Submitting to the Bloodlust

Slight Confessions

Chapter Twelve

Maurianna POV

Seth and I haven’t talked since what happened yesterday. After I kissed his cheek and thanked him for helping me, he became oddly distant. Mario made things awkward by alternating staring at me and Seth in the visor mirror the rest of the ride back to the castle. Seth exited the car a soon as we parked, and I haven’t seen him since.

Mario has been with me this morning and although I was hesitant, I did drink some blood from a glass he brought me earlier. He said that I needed to drink some, even if only one gulp so that I don’t lose control again. The blood from the glass made me puke but I’m not going to tell Mario that. He would probably make me drink more and I can’t stomach it. I’d prefer to just feed from Seth.

Drinking from him is satisfying in more ways than one. Not only does he quench my thirsty hunger, but he wakes up every nerve in my body. The taste of his skin, the scent of his soap, the way he guides me in his husky voice - everything about him draws me into him. The blood from the cup just made me nauseous. Instead of making me feel alive like feeding from Seth, it made me feel like a crazed animal who was only drinking blood to survive.

On the bright side, I get to have dinner with my mom and Demon tonight. I miss my mom dearly. Going from living with her and seeing her every day to barley at all has been hard. I have so much to tell her about the last few days, well an edited version. I hope that I get come alone time with her so that I can ask her more about Seth too. I want to know more about him. For some reason I trust him more than I think I should. I also am excited to see Demon. Since I have been here, he has shown me so much love. I look forward to having a father figure in my life.

I spent most of the morning in the library reading up on true vampire facts. Apparently Hollywood movie writers have got vampires completely wrong. Vampires do not have any weaknesses, not garlic, silver, salt, or werewolf bites. They are sensitive to the sun, but it does not make them burst into flames. It’s only an uncomfortable warmth that most vampires can tolerate if they try. The older the vampire the stronger they are, but depending on how close your sire is to the original vampire is really where the money is. Seth is the original vampire, meaning he holds the most power. Then the three beneath him hold more than the rest, but less than him, and so on and so forth. Seth was the beginning. Apparently, he is a little over 1000 years old, which is crazy.

Mario came and joined me earlier. When I told him how old Seth was, he laughed and put the books back on their shelf. He said that he would tell me anything I wanted to know that I didn’t need books. So naturally I asked him about Seth’s history. He told me about how the goddess fell in love with Seth and turned him into a vampire so that he could be immortal like her. He explained that Seth never loved the Goddess, and to punish him she cursed his immortality by making him lust for blood. The curse is the reason vampires need blood to survive. Before he was cursed, he only had super human abilities and immortality, but after, he became a blood sucking predator who had the advantage over humans due to his new gifts. When I asked him when he found out he could sire others though, he shut me out.

“Your parents are ready.” He says as he motions for me to follow him out the door and down the corridor. I follow him because I have no other choice. As we walk, I peer into one of the doors to my right and see Seth sitting at grand desk. He is concentrating hard on some document in front of him. Comparing the information from one to the other. I break from Mario and stroll inside.

When Seth notices someone standing in front of him, he looks up from his paperwork. His expression is surprised when he sees that the someone is me. “Hi.” I greet him.

He raises his brow before he greets me back. The wrinkles on his forehead makes him look older today, tired even. “Hi.” He says. I have to hold back a giggle at how foreign the words sound coming out of his mouth.

“Are you mad at me?” I finally ask him.

He sets his pen down and leans back in his chair. When he pulls his arms over his chest and crosses them, I notice my bite mark still on his wrist from yesterday. His wound should have healed. “Why would I be mad at you Maurianna?”

I bite my lip, “Because I drank from you instead of drinking from the teen.”

His facial features soften. “She was younger, so I understand you not wanting to feed from her, but you’re going to have to eventually feed properly. I can’t keep feeding you.”

“I like when you feed me.” The words come out of my mouth before I can stop them. My hand flies to my lips to cover them, like it will take back my words. Stupid girl! God, I want to crawl under a rock somewhere and die. Now the cat is out of the bag, he’s going to know I like him.

