Entangled

22, Tortured Time

As much as I wanted to, I couldn't lie there on the floor forever. I stayed down for maybe five minutes, and then slowly pushed myself up onto my hands and knees, wincing all the way. 

My back, ass, and thighs burned, screaming in protest to wait until they were healed, but I didn't want to wait too long, in case the person Dahlia mentioned would come in and do what she said he'd do.

The floor was a mess underneath me. I wondered if Dahlia expected me to clean it. She most likely did, in fact, it might've been the entire reason she left me up here and told me to come find her later. 

Groaning softly, I staggered to my feet and stepped painfully over to her bathroom, limping and wincing as I went. I flicked on the light and rummaged in her cupboards until I found a spare towel. I came back to the bloody spot in the middle of her room and wiped as much of it up as I could. Some of it had already started sticking to the wood, so I wet the towel and scrubbed the blood off until I couldn't see a speck left over.

By then, the towel was almost entirely red and fairly damp. I didn't know what to do with it, whether it should go in a washer or if it needed to go to whatever servants she had that took care of blood-stained fabrics, of which I was sure they might have a lot of. I decided I should find wherever this was supposed to go before I went and found Dahlia.

But then, there was the dilemma of my nakedness. I didn't want to put any clothes on right then due to my exposed wounds, but at the same time, I didn't want to wander around with my junk out for all to see. 

Her pets wore those black loincloths. Maybe she had spare ones around. I set the ruined towel down on the floor and made sure to clean my hands in her bathroom sink. Then, cautiously, I peeked around inside her closet, which turned out to be a second room all on its own. I made sure not to touch anything I didn't need to touch, only opening drawers and moving aside storage boxes. But there was nothing resembling a loincloth anywhere in her giant walk-in closet.

I sighed. It seemed I would have to use my tail to cover myself for the time being. I winced and groaned as I sprouted it out from my tailbone, the action making my spine hurt. Once it was out, I tucked it between my legs and curled it up against my lower-stomach, the fur soft against my skin, a small, tiny comfort.

By then, I was sure some time had passed. How much, I wasn't sure, but certainly somewhere around 30 minutes. Was that too long? Was the male she mentioned on his way right now?

My gaze caught on the glass doors leading out to her balcony. This might be my only chance to see the outside, to see where I am and how her property is laid out.

I decided to risk it. I stepped over to the doors and carefully opened one. I waited to see if any sort of magic barrier would reprimand me for doing so, but as I slowly opened the door wider, nothing painful happened. 

I crouched down so that I wouldn't be easily spotted, and shuffled over to the edge of her balcony. The railing was stone, and had waist-high pillars with just enough space between each one that I could peek through and look around.

Dahlia's place seemed to consist of a very ancient-looking stone fortress. There were towers, outdoor corridors, courtyards, and the main building stretched almost to the size of a castle. Dahlia's room seemed to be located in one of the highest towers, announcing her status as Head Vampire. 

Surrounding the fortress was a tall stone wall, wide enough to allow guards to walk along the top of it. Lanterns on posts lit their way, illuminating the outside of her property. I could see there was a fair bit of land between the outer wall and her fortress. I spotted a large iron gate that was closed shut in the outer wall, and I assumed that this balcony faced the front of her property.