CHAPTER TEN

DEN OF DARKNESS

When Juliet imagined Seth’s room, she pictured an overhead light to turn on. Instead, a disco ball, hanging from the center of the high ceiling, began to spin and fragments of light began dancing across the walls.

What was this place?

Juliet could not believe what she saw. There were no windows and there were no other electric lights to turn on, only the disco ball offering its meager light. Yet, it didn’t seem meager to her eyes. It seemed magical. There were tiny mirrors in the shape of stars secured to the ceiling, and when the tiny streams of light reflected on them, Juliet suddenly felt like she had entered an artificial heaven. This was where Seth lived.

It was strange. Stranger than any place she had ever been before, and yet so like a dream she wished she’d had the imagination to bring to life.

There was a circular tub in one corner of the room. It was full of water. Against one wall, there was a small gilded table with a bowl of pomegranates on it and a myriad of candles. Some of them were burnt very low.

There was a wardrobe and Juliet reluctantly opened it, expecting to find only clothes, but it wasn’t full of Seth’s jeans. Instead, there was nothing in it but towels.

Juliet smiled. She should have guessed, but then again, she’d never had a hot tub in her room, and apparently, Seth used his all the time.

There was no coffin. Instead, there was a big bed in a beautiful metal frame. She liked the bedposts and the intricate ironwork. The mattress was covered in black covers and pillows. Juliet realized that that was what allowed the ornate bed frame to be in a man’s room, it was completely under-dressed.

The other corner of the room was occupied by a small desk. There was a laptop and when Juliet jiggled the mouse the monitor flickered on. No password was needed and so she had immediate access to his files. There was an open window on the desktop. It didn’t look like much until she expanded the view. It was a poem.

Juliet sat down on his swiveling office stool and began to read. There was no title. Without preface, Seth plunged her into a world she didn’t know existed.

Midnight waves wake my senses - Confused

The water burns me to my eyes - Suffused

The dreams haunt my mind - Disintegration

I can’t battle my dreams - Formulation

The First Dream

I’m young while she’s beautiful - Bemused

Untouchable and irrevocably touched - Defused

The pool of blood I laid in at road’s end - Surprised

Death’s white fingers like love - Realized

The Second Dream

I’m angry while she’s patient - Placate

Provoked by her lover to knife’s point - Aggravate

Brown eyes triggered bloody red - Amused

Lose my body in the violent fray - Refused

The Third Dream

Like an injured monster lost in water - Rescue

Like a broken man waiting by the window - Withdrew

Still feigning while dreaming - Conventionalize

The morn will be bright after the hardest night - Cruel Lies

Juliet felt bewildered as she read the words. They triggered a storm of conflicting thoughts that came down on her so suddenly she couldn’t organize them.

Seth dreamed.

She would have passed his dreams off as therapeutic poetry to ease his heavy burdens, except the third line in the second verse struck an unusual chord with her. It read, ‘The pool of blood I laid in at road’s end.’ Juliet had had that dream, too. The first time he kissed her, she remembered having a vision of his body on the cusp of death. She drank his blood, like saltwater in a storm, but hot like his skin had been, and immeasurably precious like the silver lining of dark clouds. It had been her first dream, also. Did they dream of the same things at the same time? He never mentioned anything before.

Her mind swam. What had her second dream been about? She had been waiting in a room with a goblet of her own blood on a table beside her. Rereading Seth’s second dream, she tried to decipher whether they lined up.

She couldn’t tell. He described the woman as patient. Maybe it coincided.

Her third dream had been the night before. She remembered being chased through the hallway full of shadows, but for her, there had been light at the end and Seth waiting for her. There had been a happy ending. Why was there a happy ending for her and not for Seth?

She frowned.

How much longer was Chas going to keep her locked up? When would Seth come home?

For the first time, Juliet wondered what he would say when he found her in his room. There was no question about it. She was going to be in very deep trouble. Well, she would only make it worse if she meddled around with his computer needlessly, so she returned the window to its original size and slid away from his desk.

She got up and at first, she didn’t know what to do with herself. She stretched and threw herself across his bed. She opened her eyes when her head hit the pillow and she saw what Seth saw on his ceiling before he slept. No wonder there was no canopy on his bed. Why would you want to block the twinkling stars?