To my surprise he chuckles. “It is pleasurable to drink from another vampire – for both vampires. I enjoy when you feed from me too. But you, Maurianna, are off limits to even me. I am not allowed to pursue interest in you besides the deal we already have. I am to mentor you and make sure that you transition without turning into a savage. Along with protect you from anyone who wants to do you harm.” He gets up from his chair and strolls over to me. “If you were to tell anybody that I let you feed from me, I could be overthrown as King. Feeding from another vampire is considered intimacy. Although I have done it both times as an emergency measure and held back any s****l desires, some will not view it as that.” He stops in front of me. Deathly close – so close that I can faintly hear his heart pumping in his chest. His words are on repeat in my mind. s****l Desires. He feels pleasure when I feed from him too. Does he want me just as bad as I want him?

When he moves closer to me I back up out of instinct. It’s not that I’m scared, I’m just not used to people being close to me. He boxes me in between the book shelf and himself. His eyes rake down my body and back up into my face. “I want to compel you to keep your mouth shut about what happened yesterday.”

“You-“ I try to protest but he cuts me off.

“But… I am going to ask that you keep the events of yesterday to yourself… please.” His lips pull up into a grin when he says please. It’s a reminder of our conversation yesterday in the SUV when I told him that manners go along way.

I can’t help the smile that grows on my lips. “Yes sir.” I whisper, almost inaudible. His proximity is enough to jumble my brain, and his sexy smirk… Oh. My. God.

“Good girl.” He praises me in a tone that makes my panties wet. What is he doing to me. I have never felt this attraction to a man before. Is it just physical attraction? Is it because he is a king and has a natural way of dominating the room? Or is it his mysterious bad boy vibe that makes me want him so bad?

Mario clears his throat from the doorway causing Seth to back away from me quickly. “Mario please stay with Maurianna for the rest of the evening. I will be going back to the club to watch over some renovations. I have scheduled for our grand opening to be in three days, and you know how important deadline are to me.” Seth turns around and walks back over to his desk. He takes his seat and picks up the same papers he was once studying.

As I walk out of the office I gaze over my shoulder at Seth. His eyes glance up from his paper at the perfect time to catch me looking at him. His ears lift as if he is hiding a smile behind the papers. He caught me stealing one last look, and I caught him doing the same.

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My father’s castle is far livelier and more vibrant than the high castle. Hundreds of vampires live here and every room is bustling with chatter. The walls are covered in bright art that reminds me of some of the pieces we had in our home when I was a child. Its obvious that my mother lived here once before. Either she helped Demon decorate, or his taste stayed with her even when she was away.

Each room that we enter, all heads turn towards Mario and I. Rumors of all sorts whisper in the air around me. It is odd for them to see Mario in this castle, and even weirder to see him accompanying a woman. That’s not all though, what they cannot wrap their head around is why the King had placed his protection on Demons step daughter. I try and keep my eyes glued to the floor but Mario is in my ear. “Don’t let them get to you. Keep your head up, you are above them.” Mario’s statement stops me in my tracks. Above them? What kind of declaration is that. I’m not above anybody.

Mario notices I have fallen behind him and turns to look for me. He comes to me and grabs me by the arm puling me into a near by room. I yank my arm out of his grip and glare at him. Seth may push and pull me around but I’d be damned if I’m going to let Mario do it to. “Don’t force me, Mario. I can manage to come into a room myself without you pulling on me.” I scold him.

He throws his hands up with his palms facing me in surrender. “I apologize ma’am…. In this castle Demon is the top guy. He is practically their king. With you being his wife’s daughter, you are the princess. You should not lower your eyes because of jealous talk. Walk through these halls as if they are yours ma’am… other wise they will never respect you.” He walks out of the room just as fast as he walks in, but this time he gestured for me to follow him instead of dragging me along.

My mother was happy to see me. She dove across the table to hug me. It was so good to experience one of her bone crushing hugs too. I needed it. She sets me down at the table next to her and holds onto my hand as she asks me how I have been feeling. The color has returned to her skin and eyes. She looks like she did before he turned her.

“Will Mario be joining us then?” Demon asks from the other side of the room as he walks in holding champagne flutes. “If so, I need to grab more champagne.” He adds cutting the tension his previous question created.

Mario shakes his head and takes a seat next to me at the table. “I’m Maurianna’s protection tonight. I cannot partake in alcohol consumption. Thank you though.”

