The silence is making my body twitch with unease. They all stare down at their plates that are being handed out from various slaves. From their reaction, I don't think they've seen a plate since they left their nanneries. I turn my attention to a girl with dark hair wearing a silk bathrobe, it's hard sometimes to know exactly how old they are but she looks sixteen, maybe seventeen. She has deeply tanned skin, almost black, and her brown eyes are riddled with pain and fear.

"What is your name?" I ask her.

The girl looks at me, flinching suddenly as a slave sets down the cutlery beside her plate. "Gianna."

"You don't have to be afraid. The King won't send you back."

"How did he do that?" a different girl asks from across the table. She's younger than Gianna, she still has that childish flush to her pale cheeks. "How did he wake us up?"

"It's a weapon," I say. "I'm not sure how it works but he can transfer pieces back to the hosts."

"I've never heard of that," Gianna says.

"I think he is the only one that can do it," I say.

"I haven't felt this strong in weeks," another says, trailing her eyes around the room in wonder. "It's like. . . I am whole again."

The other girls nod in agreement. I know exactly how they feel, it is how I felt when Cain restored my energy after my attack this morning. The life has been brought back to their skin, it's almost like they're glowing.

Christian and the other slaves return with their food and they sprawl it out on the table like a buffet. I am given a large slice of cheesecake that I haven't tasted in years. My mouth waters just by looking at it.

"May we join you?" Christian says, smiling at me from across the room.

"Of course," I say. "The King allowed it."

The slaves bring spare chairs into the room and slide them into places beside the girls, the conversations are slow at first as they all become stunned by the thought of eating so much food. But eventually, the slaves and the girls are introducing their lives to each other as though it's a storybook.

"I had to see it to believe it," a voice says from behind me. I look up to see Wendy sitting in the chair next to mine. She reaches over and grabs a cucumber stick. "What an amazing sight."

"Amazing indeed," another voice says. The girl is very familiar to me as she sits on the other side of Wendy, I remember her from my first day here, the King was feeding on her when I was brought into his room. She's very pretty, with curly auburn hair and freckles along her cheeks. She glares at me over the trays of food, narrowing them slightly. "And very intriguing."

"Not now, Bella," Wendy hisses. "Do not ruin this."

"I have been wracking my brain trying to figure out what is so damn special about you," Bella says, ignoring Wendy. "You're pure? Great, we're all pure. All those that Cain bids on is nothing less. But since owning you, he has discarded all of us. Why?"

"I don't know," I say.

"Liar," Bella mutters. "Don't forget we have spent time with him, we know how honest he is. Since your arrival we have been ignored and forbidden from entering his bedroom. That isn't a coincidence."

I don't understand her anger at that. Surely it's a good thing? They haven't been fed on in eleven days and she's acting as though that's a major issue. If anything, she should be thanking me.

"Why is that a bad thing?" I ask her.

"Because Cain is the only one that can build our worlds," she says. "He can give us peace for eternity. If he sells us because of you, that all gets taken away."

"Speak for yourself," Wendy mumbles sadly.

Bella flicks her eyes to her. "I'm sorry that you are not pure enough for the King but we are and we have a right to know why she is different."

Wendy shrugs. "Maybe he likes the way she looks."

"So because she's prettier than us he only feeds from her?" Bella says, shaking her head. "No, it's not that. He likes my taste; I know he does. Christian said he's only fed from her once. If once is enough then she's purer than anyone."

I stare at Christian and he ducks his eyes down in shame, turning to talk to Gianna. Bella keeps her deep glare of hatred locked onto me and I find it so uncomfortable that I want to leave. Our conversation has sparked the interest from others though and one girl speaks out above everyone else.

"Are you completed?" she asks. "I've heard my owner talking about it, a soul so rare that it's a billion to one that they'd ever find one."

Bella's eyes widen as she falls back into the chair. "No way."

"No, I'm not," I say, scanning my eyes around the room. "And even if I was, it's very dangerous for you to talk about it."

"Cain is obsessed with finding one," Wendy says. "My owner said that when he first landed here he was responsible for the deaths of almost a million people in one day because he wanted to get there first. Eventually he just gave up looking."

"He didn't give up," Bella says, eyeing me up and down. "It was dropped right at his door."

"I am not completed," I say in a low voice. "Please drop the subject."

They listen to me and continue with their conversations with the slaves. Christian is the only one still looking at me, slightly smiling. He knows it's true and he knows that I know that. I finish my cheese cake, humbly listening to the sounds of quiet laughter all around me. It might be like this for every human now due to Cain's new law that they must be treated fairly. Those trapped in Arabella's cages, tortured by her barbaric shock collars, will be released soon. I smile as I think about her reaction of having to do that. I wish I could witness it.

"What will it be like living here?" Gianna asks me.

I don't have an answer to that because I've only ever stayed in my bedroom. I glance at Wendy and she answers for me.

"It's okay," Wendy says. "If you're owned then the guards tend to leave you alone but since you've all been released then you should be more careful. Until the King passes a law inside the palace that you aren't to be touched then it would be fair to assume that you might still be targeted." Wendy notices their sudden fear and places her hand out. "But don't panic, the creatures here are kinder and they allow us to interact and go where we want in the day."

"If you're owned by the King then you're allowed to do anything," Bella comments, meeting my eyes strongly.

"I've been chained inside a basement for the last three months," Gianna says. "Only taken when he brings me here for the dinner parties, which I was paralyzed for so I never really saw or heard anything. Even being able to sit here right now and talk is a blessing." Her eyes start to water as she becomes emotional and she wipes her cheeks with a napkin softly.