So, she thought as she turned on her side and pulled the pillow close, this is where Seth does his dreaming.

Juliet didn’t dream when she slept. It was one of those things that nagged at her conscience. Shouldn’t she? Everyone she knew dreamed, but she merely blacked out and woke up several hours later. Her experiences with Seth had been her first chance to dream. Now that she thought about her visions, she felt like, somehow, they made her more like other people. Maybe, just maybe, she wasn’t a broken person. She closed her eyes and pretended she was whole. Too soon, she found herself scratching her knee and then her ear in irritation. Her mind never accepted these attitude adjustments no matter how many times she tried them. Her parents never encouraged her to look back. They wanted to keep her in the present. They wanted to keep her safe. Yet, she was always left to question what happened to make her this way.

Just then, there was a rattling at the door and the whole room brightened at Seth’s entrance. At first, the sunlight from the living room was so bright that she couldn’t see what he was doing, but when she squinted, she caught the end of it. He had pulled a key from the lock and threw it into the living room.

Then Juliet heard a sort of muffled scream outside the room. It was a woman’s voice.

Seth closed the door and then Juliet realized what he had done. He had locked the two of them inside without giving them a way to get out.

“What’s going on out there?” Juliet choked, suddenly gripped in terror. There had been no noise before, so she hadn’t worried about what Chas was doing out there. She was so stupid. She didn’t even worry about why it was soundproof.

Seth didn’t answer and it was so dark she couldn’t see the expression on his face. Instead, he dropped his backpack on the floor and began taking off his shirt.

“What are you doing?” she asked. Her voice had been half strangled before, so perhaps he hadn’t heard her.

He didn’t acknowledge her as he whipped his shirt over his head and threw it on top of his computer stool. Then he began undoing his belt and pants.

“Seth, wait! Can’t you see I’m in here?” she cried as she averted her eyes.

“Quiet down,” he mumbled. “You’re going to give me a headache. Besides, I’m not getting naked. Good grief.” Then she heard the slight tremor of water.

She turned and saw Seth had gotten in the tub and completely submerged himself in the water. Juliet stared. He was under for an awfully long time. Eventually, he came out of the water and shook his hair like he didn’t care what got wet.

“So, Juliet,” he said, finally paying attention to her. “I’m a little confused. What are you doing here?” He leaned over and began lighting the candles by the tub.

“You act like you’re not happy to see me,” she pouted.

The candlelight made the droplets of water on his white cheek glisten and reflected the fire in his eyes. “I’m starving,” he said simply. Then he took a pomegranate out of the bowl and began peeling it.

Juliet climbed off the bed and approached the tub. She was a little apprehensive at first, but Seth said he wasn’t going to get naked and sure enough when she perched herself on the lip of the tub, she saw he was still wearing a pair of dark-colored briefs.

“What was that screaming outside?” she asked slowly.

Seth didn’t even pause as he answered smoothly. “My brother is cooking. I think he accidentally cut himself.”

“That didn’t sound like him. It sounded like a woman.”

Seth laughed and popped a few of the red kernels in his mouth. “I can’t help it if that’s what he sounds like.”

“Then why are we locked in here if all he’s doing is cooking?” she demanded.

“We are not locked in here, little girl. You are locked in here,” he corrected as he tossed a bit of the peel over the edge of the tub. “What are you doing here, anyway? Isn’t coming here advanced magic, even for you?”

“What are you talking about?”

He shook his head wearily. “You’re not afraid of me, are you? Afraid of what I could do to you?”

“Not really,” she said slowly.

“Well, you should be,” he answered, his head hanging at an angle. “You’ve caught me at a very bad time. I’m starving.”

Juliet shivered. “But you said that you weren’t a vampire. You were worried the vampire would hurt me. You would never hurt me.”

He put a hand to his forehead and said bitterly, “Wouldn’t I?”

“You’re not a vampire,” she repeated.

Seth threw his head back and stared at the beautiful ceiling. His voice sounded like truck tires on gravel when he said his next words, “That doesn’t mean I don’t drink blood.”

Juliet pursed her lips together to stop herself from yelping. She sat very still on the edge of the tub and didn’t speak. Was he telling the truth?

