What Would They Think?

"Silas, what can I do for you?" Bill asked.

I was looking at Mom, who was still kneeling at his feet; she didn't look up even once. It was like she was afraid of the consequences, but she hadn't even done anything wrong. Even Bill was very tense.

"Silas?"

"You have no idea what people are saying about you already," Silas growled out; the anger coming from him was so palpable that I could almost touch it. I didn't have any idea why he was so angry, but it clearly had to do with the display of affection just now.

"It's already bad that everyone knows you favor a fucking human! Yet you aren't making this any better! Don't you give one shit about your reputation at all?"

"Watch your language." Bill's voice was calm, but the anger in his eyes was evident. My mom shifted closer to him, seeking comfort.

My heart was breaking at the sight of her looking so small. I had only ever seen her like this after her divorce from my dad. For a long time, she remained a shadow of herself; that was before she met Bill, and her whole world lit up again. She was happy, and even though I wasn't thrilled at the idea of her marrying a vampire, I didn't stop her because I knew she loved Bill and he loved her as well.

Silas respected her also after she became his stepmom, but most of the time, he pretended like she didn't exist; he only seemed interested in me. Never have I seen him talk so rudely to her before; I wanted to curse at him, but I knew better than to do something that I might regret later. Silas could very much kill me, and no one would even try to stop him. Things weren't as easy as they were before.

"You're kidding me! You are protecting the human."

"What I choose to do is none of your concern; I advise you to put your attention elsewhere. You have a human of your own."

Bill's gaze turned to me. There wasn't the usual smile in his eyes that I was familiar with, only acknowledgment like he just realized I existed even though I had been standing in the room for minutes now.

"Good for you, Silas."

"She is just a feeder," Silas insisted, disgust evident in his eyes. "I would never treat her like you do with that bitch."

"Silas!"

"Whatever, defend her all you want. But you and I both know that this relationship will never work out. You can only keep her in the shadows until she eventually dies. Humans do have a rather short lifespan."

Silas smirked at his father, ignoring the glare he got in return. He held my hand and pulled me out of the room. His grip was tight, close to leaving bruises on my skin. I followed him in silence, mostly because I didn't know what to make of the situation.

As it turns out, Bill still had feelings for my mother despite not remembering the years he spent with her, living among humans, and Silas didn't like that. He believed humans were below vampires and that it was a taint to his father's reputation that he was in love with one.

He led me to a cozy balcony; there's a table with two seats overlooking the stunning garden I had seen earlier. The table is adorned with a few dishes, but they appear bland and slightly cold. It was clear that the food had been sitting there for a while. Silas took his seat and gestured for me to sit down as well.

"Go on then; you aren't of much use to me if you are hungry."

I eyed the food on the table, wondering if it was safe to eat. At first, I thought that I had been making progress with Silas. I had told him that he was my stepbrother, and although he hadn't laughed at the notion, it was clear that he didn't believe me. He had even treated me with a bit of care, but maybe it was because he was still high from the sex.

The way he spoke to our parents earlier, he had been cold and disrespectful and didn't give a shit about what his dad even thought of his behavior. It was a side of Silas I had never seen before.

"Are you going to eat or not?" His voice brought me out of my thoughts; he was glaring at me in displeasure.

I swallowed down the bitter taste in my mind at the harsh treatment and reached for the tableware. It was a salad, some soup, and fruits. I was never a fan of greens, but maybe Silas assumed all humans were vegetarians simply because we didn't consume blood.

The salad wasn't bad; it wasn't the best thing I have ever tasted, but it was enough still. Deric had presented me with a feast back in his house; he ensured I got whatever I desired. Funny to think that Deric would treat me a lot better than Silas.

I ate in silence, chewing slowly on my food, feeling very sad and empty. I thought about how things had been going so well before, how I was growing to trust vampires and fall in love with one, but the world had changed so suddenly, like it was a blanket swept under my feet. It was hard to imagine what I would do with myself if things never went back to normal.

The plan was to make Silas remember and have him help me, but Silas didn't seem like he wished to have anything to do with me.

"You are leaking tears into your food."

"I'm not."

I touched my face, and indeed tears were rolling down my flushed cheeks. I quickly wiped at it; I didn't even realize I was crying.

"Why the tears?"

He was watching me, his expression pensive, bordering close to boredom even.

"You miss your little love? Wish you hadn't agreed to come with me."

"Leave Deric out of this."

"Wow, a human defending a vampire, very interesting. I didn't think Deric was so useless that he'd need someone else to stand up for him. If you didn't wish to come with me..."

"That's not it. I just... I was wondering why you treated her like that. Is it so bad if your father is in love with a human? If you like someone, then should it matter what species they are?"

"Hm, so what you are telling me is that you will be perfectly okay if your parent decides to date someone who isn't your kind?"

"I..."

I could lie, of course, and tell him that I would be very accepting of whatever my mother decides to do, but I had a feeling Silas would be able to tell.

"No, I suppose not. But you didn't have to be an asshole about it!"

He raised a brow at me, surprise evident in his eyes. He hadn't expected me to curse at him; he was too used to humans licking his feet and doing whatever he told them. The human workers here didn't even look him in the eyes for goodness sake.

His eyes darkened as he rose from his seat.

"Get up."

"What? But I'm not done with my..."

"I said get up."

I complied, leaving behind my food and letting him pull me towards the edge of the balcony.

"Look down there."

He pointed at the people who were working in the garden, humans. His touch was cold as he ran his finger across my skin. I was still wearing the dress from earlier; it was easy for him to gain access to touch me.

"What would they think if they saw you bent over this railing, being fucked by their Master?"

"I don't think that's very appropriate. If you want to do something, then we can go to your room."

"Hm, I think not. I'm going to take you right here."

'Absolutely shameless,' I thought bitterly as I heard the sound of him unbuckling his pants for the second time that day. Yet I couldn't hide my arousal; I was already wet when he pushed my underwear aside.

"This...isn't right. Someone might see."

"Then, I hope you do your best to be very quiet "