The Soldier's Hostage

Chapter One

"Here. This will help with the bruising."

I swallowed, carefully moving forward to accept the offering. Just because I had a room to myself didn't mean I wouldn't be used. Might as well make things a little easier on myself beforehand. I noticed him glance at the cuffs around my wrists as I took the ice pack. But then he turned away and left me to my own devices.

I gingerly sat down at the table and pressed the cold pack to my abdomen. The Vampire picked up a stack of mail and sorted what he didn't want into the bin. The rest he took to his room. I took the opportunity to look around again.

The place was immaculate. This Vampire obviously took pains to keep his living space clean. He didn't have any pictures lying around. No library of old books in dead languages. I bit back a sigh. There was so little to be gained from looking around the place.

I quickly refocused on the tabletop when the Vampire came back into the room. He basically ignored me as he started pulling out a couple plates and some silverware. Those were brought to the table and left there.

Then he went back to the icebox and dug into it. "Thirsty?" He glanced back at me. "I've got a couple beers, some coke, water of course."

"Water please."

He nodded and pulled out a beer before shutting the icebox. He got down a glass and filled it with ice and water, then set it in front of me. I hesitated, then let the ice pack fall into my lap so I could lift the glass to my lips and drink. I had drained it before I knew it. I hadn't had anything to eat or drink since leaving Sophia's manor to come here on this ill fated mission.

I set the glass down and picked up the ice pack again, putting it back against my stomach. Arthur quietly refilled the glass and settled it back in front of me. Then he popped open the top on his beer and took a swig.

I continued to stare at the tabletop, uncomfortable with the heavy silence. Arthur was just leaning against the counter, idly examining me as he drank his beer. I could only imagine what sort of things he was mulling over. None of them were particularly good.

A knock on the door brought me a reprieve as Arthur set down his beer to go answer it. I took in a breath of relief and shuddered as I finally got a moment to relax again. If this was the way it was going to be until either an escape or a rescue, I wasn't sure how long I would last.

Arthur came back with a bag of Chinese boxes. He quickly divided it all up onto the two plates. Then he was setting one plate in front of me, along with a fork, before sitting down across from me with his own plate. He stabbed at a piece of chicken and had it almost to his mouth before pausing. "Eat."

I swallowed under the weight of the order and dropped the ice pack into my lap to pick up the fork. Eating with my hands cuffed together was awkward, but I managed. I ate quickly. It had been awhile and I didn't know how long until the next meal. I also didn't know if this Vampire was the sort to take food away, or maybe drink too much blood in one go, or completely forget about me after today. So I shoveled the food into my mouth until it was gone, ignoring the discomfort of an overfull stomach.

Arthur finished a little after I did, then he got to his feet. He collected up both plates and took them to the sink. I expected him to order me to clean them, but he didn't. He washed them himself and soon had them put away and the empty food boxes cleaned off the counter. When everything was clean, he went into the living room and settled on the couch with the rest of his beer, apparently content to watch TV for the rest of the night.

I continued to sit at the table, holding the melting ice pack to my stomach. Arthur glanced over the back of the couch. "You can join me if you want." I hesitated, not sure if that was an order or not. I relaxed again when Arthur shrugged and turned back to the TV. "Or you can stay there."

I chose to stay put, preferring to stay away from the Vampire and digest. After a few minutes, I didn't care so much about anything. My mind was slowly going blank as the full belly and the warm apartment, combined with the really long day, had me falling asleep.

I blinked in surprise when Arthur was suddenly in front of me. He reached for the ice pack and I surrendered it. It wasn't cold anymore anyways. He put it away, then he was taking my elbow and guiding me to my feet and down the hall. I didn't resist until he got me into the bedroom and I laid eyes on the bed.

Arthur just guided me forward again, reaching down to throw back the covers and sit me on the edge of the bed. He uncuffed one hand and moved that ring towards the head of the bed, attaching it securely around one of the bed posts. He glanced up at me. He didn't seem to care about the look of disgust I was giving him.

I looked away from him, waiting for him to start touching me. For him to try to kiss me. I looked up in surprise when he straightened and started for the door.

"Try to get some sleep." He flicked off the light and closed the door behind him.

I stared into the darkness in shock. Was he not in the mood? Did I disgust him somehow? I finally shook my head and kicked off my shoes. Then I lay back, sliding under the covers to get some sleep. I shouldn't argue with my good luck.

The horrors would come. I was sure of it.