Sinjin (8 page)

I shook my head at Jolie fiercely, setting my jaw in stubborn defiance. There was no way I would willingly allow this vampire, this
revolting creature, to feed on me! Not after promising myself it would never happen again. “You’re going to have to come up with some other alternative,” I hissed between my clenched teeth. “I will never allow a vampire to drink my blood again.”

“You have no other choice,” Jolie
argued with a heavy sigh, looking defeated.
I don’t have another option; don’t you see that!?
she asked me in her mind.
I must protect my people and my kingdom, which means I have to know where you are at any given second! It’s not my intention or desire to subject you to any of this, but you give me no choice, Bryn!

Then just keep me locked up in my room!
I snapped back at her.

But she shook her head.
Regardless of whether or not you have a guardian or remain imprisoned, this is a safety precaution I must insist upon. You are a danger to my people, Bryn, and I can’t, and won’t, jeopardize anyone’s safety.

I don’t need your explanations,
I spat back, knowing I was stuck. I could see Jolie’s reasoning; and were I in her position, I would have done exactly the same thing
. Let’s just get on with it then,
I admitted with unconcealed defeat.

At least allow me to magic you so
his bite won’t hurt,
she pleaded with me.

Absolutely not!
I replied immediately. I was offended at the very idea of letting Jolie magic me. That would effectively drop all my psychic walls, and thereby allow Sinjin’s powers of persuasion to work on me. And I was no dummy when it came to underestimating a vampire’s powers of persuasion. Under a vampire’s spell, the creature could basically do anything he wanted to do to me; a horrifying thought if ever I’d had one!
There is no way in hell I would willingly subject myself to whatever glamour Sinjin intends to try and work on me,
I continued and adamantly shook my head.
Who the hell knows what he’d do to me?

Sinjin is a gentleman,
Jolie argued. I simply raised my brows and frowned at her in an expression that conveyed disbelief and then some.
He would never do anything to you that he didn’t think you wanted done.

Really?
I demanded.
I never wanted him to drink my blood the first time around.

Well, aside from that, anyway,
she conceded
.

But I refused to have any of it.
No. I’ll suffer my fate just like the warrior I was trained to be.

Then don’t be surprised when
it hurts,
Jolie warned me angrily.

I shook my head again, crossing my arms over my chest just to let her know how serious I stood on this point.
I don’t care. I would rather be in control of myself as well as my emotions. It’s how I was raised. Pain doesn’t frighten me.

Jolie didn’t say anything more; she simply looked past me to Sinjin, who stood behind me. She inclined her head in a quick nod before I heard the sound of his chuckle. It was a deep, low rumble that was as sexy as it was intimidating.

“I shall very much look forward to this, my tasty, little morsel,” he whispered softly, the comment clearly for my ears only.

“Sinjin,” Jolie interrupted, her tone of voice sounding suddenly stricken. “Please go easy on her.”

“Of course, my queen, of course,” the vampire replied at the same time that I felt his fingers around my throat. He pulled my head to the side to expose my neck. I struggled in vain against him, becoming livid that he would actually attempt to bite my neck.

“Now, now, my little minx,” he said with a hiss. “Do not resist me. Have you so soon forgotten what I told you last time we found ourselves in this exact situation?”

He was referring to the time when he warned me not to struggle against him because fighting him only heightened his excitement. But I didn’t care. I continued to struggle, finding it increasingly difficult to free myself from his iron manacle grip. “I never allowed you my throat, you bastard,” I seethed in response. I thrust my wrist in front of his face when it became obvious he didn’t intend to release his hold on my neck anytime soon. “You can drink from me here.”

“I rather prefer the intimacy of your supple neck,
Bête Noire,” he whispered into my ear as he used his index finger to trace the length of my neck and paused just above my carotid artery.

“Sinjin,” Jolie exclaimed, shaking her head as her eyebrows furrowed in protest.
“Her wrist!”

With a pouty face, the vampire dropped his hold on my neck and, raised my wrist to the level of his eyes, which he fastened on mine. He ran his nose across my skin as he inhaled deeply. Glancing up at me, his aqua eyes seemed to sparkle as they grew an even brighter
shade of blue.

“Are you a witch, little vixen?”
he asked me.

“
No, I’m not, but I’m close enough to one that your inept attempts of persuasion won’t work on me,” I answered, my throat tightly constricted.

Sinjin glanced from Jolie to Rand with interest. “May I ask, have
either of you magicked her to not feel my bite?”

