The Blood Boss by Davidson King
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Jayce
Excitement bubbled in my stomach for the rest of the day. I wondered if it was strange that I wasn’t scared about drinking Cain’s blood, but that thought dissipated whenever I locked eyes with his ruby gaze. I could see he was thinking about it, and it was thrilling.
“Hey.” Emil tapped my shoulder, tearing me away from ogling The Blood Boss.
“Hey, yourself.”
Emil was by far the most easygoing vampire I’d ever met, and I’d love to sit down someday and hear his story and how he came to be a vampire.
“Cain thinks tomorrow morning, since all the vampires will be rested, we explain Sibell to them.” We were far from anyone who could overhear, but these were vampires, so who knew?
“So, like, ‘Hey, vamps, here’s some O-negative, yum, and oh yeah…a witch?’ ”
Emil’s laugh was so loud, almost every vampire turned toward us. He was still laughing, so I waved. “Nothing to see here.” And made a shooing motion.
“I’m sure Cain will have more finesse when he explains it all,” Emil said once he’d relaxed.
“Okay, and where am I during all this?”
Emil’s brow scrunched. “Beside him, of course.”
“I see. All right.”
Margarite took that moment to approach me. “Jayce, would you like to eat in Sibell’s room with her for dinner?”
It wasn’t like Cain would be having a banquet for these vampires, and I needed to eat. “Sounds perfect.”
“Great. It’ll be up there in about ten minutes.”
“Go on, I’ll let Cain know where you are.” Emil patted my arm as he slipped away through the throngs of vampires.
When I ascended the stairs, I took a much-needed breath. There were just so many in the house. None were rude, and the Hans guy was fascinating. But it was amazing how a gigantic place could feel small when there were so many crammed inside.
When I reached Sibell’s door, I knocked lightly.
“Come in.”
She was sitting in a wingback chair by the fireplace, knitting. At first glance, you’d think her some sweet grandmother, not a massively powerful witch.
“Hi, Sibell, thought you’d like a dinner date.”
She smiled and placed her needles on the table on the other side of her. “Best offer I’ve had all day.”
No sooner did we sit at the small dining table that was set up in her room than Margarite arrived with our dinner. We thanked her and after she left, we began eating.
“It amazes me how good the food is here, but none of them can eat it.” The chicken practically melted in my mouth.
“Their senses are heightened, Jayce.” Sibell cut a piece of her food and began to eat.
“And?”
“Smell and taste work together. They can guess what would work and what wouldn’t. Not to mention, meat is their thing; they know when it’s perfect.” She took a sip of water before continuing. “And just because they drink blood doesn’t mean they can’t eat food. Some do, it just doesn’t give them any of what they need to live.”
When we were done, I fixed us the tea Margarite had also delivered that rested on a hot plate.
“Cain will be explaining to the vampires about you tomorrow morning. I’m sure he or Emil will be coming to tell you soon enough.”
“But you’re telling me, and that’s fine.”
After handing the tea to her, I returned to my seat. “Nothing will happen, I promise. Cain won’t allow anyone to hurt you.”
Sibell chuckled. “Cain needs me right now. But there is a lot of bad blood between us, no pun intended.”
That got me thinking. “Can I ask you a question?”
“Of course.”
“Who did Cain say killed his brothers if it wasn’t him?”
Sibell pursed her lips and placed her teacup on the table. “He accused his father of the crime. But it was his father who turned Cain in.”
“And you just took his father’s word on it?”
Sibell shook her head. “I did nothing. I was sent in after the judgment to enact a punishment. Back then, that’s what I did.”
“And what happened to his father?”
She sighed and rested in her chair. “After Cain changed, and realized what he was, he became vengeful. He sought me out but was quickly rebuffed as I am not one to trifle with. But his father, he was but an ordinary man and didn’t stand a chance against a vampire.”
Staring into my teacup, I tried to imagine what all those changes would do to a person. Losing brothers, turning into a vampire, alone in the world, and taking the life of your father.
“In the book Cain gave me, he said his mother died giving birth to his youngest brother.”
Sibell nodded. “Yes, very sad, but not uncommon.”
“So everyone he knew was dead. Was he punished for killing his father?”
The lines on Sibell’s face seemed more prominent in that moment. “There was nothing more we could do.”
My tea forgotten, I asked my final question. “How does a man, punished with vampirism, change thousands of people into what he is, become the leader of them all, ruling Black Veil, and maintain everything he is and has?”
Sibell shrugged. “He chose to take his curse and transform it, I suppose.”
I wanted to delve deeper into all of this, but judging by the time, I needed to shower and get ready for Cain, who would be coming upstairs soon enough.
“Thank you for answering my questions. I have to go, but I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Jayce, for what it’s worth, I am regretful for what I’ve done. The mistakes I’ve made.”
I took her wrinkled hand in mine. “It’s worth something. We can’t undo what’s been done—we can only make a better future with it.”
She smiled and patted my fingers. “Have a good night, Jayce.”
“You too, Sibell.”
I was glad Cain wasn’t in his rooms when I got there. I stripped off my clothes, tossed them into the hamper, and rushed to the bathroom. While the water warmed, I shaved, made sure I was good in all the important places, brushed my teeth, and hopped in the shower.
Cain had said he’d taste delicious, and I couldn’t help wondering if his blood would be as intoxicating as his come. That thought made my cock wake up and as much as I wanted to jack off, there wasn’t time.
“Calm down, boy.”
I scrubbed every nook and cranny. And by the time I was done and dried off, I deemed myself squeaky clean.
With a towel wrapped around my waist, I walked into the bedroom and over to where I had clothes. Cain had insisted I leave my belongings in there, and honestly, I wasn’t sleeping in the other room anymore. As a matter of fact, I believed a set of sisters were in there now.
I slipped on a pair of boxers and, with a smile plastered to my face, got onto the bed. I hoped he wouldn’t take too long. The clock read nine, and I’d told him after dinner. As I sat there waiting, I realized there were candles all over the room. I wondered if Cain would be against me lighting them.
I searched the nightstands and found some matches. As quickly as I could I lit all of them, bathing the room in a romantic glow. After tossing the matches back into the drawer, I jumped onto the bed and waited for Cain.