“The problem is that Chas is cooking right now, and I have to wait for him to finish.” He dropped the uneaten pomegranate by the side of the tub and continued, “These won’t satisfy me when I’m like this. You shouldn’t have come. This room isn’t for you. If I could stay away from you, I would. I would leave you in the lurch so fast if I could find the one I’m really meant for. Why do I even bother masquerading as a human? It’s pointless. If I could, I would throw you out on the street right now with the stiffest warning you’ve ever had. You should stay away from me.”

“What about last night?” she whispered.

“What about it?”

“Don’t you love me? Even if it’s just a little bit?” she asked, putting her thumb and index finger an inch apart.

He squinted like thinking was painful for him. Then he swallowed. “I don’t know if I would call what I feel for you love. Sometimes it feels like you’re just a gorgeous distraction trying to keep me from my real goal.”

“What’s your real goal?”

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

He sighed. “To break my curse. When I met you, I realized on sight I should have nothing to do with you and I tried to keep you out of my life, but then you said if I left you would go back to Rylan. My hands were tied. That felt like the worst thing I had ever heard. You going back to him? I couldn’t stand it. I still can’t stand it, because that’s the truth, isn’t it? If I leave, you’ll end up with him. You won’t quit your Occult’s Addict thing, will you?”

“No,” she said gravely.

“And that’s why I’m here. You can’t go to him to be trampled and put down. You have to be free. I don’t understand it. It seems the weirdest thing in the world that being with me would be the thing to set you free.”

“I don’t like the way this conversation is going. Are you trying to escalate our relationship by biting me, or are you trying to offend me so badly that I’ll break up with you?” she asked, her voice caustic.

“Do you want me to bite you?” he asked quizzically.

She blushed and deferred answering, “I want you to feel strongly about me. I want you to feel as passionate about me as I feel about you. You mentioned that you were meant for someone else earlier. Far be it for me to keep you from your destiny, but I don’t want to be your second choice. If that’s how it is, then I don’t want you to touch me.”

“Even though just one of my kisses sends you into such ecstasy that you can’t keep conscious?”

“You’re an egomaniac in disguise, aren’t you? And yeah, even though.”

A few moments passed and neither of them said anything.

Finally, Seth found his voice and asked, “Would you go to Rylan if I left?”

“It’s this feeling I have,” she said, sounding wistful. “I just know he will be there for me no matter what happens.”

“What a curious feeling! But the way you tell it, that dependability does not sound accompanied by love.” He sat very still and seemed to be thinking it over. “No,” he said at last. “I can’t give you to him.”

Juliet leaned toward Seth and looked him in the eye. “Do you love me? Do you think there’s a way for you to give up on the one you’re meant for and just be satisfied with me?”

Seth’s lips curled as though he were in pain. “I wish I could.”

She got up from the tub. “Then I won’t stay. I’ve read too many books and seen too many dramas for that kind of a line to work on me. I won’t be led on by half promises. If there’s someone else or some other type of girl you feel you must pursue, then I will politely bow out. I promise not to go to Rylan right away, or at least, not out of loneliness. So, that should satisfy you. You need not fear that I’ll do something stupid because you were unkind to me. There. Is that all you need so you can do whatever you want with a clean conscience?”

He glared at her. “So, you can just put your feelings for me aside?”

“I didn’t say I wouldn’t be lonely. I didn’t say I wouldn’t be desperate. I said that I wouldn’t do anything stupid because you rejected me. That’s all. That doesn’t change how much I want you in my life. I want you so bad. You have no idea how much I’m dying to unlock the secrets of your world. For starters, why am I locked in here?” she almost yelled, rattling the doorknob. “Are you and your brother cannibals? Is Chas killing some innocent girl out there and I have to be locked in here so that I can’t be a witness? Why did you walk in here, immediately strip and get in the tub? Why was it filled with water to start with? Shouldn’t you leave it drained? There are so many questions I can hardly count. Who is Chas' daughter and why does she know me? Why do you have a picture of that woman, Raidne, in your living room? The woman Chas told me was a murderer? I want to know everything.”

