My sleep was plagued by nightmares I could not remember.
I woke up with a start, drenched in cold sweat.
I was lying on a bed, in a lavish bed chamber I had never been in before.
In the darkness, a figure sat by the moonlit window with a book on his lap.
"Were you having nightmares?" he asked.
It was Elijah Blackwood.
I crawled backward on the bed, trying to put as much distance between us, even though it wouldn't help much. I was trapped in the vampire's territory anyway.
"Why are you doing this?" I asked. "If all you want is revenge, you could have killed me along with the others."
Elijah snapped the book in his hands shut and gave me a bewildered gaze.
"I could, but you wanted to live, didn't you?"
My heart tightened in my chest. Was this what it was all about?
My rage lent me the boldness I did not know I possessed. For once, I dared to snap at a vampire.
"So you let me live long enough to cater to your amusement. Are you done with me now?"
Elijah Blackwood watched me with an ample amount of astonishment, probably wondering where I gained my courage from.
Then, a cold chuckle escaped the vampire.
A nerve was pounding ferociously against my temple. It hurt.
"You humans are quite hilarious. You desire our assistance and long for our strength. Simultaneously, you loathe us for our essence and regard us with disdain for our unlawful existence."
"That's not true," I murmured. "I have no part in my father's machinations. All I want is freedom, a life of my own."
"You shall have a life of your own, but freedom will only come after you finish paying off your family's debt."
I clawed into the bedsheet but said nothing else in response.
When the Calthorpes were alive, they treated me like dirt and humiliated me any chance they got.
Now that they were gone, I was forced to settle their huge debt to the Blackwoods.
I took a deep breath and asked, "What, exactly, do you want from me?"
Elijah Blackwood pinned me with a pointer stare.
"Have I not said it loud and clear? I want you to step up and fulfill the part your father failed to keep up."
"And that is?"
"A consistent flow of blood slaves."
A cruel smile formed on Elijah Blackwood's lips.
"A new one must come after the former one is dead."
The former one.
The former one was my sister, Shireen.
"Shireen is dead?"
The vampire had no compassion left for me.
"Obviously."
My heart dropped to the bottom of my stomach.
When we let her go three years ago, we did not have the expectation of seeing her again. Ultimately, how many blood slaves came back to their homes, alive?
However, learning of her departure after just three years filled my heart with overwhelming sorrow and hopelessness.
I sat on the bed, sobbing to myself.
That was all I could do for Shireen. I couldn't even see her for one last time, let alone buy a coffin and bury her in a nice patch of land.
Elijah Blackwood patiently waited until I finished crying my eyes out.
Time did not matter for him because his clock stopped more than a thousand years ago.
Meanwhile, my clock was still ticking.
"I have no consistent flow of blood slaves to give you," I said after I regained my composure to some extent. "I only have myself."
And my mother, but only virgins became blood slaves.
"In that case, I would highly advise you to remain alive."
I locked gazes with the vampire, my face but a mask of confusion.
"What will happen if I die...?"
Elijah's smile widened.
"If you die without a replacement, I am going to kill every single living being in your family's fief, including your treasured mother."
My mother!
Panic clawed at me like a trapped beast.
"Leave my mother out of this! You knew that Shireen and I were abused in the Calthorpe family! You must also know that she, too, suffered from the same kind of abuse! Please, let her go!"
Elijah stared at me and clicked his tongue in disdain.
"Do you not understand your own situation, wench? Right now, you are a blood slave and I the master. What right do you have to make demands of me?"
I trembled.
This heinous beast.
"Play your part and your mother shall enjoy the fruit of your obedience. You know what will happen if you disobey me."
Shireen was no longer among the living.
My mother was the only one I had in this vast mortal realm.
If I must serve the vampires to keep her alive, I would do that without hesitation.
I thus bowed my head and meekly said, "Yes, Master."
When I lifted my head, I saw Elijah with that twisted smirk again. He reached for a thick, yellow cord by the curtain and gave it a tug. Before long, a gaunt old woman entered the bed chamber. Her entirely grey hair was tied into a bun at the back of her neck.
"I am here to do your bidding, Master Elijah."
Elijah Blackwood nodded in my direction.
"Madam Beaufort, Miss Charmaine Calthorpe is new here. Do take good care of her."
Madam Beaufort looked at me with eyes as hollow as death.
"Please come with me, Miss Charmaine Calthorpe."