Myra
"So...is everyone in this mansion, like Lord Damian?" I asked Alice, reluctantly. She was helping me get ready for Damian's guests that were supposed to be arriving today. The thought had not occurred until recently. The comb stilled. I looked at her through the mirror. Her eyes had widened, "Why would you say that?" her voice was almost a whisper.
"Uh...I apologize", I chuckled nervously. She resumed combing my hair, her lips turned downwards, "No...no my lady I beg your pardon for going beyond my station", I could feel the rhythm of the combing faltering.
"Ah...don't be", I mustered a smile, my ears heating up. I subconsciously caressed the silver ring, the metal felt cold against my warm skin. She mumbled, "To answer your question, most of us are humans. His Lordship is really kind to us poor people. I am an orphan and my dignity was at stake. Had it not been for him...rescuing me on time...I would have..." she trailed off, I noticed her lips wobbling as her fingers trembled.
My heart fluttered involuntarily. He seemed kind. "You don't have to say more", I said softly, turning to look at her. She lowered her gaze and bowed curtly. "I...I just wanted to say that many of us have been saved by His Lordship. I reckon only Mr.Bastian and Monsieur Andrew maybe and...no and no one else. The rest of us are...humans", she replied thoughtfully.
I nodded. After that, she did not utter a word and neither did I ask any more questions.
~~~~
By mid-morning everything was ready. To my relief and a little bit of annoyance, no one had bothered to ask me about my opinion. I know I do not possess the knowledge or the skill but including me in the preparation would have been nice. I had also noticed that except Alice, Andrew and at times Bastian, no one really spoke to me. Miss. Jones was rather cold every time she entered the chamber as if she expected that one day I will not be there. It has been three weeks since Damian and I shared the room. The other servants either scurried away when they saw me or looked away and pretended that I did not exist.
Damian, on the other hand, seemed aloof sometimes. He never stayed the night and I knew it because every morning I found his side of the bed cold and unslept in. He rarely spoke nowadays but when he did it was courteous and polite. Sometimes he smiled at some things I would say or do and my traitorous heart fluttered for no reason. However, he never disclosed where he would go and I refrained from asking as well.
I could never confide into him or tell him about how the servants treated me, I did not wish to be a complaining wife but sometimes it made me want to cry or scream in frustration.
I longed to talk to someone. Yes, Alice was there. She was a good listener and surprisingly she was intelligent as well. But she wasn't someone I could confide into. Even when I considered her as my companion I couldn't tell her certain things. I missed Harmony. I waited for her to write to me but every day I fruitlessly waited but no missive or letter ever came.
~~~~
Her name was Alexandra Woods. A tall woman with a pale complexion whose silver orbs were scrutinising me at the moment. Her cherry tinted lips tilted downward. She had arrived in the evening although Damian had informed me that she would be arriving in the afternoon and having lunch with us.
We were currently sitting in the huge parlour. Damian had introduced her as his long time friend but the fact that he was a vampiress was implied. The conversation started with her interrogating me but not telling a single thing about herself.
Damian had left the two of us to our devices simply saying, "Now you both get acquainted while I spend some quality time in the study", offering a charming smile he had waltzed away from the parlour.
"So you are the wife?" her tone held a slight disappointment and disbelief. "I would like to think so", I retorted, if she thought I would be timid then she had another thing coming. While I did not like problems and chaos, I definitely was not the one to stay quiet while someone walked over me.
"Oh, so you are a mouthy one as well?" she smirked. I straightened my shoulders but offered no answer.
Miss Jones had arrived with tea and cakes. Maybe it was my imagination or maybe not since I knew the fact that the housekeeper detested me but I saw a slight upward tilt of her lips, she was smirking maybe. For some reason, I felt mad.
"You do know that Damian and I have a history", she took a sip from the cup, her eyes gauging my facial expression like a hawk. I shook my head, "I had no knowledge of it". On the contrary, my heart was pounding. So he did have a mistress. She dramatically sighed, "I can understand why he still visits me every day", she had a satisfied grin on her lips and I had never felt so violent towards anyone until then.
I clenched my fists on my lap, trying to remain calm and unaffected. "What do you mean?" I managed to ask. My gaze unwavering. She looked right at me and responded, "You are not like us. You can never be one of us".
I slowly nodded, "I know that and I am grateful to Lord Damian for agreeing to marry me and in exchange of waving off my father's debts". I was thankful for the fact that my voice remained steady. The pathetic situation I was in was not hidden from either of us.
I was taken aback when she suddenly laughed, "Oh my, you poor soul. You don't even know the whole truth". She shook her head as if she felt sympathy for me but when she looked at me, the glint in her eyes conveyed that she was in fact, enjoying my plight.
"Listen, my dear, you have been sold off by your father and dear sister. I don't know what possessed Damian to marry you, but he did. You are nothing but his little experiment". the words felt like vitriol-attack. My jaw unhinged as I stared at her now grinning face, dumbfounded.
