Hidden In Plain Sight (MxM)✔

Chapter 5 - Regret

Luke was doing his best not to hyperventilate as Nicholas ordered the captain to return them home. The human leaned over the railing and stared down into the water, trying to forget about the massacre laying at his feet.

Death was not common. Vampires lived very long lives and had supernatural healing, so they were rarely injured enough to die. As a result, this had been quite a shock to the man.

"I'm sorry..." He heard Nicholas say, but Luke did not turn. Instead, he gripped the railing even tighter and closed his eyes.

"I was in such a hurry to show you the algae before it washed up that I had rushed to find a crew. Had I stopped to do a proper background check, you wouldn't have had to see this side of me."

Luke did not reply, though he could feel the Archduke's eyes drilling holes into him expectantly. Then he felt a slight breeze and when he next opened his eyes, Nicholas was right in his face, supernaturally clinging to the side of the boat and gazed upwards at the human, demanding his attention.

Startled, the human flung himself back, only to have the Archduke flit once more and catch him.

"Careful." Nicholas cooed. "You'll slip."

For a brief moment, panic took over and Luke struggled in the Vampire's grasp. The Archduke released him immediately and watched as he returned to the railing and nearly fell to his knees.

"I want to go home." Luke croaked.

Nicholas paused, but then nodded solemnly. The trip back was thankfully uneventful as Luke refused to leave his spot. He nearly cried when he saw the shoreline, then hiccupped in fear when he turned towards the gruesome sight on deck.

The Vampire returned to his side instantly and offered his hand with a gentle smile. "Let me escort you."

Luke opened his mouth, ready to reject him, then thought better of it when he realized he may join the sea of corpses if he did. So he instead nodded reluctantly. A look of relief crossed the Archduke's face, but he quickly hid it and took the human's hand.

Luke was navigated around the pools of blood, which seemed a bit ridiculous now since he was already spattered in the stuff from earlier. 

He traversed the gangplank carefully, and wanted to run home but found his exit blocked off by a small squadron of the Archduke's knights.

"Oh captain..." Nicholas suddenly spoke in an eerie singsong voice.

He turned to face the last surviving crewmember. The man was still standing on the boat, wringing his hands in fear. He had on a navy blue sailors uniform with a thick moustache and greased brown hair. His cheeks were rosy and his yellowed eyes were wide in fright. He clearly wanted to run, but had no where to go.

The Vampire grinned, seeing how scared the man was as he raised a hand. "Don't be too surprised. You simply picked an opponent who was out of your league."

Nicholas's nails became claw like again, and Luke realized what was about to happen. Without thinking it through, he shot forward and grabbed the Archduke's wrist in a feeble attempt to stop him.

He could feel his heart thumbing dangerously as he risked a glance towards Nicholas, who seemed surprised at Luke's behavior. The human then lowered his head and whispered almost inaudibly, "Please don't...."

The surrounding guards looked on in shock, unsure if they should be stopping the lowborn from restraining their master, but then Nicholas's claws retracted and he lowered his head with a soft smile. "Alright."