The Vampire

chapter 20

"are you sure you would be safe there?" Captain's voice broke the train of Skye's thoughts as well as commander's as their heads turned towards Captain's awaiting eyes.

Commander Leon's face creased in one of a distaste when we glowered at captain," safe there or safe with me? Come on, ask her what you really wanna ask."
He bitterly asked but captain by now, getting accustomed to Leon's nature, didn't bother to pay him any attention, and his eyes were still trained at Skye.

Skye heaved a shaky breath in the cold wind of freezing water that was roaring under the ship," that's the only place I have left to go to."

Captain's mouth opened then closed, glancing towards Leon and he turned ahead deciding not to voice his thoughts for some reason.

Skye knew no place is safe for her anymore because she fled from a castle without anyone's permission. She was the only one who knew about princess. And to top it all, now commander Leon was along with her, injured and brushed.

If they could have let her go by any chance, now it wasn't happening because of his presence because he was not an ordinary slave just like Skye. He was from a royal army and they would sure as hell flip every single brick to find him and bring him back to the castle.

But what worried Skye was lady Delilah. She wondered what she must be going through at the moment. What if someone saw her helping Skye out of the castle and dropping at the shore to flee.

What if they decided to punish her?

The thought of the royal punishment for deception itself made Skye shiver terribly from inside and Leon must have had noticed because when she raised her head, his calculating gaze was set upon her. It looked like he was looking at her but his thoughts were running miles away per second, making his get lost inside her eyes to discover her hidden truths.

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"Pray take care of yourself," captain squeezed left shoulder of Leon to which he only nodded," I wish you safe journey." He bade goodbye to Skye and then soon he was gone, leaving commander Leon and Skye both at a far end town of Hermione state- state of Lord Gregor Elliot, princess Joanna's father.

Skye knew that she might have made a wrong decision and the consequences could be terrible, by stepping inside the boundaries of what was now a dangerous territory for her safety and survival.

But what choice she had. Her mother's place was the only place she could find a shelter at and not worry about getting kicked out at any given time or get handed back to royal guards.

Above all, how was she able to take care of commander Leon in this state of his.

"Are we going to stand here all day?" His aggravated voice drummed the walls of her ears and her lips thinned in annoyance. He wasn't the only one going through misery. She was equally being the victim but who cares right?

She started dragging herself ahead, feeling heavy sand trying to pull her back with each step.

"You don't really want me to carry these bags, now do you?"
She stopped in her tracks and looked behind, completely forgetting she had two bags to carry.

One, her own and the other small bag that captain gave to bring some weeds and a dress for commander to wear.

" That bag contains your weeds and clothes, not mine." She squealed at him, signaling at the bag that was placed at his feet.

He scrunched up his nose as if she mentioned something distasteful to him," well I didn't tell him to stab me and then give this stuff to carry along."

Skye shook her head in disappointment, crouching down to carry both bags nonetheless mumbling something about him having no manners to which his eyebrows flew up to touch the Sky but she didn't pay his irritating actions any heed.

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"Is wind here always the crazy?"
He complained under the assault of heavy wind bumping with his sensitive injured flesh making him hiss in pain.

She turned around to see him slowly following her while holding his brushed shoulder in his left hand to provide it some warmth.

His white shirt was tightly stuck with his stoic torso, and some torn buttons at the top of this used shirt was showing his hard chest. His brown trousers were lose enough to be swaying under wind's attack.

"Are residents of this place equally crazy?" A smirk was apparent on his annoying face as he watches her under few locks of his hair that were flipping back and forth on his forehead shadowing a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Why, what made you ask me this question?" She asked with her hands on her hips, action taken due to irritation and partly from the tiredness that she was feeling in her body after walking for past hour.

They had been walking from thick trees and bushes and she knew that they still had long way to go to reach their destination.

"Well," he started coming closer to her," the way your eyes are digging holes in my innocent body, I could only think of the obvious possibility. Not that I'm the one at fault here." He finished raising his both hands in surrender, apparently forgetting about his injury because soon he groaned out in pain.

She smirked at him to have a taste of his own medicine which only earned her a heated glare for not so happy commander.

"You know what, I'm going to sit, I'm injured here and looks like nobody cares." He huffed in annoyance and without waiting another second, perched down under the shade of a tree and rested his back flat and moaning in pleasure which made her roll her eyes at him.

She knew that she had no other choice but to sit and wait until he feels like started walking again.

She found a spot under a tree which was at a safe distance from where that monster was sitting. He raised his eyes in mockery to realize how she was keeping her distance but she just looked the other way, refusing to see the unwanted sight any longer.

Not more than ten minutes passed when she shrieked under the heavy grumbling of the clouds and he jumped up, opening his eyes, raising his head from where he was resting it with tree trunk to find her holding a hand to her chest and looking at the sky.

With the heavy wind, the thought of rain didn't cross their minds and now that clouds begrudgingly hovered over them , was then that the worry stroke them.

She looked at him, an unspoken question lurking at her parted lips which he heard nonetheless, "we should get going, rain would start any moment now."

She complied and gathered her things, putting her slippers back on, while he already had his shoes on. When she opted to carry both bags again with slight difficulty this time due to all the restlessness, he moved ahead and took a hold of the larger bag and flung it over his left shoulder leaving a small hand bag for her to carry.

When she tried to get it back from him, he just gestured her to start walking with dismissal in his expressions to which she submitted.

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