Mine to Claim

Chapter 13

"Let's go back, shall we?" he asks while looking into my eyes and assessing my posture.

I am so deep in thought, still trying to convince myself that he did not see my family wall. This is a sacred place and it has Sascha's name written on it. Had Dominic seen this wall, he would have asked me about Sascha.

Moreover, he would have connected the dots and realised the significance of this wall. I really feel very thankful to my mother at this very moment, who gave me the power to sense people around me.

That's how I had known when Dominic had entered into this side of the cavern. His presence had been very stealthy yet my mind had detected it, giving me the right amount of time to seal the place with my blood.

However, my blood is still oozing from the wound. I fear that he might smell it even when I have cloaked the wound with my cloaking spell.

As I am thinking through all this and trying to appear as calm as possible, I feel Dominic's mind brush past mine. The brush of his mind is so intimate and so warm that it startles me. Surprised by his attempt, I take a step back and watch as his eyes flash with hurt and then in a split second they go back to their normal calm blood red.

He watches me with calm eyes as if waiting patiently and that makes me feel guilty. I don't know what to do when Dominic is around me. Somehow his presence is very confusing. I do not know why I want him to be around me.

I despise vampires. Because of Wulfric but Dominic feels so different. He has not for once made any move against me. He has always watched out for me. He even helped me reach my brother's home.

If he meant to harm me, he would have done that on that night when I was bathing in the half-frozen river. Yet he didn't.

He helped me cover myself and then made me follow him to reach Fenris's home. I know that he played a huge role in making sure that I reunite with my brother after our first encounter.

Then why do I still don't trust him?

I should let Dominic into my mind. I allowed Fenris, then Dominic should be able to know my mind as well, after all, he helped me reach Fenris.

However, there is something in my mind that's scared or I don't know what. It is this emotion that makes me want to run away from Dominic. Although the next moment, I also feel or rather expect Dominic to follow me.

I do not know what is this new feeling but I assume that it can get me into trouble.

Almost groaning at my thoughts, I resist the urge somehow and focus on Dominic who's still waiting for me patiently.

"Can we go home?" I ask, only now realizing that he had already asked me that question.

He doesn't comment anything but then continues to stare at me for a long time making me nervous. I had expected him to not ask me anything but surprisingly he does.

I guess, he is not that patient anymore.

"What were you doing here, Nikita?" he asks while looking around and then behind me, at the wall. I watch as he takes a deep breath and my breath catches as I realize what he is doing.

He is scenting my blood here.

Oh no!

I am almost on the verge of hyperventilating when he looks at a particular spot on the wall behind me and then narrows his eyes into two tiny slits.

His fangs peek out from under his lips and his facial features transform a little, making him look beastly, a little intimidating.

"What is that?" he asks and then walks past me towards the wall. He walks straight toward the spot where there are small droplets of blood on the wall where I had made the blood sacrifice to make the wall reveal itself.