C H A P T E R 11

Valentina Dove Blackclaw

watches her own blood drip down into the silver glass with the little light that she can use in the room to see. The pain is nothing compared what she has gone through yet she still feels it. She still feels how the sharp pain nearly has her in tears yet she refuses to cry. She refuses to let him have the satisfaction of seeing her cry because of the pain he has inflicted upon her.

When he turns around and goes somewhere else she breathes a bit better yet she still has a hard time letting air into her lungs. She can't see much but she can tell that he has sat down while she stays glued to the spot she was on. Holding onto the wall for support. She doesn't know if her wrist is still bleeding and she doesn't want to find that out. "That is a Blood Slave among other fun... activities" He says, her eyes widen and she goes pale in the face. His words and voice shocking her to the core.

She feels the shivers run up and down her whole body, not only out of fear but also the cold. The fire that she had been lying beside was her only source of warmth as her own body did not seem to want to heat herself up. "Now, I cannot have my Blood Slave die on me on the first day, no. I did not buy a Blood Slave worth this much to have it die on me" He says though Valentina realizes that he is not speaking to her, then again she reminds herself that she is nothing to him as he had stated so long ago.

She gulps as she can feel his stare on her without seeing him. Her eyes are however stuck on the ground and the darkness that lies there as her head is down, both in respect and fear. Knowing that she is a 'Blood Slave' she has to show him respect even when she does not feel respect for him. Feelings of him are confusing to her and the only emotion that she is clear that she understands is fear. "You shall be in the bed chambers beside mine" He announces to her, startling her in the process.

"Follow me" He orders her and his voice was so close to her that she felt like she was going to fall down when he said that. Before he had spoken he had stood up and walked over to her without her knowledge. He walks past her and she forces her body to move. Though she cannot see much she can hear his footsteps and can that way follow where he is going. They don't go very far as his footstep stop which makes Valentina stop too. She hears a door open and then he continues to walk again.

The fear of being alone with him is still running around her and she shakes when she enters the room, using the wall for support. She fears her own legs will soon give up and soon she will collapse on the ground with no strength to hold herself up. The room that they enter is lit up with so many candles that she can see and for the first time of being there she feels safe. Not because her own Mate is around her, but because light is what drives the monsters away and her fear along with them.

Her ice blue eyes take in her surrounding and nail them down in her mind so she would not forget anything if the candles were put out which she prays with everything she has that they won't for the light will help her and guide her through this agony that has been thrust upon her. He turns around and walks past her and before she herself could spin her body around the door slams shut and from the outside her ears catch the sound of a key locking the door. A quiet sound comes from her lips as she's alone yet for the first time not in the darkness.

Scanning the room Valentina notices that it's a large one yet not too large of a room with three doors one three walls while one wall remains empty. One door leading out but two she is not sure where they lead and in a castle this old and creepy she does not wish to find out. Though she knows Vampires are out-dated she cannot help but admire this room. The vintage style has been taken to a whole another level which meets her liking.

On her right side by the wall is a queen size bed that has been perfectly made and beside the bed is a small table and an unlit candlestick with matches beside it. On the other side of the room directly in front of her is a door and beside it is an empty oak shelf which leaves her confused yet she does not think of it that much. On her left is a wooden closet which sparks her interest and using the wall she walks over to the closet and takes a closer look at it. It's tall and made out of wood but painted with golden color.

Using both her hands she pulls the handles on the closet and opens it. Empty. She's met with an empty wooden closet. Empty like the rest of this room. A little further on the same wall that the closet is by is another door yet she does not wish to open it. Closing the closet she heads for the bed and sits down. Instantly the cream white color of the covers get painted with the dirt of her clothes and it is only now she realizes how filthy she truly does look.

Dirt covers her whole body like it belonged there and it clings to her as if it did not wish to let her go. Under her fingernails all she sees is dirt upon dirt as are her fingers. Her body does not smell very nice either. Valentina wonders how anyone would have been around her when she looked like this, looked like a monster. Even when the real monsters were only meters away from her. A monster he may be, yet she cannot deny that he isn't her Mate for he is. He very thing that inspires fear within her body is her Mate.

The bed has two covers, one thinner and goes over the thick one and she would assume it is only there for show. She takes the thinner cover off and tries her hardest to wipe the dirt off her hands even though she doesn't have any water. Yet no matter how much she scrubs her arms the dirt doesn't go away but it does stain the white color of the cover. Like the dirt has become a part of her and it would never leave her, reminding her that she has become nothing but a filth that her own Mate doesn't want.

As she scrubs her hands she accidentally runs over the cut on her wrist and let's out a cry of pain as she does so. Seeing the cut with dried black blood the edges turn crimson red once more and it fills with the liquid before it begins to roll down her wrist and softly fall. The pain worse than before as she presses the now slightly brown cover cloth over her wound to stop the bleeding and trying not to attract attention to herself. She realizes that the cut is worse than it is and her hand is numb in the fingers.

