I looked up and scrubbed the tears.
"You will not attempt to kill yourself. Promise me. If it gets so bad, you must tell me. Promise."
"You'll take my methods away."
"I will talk you out of it. It is virtually impossible to prevent someone from killing herself, anyway, if she is truly determined. Now you will promise me."
"What are you offering in return?"
"All right, the promises I want from you. From this moment until your death from natural causes, many decades from now, if you ever feel the need to kill yourself, you promise to come to me. And come to me again and again if necessary. That is your first promise. The second is, if after I release you, if you cannot find your art, you will come to me before you become too deeply mired in despair. We will solve the problem together. Those are the two promises I want from you."
"And you promise me, what?"
"I will not let you die from your sentence, but you are right. Accidents happen. If I damage you beyond repair, I will bring you somewhere beautiful and make sure you die in more pleasure than you can imagine. And if ever you need to die, and you come to me, even decades from now, I will help you, again with all the pleasure I can provide. You will not die in pain or in fear."
"Maybe if you don't want me seeking whatever escape from you I can envision, you should strive for not making me hate my life that badly. That would be a worthwhile promise. You've already promised me humiliation and likely depravity-"
"I did not promise either of those!"
"You did! You parade me around by this chain? That isn't intentionally humiliating? And you promised me depravity if I didn't sufficiently please you. You promised if I grow too dreary, you would sell me a night at a time."
I looked away, but she tugged me to face her. She leaned closely. "I was trying to frighten you."
"You succeeded."
"I was trying to shock you into remaining meek, Melissa."
"Yes, I gathered that. A good, obedient blood slave is more pleasant, after all!"
She made a disgusted sound. "A meek blood slave is less likely to drive me to lose my anger, which I admit I have a hard time controlling."
She turned away, her back stiff, then stood very still. I said nothing. We both knew how this was going to end. After several minutes, she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper.
"I would never sell you, Melissa, and I intend to treat you as well as I am able. Given my nature, that will be easier if you are meek, obedient, and accepting of your situation."
I didn't answer.
"Promise me you will come to me, Melissa. I will do my best to help."
"And if your help isn't sufficient?"
"Then I will give you the most pleasant release you can envision, but it would break my heart to do so."
I considered her promise. "All right," I said. "I promise, if you promise."
"I do."
"Do you need a taste to calm down?" I asked quietly.
She turned around and smiled. "No. But you're going to get tugged a little harder."
"I am sorry I upset you."
"We needed this conversation, I guess."
"I do not believe this is how most vampires treat their blood slaves, m'lady."
"It is not. Stand." She tugged on the chain, and I rose quickly to reduce the strain. It made her smile, and then she tugged me into place next to her, and we began to walk from the garden.
After that, she made a point of tugging on me for the smallest excuse. I didn't complain, although I didn't care for it. I was beginning to understand her. It was an emotional need she couldn't control, and in the scheme of things, it could have been far worse.
We approached a collection of small houses set in a square, and in middle of the square was a playground. There were no children about, but I saw a small bonfire with a number of women seated in chairs near the fire.
"Will we stay and talk to them?" I asked.
"No. This is their time, and I do not want to intrude."
We drew closer, and I recognized Ashlyn in one of the chairs. There were five women total, and I realized they were all late teens or very early twenties.
"Your staff is young," I whispered.
"Children of the staff," she said, "although many also work for me."
We strode past, not closely enough to disturb them, but I felt their eyes turn towards us, and Lady Dunn's hand rested on the chain only a short distance below my chin, clearly directing me. She tugged me about a few times, making her point.
"I am sorry I delayed us overlong. You did not get your proper display."
She turned me to face her, using the chain to guide me. When she tugged downwards, I knelt, then she pulled my face up.
She was smiling. She caressed my cheek possessively, and I knew all the girls were watching. But I kept my gaze on Lady Dunn.
