The Knight of Slaughtaverty

Chapter 14 - Regaining Trust

I flinch away from the sting of the hypodermic needle, gathering the quilt protectively around myself, shocked to see Liam straightening next to the bed.

"I'm sorry," he says in the voice I used to find calming and friendly. I don't anymore. "I didn't realise you were awake, or I would've warned you."

"Please don't handle me," I whimper, anxiety clogging my throat as I scurry to the opposite side of the bed from where he is standing with the syringe still in his hand. I want to escape from the bed and run, but where would I run to? How would I get away if he could just slip in and out of secret passages and intercept me?

What did he inject me with?

For all I know I could pass out before I've even reached the door. I wish I could call Billy, but is he even on my side? I want to scream for Alaric, but he must be the one who brought me here, and Liam is his brother; surely they are on the same side. Is there anybody in this mansion I can trust?!

Ransford...

"Excuse me?" Liam is a really good actor because he seems to be truly baffled by my behaviour until he follows my frightened gaze to the needle in his hand.

"Oh, it's a vitamin B and Iron combo," he smiles. "You seem to be somewhat anaemic."

I narrow my eyes, watching him like a trapped animal, and he lifts a vial from the nightstand, holding it out to me to read the label. I've had injections like that in the past, but how do I know this one is authentic? It could be anything inside that labelled ampule.

"What are you doing to me?" I whisper, terror riding up and down my spine. My mouth is so dry, and my head is fuzzy. What happened to me? One minute, I was lying peacefully in Alaric's arms and the next...

"I just told you-"

"No."

"Aubrey," Liam says, placing the syringe and vial on the nightstand and sitting down on the edge of the bed, looking sad when I move away even further. "Alaric asked me to take care of you. He found you passed out in one of the salons upstairs."

"No."

"No?" he frowns.

"I wasn't passed out. He sat with me; he told me stories."

He kissed me... or I kissed him, or we kissed each other. I'm not sure anymore, but there was kissing going on, and it was good!

"Alaric went to the mill in the afternoon, and when he returned in the evening, you were lying in the salon."

"No," I say again, narrowing my eyes and glaring at Liam. "Is Billy still here?"

"Billy wasn't here today."

"I was in the salon when you were there with him," I inform him, anger over his lies bringing my courage back, misplaced as it might be. "I heard you talking, and I saw you give him a small case."

I watch Liam's face as he hears my words, and the sadness of his expression deepens, but he doesn't look guilty, which is the reaction I expected. Then again, I've noticed that the Slatherties are very good at hiding their feelings.

"That wasn't-."

"And just after you left, Alaric came in and spoke to me. I wasn't passed out."

Telling Liam this is probably a terrible idea, but I cannot handle his lies anymore, and if he is planning on hurting me or killing me, then I'd rather he didn't pretend otherwise. I'm not feeling sleepy or anything weird due to the injection. At least not yet. In fact, I feel rather good. I'm mostly just thirsty and hungry, and my bladder might burst any second.