“You’re putting yourself in a precarious position even being here, Juliet. But I can answer a few of those questions. First, neither my brother nor I are killers. Do you believe me?”

She nodded, feeling brave and dying to hear every last word that dripped from his superb lips. She was even proud of herself for bullying a few answers out of him.

“The scream from before was probably nothing more than one of Chas' lovers. Some of them are quite vocal. Don’t let it bother you.”

“Why didn’t you say so before?”

“I didn’t like to freak you out. You seem so pure. Who knew you were imagining that he was hacking some girl to bits on the countertop? That’s the reason the rooms are soundproof. He doesn’t want to traumatize the more innocent members of his household and in an offbeat way that includes me.” At this point, Seth actually laughed, and with his laughter, the mood in the room lightened considerably. He got out of the tub, took a towel out of the wardrobe, and started drying himself, starting with his face. “I think the only other question I don’t mind answering is about Chas' daughter. Yes, you know her. It’s Nixie. Bet you never would have guessed that she’s my niece.”

“No,” Juliet started, aghast.

“Well, she is. She’s been my friend for many years.”

“And you won’t answer my questions about the tub?”

“That’s because they are ridiculous. Everyone has baths,” he said simply, as he motioned for Juliet to turn around. “Go ahead. I need to put dry clothes on.”

“I’m done,” he said after a decent interval.

Juliet turned. He was sitting on the edge of his bed, putting on a pair of black socks. He was wearing what looked like a dark turtleneck sweater and a pair of dark slacks. Exact colors couldn’t be defined in the hollow of his room.

“Oh,” she said, suddenly remembering Chas' warning. “What’s fan service?”

Seth started. “Where did you hear that?”

“Chas. He said that if I wanted to have a happy future, then I had to leave you alone. Then he said something about how you weren’t very good at fan service. What was he talking about?”

Seth shook his head in disgust. “I’m not answering that.”

“Really? That’s too bad. Maybe I could ask Chas instead. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind explaining.”

“I’m sure he would. The fact that he said ‘fan service’ instead of speaking bluntly means that he doesn’t want to talk about it if you don’t already understand it.”

Juliet fumed. She loved this situation and hated it. Here she was, locked in a room with the object of her desire, and yet he was taking the teasing too far. She hated being left out of a joke because he thought her to be too ‘innocent’. No one wanted to traumatize her by telling her the truth, and it happened to her all the time.

“So, basically,” he drawled, leaning back on the bed. “You’re considering dumping me because of the person I’m waiting for?”

“It sounds like a waste of time if you’re just going to leave me for her.”

“My whole life is a waste of time.”

“Yeah,” she said quietly. “I read your poem. You sound very bleak.”

“What poem?” he asked, sitting up and leaning his elbow on his knee.

“The one you had open on your computer. The one you wrote about your three dreams.”

“Dreams,” Seth repeated, looking beyond her like he was in a trance.

“Will you tell me more about them?” she asked, moving to sit beside him. Maybe she still had a chance to win him over if she was patient and understanding.

“You shouldn’t have snooped,” he said, still staring at the same place on the wall. “And you shouldn’t be sitting this close to me. I’m hungry.”

Juliet’s skin turned cold. “Would you really bite me?”

He turned his face away from her and plugged his nose.

“I don’t believe you’d actually bite me,” she said, not entirely sure if that was what she believed or not.

“Don’t provoke me. I was lying about only you being locked in here. I can’t get out either. We have to wait for Chas to open the door.”

“What else have you been lying about?”

One of his eyebrows twitched. “I can’t stand this. Please, go sit over there, or better still, take off your clothes and get in the tub.”

“What?” Juliet exclaimed.

“You don’t understand,” he said, putting a hand on her shoulder. “With you in my room, I can smell you so much better than anywhere else. There are no distractions. When I’m in your room, I can pretend that what I smell is your fabric softener. When we’re out in public, I smell everything but you. The tub is still full of water and my scent. Either get in, or... I really will bite you.”

Juliet stared, completely unsure how she should react. Was he simply trying to get her to take her clothes off?

“This isn’t a joke. I wish it were. Get in. You’ll be much safer.”

“No,” she whispered.

