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We left a while ago, heading to Aohdan's estate for the winter solstice. Grandpa's car is well ahead of the one I'm riding in with the rest of the slaves accompanying their master. I quietly sit in between another slave and one of Grandpa's coven members.

The thought slips through my mind frequently now, that I'm really in a different era than the one I'd grown up in...and that only one of my parents exists at the present. There is no time for me to currently return to that is mine...death waiting with welcoming open arms. Everything happening around me is very real, it's not like I'm walking through a wax museum, time safe and frozen in place for observation purposes alone.

I wish...

The air catches in my lungs, forcing myself to close off my thoughts from what I was about so absentmindedly to do.

My reaction doesn't go unnoticed, and the vampire beside me asks with amusement, "Are you worried about selection?"

"No, Sir," I shortly reply.

"I'd be if I were in your position," he muses to himself, catching other slaves looking sideways from their downturned stares on their laps. I hadn't even realized how high I hold my head among my peers in this position, so I release a small sigh and lower my chin, averting attention off me. It only works for a moment, because the vampire follows up with, "After shortly acquiring you, it appears your fate is sealed that he'd specifically choose you to join the ranks of the slaves attending the winter solstice...the sole intent; selection," he pauses to ask, "does that not worry you, slave?"

Releasing a small breath of air, I reply, "If your deduction is correct..." my voice trails off as I fall into the part I'm meant to play, "...then I'm terrified, Sir, but it doesn't matter how I feel because I'm just a tool to be used. If Master wishes to bestow that fate on me, I'm at his disposal."

The vampire next to me is about to say something, but the car comes to a stop. The engine dies and I glance out the window to see that we're at a large estate. It's nothing like the estate or grounds that Aohdan and Rochelle reside on in my era...but its description matches the book. While we're ushered out of the cars, I see Grandpa standing near his, his gaze tracing over the estate.

"You sure have a compliant slave, Cormac," the vampire who'd been talking to me walks up next to him.

Grandpa turns to his side and asks, "Is that so?"

The vampire nods at me and confirms, "If you're thinking of selecting her, it's a pity and a shame to waste such an obedient slave."

There's a spark I know all too well that ignites for a second in Grandpa's eyes and he chuckles, "I'll keep that in mind."

It's almost enough to cause Grandpa to laugh when I scrunch my nose...the way that reminds him so much of mom. He fights it down and nods at Aohdan's estate, heading toward the door. He raises his hand and knocks on the door and my heart nearly jumps out of its chest when I see it's a younger Rochelle who greets him.

"Well, hello there slave," Grandpa nods his head at her and she quickly moves back inside the door. He then asks her, "Where's Aohdan?"

I can see Rochelle quickly shake her head, but she tells him, "Sir, my Master is making sure everything is ready for the council's arrival."

"Thank you, slave," Grandpa returns a kind smile to her. His coven members head down a hall and through a side door, while the slaves around me walk down a familiar hall of their own. It's a grave look that befalls Grandpa's features that I linger for a moment.

It's unsettling because the way he spoke was the same lines he's said before...yet with his mind having the knowledge of our era, why would he speak word for word—

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