"You'll be safer here," Christian says gently. "Not free. Never safe. But safer."

"What if they try to claim us back?" a girl utters in panic. "What if they assemble an army to try and overthrow the King?"

"He'll kill them all," Bella says. "He kills any of his kind that break his laws."

At the mention of that they snap their eyes towards her in confusion. Just like myself before I came here they've probably no idea that a creature can be killed. I wouldn't have even believed it through conversation unless I had witnessed it with my own eyes.

"They can be killed?" a girl says.

"Yes," Christian says. "We've seen it happen a lot. Many visitors that come here try and taste the King's prop. . ." Christian swallows as he glances at myself and Bella and stops himself from finishing that. "His girls. They seem to think he won't find out."

"But he always did," Bella says. "Most of the visitors have never tasted pure souls and they're fascinated by what the King feeds on. I guess some of them find us too irresistible to walk away from and they'd risk death for it. He's a lot more cautious now, he increases the security when visits occur."

One of the girls suddenly throws her fork into the middle of the table out of sheer frustration. A strange language bursts out from her lips. I think it's Portuguese but I can't be sure. It just occurs to me that some of them have never been taught English and that's why they've been so quiet. They've been brought here from all over the world so none of them understand a single word of what's been said or what is happening to them.

"It's okay," the slave next to her says, guiding her back to her chair softly. "Sit down."

The room turns silent as Cain enters. Every single gaze is down apart from Bella, who stares up at him with a secret longing.

"You may return to your rooms," Cain says to the slaves. "Clean this up tomorrow."

The slaves nod and leave immediately, closing the door behind them. Cain locks his eyes with mine and a promiscuous smile twists on his lips. I smile back. We become momentarily enchanted by each other.

"Cain," Bella says, demanding his attention away from me. "Some of the girls speak a foreign language, you will need to explain the situation to them."

He looks at me for an extra second before turning.

"All those that speak English please rise," Cain says. Eight girls stand up. "Follow Wendy, she will show you to your new room."

Cain casts his eyes over the remaining four girls who still have their heads down, lumps form in their throats. He walks over to the closest girl and touches her shoulder, his own shoulders rolling back with a sudden shiver. He has to feed from them to know what's inside their minds but he only touches the girl for a few seconds before he releases her. He speaks a language to her that I do not understand, he talks for so long that the girl seems satisfied with the explanation. He walks around the others and repeats himself. It is only when he stops at the final girl that I understand every word.

"Do not be afraid," he says in Spanish. "I have released you from your owner, you will live here now. Aurora speaks Spanish." He points towards me. "If you have any questions feel free to ask her now."

The girl shakes her head.

"I will arrange a meeting between the two of you once a week," he says to her. "So that you can relay any concerns. Bella will escort you to your new room, welcome to my palace."

Cain lifts his arms at the girls and they follow his silent command, walking towards Bella who is patiently waiting in the corner by a door.

"Take them to the west wing," Cain says. "There are more foreigners there that might share their language."

Bella nods. "As you wish. Is that all?"

"Yes."

I see Bella swallow with sadness, she stares at me one final time before turning and storming out of the room, the trail of girls behind her. Cain rubs his chin in thought before drifting closer to me.

"Sorry about her, she's quite attached to me," he says. "Her greatest desire is to travel to one of my worlds but I've not yet decided if she's deserving of one."

"Will they be owned soon?" I say quietly, dismissing the topic of Bella.

"I can't keep twelve pure souls here indefinitely without the risk of them being consumed," Cain says gently. "I'll give them to my kindest guards. They will be cared for."

"But eaten?" I say, dropping my eyes angrily. "Why save them and give them hope just to swap one owner for another?"

"Is that. . . evil?"

"I'm not sure."

"They will be free here," he says. "They can walk around, talk to other humans, build friendships. At least their final days will not be spent locked away in fear."

"Your definition of free isn't the same as mine," I say. "If you must give them to an owner then why don't you claim them? At least with you their souls can pass on to something better."

"I wish it was that simple." He sighs and drops into the chair next to mine. I keep my body forwards, refusing to turn. "Since tasting you, I haven't been able to feed on anyone else. There is a blockage, it's as though I can't taste anything at all. Maybe it's because there's a part of me that knows there is no soul I could taste ever again that will compare to it." He reaches out and drums his fingers against my cheek. I close my eyes for a moment as my body tenses. "Feeding on you has changed me," he admits. "The parts of your soul that are inside of me, they are changing me."

"In what way?" I ask, opening my eyes to see his lime green irises blinking with hunger.

"I wish I knew," he whispers, withdrawing his hand. "It's time for you to return to your room. I had your window fixed."

"Okay."

I stand up and I follow him out of the door and back to the staircase. We walk together back to my room, side-by-side. Even with no guards here he still won't let me go anywhere alone. He pauses outside my door as I walk inside, I think he's going to follow me but he remains on the other side, watching me with great restraint.

He had to return the energy that he took from me earlier so he's probably starving by now. That was my fault for kissing him, for reacting in a way that almost brought my death. His fingers curl around the edge of the door as he bites his teeth together.

"Out of every soul on this damn planet, why did it have to be you?" he mutters angrily to himself before turning and storming down the hallway.

I freeze as I watch his spontaneous leave. My fingers reach out and close the door. He didn't lock it, does he know that? Did he do that purposely or did he forget?

I turn around and approach my wardrobe, getting changed into my night clothes. It's been a long day, a day I needed after spending the last eleven locked away in here. I feel so exhausted that I can hardly keep my eyes open. I slip into the bed and fall asleep.