She could hear her heart drumming inside her ribcage. Her warm cheek touched an exposed portion of his cold neck, soothing her anxious nerves. She tangled her hands into the soft material of his silk cloak as her body sorted out the comfort his caress provided.

For someone who had been wandering aimlessly all day, with no place to go, he was her home. Her cold embrace was her safe haven.

She nuzzled her face deeper in the crook of his neck, keeping her body glued to his. She had been yearning for a place to belong. A spot to hide herself from the disgust filled glares of the people passing by her. Now that she had it, she wasn't letting it go easily.

Her wildly thumping heart knew, the moment she had gazed into those gleaming emeralds in the solitude of that abandoned alley, she had fallen in love.

Suddenly a cold sharp object touched the undersurface of her chin.

"Back away!"

The hostile command ripped her away from her thoughts, making her aware of the blade pressed mere inches away from her throat. Her eyes trailed up along the blurred outline of the object to find a silhouette pointing his sword at her.

The man wore a leather suit hidden by a long surcoat hugging his tall stature. He was facing away from the light reaching the narrow passage, resulting in his face being hidden by the shadows.

'Who is he?' She clutched Ares' cloak in her small fists, clinging closer to him.

"You dare disobey?!" The man's furious tone sounded familiar to her ears.

She refused to budge from her position, aggravating him more. The man took a step forward, applying more pressure on the blade, ready to detach the unruly woman away from his lord.

"Stop, Henry." Ares' resonant voice collided with the bare stone walls.

Henry halted in his step hearing his lord's order. His head hung low with obedience immediately, "Milord."

'That's Henry?!' She couldn't believe that man was capable of raising his voice or showing any kind of emotion. He always appeared calm and stoic whenever he met her in the present.

Her attention went back to Ares when she felt him shift under her hold before a pair of cold hands touched her arms. He moved her back, away from him, putting some distance between them. Disappointment surged through her heart at losing contact with him.

He got up from his crouching stance, making her stand up with him as well. She craned her neck, holding his gaze as he stood to his full height, towering over her. A moment of silence passed between them before he removed his hands from her shoulders, letting them dangle at his sides.

The settling sun's dying rays were creeping out of the tall stone walls—a sign of the fast approaching night. The alleyway appeared darker and darker with every passing moment. The lack of luminescence obstructed her vision as she gazed at the familiar stranger facing her.

Squinting her eyes, she tried to focus better on the outline of his figure. His tall imposing presence appeared more dominating in the small space. He was cladded in the same long cloak he wore in her dreams while visting the town during daytime.

"Who are you?" He tone had a much different accent than the local people.

She noticed a hint of curiosity lingering in the depths of his green orbs. They held no trace of recognition in them. It was clear he was meeting her for the first time.

'What should I tell him?' She avoided his gaze, fidgeting with her fingers, 'This Ares doesn't have a bond with me. I have no proof to show him. Just his scent.'

Her eyes widened, 'Scent! I have his scent. He'd believe me. Right?' She opened her mouth only to close it the next moment, 'But, I just hugged him a moment ago. He could say I got his scent all over me just because of it.'

She opened and closed her mouth alternatively, resembling a fish.

"I'm Faith Mathaeus." She mumbled in a small voice.

They waited for her to continue her introduction but she didn't. She just gave a nervous smile in return.

"Miss," Ares addressed her, speaking slowly before continuing, "It is inappropriate for an unmarried woman to touch another male so intimately, that too without consent. Do you know that?"

'But we've already done more than just touching,' She wanted to say it out loud but refrained from doing so, 'Ares had once said that a blood bond acts as a trigger for human beings. I can just say that to save myself out of the situation.'

"I.. I don't know why I did that. I just felt a pull." She tried her best to appear confused.

"Do you jest? " Henry asked incredulously as his hold on his sword tightened, ready to face any unexpected attacks. He wasn't getting betrayed by the woman's innocent aura. She seemed too suspicious for her own good. He casted a quick glance at his Lord.

A guarded look covered Ares' face as his unwavering stare stayed fixated on the petite woman standing before him. He was intrigued by her audacity. His scorching gaze roamed over her body, narrowing at the skinny jeans hugging her hips like a second skin, "You don't look like you're from here, Miss."

"Uh.." She racked her brain for an appropriate response.

'What am I supposed to say now? America wasn't even discovered in this era.' She cursed the witch in her mind for sending her there unprepared.

"Foreign?" Her reply came out more like a question.

"Your attire is portraying that much." Ares' remark left her flustered.

"It's a crime. A foreigner roaming the streets unidentified. You could be posing a huge threat to this country. Morever, you're in my manor. I'm responsible for this area." He spoke in a stern tone.

'He wouldn't imprison me. Would he? He must know I'm his beloved!'

"Are you following what I am saying, young lady?" He asked when he saw a series of mixed expressions crossing her face.

She stayed silent.

Ares let out a silent sigh at the woman refusing to disclose any information. Turning around, he gave Henry a knowing look, "Take her to the dungeons."

'Dungeons?!' Her jaw dropped at his remark.

"Yes Milord." Henry was more than happy to carry out his lord's wish.

"No, listen to me. I didn't do anything! No!"

~*~

"Let me out!"

Her fingers were wrapped around the cold irons bars, as she clung onto the gate of her cell. Her throat hurt from all the screaming she had been doing for the past hours. She didn't regret it. If Ares' sensitive hearing was damaged at the cost of her being a banshee, then she'd do it again and again without batting an eyelash.

There had been no response so far. It almost felt like they had forgotten her after throwing her down in the basement of this castle.

