Chapter 3

I couldn't keep my eyes from wandering once we entered the castle.

It was so much bigger on the inside, with large chandeliers here and there, golden window frames with large red curtains, and a high ceiling.

We passed a huge room with a large table, which I'm guessing would be the dining room.

There were bloodsuckers in every direction, some with pets, some with slaves, some with both.

I met eyes with a couple of pets as we made our way down the corridor.

They were all dressed so differently. Some had a total set of clothes while some were practically naked.

Master didn't seem to care at all about the other Vampires glancing his direction, and then at me.

It made me nervous. I kept my head down for the rest of the walk, figuring I could look around later.

Or maybe I'd be dead by then.

After a few turns and a couple sets of spiral stairs later, Master stopped in front of a very tall door.

This hallway was littered with the same doors, one about every 100 or so feet.

He placed his thumb on the little black box above the door handle before a small click was heard and he opened the door.

I gawked as soon as I stepped foot into the room.

It was huge.

A very spacious bed stood pressed against the wall, its sheets a dark shade of maroon.

On the left was a large window with the same color curtains, following a set of fancy, light grey couches surrounding a glass coffee table.

To the right was a wide desk, with tons of organized files and papers, and next to that was a very tall bookshelf.

There were two other doors, smaller than the first one. One, I'm guessing, would be the bathroom, and the other one... Maybe a closet?

I turned my head to the left again and paused as I saw the thing sitting in the corner.

A cage. It didn't look that much bigger than the one I've lived in for the past five years. I swallowed the sudden lump in my throat as I spotted the whip, muzzle, and a couple other things that were usually used on pets sitting on top of it.

I jumped out of my thoughts as I felt his fingers graze against my neck.

My head turned to see him lean down a bit so he could get a better look

I just watched in a nervous confusion as he slipped the collar from around my neck.

My muscles tensed as his fingers began to trace where my old collar used to be, a slight pain radiating from it.

"We'll have to fix this." His husky voice said, still looking at my neck.

I just continued to stare, not knowing what else to do, or what I should do.

Fix what? The mark on my neck, or the fact that it hasn't had a set of fangs buried into it before?

The latter one seemed more logical.

He removed his hand from my neck and leaned up, making his way over to the desk.

I just stood there, unsure of what to do.

"Dinner is in 30 minutes so go ahead and take a shower," He said, setting my collar and leash on the desk, "I'll have some clothes ready for you by the time you get out, just set the ones you have on now on the sink."

My eyes went wide.

I didn't think Masters let their pets shower, at least, a lot of the pets here didn't look like they have.

"You remember how to work a shower right?" He asked, turning his head towards me.

I only nodded.

It had been a while, but I was sure that I could figure it out.

I cautiously made my way towards the bathroom.

Master opened the door, gesturing me in.

"There's a box in there full of things you can use. Come on out when you're done."

My eyes furrowed.

He was oddly nicer than he was earlier.

Maybe not nicer, but just... Calmer.

This whole thing made me skeptical.

I opted myself to speak, figuring that he would want me to.

"I will. Thank you, Master." My quiet voice said.

His eyes furrowed this time, causing my nerves to skyrocket.

Did I do something wrong? Did he not want me to speak? I thought that earlier he said that I could!

"You don't have to call me that when we're in here." He mumbled.

I stumbled for words.

"What would you prefer, ma-" I quickly bit my lip, preventing me from finishing that word.

His eyes shifted upward in thought for a few moments in thought.

"Nico." He said.

I mouthed the name after he spoke it.

I quickly recalled the slave from the gate calling him Nicolas.

I liked Nico better, it fits him more in a way I couldn't explain.

Why he wanted me to call him by his name was beyond me, but it was a direct order from my master so I couldn't refuse.

I nodded.

"Thanks." He said before gently closing the door, leaving me alone in the bathroom.

The bathroom, unsurprisingly, was big. A round bath sat against the tall, spacious shower. Across from that was the marble sink and a mirror that covered the entire space of the wall above the sink

I gasped once I saw my own reflection. My hair was a mess, dirt and dried blood were evident in certain spots of it, not to mention that It hadn't been brushed in a while.

My eyes then focused on my face, blue eyes staring back at me. More freckles had spread across my pale nose and cheeks from the last time I remember seeing my face. My face too was covered in dirt and dried blood.

Pretty much my entire body was.

The tender skin was obvious where the old collar used to be, just as I concluded.

I didn't even want to look at my back. The ongoing pain that came from it told me that I shouldn't.

I looked away with a sigh and spotted the box that Master was talking about, sitting on the floor by the shower.

I made my way over to it and began looking through it.

It held an assortment of shampoo, conditioner, soap, a brush, a towel, and even some hair ties and pins.

I gawked as I pulled out everything.

It was just a lot more than I was expecting.

Well, I wasn't expecting anything.

A small whine exited my lips as I began to take off the old, torn gown, the pain in my back screaming at me to stop moving.

I sighed once I finally got it off, setting it on the sink as Master told me to before entering into the shower.

Setting the shampoo and all the other things on the seat-like thing, I turn on the water.

I let out a hiss of pain as the hot water met the lashes on my back, the pain getting stronger.

My hands clenched into fists as I bore with the pain, knowing that the water was cleaning out the wounds.

I watched as dirt and blood ran down my skin and into the drain.

It felt nice, just how I remember it being.

Although anything would be considered nice after my previous bathing experience being with a cold hose spray.

As soon as the pain subsided a good amount, I lathered my hair with the orange scented shampoo, followed by the matching conditioner.

I scrubbed the Honeysuckle-scented soap into my body until I was sure that I had gotten every unclean thing off of my body. I didn't even dare to go anywhere near my back.

And with that, I turned the shower off, not wanting to take too long.

I wrung out my hair before stepping out. A soft sigh of relief passed my lips as I wrapped myself in the towel.

I felt so refreshed, so clean, almost like I had been reborn.

It was nice of him to allow me to shower, I'll have to thank him again.

I looked back in the mirror and began the struggle of brushing through my hair before using one of the hair ties to put it in a quick braid.

My eyes widened as I spotted the clothes sitting by the door.

When did he even come in here?

My face heated up, hoping that he didn't see anything.

It's not like I could scold him if he did.

He kind of owns me.

I made my way over to them and picked them up.

A white T-shirt and some jean shorts, along with a bra and underwear.

A pretty big upgrade from the clothes that I used to have.

And I was just glad that he wasn't making me walk around naked.

I quickly put everything on, despite the discomfort in my back that the bra caused.

Since Master gave it to me, I had to wear it.

I glanced at myself in the mirror one last time, giving myself a nod of approval, before opening the door.

Master sat on his bed, one hand behind his head, and the other one holding a packet of papers.

His eyes shifted from the papers to me, his eyebrows rising ever so slightly.

"Feel better?" He asked, shifting himself into a sitting position so that his legs were off of the bed.

I nodded.

"Yes, Thank you, M- Nico," I said.

He rose from his bed and made his way over to the desk, humming a 'You're welcome'.

"Feel free to use the shower whenever you want." He said, setting the papers neatly on his desk.

That skepticism returned once more, but I was oddly happy about that.

My stomach turned a bit as he grabbed my collar and kneeled in front of me once more.

I shifted my eyes away from him as he wrapped it around my neck, tightening it as much as he did before.

The leash ran through his hand as he stood back up.

"Dinner is in 5, we should get going," he said.

I nodded, looking back towards him as he turned.

Keeping my same distance, I followed him out of the room and back into the hall full of bloodsuckers.