After the Turning [c o m p l e t e d]

Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Negotiations

The castle was big and spacious, but its walls still made me feel like a caged bird, caught in a foreign place with little that I knew of. It was nothing like home. Home was cold and filled with loneliness, but it was still something I could wrap my grasp around. It was nothing like this place. Jason was the only thing that kept my heart close to home. He was the warmth that I remembered. Hence, I held onto him tight, much to Adan’s disgust.

I had been trapped here for two weeks now, inside the dark walls that smelled of blood and death.

We lived in a routine. My mornings I would spend with Jason. The only way to tell the time was through the clocks that hung around the castle walls. He told me stories of his life as a demon, and how to cope with it. He said that I had to accept and revel in it, but not go overboard – it was the best way for control.

Come mid-day Adan would meet us in my room with some blood bags, sometimes even humans. They would bleed and I was supposed to refrain myself from diving into the blood. The two men always looked so calm around the red substance; I wondered how they kept their control.

At first, each drop of blood made me want to claw at my throat to stop the burning sensation. The pain had mellowed down to a soft tingling. Jason said that I was almost ready to go home, though Adan didn’t want to agree.

I would spend the rest of the afternoon with Jason watching over me again. I had explored every nook and cranny of the large castle, and talked to most of the staff. Adan was always away. He told us that he had work to do. But once I saw him moping at the castle fountain, staring at his reflection and making swirls in the water. It made me wonder why he kept lying to us.

I was not allowed to leave the castle of my own accord; especially not with Jason accompanying me. That was most probably why this place felt like jail. The only time when I was allowed to explore the city grounds was when Adan brought me to that lake. It was a fun experience; a good memory. But Adan never offered to take me out anymore after that, and because he seemed so cold it was hard to ask.

At night we would have one more session with the blood bags, before I was awarded with blood at dinner. We sat at a large dining hall with two dozen gold-plated chairs lined up along a long glass table. Adan always sat at the very end while Jason and I sat next to him, facing each other. The empty seats made the room feel chilly; the staffs were never allowed to dine with us. Ironically, above the dining table was a beautiful chandelier which hung from a mosaic ceiling that was decorated with images of angels.

I walked to the dinner table with Jason having his arm around my shoulder. Adan was standing next to his seat, waiting for us. The two lords sized each other up before sitting down. I watched them quietly as they had their staring contest.

“I think that we have an important issue to discuss,” Jason said after we had all settled.

Adan sighed. “Nothing good I presume.”

Jason’s mouth twitched. He was glaring at Adan with narrowed eyes. “Perhaps not good to you, but it is of critical importance to all of us.”

Adan glared back. The room was always filled with testosterone when these two were together. I felt very uncomfortable. “Can we talk about this after dinner?” Adan said.

“You’d go run off again to do whatever.”

“Unfortunately I have a city that requires my attention.” Adan let out a low growl. “Don’t you have one too? Why don’t you go scurry off to do the work you’re supposed to.”

“I trust my subjects. Does everybody here hate you too much for you to trust them?”

A voice interjected the quarrelsome duo. “My Lords,” a woman said. It was Natalia, the castle cook. She had wrinkles around her eyes, greying hair and a thin body. As a human, age easily stole her youth away.