“You’re a stupid girl, Juliet,” Seth cursed. Then he clenched his teeth and before she knew it she was slammed directly into the middle of his bed with her head on the pillows. His knee was between her legs and his hands balled into fists on either side of her head. “You should listen to me when I warn you, but if this is how it has to be, then so be it.”

He bent his head down and kissed Juliet on the lips. She was nervous, but she pushed her tongue between Seth’s lips and tried to search his mouth for his fangs. Maybe she had imagined his long, sharp teeth. She had to confirm it one more time. But she felt little more than the wetness of his mouth before she disappeared into one of her visions.

There was a warm, wet wind blowing across her face and the sweaty breadth of her chest. She was kneeling on the stones of a tower balcony. It looked out onto the sea and the starry night sky. Her hands and lips were drenched in blood and red, swollen tears streamed from her eyes freely. Dizzy, her mind was spinning and her senses whirling as though she couldn’t understand what had just happened.

Seth lay dead in front of her, his blood splashed and staining the dark stones of the balcony. He was practically hacked to bits in front of her. He was missing fingers and one of his eyes had been gouged out. There was an arrow through his shoulder and two knives protruding from his abdomen.

He had fought desperately to protect her, his twin double-edged swords lay still and wet with blood beside him, but the violence was over. It was quiet and Juliet could hear the faint chirping of birds.

Her lip trembled and the anger that stormed in her system could not be contained. That bastard! Nothing could stop her now. No one could take Seth away from her. Damn him! Damn everyone!

She wrenched one of the knives from Seth’s stomach free and more blood gushed in the process. Bending down, she kissed the bloody gash.

“I love you so much,” she whined, her voice broken. “You can’t die like this. I’ll give you a different ending.”

With that, she took the knife and put it to her own throat, slitting it with such violence that she managed to drag the blade all the way to the other side.

The last thing Juliet heard was a howl. A man was screaming himself hoarse. What had she done to herself?

Juliet couldn’t stand it, even though her consciousness was returning to Seth’s bed, the vicious pain uncoiling in her stomach was something she couldn’t handle. It was something she had never been able to handle.

She kissed Seth harder and accepted oblivion with pleasure.

***

Seth waited until he was positive Juliet was out cold. Then he pulled away from her and started unbuttoning her shirt.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled, realizing she couldn’t hear him. “I didn’t want to do this. Why didn’t you just do what I told you?”

It was an ordinary white shirt, with buttons up the front and short sleeves. Seth picked her up slightly to take it off the rest of the way. The action was horrible for him, almost torture. Luckily, she was wearing a white spaghetti-strap tank top underneath, so he didn’t even feel like her modesty was being challenged. She was definitely a good girl.

Seth sighed. Even though she was well dressed, he had to hurry, before he lost his mind.

He moved to her feet and quickly removed her shoes and socks. It was a good lead-up for the rest of what he would have to do. He took a preparing breath and continued. His fingers trembled slightly as he unzipped her pants.

Now he was cursing at her. Why couldn’t she have just done what he told her to do without complaint? Putting him in such an awkward position, was it really to be tolerated?

Soon, he was carrying her over to the tub. The water was warm. It wouldn’t wake her up. He set her down in the water, soaking the sleeves of his shirt in the process. He rested her head on a rolled-up towel and let her sink to the bottom.

Then he went to his dresser and pulled out one of the many bottles of grenadine from his stash. He took the bottle, unscrewed the top, and emptied it into the tub.

He could still smell her.

He frowned and opened bottle number two. That, he also poured into the tub.

He could still smell her.

Opening bottle number three, he took a swig of the red liquid. It eased him more than he imagined it could. Downing the entire bottle, he finally felt satiated enough to change his dripping shirt.

Pretending Juliet wasn’t there, he opened another bottle and curled into a ball on the bed. It had been a long time since he’d gone on a binge like this. Usually, Chas took better care of him.

Not long after, the door cracked open.

“Seth,” came Chas’ gentle voice.

“I’m here,” Seth said, rushing to the door. “Juliet’s asleep.”

“In your tub?” Chas shook his head sadly. “That bad, eh? I’m sorry.”

“Don’t you dare pity me.”

“Who said anything about pitying you? I feel sorry for her. When will you learn and set yourself up like I have?”