“I tried to convince her to do it, but she refused,” Jolie answered with a sigh. She looked at me quickly as if to urge me to reconsider.

“My mind is already made up,” I replied stonily.

“Bryn,” Rand began, in a serious tone, but his expression softened once his gaze moved from Sinjin to me. “Sinjin’s bite will be
…”

“I know!” I interrupted. “I’
m not afraid of the pain! I’ve already discussed this subject at length with my sister and I refuse to discuss it with anyone else.” Then I glared at Sinjin again and took a deep breath, expelling it just as quickly. “All life is suffering,” I quoted Buddha loftily, while raising my brows in an expression that told him to get on with it.

“How apt and true,” the vampire agreed with his trademark smirk. Then he raised my wrist to his lips. His emergent fangs appeared extremely long and sharply pointed in the low light of the room. “Bon
appétit,” he remarked with a lascivious smile.

“Jolie, I prefer that you don’t watch this,” Rand said as he stood up and reached for her hand, attempting to lead her out of the room. “This isn’t a good idea, and we need to take your condition into account.”

“I’m not leaving,” she said firmly while shaking her head. “The least I can do now is suffer through this with my sister.”

With no time or option to respond, I felt Sinjin’s teeth sinking into my flesh. The pain was acute and immediate a
nd I fought to hold myself in place.

Ignore the pain, Bryn!
I chided myself.
Brave the pain and ignore it!

Sinjin closed his eyes when he bit down on me, but as soon as he pulled his fangs away, and my blood started to pump into his mouth, he opened them again and stared at me. His eyes seemed to be aflame as he lapped up my blood before swallowing it with a feverish passion.

I narrowed my eyes, and told myself not to flinch, or reveal in any way, shape or form that his bite and subsequent draining of my blood really hurt. I wouldn’t allow him the luxury of knowing he could cause me so much discomfort. Instead, I held my wrist out to him steadfast and true, concentrating my attention solely on him, and refusing to flinch even slightly.

First and foremost, you are strictly a warrior. Pain does not exist, and you feel nothing,
I told myself.
I will not cower before or submit to this lowly creature.

Sinjin continued staring at me and I bravely held his gaze, refusing to allow my eyes to drop. Gritting my teeth, I even managed to smile at him, to prove he couldn’t beat me. If I could smile in the face of
such intense pain, I knew I could do anything. Sinjin narrowed his eyes and studied me, as if he were trying to assess my level of discomfort.

“Mastering others is strength. Mastering yourself is true power,” I quoted Lao Tzu stoically with a tight jaw. Then, cocking my head to the side, I lifted my eyebrows and forced out a smile that told the vampire he hadn’t bested me.

Not by a long shot.

SIX

There was a momentary glimpse of surprise in Sinjin’s eyes before a smile of amusement overtook his lips. A second or so later, he withdrew from my wrist and licked the remnants of my blood from his mouth. With his eyes narrowed on me and his fangs extended, he appeared intimidating by anyone’s account. But, even worse, he was sexy.

God, Bryn, really?
I berated myself.
This asshole just fed on you, causing you a huge amount of pain, and you’re thinking he’s sexy? Really?!

I inwardly shook my head in disgust at myself.
I must be losing my mind. Big time.

Even though I tried not to notice that Sinjin was an incredibly attractive man, the debate over whether or not he was sexy was moot. He was the epitome of sexy and there was no denying that. No matter how hard I tried.
But, the fact that he was a complete and total bastard as well seemed to balance out his more estimable attributes.

We both watched
a trickle of blood trailing from each of Sinjin’s fang marks on my wrist, as they coursed their way down my arm. I immediately focused on the two gaping holes and imagined them surrounded by a white, healing light. My wrist felt warm beneath my intent gaze, which meant it was working—I was healing myself. I watched as the holes in my flesh began knitting themselves back together. Another few seconds, and my wounds were just a thing of the past.

“Impressive,” Sinjin commented with a devil’s smile as he looked down at me from his
imposing height. I wasn’t sure if it was just a trick of my eyes, but he appeared revived somehow. His cheeks seemed to have a certain healthy rosiness to them, which they hadn’t possessed before. If I hadn’t known better, I might have thought my blood was somehow invigorating him. But I knew enough of vampires to know that blood didn’t affect them in the same way that nutritious food did for humans. Blood was simply a means to an end for a vampire: pure sustenance and nothing more. And all types of blood had exactly the same effect for them—it wasn’t like one type was better than another.