She caressed me once more, but then I heard, "Lady Dunn. Lady Dunn." And a moment later, Ashlyn was rushing over towards us.
The vampire turned to the girl. "Yes, Ashlyn?"
"Um. Would you like to join us?"
"Oh, that is very sweet, thank you for the offer."
"Oh good," Ashlyn said. "We're just drinking sodas, but I can run to the house and retrieve a glass for you. Is your blood slave allowed soda? If not, I can bring water for her."
"Ashlyn," she started to say.
I put my hand on my vampire's arm then leaned into her and whispered into her ear, "she really wants you to say 'yes'."
Lady Dunn turned to me for a moment then looked back at the girl. The girl was looking at us hopefully, but then she must have realized she had significantly overstepped the social boundary.
"Oh," she said, her face falling. "Oh. I'm sorry. I guess I wasn't thinking. It's just-" she broke off. "I'm sorry, m'lady."
Ashlyn began to turn away.
"Ashlyn," Lady Dunn said. "A moment." She turned back to me, and I nodded. "Ashlyn, wouldn't it stifle your conversation if I am there?"
"Actually, if you don't mind, we would love your perspective, m'lady."
"What could you possibly be discussing that could use my perspective?"
"The Inquisition."
"Oh no," I said. "Now you've done it."
"So just a light topic for an evening bonfire," Lady Dunn commented.
"We would really like your perspective," Ashlyn said.
"My blood slave is growing chilled," she commented.
"The fire is warm," Ashlyn pointed out. She looked at me. I smiled at her.
"All right," Lady Dunn replied. "We can stay for a bit. But if we're talking about The Inquisition, I am going to need a very large glass. My slave may have a soda. Let us introduce everyone and then perhaps Carrie can retrieve something from the house."
"Great!" Ashlyn said. She turned around and led the way to the bonfire.
"That was kind," I whispered to her.
"Inquisition? How could I ignore that?"
"Will you be all right?"
"Yes. You will sit on the ground at my feet and lean against my legs."
"Yes, m'lady."
Ashlyn arrived at the fire. She had a simple folding lawn chair she'd been sitting in, and she moved behind it. "You may have my seat, Lady Dunn."
"Thank you, Ashlyn," the vampire said. I detected amusement in her voice. "Will you do introductions for my slave?"
"Yes, m'lady. What are we to call her?"
"Her name is Melissa," Lady Dunn replied.
"All right. Melissa, this is Tamara, Eva, Carrie and Bonnie."
The girls stared at me, and I felt like I was on display. I felt very self-conscious, standing there the way I was, naked, with my fresh tattoo and the leash attached to my lip. Lady Dunn was holding my leash with some slack, but my lowly position was clear. I looked at these girls and realized all of them, even the minors, had far more rights than I did, and the thought was sobering. I sighed, which Lady Dunn noticed. She tugged the chain lightly, which didn't help, but I shoved my emoti
ons back and plastered on a smile.
"Well, now that introductions are over," Lady Dunn said. She settled into the chair Ashlyn offered her, pointedly tugging me where she wanted me. I sat down in the grass and leaned against her legs. She rested a hand on my shoulder. Ashlyn sat on the ground cross-legged, not far from me.
"Carrie," Ashlyn said, "Lady Dunn would like it if you retrieved her a glass from the house. Make it a double." I glanced up at her; she was grinning. "I've always wanted to say that."
I was surprised the girls were so casual in front of the vampire. I had expected them to be afraid of her.
Carrie rose to her feet. "Anything else?"
"No," Lady Dunn said. "If there are enough beverages for the rest of you."
"We have a cooler," Bonnie said. She paused. "Is Melissa allowed a soda?"
"Tonight, yes," my mistress replied. "No caffeine, however, and no sugar, if you can."
Bonnie reached into the cooler next to her chair, dug through it, and pulled one out. When I saw it, I nodded, and she passed it to me. "Thank you."
