Vampire's Prey

Chapter 19: Sharing Blood

Butterflies fill my stomach. "My-my master sent me... to fetch him some pork." Though I hate the idea of calling Rahlan my master, it does make me appear like an obedient slave just following orders.

He glares at me.

"He's over there," I point at our tent, "I can take you to him if you desire, sir."

He doesn't move.

I remain frozen. I'm bluffing, but I'd rather be in trouble with Rahlan than this man.

He strikes his knife against the table, making me flinch.

"Then go on." He gestures at the large piece of meat he's just cut.

I cautiously reach to take the pork, keeping a close eye on his knife.

"Thank you, sir." I spin around and hurry towards the tent, eager to get out of that conversation as soon as possible.

Once I'm far enough to be sure he can't see me, I change direction and make a beeline back to the humans.

At the sight of the meat, Jaclyn's face shows the most expression I've ever seen from her. She's stunned, and maybe even a little excited. I've got enough pork for her and a few others. I try my best to keep the large portion close to my chest to hide it from the vampires. Feeding the prisoners clearly isn't one of their priorities, and I fear they may consider it a waste of food.

I take a seat on the grass and hand her the pork. She tears a piece off for herself and passes it to the girl beside her.

"I'm impressed." She takes a bite.

A man tears off a mouthful and passes the pork on. I appreciate that they're all sharing. Everyone will get at least a few bites.

"The vampires must like you," a scruffy girl says as she tears off her portion. She framed it as a harmless remark, but I understood the underlying message.

I pull the hem of my tunic up to my belly button, just long enough to let her get a glance at the stomach bruises left over from Rahlan's attack. "Not that much."

Though it may not appear so to them, this has been anything but a cakewalk. Rahlan's dragging me along because he thinks I'm his link to finding Ivan. I don't want to find out what he'll do to Ivan when he reaches him, or what he'll do to me when he learns that I'm Ivan's niece.

"Well you have my thanks, Julia." An older brunette woman says, "I'm Mathilda, but you can call me Mattie."

"You have all our thanks," a man says.

I smile, but my gaze falls to the grass. They're still chained up, treated like cattle. I wish I could do more. I wish I could get them out of this place, but I can't even manage that for myself.

The whole group stiffens. They quickly hide their food, slipping it in their shirts or behind their backs. I whip around and jump to my feet.

There's a hulking vampire just a foot away from me. He has black hair like Rahlan, with the same pale skin all vampires share. I sidestep around him, but his hand lands on my shoulder.

"I'm thirsty," he growls.

I pull my collar back to show Rahlan's recent bite mark. "I've already been drunk from today."

A blow hits my side, sending me tumbling over the grass. I groan, clamping my arms over my aching ribs.

Before I have a chance to regain my bearings, he forces me flat on my back and straddles me, keeping my body down with his weight.

"I don't recall asking, stupid human," he spits.

My fingers scratch against the dirt, trying to pull myself out from under him. He leans in close, homing in on my neck.