He laughed a rich laugh, and his green eyes were so full of affection.
Love.
“Oh, little one. You truly have no idea, do you? Your mother and grandmother have crippled you even more than I gave them credit for.”
He gestured to one of the sofas, in deep blush burgundy brocade. I took a seat awkwardly as he paced back and forth in front of the fire. I felt so out of my depth in this space.
“Have you ever heard the tale of the nine witches between Garway and Orcop?” Hans asked me.
I remembered something vaguely from my memory.
“Kind of.”
“Kind of?”
“Yes. I heard there are a group of them or something. It’s a myth, right?”
“It’s more than a myth. Your family line is inherent in it. Unfortunately, your mother and grandmother turned their back on their own heritage, and took yours from you, too.”
“Stop,” I said, trying to catch up with him. “I just… I can’t.”
My thoughts felt uneasy, like something was buried deep. Something I didn’t want to surface yet, like a dark trapdoor deep down below.
He read me. Of course he did.
“We’ll save this for another day,” he told me, and I didn’t argue.
I had other questions to ask him. Ones that didn’t give me so many instant triggers.
“So, what about George? What’s going to happen to him tonight?”
Hans took a seat beside me. His skin looked so stunning in the glow of the fire.
“Would you like the full truth?”
“Yes, please. Why wouldn’t I?”
“A lot of people shy away from the truth on all levels. That’s what culture has become now, a facade over the deeper meaning. Myths and legends have become little more than dusty fairytales. Everyone is now focused on the surface, racing around, looking for meaning where none can be found.”
I looked over at the fire, taking in the height of the flames. Reaching, consuming. Part of my soul felt like that. Reaching, searching, wanting to consume and – to be consumed.
Just so long as that searching didn’t include the trapdoor in my own subconscious.
“Shall I tell you what you want to know?” Hans asked me. “Call it another invitation on your part. You tell me you’d like answers, and I’ll answer your questions. But once you start knowing those answers, you’ll never be able return to ignorance again.”
I weighed it up. It felt like I was on the edge of some kind of abyss, ready to jump and fall, or stay, forever wavering on the edge, wondering.
Considering I’d had a vampire suck my blood and was already an addict for more, it felt quite a strange thing to be wary of. I was already in way too deep to back out.
“Yes, I’d like answers,” I told Hans, the creature who now owned my soul. “So, how about we start with George?”
Chapter Eight
Itriedtogetmy thoughts in some kind of rational order.
“You said George is going to die tonight, didn’t you?”
Hans’ expression was so calm. Not a hint of trepidation in sight.