Why then, did it seem like my blood was having some sort of reaction in Sinjin?
Not only was there more color in his skin, which, even now, was continuing to build, but his eyes also seemed a brighter shade of light blue. Or maybe I was just imagining all of it …

“Are you all right, Bryn?” Jolie asked, facing me with a concerned look in her eyes.

“I’m fine,” I snapped in response, not appreciating anyone’s pity. I wasn’t used to seeing sympathy in other people’s eyes, and didn’t want anyone to start that crap now. I was strong and capable. There was no reason for anyone to feel sorry for me.

“Sinjin, how long will her blood last inside you for
… tracking purposes?” Jolie continued. She was now facing the bastard of a vampire who was still looking at me like I was a Hershey’s kiss and he was on his period.

“Perhaps a fortnight,” Sinjin replied, his eyes still riveted on mine
, narrowing on me with an expression of curiosity. Yes, Sinjin looked surprised. And I didn’t imagine surprise was something that happened to him very often. Meeting his gaze, I tried to read him, and breach that wall of defense again; but just as before, I was unsuccessful. However, I managed to pick up the tiniest afterthought from him. It was more like the whisper of a feeling. And that feeling, just as I’d discerned in his gaze, was surprise. As to why he was surprised, I had no clue.

“Two weeks?” Jolie repeated, breaking my concentration.

“Yes,” Sinjin answered, never pulling his attention from me. “At that time, necessity dictates my feeding from you again, my fierce, little pet.”

I didn’t say anything as I took a deep breath, despising the idea that Sinjin would feed on me again in the future, and most likely, every two weeks
from here on out. It just heightened my need to escape my imprisonment. I still couldn’t understand why I hadn’t heard a peep from Luce. Even though I tried to reassure myself that whatever was or wasn’t happening was all part of his grand plan, it really didn’t lessen my worry or anxiety. Was it possible that I had inadvertently disappointed Luce in some way for which my punishment was abandonment? Had I been the only one left on the battlefield because he no longer considered me one of his people? The thoughts were too painful for me to bear, so I pushed them aside, focusing instead on my present predicament.

“Are we all done now?” I asked my sister haughtily, throwing my hands on my hips as I glared at her.

“Yes,” she answered in a small voice. I could tell by her ashen countenance that watching Sinjin feeding on me had probably hurt her more than it had me.
And, again, I’m sorry I had to put you through this, Bryn,
she added in thought.
I hope you believe me when I say I never wanted to hurt you.

Don’t be sorry,
I replied, unable to stomach the sincere look of pity I detected in her eyes.
Being sorry doesn’t do either of us any good. The situation is what it is.

Jolie just nodded
but didn’t say anything more. Figuring her silence was my cue, I started for the door, the vampire at my heels. “So is he going to be my shadow all night or what?” I asked, looking back at Jolie while spearing Sinjin with a harsh glare.

Jolie nodded, but sighed, as if she realized this situation was a touchy one at best. “Sinjin, would you mind moving from the main house to the other guest room, the one next to Bryn’s?” she asked.

“He’s
moving in
with me?” I demanded, my tone of voice revealing my displeasure. I shook my head against the thought.

“He’s your guardian,” Jolie responded, her jaw tightly clenched. I sensed Rand’s jubilant feelings at hearing the vampire was moving out of Kinloch Kirk and in with me. Well, at least so
meone liked this plan, because I, for one, did not.

Sinjin nodded at my sister, but only after giving me a broad grin that said he’d won. I felt my hands fisting at my sides, but I held my tongue. “Your wish is my command, my
queen,” he said.

Jolie smiled at him gratefully. “I will arrange to have your things delivered this evening
. if that’s all right?”

“Yes,” he responded before he looked at me again with a patronizing expression on his face. “What shall we plan for our first evening together, my little villain?
Perhaps a pajama party? A movie night? Shall I provide the popcorn?”

I frowned at him, doing my best to keep my temper in check.
The situation
was
what it was, so it did no good for me to whine about it. No, I would take my punishment in stride and I wouldn’t encourage Sinjin. “I’d rather be locked up in my room and allotted my privacy this evening,” I answered stonily.