MyraMy ears were ringing. Alexandra's lips were titled up into a sardonic smile, no doubt relishing my speechlessness. She regarded her red varnished nails as she conversationally asked, "Wish to hear more?"I balled my fists, "I don't believe you. There is no way my sister will do such a heartless thing and my father? He might be an irresponsible man but he will never stoop so low either". I glared at her unperturbed reaction. She clucked her tongue, "So naïve". Her gaze locked with mine, "Tell me then Myra, why did your sister and father leave without meeting you? Or why did your sister tell you that you were to marry lord Damian on the wedding day itself? Did you not question this?"I opened and closed my mouth, unable to say anything. My heart was pounding in my chest. My heart was denying the very possibility of father and... Harmony doing such merciless work. My sister's guileless smiles, her caring nature, her protective
MyraMy ears were ringing as I stared at him, open-mouthed. His gaze was unflinching. He was spewing lies, I whispered, still denying the fact, "No. You- you cannot. They...how? Harmony?" My voice quivered, the question barely making any sense. Damian's gaze turned gentle. He averted his eyes, "My lady-" I held up my hand, sniffling, I felt faint. Even though he would tell me the whole truth at some point, but at the moment, I had no intention of hearing it.I lowered my gaze, my vision had blurred with unshed tears, my mind was reeling with this unforeseen revelation. My hands trembled as I kept the book aside. Silence ensued and I don't know for how long it prevailed before I heard Damian sigh."Your father was indebted to me, Myra, but he had no other choice than to-""-marry me off to you to pay your debt?" I glared at him. He huffed out a laugh, shaking his head, "Oh, if it only were the way you say it". He locked his gaz
MyraFor a while, the only sound in the otherwise silent room was my sobs. My whole world was crumbling. I felt nauseous, so this was Damian. The sob turned into gasps and black spots marred my vision. Am I dying? Well. death will certainly not be unwelcomed. Death felt enticing, a better option than living a life as a maid despite being married to the master of the mansion, being humiliated in the process and not knowing the end of this ordeal. Yes, death would be significantly better. After all, no one needed me anymore, neither my family nor whom I considered as my family or my estranged and superficial husband. My body tilted sideways, I felt light-headed and succumbed to the darkness.~~~~It might have been a sharp yank, or maybe a harsh shake that awakened me. I blinked my eyes open, wincing at the bright sunlight streaming into the room through flimsy white curtains. A groan left my lips, I realised I was not sleeping in the proper
DamianThe stretch of my lips felt so plastic that it felt more like a grimace, and even Greyson could detect it as his grin widened. The word 'pet' grated my skin like a jagged stone. Greyson and I were turned on the same moonlit night. High Queen was the one who took it upon herself to execute the Change. Since then, centuries have passed, seasons have come and gone, and I have managed to remain in the High Council's good graces, steadily rising in rank and maintaining my position as one of the esteemed Royals of the court. With fame comes envy, and I wasn't ignorant about it. A few vampire leaders did not back down from leering at me and taunting me in open while many spoke about me behind my back. Unfortunately, my blood brother surpassed them all. Being given the position of an Elite instead of a Royal irked him to no end."Won't you give me permission to at least bid farewell to my better-half?" I implored, the pretentious genial grin plaster
MyraThat infuriating man. My fists clenched. How could he be so arrogant and...lewd? My cheeks heated up as the image of his face close to mine flashed in my mind. I looked around at the huge library. I will definitely not be able to clean it in a day. Why on earth did I even agree to this? Not that I had much of a choice. I huffed. I should probably go and meet him downstairs. He just walked away without a second glance. Where was he going anyway?I spared another glance at the pile and the unsorted bookshelves before leaving the library. Cleaning could wait. Right now, I needed answers. Surely he did not leave so soon. I stomped downstairs only to cry out in horror. There on the carpet lay one of the maids. Her lifeless body had turned grey. Her eyes wide and her mouth hung open. I stumbled back, trembling with the ghastly sight in front of me. My gaze landed on her shoulder, smeared with dried blood. Did Damian...? the thought made me shudder
Damian"I am aware," I admitted at length. I knew the consequences of a vampire marrying a human. I knew it well, more than anyone else. The old wounds that I had buried deep along with my past life writhed and roiled as if wanting an opening, to flood my dead brain and make me relieve those days, the days that had taken years to forget. That was another reason why I felt more baffled and perplexed. I should stay away from humans, treat them as a source of food and pleasure yet I went ahead and married a human against my better judgement. My fists clenched as I felt unbidden anger on myself.High Queen must have gauged my inner turmoil. She let out a heavy sigh, "You must annul the matrimony, Damian". Despite knowing the inevitable, my eyes snapped up, locking with her blue-grey ones. She jutted her chin as her gaze bore into mine, challenging me silently - to defy, to protest. I averted my eyes quickly, lowering my gaze once again I muttered, "W
Myra I opened my eyes, blinking a few times to adjust to the surrounding. It wasn't the library, I was in the library. Then...how am I here? My sleep-addled brain took some time to process before I realised the reason. I had been so engrossed in sorting the books that I had missed lunch as well and then my body started swaying and there was blackness at the corner of my eyes and then I succumbed to that blackness."How are you feeling, my lady?" an all too familiar voice startled me. I turned my head to see Damian, sitting on the only chair in the small room. Why was he here? Of all people and why did he have that miserable and concerned look on his face? He didn't need to pretend anymore. I could also see the hesitation in his eyes."You-" I gritted and started getting up but no sooner did I lift my head than the room started spinning again. I immediately laid back, breathing heavily. Damian was instantly by the bedside. Wordlessly
MyraI stared at him, unblinking as the news or rather his decision settled in like a heavyweight, suffocating me. He was giving me an out. He was ending this...this farce. But why couldn't I be elated? Why did I feel as if the ground beneath me had suddenly been wrenched away and I was about to fall headfirst into a chasm?Damian's eyes bored into mine, his gaze sharp and observant. He stocked towards me, his steps confident and predatory and soon I was tilting my head to look at him. He loomed over me. All the while I did not move, did not speak because words felt too complicated and my emotions were in a tangled confusion.His hand came up, hovering slightly as if reluctant to touch before gently caressing my cheek, "Say something". The gentleness in his tone rivalled the topic. My gaze sought out his, searching for an answer but not coming up with any. Maybe I had become useless for him as well. Yet there was something there, som