She can move her fingers and she make a fist however it feels numb and that is because of the lack of blood that has been traveling to her hand. The tears in her eyes she refused to let down and she bites her inner cheek with her teeth to stop herself from crying. Though the spot that she has been biting has gotten sore and this time she drew blood. The metallic taste in her mouth made her want to throw up as she swallows her own crimson red blood.

Wondering how the blood-sucking creatures that have her as a Blood Slave can even drink that on daily bases and like it. To her blood has always tasted horrible and she would feel disgusted whenever she tasted the red liquid. Still pressing on the wound her ice blue eyes travel to the candles that are all around. Some are by the wall but there are some on the floor for a strange reason that is unknown to her. The flames is calm yet so angry and she doesn't understand how that single thing can be a source for warmth yet also a source of destruction.

Valentina had thought that too when she was staring into the fire by the fireplace, what also came in mind that fire is like a person. It can look frighting and be the biggest softy the world has ever seen and it can also look like the most innocent person in the world yet is the deadliest one in the world. One can never tell about people unless you see what is inside their hearts and perhaps she will someday be able to see which he is of the two yet in her mind now he is neither. He is a monster.

When the bleeding had stopped she ripped a piece from the cover knowing that none is going to be able to use it again even if it is washed a hundred times, it would most likely be thrown out or used for something else. Taking the piece that she had ripped she wraps it around her wrist a couple of time and even around her thumb and a little towards her elbow yet not quite reaching it. When she is done she lies down on the bed with her legs on the ground but the upper part of her body on the bed itself.

She can't tell for how long she will stay in the room, it could be year and she doesn't know if it will ever get cleaned or if she will ever get the change to clean herself up and try to get rid of the dirt that has taken her once beautiful skin as its home. Not wanting to dirty the bed more than she needs to she stays in that strange position and as she lies down on the pillow she realizes that her heart is still beating fast in her chest.

Even when it has been a couple of minute since she has been alone in the room the fear of him unlocking the door and walking in creeps her to the bones. The golden haired girl finds herself looking every couple of seconds on the door to see if there is anyone yet each time she does look the only thing standing there is the wooden door. Breathing in the air and just trying to calm herself down and not allow the sorrow nor anything else into her body she wonders about something else.

A Blood Slave is what he keeps telling her that she is, a Blood Slave. She doesn't exactly know what it is but he had cut her with his fingernails and he had drunk her blood. Yet she wonders about how that can't be all that she has to do. A man especially a Vampire would never do anything physical with a girl that is like dirt and smells horrible, which in her case could be a good thing. However she wonders if giving blood is all she has to do to survive, however that isn't survival. If she continues to let him have her blood it won't be long before her body will run out of the crimson liquid and she will fall into the eternal rest for all eternity.

She forced herself not to think of the worst in the situation and closed her eyes, not wanting to stare at the ceiling or the door too much and she gives in into the sleep craving that her body has been wanting, wanting to get sucked into another dimension where there is hopefully no pain no suffering and most of all where there is peace and happiness. That is all she wants. Her lips have not formed a smile in a long time and she doubts she will even be able to smile anymore.

Her eyes snap open by a sound nearby her and she instantly shoots up to sit up on the bed. The door open and two girl who look to be about sixteen years old step inside the poorly lit room. As the hours had passed and the candles burned out the darkness took over yet not completely. Valentina wonders if they have come to put her in chains and drags her to her Mate to give him more access to her blood.

When she takes a closer look at the girls she notices that they look identical to each other, from the brown hair on their heads to the pale green color of their eyes and they also dress the same. They were a pale purple dress that reaches to their ankles and a white apron over the dress. It is no doubt that those are sisters, twin sisters. "Blood Slave, we are here to clean you up and make you... presentable to the King" One of them says but her tone says all that Valentina has to know.

She does not wish to be here and she does not wish to be around her, that feeling is mutual to Valentina. The girl had hesitated when she said 'presentable' as if she was trying to find another word to say to her but settled with that one. However that sister may not like her but the other one gives her a smile, a smile that sends chills through her bones, and make her wish she were someone else, anywhere else. When she sees no chains with them she breathes better, something about chains makes her feel uneasy.

Perhaps because as a Werewolf freedom is necessary for her and how much she prays for that freedom they would never know. "Stand up" The same one orders her and she does not hesitate to do so. The voice that she speaks in his rude and rough and it has the feeling in it that if Valentina would not do as she is told then she would get punished. She can't handle more pain. Her wrist still has a dulling pain inside of it that hurts her yet the pain is going away yet it could be because her whole body is sore and pained.

Her legs are not used to walking and her walk is wobbly and she has a hard time keeping her balance yet she still does and she walks over to them. The girl that has not spoken anything while being in the room walks over to the door where the closet is and opens it. Valentina's eyes gaze towards the place that opened up to them. It was another room, a bathroom she saw. It was small. It held a toilet, a sink and a bathtub. All were most likely form another century though she cannot complain about that.

