s attention. 

Red, black eyes turned in our direction, and then focused on just me. 

I recognized Lord Ashthorn, and he stood from his chair, letting the human he was feeding on slump to the floor. Instinctively, I pulled my arm where Varynth held me, but there was no give. 

Ashthorn wiped his mouth with the back of his arm and he smiled down at me, lifting his eyebrows toward Varynth. “Looks like you finally got your prize, Lord Varynth.”

Indignation boiled my blood, and I pulled my arm once more, drawing Varythn’s cold eyes toward me. He sneered, and pulled my arm in the witch’s direction. 

“Have her bathed and prepared to head out, we will be going back to the manor as soon as she is ready.”

His manor? Did he intend to keep me? To have me in his home?

The witch nodded, lowering her head as she took my arm and pulled me away from the group of lords. 

When it was finally just us walking down the halls, I turned to her. “Why are you helping him?”

Her hold on my arm tightened, but she said nothing. 

We rounded a corner and walked straight into the bathing chambers for the servants, finding it completely empty. The basins were already filled with water, but she touched the edge of it, making it warm. 

“Get in,” she gritted, avoiding my eyes. 

The steam curled up from the basin, and I wanted to feel against my skin, but I didn’t move.

“Get in,” she repeated.

My fingers curled at my sides. “You don’t sound like someone who wants to be doing this.”

Her jaw tightened. “You think I want to be here? Get in before he comes to check on us.”

I heard the fear in her voice, and I swallowed, stepping forward as I reluctantly undressed myself. She had the decency to look away, and I lowered myself into the water. The heat bit into my skin at first, loosening muscles that ached from my captivity. 

The water stung where my arm had been cut, causing me to hiss. 

The witch noticed immediately. “Let me see.”

I eyed her carefully, not trusting her. 

She exhaled, crouching in front of me. “If it gets infected, it will hurt you more than anyone else. Let me look at it.”

Slowly, I let my arm rest on the edge of the basin. 

Her fingers were careful as she unwrapped the bandage. The dried blood pulled at my skin, and I clenched my jaw, refusing to make a sound.

I watched her as her fingers softly touched my skin around the wound. Varynth didn’t care to heal me after his feedings or cutting. 

The way her hands moved gentler than I expected and she still avoided looking at me directly. 

“What’s your name?” I asked quietly.

She didn’t look up. “Maelis”

“I’m Layla,” I whispered, taking back my arm once she secured the bandage again. 

“I know who you are,” she said immediately.

“Why are you helping him?” I pushed the question again, needing to understand why she helped him without any visible force from him.

Her fingers tightened together, twisted in nerves. “I don’t want to help him.”

My heart rate spiked, one wrong word and she would shut down.

My brows pulled together. “You severed my bond.”

Her gaze dropped back to my arm, a grimace crossing her face. “I did what he told me to do.”

“Why?”

Silence settled again, and she finally lifted her eyes to mine. “My sister.”

We were getting somewhere, so I leaned forward, closer to her. “He has your sister?”

She nodded. “She’s human. But as long as I do what he asks me to, he will not sell her or her blood. She’s in one of the cells, but she is fed and alone.”

Her brows furrowed, as if realizing how terrible a life that was, anyway. 

“Help me,” I whispered, eyeing the open doorway behind her. “Help me.”

She pressed her lips together. “I don’t know.”

“You and your sister will be free,” I said, knowing that if given the chance, my dad would find me. 

Kai would find me. 

And they would raze this entire place to the ground.