Natalia’s eyes opened wide for a moment, “You are of course referring to the Elder Ansuya?” she asked.
Kenneth nodded, “Yes.”
“Can you bring her under your sway? Make her one of your ‘students’?”
Kenneth caught the sarcasm in her voice but he decided to let it go. “I believe so. She is resisting me but even she can’t resist me forever. She is in her human form after all.”
“And what is keeping her in her human form?”
Kenneth felt anger flare up to his temples. “My power keeps her in her human form!” He took a deep breath, “I have woven a world which has trapped her mind. She already showed flashes of doubt last night. She doesn’t believe in the world but there is doubt being seeded there. When I bring her to fully believe in my façade she will break and become mine just as all my other students have. I am not fool to think it will be as easy as breaking Cassandra or Joshua but she will obey me.”
Natalia looked up at him with respect. “How long do you think it will take?” She arched a single eyebrow, “And do you think it will be time enough before Alessandro finds out? He does seem to have a sixth sense when it comes to the goings on inside his own House.”
Kenneth nodded. That was something he had not thought through. If Alessandro found out what he was doing, being killed would be the easy way out. This capture could be, and he had every intention to make it that way, a massive power shift in House Dukart. The vampires that had helped him last night were completely loyal to him, but that doesn’t mean Alessandro didn’t have spies of his own throughout the city. To break Ansuya all he needed was time, and suddenly time felt very limited.
“Alessandro won’t find out until I want him to. What I need is time to break the Elder, find where these werewolves hide themselves, and wipe them out. Then I can be seen as a legitimate heir to a House and from there we can launch our other plans, but Ansuya has to be broken first. Nothing can happen before I have her. She’ll tell me everything once that happens.”
Natalia wearily raised herself out of the chair. “What do you need me to do, my mate?”
Kenneth stroked her hair gently, “You need to feed and rest. I know you don’t like to, but I would suggest you go to the farm and eat there. You look half-starved and hunting would be difficult tonight.”
Natalia’s lips twisted in disgust, “I would sooner eat a street urchin than go to a farm.” She looked up into Kenneth’s eyes and relented, “This one time though, I’ll eat there, you are right, of course, I feel really light headed.”
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Kenneth knew that it was because of her hunger. He sat her down on his chair and traced the back of his finger along her pale white cheek. He pulled his phone from the bar and keyed in a number. “Jessica, I’m going to need you to call off work tonight. I need you here to pick up Natalia and take her wherever she needs to go.” His voice dropped an octave and slowed, “This is very important Jessica, you will take Natalia in your car and you will wait for her. You will obey her in all things as if the commands came from me. You will obey Natalia. After you return with her, you will forget everything you saw, everywhere you went. It will be as if tonight never happened. You will only remember that you had a wonderful time. Do you understand, Jessica?” There was a brief pause, “Good girl, now get here as quickly as you can.” He pressed his phone screen and ended the call.
He turned around and looked at his mate in his chair. She was supporting her head with her hand and had her eyes closed. She has been too long without feeding. Every vampire knew that failure to feed regularly could be fatal. She had pressed herself close to that limit. He felt no remorse or guilt for her, but there was the ghost of an emotion he once called sorrow that gently tightened his throat.
He couldn’t be held back, not now. He had work to do. “Natalia,” He said in a strong commanding voice, “Jessica will be here soon, feed, and return here when you wish.”
Natalia lifted her eyes, “Really? Oh, can I?” She had a ridiculous smile on her face, “Can I buckle my own seat belt too?”
Kenneth smiled back, “Whatever you want.” He left the room without another word.
Kenneth opened the door to the basement and the black void yawned before him, he stepped through and reentered the garage he exited the night before.
He opened the garage door and drove the car back to his house. The neighborhood was up and happily buzzing about as every good suburban neighborhood did on a Saturday Morning. There were people mowing the yards and kids riding their bikes. He had to stop briefly as a group of kids removed nets and a ball from the street. He waved as the kids quickly reset their game of street hockey. He pulled up to the drive way and parked the car. He got out into the warm sunlight and walked up the sidewalk and opened his front door.
The house was pristine. The kitchen was clean and there were no dirty dishes anywhere to be found. The blender was in its place waiting to be used and the coffee pot was clean and ready to brew the first cup of coffee for the day. There was no sign of broken dishes or any of the chaos that he had walked into yesterday. The couches were in brand new condition and the television was off.
He walked up the stairs into his bedroom. The windows were covered by the ornate but tasteful curtains; the carpet was clean and free of stains. The bed was a little ruffled but then again Ansuya was sleeping peacefully between the sheets. There wasn’t a single piece of clothing to be found. He opened the closet and all of his suits were there, pressed and ready to be worn and the bathroom mirror was where it should have been, not a shard missing or out of place.
He inhaled deeply and looked around his prison. He was completely refreshed after battling with her yesterday and today would be no different. He could feel the edges of his world, the very edge of his power and concentration, a few miles away. There was nothing that wasn’t as he willed it. Still, the werewolf had drained him more than he had anticipated and he knew that tonight would be no different.