She exhaled out loudly before letting go of the bars. Walking deeper inside the cell, she reluctantly lowered herself down to sit on the floor. It was unexpectedly clean. She remembered how she couldn't find a single speak of dust when she stayed in his castle with him.

'But.. the castle wouldn't remain the same once he gets turned to stone.' Her heart dropped thinking why she was sent there in the first place.

She drew her legs towards her chest, placing her chin on top of them. 'What do I do now? Should I tell him everything? Wouldn't that change the course of things?'

She passed a hand through her locks, twirling the ends with her fingers, 'Now that I think, He doesn't have that emotionless look in his eyes.' She paused for a moment, frowning, 'But he still locked me here.'

She uncurled her fingers, drawing vague patterns on the rough texture of her jeans, 'At least, I'm with him. Not with some creep on a street.'

Crossing her legs, she leaned back against the wall, 'But why hasn't he recognized me as his beloved by now? He did, back in the basement. What did we do when we met for the first time that led him to recognising me?' Her mind was working on overdrive.

'I kissed him, woke him up with my blood, got injured, he drank my blood, then fed me his blood, forming a bond to save me.' She counted on her fingers.

'It's something along these things.' She pursed her lips, 'Kiss? Contact? But I already hugged him.' She waved her hand, rulling out the possibility.

"Blood..?" She spoke her thought out loud

"What blood?"

She gasped, backing away immediately, forgetting that she was already leaning against a wall. Her head collided against the bricks sending a shooting pain inside her skull.

"Ouch!"

She heard the rustling of keys before the iron gates parted with a loud creak.

"Are you okay?" He sounded concerned.

She held the back of her head, lifting her eyes to meet his emerald gaze.

"Yes. I am

Her cramped leg muscles gave out beneath her as she tried standing up. Her hands grabbed the wall behind her for support before she ended up falling face first on the floor.

He stretched a hand towards her to help before clutching it into a fist and retreating it. Hiz gaze followed her every move as she rubbed her head furiously, unconcerned of her hair getting tangled into a mess.

"I did not mean to scare you."

"You never." The let her mouth run before thinking.

"What do you mean?" His eyebrows furrowed at her response.

"Nothing."

"You need to answer me seriously. Otherwise, I'd have to hand you over to the high officials in capital."

Her hand stopped rubbing the back of her head, 'Is he serious?'

"You wouldn't."

"I shall. This is my obligation." His eyes didn't waver for a second when he spoke the words, showing his resolution.

'If he really sent me to the higher authorities of captial, God knows what they'd do to me.'

Her eyes moved side to side as she thought of any excuse to get her out of the situation. 'I can't just tell him about us. He wouldn't believe me.'

She pressed her lips, 'Should I injure myself somehow? He'd be drawn to my blood. Wouldn't he?'

She passed a nonchalant glance over the interior of the empty cell. There was no sharp object in her field of vision. Not even a single nail. 'Just my luck.'

"I am asking for the last time. Who are you?" Her roaming eyes stopped their venture at his stern tone.

Her heavy breathing was the only sound he got in his answer.

"You leave me no choice. You will be sent to the capital tomorrow." He turned on his heels to leave.

He hand shot out to grab his arm before he stepped out of the cell. "I'm your beloved."

The ominous words hung in the air between them like a forbidden prophecy. The deadly silence that followed her statement chilled her to the bones. The walls of cellar seemed to be closing in on them as she desperately awaited his response. Her fingers encased the soft material of his shirt keeping a firm grip on his arm while he made no movements to shake it off.

"Beloved?" It felt like a life time had passed before he finally spoke something.

"...Yes." She sucked in a sharp breath, "A vampire's beloved."

As soon as she let out those words, she found herself pushed against a wall, caged with his hands gripping her shoulders.

"What is your motive?"

'I'm in deep trouble.' She thought looking at his fierce expressions.

Her silence only urged him to apply more pressure on her arms. She hissed as his fingers dug deeper into her skin, leaving their marks behind.

"I-I mean no harm." She uttered the first thing that came to her mind.

He pressed her back harder against the bricks, "Liar."

"I'm not lying Ares. I'm your beloved!" Her desperate pleas fell on deaf ears.

"Stop spitting lies!" His booming voice shook her to the core, immediately shutting her up, "My beloved is already dead!"

"What..." The wind got knocked out of her lungs as she stared at him dumbfounded.

His beautiful emerald orbs turned blood red, glinting like a predator's sharp gaze fixated on his prey during a merciless hunt. A strangled gasp left her lips as she saw his canine lengthening, their sharp edges poking out of his mouth. She pushed hard against his chest, trying to put some distance in between them, despite knowing fully well the futility of her actions.

'How could his beloved be dead..' Her jumbled thoughts circulated inside her mind as she stared in the eye of her approaching death. 'Am I not his beloved? What about the pull?'

She wanted answers. She wanted to see . He was standing right before her yet she missed him terribly. Tears gathered in her eyes at his unfamiliar behaviour. His callous eyes held no pity in them. Her hands stopped struggling as she gave in to her doomed fate.

Clutching her eyes shut, she awaited the sharp pang of his lethal canine tearing through her flesh, but the pain never came.

Next few moments passed in a blur as she felt herself falling down to the floor. Her hands shot out to grab the wall behind her for support as she was pushed away from him with a sudden jerk. She frowned looking at his imposing figure lurking at the far corner of the cell, staring at her through narrowed eyes. The veins on his hands buldged through his pale skin as squeezed his hands into a tight grip.

"You're already bound," He spoke slowly, through clenched teeth, "to me."