“Does the king not trust that we can handle her when she is with us?” my mom asks.

Mario’s eyes fall on my mom and soften. He attempts to say something, but I don’t give him the chance. “Mom, I don’t need to be handled. I’m not a savage. Seth has taught me how to feed and I’m not going to go all Dracula.” When Mario clears his throat, I know I said something wrong.

We each pick at our food on our plate for a little bit in silence. The atmosphere still a bit akward from earlier. I wish I knew what i said wrong.

Finally mom places her fork to the right of her plate and pushes her meal away. “Mauri you cannot use the kings name so freely. You are going to get your self killed. We each have our places within this city and his is at the top. Even when you talk about the king in private you must still not use his name. Just like when you talk with him.” My mom scolds.

I can’t say his name? Thats what they were all wireded out about? I always call him by his name. Mario sees the confusion on my face and steps in. “You just refer to him as the king not Seth. It’s a form of respect. There are some followers of his, that are so proper and keen to the rules that they would cut your tongue out for using his name freely. Only his queen would be allowed to speak so informal, if he had one.”

“I’ve heard Demon call him by his name.”

My dad nods his head. “I am an exception to the rule. I have led beside him for centuries.”

His confession brings up some of my earlier questions that I had about him. I wanted to know how he found out he could sire others. “How old are you?” I ask Demon. I don’t just want to come out with the question. I plan on leading up to it.

My mom takes a deep breath and giggles. “God he is so old. When he first told me his age, I almost had a heart attack.” She jokes. She reaches over the table and interlocks her fingers with my dad’s. The gesture makes me smile. I’m glad that my mom is finding happiness with him.

“I’m 976 years old.” Demon confesses.

I know I look like one of those Chinese pug dogs right now because I can feel my eyes bulging out of my head. “Holly s**t Demon.” I exclaim. I turn to Mario next, “How old are you?” my tone is teasing like, which lightens the mood in the room.

“I’m older. I quit counting at about 1000 but that was only a few years ago.”

“Who sired you?” I ask Mario.

He chews on the inside of his lip before he finally answers me. “Seth sired me like the others.”

I guess this is new news to my mom because she becomes very intrigued by the information. “If he sired you then why are you not one of the leaders. Surly you would be better than Alaris.”

The subject makes Mario uncomfortable. His eyes focus on my dad, clearly asking for help. I am naturally curious and really want to know what is making him so uncomfortable. But, I want to know how Seth found out he can sire someone even more. “Who was the second vampire after Seth?” I ask. The room grows very quiet. If you listened hard enough, you could probably hear a mouse fart.

“Lilith.” A voice booms from the other side of the room bringing goosebumps to my skin. I don’t know if its his deep tone or if it’s the answer he gave, but the hairs on the back of my neck stand to attention. Lilith was the first person he turned. There must be some history there. That has to be why she was so jealous when she seen him and I together. “I turned Mario in hopes to give Lilith a companion. However, she wanted to be left alone. So, Mario became my second instead. I found Demon not to long after.” Seth strolls over and sits in the empty seat across from me. The silence returns in the room. “I’m sorry to intrude I came to talk to Olivia. I bought a night club in a human city not far from here. I remembered that you were a head bartender when Demon first met you. I was hoping you could come down to the club and create a drink menu before the grand opening.”

Mom’s eyes light up with enthusiasm. “Oh, I’d love to.” She says to Seth. She turns to me with a huge grin on her face. “Mauri you can come too. We can make it a girl’s day. What do you say?”

I search Seth’s eyes for a moment, hoping for permission. He nods ever so slightly, just enough for me to understand that it is okay to intrude on his plans. “That sounds great mom.” She shrieks in my ear like a schoolgirl. Spending a day with my mom, getting drunk on cocktail samples sounds fun though. I think I’m just as excited as she is.

Seth gets up from the table and bows towards Demon. He takes my moms hand in her and kisses her knuckles like a true gentleman. “Sorry to impose on your dinner. Mario will drive you ladies tomorrow. Now If you would excuse me I have some business to attend to.” Seth turns on his heels and leaves the room without looking back. A little disappointment blossoms in my soul knowing that that is the last time I will see him today.