I waited to open it, not wanting to drink before Lady Dunn had her glass, but she leaned over me and whispered, "Go ahead. I know this is hard for you."
I popped the top and took a polite sip, but it still made me uncomfortable, so I held the can in my lap. I reached underneath Lady Dunn's legs and wrapped it up so I was clutching her legs, my hand on top. Then I looked up at her.
"I do not know my place here, m'lady."
"What do you mean?"
"Bluntly?" and she nodded. "Do you wish me seen and not heard?"
"Ah. In other settings, yes. Not in this one. I will make a point of instructing you."
"All right. Thank you." I turned to the other girls. "I know who Ashlyn is, and I know your names, but I do not know who you are."
"Um. I'm Bonnie," Bonnie said.
"But who are you? What do you do here?"
"I go to high school."
"Who is your mother, Bonnie?" Lady Dunn asked.
"Oh. My mother is one of the housekeepers."
"Thank you, Bonnie."
"My mother is a groundskeeper," Tamara said. "And I work on the grounds as well."
"What do you do on the grounds?"
"A lot of weeding," she said, "especially around the flowers."
"The flower gardens are beautiful," I pointed out.
"My mother is an accountant," Eva said. "She handles the books for the manor. I am at University."
"What are you studying?"
"Business management. Lady Dunn has offered an internship in one of her businesses after my junior year."
I looked up at her. "I haven't asked about your businesses."
"A dreary topic, I am sure," she said, but she caressed my cheek. Then Lady Dunn asked the girls about their studies, and a few minutes later, Carrie returned carrying a wine glass and wine bottle.
"Ah, thank you," Lady Dunn said, taking the glass from her. "Would you pour for me?"
And so the girl poured, and from the color, I knew it was blood, not wine, but I'd been expecting blood, anyway. The girl kept possession of the bottle, corking it and setting it carefully in the grass so it remained upright after she sat down.
I hadn't actually watched the vampire drink from a glass, and there was a moment of fascination when I turned my head to watch. She tipped the glass to me first, then sipped. I saw her fangs appear for a moment, and she closed her eyes, but then it seemed like she relaxed. She finished down half the glass before lowering it to her lap.
"Good?" I asked quietly.
"I prefer it straight from you," she replied. "But this will do."
Part of me was flattered, but it was another reminder of my position, and I didn't particularly enjoy the thought I was little more than an incubator for her meals. I looked away and stared at the fire.
"Well," said Lady Dunn, "were you really discussing The Inquisition, or was that simply a ploy?"
"We really were," Carrie said. "Were you alive during The Inquisition?"
I wasn't watching her, so I didn't see her reaction, but she paused. "How old do you believe I am?"
"Twenty-five," I said, generating laughter.
"I am older than twenty-five," the lady said. She flicked my ear with her finger, but it was done playfully, as had been my comment. "Do any of you know how old I am?"
They all shook their heads.
"Vampires do not advertise their age," she said. "It is information our enemies can use against us. But I will tell you this: the vampire wars ended the Inquisition."
"What?" said Ashlyn. "I thought it was something from the middle ages!"
"People believe The Inquisition was a trial, such as a witch trial, but in actuality, The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church. The various institutions were responsible for seeking out and destroying all hints of heresy, which in practical terms meant any threats to the power of the church. Witch trials extended into the 18th century, but The Inquisition itself became part of the Roman Curia. We have not banished the church, and the church retains the power to excommunicate members. The ancient powers of The Inquisition are no longer felt, but they still have some power."
"Did they really burn people?"
"Yes," she replied, "but banishment or lifetime imprisonment were more common punishments. However, there's nothing like a good old-fashioned burning at the stake to terrify the rest of the populace into submission."
I looked up at her, my eyes filled with as much accusation as I could muster, but then I turned away. A burning wasn't at all unlike a good, old-fashioned parade of a blood slave in public.
"Did they have trials?" Tamara asked. "Like we see in some of the movies?"