I reached for the handle of the door, but Sinjin’s hand on mine stopped me. His touch sent shivers down my arm,
shivers which lodged in my stomach and made me feel strangely breathless. I had a feeling the shivers didn’t have a whole hell of a lot to do with his low body temperature either. Although I hated admitting it, there was something about Sinjin that just … did something to me. However, I refused to allow myself more time to ponder the subject to figure out just what that something was. Instead, I chalked my bizarre feelings toward the vampire up to my training as a warrior. Because the focus of my entire life was on defending my tribe, I hadn’t exactly had much experience with the opposite sex. Well, if I wanted to be perfectly honest, I hadn’t had any experience at all. Instead, I’d spent all of my time on much more important pursuits, such as mastering defensive strategies, combat training and the like. I’d always been instructed that dalliances with the opposite sex were not something I, as a warrior, should have been concerned with. And I’d followed this sound advice wholeheartedly.

I’d never so much as kissed a man.

“Allow me,” the vampire said with a debonair and practiced smile as he opened the door and I stepped outside into the evening darkness.

“Aren’t you going to magic me blind?” I called out to my sister, after it occurred to me that I could see everything. Not getting any answer, I turned all the way around and found Jolie still sitting next to Rand, but neither of them made any motion to move. Instead, they just gazed at
each other, each of them smiling about something.

“Um, hello!”
I interrupted, not in the mood to eavesdrop on them again. It was way too gross.

“No,” Jolie answered quickly while clearing her throat as if she were
suddenly uncomfortable. Well, good thing, because seeing the two of them ogling each other made me way beyond uncomfortable. “I don’t have to hide anything from you. Things are different now.”

Jolie, is that the best idea?
Rand asked her immediately.

Sinjin can track her anywhere,
Jolie answered
. I’m not worried.

By the look on Rand’s face, I could tell that he still was. But it wasn’t my affair and if the truth be told, I was too tired to think
any more about it. There was definitely something to be said for how tired one became after being drained by a parasite. I could only hope I’d sleep better tonight than I had in the past few nights. Glancing up at Sinjin, I held my arm out in front of me, indicating that he should lead the way back to the guesthouse. “I have no idea where I’m going,” I explained.

“Of course,” he replied, reaching for my hand and starting forward. His touch wasn’t quite as cold as it usually was.

“Is that really necessary?” I asked, referring to my hand, which he clutched in his much larger one. “I am capable of following you without you having to cling onto me, you know?”

“Yes, of course, you are,” Sinjin answered as he continued forward,
still holding my hand and not offering me any other explanations. We walked along the cobbled footpath, which was exceptionally well lit by the moonlight above us. I could hear the sound of waves crashing against the rocks below and was suddenly overcome with the thought of how peaceful the sound of the restless sea was. Before I knew it, we’d reached the guesthouse, the place where I’d been living since Jolie first brought me here.

“After you,
madam,” Sinjin said as he opened the front door and I walked in. Immediately, the two werewolf guards stood at attention, looking first at me and then at Sinjin, their expressions obviously confused.

“At ease, my furry comrades,” Sinjin announced to them with a polished smile.

They both grumbled to each other about “bastard vampires.” I could only concur …

“I am here to inform you that you have both
been relieved of your commands,” Sinjin continued.

“Relieved of our commands?” the taller guard repeated in a thick, East Coast
accent. He was maybe five foot ten, but broad and stout. Although balding on top, he had a thick beard on his face.

“Is the queen unhappy wif us?” the other one asked. He was taller and somewhat narrower than his counterpart, but also broad enough in his own right. While he sported a thick head of hair, he also had a thick neck.
And based on the myriad conversations I’d overheard between the two of them, I considered them both “thick” in general.

Sinjin shook his head.
“No, no, dear sir, nothing as complicated as that. The queen merely recognizes the advantage of delegating the care of her dear sister to one of supreme strength and speed, not to mention a rapier wit.”

Both of the guards stared at him blankly while I rolled my eyes and shook my head. “You forgot to add your exaggerated sense of self
-importance, your narcissism and the fact that you live in a surreality which is completely architected by yourself.”

Sinjin looked back at me and smirked broadly, as if he enjoyed nothing more than engaging in such repartee. “Yes, you are correct, Bête Noire, some of my attributes
do occasionally slip my mind.”

“I dunno what’s goin’ on here,” the shorter of the guards interrupted, glaring at us
both in turn. “You sayin’ the queen is relievin’ us of our posts?”

Sinjin faced the overweight and balding man as he nodded impatiently. “Yes, my dear sir
, your ability to comprehend is quite surprising.” Then he faced the other guard. “Yes, you both are being relieved of your positions as guards to the queen’s ward; which means you are free to scurry off into the forest to hunt small woodland creatures, chase your tails, bite at fleas or do whatever else it is that strikes your fancies.”