Slowly she begins to walk inside after the quiet girl. "My name is Solaria and this is my sister Lunaria" The quiet girl, Solaria speaks to her, introducing them to her. "We wish not to know your name, Blood Slave" Lunaria hisses at her and she realizes that true to their names, Solaria is kind and warm like the sun while Lunaria is mean and cold like the moon. The three of them in the bathroom makes her feel uncomfortable yet she knows no one would care about if she is or not, they frankly do not care about her. The two sisters light up all the candles that are in the bathroom and bring light to her vision.

She takes in her surroundings. The bathroom is rather small but the tiles are pearl white in color with a hint of pale grayish black marble that is not visible unless you look closer on them and to some it would not be seen by them for it is too pale to be noticed. No mirror is inside the bathroom, that she notices too and while there is a sink, that is all there is. There is not table by the sink or around it and there is no cupboard under it nor above it, there simply is only a sink.

Beside the sink is the toilet and a toilet roll lying on the ground beside it. The toilet looks so old and on some places visible cracks can be seen though it can easily be overlooked. In the corner behind the door that opens in is the bathtub. It's not a large one and her body would not fit laying down in it, but to her that doesn't matter. That bathtub is white yet at the bottom are hints of filth that has gathered there from lack of cleaning and perhaps old age.

"Undress" Lunaria orders Valentina with cruelty in her voice and a hint of annoyance. For a moment she had forgotten that they were even there at all. Her ice blue eyes too busy to soak in this bathroom to notice. Her arms begin to remove the sweatpants she has been wearing this entire time and it dawn upon her how dirty they and she really is. Once they are off she notices how thin her legs have become. Her legs look like one of a skeleton, only alive one. Taking off the tank top off her she and dropping it off the ground on top of the dirty pants she had put aside before.

While Valentina undresses herself of the dirty clothes Solaria has begun to put water into the bathtub and letting the water fall gracefully into the tub. Lunaria's eyes stuck on Valentina to make sure she cannot go away and her eyes heavy with darkness. No words were spoken and no words were needed to be spoken. All three of them understood the position they were in. The two sisters were the one who had the power and both of them were deadly while Valentina is nothing, just a Blood Slave.

She cannot decide which is worse, being a Blood Slave or being nothing, perhaps both is equally as bad in her mind. Once all her clothes are off her body and she is bare with only the necklace around her neck which she refuses to take off her. One item belonging to her father is missing, she will not lose the only thing left that she has of him to remember him by, even if she has to never take it off again. "Get in" Lunaria orders her again and now there is even more annoyance in her voice than it had been before, showing a clear sign that she truly does not want to be there.

Taking a look down her body she sees her rib bones stick out from lack of food that she has gotten and how small her body has become. Valentina walks over to the tub, feeling embarrassed of her naked body in front of those two and holding steady to the tub itself she lifts her leg over and into the steaming hot water. The water stings at first and feels uncomfortable yet that doesn't stop her other leg to follow right into the water alongside her other one.

The water slightly rises when she is fully in the bathtub and she goes down and sits with her legs thrust against her chest so they can not see her chest nor between her legs. As soon as she is sitting down the water begins to turn brown by her dirtied skin and even though the heat feels wonderful to her skin it is also too hot for her to handle and she can already feel herself become flushed from the heat of the steaming hot water that she is in.

The brown haired sisters washed her body, scrubbed all the dirt away from her skin with soap and water and even washed her hair. Both of them were rough on her body even on the wound on her head and the fresh cut on her wrist, they did not care if she bled into the water. They scrubbed away every trace of dirt they could see and once they were done they forced her out of the tub and wrapped her in a towel before they exited the bathroom and neither of them came back again. Alone Valentina stood with a towel wrapped around her naked clean body, shivering and cold.

Once out of the heat from the water the cold was not slow at biting her with the bitterness that it holds. She stands there not knowing what to do and as the minutes pass and the water drying up on her body and she decided to open the door. Her head peeks out and her towel is tightly wrapped around her body so nothing can be seen if there was someone inside the room. Through the darkness she can make out that there is no one in the room.

Sighing she walks out of the bathroom and her shivers never disappear. Her body trembling from the cold and it seems the cold doesn't want to let go of her any time soon. The room is empty and the same as she had left it, except for a couple of things. Beside each candle is a new candle stick that can be used to switch so the light doesn't burn out. The bed has been made and there are fresh new covers.

What shocks her the most is what is on the nightstand beside the unlit candle that was there before. A tray of food. Food that she has been longing for for so long even when it has only been a couple of hours since she last ate, and now she can finally have it. The scent of the food travels all the way to her and her mouth waters and her stomach is growing crazy as if there was a starving lion inside her stomach that is ready to burst out any minute to get that food.