"Yes. That was sometimes also referred to as The Inquisition, or facing The Inquisition. It was rare, even for the entirely innocent, to escape once under the attention of The Inquisition. Torture was a common tactic to elicit confessions, and part of a confession would frequently be the requirement to name other heretics. Very few survived long before both confessing and naming other innocents. So most trials were a mockery."
They asked other questions, which Lady Dunn answered. Then Bonnie asked, "Did you ever face them?"
"No," she said. "If I had, I would not be here. Other vampires did, and those vampires always died during questioning."
"From the questioning?"
"From the other vampires slipping into the dungeons and destroying the vampire before he could share our secrets, or perhaps only attempt to escape."
"Why didn't they free him instead?"
"Too many questions," I offered.
"Exactly," agreed Lady Dunn.
"Did you ever have to kill a vampire like that?" Eva asked, and Lady Dunn's hand turned into a claw, digging deeply into my shoulder.
I couldn't help it. I whimpered and squirmed under her hand. She immediately relaxed her grip, but she had punctured the skin and it felt like she had done serious damage.
"M'lady," I whimpered. "It hurts."
"I'm sorry," she whispered, leaning over me. "I must touch it. Try not to scream." And then her hand was pressing against me, prodding the wound. I squirmed under her touch.
"Hurts," I said. "Please, it hurts."
She growled, still leaning over me, and then she bit deeply into my shoulder, and I cried out. But a moment later she began licking the resulting wound, and only a second or two later, I felt a cool bliss enter me and begin to spread through my body.
"Ohhhh," I said.
She licked at the wound, and it closed. Then she bit her wrist and shoved it at my mouth. I clamped onto it, nearly dropping the soda, but Ashlyn took it from me.
"Just a little," Lady Dunn whispered. "My blood will help."
I sucked greedily, and it wasn't in me to stop, but she pulled her wrist away from me after a few moments.
"Better?" she asked.
I was halfway drugged and feeling no pain at all, so I nodded dully, le
aning against her more heavily.
"I'm sorry."
The girls were all watching this.
"Is she all right?" Bonnie asked.
"Yes. Eva asked a difficult question. Yes, I did. It is a very difficult memory. This is why Carrie brought me the bottle of blood."
I lolled in place for a while, the cat again drugged on catnip, while the conversation continued without me. I couldn't have said what else was discussed.
But then Lady Dunn shifted, startling me, and said, "I believe my blood slave needs to continue her walk." She stood, lifting me to my feet along with her, and wrapped an arm around my waist to hold me steady.
I let her drag me away from the fire, still too numb to say good night to the girls, but as we moved away from the fire, the night's chill settled in. I shivered. I slipped from my daze.
"Why?" I asked her. "Did I do something wrong?"
"No. I'm sorry. It was a bad question. I should have expected it."
"Who was it?"
"My lover."
"Oh. I am very sorry. Are you all right?"
"I drank most of the blood the girl brought me. I expected one glass, and she brought a bottle, and then I drank it. I'm fine. You are safe with me."
"Will you take me to my room?"
"You are tired of my company?"
"No. But I am cold and feeling very fragile."
"I am so sorry."
I turned to look at her but didn't say anything. I was sure the writing was on the wall.
She didn't bring me to my bedroom. She brought me to her own. She set me in a chair before the fireplace then lit the fire.
"If you cannot grow warm, you may wrap yourself in a blanket, but if you do it for your modesty, it will annoy me."
I shook my head and moved forward on the chair, holding my hands out towards the fire. Slowly I warmed.
"Tonight did not go the way you wished."
"The entire day did not go the way I wished," she replied, "but I will not complain. I would like to know what that look was you gave me earlier."
"I am not sure that is true," I replied.
"Do not play word games with me."
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. "I was thinking about the similarities between a public burning at the stake and a public parade of a blood slave. They both serve as severe deterrent to others. I suppose I should be proud that I have helped the scholarship program while serving as a public reminder to everyone who sees me."
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