“Nixie would never forgive me.”

“Whatever. You don’t have to repeat my mistakes, but there may not be any other option.” He handed Seth a blood bag through the crack. “The donor is gone now, so you don’t have to stay in here.”

Seth unplugged the stopper and began to drink ravenously. It was cold, but Seth didn’t give a damn. At least it wasn’t congealed.

“You could say ‘thank you,’” Chas said humorlessly.

Seth forced the liquid down his throat. “More than that. I’d die without you. You know that.”

“Still, I don’t get what the difference is. Why is it so much better for you if it’s my donor’s blood rather than this girl’s? They both consent.”

Seth didn’t answer. He just drank. He didn’t like to explain the difference to Chas. How could Chas understand? Seth felt that if he lived in a soundproof room and drank the blood that Chas provided in neat little packages, he could pretend that the blood was no different than the grenadine. It didn’t come from a real person, not from a living, breathing girl like Juliet. It was irresponsible, but Seth didn’t care. He was content to live in an imaginary world his brother provided until he found the destiny he knew was waiting for him.

***

When Juliet finally woke up, she was disoriented and groggy. It took a moment for her to remember she was in Seth’s hot tub. The door was open and Chas was sitting in a chair watching her.

She screamed because she hadn’t expected him. When she got her breath back she asked more sensibly, “What’s happening?”

“You passed out and Seth thought you could use a bath.”

Juliet lifted her fingers out of the water. It looked funny, sort of pink. “What’s in the water?”

Chas stood up and looked at it. His violet eyes seemed eerie in the candlelight. He rubbed the back of his neck casually. “Huh? I don’t know. Seth,” he yelled into the living room. “What’s in the water?”

Seth came in, wiping his hands on a dishtowel. “I put a couple of bath bombs in to give it a good scent. Doesn’t it smell nice?”

“You own bath bombs?” Juliet asked disbelievingly. “Aren’t you a guy?”

“I’m a bath enthusiast. Don’t judge me.” Then he laughed, and a charming smile lit up his face. “Dinner is ready. Sorry. Chas and I already ate. Oh, and I think I spoiled your undergarments. I didn’t realize the bath bomb would stain them red.” He bonked himself on the head with his knuckles. “That wasn’t very considerate, but I’ve found some of my underwear that I think should fit you. Here’s my only white wife-beater and a pair of my briefs. Do you think they’ll work until you get home?” he asked, and then he regarded her with the sweetest, most serene expression she had ever seen anyone wear.

She just stared at him through the half-light. Was he the tortured soul she had seen before she passed out?

Suddenly, she knew what must have happened. He said that he didn’t want to drink her blood, so she should get in the tub, she didn’t listen to him, so he kissed her, forcing her to fall unconscious, and then he put her in the tub himself. She clenched her teeth. She hadn’t been certain before, but now she was positive he wasn’t a blood drinker. He was just making it up for her amusement. Well, fine. She was perfectly okay with that.

Standing up in the tub, she shook the water off her and pretended that she didn’t care if Seth or Chas saw her in her wet underwear.

Chas handed her a towel and she wrapped herself in it.

“I’m sure your clothes will be fine. What’s for dinner?” she asked comfortably. She was never going to be afraid of coming here again. It was all bravado and silliness from the start. She bet Seth even told Chas to treat her like that just in case she ever showed up.

“Sushi,” Seth said with a smile.

Chas smiled roguishly and left the room.

But Seth continued talking, “Here are your clothes, so go ahead and get changed. Do you want to go to a movie tonight? After dinner, we could go see something.”

“Aren’t we on the verge of breaking up?” she asked, getting a little irritated. “We still haven’t resolved the main issue here. Are you waiting for someone new, or will I do?”

Seth leaned against the door, his handsome face looking wan and pale. “I already warned you I would ruin you, and yet you still wanted to proceed. I tell you I have plans for myself and you want to stop? They’re the same thing.”

“Not to me,” Juliet wailed, leaning over to dry her legs. “If I end up a mess, I at least want to have you for myself.”

“And you won’t take an answer like, ‘You have me right now, so why do you need more?’”

“No,” she said sternly.

He frowned deeply. “Then I guess we really are breaking up.”

“Take me home.”